Guide · Aveiro and Costa Nova
Aveiro and Costa Nova from Portoday trip by train and bus, with kids
Porto to Aveiro is one CP urban train, about 1 h 10 and €3.95 one way (children 4–12 €2.00), then BusWay 36 to the striped houses of Costa Nova in 45 minutes for €2.00. Times, fares, a sample day, what works with children and when to stay a night.
Short answer: Take the CP urban train from Porto São Bento to Aveiro (about 1 h 10, €3.95 one way, €2.00 for children 4–12), then BusWay 36 from the bus terminal next to the station to Costa Nova (about 45 min, €2.00). Plan at least 2 h 15 each way, more if the connection is poor. With small children, choose either the beach at Costa Nova or Aveiro town, not both, or stay a night.
Porto to Aveiro by train (2026)
| Line | CP Urbanos do Porto, Linha de Aveiro (no change) |
| Typical departure | Porto São Bento at :55 about every hour, e.g. 08:55 → Aveiro 10:07 |
| Extra trains | From Campanhã, mostly on weekdays; some take longer |
| Back | Aveiro at :23 about hourly, e.g. 16:23 → São Bento 17:30, 17:23 → 18:35; last urban trains 21:26, 22:26, 23:26, but on Saturdays in October 2026 the last through train to São Bento is the 19:23 (later ones end at Ovar) |
| Fare | 9 zones: €3.95 adult, €2.00 child 4–12, under 4 free without a seat |
| Day ticket | CP tourist ticket €7.70 for 24 h on all Porto urban lines, from ticket offices |
Timetable valid since 26 July 2026; fares from 1 January 2026. [CP] Check the timetable for your day: some trains run only on weekdays or weekends.
- Two adults and two children aged 4–12 pay €23.80 for a return on single tickets (2 × €7.90 + 2 × €4.00). Two adult tourist tickets (€15.40) plus children’s singles (€8.00) come to €23.40, so the saving is 40 cents; the tourist ticket pays if you also stop at Espinho or ride other urban lines that day. Our arithmetic from CP prices, fares only: on a first trip each traveller also needs their own reusable Siga card (€0.50, non-refundable), so add €2.00 for a family of four. Validate the card at the station before boarding, no more than 10 minutes before departure. [CP]
- Faster Intercidades and Alfa Pendular trains also stop at Aveiro, on separate long-distance fares we did not check.
Aveiro to Costa Nova by bus
- Line 36 (all year): Terminal Rodoviário de Aveiro, about 200 m from the railway station [OSM], to Largo Arrais Ançã in Costa Nova, via Forte da Barra and Farol (the lighthouse). About 45 minutes. Intervals are irregular, so pick your return bus before you go. Weekday departures from Aveiro include 09:00, 09:35, 10:55, 11:30, 12:15, 13:00; back from Costa Nova 14:50, 15:45, 16:25, 18:10, 18:45, 19:40, then nothing until 22:30. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays have fewer buses (Sunday morning: 07:20, 08:25, 09:35, then 11:30). [BusWay, timetable from 1 September 2025]
- Line 35 (July and August only): a faster summer service mostly on the A25 to Barra and Costa Nova. [BusWay]
- Fares: bought from the driver in cash, €2.00, ages 5–10 €1.00; a 24-hour card for lines 4, 15, 21, 25, 35, 36 and 70 is €4.00 per person. [BusWay Tarifas 2026]
A sample day with kids (Costa Nova)
- São Bento 08:55 → Aveiro 10:07. [CP]
- Walk to the bus terminal; line 36 at 10:55 (weekdays) → Costa Nova 11:40. [BusWay]
- Beach and the striped houses on the lagoon side; lunch in Costa Nova.
- Line 36 from Costa Nova at 15:45 → Aveiro 16:25, train at 17:23 → São Bento 18:35. [BusWay; CP]
That is about 5 h 30 on trains, buses and platforms for 4 hours at the beach. On a Wednesday afternoon, add the free Farol da Barra climb at the stop before Costa Nova (places handed out from 14:00, groups of 10). [Turismo de Ílhavo]
Rainy day or Aveiro town instead
- Fábrica Centro Ciência Viva: hands-on science centre, Tuesday to Sunday with a lunch break, a short walk from the canals. [ua.pt]
- Museu Marítimo de Ílhavo: cod aquarium and fishing history; €6 adult, €3 ages 6–17, free up to 5, family €15; closed Mondays. It is in Ílhavo town, not on bus 36. [museumaritimo.cm-ilhavo.pt]
- Ecomuseu Marinha da Troncalhada: a working salt pan by the canals, open every day. [Grande Rota da Ria]
- Moliceiro boat trips on the canals are sold on the quays by several operators; we did not check prices or how they suit small children.
Beach safety and season
Costa Nova, Costa Nova Sul, Barra and Barra Sul all have the 2026 Blue Flag, and lifeguards were on duty from 13 June to 13 September 2026. [ABAE 2026; Portaria 204-A/2026] Outside those dates assume no lifeguards. A Blue Flag is about water quality and services, not about the waves on the day: follow the flag colours and keep small children within reach. The water is about 18 °C in summer. [Turismo de Ílhavo] Closer to the city, Foz, Matosinhos and Gaia: Porto’s best beaches.
Should you stay a night?
If you want both the beach and the town with small children, one night in Aveiro takes the pressure off: the evening trains back to Porto stop around 23:30 (on Saturdays in October 2026 at 19:23, because later urban trains end at Ovar; Intercidades and Alfa Pendular trains to Campanhã run later at a higher fare), but the last useful bus from Costa Nova on weekdays is 19:40 (22:30 late). See Aveiro and Costa Nova for where to sleep.
More day trips from Porto: Braga and Guimarães, the Douro valley, or all of them compared in day trips from Porto. With children in the city: Porto with kids.
Source references
- CP: Urbanos do Porto, Linha de Aveiro timetable (valid since 26 July 2026) · accessed
- CP: GTFS feed (files of 10 Oct 2026), Porto São Bento–Aveiro counted for Tue 13, Sat 17 and Sun 18 Oct 2026 and other October Saturdays (67–79 min; on 10, 17, 24 and 31 Oct the 20:26, 21:26 and 22:26 urban trains from Aveiro end at Ovar and there is no 23:26, so the last through urban train to São Bento is the 19:23; last from São Bento 19:50; normal service in November) · accessed
- CP: Comboios Urbanos do Porto prices from 1 January 2026 (zone matrix Porto São Bento–Aveiro 9 zones; single €3.95, half €2.00) · accessed
- CP: Crianças (up to 3 free without a seat; 4–12 up to 50% off) · accessed
- CP: occasional cards (Siga card €0.50, one holder per trip; validate before boarding, at most 10 min before departure) · accessed
- CP: Bilhete Turístico (Porto urban lines Aveiro, Braga, Guimarães, Marco, Leixões; €7.70 1 day, €16.50 3 days; sold at ticket offices) · accessed
- BusWay: line 36 Aveiro → Costa Nova (timetable from 1 Sep 2025) · accessed
- BusWay: line 36 Costa Nova → Aveiro · accessed
- BusWay: line 35 Aveiro → Costa Nova / Praia da Barra (July and August) · accessed
- BusWay: Tarifas 2026 (from 1 July 2026) · accessed
- OSM Nominatim: Terminal Rodoviário de Aveiro (way 1236120840) and Estação Ferroviária de Aveiro (way 152191044) · accessed
- Turismo de Ílhavo: Praia da Costa Nova · accessed
- Turismo de Ílhavo: Farol da Barra (visits) · accessed
- Museu Marítimo de Ílhavo: bilheteira · accessed
- Universidade de Aveiro, Fábrica Centro Ciência Viva: general information · accessed
- ABAE: Bandeira Azul 2026 awardees · accessed
- Portaria n.º 204-A/2026/1: bathing season 2026 · accessed
The places in this guide
Schematic: positions from each place's coordinates, no roads or coastline. Not for navigation.
Beach
Praia da Costa Nova
Striped-house beach village on the Atlantic: Blue Flag, accessible, lifeguarded in season. BusWay line 36 runs from Aveiro bus terminal; check the current timetable and fare.
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Sight
Farol da Barra
Portugal's tallest lighthouse, 62 m, at Praia da Barra: free climbs on Wednesday afternoons for up to 10 people at a time, first come first served.
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Sight€
Museu Marítimo de Ílhavo
Portugal's cod-fishing museum with a live cod aquarium, between Aveiro and Costa Nova: a rainy-day stop with a family ticket of €15.
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Activity
Fábrica Centro Ciência Viva de Aveiro
The University of Aveiro's hands-on science centre in an old factory near the city park: a rainy-day option for school-age children, closed Mondays.
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Sight
Ecomuseu Marinha da Troncalhada
A traditional salt pan run as an open-air museum a short walk from Aveiro's canals: open every day, wading birds, and salt still made by hand.
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Quick answers
How long is the train from Porto to Aveiro?
About 1 h 10 on CP's urban Aveiro line: for example Porto São Bento 08:55, Aveiro 10:07, in the timetable valid since 26 July 2026. Trains leave São Bento about once an hour, with extra departures from Campanhã on weekdays. Faster Intercidades and Alfa Pendular trains also stop at Aveiro, at higher fares we did not check.
How much is the train from Porto to Aveiro?
Porto–Aveiro is 9 zones on CP's Porto urban network: €3.95 one way, €2.00 for children aged 4 to 12, free for under-4s without their own seat (CP prices from 1 January 2026). For a return day, a €7.70 one-day CP tourist ticket costs a little less than two singles and covers all Porto urban lines.
How do you get from Aveiro to Costa Nova without a car?
BusWay line 36 runs all year from the Terminal Rodoviário de Aveiro, about 200 m from the railway station, to Largo Arrais Ançã in Costa Nova in about 45 minutes, at irregular intervals. On board, in cash, €2.00, ages 5 to 10 €1.00; 24-hour card €4.00. In July and August line 35 adds a faster service via the A25.
Can you do Aveiro and Costa Nova in one day from Porto?
Yes, if you start early: at least 2 h 15 each way with the bus, closer to 2 h 45 with waits, and the bus back is irregular (a 1 h 45 gap on weekday afternoons). With small children we would pick one: Costa Nova for the beach, or Aveiro town with the science centre or the salt pan. Or sleep one night.
Is Costa Nova good for kids?
On paper: a Blue Flag, accessible beach with lifeguards from 13 June to 13 September in 2026, toilets and showers, and the calmer lagoon side for walks. It is the open Atlantic, so follow the flags and keep small children within reach.