Driving in Faro 2026: the A22 Stopped Charging Tolls

Faro has no emission zone, and the warning that used to dominate every Algarve driving guide has expired with it: the A22 (Via do Infante) no longer charges cars a toll, and it is absent from the list of tolled motorways published on the state toll portal, pttolls.com (formerly portugaltolls.com). No EASYtoll card, no Via Verde transponder, no plate registration, no fine arriving by post three months later. That leaves parking as the only thing in Faro itself that costs you anything — the walled old town, the marina and the Ria Formosa boardwalks are all within a short walk of each other, so park once and keep the car for the runs west and north.

Do You Need a Car?

For Faro itself: not really. The old town, marina, and Ria Formosa lagoon are all walkable. Buses connect Faro to the main Algarve towns.

A car transforms the Algarve trip:

• The coast stretches 150 km from Faro to Sagres — buses connect main towns but skip the best beaches
• Hidden coves (Praia da Marinha, Benagil cave, Praia do Camilo) require a car or a long walk
• The western Algarve (Lagos, Sagres, Costa Vicentina) is spread out and poorly served by public transport
• Inland Algarve (Monchique mountains, Silves, Loulé market) is almost impossible without a car

Skip the car if:

• You are staying at a resort and have no plans to leave it
• You are only visiting Albufeira or Vilamoura (bus connections are decent)

Renting at Faro Airport

Faro is one of the cheapest airports in Europe for car hire. A small manual car costs €15-25/day in shoulder season, but €40-70/day in July-August. Book 2-3 months ahead for summer.

Tips:

• Fuel policy: Most companies use full-to-full. Return with a full tank. The nearest petrol station is 2 km from the airport return.
• Insurance excess: Basic CDW comes with €800-1,500 excess. Consider full coverage from the rental company or your credit card.
• Transmission: Manual is standard and much cheaper. Automatic exists but book early.
• GPS: Phone navigation works fine. Use Waze — it warns about speed cameras and adjusts for Algarve traffic patterns.

The A22 — the Toll That Is No Longer There

The A22 runs the length of the Algarve coast, from the Spanish border at the Guadiana bridge west to Lagos. It is a proper motorway, it is well surfaced, and it is close to empty compared with the coast road below it. For years the catch was that it charged electronically, with no booths — cameras read the plate at each gantry, and a driver who had not registered found out about it months later through the rental company.

That charge has gone. The A22 does not appear among the tolled motorways listed on the state toll portal, pttolls.com, alongside the roads that do still charge — the A4, A7, A8, A11, A16, A17, A19, A21, A25, A28, A29, A33, A41 and A42. Drive it end to end and nothing is billed.

Two practical consequences. First, ignore any advice to buy an EASYtoll card at the border or the airport for an Algarve holiday; it buys you nothing on the A22. Second, if the rental desk offers to rent you a Via Verde transponder for the Algarve, the only journey it would earn its fee on is one that leaves the region.

Where tolls still bite: heading north out of the Algarve on the A2 towards Lisbon, and on the motorway network around Lisbon and Porto. Those are barrier roads and mixed electronic sections where a transponder or a card genuinely saves time. Check the route on the official portal before you assume.

The EN125 — Now a Choice, Not a Saving

The old national road EN125 runs parallel to the A22 through every coastal town. With the A22 free, the EN125 is no longer the budget option — it is simply the slower and more interesting one. Traffic lights, roundabouts and 50 km/h stretches through Almancil, Loulé’s outskirts, Albufeira and Lagoa roughly double the journey time to Lagos.

When to use it: short hops between neighbouring towns, or when the drive itself is the point. For distance, the A22 now wins on both time and money.

Parking

Faro old town:

• Parking Largo de São Francisco — covered, central, ~€0.80/hour
• Blue zone street parking — €0.60/hour, pay at meters (coins or app)
• Marina area — free parking on the waterfront edges, 10-min walk to old town

Other Algarve towns:

• Lagos: Park at Parking Lagos (underground, near marina) — €1/hour. Old town streets are narrow and mostly pedestrianised.
• Albufeira: Parking Sítio dos Caliços (free, 10-min walk to old town). Avoid driving into the old town — steep, narrow, one-way chaos.
• Silves: Free parking near the castle. The town is small and easy.

Speed Limits

Speed cameras are common on the A22 and on the approaches to towns along the EN125, and Portugal runs both fixed and mobile radar. The fine band for a minor excess is €60 to €300, rising to €120-600 in the middle band and €300-1,500 with a licence suspension for the worst — and the camera gantries that no longer charge you a toll are not the ones enforcing this.

Day Trips by Car

Fuel

Figure dated 19 October 2026, from the EU Weekly Oil Bulletin. It is an average, so the board at a given pump can differ.

Stations are plentiful along the EN125 and A22 service areas. Self-service pumps are cheaper — look for “automático.”

Required Equipment

Portuguese law requires:

• Warning triangle
• Reflective vest (must be accessible inside the car)
• Spare wheel or repair kit

Emergency Numbers

Related Guides

• Complete Portugal Driving Guide — toll systems, fines, IDP rules
• Portugal Tyre Laws — tread depth requirements
• Driving in Sintra — palace roads near Lisbon
• More City Driving Guides