Porto Holiday Reviews

We went for the 11am English-language tour and were the only ones in line so our tour became a personal tour of Casa da Musica. The tour covers all of the behind-the-scenes spaces including the blue and white tiled VIP room.The building itself is absolutely great! Created by Rem Koolhas, it is surely a must-see in Porto. It holds a huge variety of events, not only music-related: from classical to dancefloor music to architecture conferences. High quality guaranteed!

Lovely old city, we found it surprisingly uncrowded. The port wine lodges must be visited, they all do free tasting sessions! Also well worth getting the tram to the beach, there are some nice beach bars.

Really lovely city to walk around. You must visit some of the Port wine lodges. A river trip is a must as well. There are some really fascinating old sights in the city.

lovely and clean area. beach allways spotless. will defo come back, maybe without the kids though. plenty of places to visit.

a very good resort great beachs good food planty of entertainment, i would recomend claresrestaurant at the top end of resort great food and very good service.make sure you do trip to cliff ritchards vinyard good day out.

I was surprised by how much there was to do in Porto. I also liked the weather, as it was hot and sunny but not uncomfortably so. It is cool in the port wine lodges though, where you can do tasting! There is also a nice beach nearby, which is pleasant for a stroll.

Porto Review

Despite being 1 or 2 miles inland Porto has a seaside atmosphere especially on the Riverfront which is lively and attractive with many cafes bars and restaurants, inexpensive by Euro standards, plus a good number of museums and historic places of interest. The town has a confusing layout caused by the steep slopes down to the river on both sides, several bridges and a road tunnel plus 2 levels of access to the to the Louis bridge which from the top offers superb views of both sides of the town .

The old town has an interesting mix of period properties but sadly perhaps 30% of these wonderful old gems are abandoned and derelict even when situated in the main shopping street alongside posh designer shops where prices seemed high for British tourists like me now used to ‘Primark’ prices for clothes and pound shop prices for general tat marketed here as ‘China Bazaar’.

The focal point and very reason for the existence of the town are the Wine Cellars with famous names clearly visible over on the south side of the river. Conversely these immaculate but basic red roofed warehouses shelter thousands of ancient barrels of maturing Port wine which got its name from the town. There are about 17 of these ‘Caves’ (cellars) and most can be visited for little or no charge to include an interesting tour by a glamorous and well trained guide plus a free tasting of the wines they would most like to sell you.

These buildings are situated here as the town is protected from very high temperatures by gentle Atlantic breezes which disappear as you travel up the Douro River to the steeply terraced vineyards which thrive on a fiercer hotter climate and produce grapes for the famous wines still largely produced by aristocratic old English families who still put their names to the wines and who command great respect and affection from the locals who have benefitted from their endeavour.

Despite the derelict buildings and the graffiti, the down and outs and the dog faeces, Porto is a real change for the traveller or tourist bored by the Costas but still looking for a relaxed . pleasant and sophisticated stay in a sunny, but not too hot, location not yet discovered by the masses.

Oporto is a world heritage site and well worth spending a few days visiting, though maybe not enough to do for a week. Highlights are the port wine lodges which can be visited with samples for a small fee and lunch down by the river. For a eurozone location it is relatively cheap

Porto is nice but we were situated quite far from the center to be able to explore the city every day.

We choose this for a couples holiday, initially planning to stay in Porto, at the Gaia, but I am glad we didn't. Porto is as rough a city as I've ever been in, and I have been to warzones. Don't let that put you off visiting it, just don't epect too much and don't wander off the main streets, as there is serious deprivation, right in the city centre, especially around the cathedral and bridge. Visit FC Porto for a match, 20 euros only, tickets from the stadium, which is spectacular Anyway, onto Povoa De Varzim. We flew into the airport and got a metro to Varzim. Simple to do, buy the ticket for less than 2 euros, from the info desk, one change at Verdes. Keep hold of your ticket(andante card) as you can recharge it. If you go to PORTO or elsewhere, buy a tourist card from the station office, 5 euros and gets you 24hrs and discounts at some places, compared to 8 euros for the return fare from machine! Varzim is not a holiday resort, it is a small city. Most of the people on the beach are locals, we heard only 2 or 3 Brit voices in 10 days.It has an endless beach, all the way along its front and beyond. Sand is a bit coarse, waves can be fierce and VERY cold, but the locals don't seem to mind. There are places to eat everywhere, you won't get ripped off. You can buy a local dish, a Francesinha for about 2 euros, which will fill you up. A decent plate at any restaurant will be about 7-8 euros. If there is a choice, ask for a pequena (small) as this will be filling enough, the servings are generous. Places to eat- The Farol, which is always crowded with locals, serves everything you can think of, and quickly, although there are huge queues to get in at night. The Mercure, beside the casino, does a help yourself buffet, very high standard fare though, 3 course for 13 euros. The Nox, across on the seafront, go upstairs for any special meal, slightly more expensive but worth it, good views, best place in town. There are lots of little back street places, all of which I wouldn't hesitate in recommending, especially the Firmino, in Ave Caetano de Oliviera Avoid the umbrella'd cafes along the harbour area, go one street back, and eat anywhere, although most close from 3-7pm. Not many bars to speak of, but try the Dali-Daki bar on the concourse seafront, for friendly staff, or for a truly local experience, search for a white tiled bar in a courtyard opposite the clock tower in the daytime only. Daytime temps are kept down by the ocean breeze so be careful.

very friendly people children welcome in all places good shops