I’m finding it hard to know where to start when it comes to explaining the charming city of Porto so I’ll start with my first glimpse of the place.

We arrived via train from the city of Lisbon and en route we passed patches of farmed countryside, small villages, and grassy beaches with the Atlantic lapping at the edges. As we neared Porto the views changed to reveal a smattering of colorful buildings built on steep coastal hills, split by a deep river with gorgeous bridges connecting either side. This first view of the city from the train window set my expectations high and this city did not disappoint. 

Here is a poetic list of a few reasons Porto stole a little piece of my heart.

Meandering streets with cute trolleys. 

The taxi ride to our centrally-located Air BnB was a bit bumpy as our driver wove in, around, up, and down the narrow cobble streets. He dropped us off on a clean, bright street where the small square sidewalk stones created a mosaic path. Turns out the small stones are the typical sidewalk material everywhere in Portugal and they are often worn down to a smooth shiny surface, especially on the steep hills. Sidewalk material aside, the narrow streets themselves ooze with history and are filled with bustling locals and tourists alike.

While exploring this city by foot we encountered numerous hills, staircases, and trolley tracked streets. For me, the site of the cute trolley coming up the narrow street, breaking through crowds, and disappearing behind a building as it turned a corner was one of my favorite sites. Historically they were used as public transportation but are now only a tourist attraction. We clambered aboard a trolley, manned by a dressed-up conductor who took our 3 euros, and rode Line 1 along the Douro River and out to the Atlantic Coast. It was a painfully slow ride but the novelty experience was, maybe, worth it. 

Colorful buildings with painted tiles and red roofs. 

Lining each meandering Porto street are city buildings in various color and condition. As in all cities, businesses occupied the ground floor, with window displays and open doors to the sidewalks, while apartments were on the upper floors, which I could discern by the laundry hanging above the streets and, on one occasion, a woman singing to us from an upper window as we made our way down the alley staircase.

Beautiful painted tiles are used as siding on many houses, churches, and business buildings which adds character and vibrancy. The full effect of the colorful tile may be seen from atop the bridges that connect the Porto side with the Gaia side of the city. As the city is built on a hill, layers of these colorful buildings appear stacked all the way down to the river with their tile red roofs unifying the landscape. Whether up close or far away, many buildings in Porto will cause you to stop and snap an appreciative pic.

Artistic and unifying bridges.

One of the best places to view the colorful buildings of Porto and Gaia is from the famous Dom Luis Bridge, a double decker iron bridge in which the motorway runs along the bottom and pedestrians and Metro trains run along the top. The Dom Luis Bridge is one of seven bridges that cross the Douro River but it is easily the most famous, having been design by Gustave Eiffel, designer of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. One glimpse of the Dom Luis Bridge will show you some resemblance in style to the Eiffel Tower. It is distinct among the others but each of the other bridges in Porto are beautiful in their own way with a few looking downright modern. If you want to see all seven from the water, boat tours options are plentiful. These beautiful connections are a photographic highlight of visiting Porto.

Big ocean with brilliant coastal views.

The power of the Atlantic Ocean causes quite the scene along Porto’s northern coast. The heart of the city is built around the Douro River which is flat and calm but outside of the bay, some amazing waves put on a show. Road and sidewalk meander along the clifftop edge and, looking down, the waves meet the sand and rock below throwing salty spray up in the air. The size of the rolling and curling waves took second place in my book, next to the North Shore waves I experienced on Oahu in Hawaii. I’m sure the ferocity of the waves varies depending on the weather and whatnot but, regardless, watching these huge waves roll in causes you to feel very small. Some people were climbing down on the rocks to feel the ocean spray but I was content to watch the long line of waves roll in from the roadside.

Charming shops.

Porto seems to embrace their history and culture which I was happy to explore vicariously, simply by visiting some cute shops. 

Porto is prominent in the Sardine industry, which I wasn’t aware of until we walked into a bright, circus-themed shop that we thought was a candy store but actually sold nothing but Sardines. Sardines in olive oil. Sardines in tomato sauce. Pickled sardines. Smoked sardines. Any flavor sardine you could think of and this store had it. 

Buildings in Porto are iconic because they are clad with colorful, hand-painted tiles so, of course, there are shops where you can buy your own souvenir tiles. These tile shops are an outlet for local artists to show-off their talent.

Portugal is the world’s largest producer of cork and, as the market for wine corks has declined, they started transforming cork into everything a tourist may want to buy such as postcards, coin purses, belts, hats, and I even saw a pair of cork shoes! A lot of the cork products were cheap and sold on street racks but some of the high quality cork items were found in boutique shops. 

Lastly, after diving in and out of several souvenir shops we kept noticing a rooster. Somehow a rooster is an icon of Portugal but we couldn’t find a reference to it in English anywhere. I should have asked a local shopkeeper but instead I googled it on my phone. Turns out, there is a historic morality tale about truth and lies in which the rooster represents a man’s confirmation of telling the truth. It’s a good tale, but not the shortest one. You can read it for yourself here.

After re-reading my list of reasons to love the city of Porto, I know it doesn’t do this quaint city justice. While I cannot describe its feeling of small town charm, I hope this helps paint a picture of what awaits travelers to this city. Its was my favorite place in Portugal to discover and one I hope to adventure through again. Privacy Policy

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