Our first ferryboat with the little one!
We left Cascais on Saturday, 08/08/2020, for a car trip of 9 days along the Costa Vicentina with our 2 and a half year old puppy.
Like the route from our house to the first hotel in Luz Beach it would take 3 hours, I thought it was essential to break up this route so that it wouldn't be tiring/boring for our toddler and, consequently, stressful for us. Anyone who has children or has traveled with children will understand me, right? 🙂
I researched some strategic stops along the way and came up with the 4 options below:
- Albufeira Lagoon
- Ferryboat Setubal – Troy
- Comporta
- Badoca Safari Park
We ended up choosing option 2 (Ferryboat from Setúbal to Troia), but with the hope of being able to stop at 3 (Comporta) as well. We did not choose to stop at Albufeira Lagoon, because it would be very early in the trip, and not even at the Badoca Safari Park, because we had already gone last year (see everything about our tour here) and we wanted to try something new, but I can already tell you that Badoca is really cool for those with children!
Before the trip ferry
We arrived in Setúbal around 10:30 am and according to the schedules on website from the Atlantic Ferries, we could take the ferry from 11am, 11:30am, 12pm, anyway…every half hour.
We stayed in the car in the line – very organized, by the way – and when it was our turn to pay, we used the Greenway to be more practical.
Rates
We pay 16.60 + 4.70 = 21.30, because that is the amount they charge for the car, the driver and one more passenger over 5 years old – in this case, me – on a ONE WAY trip ONLY. If you have any questions about times and fares, check the website from them, on the home page itself.
The journey
We were very excited about the experience because our little one LOVES cars, planes, boats and the like, so having cars and boats in one place would be awesome, right? And it really was. <3
The trip only lasted 25 minutes, but those minutes were very intense and well spent. We could have stayed in the car the whole time if we wanted to be 100% protected in the middle of a pandemic, but what would be the fun, right? We got out of the car wearing masks – mandatory, by the way! – and we went up along with most of the passengers to enjoy the view. Admiring the landscape of Serra da Arrábida and Troia, looking for whales/dolphins/fish and doing a “careful analysis” of the parked cars with the little guy certainly made the trip very dynamic and fun. It could have even taken a little longer…
Weaknesses
The only downside of the trip was seeing the boring buildings that were built in Troia, a place that could be a cute village with only summer houses, you know? I thought they ruined the look a bit, but it must certainly be WONDERFUL to be in an apartment/hotel room on a high floor in this paradise…lol. Who knows, maybe one day, right?
We arrived by car in Troia and continued our journey, as the little one ended up sleeping in the car. I told in this post about our tour of Troia, Comporta and the Carrasqueira Stilt Wharf. Keep reading about this trip 😉
This post is part of a 9-day trip through the Algarve and Alentejo. Read about the entire trip in links below:
- 9 days driving along the Costa Vicentina (Algarve and Alentejo)
- Setubal Ferryboat until Troy
- Troia, Comporta and the Carrasqueira Stilt Wharf
- Beaches of Luz, Burgau and Salema (Algarve)
- Sagres, Cape St. Vincent and Martinhal (Algarve)
- A day at Lagos Zoo
- 1 day exploring the beaches of Amado and Bordeira (Algarve)
- 5 days on the Alentejo Coast (Vila Nova de Milfontes, Zambujeira do Mar, etc.)
