Much to our surprise, the cool overcast weather we experienced in Dublin followed us back to Porto. As in, the sun rarely shined during the vast majority of our remaining weeks in Porto. Sigh. So much for an extended summer. Instead we are in a very wet fall.
Several gardens are found around Porto, but with the weather not being great during most of our days here, we only spent time in one, Jardins do Palácio de Cristal. The gardens have shaded walking trails, a playground, picnic tables, views of the Douro River, and lots of peacocks, ducks, geese, chickens, and other birds. Lots of them.
This is also the location of Super Bock Arena, a small concert and event center. The arena has a few small restaurants that open into the park, but they were closed when we were there. At least the free restrooms were open.
The park is a nice place for a walk, but I wouldn’t lay in the grass unless to you want to be approached by ducks and chickens looking for a handout.
As is typical in European cities of any notable size, we tend to gravitate towards museums, cathedrals, and churches. Basically anything with interesting architecture, stained glass windows, and paintings. Porto has no shortage of churches.
Our first stop was at the Igreja e Museu São Francisco do Porto, near the waterfront. This church and museum complex is comprised of an old church, new church, crypt and small museum, all for €11.
After buying tickets we walked over to the old church, the Church of the Convent of St. Francis. Don’t let the Gothic exterior fool you. Inside it is all Baroque, specifically gilded woodcarvings from the 1600s and 1700s. The church has a no photograph policy, but did not seem to care about folks taking quick snapshots with their phones.
From there it back to the ticket office to head into the new church, the Church of the Third Order of St. Francis, followed by the crypt and museum rooms. In total we probably spent about an hour in the complex and enjoyed our visit.
Not too far away, just a few minutes’ walk, and quite literally in front of and below Sé do Porto (the main Cathedral), you will find Igreja de São Lourenço. Known as the “Church of Crickets” (nicknamed after the Friars of St. Augustine who resided in the convent in the late 1700s), this national monument is comprised of the church and Museu de Arte Sacra e Arqueologia do Porto (Museum of Sacred Art and Archaeology). Tickets are €3 each.
Mercifully this church and museum do not seem to be on the tour group circuit. We basically had the place to ourselves during our 45 minute visit.
Our visit began in the church before proceeding into the archaeology section of the museum. For the non-archaeology inclined, I’d describe this as a small, mostly outdoor space, showcasing essentially large stone pieces.
Upstairs are several rooms comprising the Sacred Art section of the museum, notably the “Corridor of Confessions” featuring numerous sculptures of Jesus Christ spanning several centuries. We did not spend much time in the museum, but nevertheless thought it was well done.
Days later, on the other side of town, we happened upon Igreja do Carmo and Igreja dos Carmelitas, churches connected by a narrow, tiny house in between.
The main attraction is the Church of Carmo. The exterior façade of the east wall is covered in azulejos (the cool looking blue tiles that are so popular in Porto). Inside, the church has a walking route that includes standing in the pulpit, walking across the chancel, and up to a balcony. It might be the most unique walk through of a church that we have ever taken.
Tickets are €7 each, and include the Church of Carmo, access to its roof, a museum, and the adjoining narrow house.
Access to the narrow house comes in the middle of the walk through the church. The house is several stories high and has one room per story. I think. We did not bother walking up more than one flight of stairs as the house wasn’t of much interest.
The museum, on the other hand, was much larger and nicer than we anticipated, showcasing religious art and objects, just as you would expect. Of course the exit routes through a gift shop.
Igreja dos Carmelitas, on the other side of the narrow house, is free to visit. It, too, has a museum, albeit a very small one consisting of three rooms. If you’re paying to visit the Church of Carmo, then definitely take a few minutes to stop into the Church of the Carmelitas.
Taking a break from churches, we took a few minutes to walk through the Mercado do Bolhão, a/k/a the new tourist market. It’s a pretty popular place to visit.
Just by observation, I’d guess that 60% of the folks who walk through the market are just window shopping and taking photographs, 20% are buying a glass a wine first, and then window shopping, 15% are just walking through as a short cut to get to the adjoining metro station, and 5% actually buy something other than a glass of wine.
Your purchase options include dried fish, tins of sardines, seafoods, meats, sausages, chickens, wines, cheeses, pastries, fruits, vegetables, flowers, and candies. Pretty much everything. There are even a few very small restaurants if you want a bite to eat.
After taking a short cut through the Bolhão metro station, we exited up the escalator across the street from Capela das Almas de Santa Catarina, the Chapel of Souls. This small church is well known for its azulejos tile façade. The odds of it being surrounded by dozens of people and a tour group or two when you show up are pretty good. And expect the sanctuary to be quite crowded.
The final church we visited in Porto turned out to be one of our favorites, Igreja Paroquial de Santo Ildefonso. And not just because a ticket only cost €1, or because it was the closest church to our Airbnb. While the exterior is in rough shape, with the front façade done in the now familiar azulejos tiles, the interior houses fantastic stained glass panels.
It’s hard not to like a 300 plus year old church with large stained glass panels.
It’s also hard not to visit McDonald’s at some point when you are away from the United States for months at a time. Here going to McDonald’s was an easy choice because McDonald’s – Imperial is located in the former Imperial Café building.
McDonald’s kept the art deco exterior, stained glass panels, and mirrors. Supposedly it has been named one of the most beautiful McDonald’s in the world. I’m not sure about that, but regardless this McDonald’s doubles as a tourist destination. So we felt good about going there for lunch.
Garrett and Stephanie
If you have not already done so, read our other posts about Porto:
Porto, Portugal (October, 2025, Part I). Checking out some of the local hookers; Sé do Porto and the Bishop’s Palace, too.
Porto, Portugal (November, 2025, Part III). Touring Palácio da Bolsa, followed by dinner at Conga Casa das Bifanas; visiting Gaia.
For additional posts about Portugal, or elsewhere in the world, check out our Travel Blog. It contains collected links to all of our travel posts.
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