Lisbon Humberto Delgado Airport (LIS) is one of the closest airports to any European capital: about 13 km (8 mi) by road from Avenida da Liberdade, roughly 17 minutes on a clear road. The "train" from the airport is the metro: the Red line's Aeroporto station sits in the arrivals area of Terminal 1, runs from 06:30 to 01:00, and a single ride costs €1.90 on a reloadable card. For one traveller with a carry-on staying near a station, that is hard to beat.
A private driver is worth it in specific cases: when your hotel is a change of line and an uphill walk from the nearest station, when you land with children or more bags than you can carry on escalators, when you arrive after the metro closes, or when there are enough of you that a fixed US$90 to US$120 car costs little more per person than the alternatives. This guide sets out the numbers and the districts.
Is a private driver worth it over the metro from Lisbon airport?
For a solo traveller or a couple with light bags staying near a metro station, no: the metro is quick, frequent and costs €1.90 each. A private driver is worth it for families, groups of three or more with luggage, hotels in Alfama, Bairro Alto or Príncipe Real, and arrivals after 01:00. Elly8.net transfers start at US$90 per vehicle.
Most of the decision is about the last kilometre rather than the first. The metro gets you into the city efficiently; what it cannot do is carry your suitcases up the hills of Lisbon's old quarters, and several of the most charming hotel districts are a change of line and a steep walk from the nearest station. The drive, by contrast, ends at or near the hotel door.
The metro from the airport: hours, frequency and fares
According to Metro Lisboa, the Aeroporto station is in the airport building's arrivals zone, open from 06:30 to 01:00, with lifts between the street, the concourse and the platform, ticket machines and an ATM. Carris buses 705, 722, 744 and 783 and the Aerobus lines 1 and 2 also stop at the airport.
Trains on the Red line run on weekdays every 6 minutes at the morning and evening peaks, about every 7 minutes in the middle of the day and about every 10 minutes late in the evening, according to Metro Lisboa's timetables and frequencies; weekend mornings are slightly less frequent. The line connects with the Green, Blue and Yellow lines in the city, so most central hotels are one change away.
Fares, from the Metro Lisboa fares page:
- Navegante ocasional card: €0.50, reloadable for a year.
- Carris/Metro single ticket: €1.90, valid for 60 minutes across the metro and Carris network.
- Contactless bank card: €1.92 per metro journey, tapped at the gate.
- 24-hour Carris/Metro ticket: €7.25, unlimited metro, buses and trams.
As arithmetic for comparison, a family of four buying cards and single tickets spends 4 x (€0.50 + €1.90) = €9.60 to reach the city. The question is whether that saving is worth the change of line and the walk at the other end.
Where you are staying decides it
Lisbon's hotel districts differ sharply in how easy they are from the metro. This is how the desk would advise a traveller with two large suitcases.
| Hotel district | By metro from LIS | By car from LIS | Our honest verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parque das Nações | Same Red line, no change | About 5 km (3 mi), roughly 10 min (routed) | Metro or the taxi rank; very short drive |
| Saldanha, Avenidas Novas | Red line, often no change | Short drive on the avenues | Metro for light travellers |
| Avenida da Liberdade, Marquês de Pombal | One change of line, flat walk to most hotels | About 13 km (8 mi), roughly 17 min | Metro if travelling light; car with heavy bags or children |
| Baixa, Rossio | One change of line, flat streets | Pedestrian streets, nearest permitted stop | Either; the car helps with luggage |
| Chiado, Bairro Alto, Príncipe Real | A change and a steep walk | Restricted streets, nearest permitted stop | Car, especially with luggage |
| Alfama, Graça, Castelo | A change and a long uphill walk | Narrow lanes, nearest road | Car, with the drop-off planned in advance |
| Belém | Metro then a tram or train | About 8 km (5 mi) west of the centre | Car or taxi |
| Cascais, Estoril, Sintra | Metro, then the suburban train | 29 to 36 km (18 to 22 mi), about 30 min (routed) | Car or the airport taxi's fixed voucher price |
The pattern is clear. Along the Red line and the flat avenues, the metro is the sensible choice for light travellers. In the hill districts that most visitors find so appealing, the last stretch is where the car pays for itself.
The taxi rank in the middle
Since 15 October 2026, the taxi rank outside arrivals has charged fixed prices into Lisbon under a protocol reported by the national taxi association ANTRAL: €16 or €19 by day on weekdays, depending on the zone, and €20 or €23 at night, at weekends and on holidays, for up to four passengers, with a higher price when more than four ride. Avenida da Liberdade, the Baixa, Chiado and Alfama fall in the €19 daytime zone.
Fairly put, that makes the taxi rank the best-value door-to-door option for up to four people with normal luggage who do not mind queueing after passport control. We compare it with the rideshare apps in our guide to Uber at Lisbon airport. Where the pre-booked car differs is what happens before the ride: the meeting in arrivals, the tracking of your flight, and a car already chosen for your bags and child seats.
What a private driver adds
A person waiting for you. The chauffeur tracks your flight number and waits in the arrivals hall of the right terminal with a name board. Waiting after a tracked landing is complimentary, which matters at Lisbon: flights from the United States and Canada arrive from outside the Schengen area, and since 10 April 2026 the European Union's Entry/Exit System has registered non-EU visitors with fingerprints and a facial image instead of a passport stamp. A first entry under the system takes longer.
A car sized for the luggage. A Business Sedan takes 3 passengers and 2 bags; a Business SUV or First Class SUV takes 6 and 6; an Executive Sprinter takes 12 and 12. Child seats are fitted on request. See the fleet.
A fixed price before you fly. From LIS to Avenida da Liberdade and most central addresses: US$90 in a business sedan, US$120 in a business SUV, US$160 in a First Class Sedan, US$145 in a First Class SUV and US$235 in an Executive Sprinter, per vehicle. A round trip costs from US$175. The fare includes the chauffeur, taxes, standard gratuity and meet and greet; tolls and parking are billed at cost. The same fixed price applies from the hotel to the airport for your departure.
As arithmetic for comparison only, a business SUV at US$120 for a family of five works out at US$24 each, and an Executive Sprinter at US$235 for ten travellers at US$23.50 each. The fare is always charged per vehicle.
Rides in Lisbon are operated by licensed, commercially insured local chauffeur partners vetted through the Limousine Worldwide network; Elly8.net takes the booking, fixes the price and runs the 24/7 desk. Read more on airport transfers and meet and greet.
Late arrivals and Terminal 2
The metro closes at 01:00, so an evening flight that lands late, or is delayed past midnight, leaves the taxi rank, rideshare and a pre-booked car. A booked chauffeur follows the delay without any action from you, which is the main reason late-arriving families book in advance.
If your airline uses Terminal 2, the smaller building used by several low-cost carriers, remember that the metro station is at Terminal 1; a free shuttle bus links the two. The chauffeur goes to the terminal your flight number shows. Travellers connecting from another Schengen airport such as Madrid or Paris clear passport control at the hub and exit Lisbon faster; give the final flight number when you book.
Three arrivals, three answers
A consultant with a carry-on, landing at 10:00, staying in Saldanha. The Red line runs straight there, trains come every few minutes and the ride costs €1.90. A car would be paying for comfort she does not need. Metro.
A couple with two large cases each, landing on the morning transatlantic wave, staying at a boutique hotel in Chiado. The metro means a change of line and a climb on cobbles with four suitcases. The taxi rank's fixed €19 daytime price is excellent value if the queue is short; if they would rather walk out of passport control to a name board and a car already waiting, a business sedan at US$90 or an SUV at US$120 for the extra cases does that. Taxi rank or chauffeur, by preference.
A family of five with two child seats and six bags, staying in an apartment in Alfama. This is the arrival a pre-booked car is built for: a Business SUV at US$120 with the seats fitted before pickup, a chauffeur who knows which road reaches nearest the apartment, and help with the bags for the last few metres. Chauffeur.
Going back to the airport
The same logic applies in reverse, with one addition: on departure day, you are working to a deadline. The metro reaches the airport quickly from the Red line, but a change of line with luggage at the morning peak adds stress. A pre-booked car costs the same fixed fare as the arrival and the desk suggests a pickup time that allows for the drive, airline check-in, security and the exit registration that the Entry/Exit System records when you leave the Schengen area. During Web Summit, from 9 to 12 November 2026, when demand for every car in the city peaks, booking the departure in advance is especially worthwhile.
When the train is the right answer
To be clear about it: one traveller with a carry-on, landing in daylight, staying in Parque das Nações, Saldanha or near a metro station on the avenues, should take the metro. Two people with standard bags who do not mind the queue should look at the taxi rank's fixed price. The private driver is for the arrivals where the hard part is not the distance: families, groups, heavy luggage, hill-district hotels, late flights and business travellers with a meeting the same morning, for whom a corporate account adds monthly invoicing.
For the general comparison across our cities, see chauffeur vs taxi and chauffeur vs shared airport shuttle.
How to book the transfer
- Pickup and drop-off. Choose LIS and enter your flight number, then the hotel or address.
- Vehicle. Pick the class that fits passengers, bags and child seats.
- Reserve. Press Reserve now on the Lisbon car service page for the published fare, or use the web booker for an address outside the price list, such as a Sintra quinta or a Cascais villa. Confirmation arrives by email.
Cancellation is free more than 72 hours before pickup; 10% at 72 hours or less, 50% at 48 hours or less, and 100% at 24 hours or less or for a no-show, with refunds to the original card. Elly8.net books the car only; for flights and hotels our travel partner is BookingWorldwide.net. Elly8.net is a member of LimousineWorldwide.Directory, LimousineAssociation.International, HotelsWorldwide.Directory and VacationsWorldwide.Directory. Planning time outside the city? See our Lisbon to Sintra comparison, and for the next leg of an Iberian trip, the Porto and Madrid pages.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get from Lisbon airport to the city centre?
By metro on the Red line from the Aeroporto station in the arrivals area, open 06:30 to 01:00; by taxi from the arrivals rank at fixed prices into Lisbon; by rideshare; or by a pre-booked chauffeur. The drive to Avenida da Liberdade is about 13 km (8 mi), roughly 17 minutes on a clear road.
How much is the metro from Lisbon airport?
A Carris/Metro single ticket costs €1.90 and is valid for 60 minutes, loaded on a €0.50 navegante ocasional card. You can also tap a contactless bank card at the gate for €1.92 per metro journey. A 24-hour Carris/Metro ticket costs €7.25.
How much is a private transfer from Lisbon airport to the city?
An Elly8.net transfer to Avenida da Liberdade and central addresses costs US$90 in a business sedan, US$120 in a business SUV and US$235 in an Executive Sprinter, per vehicle. It includes the chauffeur, taxes, standard gratuity and meet and greet; tolls and parking are billed at cost.
What if I land after the metro closes?
The metro runs until 01:00. After that, the options are the taxi rank, rideshare or a pre-booked car. A booked chauffeur tracks your flight and waits after the actual landing, and that waiting is complimentary, so a late delay does not leave you without a ride.
Is the metro easy with suitcases?
The airport station has lifts between street, concourse and platform, so the start is easy. The difficulty is at the other end: a change of line and, in Chiado, Bairro Alto, Príncipe Real or Alfama, a steep walk on cobbles. With two large cases per person, most travellers prefer a car.
