Porto in 4 days
Updated: Apr 26
When deciding what to see in a Portugal trip, Lisbon is a must and most will enter or exit the country through the capital. If possible, schedule a trip to Porto in the country's north. It has a great, laid back atmosphere, allows access to the Duoro valley and was a very fun way to start our vacation with the all night party. It is a relatively short train ride from Lisbon but we chose to fly into Porto and take the train south to Lisbon before finishing our trip in the Algarve.
Porto
We timed our trip to coincide with the festival of Sao Joao as this biggest party in Porto was going on in our timeframe (June 23-24). The whole town takes part, celebrating in the streets with the locals eating, drinking, lighting paper lanterns, and hitting each other in the head with plastic hammers. What's not to love?
Where to stay in Porto: Ribeira (historic center) has colorful houses along riverfront promenade and you will spend time here in your trip but I found few options for rental houses and it would be loud for light sleepers. Baixa & Se are located just north of Ribeira. We stayed in part of Baixa adjacent to the Bolhao market. The apartment had tons of character and space for our group of two families. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/15076308?unique_share_id=ca15ed18-7c0b-4c9b-81a5-116daeb7c346&viralityEntryPoint=1&s=76
The market was great for local food and crafts and was directly across the street.
The first day of our Portugal adventure was straight from the Porto airport to drop our bags then out the door to the festival which occupied the streets most densely in Ribeira. We were up pretty late reveling with the whole city. I enjoyed getting homemade drinks (5 minute Mojitos out of some kind of bucket) and grilled sardines (not too bad). We spent the night eating and drinking in the Ribeira neighborhood. Everyone was smacking each other with plastic hammers and lighting paper lanterns. St John the Baptist has had a party in his honor for six centuries in Porto. It was a great introduction to the city and staying up past midnight took care of adjusting to the time change perfectly.
The next day we took a historical walking tour 'by locals' which was about 2 hours and was useful in getting the lay of the land which is why many recommend a walking tour on your first day in a city. This took us to the old Jewish quarter then the Miradouro da Vitoria which has great views across to Gaia. We took some photos and went to a local restaurant The Door which was intimate and fun with great food.
After lunch, we wandered through town in the direction of the Porto Cathedral, outside of which the girls started dancing- not sure what inspired them but it was a good photo. Then we headed over to the town on the other side of the Duoro river, Vila Nova de Gaia via the dom Luis I bridge. Everyone should stroll across this bridge as the view of Lisbon and Gaia is awesome and the Gaia side has enough to interest a tourist for a few hours. Stay much longer if you want to visit one of the famous Port wine cellars in Vila Nova de Gaia.
Once we crossed the bridge, we jumped on the Gaia Cable Car for a ride down to the river. The upper stop is a small park called Jardim do Morro which had people sitting in the grass and enjoying themselves. We took the cable car down to the river which the group seemed to enjoy.
We had a great couple hours on the Gaia side of the river shopping at the cheap touristy trinket places and then had a drink in the sunshine. Make sure you take a quick detour to see the Half Rabbit sculpture which lives a couple of blocks away from the river. This was made by an artist named Bordalo out of trash and recycled materials.
We walked back to Porto via the lower, less scenic part of the bridge and had dinner in one of the many tourist restaurants in Ribeira. It was entirely forgettable.
On our last day touring Porto, we visited two of the famous blue tiled churches: the Chapel of Souls and the Church of St. Ildefonso, which are both worth seeing. The train station known as Porto Sao Bento has a similar tiled interior. All three sites can be enjoyed from the street or in a quick 5 minutes if you are in a rush. The Church of St Ildefonso is worth spending a little time walking through. The part of town connecting Sao Bento and this church is very photogenic with a great mix of architecture, graffiti, and city views.
Porto is a very walkable city and easy to cover in a relaxed manner if you have 3 days.
Duoro Valley
The next day was a long but worthwhile tour of the Duoro Valley through Get Your Guide. https://gyg.me/Fx4icDv0
There are many tours available and most are rated highly with similar itineraries. It is usually a 10 hour tour with 3 hours or so of bus time and often a cruise down the river by boat included along with great food and wine at one or two vineyards.
Even the teenagers loved this day.
The highlight was the boat
trip where our group was split in two based on group size. Our group of 8 got a small private boat and the other 20 or so had a larger vessel. We caught some jealous looks but it was awesome luck. Lots of photos of lounging, smiling people sipping champagne- You only live once so it's OK to be obnoxious tourists every now and then. This Duoro Valley side trip was a big debate for me in terms of planning.
So many blog comments from travelers about it being the highlight of their Portugal vacation, including a strong recommendation from a friend who had lived in Portugal for years, and I decided it was worth the risk. It was great choice and even though all four of us went in thinking we did not like port, everyone enjoyed the wine. The bus driver, tour guide and everyone at the wineries was great. If you've got four days or more in Porto, tour the Duoro.
After we got back to Porto, we had a train to
catch for our next stop: Lisbon.
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