Hi! I'm in the process of looking at trains to take me to Pinhao from Porto as a day trip. Currently, I'm considering the train that would have me arriving in Pinhao at 9:45am, and then I would depart at 6:15pm- giving me about 9 hours there. I'm only slightly interested in wine, so I've booked a 1 hour tour of one of the quintos. I also plan to take the 1 or 2 hour boat up the river a bit, and I may do some hiking. I'm wondering if 9 hours is too much time there- thoughts? I'm mainly going for the scenery and a bit of hiking. Thanks!
Posted by
Cascais, Portugal
1671 posts
If you plan to do the things you mention, it might not be too long. But, bear in mind Pinhao is very small and isn’t a very attractive town IMO. If you can shorten your time there, I would likely do that - and I’m interested in the wine!
That said, I spent a couple of nights right outside of Pinhão a couple of years ago at Quinta de la Rosa and loved it. They have a nice restaurant right on the river with great views. There was a pop up restaurant up above the town that also had amazing views and the food was very good. I have no idea if it’s still there - sorry.
The river cruise is nice but I was ready for it to be over after an hour.
I didn’t do any hiking but imagine it would be lovely.
Posted by
Washington, DC USA
345 posts
According to https://www.seat61.com/places-of-interest/douro-valley-by-train.htm, the Duoro train line is strictly no reservations and cannot sell out so there is no need to buy tickets in advance. If you have run out of things you want to do in time for an earlier return train, you can always leave earlier.