- Be enchanted by the country’s natural beauty from the Douro Valley to historic Porto to Cascais and Sintra, Portugal’s Riviera.
- Enjoy the pleasure of sipping port, Portugal’s signature wine, at one of its quintas, which are country estates surrounded by vineyards overlooking the Douro River
- Enjoy tasting wine in Pinhão, a small town that is the heart of the Douro Wine Region, one of the world’s oldest wine regions.
- Experience the thrill of exploring one or more of the seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites that call the Douro Valley home.
- Go back in time observing prehistoric artwork in Côa Valley.
- Discover the captivating landscape of the Douro International Natural Park on a hike.
Best Things to Do in Douro River
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Things to do in Douro River - Expert's guide
There are numerous excursions and day trips along the Douro River and for exploring the Douro Valley. Here are some of our favorites!
1. Porto
Enjoy a variety of walking tours to explore Porto’s history, architecture, gastronomy, wine, shops, and more:
Traverse through Porto’s UNESCO-designated historic center, Bairro da Sé, where millenniums old cobblestone streets enshrined by 14th-century-walls erected on Roman foundations bring Medieval Porto alive for modern visitors who marvel at the edifices and the baroque church towers that crown the city’s hilltops, such as the Clérigos Tower.
More history and architecture beyond the fortress walls, tours take visitors on a journey learning about:
- Stunning Baroque, Gothic, and Romanesque Cathedrals that have spanned the centuries most notably Porto Cathedral, one of the city’s oldest monuments; the Torre dos Clérigos with its unique bell tower; can be discovered on architectural and history tours.
- Sao Bento Railway Station, where Portugal’s history is detailed on picturesque blue and white tiles.
- The UNESCO-designated Ribeira, one of Porto’s oldest riverfront neighborhoods filled with cafes, restaurants, bars, shops and the Port house of Vila Nova de Gaia.
- Livraria Lello e Irmão, the stunning bookstore made famous again by being featured in Harry Potter movies (It isn’t the only inspiration Portugal lent to the wizardry of the spellbinding children’s book series).
- Europe’s city of bridges Dom Luis I and Maria Pia bridges, marvels of 19th century engineering.
- Stroll along Porto’s main avenue Avenida dos Aliados or Santa Catarina stopping in at cafes, shops, and more.
Sip and taste your way through Porto sampling the city’s emerging and traditional cuisine – such as the traditional specialties Bolas de Lamego, a bread stuffed with smoked ham, and Presunto, a type of cured ham, and especially fish dishes such as Pataniscas, a traditional Portuguese cod fish cake. All the while tasting a variety of Portuguese wines, including port, the wine’s namesake derived from the Portugal’s second largest city, and learn about port wine at a port wine-making facility.
Day trips to nearby towns, such as Foz, a fishing village that has been a summer home favorite for the wealthy for centuries.
2. Regua
Guided tours of Reguaexplorethe town ofLamego,home ofthe 14th-century baroque-style Shrine of our Lady of Remedies decorated in tilework in the Moorish manner with a grand staircase of nearly 700 steps decorated in the blue and white tiles.
Pilgrims still use the sanctuary today. The Douro Museum is dedicated to the history of the production and distribution of port wine and the historic region that has been producing wine for 2,000 years. The town is also home to the Lamego Castle, and quinta’s, wine estates.
3. Pinhão
Travelers will be guided into Pinhão, the heart of the Douro Valley’s wine region, where visitors will be welcomed to explore the vineyards in Porto Antigo and taste the legendary port wine at its source in the oldest demarcated wine-growing region in Europe. Visitors also explore the French chateau inspired Vila Real and the Mateus Palace.
4. Guimarães
Where Portugal’s story began: Guimarães, visitors learn about the country’s first capital city when Pope Alexander III recognized Afonso I as the King of Portugal in 1179 on guided tours through its past, that is still alive in the buildings and squares, to its lively present. The UNESCO-designated town is a perfectly preserved with its unique architecture constructed with granite and half-timbering.
The site is home to the Monastery and Church of Our Lady of Oliveira and the 14th-century Gothic Padrão do Salado. Despite its Middle Age history, the charming plazas to Largo da Oliveira, the main square, are filled with youthful vibrancy as today it’s home to Europe’s youngest population that fills the cafes, restaurants, bars, and shops. Guimarães is also home to the Minho wine-growing district, which produces Portugal’s popular vinho verde wines.
5. Coimbra
Portugal’s emergence continues in Coimbra, where King Afonso I moved the country’s capital to after winning independence. Visitors learn about the city that nurtured six kings, intellectual pursuits at The University of Coimbra and its library that houses an estimated 56,000 volumes of works dating back to the 16th to 18th centuries, and the arts. Harry Potter fans will also find the second inspiration for Hogwarts by looking closely at college student’s uniforms.
6. Sintra
Situated on the Portugal Riviera just outside of Lisbon, visitors will be guided through the UNESCO-designated town Sintra, a romantic city of castles and palatial estates punctuated by monuments throughout the city. The city has been an architects’ canvas designing buildings inspired by a variety of architectural-styles, such as the Rhine.
Visitors will learn about the town’s storybook existence from the fairytale Castelo da Pena built during Portugal’s Romantic Period to the Palacio de Queluz, which has been the Portuguese royal families summer retreat for more than 500 years.
7. Lisbon
Situated on the Tagus River, Portugal’s capital city, Lisbon, is where the country’s Age of Discovery began. Visitors to the port city will learn about Prince Henry the Navigator and Portugal’s Golden Era of exploration as Portugal built its empire on guided tours.
The city’s gem, the UNESCO-designated site, Jerónimos Monastery, a masterpiece of Manueline architecture and home to the Order of Saint Jerome and the Belém Tower, rose from that era.
Guides will explain its significance of the monastery along with its other edifices, such as the Castelo de São Jorge, engineering feats, like Santa Justa Elevator that overlooks the castle, river and Rossio Square, and exploring the Bairro Alto, the old town Lisbon.
8. Salamanca
Explore Spain’s “Golden City” located at the center of Spain’s Castilla y León region. The city, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site, is a living museum. Salamanca is a journey back to the Middle Ages explored through its sand-colored buildings, plateresque architecture, and plethora of churches that is as well as its international cosmopolitan young scene influenced by the university’s attraction of international students.
The Golden City’s sandstone buildings give the city its nickname, but Salamanca is also known for some of Spain’s most remarkable examples of plateresque, the silver architectural style that derived out of the artistic movement that expanded over two centuries appearing between the late Gothic and early Renaissance period.
The city also boasts of religious edifices harking back centuries in time. The two dominant cathedrals are the Old Cathedral built in the 12th century and the New Cathedral constructed in front of the Old Cathedral during the 16th century.
The Plaza Mayor leading to the Salamanca University, founded in 1218 by Alfonso IX, is lined by baroque buildings. On the university campus is the Gothic House of Shells, which is now the Public Library, the building demonstrates a blend of Gothic, Moorish, and Italian architectural and artistic styles.
Foodies delight at Mercado Central (Central Market), located near the Plaza Mayor the market features the best of what Spain has to offer in meats, poultry, fish, cheese, olives, olive oils, chorizos, bread and pastries, tapas and more. It’s a great place to grab a snack and you continue to explore Salamanca.
River cruises oftentimes stop in the Spanish town of Vega de Terrón on its way to and from Salamanca. Vega de Terrón is situated about 1-hour and 45-minute drive from Salamanca, but the cruises float through the town because it’s at the confluence of the Douro and Agueda rivers.
Top Douro River Tours
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Kelly
Nov 2022
We had were extremely well balanced, excellent pairing
We liked the cherry and berry fruits coming through with gentle tannins. The spanish wines we had were extremely well balanced, excellent pairing with the steak we h...
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Hector
Nov 2022
We were so surprised that they perfectly understood
We went to Portugal to celebrate our 20th Anniversary and some friends recommended us Pablo and Nina´s services. We were so surprised that they perfectly understood ...
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Karl
Nov 2022
It was great
We normally spend Christmas in the Caribean every year but we decided to try something different for a change. We thought it would be good to go to a not so cold eur...
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Cassandra
Nov 2022
We absolutely loved
We absolutely loved this itinerary! Nina and Pablo are so knowledgeable about all the regions we visited. We started our trip in Porto where we had an amazing sunny ...
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Kyla
Nov 2022
This trip was pure luxury!
This trip was pure luxury! It was our first time going to Portugal (second to Spain) and the way Nina planned our trip blowed our minds! From the pick up at Lisbon a...
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