Porto is a city that gives a lot of headaches to tourists, with its endless slopes. You need to have strong feet up and comfortable shoes. All in all, you can have a wonderful vacation here, in just a few days, because there are many cultural attractions, you can go to the beach and you can make many day trips to the cities on the Douro River valley.
Or you can wander through the old quarters and waste time on the terraces with views as if taken out of movies, in front of a glass of, you guessed it, Porto wine. The food and especially the variety of the offer of marine specialties will also delight you a lot.
Duoro River, Porto
The Douro River flows through the city and delimits Porto from Vila Nova de Gaia, the town on the left bank of the lake, where the representations of Porto’s great wine houses are located.
Speaking of the Duoro River, a cruise is a unique way to start your adventure in this spectacular city. The boat ride on the river will give you another view of the city and will take you under the countless bridges. They connect Porto with the Gaia area.
The cruise ticket costs € 12.50, and the journey takes about 50 minutes.
After completing this tour on the water, you can go down to the wine tasting port. Because Porto is famous for its wines, the trip would not have been complete without a taste of this liqueur. On the left bank of the river, there are countless wineries where you will be introduced to the secrets of Porto wine production. You will then walk among the oak barrels and you will be able to taste a few decades-old liqueurs at the end.
Cathedral of Porto
To diversify the adventure in which you embarked, whether you are a believer or not, the Cathedral is a tourist attraction that should not be overlooked, because admiring the architectural mastery does not require divine faith.
The construction of the Cathedral of Porto, located in the historic center, was started around 1110 and was completed in the 13th century, which places it among the oldest monuments in Porto.
Built-in the Romanesque style, the Cathedral has Gothic elements, such as the Joao Gordo Funeral Chapel and the galleries in the inner courtyard, as well as Baroque ones, such as the loggia of the side façade. The cathedral is impressive in size and the medieval air it continues to emit.
Church of Sao Francisco
Remaining on the subject of places of worship, another interesting attraction is the Church of San Francisco Port, a wonderful Gothic church on the outside. The construction was started in 1245 by the Franciscans, the church being finished in 1425.
The renovation in the Baroque style from the 17th century brought it to its current form, a gilded wooden lacework which at the time of its revelation shocked the audience to such an extent, due to the emanated luxury, that no more services were held here, and it is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
These are just some of the wonders that Porto hides, but more interesting than reading about them is to visit them and discover their charm on your own.
