Porto Sights

  1. Afurada

    Technically part of Gaia, Afurada is a picturesque fishing village near the mouth of the Douro where many older residents still cling to traditional ways - men fishing and women washing their laundry at communal fonts. Houses are decked with azulejos and cafés are redolent with hearty caldeirada (seafood stew). For the most scenic route, take a tram from the Ribeira to the Fluvial I stop just west of the Ponte da Arrábida. From here, catch a small ferry across the river to the village.

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  2. Avenida dos Aliados

    With bulging, Beaux Arts facades and capped by the Câmara Municipal (City Hall), the short but grand Avenida dos Aliados may not be exactly Parisian, but it certainly recalls grand Parisian imitators like Buenos Aires and Budapest. Its central plaza has been recently repaved and spiffed up, and if it weren't for all the buses (this is the city's transport hub) and it would be a fine place to linger.

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  3. Barros

    Barros is a lodge well worth seeking out, with some of the town's oldest surviving cellars and a more in-depth look the process of making the wine itself.

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  4. Biblioteca Municipal Almeida Garrett

    High-tech library with free internet access, one-hour slots and long waits.

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  5. Capela das Almas

    On the pedestrianised Rua Santa Catarina you won't be able to miss the small but extraordinary facade of the Capela das Almas, which is smothered in lustrously blue azulejos . Though painted in classic 18th-century style, they actually date to the early 20th century.

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  7. Casa da Música

    The vast roundabout at Praça de Mousinho de Albuquerque roughly marks the boundary between 'old' and 'new' Porto. Here you'll find Casa da Música, Porto's extraordinary new concert hall. Called 'insane' yet 'brilliant' by the Times and 'ruthlessly inventive' by the Guardian, Casa da Música finally opened its doors in 2005 - four years late but every bit worth the wait.

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  8. Casa de Serralves

    A delightful pink Art Deco mansion built by a forward-looking nobleman in the 1930s, Casa de Serralves hosts temporary exhibitions. You can visit Casa de Serralves and the Museu de Arte Contemporânea with a single admission.

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  9. Casa do Infante

    Just back from the river in the Ribeira district is the handsomely renovated Casa do Infante. It's claimed that Henry the Navigator was born here in 1394, and the house later served as Porto's first customs house and now houses its historical archives. The complex was recently excavated, revealing Roman foundations as well as some remarkable mosaics - all of which are now on display.

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  10. Centro Português de Fotografia

    On the south side of Cordoaria is a stately yet muscular building (1796) that once served as a prison and now houses the Centro Português de Fotografia. Multiple exhibitions offer a portrait of Porto and Portugal in the age of photography. Note that the rather gloomy lanes south of the museum were once part of Porto's judiaria (Jewish quarter).

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  11. Estádio do Bessa

    Porto FC's worthy cross-town rivals are the under-funded Boavista FC. The newly spruced up Estádio do Bessa is their home turf and also hosted several Euro2004 matches. The stadium is west of the centre just off Avenida da Boavista (take bus No 3 from Praça da Liberdade). Check the local edition of Público or Jornal de Notícias newspapers for upcoming fixtures.

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  13. Estádio do Dragão

    The Estádio do Dragão, a flashy, new 52,000-seat stadium, hosted the opening ceremonies and first game of the 2004 European Football Championships. The ground, home to heroes of the moment FC Porto, is northeast of the centre just off the VCI ring road (metro stop Estádio de Dragão). Check the local edition of Público or Jornal de Notícias newspapers for upcoming fixtures.

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  14. Hilltop Cathedral

    From the Praça da Ribeira rise a tangle of medieval alleys and stairways that eventually reach the hulking fortress of a hilltop cathedral. Founded in the 12th century, the cathedral was largely rebuilt a century later and then extensively altered in the 18th century. However, you can still make out the church's Romanesque contours.

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  15. Igreja da Misericórdia

    North of the Praça Infante Dom Henrique on the distinctly Parisian Rua das Flores, you'll find Nicolau Nasoni's rococo façade of the Igreja da Misericórdia. Now a museum, the church shelters the superb, anonymous Renaissance painting known as Fons Vitae (Fountain of Life), showing Dom Manuel I and his family around a fountain of blood from the crucified Christ.

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  16. Igreja de Santa Clara

    The Igreja de Santa Clara was part of another Franciscan convent. Gothic in shape, with a fine Renaissance portal, its interior is also dense with elaborately gilded woodwork.

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  17. Igreja de Santo Ildefonso

    The gracefully baroque Igreja de Santo Ildefonso sits on the Praça da Batalha.

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  19. Igreja de São Francisco

    Sitting on the Praça Infante Dom Henrique, Igreja de São Francisco looks from the outside to be an austerely Gothic church, but inside hides one of Portugal's most dazzling displays of baroque finery. Hardly an inch escapes unsmothered, as unworldly cherubs and sober monks alike are drowned by nearly 100kg of gold leaf. The church has been deconsecrated, ministering only to tourists greedy to see all that gold.

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  20. Igreja do Carmo

    The Igreja do Carmo is one of Porto's best examples of Rococo architecture; enter via the main door on Rua do Carmo. It has a remarkable, azulejo -laden facade, including Silvestre Silvestri's exquisite panel illustrating the legend of the founding of the Carmelite order.

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  21. Igreja dos Clérigos

    Italian-born baroque master Nicolau Nasoni designed the Igreja dos Clérigos, with its theatrical facade and unusual, oval-shaped nave.

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  22. Jardim da Cordoaria

    Uphill from Aliados and past the Torre dos Clérigos lies the pleasantly leafy Jardim da Cordoaria (shortened to 'Cordoaria'). Architecture buffs will want to check out the Hospital Geral de Santo António, whose neo-Palladian façade recalls an Oxfordshire manor house.

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  23. Jardim do Palácio de Cristal

    Sitting atop bluffs just west of Porto's old centre, the leafy Jardim do Palácio de Cristal, is home to a striking, domed sports pavilion and pleasant gardens with fantastic river views. But pride of place goes to the new, high-tech Biblioteca Municipal Almeida Garrett.

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  25. Mosteiro da Serra de Pilar

    Watching over the entire scene is the severe, 17th-century hilltop Mosteiro da Serra de Pilar, with its striking, circular cloister. Requisitioned by the future Duke of Wellington during the Peninsular wars, it still belongs to the Portuguese military and is closed to the public. The church is open for mass on Sunday mornings from 10am to noon.

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  26. Museu de Arte Contemporânea

    In a leafy, upscale suburb off the grand Avenida Boavista, is Porto's other great work of contemporary architecture. Designed by eminent, Porto-based architect Álvaro Siza Vieira, the Museu de Arte Contemporânea is an arrestingly minimalist construction of vast, whitewashed spaces bathed in natural light.

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  27. Museu do Carro Eléctrico

    Down the banks of the Douro is the cavernous Museu do Carro Eléctrico. Housed in a former switching-house, it displays dozens of beautifully restored old trams.

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  28. Museu do Vinho do Porto

    Down by the river in a remodelled warehouse, the modest Museu do Vinho do Porto explores the impact of the famous tipple on the region's history in a series of largely interactive displays, though it doesn't offer much insight into the wine itself.

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  29. Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis

    A short walk west of Cordoaria lands you at Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis. Porto's most comprehensive art collection, it ranges from Neolithic carvings to Portugal's take on Modernism and is housed in the formidable Palácio das Carrancas. Requisitioned by Napoleonic invaders, the neoclassical palace was abandoned so rapidly that the future Duke of Wellington found an unfinished banquet in the dining hall.

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