Porto

Porto, the second largest city in Portugal, will captivate you with its rich history, ancient streets, relaxed atmosphere, and amazing port wine. Its historical centre of Porta Riberia is a UNESCO World Heritage Site which will amaze you with its colourful facades of houses made from patterned tiles.

The city’s dominant feature is the two-deck Dom Luís I Bridge, which rises 45 meters above the Douro River. Other interesting sights that you definitely shouldn’t miss include the 12th-century Sé de Porto Cathedral, the charming Lello e Irmão bookstore with its original stairs, and the Sao Bento train station building, whose interior walls are decorated with more than 20,000 blue-and-white ceramic tiles depicting the entire history of Portugal.

Porto is also a paradise for lovers of gastronomy. Try the local olives, sea cod, or the traditional Portuguese francesinha sandwich, which comes from Porto. The banks of the river are full of small cafés, where you can watch breathtaking sunsets with a coffee in hand and a traditional pastéis de nata cake. Romantic moments in Porto will be completed with the excellent port wine made from grapes grown in vineyards about 100 kilometres from the city. However, you don’t have to travel that far to taste it, as you can find the cellars of local winemakers right in the centre of Porto on the left bank of the Douro River, near the Luís I Bridge.