On our first day in Porto we decided to have a walk around to see some of the main attractions. And maybe even taste some port wine!

Before heading out to explore this historic city we needed some fuel. Our breakfast in the hotel certainly provided what we needed as the coffee was nuclear strength.

My parents had flown out to join us for this leg of our Portuguese trip. But their usual organisation meant we missed three buses into the centre.

Miradouro da Vitória in Porto

After getting off the bus we walked down to Miradouro da Vitória. This viewpoint gives amazing views of Porto’s cityscape.

It was already apparent from here of the city’s link to port wine. Firstly because of the amount of port houses we could see on the other side of the Douro river. Secondly because of all the discarded port bottles on the floor. People must sip on this beverage whilst enjoying the view from this location.

Largo de São Domingos

We made the decline down to Largo de São Domingos for a coffee. Although we had to quickly move inside to avoid some heavy rain.

Igreja de Misericórdia is located on this square. The exterior of this church is narrow but grand, however it was closed during our visit.

Palácio da Bolsa

Palácio da Bolsa was only a short walk away but with the extremely heavy rain continuing I was already soaked through.

We booked tickets for a mandatory guided tour to help us dry off.

This neoclassical palace was built in the 19th century and its interior really is extravagant. Amongst the highlights were the Hall of Nations, Noble Staircase, courtroom and finally the Arabian Hall.

Braving the heavy rain once again we had a quick walk opposite to Jardim do Infante Dom Henrique. At the centre is a statue of Prince Henry the Navigator who helped expand the Portuguese empire.

Praça da Ribeira

With a light lunch ingested we walked downhill to Praça da Ribeira. This square faces the Douro River and is full of old buildings of varying colours.

It was quite an experience walking along the promenade next to the river. Ponte de Dom Luis I looks so imposing from there. It was unusual to see its two layers with regular traffic on the bottom tier and a metro line at the very top.

We then crossed Ponte de Dom Luis I to the neighbouring town of Vila Nova de Gaia.

Noval port tasting

Port tasting was an essential experience in Vila Nova de Gaia. So we popped to the Noval port house. We tried a variety of ports here with our selection being:

• Noval White
• Noval Black
• Late bottled vintage
• 10 year old Tawny
• Colheita 2003

These were all delicious with my favourite being the Noval Black.

Teleferico de Gaia

With the port tasting complete and not wanting to walk back up a steep hill, we decided to take a ride on Teleferico de Gaia. In five minutes it zipped us up to the top of Ponte de Dom Luis I. The views on the ride up were tremendous even though one passenger was scared of heights!

We then crossed back over the bridge and made our way back to the hotel for an early night. We’re up bright and early tomorrow for a trip to Braga.

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