Having lived in Lisbon since 2018, I’ve had the chance to visit Porto a dozen times, exploring the city from bases in various different neighbourhoods and staying in a mix of hotels, guesthouses and apartments.
Since I don’t write full hotel reviews on Olá Daniela, I thought a short guide with mini-reviews of Porto hotels I’ve stayed at would be fun and helpful. Here are a few favourites from my recent trips to Porto!
With each new visit, I’ll add more reviews. For more Porto hotel picks, read my Where to Stay in Porto neighbourhood guide with hand-picked guesthouses and hotels.
In a rush? Here’s a summary
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Romantic hotel w/ Porto views:– Forte de Gaia – Check rates & availability
⭐⭐⭐ Gorgeous apart-hotel: Village by BOA – Check rates & availability
⭐⭐⭐ Boutique guesthouse: Canto de Luz – Check rates & availability
⭐ Budget pick: The Passenger Hostel – Check rates & availability
Village by BOA (Bolhão)
Best for: apart-hotel comfort with hotel-level service – great for families and longer stays too.
I absolutely loved my stay at Village by BOA, a homely apart-hotel that combines historic charm with warm design touches and luxe hotel services. The apart-hotel has taken five buildings – mostly 19th-century workers’ homes – and transformed them into studios and apartments.
Overall, our studio stay felt less like a hotel room and more like a private, high-end sanctuary right in the heart of the city. In our 30sqm standard studio, the bedroom was separated from the fully-equipped kitchen and a sofa by a gorgeous wooden bookshelf. The modern interiors lean into Scandi and Japandi aesthetics, resulting in a pared-back but warm space.
The location is brilliant. It’s right next to Porto’s best-connected metro station, but you wouldn’t know it without looking at a map. We stayed in a studio flat in the back garden, and it was so quiet at night. It’s in one of my favourite neighbourhoods with the famous Bolhão Market right nearby.
There’s no on-site restaurant or bar, but your personal kitchen is well equipped – complete with a cookbook – so you can really feel at home, and the reception doubles as a gourmet mini-market. Plus, step onto the street and within 50m you’ll find great places to eat.
For events: There’s a penthouse events space you can book for groups, and the reception is a cute market-grocer shop too.
Good to know:
- Neighbourhood: Bolhão — walkable to Trindade Metro, Bolhão Market, Aliados Avenue, Rua Catarina shopping street
- Price range: €230+ per night
- Best for: Couples, families, groups, longer stays
- Rooms: studios up to two-bedroom apartments
- Facilities: Shared terrace garden, gourmet market store, bookable events space
Canto da Luz (Clérgios & Cordoaria)
Best for: food-and-wine lovers wanting a boutique stay with built-in foodie experiences.
Canto de Luz has turned a once-abandoned merchant’s townhouse into a boutique hotel with unique light-filled spaces, smart design and a swimming pool.
We stayed in the Minho Suite, a beautifully designed, specially built duplex apartment in the garden. Downstairs, it had a petite open-plan living room with two sofas that convert into beds for kids, plus a fully equipped kitchen with an oven, hob and dishwasher. Upstairs was a mezzanine with a superking bed and a bathroom with lush soaps and smart lighting. The whole space felt super modern and clean, yet cosy and homely.
Our suite shared a wall with just one other duplex, both sitting in the middle of the garden – city noise was basically non-existent! Add blackout blinds and a massive luxe bed, and it’s the perfect night’s sleep in a busy European city.
Canto da Luz is set on a pretty, quiet street close to cool cafés and top restaurants. Like Village by BOA, it has quick access to Trindade metro station. It’s exactly the kind of downtown area I usually choose when booking stays in Porto.
Beyond the rooms, Canto de Luz leans hard into food and wine experiences – think market tours, cooking classes and Douro wine tastings, all run by their in-house Canto Cooking team. We also enjoyed a filling breakfast each morning in the light-filled Orangerie greenhouse, plus you’ll find a pool tucked into the garden, perfect for lazy afternoons between explorations.
Tip: there’s a two-bed villa in the back garden with its own private pool too!
Good to know:
- Neighbourhood: Clérgios & Cordoaria — walkable to Trindade Metro, Bolhão Market, Aliados Avenue, Cedofeita, Clérgios Tower
- Price range: €160-€700+ per night, depending on the time of year
- Best for: Food-and-wine lovers, couples wanting a boutique stay, groups
- Rooms: Duplex suites up to two-bedroom villas
- Facilities: swimming pool, self-service wine machine, bar with simple snacks
Forte de Gaia – Vila Nova de Gaia
Best for: Riverside luxury with skyline views of Porto – ideal for couples and a special-occasion stay.
This 5-star hotel is a pocket of paradise in Porto. Forte de Gaia is located on the Gaia side (southern riverbank), so when you open the curtains each morning, a vista of the sparkling Douro River and postcard-perfect Porto skyline floods in. Pure magic!
We were offered a welcome drink at check-in before heading up to our “Deluxe King Room with River View” on the 7th floor. Inside, a spread of fresh pastel de nata, fruit, chocolate bonbons and a little bottle of port wine were waiting – ideal to savour while sitting and staring at that view.
I loved the dark and moody interior of our hotel room. The lush bed with top-quality pillows and sheets is exactly what you’d expect from a Marriott property, and there’s plenty of space to spread out your suitcase.
The one thing I didn’t love was the bathroom – the toilet and shower are separated with glass doors that open to the central sink, but the glass frosting stops at shoulder height. I was sharing with a girlfriend, so we giggled about the limited privacy, but it wasn’t a deal breaker.
Out back there’s a fantastic heated pool with loads of comfy sun loungers, plus a gym. The breakfast room doubles as a restaurant by night, called Renata, serving modern takes on Portuguese dishes – my highlight was the roast lamb shank with a curried sauce.
Good to know:
- Neighbourhood: Vila Nova de Gaia — across the river from central Porto, near the Port wine cellars and Dom Luís I bridge.
- Price range: €200+ per night
- Best for: Couples, special occasions, river-view seekers
- Rooms: King or twin rooms – choose a classic, river-view, terrace or direct-pool-access room. Two super luxe, very private apartments are also available.
The Passenger Hostel – São Bento
Best for: a social and grown-up budget option at Porto’s famous train station.
For those on a tighter budget, I genuinely loved my stay at The Passenger Hostel. It’s set right inside the historic São Bento train station – famous for its entrance hall with 20,000 azulejos covering the walls. You can’t beat the location or the grandeur of staying in such a landmark building!
This is one of Portugal’s best hostels. Beside the four dorms (with pod-style beds, complete with privacy curtains and power outlets), there are about a dozen private rooms. But it’s the facilities that make the hostel shine, and I think if you’re travelling solo and want to be social, this would be a great base – with the option of a dorm bed or private room.
With so many amazing communal spaces and facilities where people gather – the reception space, a mezzanine lounge with a piano, an office space, a bar, and an “inside garden” under the roof cavity with lounges and a ping pong table – you’ll also find a laundry room and a complete kitchen for those wanting to self-cater. Plus, a simple breakfast is put on every morning, for free.
Being at a train station might sound noisy, but this is the end of the line and a quieter stop, so I found The Passenger Hostel to be a great base for exploring.
Good to know:
- Neighbourhood: São Bento – right at the train station, central Porto
- Price range: From €26 for dorm beds or from €85 for private twin or double rooms.
- Best for: Budget travellers, solo travellers wanting a social vibe, groups, trainspotters
- Rooms: 4 dorms (pod-style beds) + around a dozen private rooms
- Facilities: shared kitchen, laundry, multiple lounge spaces, bar
More ideas for where to stay in Porto
Each time I visit Porto, I try to stay in a different downtown area to get to know that neighbourhood. I have a detailed guide diving into each area of Porto, along with hand-picked hotel and guesthouse suggestions. Take a look, and you’ll find something perfect for you!
Leave me a comment if you stay somewhere fabulous that I need to know about! Obrigada!
Disclaimer: I stayed at Village by BOA, Canto da Luz and Forte de Gaia as a guest, but my reviews on these spaces remain honest.
Check out my other Porto guides
- Two days in Porto: Perfect first-time itinerary
- Where to eat in Porto
- Where to stay in Porto: Best neighbourhoods & hotels
- Best Porto wine tasting tours (that I’ve done)
- Best tiles in Porto: Where to find Porto’s most beautiful azulejos
- The best tile painting workshops in Porto
- The best pastel de nata cooking classes in Porto
- 10 perfect days in Portugal: A fast-paced classic itinerary
- The best cooking classes in Porto
- Portugal Road Trip: Where to stop between Porto and the Douro Valley
