Centro Português de Fotografia interior 2

©Emily McAuliffe/Lonely Planet

Centro Português de Fotografia

Miragaia

LoginSave

This stately yet muscular building (1767) once served as a prison and now houses a photography museum. You actually walk through the thick iron gates and into the cells to see the work, which lends the intriguing exhibits even more gravitas. On the 3rd floor is a collection of cameras spanning every decade; particularly fascinating are the espionage ones, discreetly hidden in everything from Pepsi cans to Marlboro packets.

Immediately south of the museum are the narrow, atmospheric lanes that were once part of Porto’s judiaria (Jewish quarter).

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • Decorated interior of church museum of Saint Francis (Igreja de Sao Francisco) in Porto, Portugal. architecture, art, baroque, belief, catholic, church, construction, convent, decoration, destination, district, europe, famous, former, francis, franciscan, francisco, gothic, heritage, historic, historical, igreja, interior, landmark, leading, lines, monument, old, ornamental, orthodox, pattern, porto, portugal, portuguese, religion, ribeira, rich, romantic, saint, sao, site, symmetrical, symmetry, tourism, traditional, travel, urban, view, vintage, wealth, wealthy, world

    Igreja de São Francisco

    0.25 MILES

    Igreja de São Francisco looks from the outside to be an austerely Gothic church, but inside it hides one of Portugal’s most dazzling displays of baroque…

  • PORTO, PORTUGAL - AUGUST 22, 2013: Art deco villa in Serralves Gardens in the city of Porto, Portugal; Shutterstock ID 335447633; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: Digital Content/Sights

    Serralves

    2.49 MILES

    This fabulous cultural institution combines a museum, a mansion and extensive gardens. Cutting-edge exhibitions, along with a fine permanent collection…

  • Se Cathedral in Porto, Portugal

    Sé

    0.27 MILES

    From Praça da Ribeira rises a tangle of medieval alleys and stairways that eventually reach the hulking, hilltop fortress of the cathedral. Founded in the…

  • National Museum Soares dos Reis located in the ancient Carrancas Palace, in Porto, Portugal; Shutterstock ID 233117197; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: Digital Content/Sights

    Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis

    0.36 MILES

    Porto's best art museum presents a stellar collection ranging from Neolithic carvings to Portugal’s take on modernism, all housed in the formidable…

  • Porto, Portugal - August 25, 2020: Nations Courtyard at Stock Exchange Palace in Porto, Portugal. 1439431854 attraction, building, central, commercial, culture, dome, exchange, historic, historical, indoor, inner, interior, landmark, nations, octagonal, palacio da bolsa, patio das nacoes, porto, portuguese, stock, stock exchange

    Palácio da Bolsa

    0.22 MILES

    This splendid neoclassical monument (built from 1842 to 1910) honours Porto’s past and present money merchants. Just past the entrance is the glass-domed…

  • Jardins do Palacio de Cristal, Porto, Portugal ; Shutterstock ID 233117089; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: Digital Content/Sights

    Jardins do Palácio de Cristal

    0.56 MILES

    Sitting atop a bluff, this gorgeous botanical garden is one of Porto's best-loved escapes, with lawns interwoven with sun-dappled paths and dotted with…

  • JUNE 7, 2015: exterior of the House of Music concert hall (Portuguese: Casa da Musica) in Porto, designed by Rem Koolhaas. 1013813857 contemporary, street, blue, sky, architecture, auditorium, building, casa da musica, city, classical, colorful, concert, cultural, culture, design, europe, exterior, hall, house of music, landmark, leisure, modern, music, opera, porto, portugal, portuguese, scene, shape, site, theater, tour, tourism, town, travel, trip, urban, view, vivid

    Casa da Música

    1.25 MILES

    At once minimalist, iconic and daringly imaginative, the Casa da Música is the beating heart of Porto's cultural scene and the home of the Porto National…

  • Detail of Sao Bento Train station in Oporto. The first train arrived here in 1896, but the building (designed with a French Renaissance touch) opened in 1903.; Shutterstock ID 7016608; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: Digital Content/Sights

    São Bento Train Station

    0.29 MILES

    One of the world's most beautiful train stations, beaux arts São Bento wings you back to a more graceful age of rail travel. Completed in 1903, it seems…

View more attractions

Nearby Miragaia attractions

1. Rua de São Bento da Vitória

0.03 MILES

With its cobblestones polished smooth by centuries of shoe leather, and pretty tiled houses with little wrought-iron balconies and window boxes brimming…

2. Mosteiro de São Bento da Vitória

0.04 MILES

Note the sign in front of this former monastery apologising for the expulsion of the Jews in 1496 under the Portuguese Inquisition and the iron fist of…

3. Igreja Nossa Senhora da Vitória

0.08 MILES

In Porto's medieval Vitória quarter, this church stands on land that once belonged to the Jewish community. Completed in 1539, it was given a baroque…

4. Casa da Rua São Miguel

0.08 MILES

As you amble down the hill, keep a look out on the right-hand side for the Rua São Miguel. On the corner, at No 4, you'll see a panel of 19th-century blue…

5. Jardim da Cordoaria

0.08 MILES

This pleasantly leafy park is known simply as ‘Cordoaria’. Check out the four haunting sculptures by Spain's Juan Muñoz. The romantic, narrow lanes that…

6. Miradouro da Vitória

0.09 MILES

Porto is reduced to postcard format at this viewpoint, perched high and mighty above a mosaic of terracotta rooftops that tumble down to the Douro. It's a…

7. Museu da Misericórdia do Porto

0.1 MILES

The Museu da Misericórdia do Porto harmoniously unites cutting-edge architecture, a prized collection of 15th- to 17th-century sacred art and portraiture,…

8. Torre dos Clérigos

0.11 MILES

Sticking out on Porto's skyline like a sore thumb – albeit a beautiful baroque one – this 76m-high tower was designed by Italian-born baroque master…