Porto
Porto, also known in English as Oporto, is the second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon.
It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropolitan area, with an estimated population of 273,476 people in a municipal area of 41.42 km2 (16 sq mi). As of 2025, the Porto metropolitan area has around 1.9 million people in an area of 2,395 km2 (925 sq mi), making it the second-largest urban area in Portugal. It is recognized as a global city with a Gamma + rating from the Globalization and World Cities Research Network.
Getting to Porto
- 01Francisco de Sá Carneiro Airport
Worth seeing
Porto is a mysterious city that reveals its charm to the visitor through time. Take your time, wander through the mazes and alleys of the city. Take in the old, bohemian spirit of the city. Hike through the Ribeira and Foz do Douro regions (the latter, at sunset).
- 01Palácio da Bolsa
- 02Sé do Porto
- 03Port Wine Institute
A small exhibition about Port wine and its certification process.
- 04City Hall
Avenida dos Aliados.
- 05Igreja de São Francisco
- 06Mercado do Bolhão
A traditional market of fruits, vegetables, fish and meat.
Things to do
Douro river cruise. Take a cruise upriver (the cost starts at €15 (although they can be slightly cheaper if paired with a different activity) and takes about 50 minutes. Cruises run from 10:00 to 18:30, with sailings every 30 minutes for most operators.
- 01Teatro Nacional São João
- 02FC Porto
They play in Primeira Liga, Portugal's top tier.
- 03Boavista FC
They were relegated in 2025 and now play in Liga 2 the second tier.
Where to eat
Porto has some of the finest restaurants in Portugal. It is said that if you like to eat, you should go to Porto because it's a place where you eat well in terms of quality and amount (even Lisbon citizens say that in Porto is where they eat the best food).
- 01Café Piolho / Âncora
- 02Taberna Folias de Baco
A small cozy Portuguese restaurant with a nice ambiance.
- 03Laurear
Small and cozy place with very friendly service.
- 04Trinkas Petisqueira Lounge
Very good cuisine, simple, homemade and careful.
- 05Taxca
A typical Portuguese tavern, with excellent quality gastronomy products, the atmosphere is fantastic, typical of a tavern, without table service, the hanging hams immediately whet your appetite.
Getting around Porto the local way
- Get aroundThe Andante Gold, like the Andante Blue can be used in all metro lines, the funicular and all buses.
- Get aroundYour Andante must be validated before you enter the metro, bus or funicular.
- Get aroundThere are ferry boats that connect Porto to the neighboring city of Vila Nova de Gaia, although you can easily walk or travel by car, metro or bus to the other side.
- Get aroundNear the Douro there is a heliport with a helicopter available for people to use to get to know the city as a whole.
- Go nextMinho region — Go on a day trip to this region.
- Go nextPeneda-Gerês National Park — Go on a day trip to this park.
From Wikivoyage: Porto, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.
Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Diego Delso (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikimedia Commons.
