Practical Porto
Getting around Porto without losing the day
A simple transport strategy for hills, airport arrivals and days when walking stops being charming.
The basic idea
Walk the centre; use transport to change districts
Baixa and the historic centre are compact enough to explore on foot, but Porto is steep. Metro and buses are most useful for the airport, longer cross-city moves and the return journey after a downhill walk. Plan around neighbourhoods instead of travelling back and forth between isolated landmarks.
Andante
Zones count outwards from where the trip starts
Occasional Andante journeys use a zone system. A Z2 covers two zone rings from the first validation point; Z3 covers three, and so on. The required product depends on the route, so check the official journey or zone information instead of guessing from distance alone.
Small habits
Validate, keep the card and allow for hills
Validate as required when you travel, keep the reusable card during your stay and do not schedule every connection to the minute. Lifts, funiculars and short transport hops can protect your energy, but the best discoveries still tend to happen between stops.
Made in Maia local note
The route to us is part of the visit
Mercado Ferreira Borges is a few minutes from Ribeira, Palácio da Bolsa and the Douro. Visit the building, see what is happening at River Market and say hello.