Ribeira Waterfront

A good way to read the Ribeira is as a set of layers that you meet in sequence as you walk uphill from the river. At the bottom lies the quay, the Cais da Ribeira, where the Douro slides past and rabelo boats are moored. Behind it rises a wall of tall, narrow houses, with shops and restaurants on the ground floor and washing hung from the windows above. Higher still, a tangle of lanes and staircases climbs toward the cathedral, and at the very top the city's modern streets begin. This vertical arrangement, packed into a few hundred metres, is what gives the district its character.

Start on the waterfront, in the late morning, when the light on the water is bright and the tables are not yet full. The promenade looks across to the port lodges of Vila Nova de Gaia, whose names, Sandeman, Calém, Taylor's, Graham's and others, are painted in huge letters on the roofs and walls. The Dom Luís I Bridge arches overhead, and you can cross it on foot to the Gaia side for the best view back at the Ribeira, or take the cable car that runs along the Gaia embankment. Boat trips depart from the quay: the short cruise beneath the city's six bridges takes under an hour, and longer excursions go up the Douro valley.

Behind the quay, the old streets reward wandering. The district known as Barredo, above the Ribeira, has some of the oldest and steepest lanes in the city, where houses lean against one another and laundry hangs between them, and in places you can still see how the medieval town was packed into the hillside. The Funicular dos Guindais, a short rail lift beside the bridge, carries passengers between the riverside and the upper town in a couple of minutes, which saves a climb. Along the way, small squares open up unexpectedly, and some give views over the red roofs.

The Ribeira has a distinct evening life. Restaurants spill onto the quay, serving grilled fish, salt cod, tripe and francesinha, and bars open until late, with buskers playing. On the night of the São João festival, on 23 June, the whole district fills with people grilling sardines and tapping each other with plastic hammers, and fireworks explode above the river at midnight. The quarter is also a place to try Port wine, either in a bar or by crossing to the lodges for a tasting.

The Ribeira has no entry fee and no closing times. It is crowded at midday and in the evening in high season, and quieter early in the morning, when delivery vans and shopkeepers set up. Cobbles and steps make it hard for wheelchairs and strollers, and flat shoes are advised. Prices on the quay are higher than in the side streets, so consider eating a few lanes back. The waterfront suits everyone, and an hour or two at dusk is hard to beat.