The town on the other side of the Douro River is famous for its wine cellars, and this is where you need to head if you want to do wine tastings and cellar tours.

The riverside promenade then offers plenty of restaurants and bars, which are generally a little cheaper and quieter than the other side in Barrio La Ribeira.

Porto or Vila Nova de Gaia

Officially, the entire left bank of the Douro is the independent town of Vila Nova de Gaia, with its own town hall, its own coat of arms and its own municipality.

In practice, however, it forms a bi-city and one large agglomeration with Porto. As a tourist, you can't really tell if you are in Porto or Vila Nova de Gaia. The transport systems are the same and the two cities are only separated by the flow of the Douro River.

Port wine cellars

The main attraction of Vila Nova de Gaia are the dozens of famous wine cellars that store traditional Port wine from the hillsides above the Douro River.

In Porto itself, you'll find only a minimum of wine cellars, but the entire hillside sloping down to the Douro in Vila Nova de Gaia is literally littered with the smallest and largest wine cellars in Portugal.

These cellars can be found along a strip about 1km wide from the Serra do Pilar monastery towards the ocean. Many of the cellars are open to the public with tours, tastings and of course wine shops.

Check out the official websites of the most famous cellars that allow tourists to enter:

Graham's (online booking required)
Cockburn's (online booking required)
Sandeman (online booking not required but recommended)
Cálem (online booking not required but recommended)
Ferreira (online booking not required but recommended)

For more information on wine tastings and prices, see the Activities section.

Port wine Calem

Wine cellars

Take a stroll along the promenade

As outlined in the introduction, Vila Nova de Gaia boasts a beautiful pedestrian promenade along the Douro River. It is lined with wine cellars, souvenir shops and many restaurants.

Prices are logically higher than in the seedy port districts, but lower than on the opposite bank in Ribeira. The atmosphere is also more intimate, there is more space on the pedestrian embankment and the views of Porto's historic centre are much nicer from here.

Accommodation at Vila Nova de Gaia

The town offers a number of apartments and private guesthouses. Overall, Vila Nova de Gaia is quieter than the centre of Porto and there is a Port wine-related atmosphere around every corner.

We select the best accommodation in town:

Hostel Gaia Porto - Cheap modern hostel with private rooms, only the bathroom is shared. Prices from 44 eur per night,
YOUROPRO - Ribeira Gaia - modern spacious riverside apartments for up to 4 people from 165 eur per night
Douro River Apartments - private modern and clean apartments with the best rating in town, prices from 84 eur per night

Transportation to Vila Nova de Gaia

The quickest transport from central Porto is the yellow line D rapid transit tram to Jardim de Morro station, from where you can run down to the promenade through steep streets or take the cable car (see the Transport chapter for more information).

In addition, bus line 920 runs along the promenade.