#332: Porto and the Douro Valley (2nd Ed pg 244)

 

Porto is the perfect place to explore by boat!

We booked a private yacht through Viator.  It was very reasonably priced - especially once it was split three ways!  I think it only ended up being ~$40-$45/person.  Our yacht was serviced by two very helpful friendly crew, one of which captained the boat and the other which brought us blankets and drinks and told us about the sights we were seeing including all the bridges.  You can book something similar (there are different times of days, lengths of time, etc) here:

https://www.viator.com/tours/Porto/Exclusive-tasting-in-the-Douro-1-to-6-people-on-board-a-Yacht/d26879-159853P6

What a great city to be seen from the water!

But it's also a great city to be toured on land as well!

JK Rowling lived here here for a while and it is believed that many of the sights here inspired her Harry Potter series including this famed bookstore

And this narrow house squeezed between these two churches.  The narrow windows that you see is actually a house that is situated between a cathedral on each side.  We went inside and toured the whole thing, which was pretty cool. 

Capela das Almas de Santa Catarina, a chapel dating from the early 18th century whose outer facades are faced with tiles. 

And no trip to Porto is complete without trying francesinha.  And the place to try it is at Cafe Santiago!

Now, full disclosure, we didn't love this.  Pro tip:  Instead of making this your main meal like we did, maybe go here for lunch or try it first before banking on it being your dinner.  

Cost:  15 euros for a big plate that will easily feed two people.

Sunset in Porto is 😍

Verdict: Yes!  I absolutely loved Porto.  It's a lovely city and fun to experience by water or land. If you're looking for a place to say, I would highly recommend ICON Duplo Ribeira.  It's in a great location, is new and beautifully appointed and reasonably priced.

#331: Sintra (pg. 254; 2nd Ed. pg 242)

 

Oh Sintra....... how did I go 47 years before I experienced you?

We arrived in Sintra the afternoon of Sept. 30, 2023 and spent the rest of the day walking through the pedestrian-only ally-ways and exploring our surroundings. 

We got up early the next morning and headed to Pena Palace.  Pro tip: Get your tickets in advance here: https://www.parquesdesintra.pt/en/parks-monuments/park-and-national-palace-of-pena/

Another Pro tip:  After you scan your tickets, there will be some restrooms off to your left and then a long line to get on the shuttle which will take you up to the palace.  It is not a long walk up to the palace!  Maybe 10 minutes.  So if you are in decent shape and don't have any mobility issues, skip the line for the shuttle and walk up to the palace!

Picture perfect.

I could post a hundred pictures of this palace and not get sick of looking at them - different rooms, inside the palace, outside the palace, nooks and crannies, varying shades of light..... but I'll stop here.  You get the gist.  It's amazing in every way!

From there, we went to Castelo dos Mouros.  PRO TIP:  It's a good idea to buy these tickets in advance as well to save time from waiting in ticket line.  But unlike Pena palace, these are not timed tickets.  And you can easily walk here from Pena Palace.  So I would suggest getting timed tickets in the morning for Pena Palace and then once you are done exploring there, walk to Castelo dos Mouros and your ticket (separate ticket from Pena Palace) will be good for any time you arrive here. 

And then from there, we walked to Quinta da Regaleira Garden.  If you zoom in and look at the left side of the balcony, you will see us!

Lucky to be able to travel so much of the world with this guy!

Cari, Sheralyn and I

The highlight of Quinta da Regaleira!  The infamous well!

Verdict: Absolutely!  I'm in love with Portugal after this past week of exploring but Sintra was the start of it all.  Our hotel was great (NH Sintra Centro) and everywhere we went was beautiful.  It wasn't too crowded (we went end of September/beginning of October), the weather was great, there was a lot to see and do and it was just an all around great place to visit!