Trip to City of Porto

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Trip to Porto

The city of Porto is one of the cities in Portugal which receives the most low cost flights. Located by the Atlantic Ocean and on the banks of the Douro River, this city is, after Lisbon, one of the main tourism destinations in Portugal for year-round tourism. Porto is also the most important productive center of the country.

Porto offers a variety of beautiful views and an architecture that combines colorful and picturesque old houses with modern buildings. The weather is especially nice during the summer, since the oceanic currents ensure good winds to freshen the hot and sunny days.

Have only one full day to visit Porto; I began by deciding how I would move from one place to another. I stayed with a friend in Foz do Douro, a nice residential area about two kilometers west from downtown, also by the River Douro. While the city of Porto has excellent shuttle-buses and metro services at convenient prices, it was a beautiful sunny and warm September morning, so I chose to rent a bicycle.

After an online search, I found Ciclo-Foz, a bike and motorcycle rental in the neighborhood, which requires a pre-notification of your rental via e-mail to have the bike ready. The cost of the bike was 8 euros for the entire day, as long as I’d return it before 8pm. If you plan to rent a bike, make sure to always carry a picture ID. If you are a student, take your student card with you on your trip to Portugal and you will enjoy some discounts on a variety of attractions.

I took the bike-way in the bayside, passing the Forte de Sao Joao Baptista da Foz (an old fortress) and a harbor for small boats, as well as the beautiful bridge Ponte da Arrábida. My first stop was the Church of San Francisco, which offered a beautiful view from its entrance. Admission tickets cost 3.5€ (students 3€), including also a visit to the adjacent museum and catacombs. You aren’t allowed to take pictures inside the church, but it is worth entering for seeing its impressive detailed wood carvings, painted in gold and in excellent condition.

Crossing diagonally from San Francisco you will see a tourist information office where you can pick up free city maps of great quality. You can also buy a tourist pass (PortoCard) but, unless you don’t have a student card and plan to visit many museums, it may not be worth buying. If you plan to use public transportation extensively, you can also buy a transportation pass, which you will get for free with your PortoCard.

After crossing the Bridge Luis I had lunch with friends on a terrace in the Sandeman Square. For dessert we booked a free wine-tasting at one of the many wineries in the area: Kopke. The famous wines of Porto are actually harvested in the Douro region – up north from Porto- and then taken to the city of Porto, where they are aged until ready for consumption. Porto wines are generally strong and sweet, full bodied and generally paired with chocolates. You can purchase excellent wines during winery visits and tastings. In my case, since I couldn’t carry big bottles on the plane back, I decided to buy miniature wine samples in “A Vida Portuguesa” a typical Portuguese store which has a branch in downtown Porto.

The six bridges of Porto are a well-known tourist sight. There are boats that once transported the wine from Douro in which you can now take a 50-minute tour and see all six bridges for 10€. In my case, however, I did the tour by car. Then I saw Ponte do Infante, built by the father of my friend Joao, as well as PonteD. Maria Pia, designed by Gustave Eiffel himself, and Ponte de S. Joao, used mainly by the trains. I only missed Ponte do Freixo, located further east on the Douro River.

I spent the afternoon with Duarte, a friend of Joao who gave me a personalized city tour. We climbed up Torre dos Clerigos (2€ p/person, 273 steps, beautiful city view) and we also saw the Rivoli Theatre, the Town Hall, the famous Lellobookstore(with an amazing staircase), one of the buildings of the University of Porto, the Cathedral, the Pelourinho, the medieval tower, the Igreja dos Grilos, Igrejade Santa Clara (lovely church, small and entirely decorated with wood carvings, needing maintenance) and the state-of-the-art concert hall Casa da Musica. We drove from one place to another, stopping for a drink in a typical and very oldbar, as well as shopping for typical products from Portugal in the mentioned “A vida portuguesa”.

As always, it is best to have friends who live in the city you visit and can show you the very best. For those who do not have this luck in Porto, however, a daily free walking tour in downtown Porto is offered starting 10 am from the Paris gallery. This tour is supported with tips from the attendees and lasts approximately two hours. I did not take this particular tour to judge it, but I think it’s a good option to have a general idea of the city.

At night we went to a birthday party in the farm of Joao’s family, some 40km from Porto. The hospitality of my new friends in Portugal convinced me to spend an extra night in Porto. The next morning, however, I didn’t return to the city center, but relaxed in one of the most beautiful Atlantic beaches in the area just north from Matosinhos. I needed to rest after my intense day of sightseeing in Porto, but it was worth it, I had enjoyed this beautiful city, and I hope with these tips you will enjoy it too!

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