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AIRPORT DESK
About Airport Desk

Airport Desk strives to inform its visitors as much as possible about a considerable number of frequently used airports. We have the answers to frequently asked questions such as: “How do I get there? Is there a hotel there? How much does a taxi cost?”.

Besides the information about the airports, we also have composed an overview in our resources directory of useful links to Internet sites that can be useful. Every comment, both positive and negative, is welcome. For leaving comments use our contact page.

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Car rental Portugal

General information and regulations

In order to rent a car you must be at least 21 years old (age may vary by car category) and have held your licence for 1 year. Drivers under the age of 25 may incur a young driver surcharge.

Seatbelts are mandatory and child seats are mandatory for children up to 4 years old. Traffic travels on the right and the speed limits are as follows: in the city 35mph/56kph, on open roads 55mph/88kph and highways 75mph/120kph.

Driving in Portugal with a rental car

Portugal has an excellent network of roads, there is a highway with four lanes (the Auto-estrada) which leads from Lisbon to Porto. The distance is approximately 280 km. Furthermore, many cities are interconnected by means of roads with 2 lanes. The network covers about 69,000 km and the Auto-Estrada van Lisbon to Porto is the only toll road.

Trips to the large cities are easily arranged, from Faro to Lisbon as well as from Lisbon to Porto will take no more than a day. A nice trip is driving from Faro to Porto with a stopover in Lisbon. The distance of this trip is 463 km and an overnight stay in Lisbon makes it easy and comfortable.

Arriving in Funchal (Madeira airport) entails other opportunities, especially with regard to the forests and mountains. These are popular among hiking enthusiasts.

The Azores are located at 1,000 km from the coast of Portugal although these islands draw many tourists each year. Madeira, another Portugese island, is known for its 'Levada's', canals for irrigation which cover 2,150 km and are spread along the entire island.

Renting a car in Portugal

The airports of Porto, Lisbon, Faro and Madeira have a wide selection of car rental companies available:Avis, Auto Jardim, AA Castanheira/Budget, Europcar, Hertz and National.

Another option is booking a car through EasyTerra. This website compares the rates of local car rental companies for your convenience.

Airports in Portugal

Faro Airport  (Faro)
Lisbon Portela Airport  (Lisbon)
Madeira Airport (Funchal)  (Funchal)
Porto Airport  (Porto)

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