Transportation
Are you ready for your Porto Santo adventure?
We are here to provide you with our shortcuts to getting your tickets to/from the island as well as to make sure you are fully informed about all transportation options on our island.
Porto Santo is a seasonal island where opening times of local stores, ferry and flight schedules change based on the time of the year. We sum up most crucial information relevant for your stay to make bookings as stress free and budget friendly as possible.
How to get to/from
Porto Santo
There are several ways how to get to Porto Santo from your destination, offering direct fights as well as stopover in such Portuguese cities as Madeira, Lisbon and Porto. We will share our golden rules for picking an optimal route considering your location, both on and off season at Porto Santo.
Commuting on the island
Either rental or public transportation, Porto Santo has convenient options suitable for every budget. We will tell you about the shortcuts with free transfers and direct you to useful websites, providing contacts, locations and opening times during high and low season.
How to get to/from
Porto Santo
All you should know
There are two ways to get to and from the Island: by plane and by boat.
Commute schedule differs based on seasons and maintenance of the boat. There are additional boats and planes during high season, especially June-Sep.
Typical routes of commute include:
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Madeira - Porto Santo (Binter plane, Porto Santo Line Ferry)
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EU (DK, DE, FR) - Porto Santo during high season (various airlines)
Porto Santo & Madeira Ports
Porto Santo Ferry Location
Our lifehacks
Madeira Ferry Location
Purchase tickets here
Arrival up to 30 mins prior to ferry's departure time is sufficient.
Luggage is being collected in blue trolleys in front of the ferry.
You can check in your online tickets or buy new ones right at the ferry entrance.
Ferry offers cat/dog and sports equipment transportation (start booking your ticket and see step 3 "Extras" for all options. To transport your vehicle, you need to purchase a separate ticket.
Porto Santo Airport
Porto Santo Airport (PXO) Location
Our life hacks
9400-110 Porto Santo, Portugal
Arrival to the airport ca. 1h prior to your departure time is more than sufficient if you have check-in luggage and 45 mins if you have carry-on items, boarding begins ca. 20 mins prior to departure.
Flights between Madeira and Porto Santo operated by Binter are in the morning and in the evening daily, serving as your anker for planning your home-Madeira flight. You can use transit way simply staying inside Madeira airport in case you don't have check-in luggage making it gate-to-gate in less than 10 mins. Boarding at Madeira side of FNC-PXO flight typically starts 35-25 mins prior to the flight.
Luggage loss/delay: this always happens when you least expect it. Don't worry, simply register it at the counter at PXO and your luggage will arrive with next flight either from Lisbon or from Madeira (although they say it might take up to 5 days for your luggage to arrive, expect it to land into your hands within next 2 days). When you see commercial airplane in the sky, wait ca. 30 mins and call PXO to confirm your luggage arrived and will be delivered to your place of stay.
Commuting on the island
Although city center of Porto Santo, "Vila Baleira", is within a walking distance from most tourist locations, you might need to use transportation to explore hidden gems of the island ,such as dunes, beaches, caves, panoramic viewpoints. Porto Santo is happily Uber- and Bolt-free, so you most likely will need our local guide to make sure you pick the best option for your stay.
01
Public transportation
Launched in 2024, SIGA is the governmental public transportation providing commute regularly across all key points on our island using one-time ticket. You can use one of five routes to move across the island each of them starting by the central roundabout here: 991 Centro - Camacha, 992 Centro - Serra de Fora, 993 - Centro - CAmpo de Cima/Lapeira, 994 Centro - Calheta
and 995 - Centro - Porto de Abrigo.
Important information:
Please note that due to seasonality on the island, local traffic schedules might differ. Make sure to verify local schedule closer to the dates when you are planning to visit the island.
02
Taxi
Taxi service on the island is centralised with each taxi driver having his own taxi number written right on the side of the vehicle, so we recommend you pick your favourite and use his working number or tell the general service line which number you would like to order. Taxi stands are located right at the city center roundabout, as well as arrive at the airport entrance and next to ferry arrival stop in the port in case the inbound flights/ferry is coming.
Important information:
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Beware that during night times services are mostly unavailable. Make sure you are not too much outside the city center at night to avoid no taxi situation.
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If you are outside the airport and taxi is not there, simply wait at the taxi stand. Oftentimes taxi drivers are busy elsewhere, but they know that respective plane has landed and will be heading towards the airport - no need to call taxi service line as taxi picks up passengers based on live queue next to the airport's entrance here.
03
Car rental
04
Bike/E-Bike, Scooter, Quad, Bicycle/E-Bicycle rental
To rent a car you currently have three options: Stand Five Rent-a-car (located in the city center, Rodavente Rent a Car (located right at the airport) and Moinho Rent-a-Car (located in the city center) depending on your car preference and location. There are various options from a mini to a jeep, so you have plenty of choices to pick from suitable for your needs and travel group size. You can rent your car for a day or for a longer period of time depending on the local rates and your stay duration.
Important information:
Please beware that service times during low season might be different and shops might be closed or close earlier than usual - always verify by phone before visiting.
As Porto Santo gradually adjusts to urbanised touristic lifestyle, there are additional bike lanes appearing in the city center enabling smooth journey by bike or scooter. We have collected useful contacts for you to check out beyond car vehicle rental services. Make sure to connect with them directly to arrange rental service of your choice: mostly located in the city center E BIKE RENTAL Best price in PXO, BikNic Porto Santo low cost bike and sccoter rental, Auto Acessórios Colombo, but also available in the southern part of the island PORTO SANTO BIKES.
Important information:
Please beware that service times during low season might be different and shops might be closed or close earlier than usual - always verify by phone before visiting.
There are dinner restaurants transfers offered for top locations at Porto Santo. Ask for transfer option while booking your dinner table and your driver will pick you up at a given location and bring you back home after dinner absolutely for free.
Tip from locals
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