Finding Oporto

Oporto, the second biggest city in Portugal, is a city of an undeniable beauty, considered one of the most beautiful in the world, with distinct beauty and architecture and an amazing people. Douro river and the Porto Wine caves, in Gaia, are one of the strengths of this city and a must-see.

Before the Arrival

The first thing you should do, probabaly before arriving (the most adventurous probably prefer to it when they're actually here), is find a place to stay. There's a big variety of places to stay from hostels, hotels, bed&breakfast or even apartments to rent for some time.

Some suggestions of places to stay for every wallet:

• Yes! Porto Hostel: starting at fifteen euros (15€)
• Gallery Hostel Porto: dorms starting at twenty euros (20€) and private rooms starting at twenty two euros (22€)
• Eden House: dorms starting at ten euros (10€) and private rooms starting at seventeen euros (17€)
• Guesthouse Hostel Vivacia: starting at eleven euros (11€)
• Stay at Porto: private rooms starting at thirteen euros and twenty cents (13, 20€)
• Modern Apartment in Porto Center: private rooms starting at twenty euros (20€)
• Sheraton Porto Hotel & Spa: starting at a hundred euros (100€)
• Hotel Carris Porto Ribeira: starting at seventy five euros (75€)

Oporto is a relatively small city, so wherever you decide to stay, you'll have easy acess to the rest of the city. "Santa Catarina", "Ribeira", "Aliados" and "Coordoaria" are considered the city center.

Oporto's Weather

Oporto has a Mediterranean climate, with temperatures that vary between zero degrees celcius (0º) and thirteen degrees celcius (13º) during Winter time and twenty degrees celcius (20º) and thirty degrees celcius (30º) during Summer time. During Winter time it's coomon to have the typical "nortada", meaning, colder stronger winds. Rain, wind and hail are also very common, taking in account that it normally doesn't snow around here. During Summer time, you can have really hot days and chill nights.

What to see in Oporto?

The city's must-see is D. Luis I Bridge, located in the most characteristic area in Oporto, the Ribeira. You can go through the D. Luis Bridge to Gaia, which gives you acess Gaia's Pier, where you'll have one of the best views over the Ribeira. It's probably the most characteristic landscape of the city and the one that appears the most on post cards.

Another strong point is the Bolhão Market, built in 1839 and hosts typical oporto sellers. The Market has two floors and it's where you can get fresh products and a personalized customer service. Everyone that visits this Market will never forget it, for sure.

There's also Aliados Square, with Oporto's Council as the background building. It's a beautiful place that was rehabilitated and lost some of it's old green characteristics. Nowadays it's a more stylized place but still nice due to it's surrounding buildings.

The Clérigos Tour is one of the most acclaimed monuments of this city. A work by Nicolau Nasoni, it has 240 steps and was once one of the tallest buildings in Portugal. Going up there costs about 3€, it's a little bit hard but the sight up there is really nice and you can amazing pictures.

We also have Casa da Música, which is also a must-see in Oporto. The institution has a museum that showcases all kinds of art, some concerts from different music styles and it also has onde of the most beautiful gardens you can see in Oporto.

The Foz area is one of the most expensive areas in the city. With a direct view into the see, an idyllic sight, where you have the chance to walk by the sea and enjoy the sight in one of the many coffee shops that exist there.

Some tips about Oporto: some places considered a must-see in this city are paid. Some have a simbolic price, like going up the Clérigos Tower or going to the Gardens of the Fundação Serralves. Others, however, are a little bit more expensive, such as the Bolsa Palace, but have a students discount.

Where to eat?

There are infinite possibilities where you can enjoy a good meal. From small typical restaurants that have the day's menu: soup, course, drink and coffee can cost just 5€; to fancy restaurants where the prices can start at 25€ per meal. Here in Oporto, it's really common that, in small restaurants, the food is served in portions, which means that two people can eat one portion. I'm going to leave here some of the most typical restaurants where you can enjoy a good meal:

• Magestic Café: from 10€ to 15€
• Restaurante Portucale: from 15€ to 25€
• Restaurante Escondidinho: from 15€ to 25€

Now, I'll leave some suggestions of what to eat when you're there, some of the most typical foods from the douro and minho areas.

Regarding the soups, I suggest: "caldo verde", "canja de galinha", "papas de sarrabulho" or "sopa de ervilhas". Caldo verde it's the most typical soup in Oporto and you ALWAYS have it in S. João's day.

Meat courses: "arroz de cabidela", "cabrito" or "anho assado", "feijoada à transmontana", "francesinha", "tripas à moda do Porto" or "rojões à moda do Minho".

Fish courses: "arroz de feijão com bolinhos de bacalhau", "sardinhas assdas", "bacalhau à D. Tonho", "bacalhau com grão de bico", "polvo com arroz à minhota".

Where to go out at night?

Oporto has two big areas where people mostly go out at night: Praça dos Leões and Zona Industrial, which is a bit further, in Matosinhos.

I recommend Praça dos Leões, because there are a lot of bars and you can really feel Oporto's spirit. There, you'll find lots of coffee shops that are open all night, where you don't need to pay to go in and where you can spend all night both inside and outside the bar just chatting. Here, the trouble isn't finding bars, but choosing where to go. How to get there? Just follow the crowd.

Thursdays, fridays and saturdays are the days when people usually go out and Praça dos Leões is busier. On mondays the parties happen in the Ribeira with the typical "baldes" and on the rest of the days there's always clubs and some bar open in Oporto.

I'll leave here some of the most known bars/clubs in the city:

Act - club, open on fridays and saturdays.

Alfandega - bar, open everyday.

Bazaar - bar, open everyday and with themed parties on wednesdays.

Real Feytoria - coffee-bar, open everyday after 10 p. m., where the music style is rock.

Tendinha dos Clérigos - bar-club, open everyday.

Twin's - bar-club, open on thursdays, fridays and saturdays.