Last Updated on October 6, 2026 by A Teaspoon of Travel

How to Explore Porto in 2 Days: Best Sights, Foods, & Viewpoints

Traveled in October 2019

Lisbon might get all the glory on Instagram, but Porto stole my heart. Between the colorful facades, the walkable streets, and the river winding through the city, it just felt cozier, more inviting, and full of charm. I’ve always been a “second city” kind of girl when visiting a new country, and Portugal was no exception. 2 days in Porto isn’t nearly enough to experience it all, but if you’re looking for a quick taste of the highlights, here’s how we spent our time. We spent 2 days in Porto and followed this general route ourselves. I’ve included the sights we actually visited, plus a few optional additions where noted.

2 Days in Porto Itinerary

Just Give Me The Highlights! (aka the TL;DR)

If you only book 3 things ahead of time, book these:

1. Hotel in the Old Town
2. Port wine lodge tasting in Gaia
3. Douro Valley wine tour

Hotels in Porto to maximize your sightseeing time:

1. Editory House Ribeira Porto Hotel – (where we stayed!) amazing location in Porto Old Town, walkable to everything. Best if you want a traditional hotel.
2. Belomont52 Guest House – (our choice if visiting again) guest house in a charming building in the center of Porto Old Town, more like staying in a studio apartment. Best if you want a home rental vibe, but with a front desk (this is my favorite type of hotel these days).

Don’t leave Porto without:

1. Seeing the best Porto viewpoints
2. Eating pastel de nata
3. Trying a Francesinha sandwich

When to Go

I always prefer to travel in shoulder season to avoid the crowds and for cooler weather. Summer is definitely peak season in Portugal, but it gets HOT and crowded. We spent our 2 days in Porto in October, and the weather was pleasant for us, though with some rain. September or early June might be the perfect balance of warm weather and lighter crowds. Winter, on the other hand, can be trickier with more rain and unpredictable weather. The cobblestone streets get slippery, and since so much of Portugal’s charm is in wandering on foot, that can really affect the experience. Still, if you luck out with clear days in winter, you’ll have the fewest crowds and the best prices.

How to Get There

There is an airport in Porto (airport code OPO), but you may actually find cheaper international flights when flying into Lisbon (airport code LIS). Porto and Lisbon are connected by a direct train ride that takes about 3 hours.

Booking tip: certain flight searches like Kayak, Skyscanner, or Google flights allow you to set price trackers that will alert you when the price of your flight changes. I never book a flight without tracking prices first because there is no better feeling than snagging a good deal! And I always book with a travel credit card because it includes travel insurance protections that I’ve taken advantage of (like delayed baggage reimbursements and trip delay reimbursements). Contact me for my recs on the travel cards that are worth their annual fee!

Bonus Booking tip: sign your kiddo up for frequent flyer accounts with airlines to start earning airline miles for them! Most airline miles do not expire for minors so your kiddo will thank you later.

Where to Stay

Staying in the Old Town of Porto is my pick for the most convenient and atmospheric area to make your home base. The Old Town in Porto is compact and walkable, which makes it an ideal place to stay when you only have 2 days in Porto. The neighborhood is packed with atmospheric narrow streets, colorful buildings, and riverside views that really show off Porto’s charm.

Our top picks in the Old Town of Porto:

1. Editory House Ribeira Porto Hotel – (where we stayed!) amazing location in Porto Old Town, walkable to everything. Best if you want a traditional hotel.
2. Belomont52 Guest House – (our choice if visiting again) guest house in a charming building in the center of Porto Old Town, more like staying in a studio apartment. Best if you want a home rental vibe, but with a front desk (this is my favorite type of hotel these days).

How to Get Around

If you plan to explore the Douro wine region on your own while in Porto then you will need a rental car (or you can go with a guided tour).

In summary:

2 Days in Porto Itinerary at a Glance

Day	Activity	Sleep In
1	Explore Porto viewpoints Bonus: Douro wine valley tour	Porto
2	Explore Porto Old Town Gaia viewpoints and port wine lodges	Porto

Day 1: Arrive in Porto, Explore Porto Viewpoints

To get from Porto airport to the city center, you can take the metro, or take an Uber. We usually take public transportation from the airport to the city center, but Uber was so affordable in Portugal that it made more sense to Uber from a cost and time perspective.

Miradouros

Porto is built on the hillside next to the Douro river. That same hillside that will give your legs a workout over the next couple days also gives you some amazing views. Porto has maximized these views with various “Miradouros” or viewpoints/lookouts scattered throughout the old town and across the river in Gaia. On the Porto side of the river, we visited the following viewpoints clustered around the Porto Cathedral:

• The courtyard behind Porto Cathedral
• Miradouro da Rua Dos Aldas (a short walk from Porto Cathedral)
• Miradouro da Vitória (10 min walk from Porto Cathedral)

Want to Add a Douro Wine Valley Tour?

We didn’t make it to the Douro Valley during our 2 days in Porto because we arrived too late in the day. Most Douro Valley wine tours are full day tours. But if you arrive in Porto early enough, you can do a half day tour or rent your own car for more flexibility. Just keep in mind that you probably won’t have time to do much sightseeing in Porto on the day you travel to the Douro Valley.

If you love wine country, then you’ll love the Douro Wine Valley. As the birthplace of Port wine, it’s the perfect place to sample it right where the grapes are grown. And with terraced vineyards rolling down the hillsides and the river winding through the valley, the views are worth the visit as well.

Some time during your stay in Porto you MUST have dinner at Taberna dos Mercadores. It is a tiny restaurant, so call for reservations if you don’t want to wait. They serve traditional and regional cuisine but with a modern twist. More importantly, it is insanely delicious. Everyone that we have recommended this restaurant to has said it was the favorite of their trip. (I hope I have not overhyped it now!).

Day 2: Historic Porto and Gaia

Porto is very walkable but extremely hilly. The easiest way to explore the historic center is to start at the top and gradually work your way downhill toward the river. I am all about being strategic about the order in which we see the sights to save our legs and our time. The route we followed below starts at the top of Porto and wound downhill from there, so we only had one uphill climb for the day rather than backtracking up and down. This was a full day for us, starting at 9am and returning to our hotel around 8pm. But this included a leisurely dinner and a slow pace, especially around the viewpoints.

Start at: Clerigos Tower

• Hours: 9am-7pm every day, though there are special events at night
• Cost: fee to go up the tower. Can buy tickets online ahead of time on the official website.

Clerigos Tower is another fantastic viewpoint in Porto. But unlike the viewpoints we visited on our first day, the tower is not free. We enjoy viewpoints so thought it was worth the fee to go up the tower. The tower can get congested at the top with everyone enjoying the views so there may be a wait before you can climb the upper stairs. There is a free organ concert at the church every day at noon. But since we only had one day to see the major sights in Porto we did not think it was worth it to circle back to the church at noon just for the concert.

Livraria Lello Bookstore & Igreja do Carmo Building

• Walking time: 2 minutes
• Hours: 9:30am-6:30pm Mon-Fri
• Cost: fee to enter the bookstore, but fee may be applied towards the purchase of a book edited by Livraria Lello. Can buy tickets online ahead of time on the official website.

The Lello Bookstore 2 minutes up the street from the Clerigos Tower is famous for reportedly inspiring the setting of Harry Potter. Because of this, it is swarming with tourists wanting that iconic photo of the curving staircase inside. At the time that we visited, the only option was to wait in line to buy a ticket to enter the bookstore. The line was too long for us, but nowadays you can buy entrance tickets online ahead of time which may cut down the wait. If you have your heart set on going inside for the photo op, definitely book online ahead of time. I am a bookworm and usually love visiting beautiful bookstores and libraries, but the long lines put me off and felt a little overhyped to me personally.

Instead, we detoured to the Igreja do Carmo building 2 minutes away from the Lello Bookstore for a free photo op. The large tiled facade on the side of the building makes for a beautiful backdrop, without as many crowds.

Sao Bento Train Station

• Walking time: 10 minutes
• Hours: main hall is open from 6am-1am
• Cost: free!

10 minutes down the hill from Livraria Lello and Igreja do Carmo is the Sao Bento train station, which has some of the most beautiful azulejos (painted tiles) in Portugal. We didn’t take any train rides, but it was still worth stepping inside to admire the artfully painted tiles. Portugal is famous for these azulejos blue tiles, and the ones inside the Sao Bento train station are examples of the some of the finest.

If you’re hungry by this point, consider the calorie and cholesterol bomb that is the francesinha sandwich. The francesinha sandwich is one of Porto’s specialties. It’s only found in Porto, which is why we had to try it. It is like a croque monsieur sandwich on steroids. The sandwich is stuffed with 3 different types of meat, smothered with melted cheese and a tomato sauce, then topped with an egg. It’s not something you would eat every day if you value your health, but well worth trying (or sharing) once. We tried the Cafe Santiago F, which serves one of the best francesinhas in the city. They do allow sharing for a small fee, which is what we did to save our arteries. It is a 10 min walk from Sao Bento train station.

Or, for a lighter snack go for some (because it’s hard to have just one) pasteis de nata at Nata Lisboa across the street from Sao Bento train station. I made it a goal to have at least one pastel de nata stop a day while in Portugal because it’s hard to find the same quality of pastel de nata at home. Nata Lisboa was my first pastel de nata for the day.

Palacio da Bolsa

• Walking time: 11 minutes
• Hours: 9am-630pm every day
• Cost: paid guided tours are required to visit. Can buy tickets online ahead of time on the official website.

11 minutes downhill from the Sao Bento train station is the Palacio da Bolsa (the Stock Exchange Palace), which is known for its sumptuously decorated interior. You have to visit the interior with a 30 minute guided tour. The tours are conducted in various languages, with different time slots for each language. No same day tickets are available, so you do have to book ahead of time.

When we visited, you had to buy tickets at the counter and there was no option to buy tickets ahead of time. However, sadly there was a private event happening the day we visited so we did not get a chance to tour, but if you like doing house tours then you will like this one.

Instead, we did some food souvenir shopping nearby. We headed to the Fabrica do Azeite store 3 minutes away, which has a wide selection of locally produced olive oils. I’ve never done an olive oil tasting before, and it was interesting to learn about the different types of olive oil. Then we walked to the Meia Duzia store 5 minutes away, which sells uniquely flavored (in a good way) jams in tubes. These jams were BIG hits with our friends. They also offer tastings which was a smart business move because we definitely bought more than we intended to.

Ribeira District

• Walking time: 7 minutes
• Hours: 24 hours
• Cost: free!

Next we continued down to the riverfront Ribeira district to admire Gaia across the river. Gaia is where all of the port wine lodges are located. The bridge that reminds you of the Eiffel Tower is the Ponte Dom Luis I bridge, which is another one of Porto’s famous viewpoints. The Ponte Dom Luis I bridge has a lower level and a top level. We crossed the river on the lower level, since the lower level connects to the Ribeira riverfront. The bridge is another beautiful vantage point for admiring the Douro River.

Port Wine Lodges in Gaia

• Walking time: varies, depending on which lodge you choose. Graham’s required a bus ride and an uphill walk.
• Hours: 10am-5:30pm every day
• Cost: fee for tastings. Can book tastings online ahead of time at the official website here.

The port wine lodges in Gaia all offer tastings. Graham’s has a good fancy restaurant (Vinum) with fancy views, and we found it worth the trip up the hill. I loved the dinner, and my husband especially enjoyed drinking from the gigantic port wine bottle at the restaurant. We skipped the port tasting experience since we had their port with our dinner.

For drinks with a view, Porto Cruz has a rooftop bar overlooking Gaia and Porto on the other side of the river. If you’re new to port, then book a port wine tour with a local guide that will take you to a couple different port lodges and explain the differences in the port wines.

Jardim do Morro & Serra do Pilar Monastery

• Walking time: varies depending on which port lodge you choose. The Lower station for the cable car is on the waterfront promenade of Gaia.
• Hours: 10am-7pm every day
• Cost: fee for cable car, but the Jardim do Morro and Serra do Pilar Monastery viewpoints are free. Can buy tickets for the cable car online at the official website here.

The Jardim do Morro is a garden with an overlook that has some of the best views of Porto and the Douro River. If you don’t want to hike up, you can take the cable car for an aerial view of the Douro River as it transports you up to the Jardim do Morro like we did. Riding the cable car was a spur of the moment decision for us, so we bought one way tickets at the Lower cable car station.

After seeing the Jardim do Morro, it is worth the 5 minute uphill hike to the Serra do Pilar Monastery. It is another amazing viewpoint looking back towards Porto from a higher vantage point. After that, we walked back down to the Jardim do Morro, which connects to the upper level of the Ponte Dom Luis I bridge. We headed back across the bridge back to our hotel to end our long sightseeing day.

What to Book Before Your 2 Days in Porto

Definitely book ahead:

• Hotel
• Livraria Lello, if you want to go inside
• Port wine cellar if you have a specific lodge in mind

Consider booking:

• Douro Valley tour
• Walking tour
• Douro River cruise
• Clerigos Tower

Show Me the Money

Portugal is part of the European Union, so the currency used is the Euro. Credit cards were widely accepted, so we mostly relied on our no-foreign-transaction-fee credit card. Always choose to pay in the local currency rather than USD for a better exchange rate. We did withdraw a small amount of Euros after we arrived just in case, but we didn’t really need it during our 2 days in Porto. If withdrawing any cash, look for ATMS run by the local banks and always choose to withdraw the amount in Euros rather than USD for a better exchange rate.

Saving tip: to avoid ATM fees (from the foreign bank and your bank), look for a checking account that offers ATM fee reimbursements. I can personally recommend the Schwab investors checking account and the Betterment checking account for this purpose.

How to Stay Connected

Because we took this trip before e-sims were commonly used, we bought tourist prepaid sim cards for our cell phones during this trip. Orange and Vodaphone are two popular cell phone companies in Europe and sell prepaid tourist sim cards that can be used throughout Europe.

However, now we always use e-sims from Airalo.

If you have an unlocked phone, then you can either purchase a prepaid sim card or you can use an e-sim. The e-sim is the cheapest way to get international cell phone data. We had a great experience using Airalo to purchase an e-sim on our trip to Canada, Switzerland, and Japan and it worked seamlessly. The downside is that you only have data and no phone service when using Airalo e-sims, so it’s a good option if you don’t anticipate needing to make phone calls.

• The Airalo website has great tutorials and I also watched this Youtube video for more installation tips. We usually start the installation process at home to load the e-sim into our phones, and then once we land at our destination we turn off our US e-sim and turn on the international e-sim.

Airalo offers local e-sims for specific countries or regional e-sims for all of Europe. For this trip to Porto, you could either buy a Portugal e-sim, or get the regional Europe e-sim if traveling to other European countries.

• Get a Portugal Airalo e-sim here and use my referral code ATEASP4988 for $3 off

To continue exploring Portugal, check out our complete Northern Spain and Portugal Itinerary for more foodie adventures in Lisbon and the Algarve!