Arrival point: Francisco Sá Carneiro/ Porto Airport (phone +351 229 432 400), 11Km north of the city centre.
Porto and the North of Portugal, with its International Airport – Aeroporto Sá Carneiro - is centrally located between America and Europe. Flights can be found from throughout the world to Porto airport. Most low cost companies fly to Porto.
Transport from/ to the airport: Metro or taxi
The surface Subway (Metro) line is a quick connection between the airport, the city centre and the main hotels in Porto, with services every 20 minutes. Don’t lose a minute. Get in the Violet (E) Line. Line E (Violet) connects Airport Station to Estádio do Dragão Station, and, naturally, to all metro’s network.
Line E (Violet) comes to add 1,6 km extension to Metro do Porto system, that now counts a total of 60 km and 68 stations. The service defined for Line E (Violet), Airport – Estádio do Dragão, assure a direct (without any overflow) and very fast link (trip times around 25 minutes) to the Porto city centre. The occasional Andante title required for travelling between the Airport Station and Porto city centre is a Z4. In the Andante shop located in the arrivals zone of the Airport you can also buy the Andante Tour, an unlimited and intermodal title valid for 1 or 3 days.
A taxi to the centre costs approximately 25€. Taxis can charge an additional 20% from 22:00 to 06:00 and other additional surcharge may also be applied for extra luggage, although wheelchairs and other equipment required by physically handicapped people are transported free of charge. The price is the same, regardless of the number of people sharing a taxi (maximum 4 per taxi).
CP - Comboios de Portugal, the Portuguese railway company, offers a vast rail network covering the whole of mainland Portugal and also offers international connections daily to Paris via Madrid and several trains daily to Lisbon. For more information please visit www.cp.pt.
Journey time: 3 hours from Lisbon & 12-14 hours from Madrid
Departure point from Lisbon: Santa Apolónia/ Gare do Oriente
Arrival point: Porto railway station Campanhã
Cost: From Lisbon 44.60€ (1st class) and 31.90€ (2nd class) – Alfa Pendular.
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Portugal has a good road network composed of Motorways (AE), Main Trunk Routes (IP), Complementary Trunk Routes (IC), Main (National) Roads (EN) and Secondary (Municipal) Roads. There are car rental services at airports, international rail terminuses and in the main towns and cities. You can use the highway ‘A28’ between Vigo (Spain) and Porto or the highway ‘A1’ between Lisbon and Porto. Both are good and new highways, and the ‘A1’ have a toll fee (about 25€)
You can get to Portugal by bus. Eurolines and Intercentro both operate international routes to and from Portugal.
There are regular bus services between Portugal’s main towns and cities. For details of routes, timetables and fares visit www.rede-expressos.pt the website of Rede Nacional de Expressos.
To get around in Porto there are regular bus between Porto’s most important sites. For detailed information, timetables and fares visit www.stcp.pt
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It costs approximately 90€ per day to rent a car.
To rent a car you can contact Skyros-Congressos - Phone: +351 22 616 54 50.
Street parking usually costs about 1€ per hour in the city centre.
The phone number of the taxi call centre in Porto is +351 22 5073900. Taxi ranks can be found at various locations in the city centre. Almost all the conference hotels have a taxi rank located at a distance of no more than 150m. A taxi from the airport to the city centre costs approximately 25€.
Official Language
The official language of the IAGOD is English. No translation will be provided.
Passport and Visa
Entry formalities in Portugal vary according to the country of origin. European Union (EU) citizens and the European Economic Area (EEA) as well as third-country nationals holding a residence permit of a Schengen State, do not need a Visa to enter Portugal. All non-EU citizens are asked to contact their local embassies for any specific requirements. All foreign citizens entering Portugal must have either a valid passport or a national valid ID card.
An official letter will be sent upon request to assist in meeting administrative requirements. However, this invitation implies no obligation, financial or otherwise, by the IAGOD organizing committee. A digital certificate of attendance will be available for all the registered participants.
Liability and Insurance
The organizing committee cannot accept liability for personal accidents or loss of/or damage to private property of participants and accompanying persons. Participants are advised to acquire their own personal travel and health insurance for their trip.
Health and Emergency
In case of emergency, land line or mobile phones users should call 112, the European emergency number to be sent for the relevant department.
Currency and Money Exchange
Currency in Portugal is the Euro (€). Most banks are open at 09:00 and close by 15:00hrs, Monday through Friday. (Banks at the airports is open 08:00-20:00).
Post offices are open from 8:00 to 18:00 hrs. Both are generally open during lunch hour.
Please notice that there will be no exchange facilities at the congress venue.
Portugal also has an extensive network of cash dispensers which operate 24 hours a day. ATMs are widely distributed throughout the Conference venue and trough out the city.
Most credit cards allow you to withdraw money from ATM’s. You can exchange money from at least seven exchange bureaus from Monday to Saturday.
Local Time Zone
The summer time in Portugal is GMT + 1 Hour (Western Europe Daylight). The local time in Portugal is the Greenwich the same as in London.
Climate
Portuguese climate is mild. The city of Porto, being in the coast can have a maritime influence. At this time of the year, it is usually sunny and hot. Summer temperatures in Porto will vary from 15ºC - 26ºC on average. You are advised to bring some warm clothing for the nights can be chilly due to the coast influence.
Portugal uses a 220V system, sockets have the European standard and plugs are two-prong.
Public transport
Public transport throughout the city is well organized. Busses, metro (subway) and trams will take you to every possible destination and around Porto from early in the morning until late at night. Busses and trams stop at the entrance of the conference venue.
Sightseeing
For sightseeing tours you can contact Skyros-Congressos - Phone: +351 22 616 54 50.
Shopping
The most traditional shopping area in the city center of Porto is Rua Santa Catarina, along with the narrow streets going up and down from the city center till Ribeira, by the Douro river side.
Several shopping centers, in Porto and around it, are open everyday till 23:00.
