How to get from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2 at Lisbon Airport
Terminal 2 at Lisbon Airport catches people out more than any other part of the place, and it is nearly always the same two mistakes: not realising T2 is a separate building a kilometre and a half away, or not realising you cannot walk to it.
The fix is a free shuttle bus that leaves from outside the Terminal 1 departures hall every ten minutes or so. This guide is where to find it, how long to allow, and the things worth knowing before you cut it fine.
The short version
- The shuttle is free. No ticket, no tap, just get on.
- It leaves from outside the Terminal 1 departures hall, not arrivals. One floor up.
- Every 10 to 12 minutes, roughly 03:30 to 00:30.
- The ride is 3 to 7 minutes. The terminals are about 1.5 km apart.
- You cannot walk. The route follows the perimeter road and there is no pavement.
- Allow 30 minutes door to door, not 10.
First: are you sure you need Terminal 2?
Worth thirty seconds, because getting this wrong costs an hour.
Terminal 2 is departures only. Nothing lands there. If you flew into Lisbon on Ryanair, you arrived at Terminal 1 like everyone else, even though you will depart from T2 on the way home. This asymmetry is the root of most of the confusion.
T2 handles low-cost departures: Ryanair, Wizz Air, Transavia, Vueling, Eurowings, Norwegian and similar. easyJet has moved between terminals over the years, so check rather than assume. Your boarding pass is the authority. If it says T2, you need this shuttle. If it says T1, you are already in the right building.
Finding the shuttle stop
The stop is outside the departures hall at Terminal 1. This is the same kerb where the luggage lockers are and where Uber and Bolt collect, so if you have read either of our other guides you already know this spot.
If you have just landed
Come out of arrivals and keep going until the building opens up into the tall main hall, with the departure boards on the wall and escalators running up the middle. That hall is the hinge: everything else leads off it.
Take the escalator signed terminal 2 partidas / departures up one level. It is the same escalator you would use to reach the Kiss & Fly pickup point for Uber and Bolt, and it leads with Terminal 2 precisely because this shuttle leaves from that kerb. With a trolley, use the lift beside it — trolleys are not allowed on the escalators.
At the top, walk out through the doors marked saída - exit and turn right. The stop is signed and there is usually a yellow bus sitting at it.
If you arrived by metro
The metro leaves you at the arrivals level. Enter the terminal, turn left, and take the escalators up into the departures hall. Then out through the main doors. It is about four minutes from the metro gate to the bus stop.
If you came by taxi or Uber
Ask to be dropped at Terminal 2 directly. It costs a couple of euros more and skips this entire article. If you are already running late, this is the answer.
You will walk past the taxi rank on the way. Ignore it unless you have decided to pay for the direct ride, which on a tight connection is money well spent.
The ride
The bus runs every 10 to 12 minutes and the trip takes 3 to 7 minutes depending on traffic on the airport road. It runs from around 03:30 to 00:30, which covers the full flight schedule at both terminals, with a gap in the small hours when nothing is departing anyway.
There is luggage space, but it is not generous. The bus tends to fill up, and at peak times it waits until it is full before leaving, which means standing room only with a suitcase between your feet. If a bus is packed when you reach the stop, letting it go and taking the next one is often more comfortable than squeezing on. That is another ten minutes, which is exactly why you should not be cutting it fine.
How much time to allow
The honest answer is 30 minutes from leaving T1 to being checked in at T2, not the 10 minutes the ride time suggests.
The maths: up to 12 minutes waiting for a bus, 7 minutes riding it, and 5 to 10 minutes walking and finding check-in at the other end. That is before the queue at T2 security, which is a further 15 minutes and can be much worse.
So if your flight leaves T2 at 09:00, you want to be at the T1 shuttle stop by about 07:00 at the very latest, and preferably earlier. Low-cost carriers close boarding early and are unsentimental about it.
Connecting from an arriving flight?
Be careful here. There is no internal transfer between the terminals. If you land at T1 and depart from T2, you collect your checked bags, exit landside, possibly clear immigration, take the shuttle, then check in and clear security again from scratch. It is a full restart, not a connection.
A two-hour gap is tight. Three is comfortable. If your itinerary gives you 90 minutes, take a taxi straight to T2 and do not think twice about it.
Why you cannot walk it
People ask, and the map makes it look plausible: the terminals are only about 1.5 km apart. But the route runs along the airport perimeter road. There is no pavement, no pedestrian crossing, and no signed walking route. It is not a matter of it being discouraged; it is not a walkable route.
The shuttle is the only free way across. A taxi is the only other way.
What Terminal 2 is like
Set expectations low and you will be pleasantly surprised. T2 is a single-level, no-frills building with two rooms: check-in on one side, the waiting area past security on the other.
Landside there is a small café, a gift shop, airline desks and vending machines. That is it. Airside there is a McDonald's, a duty-free and a café. Seating is genuinely insufficient at busy times and you may well end up standing. There is free wi-fi and there are charging points.
There are no lockers at Terminal 2, and no metro. If you need to store a bag, do it at Terminal 1 before you take the shuttle across.
The practical upshot: if you have a long wait, spend it at Terminal 1, where the food and seating are far better, and cross later. Just be honest with yourself about how long later, because the shuttle does not care that you were comfortable.
One more thing worth planning around: the building itself is open 03:30 to 00:30, the same hours as the shuttle. Terminal 2 is not somewhere you can sit out an overnight wait.
Going the other way: Terminal 2 back to Terminal 1
The shuttle runs both directions on the same loop, and it is just as free coming back. You need this if you have seen someone off at Terminal 2, or if you went to the wrong building.
The stop at T2 is directly outside the entrance, and the sign there gives the official numbers: maximum wait 12 minutes, 3 minutes from T2 to T1, running 03:30 to 00:30.
This matters more than it sounds, because Uber and Bolt do not pick up at Terminal 2. Both of their Lisbon Airport pickup points are at Terminal 1 — the P2 car park and the Kiss & Fly kerb (where to find them, with photos). If you are standing at T2 without a flight, the shuttle back to T1 is your way out, and from there you have the metro, the taxi rank and ride-hailing.
Frequently asked questions
Is the shuttle really free?
Yes. No ticket, no card, no tap. Get on.
How often does it run?
Every 10 to 12 minutes, roughly 03:30 to 00:30.
Can I walk between the terminals?
No. The route is the perimeter road, with no pavement.
Where exactly does the shuttle leave from at T1?
Outside the departures hall, one level up from arrivals, near where Uber and Bolt collect and where the lockers are.
Are there lockers at Terminal 2?
No. All 234 of the airport's lockers are at Terminal 1.
Does the metro go to Terminal 2?
No. The red line ends at Terminal 1. Take the metro to T1 and then the shuttle.
My flight arrives at T1 and departs from T2. How long do I need?
Three hours is comfortable, two is tight, 90 minutes means take a taxi directly. There is no internal transfer, so you re-check in and clear security again.
Can I be dropped at Terminal 2 by taxi or Uber?
Yes, T2 has its own drop-off. Say so when you book, and skip the shuttle entirely.
Can I buy Fast Track at Terminal 2?
No. Terminal 2 has a Fast Track lane at security but no purchase kiosk as of July 2026 — the machines are in Terminal 1. Buy online in advance; there is nowhere to pay on site (where to buy it, with photos of both terminals).
How do I get from Terminal 2 back to Terminal 1?
The same free shuttle, in the other direction. The stop is right outside the Terminal 2 entrance; maximum wait 12 minutes, about 3 minutes across.
Do Uber and Bolt pick up at Terminal 2?
No. Both of their Lisbon Airport pickup points are at Terminal 1. If you are at T2 and need a car, take the shuttle back to T1 first (the two pickup points, with photos).
