With the advancement of time, trains have evolved and even reasons to travel are no longer just professional, as trains are also sought for moments of leisure. In this context, aimed at young people, CP has created a special feature, known as Intra_Rail.

Intra_Rail allows young people to travel all over the country, making use of rail transport, while, depending on availability, discounts are available at the Pousadas da Juventude, with breakfast included.

Unlimited travel

The program allows for unlimited travel for a certain price. Young people can purchase tickets for three days, in the XCape modality, or for seven days, in the XPlore modality. Each traveller will be entitled to a card, to be activated at one of the ticket offices, or on board if the station's ticket office is closed.

The Intra_Rail card cannot be purchased at every station, the sale is limited to the following ticket shops: Viana do Castelo, Braga, Guimarães, Trofa, Régua, Penafiel, Cête, Ermesinde, Porto - São Bento, Porto - Campanhã, Espinho, Aveiro, Guarda, Coimbra, Coimbra - B, Figueira da Foz, Caldas da Rainha, Pombal, Lisboa - Oriente, Lisboa - Santa Apolónia, Lisboa - Rossio, Entrecampos, Cais do Sodré, Portimão and Faro. However, it is possible to purchase online through the contact GRUPOSLC-RG@cp.pt and indicate all your personal data. Those who purchase online will receive a voucher that must be collected at one of the following stations: Braga, Porto – Campanhã, Porto – São Bento, Aveiro, Coimbra, Lisbon – Oriente, Lisbon – Santa Apolónia, Entrecampos, Cais do Sodré and Portimão.


How to use the ticket

When arriving at the station, the first step, if the Intra_Rail card has already been purchased, is to obtain the ticket for the desired route at the ticket office. Both the Intra_Rail card and the ticket purchased must be presented on board, at no extra cost, as it is included in the program. On Lisbon urban trains, it is only necessary to activate the Viva Viagem card delivered when purchasing the Intra_Rail pass.

Tickets, which can only be sold to young people between the ages of 12 and 30, can only be used on trains: Intercidades (2nd class), Regional, InterRegional and urbanos.

CP told The Portugal News that “there is a wide dispersion of routes used”, which vary according to the availability of the Pousadas da Juventude, so there is no way to define a route that has been most travelled by travellers. The Intra_Rail pass has already included in its price the amount needed for overnight stays at the Pousadas, depending on the chosen modality.

With a single ticket, young people “combine trips and stays with groups of friends” while having the experience of having complete freedom to travel from North to South of the country.

The prices for the different modalities may become cheaper if a Youth Card is presented, so for the Intra_Rail Xcape modality (3 days), the normal price would be 64 euros, 58 with a youth card. The Intra_Rail XPlore mode (7 days) has a price of 146 euros, without a youth card and 127 euros with a youth card. It should be noted that the prices include unlimited travel and overnight stays at the Youth Hostels, with breakfast included.

To The Portugal News, CP provided some statistical data about the programme. The data refer to 2019, because due to the restriction measures to contain Covid-19, the data for 2020 and 2021 would not be enlightening.

In 2019, CP registered the acquisition of 1300 Intra_Rail passes, with the Xcape modality being the most used, by 50.2 percent of users.

Author

Deeply in love with music and with a guilty pleasure in criminal cases, Bruno G. Santos decided to study Journalism and Communication, hoping to combine both passions into writing. The journalist is also a passionate traveller who likes to write about other cultures and discover the various hidden gems from Portugal and the world. Press card: 8463. 

Bruno G. Santos