Erasmus Experience in Porto, Portugal by Bartosz

Why did you choose to go to Porto, Portugal?

I wanted to spend my Erasmus in southern Europe and Porto is a great choose.

How long is the scholarship? How much money do you receive to help you with living costs?

I got scholarship for one semester. After one month the pandemic has started and I decided come back to my home country in Poland where I finished semester online. I was getting 450 euro scholarship per month.

What is the student lifestyle like in Porto?

There is a lot of possibilities to spend time. The city is near the ocean with beautiful beaches. Porto lives at night. Beginning of a parties and meetings is at 11 p.m.! People are very open and friendly. It is very easy to make new friends. There is a big international students community.

Would you recommend the city and the University of Porto to other students?

I recommend the city and the University Institute of Maia – ISMAI where I had my Erasmus.

What is the food like?

Portuguese cuisine is original. You must taste national dishes. The most popular dessert is the Pasteis de Nata but there are many delicious cakes and biscuits which I have never saw outside Portugal. They have national alcohols like the Porto wine and the Super Bock beer. The McDonald's in Portugal is offering tasty soups.

Did it cost you to find your accommodation in Porto?

If your university doesn't have dormitory finding accommodation in Porto is difficult. I was looking for it on facebook groups (Erasmus Porto, Erasmus Students in Porto, Casas / Quartos para arrendar no Porto, Casas no Porto para Alugar, Vender e Comprar, Porto - Quartos / Casas - Arrendar ou Alugar, Polacy w Porto) and by private messages with landlords. Renting a flat/room in Porto is expensive.
It is good to check if the flat real exist and how it looks like. There is a way of fraud that someone is ,,renting,, not existing flat or a flat owned by someone else. Sometimes they will contact you with fake students who ,,live,, in the flat, but it is not true. Cheater is taking payment in advance and what you will came to Porto you will discover that you have no place to live and no contact with landlord. My friend was cheated in this way so this is why I want to warn of the danger.
Many flats aren't well heated, don't have central heating and they are heated by electric heaters it is good to know because it increasing electricity bills. In winter in a flats can be cold so don't forget to take warm clothes.
Check condition of the flat because of the humidity, mustiness and mold are a big problem in Porto. Landlords avoid showing it on sent photos.
Washing machine is not a standard in the flats. In Portugal people are use to go to a laundries.
Don't worry, just be careful. When you will find a good place to live you will have great time in Porto!

How much does it cost to live in Porto?

Living in Porto is expensive. The biggest part of my expenses were rent for a room (300 euro monthly) and card for the city transportation (normal ticket for whole city 40 euro monthly).
Grocery shopping are just a little more expensive than in Poland. The rest of expenses depends of you.

Is the language easy to get to grips with? Are there language courses available at the University?

I had free Portuguese class with ECTS points at my University. Portuguese is difficult for me but English was sufficient to communicate in Porto.

What's the easiest or most economical way to travel to Porto from your city?

It wasn't many options. I chose Ryanair from Kraków to Porto.

Where would you recommend to go on a night out in Porto?

The most popular student's places are Adega and Espaço 77. People are taking a beer and standing on the street in front of the bar.

And for eating? Can you recommend some good restaurants in Porto?

I was living in Porto too short to know enough restaurants.

What good cultural sites are there to visit?

City is a amazing, all the historical sites are worth to see. I recommend a walk along the Douro river and on ocean coast. The most popular beach is in Matosinhos. It is good to see beautiful Capella Senhor da Pedra. From Porto is close to many touristic destinations: Braga, Guimaraes, Fatima, Aveiro, Coimbra. Even to Lisbon is just three hours.

Is there any other advice that you could give to students going to Porto in the future?

Don't throw away transportation ticket card because even for one way ticket the card is multi use. It is necessary recharge ticket without paying for new card.

Porto is amazing! Have a great Erasmus experience!