OPORTO, PORTUGAL

The Oporto that we will focus on today dates mainly from the 18th century, when trade was booming and the merchants financed elegant houses for themselves and some of the fine buildings in the city that we will have a chance to see during this tour.

The Oporto that we will focus on today dates mainly from the 18th century, when trade was booming and the merchants financed elegant houses for themselves and some of the fine buildings in the city that we will have a chance to see during this tour. This second largest city of Portugal has imposing streets and squares; the Avenida dos Aliados, stretching from Praça da Liberdade D. João I, proclaims that the country would not have been a poor relation in an 18th-century European Community, and that agriculture is not the be-all and end-all of northern Portugal. We will visit the most important buildings and monuments of the city. The Cathedral was originally 12th-century Romanesque but has been altered over the centuries and extensively rebuilt in the 17th and 18th centuries, but nevertheless there are some rich altars and a Gothic Cloister. The Stock Exchange, with its fantastic Moorish Hall, is another place to be visited. We proceed over the Douro Rover by way of the unique double-deckered Luis Bridge, thoroughly Eiffelesque, to the well-known port wine cellars to visit one, and to enjoy the precious nectar. The return journey will be made via the Arrabida Bridge.

This tour involves some walking during the visit to the Cathedral, wine cellar and the Stock Exchange, some steps will be found at the Stock Exchange. Please note that the Cathedral will be closed on public holidays, therefore a visit to the Church of Carmo will be made instead.