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Pinhao -- how much time to set aside? Is it a lively little area? Shops, cafes?

Posted by (TOKYO) on

Greetings!

I am trying to come up with a day trip to the Douro Valley region. We are traveling as a group of 18! So, we are definitely getting a charter bus and everything needs to be booked in advance.

Now, I seem to have some spare time (about 40-60 min) between a winery visit and Rabelo boat ride. I wonder how lively Pinhao is in itself. Are there any cute souvenir shops? I know I know ;)) ... but I have to be realistic and I know that we'll be looking for gifts.

as of now, the program looks like this:

9.00 depart Porto (only our second full day in Portugal so still a bit jet-lagged hence late start).

11.00 arrive at Quinta de Seixo for a 1-hour tour + 2-hour picnic lunch/siesta ;)

14.00 - 14.30 transfer to Pinhao

14.30-15.30 Tour Pinhao (station? anything else?) + souvenier shopping + coffee?

15.30-16.30 1-hour Rabelo Boat ride

16.30-17.00 transfer to Quinta do Marrocos

17.00 - 20.00 short tour + homecooked dinner w/tasting at Quinta do Marrocos

20.00-22.00 transfer to Porto. (sleep off all that wine!)

Debated about dinner in Porto, but we love family-style-rustic experiences. And timewise, even with dinner in Porto, we would be returning to the hotel at about the same time. So, that's why I chose to have an early dinner at the Quinta.

Any thoughts? Maybe I've missed something that is an absolute must do in the area?

And is Pinhao fun enough to just walk around and / or good for shopping?

Thank you!

Posted by
233 posts

No shops that I can remember! But I think there's a litlle coffee shop! Last time there was 2 years ago, so thing might have changed, but in general it used to be a really quiet village.

Posted by
1366 posts

There isn’t much to see or do in Pinhao. Have you considered Amarante instead? There’s a nice little church, shops and a great cafe, Confeitaria da Pont, with awesome pastries.

Posted by
145 posts

Yes, it does look like a quiet and small little town. I used Google map street view...does not look like there is much to do there. So we'll just use it for the departure of our rabelo boat tour and a short stop at the station.

Posted by
11 posts

There are several rabelo tours on the river in Pinhao We took a 2 hr. tour with Magnifico Dpuro and it was just right. If you do not book in advance there are stll a good number of boats you can take. For cafes and restaurants, go one block inland from where the rabelos are. The Vintage House Hotel is located just as you cross the bridge, walk on that main street and you can walk for up to 10 minutes into town and you will see them. If you have other options, I would not plan to spend much time there.

Posted by
145 posts

peter.dawe1, thank you for the input. I was thinking of a 60 min tour on the boat. We'll charter one of the boats so we can actually change the duration. I was thinking 2 hours might be too long (especially if there is not bathroom on board). Did you feel that 1 hour would be too short?

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