Summary
- Aveiro offers a Venetian experience with canals and moliceiros, but without the crowds or high costs.
- OPO airport is the closest to Aveiro for travelers, offering affordable bus fares and private transfers.
- Direct flights from the US and Europe make Porto easily accessible, with various airlines providing services.
If tourists wish to get the feel of Venice but do not want to walk down the crowded streets, then the best bet is Aveiro in Portugal. Aveiro is often referred to as the ‘Venice of Portugal’ because of the canals, boats, and casual pace of life, but with none of the hustle and not as expensive.
This article looks into the various flight options for anyone who wants to fly to Aveiro using Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport (OPO) or Porto Airport.
A taste of Venice in Portugal
Aveiro has canals that run through the entire city and resemble the famous canals of Venice. However, instead of gondolas, you will see traditional moliceiros – slender boats that were created in the 19th century to collect moliço algae in the Ria de Aveiro for the purpose of using it as fertilizer.
As fertilizer chemicals dominated the market and reduced the need for moliço, these boats changed from work boats to cultural and tourism icons of Aveiro. Just like in Venice, beautiful bridges by the canals also add a friendly touch to the interiors of Aveiro and make for stunning views.
They are two cities with very distinct and special food cultures. Seafood is a specialty of the region, and other local delicacies such as ‘ovos moles’ (‘soft eggs,’ made of a creamy filling of egg yolks and sugar, encased in delicate rice paper or wheat flour shells shaped like nautical motifs).
The only big difference between the two cities is that Aveiro is less crowded than Venice, especially with tourists.
Benefits of choosing OPO for travel to Aveiro
Porto Airport, officially Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport (OPO), is the nearest international airport, some 80 km to the north of Aveiro.
Buses are estimated to take about an hour and 20 minutes, while a taxi will take about 50 minutes. FlixBus provides daily connections between OPO and Aveiro to guarantee the population a cheap means of transport, with several services per hour.
Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying
The cost of travel from OPO to Aveiro is affordable, with bus fares ranging from €4 to €18 and private transfers starting around €50, making it an economical choice.
The airport is about 14 kilometers (8 miles) from Porto’s city center. The best way to reach the city, and Aveiro from there, is via the Metro (subway). The purple line takes you directly from the airport to the city center for just a few euros.
The subway station is adjacent to the airport terminal; you simply follow the signs along an underground walkway. The journey takes approximately 20 to 30 minutes. The subway runs frequently every 20 minutes, depending on the time of day and year.
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Direct flights from the US to Porto
Currently, there are three airlines that connect the United States directly to Porto: TAP Air Portugal,
United Airlines
, and Azores Airlines.
TAP Air Portugal and United Airlines have year-round nonstop flights from New York/Newark (EWR) to Porto with several flights per week, at least 7.
Photo: Carlos Yudica | Shutterstock
Azores Airlines connects Boston (BOS)
to Porto on Wednesday, while the return journey is on Tuesday. It also connects New York City (JFK) to Porto nonstop.
Airline |
Departure city |
Aircraft used |
Flight frequency* |
---|---|---|---|
TAP Air Portugal |
New York/Newark (EWR) |
Airbus A321neo |
Year-round direct flights, multiple weekly flights, typically 7 per week. |
TAP Air Portugal |
Boston (BOS) |
Airbus A321neo |
Seasonal direct flights, multiple weekly flights, typically 7 per week. |
United Airlines |
New York/Newark (EWR) |
Boeing 757 |
Seasonal direct flights, multiple weekly flights, typically 7 per week. |
Azores Airlines |
Boston (BOS) |
Airbus A321LR |
Seasonal direct flights on Wednesdays from Boston to Porto, and in the opposite direction on Tuesdays. |
Azores Airlines |
New York City (JFK) |
Airbus A321LR |
*The schedule may vary slightly, and it may not be available every day during certain periods.
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Examined: TAP Air Portugal’s US Route Network
TAP Air Portugal continues its expansion into the US market.
Flights from Europe to Porto
A total of 40 European airlines fly to Porto from more than 100 European airports. The most well-connected destinations are Madrid, Barcelona, and Lisbon.
Out of all the European carriers with routes to Porto, Ryanair has the highest number of direct routes to the city at 73, while easyJet has 28 and TAP Air Portugal has 8. The table below gives an overview of the main airlines and their routes.
Photo: Markus Mainka | Shutterstock
To make it easier for those who prefer to travel on one type of aircraft over another, we have divided the airlines into three tables based on the type of aircraft used: Boeing, Airbus, and Embraer.
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The table below focuses on flights using the Boeing 737 aircraft. Some routes are offered year-round, while others are seasonal or operate as charter flights.
European airlines’ routes to Porto (according to flightconnections.com) – Boeing 737 |
|||
---|---|---|---|
Airline |
Departure city |
Aircraft used |
Flight frequency* |
Ryanair |
73 routes (To mention a few: Amburgo (HAM), Berlin (BER), Bologna (BLQ), Bruxelles (BRU), Cagliari (CAG), Dublin (DUB), Geneva (GVA), Malta (MLA), Manchester (MAN), Venice (TSF)) |
Boeing 737 |
Generally, year-round direct flights, but – Castellón de la Plana (CDT) seasonal (June-September) – León (LEN) seasonal (January-February). |
Transavia |
Bordeaux (BOD), Brest (BES), Lyon (LYS), Nantes (NTE), Amsterdam (AMS) |
Boeing 737 |
Year-round direct flights |
TUI Fly |
Düsseldorf (DUS), Frankfurt (FRA), Hannover (HAJ), Munich (MUC) |
Boeing 737 |
Generally, year-round direct flights, but Hannover (HAJ) is seasonal (June-July) |
KLM |
Amsterdam (AMS) |
Boeing 737 (and Embraer 195) |
Year-round direct flights |
Luxair |
Luxembourg (LUX) |
Boeing 737 |
Year-round direct flights |
Norwegian |
Copenhagen (CPH), Oslo (OSL), Stockholm (ARN) |
Boeing 737 |
Year-round direct flights |
Air Europa |
Madrid (MAD) |
Boeing 737 |
Year-round direct flights |
Air Horizont |
Zaragoza (ZAZ) |
Boeing 737 |
Charter flights |
Neos |
Reykjavík (KEF) |
Boeing 737 |
Charter flights |
Turkish Airlines |
Istanbul (IST) |
Boeing 737 |
Year-round direct flights |
*The schedule may vary slightly, and it may not be available every day during certain periods.
Photo: Alberto Loyo | Shutterstock
The table below focuses on flights using the Airbus A220 and Airbus A320 family aircraft. Most of the routes are offered year-round, while just two are seasonal.
European airlines’ routes to Porto (according to flightconnections.com) – Airbus A220 and Airbus A320 family |
|||
---|---|---|---|
Airline |
Departure city |
Aircraft used |
Flight frequency* |
easyJet |
28 routes (To mention a few: Basel (BSL), Berlin (BER), Lisbona (LIS), London (LGW and STN), Manchester (MAN), Milan (MXP), Nantes (NTE), Palma de Mallorca (PMI), Paris (ORY and CDG), Zurich (ZRH)) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Generally, year-round direct flights, but Minorca (MAH) is seasonal (June-August) |
TAP Air Portugal |
Lisbon (LIS), London (LHR), Luxembourg (LUX), Madeira (FNC), Milan (MXP), Paris (CDG), Zurich (ZRH), Istanbul (IST) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft (and Embraer 195) |
Year-round direct flights |
Eurowings |
Hamburg (HAM), Berlin (BER), Düsseldorf (DUS), Stuttgart (STR) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |
Vueling |
Barcelona (BCN), Bilbao (BIO), Ibiza (IBZ), Paris (CDG) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |
Volotea |
Bilbao (BIO), Lyon (LYS), Nantes (NTE) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |
SWISS |
Geneva (GVA), Zurich (ZRH) |
Airbus A220 and A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |
Air Baltic |
Riga (RIX) |
Airbus A220 |
Seasonal direct flights |
British Airways |
London (LGW) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |
Brussels Airlines |
Bruxelles (BRU) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |
Lufthansa |
Frankfurt (FRA), Munich (MUC) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |
SAS |
Copenhagen (CPH) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |
Air France |
Paris (CDG) |
Airbus A220 and Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |
Air Serbia |
Belgrade (BEG) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft (and Embraer 190) |
Year-round direct flights |
PLAY |
Reykjavík (KEF) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Seasonal direct flights |
*The schedule may vary slightly, and it may not be available every day during certain periods.
Photo: Markus Mainka | Shutterstock
The table below focuses on flights using the Embraer E190 and Embraer E195 aircraft. These routes are all offered year-round.
European airlines’ routes to Porto (according to flightconnections.com) – Embraer |
|||
---|---|---|---|
Airline |
Departure city |
Aircraft used |
Flight frequency* |
TAP Portugal |
Lisbon (LIS), London (LHR), Luxembourg (LUX), Madeira (FNC), Milan (MXP), Paris (CDG), Zurich (ZRH), Istanbul (IST) |
Embraer E195 (and Airbus A320 family aircraft) |
Year-round direct flights |
KLM |
Amsterdam (AMS) |
Embraer E195 (and Boeing 737) |
Year-round direct flights |
Air Serbia |
Belgrade (BEG) |
Embraer E190 (and Airbus A320 family aircraft) |
Year-round direct flights |
*The schedule may vary slightly, and it may not be available every day during certain periods.
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Direct flights to Porto from other regions
Apart from the US and Europe, you can reach Porto (OPO) from various locations. Currently, seven airlines provide direct flight services to Porto from eleven cities in Africa, South America, the Middle East, and North America (Canada).
Photo: The Bold Bureau l Shutterstock
Direct flights to Porto from other regions (according to flightconnections.com) |
|||
---|---|---|---|
Airline |
Departure city |
Aircraft used |
Flight frequency* |
TAP Air Portugal |
Luanda (LAD), Rio de Janeiro (GIG), São Paulo (GRU) |
Airbus A330 |
Year-round direct flights |
TAAG Angola |
Luanda (LAD) |
Boeing 777 |
TAAG will remove Luanda – Porto from April 2025 |
EL AL |
Tel Aviv (TLV) |
Boeing 737 |
Seasonal direct flights |
Royal Air Maroc |
Casablanca (CMN) |
Embraer E190 |
Year-round direct flights |
Air Transat |
Montréal (YUL), Toronto (YYZ) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft and Airbus A330 |
Year-round direct flights |
Ryanair |
Agadir (AGA), Marrakech (RAK), Tangeri (TNG) |
Boeing 737 |
Year-round direct flights |
easyJet |
Marrakech (RAK), Ilha do Sal (SID) |
Airbus A320 family aircraft |
Year-round direct flights |