A road trip through the Douro Valley: what to see & to do
Let me set the tone for this article by saying that the Douro Valley is one of most beautiful wine regions in Europe, if not the entire World.
The are is, of course, famous for being the place of production of the rather unique and famous Port wines, but also of a whole variety of other wines under the Douro Designation of Origin (Denominação de Origem Controlada - DOC). There is a large number of cellars, many of them small, family-owned businesses, all along the Portuguese stretch of the river Douro, pretty much from the Spanish border to the city of Porto and the Atlantic Ocean.
But even if you are not into wine, or your wine-tasting capability is limited because you need to drive (there is a touristic train that runs along the valley from Porto, but to visit the places named in this post you will need a car), the Douro Valley is a magic place full of incredible landscapes.
What’s more, it has pretty good infrastructure throughout, and in here I include not just roads and the like, but also hotels and restaurants, which are in most cases, small family-run affairs as well.
In fact, I would say the main problem when visiting the Douro Valley is the large number of choices, of wineries to visit and potential places to stay at. I hope this post, while inevitably limited in scope, will provide a starting point for those doing this type of research ahead of a trip to this beautiful part of Portugal.
In the map below you can see some of the places that are mentioned in this story.
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A good base to explore the Douro Valley: Lamego
This town makes a good starting point for any road trip through the Douro Valley.
It is located on the south bank of the river, about an hour drive from central Porto.
It is actually a place of historical significance in Portugal since it is here where, it is said (apparently it is has not been completely ascertained), the first King of Portugal was proclaimed in the Middle Ages.
The town is also a place of pilgrimage, since it has the Sanctuary of Nossa Senhora dos Remédios (“Our Lady of Remedies”), which sits, very spectacularly at the top of a hill and is reached by an impressive flight of stairs.
Unfortunately, we arrived to Lamego when it was already late in the evening, so didn’t have the chance to visit it, but enjoyed the views from the town’s main avenue.
Btw, below is a picture of the landscape around Lamego taken from one of the nearby hills, where our hotel was located.
Check this great place to eat in Lamego
Douro Excellence, por Paulo Matos & Jacira Galhardo
Largo da Vitória, R. Macário de Castro, 5100-196 Lamego
We stumbled upon this restaurant almost randomly, after arriving in Lamego quite late (most of the town was closed) and asking some locals. It turned out to be an excellent piece of advice!
So, if you are in the area, definitely make some time to eat at this restaurant, even better, just call to book in advance, because it is well worth it.
The restaurant is run by a husband-and-wife team and it has a really welcoming and homely atmosphere. The food was also really good, with plenty of Portuguese specialities, nicely presented in slate plates and matching local wines.
Nice place to stay in Lamego
Paraíso Douro AL
Caminho Da Serra Das Meadas 44, Quinta da Pegada
5100-043 Lamego
This hotel is a bit out of town on a hill with amazing views (check the pics below).
It has rather large grounds, with a garden area and a pool, although we just stayed there for a night, so didn’t use it much.
Very large rooms and good breakfast!
Visiting wineries in the Douro Valley
So, after Lamego, it was time to cross onto the northern bank of the Douro for the first winery visits. Here are a few things that I wished I knew before planning this trip.
Number one is: book in advance your winery tours. Yes, with the large amount of wineries in the Douro Valley, it may be easy to assume that there should be no problem with access, but this is not the case.
Many of these wineries run tours only at certain times and for small groups and we found out that quite a few of them were quite full, actually. You may find one that is available, of course, but the issue is that if you go on knocking doors time and kilometers start adding up, since the Douro Valley is quite a large area, and you have wasted your morning before you have even noticed!
As we shall soon see, in our case, this ended up being a blessing in disguise, because, after all we had a limited amount of time (one day) for the winery tours and ended up having a great experience at the one we ended up at, but a bit of planning wouldn’t have been out of place!
So, here are two wineries that we called at, and stopped by, but couldn’t properly visit. Although they looked quite interesting and had a well stocked shop where it is possible to do some sampling of wines.
Quinta do Vallado, in Peso da Régua
This is one of the most historical wineries in the Douro Valley and it has been run by the same family since the 18th C.
Traditionally its product had always been Port wine, but in recent years it has diversified into other types of wines, as well.
The family’s old manor house has also been transformed into a boutique winery hotel.
Quinta do Crasto
This is another of the most prominent wine estates of the Douro Valley. Its roots date back at least since the 17th C. and the name hints at a possible Roman presence (“Castrum” or castle at this spot).
But, even if you don’t do the tour, is worth stopping by the estate to check the amazing sights of the wine groves all around, since the winery is on top of a hill overlooking the Douro river on one side and the nearly endless wine terraces on the other.
Driving on the north bank of the Douro: from Peso da Régua to Pinhao
Another good reason to pass by the Quinta do Crasto is that it lies in the middle of an absolutely scenic road. The route from Peso da Régua to Pinhao makes a large arch, heading first towards the northeast towards Vila-Seca and then southeast back towards the river by way of Gouvinhas. It is near the spot where the road rejoins the river that Quina do Crasto is located.
This last stretch of the route, from Gouvinhas to Pinhao is a winding countryside road full of curves but it provides some postcard-perfect (or Instagram-perfect, if you prefer) pictures of the Douro Valley landscape, with its green terraced slopes mixing vines with olive groves.
This is a very rural area and every now and then you come across some village which looks as if it has come out of some time-travelling machine!
Winery visit: Quinta das Carvalhas
Quinta das Carvalhas, 5085-034 Pinhão
So, after a few frustrated attempts to do the winery tour, we did find one winery that would take us and it was actually a pretty good one!
If you are looking for a comprehensive winery visit, with great explanations, landscapes and tastings, the Quinta das Carvalhas, just outside Pinhao, is an excellent option.
Pinhao is also on the railway line from Porto, so even if the winery is on the opposite bank of the river, it is next to a bridge and should be easy to reach even without a car.
Quinta das Carvalhas offers a guided tour which, rather than showing you the cellars, takes you outdoors through the different areas of the estate. The vines grow on the slopes on the southern bank of the river, offering some truly amazing views.
Since the whole mountain is within the estate, from its top you also have a nice view of the land side, the wine landscape that extends towards the south from the Douro river.
Our very knowledgeable guide provided us a really interesting explanation of how the estate is run and the different types of grapes that are grown there and how and why they are used.
The visit ends, of course, at the winery’s visitors centre, where there is a rather large and modern shop and restaurant.
In addition to the wine tasting, there was also a chance to taste some local cheese and cured meats.
A nice place to stay in the Douro Valley
Quinta da Portela Douro
CM1099, Quinta da Portela n.º 123, 5110-662 Vacalar
This is a another place to stay at the heart of the Douro wine region.
The Quinta da Portela is located on a hill on the south bank of the Douro, near the village of Vacalar (again, you will need a car to get here, but most of the best hotels are in those rural locations anyway).
The Quinta da Portela manages to combine a modern setup with a homely feel remarkably well.
In fact, when we went into the nearby village to have dinner, we were told that, since there would be no one at the reception when we came back, we should just use our set of keys to access the hotel's common areas and make ourselves at home.
The hotel is perched on a hillside and it has its own private parking space, a nice terrace and a pool, which I am sure is great during the summer months, but, as you can see, we didn’t really have this type of weather. The one element that spoils the view a bit is the nearby electricity line, although you do not see it when looking towards the valley.
Here you can see the breakfast area, which could well be the living room of a designer house. So, overall, I must say, the experience at Quinta da Portela was pretty good.
A great place to stay in Porto
While it is a bit out of the scope of this post, it is safe to assume many travellers visiting the Douro Valley wine region will start or end their journey in the city. This is the reason that I found it appropriate to provide also a recommendation about where to stay in Porto. And my pick is…
Aparthotel Oporto Anselmo
Rua de Anselmo Braamcamp 165, 4000-082 Porto
This property is technically an aparthotel although it has pretty much all the services you would expect in a hotel.
It is located in a rather modern facility, just one the edge of the historical center, which it makes it quite convenient if you are traveling by car. The aparthotel has, actually, its own parking space (which can be booked for a fee), although there appeared to be quite a lot of parking space also on the streets around it.
In fact, in terms of location, I’d say the Aparthotel Oporto Anselmo hits the sweet spot, because it is close enough to the center that you can walk, it is about 20min of a nice walk, but it is also close enough to the main motorway ring and the accesses to the city that it saves you from having to navigate Porto’s very intricate urban grid in the very center.
The Aparthotel Oporto Anselmo has also its own courtyard and a pool, although we didn’t really make use of these facilities, since were staying only for one night.
Also worth mentioning is that the staff were very friendly throughout and gave us plenty of guidance about moving around town, for example. Also worth noting is that there is an amazing bakery (“Confeitaira Miguel Ángelo”) just around the corner, which is where we had breakfast.
As per the room, we were given not just a room, but a whole two-floor modern apartment, complete with a large living room, two bedrooms, kitchen and even a small patio.
We didn’t spend that much time there to be able to enjoy all of this fully, but I must say we were really impressed by the whole setup and the value for money this establisment provides.
