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Tour: 05
Departs: n/a
Day 1 (PORTO)
Arrival in Porto where you will pick up your hire car at the airport and travel straight into the city of Porto. The present city of Porto occupies the site of the Roman town of Portus, sprawling down the long, steep north bank of the Douro, 6km from the sea. Porto today presents the face of a 19th century commercial port – full of granite-trimmed buildings, few more than three stories high. The heart of the city is the wide, grass-lined, Av dos Aliados, which runs five blocks inland from the river. Overnight Porto.
Day 2 (PORTO – COIMBRA)
Breakfast. This morning you depart Porto as you have a fascinating drive south to reach the great University city of Coimbra. Head south through Aveiro. Aveiro stands beside a huge lagoon extending north for 45km and west for 10km beside the ocean. Its canals are piled by high-bow, flat-bottomed, punted boats similar to Gondolas but serve instead as sea weed collectors. Continue on south to arrive in Coimbra, Portugal's third largest city. Overnight.
Day 3 (COIMBRA)
Breakfast. A full day to explore the city. Although Coimbra has been occupied since Roman times, in its earliest days it was an insignificant arm of nearby Conimbriga, the administrative seat of Roman province. Even Coimbra's name is probably a corruption of Conimbriga. When he assumed crown in 1139, Alfonso I, Portugal's first king, chose Coimbra – then the largest city in Christian hands – as his capital. It remained the seat of the government for two centuries, breeding the first six kings after Alfonso, until the court moved permanently to Lisbon in 1255. Portugal's original university was established in Coimbra in 1308. Overnight.
Day 4 (COIMBRA – MESAO FRIO)
Breakfast. A fascinating drive today as you return north, to the fertile Douro valley. Head northwest on the road towards Viseu, heading north to Lamego and a little further still to reach Mesao Frio. Boasting the beauty of 18th Century cloisters which house the local Town Hall and and tourist office, the town of Mesao Frio is a peaceful introduction to the flourishing port wine-growing region. A free afternoon to sample the fine local port and wines! Overnight.
Day 5 (MESAO FRIO – PORTO)
Breakfast. A final drive today as you depart Mesao Frio, following the river all the way to return to Porto. On arrival at Porto airport, you will drop off your hire car and continue on your journey…
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