Porto, Oporto, How We Love Thee
We arrived in Porto after two full days of travel and quickly remembered how much we love Europe. Were thrilled to find that our Airbnb was clean, modern, bug and coati free, and we had drinkable tap water that got hot in all faucets! What a step back into the modern world!
We’ve quickly fallen in love with the city of Porto, or Oporto as you’ll sometimes see it referred to. The architecture is stunning, it is incredibly walkable, and the people are warm. We’ve found them to be kind, and generous with their time and sharing their love of their city, food, and wine. We would highly recommend it as a vacation destination! I’d recommend 3-5 days here, depending on if you want to do any excursions out of the city. Bring your walking shoes (the hills and cobblestones here are no joke), your raincoat in the winter, and get ready to explore!
About Porto
Porto is a river city. The Duoro River is on the south side of the city, along the Ribeira district, and has played a major role in the history of the area, and of port wine. On the other side of the river is actually another city called Nova Villa de Gaia. That is where all of the port wine warehouses are. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the port wine industry boomed, thanks to the Brits. See, they were fighting with the French, and wanted a new source of wine. And particularly wine that could make the journey back to England. Up river, the Duoro Valley is a major wine producing region and the official home of the grapes and wine that is eventually made into port. The wine was shipped down the river to Porto, where it was fortified and bottled, then shipped off to England via the Atlantic. The Duoro Valley produces amazing wines, in addition to port. Wine here in Portugal is incredibly affordable. At restaurants you can find a glass for as little as $3 and in grocery stores you can find bottles of good quality wine for $3-5.
Much of the historic city center has been designated a UNESCO heritage zone. In order to preserve the history and culture of the city, there are strict guidelines on how the exterior of buildings needs to be maintained, down to the tile that can be used, and the design of the wrought iron of the railings. We felt that there was a bit of a double edge sword to that designation. On the positive side, there are no modern structures to be found in the city center, and walking through the streets feels timeless. The downside is that we found there were quite a few abandoned buildings, in large part because it is so expensive to renovate them. One thing we found fascinating about Porto and Portugal in general is that they were under a dictatorship from 1933-1974. According to one of our tour guides, Portugal didn’t really enter a modern democratic age until the mid 1980s. And tourism is even more recent. In the last 5-10 years Portugal has become a major tourist destination and much Porto and Portugal’s GDP relies on tourist dollars. That said, we are in Porto in the off season and it is delightful. There are a lot of European tourists on short city breaks, so the weekends are busier in the historic district. But it is not overwhelming by any means.
Things to do
There are a lot of excursions and day trips you can book while in Porto. We’ll cover more about our day trips in a future blog post. While in Porto, most of the popular activities and excursions revolve around the river, food, and wine!
There are over 10 port companies in the Porto area, and most have tastings and tours that you can book. We didn’t book one specifically, because we did a day trip to the Duoro Valley, but they are very popular and get great reviews.
Boat trips on the river are hugely popular. You can take short trips up the river in replicas of the old boats that transported port (rabelos). There are excursions up the Duoro to see the six bridges that cross the river. Sunset boat rides are also very popular.
There are a lot of walking tours here, including free tours where you can just tip your guide at the end of the tour. We did a food tour with Taste Porto and absolutely loved it. It is one of our favorite things to do when we first arrive at a new city. You learn what is authentic vs touristy, how to order, how to tip, and typically get a list of great restaurants to visit after the tour. We chose the Downtown and Bolhão Market tour and it was fabulous!
If you’re a Harry Potter fan you can visit Livaria Lello, a bookstore that opened in 1881 which some say inspired J.K. Rowling while writing Harry Potter. The crowds there are real, and you have to buy tickets to enter. We chose not to, but it is a very popular stop while in Portol
I’d highly recommend a visit to the Bolhão Market when visiting Porto. A market has stood in that location for hundreds of years. The city just invested in a renovation of the Bolhão Market over the last few years, and I’d say it is the best public market we’ve ever been too. That is saying a lot since we have a deep love for Borough Market in London! The Bolhão Market is clean, fresh, and not overly crowded. Our guide explained to us that they do an incredible job maintaining the traditional vendors who’ve been selling fish, meat, and produce for generations. The stand where we buy our vegetables has been there for 5 generations. Same with where we buy cheese. We haven’t worked up the courage to buy fish, but we were told that the woman who runs it (yes, a woman…in a very male dominated industry!) has been there for over 40 years. We thought there was great produce in Mexico, but we’ve been blown away with the produce here in Portugal. The freshest we’ve ever tasted. It just tastes different with the produce in the US! The red bell peppers are the size of a paperback book and the sweetest we’ve ever tasted. And from an afforability perspective you can’t beat it.
Churches and Azulejo Tiles. No blog post about Porto would be complete without a discussion of the azulejo tiled churches! While Portugal is famous for their tiled buildings, the azulejo (blue painted) tiled churches are especially spectacular here in Porto. Just when you think you’ve seen the most beautiful example, you turn a corner and find another stunning church! I’d definitely recommend visiting a few if you are here on vacation. Also known for it’s beautiful tile work and paintings are the São Bento train station which is in the heart of the city.
Surfing in the Atlantic! Yes, people surf here! With blue skies, a slight breeze, and 55F temps, we set out on a long walk on a Sunday afternoon, heading west to the mouth of the Duoro and then north up the Atlantic coast. There is a boardwalk running up the coast from the river, through the neighborhoods of Foz de Duoro and Matosinhos. The boardwalk is lined with cafes and palm trees and offers incredible views of the coastline. As you near Matosinhos and Praia de Matosinhos you’ll find surfers lined up in the cove catching the waves. A bit chilly for me!
Travel and Budget for Vacations
We find Porto to be incredibly affordable.
Getting Here: If you are traveling from the US, the most expensive item for a trip to Porto will be airfare. As the second largest city in a relatively small country it can be tricky to fly directly into Porto from non hub cities in the US. We were so fortunate that Amy and Chad were able to come visit us here! It took a bit of logistics to get them here though (even without the travel delays they faced due to weather in the midwest!). We found their best option was to fly to Lisbon, then take a train up to Porto. The train system is pretty simple to figure out if you have experience with trains in other countries. Everything is booked through the national rail company: Comboios de Portugal and you can download their app for easy access to tickets. Its a 2 1/2 hour train ride from Lisbon Oriente to Porto Campanhã station and wifi is available on the train.
Lodging: We are staying in a one bedroom airbnb and it is very affordable compared to Mexico or the US. Of course there are also a ton of hotels. We’d recommend staying in the city center, close to the Ribeira district for vacation for the most access to restaurants, bars, and shops.
Getting Around: We mostly walked everywhere, as that’s how we enjoy seeing a city and getting our steps in. But Ubers and Bolts are plentiful and affordable. There is a metro, although we haven’t needed it around the city center.
Eating and Drinking: There are thousands of restaurants and cafes! On a sunny day, I’d highly recommend a riverside cafe for a glass of vinho. Most restaurants have their menus posted outside so you can find something that interests you. Most traditional restaurants center around seafood (octopus!), fish (salted cod and sardines), and pork (sausages of all varieties). The traditional food tends to be slightly heavy. But being a major metropolitan city you can also find pizza, Italian, Asian, and many other cuisines. One thing to note for Americans…similar to their neighbors in Spain, the Portuguese are late eaters! Many restaurants are only open for dinner, and that starts at 7pm. Some will open for lunch, then close again in the late afternoon before reopening for dinner. Brunch is big here and we found several great brunch restaurants. Entrees here run $12-$15 and wine and beer can range from $1.50-$8, depending on how touristy of a restaurant you are in. Riverside is always more expensive, but worth the splurge occasionally!
Of course, one of the things we like the most about Europe is the the slow pace of dining and the cafe culture. Once you find a table, it is yours. No waiters rushing you so they can turn the table. You may have to wave one down for your bill or for a second round, but you’ll be able to sip your wine and people watch to your heart’s content! We were fortunate to have many such moments with Amy and Chad when they were here! We’re also loving that we have a craft brewery right across the street from us! Yes….they know us by name now.
As you can tell, we love Porto! We’d highly recommend it for a glimpse into an authentic culture with warm welcoming people. We have 2 more months here in Portugal, so we’re excited to see how it compares to our other destinations of Nazarré on the Silver Coast, and Ohlão in the Algarve!