We are visiting Porto in late August. Can anyone recommend a river cruise, as there are various cruises advertised by Porto Tours and not knowing the area its difficult to know which one would be good for a first time visit to the region.
Many Thanks
What kind of cruises are you talking about? There are a number of cruises on the Duro in front of Porto, showing the bridges and I think there are also some cruises go upriver. I took a cruise on the Duro in front of Porto once or twice and don't think there is much difference between them. They take about an hour. I have no information of the other cruises, which will take much more time, at least half a day to a couple of days. In periods with rain the current in the Duro can be quite fast, so going upriver will be rather slow in such periods.
We we thinking of doing one of the up river day cruises that return by train or boat, however there are several that are advertised by Porto Tours and wondered which would be the best one to do.
As I indicated before the currents in the Duro can be quite strong, so going upstream means that you will cover a shorter part of the river, than going downstreams, at least in the same time. In the last case you would have to go by train or bus to the starting point. I never took one of these trips, so can not advise you. I just took the 3-bridges tour. There are a number of companies, which run these tours. They are all close to each other and I don't think there is much difference between them. Just choose the one that leaves at a time that suits you and also look at the boat. Some may be more appealing to you than others. If you would have to wait a while is no problem, because there are many terraces around the area to have a beer or a coffee.
