Porto itinerary2, 3 or 4 days with the Ribeira, Gaia, Foz, the Douro and kids

Checked on 10 October 2026. Opening hours, train times and tram fares change; check before each day out.

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The short answer: for 2 days, do the Baixa, the Ribeira and the Gaia cellars on day 1 and Foz by tram 1 on day 2; for 3, add one day out, the Douro valley or Braga; for 4, do both, or spend a night in the Douro. The old centre is steep, so plan the walking downhill: start high (the Baixa, Clérigos) and end at the river (our suggestion). The Bolhão market is closed on Sundays and public holidays [5], and Livraria Lello on a handful of holidays including 24 June [4].

Before day 1: card, base, bookings

• Metro and buses: a paper Andante card costs €0.60; most trips in central Porto are Z2, €1.40; from the airport, metro line E, about 30 minutes to Trindade, is a Z4 trip at €2.30 [1][2]; night arrivals and other options: Porto airport to the city. An Andante 24 starts at €5.35 [1]. Tram 1 is priced separately and does not take the Andante Tour tickets [11].
• Base: for 2–4 days, the Baixa or Ribeira puts most of day 1 on foot (our suggestion); areas compared: where to stay in Porto. Porto and Gaia each add a tourist tax of €3 per person per night: tourist tax in Portugal.
• Book ahead: a Livraria Lello slot (€15.95, counts towards a Lello-edition book) for the date and time you pick; Lello’s FAQ accepts the voucher up to 60 minutes after the booked time [4][27].
• Transport in full: getting around Porto.

Porto in 2 days

Day 1: Baixa, Ribeira and Gaia

• Morning: the Bolhão market from 8:00 (not on Sundays or holidays; on those days skip it) [5], then Clérigos Tower (daily from 09:00) [3] and Livraria Lello next to it in a late-morning or lunchtime slot, which Lello names as one of the quieter times [4].
• Afternoon: lunch on the way down, then the Ribeira and the lower deck of the Luís I bridge to Gaia [9]. Ride the Gaia cable car up to Jardim do Morro and back down (€7 one way, €10 return) [8] before the cellar: it closes at 18:00 from late October to late March and at 19:00 or 20:00 in the rest of the year, and not at all on 25 December [8].
• Late afternoon: a port cellar tour, for example Taylor’s (about 1 h 30 in all; usually open until 18:15, earlier on 23 June and on 24 and 31 December) [6][7].
• Sunset: walk back across the top deck of the bridge. Metro line D shares that deck with pedestrians [9], so keep children close.

Day 2: tram 1 to Foz, then the sea or Serralves

• Morning: heritage tram 1 from Infante along the river to Passeio Alegre in Foz (€6 one way, €8 for two trips the same day) [10][11]. Walk the seafront; in the bathing season, a Foz beach such as Homem do Leme.
• Afternoon, pick one:
  • The coast: Parque da Cidade, free, down to the sea, and back to the centre on STCP bus 500 [12].
  • Serralves: the museum and park (under 12 free) [13]; Serralves lists its bus connections on its visiting page. Finish at the free Palácio de Cristal gardens for the view over the river, open until 21:00 from April to September and 19:00 from October to March [14].

What each of these costs and how long to give it: things to do in Porto. Beaches and lifeguard dates: Porto’s best beaches.

Porto in 3 days

Days 1–2 as above, then one day out by train. Pick by what you want:

• The Douro valley (scenery, wine): an early InterRegional train, for example Campanhã 07:30, Pinhão 09:51, but only until 2 November 2026: from 3 November 2026 to 24 March 2027 the Marco de Canaveses–Régua section is closed and CP runs replacement buses, so check the Douro valley from Porto first [15]; one way to Pinhão is €12.35 from Campanhã or €12.45 from São Bento [16]. Trains are hours apart, so choose the train back before you go and plan the boat around both: the Douro valley from Porto.
• Braga (shorter day): just under an hour on the fastest trains [17]. TUB bus 2 to Bom Jesus do Monte runs every 30 minutes, about 20 minutes from the Avenida da Liberdade stop in the centre [20]; add the walk from the station and the wait.
• Guimarães (castle town): about 1 h 05 to 1 h 25 [18].

A CP day ticket (€7.70) covers the Braga and Guimarães lines but not the Douro trains [19]. Both towns in one day, and which one first: Braga and Guimarães from Porto. All trips compared: day trips from Porto.

Porto in 4 days

Days 1–2 as above, then pick one pair:

• Two day trips: day 3 the Douro, day 4 Braga or Guimarães (leave the Douro for the clearest day; our suggestion).
• A night in the Douro: day 3 by train to Pinhão or Régua and a night on a quinta, day 4 a morning boat on the river and the train back. Quintas that take families: the Douro guide.
• Slow days (summer): day 3 the beach at Matosinhos by metro line A [2], with beginner surf lessons when conditions allow (best beaches); day 4 whichever day-2 half you skipped (Serralves or the coast), or Braga.

With kids

Keep the order and cut each day to one main stop plus a park or the river (our suggestion). What changes:

• Free or cheap: Clérigos is free up to 10 [3], Serralves under 12 [13], Taylor’s under 8 [6]. All children’s prices: things to do in Porto.
• Prams: Livraria Lello does not allow prams, suitcases or backpacks [4], and the top of Clérigos is reached by stairs; a carrier beats a pram in the old centre (Porto with kids).
• Swap in: SEA LIFE Porto, next to Parque da Cidade, on the Foz day [21]; on a wet afternoon, the Galeria da Biodiversidade (Tuesday to Sunday) [22].
• Day out: with small children, Braga (funicular up to Bom Jesus) is easier than the long Douro day; the Douro works better with a night there. Family day trips compared: Porto with kids.
• A 3-day plan with small children: Day 1 the Ribeira, the cable car and a cellar (grape juice for the children); Day 2 tram 1, Foz and SEA LIFE; Day 3 Braga and the funicular (our suggestion).

When it rains

From October to April Porto has about 10 to 13 rain days a month [23]. On a wet day, swap the outdoor halves between days instead of adding new sights: move the cellar, Clérigos and Lello (book Lello ahead) to the rainy day [3][4][6], take the Serralves museum rather than the park [13], and have a long lunch at the Bolhão (not on Sundays) [5]. Save tram 1, Foz and the bridge walk for the dry day.

With children: SEA LIFE, the planetarium and the Galeria da Biodiversidade, in the rainy-day plan in Porto with kids. Month by month: Porto weather by month.

Porto from Lisbon (or on to Lisbon)

CP’s Alfa Pendular and Intercidades run between Lisbon and Porto Campanhã; the Alfa Pendular takes about 2 h 45 from Lisboa Oriente (10:05 to Campanhã 12:48 in the timetable from 6 September 2026) and the Intercidades just over 3 hours [28]; Interrail’s planner rounds it down to about 2 h 35 [26]. 2026 list fares: €35.70 on the Alfa Pendular (Turística) and €28.05 on the Intercidades (2nd class), children aged 4 to 12 about half [24][25]. Seats are reserved on both; Promo fares and discounts: trains in Portugal. The Lisbon half of the trip: Lisbon itinerary. A 7–10 day family route with both cities: Portugal itinerary with kids; one base for a month instead: Lisbon or Porto.

Related

• Things to do in Porto: every sight on this page in detail
• Day trips from Porto
• Porto with kids
• Getting around Porto

Sources

Numbered references match the source list on this page. Read on 9–10 October 2026.

1. Metro do Porto: fares from 1 January 2026
2. Wikipedia: Porto Metro (line E to the airport, line A to Matosinhos)
3. Torre dos Clérigos: ticket office
4. Livraria Lello: ticket-voucher information
5. Mercado do Bolhão: opening hours
6. Taylor Fladgate: FAQ, port cellars in Gaia (PDF)
7. Taylor Fladgate: port cellars
8. Gaia Cable Car: prices and timetable
9. Wikipedia: Dom Luís I Bridge
10. Câmara do Porto: trams
11. STCP: fares from 1 January 2026 (PDF)
12. STCP: lines
13. Serralves: visiting
14. Porto city: Palácio de Cristal gardens
15. CP: Douro line timetable from 5 August 2026
16. CP: Porto–Régua–Pocinho fares 2026
17. CP: Braga line timetable from 26 July 2026
18. CP: Guimarães line timetable from 14 December 2025
19. CP: tourist ticket, Porto urban trains
20. TUB Braga: line 2 to Bom Jesus (PDF)
21. SEA LIFE Porto: tickets
22. Galeria da Biodiversidade: prices and hours
23. IPMA: climate normal 1991–2020, Porto (PDF)
24. CP: Alfa Pendular fares Lisbon–Porto 2026
25. CP: Intercidades fares Lisbon–Porto 2026
26. Interrail: trains in Portugal
27. Livraria Lello: FAQs
28. CP: Alfa Pendular and Intercidades timetable, Lisbon to Porto (from 6 Sep 2026)