Ultimate One Day Porto Itinerary (2025)
Wondering how to spend the perfect day in Porto? If so, this article’s for you.
Porto is a beautiful city tucked along the Douro River, with amazing food and wine, historic architecture, and scenic views all throughout. It’s the second largest city in Portugal, and has a slightly more relaxed atmosphere than Lisbon.
I spent two days exploring the city, but I have no doubt you’ll be as charmed as I was with only one day in the city. To help you maximize your time, I’ve put together a sample one day itinerary highlighting all of the best things to see, eat, and do around town.
Here is the ultimate one day Porto itinerary for first time visitors.
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Ultimate One Day Porto Itinerary
Jardins do Palácio de Cristal
Start your morning off on a peaceful walk through the Jardins do Palácio de Cristal (Crystal Palace Gardens). This is a serene riverfront park with gardens, flowers, picnic areas, and most importantly, wild peacocks!
As you walk around the park, you’ll have a beautiful view of the Douro River, and get to spot majestic peacocks roaming around the gardens.
After strolling around this park, head to downtown for breakfast or coffee. Manteigaria is known for making the best pastel de nata in town, and there’s dozens of good cafes to choose from.
Torre Dos Clerigos
For the absolute best view of the city, climb the Torre Dos Clerigos. This is an 18th century church with a 75 meter tall bell tower that you’ll notice immediately as you stroll around town.
It has a narrow winding staircase with over 200 steps you can climb, and at the top you’ll have an amazing panoramic view of the city.
Entrance to the tower is €10/adult, and they’ll offer to take your picture at the top for a fee.
If you return here in the evening, you’ll have the chance to watch the Spiritus multimedia light show in the Clerigos church as well.
Here are a few other popular sites to check out near the Clerigos Tower in downtown:
- Livraria Lello: Famous bookstore known for being the Harry Potter bookstore with a stained glass ceiling and red winding staircase, €10/fee that goes towards your book
- Igreja do Carmo: Small baroque church covered in azulejos with catacombs and a rooftop terrace, €5/fee to tour the inside
- Mcdonald’s Imperial: Fancy Mcdonald’s built into a 1930’s cafe with chandeliers and stained glass windows
Porto Cathedral
The next must-see site is the Porto Cathedral. This is a gorgeous 12th century cathedral perched on a hill overlooking the city.
In the inside of the church you’ll see the iconic azulejos tiles (blue painted ceramic tiles) and beautiful Gothic and Romanesque style architecture.
Additionally, the cathedral has a mini tower you can climb up for an excellent panoramic view of the city, and Douro River. It’s €3/adult to enter, and I highly recommend touring the inside to admire the architecture.
Dom Luis I Bridge
From the Porto Cathedral, it’s just a short walk to the towering Dom Luis I Bridge. This is the most popular of Porto’s six bridges that cross over the Douro River, and you can walk across it for a lovely river view.
Douro River Six Bridges Cruise
If you want to see all six of Porto’s bridges, go on a Douro River cruise. You’ll get to sip wine, relax, and cruise to where the Douro River meets with the Atlantic Ocean.
These cruises take place in a traditional boat that was once used to transport wine, and are narrated so you can learn more about Porto’s history!
Wine-Tasting In Vila Nova de Gaia
If you love wine, go wine-tasting in Vila Nova de Gaia. Gaia is known for being the home of port wine, and it’s only a 20 minute walk down from the Dom Luis Bridge. It’s home to a variety of popular port wine lodges, and World of Wine Porto (WOW Porto).
Here you can go on a wine-tasting tour to multiple port lodges, or visit museums at WOW Porto.
WOW Porto is a multi-museum complex with three wine museums, including the Wine Experience, Pink Palace, and the History of Drinking. I visited the Wine Experience Museum, and it was a very in-depth museum on the process of wine-making in Portugal, with a tasting at the end.
Entrance to the individual museums is €20-€25/adult, or it’s a €40/adult daily ticket to all of the museums.
Here’s an overview of all of the museums in the WOW district.
- The Wine Experience: Science of wine-making museum that includes a tasting, €20/adult
- Pink Palace: Rosé wine museum that includes a tasting, €25/adult
- The Art Of Drinking: History of drinking museum (no tastings) €20/adult
- The Chocolate Story: Chocolate making and history museum, €20/adult
- Planet Cork: Cork production museum, €20/adult
- Porto Region: Porto culture and history museum, €20/adult
After doing a wine-tasting in Gaia, I recommend riding the cable car back, as it’s a steep hike with many stairs to get back to Porto.
Gaia has a cable car that runs from the riverfront plaza to the top of Dom Luis I Bridge. From there, you’ll be right next to Jardim do Morro, where you can watch the sunset over the Douro river, or hop on the metro back to downtown.
Other places to visit in Porto
If you love sightseeing, here are a few more interesting places to check out in Porto.
- Miradouro da Vitória: Popular overlook of the Porto cathedral and city near downtown
- Palacio de Bolsa: Historic stock exchange palace with neoclassical architecture (€14/guided tour)
- Sao Bento Station: Train station with walls covered in the iconic azulejos (blue ceramic tiles)
- Chapel of Souls: Free to visit small church covered in azulejos (blue ceramic tiles)
- Church of Saint Ildefonso: Free to visit 18th century baroque church covered in azulejos
Where To Stay In Porto
The best areas to stay in Porto are downtown (Baixa), Riberia, and Vila Nova de Gaia.
Baixa is in the heart of downtown, within walking distance to cafes, restaurants, and popular sites like the Clerigos tower and Porto’s university. It’s mostly flat, and the most convenient area to stay.
If you want a river view from your hotel, however, Riberia is the place to stay. It has a variety of hotels by the Douro river, and it’s only a short 10-15 minute walk from downtown.
Just keep in mind that it requires an uphill walk to get from your hotel to downtown, so it may not be ideal for those with mobility issues.
If you love wine, Vila Nova de Gaia is a good place to consider. It’s across the Douro River from Porto, and within walking distance to museums, restaurants, and a variety of port lodges.
However, it’s hilly, and a further walk from the popular attractions in Porto, so it may not be ideal for those with mobility issues.
How To Get Around Porto
Porto has great public transportation that will get you within a 10-15 minute walk of everything. Everything in Porto is relatively close, so it’s easy to get around by walking.
If you’re flying into Porto, the airport has a metro station that you can use to get to your accommodation. To use the city’s metro and buses, you’ll purchase an Andante card for €0.60, and add money to it for each trip.
A single trip ticket starts at €1.40, and a 24 hour ticket (all day use) starts at around €5.15, which can be slightly more expensive as you travel further outside of the city center.
If you want to avoid walking altogether, Porto has Bolt, Uber, and taxis widely available. Bolt is the Portuguese version of Uber, and typically tends to be the cheapest, whereas taxis are the most expensive of the three.
Summary
Porto is a charming riverfront city with beautiful historic architecture, and a laid back vibe that makes you never want to leave.
If you have limited time in Porto, I recommend touring the Porto cathedral, admiring the historic buildings downtown, and going wine-tasting in Gaia. For more ideas on what to do in town, see our list of unique things to do in Porto!
And if you plan on traveling to Lisbon, check out our 3 day itinerary for insight on all of the best things to do in town!
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