Working in Maia: a practical guide for the self-employed

If you work for yourself in Greater Porto, you do not have to work in central Porto. Maia is a practical alternative: it has the metro, it sits next to the airport and day to day life tends to be easier to manage. We have put together the essentials for anyone thinking of working in Maia, from metro connections to the small habits that save time.

Getting there by metro

Maia is served by line C (green) of the Metro do Porto, which links Campanhã to ISMAI. In the Maia area, the line calls at stations such as Parque Maia, Fórum Maia, Zona Industrial, Mandim, Castêlo da Maia and ISMAI, and it makes a short detour precisely to serve the town centre.

ISMAI station, the end of the line, opened in 2006. One detail catches many people out: some trains terminate at Fórum Maia instead of continuing to ISMAI, so check the destination on the display before you board.

For central Porto, line C runs without changes to Trindade, passing Casa da Música. And since Trindade is the station where the network's lines meet, it is easy to carry on to anywhere else from there.

Getting to the airport

You may not know it, but Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport lies largely within the municipality of Maia: the passenger terminal is in Vila Nova da Telha, about 12 kilometres from central Porto.

By metro, the airport is served by line E (purple), between Trindade and Aeroporto. There is no direct connection from the centre of Maia, so you need to change from line C to line E. The Metro do Porto journey planner shows the best station to change at when you travel. Buses and taxis also serve the airport.

For anyone who travels a lot for work, having the office close to the airport is a real advantage, especially for very early or very late flights. Closing the laptop in the late afternoon and heading to the airport without crossing the city makes a difference in a busy week.

Why work in Maia

The first reason is access: metro, buses and roads, without having to cross central Porto every day. Then there is parking. The centre of Maia has car parks, which makes life easier for clients who come by car and do not want to circle around looking for a space.

The pace matters too. For many people, the centre of Maia is calmer than central Porto, and that helps you stay focused. Shops, restaurants and services are a short distance from each other, so it is easy to sort something out over lunch. As for your company's image, an address in Maia is still an address in Greater Porto, with easy access for clients from across the region.

Practical tips

1. Check the current timetables. Metro do Porto publishes timetables and frequencies on its website; the current version has been in force since 7 September 2026.
2. Check line status before you leave, especially on strike days or during works. The information is on the Metro home page.
3. Arrange meetings near the metro. Clients coming from Porto or the airport find it easier to reach somewhere next to a station.
4. Test the journey first. Make the trip from home to your workplace at the time you will make it every day. It is the only way to know how long it really takes.

Two more things that have nothing to do with transport, but that anyone working for themselves will need. Meeting clients in a café works once; by the third time, a meeting room makes a difference. And if you work in several places, a fixed address for letters and parcels saves a lot of trips to the post office.

On journey times, we prefer not to give minutes between stations, because they depend on the timetable and the day. The Metro do Porto journey planner gives the expected time for each trip.

My Desk in Maia

My Desk is at Rua Dr. Carlos Pires Felgueiras, 98, 3.º C, in the centre of Maia, close to the metro, bus stops and car parks. It is a coworking room with 8 desks, natural light, a kitchenette, a glass walled meeting room and 500 Mbps fibre internet. The Dedicated Desk plan gives you a fixed desk, 24 hour access with a personal code, a locker, registered office and mail, for €150/month or €1500/year, exempt from VAT (article 53 of the Código do IVA). To book a visit, use the contact page; for one off meetings, there is the Meeting Room, by the hour.