A week in Porto

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A week in Porto gives something the shorter plans cannot: slack. With seven days, the city can be seen at the pace its hills demand, the Douro can have a whole day, and there is still time to go north to the Minho coast or south to the university town of Coimbra.

The risk with a week is the opposite of the risk with a weekend. It is not running out of time, it is filling every day with a train and ending the week having seen Porto from São Bento station. The answer is to alternate: long days out with shorter days in the city between them. It covers three city days, four days out, and the choices within each, with train times, fares and the days of the week each trip suits. Everything runs from one base in Porto, without changing hotels.

The week, day by day

The mistake is to put the trips out on consecutive days. Three long train days in a row wear out a week faster than the hills do.

Day one, the historic centre and Gaia: São Bento, the cathedral, the Palácio da Bolsa and a Port lodge. The one-day plan times it.

Day two, the Douro, on the riverside line to Régua or Pinhão, or with a guided tour that includes a quinta.

Day three, the west of Porto: Serralves or the Palácio de Cristal gardens, then Foz. Both routes are detailed in the two-day plan.

Day four, Guimarães and Braga, about an hour each by urban train.

Day five, a slow day in Porto: markets, a second lodge, the beach at Matosinhos.

Day six, the Minho coast: Viana do Castelo, and Ponte de Lima with a car.

Day seven, Coimbra by train, or Aveiro, or a last day in the city.

Swap days to fit the calendar. The one fixed rule is that the city's museum days should not fall on a Monday, when most Porto museums close. A trip out suits a Monday better.

Day six: Viana do Castelo and Ponte de Lima

The mistake is to plan Ponte de Lima by public transport. There is no direct service from Porto; it is a car, or a bus from Viana.

Viana do Castelo is 75 minutes from Porto Campanhã on the fastest InterRegional trains, at 8.90 euros single, with regular trains through the day. Above the town, the Monte de Santa Luzia rises to 228 m, crowned by the Santa Luzia sanctuary, begun in 1904 to a design by Ventura Terra, and by the Iron Age ruins of the Citânia de Santa Luzia. A funicular climbs the hill for 2 euros single or 3 return; on foot, a path of 660 steps. Entry to the church is free, and the climb to the dome costs 2 euros.

Back in town, the Gil Eannes, built in Viana's shipyards in 1955 as a supply and hospital ship for the cod fleet off Newfoundland, is open as a museum ship. South of the river Lima, the Praia do Cabedelo runs for more than 3.5 km and draws surfers and kitesurfers. In August, the Romaria de Nossa Senhora d'Agonia fills the streets with traditional costume and gold jewellery. Most museums close on Mondays.

Ponte de Lima is 32 km inland from Viana. It received its town charter from Queen Teresa on 4 March 1125 and is often called the oldest town in Portugal. Its medieval bridge was rebuilt in 1370, and its riverbank market, held every other Monday, is one of the oldest in Portugal.

Day seven: Coimbra, or somewhere closer

The mistake is to choose Coimbra for the last day and then arrive at the library to find the day's slots taken. Its entry runs in timed slots.

Coimbra is the fastest of the long trips. Alfa Pendular trains from Porto Campanhã reach Coimbra-B in 1 h 09 min, and Intercidades trains in 1 h 17 min, with more than 20 trains a day. The standard single is 19.70 euros on the Alfa Pendular and 15.25 euros on the Intercidades.

At the university, the Palace of Schools and the Joanina Library open daily from 9:00 to 19:30. A ticket for the Joanina Library, the university and the Science Museum costs 16.50 euros for an adult, and a guided tour of the Palace of Schools 25 euros. Entry to the library is by timed slot, and the last entry is at 19:00. When last checked, the university tower was closed.

For a lighter last day, take the cheap suburban line south to Aveiro, ride a moliceiro along its canals, and catch the bus on to the striped houses of Costa Nova if time allows.

Or stay close. The metro reaches Matosinhos in around half an hour and has the nearest large sandy beach to the city, beside the port of Leixões, with grilled fish restaurants along Rua Heróis de França.

Coimbra suits travellers who like university towns and libraries; Aveiro suits a slower day; Matosinhos suits the end of a long week.

The slow day in Porto

The mistake is to treat a free day as wasted. On day five, the city has things the fast days leave out.

Start at the Mercado do Bolhão, the market hall in the Baixa that reopened in 2022 when its long restoration ended. It trades Monday to Friday from 8:00 to 20:00 and on Saturday until 18:00, and it is closed on Sundays.

Walk from there to the Fontainhas viewpoint, 843 m from São Bento, which never closes and scores 4.7 across 2,653 reviews, for the view east along the river.

In the afternoon, take a second Port lodge. If day one was Taylor's, try Graham's, in Gaia since 1890, where every visit is guided by a Port expert and ends with a tutored tasting; or Ferreira, where the visits start in the house of Dona Antónia Adelaide Ferreira.

Or spend the afternoon in Cedofeita, around Rua de Miguel Bombarda and its galleries, which the Cedofeita page covers.

End the day with fado. Several houses in the centre give short shows with a glass of Port.

A slow day is also the buffer. If rain washes out a trip, move it here and give the rainy day to museums: the Soares dos Reis, the Serralves museum or the Palácio da Bolsa.

The slow day is for what the fast days leave out.

Fitting the week to the calendar

The mistake is to fix the plan before checking which day of the week it starts on. Four things move it.

Mondays. Most museums in Porto close, including the Soares dos Reis museum and the Casa do Infante, as do the majority of Viana's museums. Put the Douro or Guimarães, whose palace and castle open daily, on a Monday instead.

Sundays. The Mercado do Bolhão is closed, and many restaurants close too; of Porto restaurants with published hours, Sunday is the most common closing day.

Weekends from June to October. Régua's historic train, five old carriages behind a diesel locomotive, runs up to Tua at weekends only, from 32 euros, so put the Douro on one of those days if you want it.

Festivals. In Porto, São João fills the night of 23 June and 24 June is a municipal holiday, when the state museums and Livraria Lello close. In Viana, the Romaria de Nossa Senhora d'Agonia takes over the town in August. In Ponte de Lima, the riverside market is held every other Monday, and the International Garden Festival runs from late spring to October.

Once those are placed, the remaining days fall into the gaps.

Most museums close on Mondays, which moves the whole week.

With a car for part of the week

The mistake is to hire a car for the whole week. Porto's centre is best on foot and by metro, and several trips work well by train.

A car helps on three days. The Minho day, because Ponte de Lima has no direct public transport; Viana do Castelo is about 58 minutes by road, and Ponte de Lima about 59 minutes from Porto. The Douro, if the day is for quintas rather than the view from the train; Régua is about 94 km by road, some 75 minutes. And the Paiva Walkways or Peneda-Gerês, which have no practical public transport; Arouca is about 67 minutes and Gerês about 90.

For the other days, the train is simpler. Guimarães, Braga, Aveiro and Coimbra are all well connected.

A good week with a car hires it for two consecutive days out, for example the Minho coast one day and the Douro the next, and returns it before the city days.

The day trips from Porto guide gives the routed drive times for every destination.

Practical notes for a week

Stay in one place. Every trip in the week starts from São Bento or Campanhã, so a base in the Baixa or near either station keeps every early start short.

The urban trains take a Siga card and the metro an Andante card; you will need both. The long-distance trains to Coimbra and Viana are ticketed per seat on CP, and express tickets are for one train.

Book the Palácio da Bolsa, the Coimbra library slot and, if you add it, the Paiva Walkways.

For a week, the tourist tax reaches its cap: 3 euros per person per night for up to seven nights, 21 euros in all, charged by the accommodation and set by the Porto municipality. Children under 13 are exempt.

For more than a week, the ten-day plan adds nights in the Douro, and the three-day plan is the short version.

Common questions

Is a week in Porto too long?

Not with day trips. Three city days and four days out cover the Douro, Guimarães and Braga, the Minho coast and Coimbra or Aveiro, all from one base.

How do I get from Porto to Viana do Castelo?

InterRegional trains from Porto Campanhã take 75 minutes on the fastest services, for 8.90 euros single, with regular trains through the day.

Can I reach Ponte de Lima by public transport?

There is no direct public transport from Porto. Drive, about 59 minutes, or take a bus from Viana do Castelo, 32 km away.

How long is the train from Porto to Coimbra?

The Alfa Pendular reaches Coimbra-B in 1 h 09 min and the Intercidades in 1 h 17 min, with more than 20 trains a day.