Douro guide

Practical notes on the valley from the people who live here: when to come, where to stay, how to get around and what you are drinking.

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  Foz do Tua: the old railway, the winery and a riverside lunch
  Most visitors drive straight past Foz do Tua on the way to somewhere more famous. We spend a lot of our weekends there, and we think it is one of…
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  Port wine styles explained, the way we explain them at the table
  Most people arrive at a Port tasting knowing two words: ruby and tawny. By the end they usually have a favourite, and it is rarely the one they expected. This…
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  Where to stay in the Douro: Pinhão, Régua or Alijó?
  Lists of “best Douro hotels” are easy to find. What they rarely say is that the choice of town changes your trip more than the choice of hotel. Here is…
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  Visiting the Douro during the harvest: what to expect
  The harvest is the most romantic time of the year in the Douro, and also the most misunderstood. Here is what it is like from the inside, for people who…
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  Douro day trip from Porto, or a night in the valley?
  It is the question we get most often, usually from people with three or four days in Porto. Our honest answer: a day trip works, but only if you get…
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  When to visit the Douro Valley, month by month
  Most guides say “May to October” and leave it there. That is true, but it hides the most useful part: the valley changes a lot from one month to the…