About our host: We spent 6 nights at this AirBnB managed by David. David's communication was excellent, and we appreciate greatly the flexibility that David provided with check-in/out because of our flight schedule. We travelled with a 5-year-old so this was invaluable to us. He met us at the property and was available for anything we needed.
About the apartment: Clean, with great views over the Douro river, quiet, sunny, and bright.
About the location: You're literally minutes across the Dom Luis 1 bridge, so even though you're in Gaia, you're practically in the centre of Porto. Two double beds, one of the bedrooms has an en-suite as well. Kitchen utensils are basic, but will likely be enough for most visitors to get them through their holiday with no fuss. The view from the balcony in the living room was most impressive and one of my favourite things about the property.
Connections: The metro in Porto is awesome. And the General Torres metro stop in front of the building will get you everywhere you need. Aliados is a couple of stops away (or a 15-minute walk) if you want to go to Rua Santa Catarina. The airport is also only about 45 minutes away (you change at Trindade). At the time of writing this (Aug 2022), masks are mandatory on public transport.
Useful to know when staying here:
There are a couple of ATMs at banks nearby, the closest being Montepeio bank where there are no fees. Stay away from anything marked "Euronet" in Porto, they charge a 13% commission for withdrawals.
If you land here and are hungry but don't fancy a restaurant meal, we recommend either the Mini Preco or Pingo Doce supermarkets (Mini Preco is about two minutes away, Pingo Doce is about a 10-minute walk away) for a hot-food counter. There's also a pizzeria just below the block which looks really good! Plus, for a snack, the Novagaia just outside the front door of the block is one of the better padarias we have seen in town, so we highly recommend it.
You also might need to get some toiletries, during our stay we needed to get shower gel, shampoo and toilet paper. You can get all of these at the supermarkets mentioned above.
Lastly, even though Rua Santa Catarina is in all the tourist books, we'd recommend popping into the El Corte Ingles at Gaia if you want some retail therapy. It's a fantastic department store with a well-curated range of products. It's about a 20-minute walk south of the apartment.
We would not hesitate to recommend David and this property to anyone who wants to visit Porto.