After both craving some sun and new scenery, we booked a quick trip to Porto, Portugal for three nights at the end of April. It was one of our favourite city breaks we have done, so I thought I'd take it upon myself to put together a little guide for anybody that wants to visit Porto including my top travel tips and my favourite Instagram spots.
Read on to find out my go-to places to visit and top tips for saving money too:
WHAT TO DO + SEE
Although we were kept busy for the touristy attractions, the benefit of Porto was that it didn't feel rushed and we managed to explore all the main sights to see in the four days we were there with ease. For us, the area around Vitória was our favourite as there was more of a relaxed atmosphere, but the Ribeira is worth a visit both from along the front of the Douro River and from above on the Dom Luís I Bridge.
The Azulejos are a popular sight to see in Porto especially on the churches like side of Igreja do Carmo and Igreja de Santo Illdefonso which are both worth a visit as they are seriously so beautiful to look at.
- São Bento Train Station for the beautiful tiles
- Steak N Shake Mural
- Funicular down to the Ribeira
- Livraria Lello (we didn't visit due to the queues, but two words - Harry Potter)
- Torre dos Clérigos
- The walk down the stairs to the Ribeira
EAT + DRINK
The weather was super warm and sunny, so we made the most of that by heading to the Clérigos Church where there was the bar called Base which served the best cocktails and had a lovely atmosphere when you wanted to relax after a long day's walking.
For lunch and dinner there was lots of variety ranging from pizza to tapas and we even stumbled across a vegan kitchen dedicated to Mexican food. We tried to make it to all the spots we had picked out, but we would have had to been there for several months to try them all out. Here are a few of our top picks and some other places to check out:
- Presto Pizza Baixa
- Tapas For Friends
- Base Bar
- Spirito
- Da Terra
- Nonna Piazza (the cheesiest pizzas!)
- Selina
THE BEST INSTAGRAM SPOTS
Of course it goes without saying that we chose to travel to Portugal as it was a country neither of us had been to before, but it had been on our list for a while. That being said, it definitely didn't hurt that the city was extremely photogenic and had some amazing photography opportunities that were hard to pass up.
- The trams (stopping at the Carmo spot)
- Vogue Cafe
- Largo da Pena Ventoso
- Livraria Lello
- Armorino (flower ice cream!)
- Steak N Shake Mural
- Jardim Do Morro
- Igreja Do Carmo
- Church of Saint Ildefonso
TRAVEL + MONEY
Despite spending a shameful amount on just travelling with one suitcase (£40 each way!), booking our holiday with flights and hotel were not too bad price wise at £160 each. We took our usual £200 worth of euros each, but honestly the city was much cheaper than we'd ever anticipated. Travel on the metro for us (even from the airport) was between €1.60 - €2.80 per person which made it a much more purse friendly way of getting around. That being said, we did walk a lot of the way around, but the hills are something to note - definitely take comfortable footwear.
We did the uber-touristy thing of getting on a tram which was just €3.50 per person from where we got it and it was great to treat ourselves after doing a lot of walking over the four days.
Back to pricing, the food and drink prices always surprised us whenever we got the bill as they were a lot cheaper than we were expecting. Don't get me wrong, if you get lunch or dinner at the supermarkets then that will no doubt be a saving, which is something we did once or twice for some snacks, but we mostly ate out. The restaurants are cheaper the further you get from the centre and Ribreira, but for a pizza you were looking at around €8.
Have you been to Porto? Are you tempted to visit Portugal?
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