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The Great Outdoors in Northern/central Portugal

Posted by (London) on

Hi everyone,

I am heading to Portugal for a bit of surfing with my son in early July, we'll then have a couple of days in Porto, and then I'm looking for ideas to explore the Douro area and perhaps also Peneda-Gerês National Park, as I've read that it is lovely. Even firther south in Central Portugal too perhaps.

We'll have one full week (including Porto, and flying out of Porto too). Does anybody have any specific recommendations on what to do and where to stay in these areas? I'm interested in outdoor activities, and food wine in particular, a couple of unique tours perhaps, basically anywhere in Northern or central Portugal, gorgeous landscapes and areas full of nature a bonus!

I know this is quite a generic request, but I'm an open book right now. The only definite is 1-2 nights in Porto.

Any ideas gratefully received - thanks very much!

Posted by
2044 posts

If you are into wine, staying a night or two in the Douro at a Quinta would be a must IMO. But, there are also many small group tours of the Douro just for the day. The Minho region is other wine area that is nice. Braga and Guimarães are lovely. But, the Douro is easier to access the wineries. Some of the Porto Port lodges have regular wine for tasting, which is great fun.

Central Portugal away from the coast will be quite hot in July, so bear that in mind.
You will need a car to do the National Park, so be aware of that. That’s an area I’ve yet to visit to can speak to specifics.

Posted by
240 posts

You may want at least to look into the Serra de Estrela nature park a little south-west of Guarda in north-central Portugal. I visited Guarda last December, mainly because it is relatively little-"touristed," and also because it's the sort of aesthetic medieval town i like to spend time in. The cold, rainy weather I encountered on that visit (I don't know whether that was typical for December or just a fluke) prevented me from visiting the park, so I can't give a personal assessment, but a map I obtained in the friendly tourist office in town shows a hiking trail (the "Passadiços do Mondego," or "Mondego River Walkway"), and several historic structures scattered around. Also, Guarda is at a relatively higher elevation, compared to most other places in Portugal, and perhaps for that reason it will be a little more bearable in July. Note, too, that Guarda can be reached be train from Porto.

Posted by
14 posts

Thank you both very much for the suggestions. I will look into all of them as i continue to make plans.

Posted by
465 posts

As others mentioned guided tours from Porto to the Douro valley vineyards are a good option.

If you're interested in walking by the ocean there is a pathway from Porto to Espinho about 15km.
It starts on the south side of the river Douro , there's also a bike path alongside it most of the way but the footpath sometimes diverges to the beach sand.
We did a portion of it and took the train back to Porto
https://valeserrantes.blogs.sapo.pt/7400.html

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