Porto and the Douro Valley: Your Perfect 5-Day Itinerary

Porto gets overshadowed by Lisbon on most Portugal itineraries, and we think that’s a mistake – especially if you’re a wine lover. We found the perfect home base in Porto and a one-of-a-kind wine house in the Douro Valley that we can’t wait to visit again. This is what we’d do with five days, and what we highly recommend you book.

Graham’s for the best port wine tour and tasting

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Getting to Porto

Several US carriers fly direct to Porto, so check before you default to routing through Lisbon. If you’re already spending time in Portugal, the train between Lisbon and Porto takes about three hours, runs frequently, and is a pleasant way to travel between the two cities. Porto is also well connected across Europe – we came from Marseille on Ryanair – so it works easily as part of a longer trip.

Where to Stay: Vila Nova de Gaia

We highly recommend skipping Porto proper and stay on the Vila Nova de Gaia side of the Douro River. Our friends recommended doing this, and they were absolutely right for a few reasons:

It sits directly across the Douro River, and the views of Porto from that side are stunning – particularly at night when the bridge and hillside light up.
Gaia is also where the port wine cellars are concentrated, which makes it the best base for wine tasting.
The riverfront is more relaxed than the Ribeira neighborhood across the water, and we found the restaurants less hectic and more inviting.

We stayed at an Airbnb with a direct view of the Dom Luís I Bridge. It was beautiful, and we’d book it again without hesitation.

Day 1: Explore the City on Foot

Start your first morning by crossing into Porto and walking the city:

São Bento train station is worth checking out even if you’re not catching a train because the entire interior is covered in beautiful blue and white azulejo tile panels depicting Portuguese history – and it’s free.
The Porto Cathedral and the Chapel of Souls are both an easy walk nearby.

Grab lunch at Cachorrinho Gazela. Anthony Bourdain introduced us to this place, and it absolutely deserves the attention. It’s a tiny counter spot that serves Porto’s famous cachorrinho – a spicy, cheesy hot dog in a crusty roll, served with a cold beer. We sat at the counter and ended up in a long conversation with the staff about travel. They were genuinely excited to talk about the world, and so were we.
When you’re ready to cross back to Gaia, walk across the upper deck of the Dom Luís I Bridge. The views from the bridge are just as good as the views of it from below. Take the cable car from there down into the heart of Gaia.

Pro Tip: Livraria Lello – the famous bookshop that may have inspired J.K. Rowling – is nearby. It now requires a paid ticket to enter and draws long lines. We skipped it, but if it’s on your list, be sure to book the timed entry online before you go.

Day 2: Scooters to Afurada

Ride scooters (or take an Uber) west along the Gaia side of the river to Afurada, a small fishing village where the Douro meets the Atlantic. It’s a completely different side of Porto with a quiet, local feel and a focus on fresh fish:

Restaurants grill sardines, sea bass, and whatever came in that morning directly on the street outside their doors.
Pick whichever spot catches your eye, sit down, and order the catch of the day with a cold vinho verde or local beer.

If you want to keep going after lunch, the beaches west of Afurada are close by. We didn’t make it that far, but they’re worth the extra time if you have it.

Spend the evening back on the Gaia riverfront. Order a bottle of wine, find a table outside, and watch the bridge. We did this more than once and never got tired of it.

Day 3: Explore the Wine Cellars

Porto is all about the wine. We highly recommend starting at Graham’s Port Lodge in Gaia. Even if you only visit one, make it Graham’s. It sits at the top of a hill and the views over Porto are spectacular.

The tour is genuinely informative and the tasting afterward is well organized. We did the premium tasting, which gets you into a beautiful private room – but we made a big mistake:

When we were purchasing our tour and tastings on arrival, we ordered one premium tasting for Theo (to get us into the fancy room) and then we ordered the most expensive option for me, thinking it would be a great way to sample some high-end ports without committing to the price of a bottle.
It turns out Theo got three beautiful samples of premium port and I had eight. Yes, eight – and they weren’t small. We did our best to finish them all (we failed but got close) and then had to go take a nap. So, pace yourself if you want to keep your afternoon open.

The 20- and 40-year tawnies were our favorites. Save some room for a glass of wine and some appetizers on the gorgeous terrace, which is located outside the gift shop. If we could do it over, we’d get a smaller tasting and then head to the terrace to enjoy the views with a nice lunch.

After Graham’s, walk down to the Sandeman Cellars patio on the riverfront. You can tour the inside or just hang out on the patio and people-watch. After our nap, we grabbed a bottle of vinho verde, ordered olives and small plates, and spent the late afternoon taking in our surroundings with the bridge as a beautiful backdrop.

Oops! And that’s in addition to Theo’s three

Douro Valley: Day Trip or Overnight

The Douro Valley is about two hours from Porto by car and worth every minute of the drive. The landscape shifts completely as you head inland with terraced vineyards and dramatic landscapes set on the river. There’s almost no traffic once you’re past Peso da Régua.

We grabbed an Uber to the airport in Porto and picked up a rental car there, so we could easily return it and catch our flight the next evening.

You can also do the Douro Valley as a day trip from Porto either with a guide or a rental car if your schedule is tight. It’s a beautiful day, and the tours usually include a boat ride on the Douro River. But we highly recommend staying a night or two.

Pro Tip: Take the N222 through Peso da Régua on the way in. It’s the more manageable and scenic route. We came back on the N323/N322 and the curves and drop-offs are intense. It was beautiful, but not for the faint of heart.

Quinta de la Rosa

We stayed at Quinta de la Rosa in Pinhão, a family-owned wine house right on the Douro River, and it was one of the best properties we could ever imagine booking. The setting is peaceful, the service is personable and welcoming, and the on-site restaurant Cozinha da Clara turned out one of the best meals of the trip.

The wines are exceptional across the board, and they offer way more than just port. We’d go back for a longer stay without hesitation, and we’d book two nights instead of one at the same property.

Try to time your visit while the grape harvest is underway. We went the last week of September and missed the stomping by about a week. Check with Quinta de la Rosa directly on harvest dates if that’s something you want to catch because it varies slightly year to year.

A Few Practical Notes

You don’t need a car in Porto itself. The city is walkable and Uber is readily available. Pick up a rental when you’re ready to head to the valley rather than paying for parking in Porto.

September is an excellent time to visit. The weather is warm, the crowds are thinner than peak summer, and if the timing works out, you might catch the harvest.

Porto pairs well with Lisbon if you’re doing a longer Portugal trip. The train between the two is fast and affordable. You can also add Faro and the Algarve with a short domestic flight.