xyz99

I'm back into planning mood, as it looks like the trip to Portugal will actually happen. I will not tweak anything anymore, everything is booked, but I have one more question. We have 3 full days in Porto, plus 2 half days. How to plan them?
Here 's what I'm thinking:
afternoon of day 1: Foz de Douro, lunch there, walk around
Day 2 in Porto
Day 3 in Porto, Gaia side
Day 4: day trip to Guimaraes? to Douro valley? something else? spend it also in Porto?
Day 5: rapid test early in the morning, then walk by the river, lunch, get at the airport by 3:30 or so

Any thoughts on day 4? Thank you.

Seamus

We did a one day trip from Porto to the Douro valley with visits to three wineries and lunch, count it as one of our favorite travel memories. We usually avoid group things, but this was limited to a total of eight people and we enjoyed it. Driver/guide was excellent. Booked with EFun Tours online

xyz99

Thanks Seamus, this actually sounds very nice. When we had the trip planned for Sept/Oct 2020, then Sept/oct 2021 we had planned a few days in the Douro Valley. Now, we replaced those days with Algarve, so a day trip to the Douro valley would be a nice compromise. Do you remember which wineries you visited? I see they have another tour with 2 wineries + 1 hr hour cruise in Douro River, that might be a good option too, if nice weather. Thanks again.

Maribel

xyz99,
Day 1: We love to spend time in Foz do Douro on a sunny day (and have actually stayed there).
It's the "posh" section, most western section of Porto where the river meets the ocean. We like walking along the pretty beach promenade--you can walk and walk--and watch the locals at play. There are beach bars where you can stop for refreshments and my favorite café/bakery, Tavi, with views of the water. You can take the double-decker bus 500 or the always crowded privately run, rickety, slow tram #1 that will take you as far as Rua do Passeio Alegre.

You could also take a taxi or uber to the wonderful Serralves Foundation and Gardens and the Pink Serralves Villa, which for us, are a treat. They have a new "Tree Top Walk" in the park, which could be fun.
https://www.serralves.pt/en/instituc...-treetop-walk/

Day 4: That's a tough one. I would be torn and want to do them both and have, but you can't do them in the same day, of course.
It really depends on your interests.
Very pretty Guimarães, the cradle of Portuguese nationality, has a wonderful historic quarter, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with castle, palace, several important museums, including the Museu de Alberto Sampaio religious art museum, which we really enjoyed. So that would be a history, museum/monument day.

The Douro day on the typical minivan, small group tour (so many companies do this), would be about photography from one of the scenic viewpoints (Miradouros---most tours take you to the Miradouro de Casal de Loivos above Pinhão), a short 1 hr. boat ride from Pinhão up river and a visit typically to 2 wine-producing quintas, usually one port producer and one table wine producer plus lunch.

So which would be more attractive to you?

This is the company that I've used for both Guimarães/Braga and the Douro.
https://www.thecooltours.com/tours-en/?category=68

xyz99

Hi Mirabel, after 3 weeks of churches, castles, palaces and historic places, I think Douro valley sounds more appealing. Just a quiet ending to the trip, enjoying the views, a river cruise for a different perspective and a nice lunch. A glass of Porto will not hurt, either.

For day 1, we'll have to see at what time we get into Porto. We'd be coming from Coimbra, and we can either go directly to Porto or detour via Arouca Geopark. No set plans for that day, but I like your description of Foz do Douro. Thanks for the tour company recommendation.

Maribel

Sounds great!

Seamus

My addled brain cannot call to mind the actual names of the three wineries we visited, but I do recall that the one where we had a scrumptious lunch was called Vintage Theory. They also produce olive oil, which we purchased and savored back home.
As for the cruise option - eh, doesn't hold a lot of appeal for me. The scenery is pretty static along the river, and I'd rather take in another winery!

Maribel

The Vintage Theory is a winery I haven't visited, about 25 minutes due north of Pinhão. I'm adding it to my list, thanks Seamus.

progol

No additions but I'm excited for you, xyz! And of course, selfishly, I'll benefit from your travels since we'll be going soon after!

scrb11

What time of the year are you going?

The weather in the north is suppose to be wetter than the rest of the country except in the summer?

xyz99

We're leaving in less than 4 weeks 😄 So we'll be in Porto early April. Fingers crossed for sunny skies.

Maribel

I'm keeping my fingers crossed both for you and for Mel for those sunny skies.

But just in case....here's an article by a great Porto blogger whose newsletter I subscribe to (she also gives tours) about Porto in the rain-

https://portoalities.com/en/best-act...iny-day-porto/

scrb11

I'm leaving in mid April but will be in Porto at the end of the month, with a couple of nights in Duoro Valley as well.

One reason I chose Portugal in April is that it's relatively dry but it's mostly dry and sunny in Algarve and some in Lisbon, central Portugal.

mike1728

Will be in Porto in mid May for 6 nights after Estoril, Lisbon, Tomar and Coimbra. Guimaraes is a great town-lots of history, Braga a great day trip as well. As we have been to both we are looking at day trips to the Douro as well as Vila do Conde which seems to be an under visited gem. Any thoughts on Vila do Conde greatly appreciated!. Thank you.

xyz99

Thank you for the rainy days suggestions. Hopefully even if it rains it won't pour 🤞

Maribel

mike,
I'm topping this in hopes that Helena, our Porto native Fodorite, will see it and tell us all more about Vila Do Conde and Póvoa de Varzim. Both are also on my list to visit in the fall.

HelenaFatima

Hi!

Póvoa do Varzim and Vila do Conde! I love them both but they are so different! My favourite is... Caxinas!

(And you say, Helena, please, this is serious, what are you talking about?)

Ok. Let's start. Póvoa do Varzim has a beautifull beach (you go up instead of under, it's like you are in the Netherlands!), sand is between white and yellow, and I've never stayed there for more then 30 minutes because it's the Atlantic on it's full happyness, cold and windy. But many people likes it! Póvoa do Varzim is kind of a town for the new rich people, they live away from the beach and then have an apartment there. It has a Casino, and lot's of turistic things. I worked there for 3 years, the best restaurant was "Taxi", near the city hall, sorry I cannot find if it still exists. But all restaurants were good! Food is very good there! And a restaurant that is 2 or 3 kms away, towards north, named "Casa dos Frangos", has a really good grilled chicken!

Vila do Conde is really beautifull! It's cultural, I used (before Covid) to go there to their theatre. And besides that, I used to go just for a good night with friends, lot's of restaurants, a very nice monastery, a very good walk by the river and the ocean, an old roman aqueduct (that of course has been rebuilt several times), lovely small beaches, with beautifull rock formations.

Caxinas: it's a small village between Vila do Conde and Póvoa do Varzim. Nothing special, only that it is a fishing village, so the best fish is there.

The best of all this, is that the metro goes there. Between Porto Trindade and Póvoa (last stop) is less than one hour!

Maribel

Thanks, Helena, you're the best!

xyz99

We are considering a private tour in the Douro Valley, with 1 or 2 wineries visits, lunch, an hr Rabelo boat tour ...and something else, as time permits. A stop at the Casal de Lóivos Viewpoint is included, but we want more sightseeing, more photo stops, maybe a short walk/stroll somewhere. The options they are suggesting:
- just general sightseeing with stops at some viewpoints;
- visit local village of Provesende
- visit the historical city of Lamego (1.30 - 2 hours visit) with maybe a quick stop at local traditional pastry shop

I have no idea which of these 3 options to pick, what do you think? Then, should we keep the rabelo boat (probably around Pinhao, I need to ask), or is it somehow redundant and we should use the time for one of the towns/villages? Thank you.

Maribel

xyz99,
Which company is this, if you don't mind sharing? There are at least 12 companies operating out of Porto that run the Douro day excursions. They're not created equal. My experience is that you do "get what you pay for".
If it's a private tour, the company should tailor it specifically to your own interests.

Some prefer more wine tasting over the one hour boat ride. Our boat rides have been on a 12-passenger schooner, the Pipadouro (2 hours), which was more private and include a glass of port and also on a sailboat, the Ânima Durius. The larger, covered flat bottom rabelo boats (the traditional boats that carried the wine barrels down to the warehouses in Gaia) are for the tour groups. They run rain or shine.

If you're not particularly interested in the 2 winery visits or the boat ride, and you want more sightseeing for photography, Lamego is a very attractive town, with a very traditional flair, although not on the Douro. It sits 20 minutes south of Régua.

Lamego boasts the spectacular Baroque staircase of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Remedies (Santuario de Nossa Senhora dos Remédios) above the town on the Monte de São Estevão hill in a park. Its tiers of 686 steps, decorated with panels of stunning blue and white tiles, is very similar in style to the staircase of Bom Jesus do Monte outside of Braga. I don't think you are planning to visit Braga (?). Lamego town also offers an 18th century Episcopal Palace, housing the city’s religious art museum and a castle in ruins.

Provosende is probably the most "quaint" of the little Douro Valley villages. And it's close to Pinhão so wouldn't be much of a detour, and up there you have stupendous views of the valley. It would be a way of seeing another viewpoint without sacrificing 2 hours of traveling to and from and touring in Lamego.

Provosende consists of a collection of manor homes, a mom and pop restaurant, Papas Zaide, that we've never been able to book because they don't answer the phone (and that the winemakers love), a bar-museum- handicraft shop (Café Arado), a bakery and a place for wine tasting, Morgadio da Calçada.
https://www.morgadiodacalcada.com/en...tion_3fa517a61

Which seems more appealing?