Porto and the Duoro Valley

We stayed 2 nights in the douro and just loved it. It is a relaxing and beautiful area.however u may ck ahead as sept maybe around harvest time. We also stayed in Porto and enjoyed it. Of course it is a big city with hustle and bustle.

If you have a car & like wine/port definitely stay over. We rented a car last week on arrival to Porto & drove 1 1/2 hrs to Peso de Regau staying 3 nights at the Quinta do Vallado wine hotel. A beautiful vista, it was relaxing & wonderful. Our stay included a free tour & tasting, their wines are very good. We drove to Pinhao one day, took an hour boat ride on the Douro for €10 then dropped into Sandeman estate for a tasting while enjoying their spectacular views overlooking the Douro river & Pinhao. A flight of 3 ports cost €5 ... great deal. Next day we toured Mateus Palace in Vila Real then drove around Lamego. Take time to enjoy the Douro's unique landscape!

Did you rent your car in Porto and return it to Porto? We are thinking of renting in Porto and returning in Lisbon.

We pre-arranged with autoeurop online at home, picked up at Avis at the airport & returned it at the Campanha train station. Taking the train to Lisbon after a few days in Porto.

FYI, The Guardian newspaper just had a Duoro article this week.

My husband and I just returned from a river cruise. We stayed in Porto several days ahead of the cruise. Based on previous reviews we chose to book a room at the Guest House Duoro. It was a very good choice and we'd recommend it to travelers going to Portugal. The inn keepers were very pleasant and made us feel very welcome. There is an elevator which was great for our heavy suitcases. Our second floor room was on the river side. We'd been told ahead of time that there is a cafe next door that is open until 11:00 pm. I think they wanted to alert us to any noise. However, this was not the case. We could look out the window and see a little balcony of the cafe. The patrons were not noisy and didn't stay late so there was no problem with sleeping.
The location of the guest house was excellent. The walk along the river was interesting, of course. Up a small hill only a few steps away led to a main street. We were given a city map and the inn keeper suggested the best things to see. He also suggested a favorite restaurant and would make reservations as they only have 4 tables. However, the specialties of tripe and octopus didn't appeal. The breakfast area in the guest house is small with just three tables. Pastries, bread and a beautiful fresh fruit display along with excellent coffee and juice was fine. Don't expect bacon and eggs.
I should mention there is a really excellent restaurant inside the Board of Trade building which is open for tours. This is just a couple of blocks from the guest house and across the street from the statue of Henry The Navigator. It was a splendid place for lunch and we went back for dinner the next night. Prices were reasonable. There is a fixed price menu as well as a la carte.
Our last morning we had a very early departure by taxi. Breakfast is not served until after 0830. The inn keeper gave us a nice bag of fruit to take along.

We did a great river cruise and loved the Douro River and Porto.

Our B&B was the InPatio Guesthouse and it was simply the best B&B ever.

Here is my review of our trip.
http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=535267