Rough Guides - Pocket Rough Guide Porto (Travel Guide eBook)

This Pocket Rough Guide is one of a new generation of informative and easy-to-use travel-guide ebooks that guarantees you make the most of your trip, whether youre spending an afternoon or a few days away.

From the covers all the practical information youll need, from public transport to opening hours and festivals. A handy chronology and useful language list round off the guide.

Depending on your hardware, you can double-tap on the maps to see larger-scale versions, or select different scales. The screen-lock function on your device is recommended when viewing enlarged maps. Make sure you have the latest software updates, too.

Few cityscapes are as remarkable as Portos. The oldest parts of the city spread up the steep slopes of the River Douro, a densely packed medley of tall, pastel-coloured houses and church spires linked by narrow streets and stepped alleys. This historic core has UNESCO World Heritage status and has also made Porto an increasingly popular city-break destination. Portugals second biggest city, with a population of 1.7 million, its large enough to warrant extended exploration but manageable enough to be enjoyed on a long weekend.

Rua das Flores

Porto is actually the oldest city in Portugal, a country which took its name from the tiny city-state from which Portugal eventually emerged. Theres an old Portuguese saying that Porto works while Lisbon plays and, indeed, the city has always been the centre of Portugals industry. It was here that the ships were built for Portugals famous navigators who helped open up a maritime empire stretching from Brazil to Macau. However, its most famous industry has long been port wine, a name given by the city but whose production is largely based on the south banks of the River Douro in Vila Nova de Gaia. Technically a separate city, it is closely linked to Porto by a series of impressive bridges and no trip to Porto is complete without a visit
to its famous port wine lodges, whose neon signs light up the skyline after dark.

If youre fit enough to negotiate its hills, Porto is a great place to explore on foot: beyond the riverfront lies a fascinating city of broad squares, Neoclassical buildings and Baroque churches, many of them lavishly decorated with azulejos, the beautiful glazed ceramic tiles which also embellish many houses and public buildings. Its easy to get around on public transport, too, with a modern and efficient metro system and a good network of buses. There are also three vintage tram routes, one wending its way along the riverfront to Portos upmarket seaside suburb of Foz do Douro, whose sands face the roaring waves of the Atlantic.

Porto also boasts some excellent museums, including the Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis with its amazing collection of art from Portugal and its former colonies, and the Fundao Serralves, featuring contemporary art in beautifully landscaped grounds.

The city centre suffered a dramatic loss of population between 1970 and 2010, when tourism started to inject new life. Now, many of the previously abandoned or run-down mansions and shops have been given a new lease of life and have become chic hotels and fashionable restaurants or cafs. Traditional gems remain, too, including the famous Livraria Lello bookshop, allegedly the inspiration for J K Rowlings Harry Potter stories.

If you want a break from the city, there are easy escapes out to the sea at Foz do Douro
and neighbouring Matosinhos, famed for its fish restaurants, while the metro can whisk you up to Vila do Conde, a historic town with a fabulous Atlantic beach. Alternatively, get a taste of the beautiful interior in Amarante, a quaint town sitting on a tributary of the River Douro, just an hours bus ride from the city.

Boats on the River Douro

When to visit

Portos summers are hot with average daytime temperatures of around 26C in July and August. Better times to visit are September and October which are a more comfortable 2123C, as is June, when you can enjoy the citys main festival, the Festa de So Joo. However, its rarely cold in Porto even in midwinter, when it can even feel warm when the sun appears. Be aware, however, that Portos climate is heavily influenced by the Atlantic and it can rain with a vengeance: the wettest months tend to be October to January.

Festa de So Joo

Whats in a name?

O Porto means the port in Portuguese, but youll often see the city referred to as Oporto in English probably because of a misconception. In Portuguese, the article o (meaning the) is often used as in the sentence a familia mudou-se para o Porto (the family moved to Porto). O Porto was probably heard as one word, hence Oporto. Of course the same confusion does not apply to the drink port, which is as associated with a particular place as much as champagne or Madeira, and in fact, Porto has given its name to the country itself: originally named Portus Cale by the Romans, the area around Porto was the first to become the independent country which became known as Portugal.

Where to

SHOP

There are plenty of out-of-town mega shopping malls, but the city centre is made up of an appealing mixture of lovely traditional
tile-fronted grocery stores, quirky local stores and chic boutiques. The long, pedestrianized Rua da Santa Catarina, near the wonderful Bolho food market, is the place for everyday clothes shopping, while the area around Praa da Lisboa is where youll find designer and vintage shops. Its worth also heading to Rua das Flores, near So Bento, which is also good for chic, independent outlets.

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EAT

Portos cuisine is typical of northern Portugal. Grilled meat including game and the local speciality, tripe feature prominently on menus, as does bacalhau (dried salted cod). Youll probably find all of this at either the simple restaurants dotted round the city, or in the chic pricier restaurants near the riverside. Dont miss Portugals famous pastries, either, including the ever-popular pastis de nata.

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DRINK

Porto is forever associated with port and there are endless possibilities to try it at tasting rooms, restaurants and port wine lodges. There are plenty of other tipples to savour, too, with Portugals non-fortified wines being of excellent quality. Superbock beer is fairly ubiquitous and theres a growing trend for local craft beers in the city, too. Local brandies are worth sampling, and you should definitely try a caipirinha, a potent Brazilian cocktail made from a rather drinkable mix of distilled sugar cane, cachaa and lime juice.