Oporto Viewpoints

In Porto there are several buildings whose height gives a 360º overview of the city. These are true urban "viewpoints". In the centre, the Mason's Cooperative building - as it is best known - this was even dubbed as "Viewpoint Building". In its 14th and top floor is the restaurant Portucale.

Nearby, going into downtown, the Dom Henrique Hotel 'hides' a pearl at the very top: the 17th Restaurant & Bar. On the border between downtown and the historic centre, the Torre dos Clérigos, is a 'lookout' of mandatory climb. There are 240 steps to the top but the 360 degree view of the city's rooftops is well worth the effort.

The VIP Lounge on the top floor of Porto Palacio Congress Hotel & Spa, in Boavista, offers a unique panoramic view over the city of Porto, the river and the sea. Out of curiosity, please note that the space has an international menu with more than 200 selected whiskeys.

Then there and the town's squares (largos e praças), special places from where one can Porto with a different set of eyes. In the background of São Bento da Vitória, in the heart of the Historic Centre, you will find one of the most privileged areas of Porto. The viewpoint of "Bataria da Vitória" is private, but while the owners are not making use of the old adjoining property, visitors are welcome.

Likewise in the Old Town Centre, but to the sides of the upper deck of the Don Luis I Bridge, which today serves the Porto Underground, is the terrace of the popular and historic Guindalense Football Club, neighbour to the Guindais Cable Car, which offers a unique view, in a typical family atmosphere. Nearby, the Alameda das Fontainhas - par excellence, one of the venues for the popular Saint John party - the view is also special.

In Vila Nova de Gaia, on the waterfront, emphasis is given to the wine hotel The Yeatman offers, this time over the houses of the Ribeira, the Don Luis I Bridge and the river, and to the square that leads to the Monastery Pilar, in the Serra do Pilar - Largo Aviz. The view is superb.

Near the mouth of the Douro river, two suggestions (for the setting of the sun): on the Porto side, the restaurant Casa D'Oro, former home of the engineers who monitored the construction of the Arrábida Bridge; o the Gaia side, the Natural Reserve located on the Douro Estuary.