Walk Porto to Matosinhos

[robwalker]

Brierley's new edition of Camino Portugues has a route from Porto to Matosinhos along the river and the coast. Has anyone walked this yet? What is it like? From Google maps it looks like it is right next to the road and goes through a lot of industrial port area. Is it a good walk or would it be better to bypass this and take the metro straight to Matoshinhos?

 

[Anemone del Camino]

It is a lovely route, not on a road, and not through an industrialised zone but the tourist port tasting area. With the best views of city from across the river.

Lots of posts here about it. The search function may yield something of interest for you to read.

 

[JohnnieWalker]

This is a very good way to walk put of Oporto. I found the Brierley guide very confusing. With your back to the Cathedral in Porto follow the yellow arrows a few hundred yards down to the first main road where the central route goes straight across. Turn Left and soon you will see the river at the bottom of the road. There turn Right and walk along the river to Matosinhos.

 

[gerardcarey]

Lovely walk. There is also a harbourside tram for part of the way. First tram leaves at 9.30am from the harbourside a little way out from downtown riverside Porto. You can''t miss it. I found it at 7.30am so continued walking.
Whatever. It's all good travelling.
Regards
Gerard

 

[Rainerbernd]

Olá
Have a look at this link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSZzcPtuFegr609k7bD9iRg

Sometimes this video shows the bike route. The caminho along the river is not on the main road.

I have walked this route more than 2o times when living in Angeiras. It was always a lovely walk, even in wintertimes. Take care!!! It´s a dangerous way- so many bars and restaurants!

 

[JohnMcM]

Brierley's new edition of Camino Portugues has a route from Porto to Matosinhos along the river and the coast. Has anyone walked this yet? What is it like? From Google maps it looks like it is right next to the road and goes through a lot of industrial port area. Is it a good walk or would it be better to bypass this and take the metro straight to Matoshinhos?

Take the river and coastal route, you'll be happy you did. In good weather it is a lovely walk.
Buen Camino

 

[cj2003]

I can only agree with the other responses, it is a lovely walk along the river towards the ocean. Even when it rains!

 

[Anemone del Camino]

This is a very good way to walk put of Oporto. I found the Brierley guide very confusing. With your back to the Cathedral in Porto follow the yellow arrows a few hundred yards down to the first main road where the central route goes straight across. Turn Left and soon you will see the river at the bottom of the road. There turn Right and walk along the river to Matosinhos.

But this is if you want to walk on the side of the city, which doesn't give you views of the city. To see what you see in guidebooks and travel brochures, from the cathedral, make your way to the upper deck of the iron Eiffel bridge and cross the river, walking along the water/through the touristy port wine warehouses to the right of the bridge (with ypur back to the cathedral). Ypu may also want to visit the monastery on the ledt of the bridge just aftercrossing the bridge. I am told the views are gorgeous.

 

[Rainerbernd]

Walking on the left side of River Douro along the Port Wine Cellars, you will pass the motorway bridge Ponte de Arrábida. Shortly after the bridge you can get a boat leading to the other side of the river, near the final stop of the old tram Nº 1.

 

[Freetogo]

Olá
Have a look at this link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSZzcPtuFegr609k7bD9iRg

Sometimes this video shows the bike route. The caminho along the river is not on the main road.

I have walked this route more than 2o times when living in Angeiras. It was always a lovely walk, even in wintertimes. Take care!!! It´s a dangerous way- so many bars and restaurants!

Olá Rainerbernt! The Camino is calling but am leery of taking the seaside in November as I am getting contradictory advice! Cold is ok ( I'm Canadian) but non-stop rain might be too much for this little ol' lady! Comments? Weather looks really good early November...

 

[jungleboy]

I walked it two months ago. This is what I wrote about it at the time:

Day 1: A pre-dawn departure from Porto and it’s exciting to be back on the camino and to walk through a virtually empty city after it was bursting at the seams with tourists yesterday afternoon.

I take the alternative river exit and I’m glad I did, even though the absence of arrows at the outset of a camino is slightly disconcerting — not for wayfinding, because that’s quite obvious, but because it doesn’t help you land on the right side of ‘Does this feel like a camino?’ when there are no arrows. But soon I pass three Italian pilgrims and we exchange ‘bom caminhos’, and a camino it is.

Where the river meets the ocean at Foz do Douro is my favourite part of the stage, because there are lighthouses and fishermen and a surprisingly interesting fort to explore all to myself (not to mention the fabulously-named Instituto de Socorros a Náufragos — something like the ‘Shipwreck Rescue Institute’). Foz feels like a real place, unlike Matosinhos, which comes soon enough and is quite the shock.

There are beaches by now and it’s August so they’re jam-packed with holiday-makers, even though the beaches aren’t especially nice and are surrounded by industrial cranes and silos and ugly modern buildings. The beaches and umbrellas and people and development seem to go on forever, and by 9:15am I’ve already seen two Pizza Huts and this isn’t the Portugal I know. But there are arrows and a Lidl in Matosinhos so I take those little wins, stock up, and move on.

Then the boardwalks begin and the rhythm for the rest of the stage is set. Walking a camino on wooden planks is new for me and not my preferred surface but it’s still pretty easy walking because it’s not hot and you can’t exactly get lost on boardwalks. As I approach São Paio the holiday crowds start thinning out a bit and it seems more low key and there’s a nice estuary full of bird life, all of which is more to my liking.

Before I know it, I reach my destination, the fishing village of Vila Chã, and it’s not even 2pm yet and if that was really 26km, it was as much of a breeze as the one coming off the ocean.

 

[Thornley]

We love seafood , we left late morning and stayed the evening @ Matosinhos.
No difference in cost as this is the dining out area for the residents of Porto and Porto is a city where time should be spent.
Good hotel , big lunch with many pilgrims [ restaurants in the middle of street outside seafood market ] then siesta with a lovely light dinner [ no chips ]
Easy 22 kms to Vila de Conde the next day which is a great pilgrims stop..

 

[peregrina2000]

We love seafood , we left late morning and stayed the evening @ Matosinhos.
No difference in cost as this is the dining out area for the residents of Porto and Porto is a city where time should be spent.
Good hotel , big lunch with many pilgrims [ restaurants in the middle of street outside seafood market ] then siesta with a lovely light dinner [ no chips ]
Easy 22 kms to Vila e Conde the next day which is a great pilgrims stop..

Thornley,
You need to retrace your steps and book a tour at the Sardine Factory in Matosinhos. I love industrial tours and jump at the chance to take one, but this one tops my list -- along with the one on whale processing that I went to in the Açores a few years ago.

Here's a thread that describes the tour and links to their website.