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HOW TO GET TO LISBON
Getting to Lisbon - By Air
Lisboa is just a few hours flying away - 6/8 hours from North America and 2/3 hours from most European cities. The airport, which had the world's highest passenger growth rate in 1998, is located seven kilometres (four miles) north of the city and is served by major international airlines. The national airline is TAP Air Portugal, the official carrier of the event. Please read this to find out how to book your TAP flights with favorable discounts.
Airport facilities
First aid, bureaux de change, post office, left-luggage, restaurant and bar are all open 24-hours. There are also duty-free (and other) shops, tourist information (06:00-00:00), a bank and several car hire companies.
Welcome Desk
The office of the official travel agency ABREU, located right at the arrivals hall of Lisboa airport, provides personalized assistance to the incoming participants. This welcome desk will be open 09.30-13.00 and 14.00-18.00.
Transport to the city
The AeroBus departs every 20 minutes (07.00-21.00) to the city centre (journey time: 20 minutes) and the Cais do Sodré railway station. Local buses 5, 8, 22, 44 and 83 operate 06:00-21:30 and bus 45 runs until 01:15. Taxis are available 24-hours a day. The journey time to the city center lasts 15-30 minutes and costs 10-15 EUR.
Getting to Lisbon - By Road
Traffic drives on the right in Portugal and international traffic signs are used. The minimum age for driving is 18 years. Speed limits are 120kph (74mph) on motorways, 90kph (56mph) outside built-up areas and 50kph (30mph) in towns.
Tolls are charged on most motorways. Motorways are indicated by the prefix 'A'; minor roads by the prefix 'N'. Both International Driving Permits and national driving licences are accepted.
A Green Card and third-party insurance are compulsory, as well as two warning triangles. Seat belts must be worn and children should travel in the rear seat.
The Automóvel Club de Portugal (ACP) is the national motoring association(telephone: , - emergency) and will assist motorists whose automobile club has a reciprocal agreement.
Routes to the city
The A1 Auto-estrada do Norte extends from Porto to Lisbon and the A8 arrives from destinations to the north and west of the city. The A9 bypasses Lisbon, connecting the A1, A8 and the A5, which links Lisbon with Cascais and the beaches. The A2 Auto-estrada do Sul arrives from the Algarve via Almada and the Ponte 25 de Abril. The A12 crosses the Ponte Vasco da Gama, offering a less congested route into the city.
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
There is a wide inexpensive network in all towns and cities. In Lisboa, city of the seven hills, you can choose between bus, underground metro, elevators, electric trams or railway, within the city or to the suburbs. Trains and express bus service also links the main towns of the country.
Bus/tram tickets can be purchased in the vehicles, from the driver, or at any ticket vendor. Metro tickets must be purchased at the Metro stops. There are passes for bus/tram/metro trips valid for 1 or 5 days (7 colinas card, available at Carris ticket outlets and at Metro stops). There are also combined tourist cards that include museums and unlimited travel on the city's tramway, bus, elevator and underground transportation (1, 2 or 3 days).
HOW TO GET TO THE VENUE
Given the historical landmarks located in the Belém area, no large hotels are built near CCB, so participants in conferences usually choose one of the many hotels in the downtown area or in the Praça de Espanha area, and take public transportation to Belém (see hotel map). As an alternative, one can choose a hotel near Estoril and Cascais (e.g. no. 9, Hotel Vila Galé Estoril), and take the train along the river coast.
All hotels except no. 2 (the closest to CCB) and no. 9 (Estoril) are located near Underground (Metro) stops.
Taking the Green Metro line (linha verde) in the direction of Cais do Sodré and getting out at that last stop is surely the quickest way to reach the river bank for hotels near this line (numbers 4, 10, 16). Once in Cais do Sodré, one can walk to the next tram/bus stop, and take either buses no. 14, 28, 43 or tram (eléctrico) no. 15 which follows a route almost parallel to the river. Alternatively, one can take the train and get out at the Belém stop. The whole route should not take more than 40 minutes.
Taking the Yellow Metro Line (linha amarela) in the direction of Rato and getting out at that last stop is another possibility for hotels near this line (numbers 4, 15, 17). From Rato, one can take buses no. 27 or 49 to CCB.
Hotels located near Praça de Espanha and Olaias (6, 7, 8, and 13) are served by Bus no. 56, which takes about 15 min, with no traffic, to get to stop R. Junqueira. There you can change to tram no. 15, or buses no. 49, and 51, which take another 10-15 min. to CCB.
Alternatively, the hotels near the Blue Metro Line (linha azul) can also be reached by changing at the last stop (Baixa-Chiado) to the Green Line and following the directions above.
- By bus
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14
(Praça da Figueira - Outurela)
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27
(Restelo - Roma)
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28
(Restelo - Portela)
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32
(Caselas - Hospital de Santa Maria)
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43
(Buraca - Cais do Sodré)
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49
(Restelo - Chelas)
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51
(Estação de Campolide - Linda-a-Velha)
- By tram
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15
(Praça da Figueira - Algés)
- By bus and tram
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56
(Olaias - P. Indústrias)
Change to tram 15 at stop R. Junqueira (10-15 min. to CCB)
- By train - Linha de Cascais (Belém station, on the line from Cais do Sodré to Cascais)
- By boat - Belém station
- By taxi - Rua de Belém, facing Jerónimos
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