Porto, Portugal

I arrived in Porto, Portugal at 2130.
The airport was fairly quiet and it was an easy walk from the aircraft out of the terminal. I was surprised that there was no one to collect the covid locator form.
The airport was located a 20 minute drive from the city itself. There are 2 apps for ordering taxis operating in the city, Uber and Free now. On looking through I found that normally free now ran at around 1€ a ride cheaper.
I stayed at peaches hostel, the taxi dropped me there for 12€. The hostel was located around a 25 minute walk from the downtown area, or just one stop on the train. The train station was just a few minutes walk away.
I paid 27€ for 2 nights in a dorm room. The hostel was great with a full kitchen, a nice garden and the biggest dorm rooms I have seen. The bed was really comfortable. The only negative was the pillow, which was the worst I’ve ever slept on.

The next morning I woke up early and went to catch the sunrise by the Ponte Luis bridge. While it wasn’t the best sunrise, I could quickly feel that Porto was going to become one of my favourite cities. After I walked to Zenith, a place I had been recommended for breakfast. I opted for the vegan pancakes they were so tasty!

Next up I walked to the Livraria Lello, the library first opened its doors in 1906 and had famous links to the Harry potter movies. For this reason dispute there being very few tourists there was still a queue to get in. It cost 5€ to visit, which would be taken off the price of a book if you wished to purchase one. It was really a stunning sight. I didnt think a library could emotionally move me.

Other places that I visited during the 2 days were the San Bento railway station with it’s impressive blue tiled entrance hall.

The cities cathedral which was built in.
As well of course walking over the Ponte Luis bridge. I did this several times during my trip. Only once on the top level, before taking the cable car down. This cost 6€ one way. Arriving on this side of the river I would admire the view of the city. I sat by the river reading for some time. The weather was great. It was probably one of the most relaxing spots I’ve ever found.

In the evening I took a bus to the Foz do duoro, the lighthouse made famous from the shots in the national geographic photos. I was lucky to witness a really great sunset there. A single bus ticket cost 2€ in the city. There was also an option to get one of the historic trams which cost 3€ a trip.

The next day I spent wandering around Porto’s streets, make sure to pack comfortable shoes as they are very hilly!

Around every corner I was met with impressive views or great street art.

There were endless food options of course you had to try the famous nata (custard tarts) along with the port. Porto is of course very famous for its production of port. It was possible to do tastings in several locations from around 15€.

I had brunch at esquires, the service was perfect and they played uplifting music which was great for the morning.

The rest of the day I spent pretty much relaxing on the banks of the river. Before catching my coach to Lisbon at 1950. I booked my ticket with Flixbus. The journey was punctual and the coach was great with wifi and power sockets. The ticket cost me just 5.99€ for the trip taking just over 3 hours.

Porto was an amazing city one I would definitly recommend and cannot wait to return to.