Portugal is a beautiful country, and we have visited Lisbon many times in the past. This time, after hearing so many terrific comments about the northern city of Porto and how different it is from Lisbon, we decided a visit was in order.
Beginning at our wonderful and very modern, 5-Star Sheraton Porto Hotel ($127.00 per night), we took the Metro Do Porto to the Sao Bento Station. It was here that we began our one-day trip to Porto. Our first stop was Rua Das Flores, a pedestrian walking and shopping street that brought us down to the Rio Douro that separates both sides of Porto.
Upon arriving at the river, we found ourselves in Porto’s Cais Da Ribeira section. This riverfront area has many terrific restaurants; we stopped for lunch and a couple of beers.
After lunch, we walked up to the side of the river and across the Ponte De Luis I Bridge. Walking across this bridge to the other side is very popular, where several port wine producers and sellers exist. We were lucky enough to sample several types of port wine on this side of the river.After sampling some port wine, we decided to take a river cruise that went under six of Porto’s marvelous bridges, which highlighted the views of the city and the nearby mountains.
Just a note: After the cruise, we were on the river level and needed a way to get to the top of the bridge, which was not easy and a long way up, to take in the fabulous views of Porto. We were advised to go into the car park, take the elevator to the 8th floor, and then walk up to an excellent spot for pictures called Jardim Do Murro. The Gaia Cable Car transverses this side of the river in this area. We were so impressed with the views of the city and mountains from the top of the bridge that we walked over the bridge several times to enjoy the sites. There is plenty of room for pedestrian traffic, but you must be careful because trains also run on this bridge level. The Funicular Dos Guindais will also take you from the river level to the top of the bridge, but it is closed in the off-season.
At the end of the day, we walked over the bridge’s upper level back to the Sao Bento Station and took the metro to our hotel.
To be different, we flew Tap Air Portugal from Lisbon to Porto (ZED fare), but on the return, we took a very convenient three-hour train ride from Porto back to Lisbon. Both forms of travel were virtually the same price at $40 per person each way. We flew Delta Air Lines from JFK to Lisbon round-trip for this vacation.
We were very impressed with Porto and highly recommend this city, and we will definitely return.
