Like so many, my daughter and I are attempting our 3rd try to visit Portugal. Most of the itinerary is planned - thanks to the wonderful postings and helpful advice on this forum. Daughter and I love an off-the-beaten track adventure and want to attempt a one way hike at Passadicos do Paiva. I've researched on-line and understand it's best to start at the trailhead at Areinho and pick-up a taxi at the end in Espiniunca to take us back to our car. Has anyone done this hike and could offer tips on the logistics? I am nervous about not finding a taxi when we get to the end of the trail. We'll be on a schedule and I don't want to get stuck at the end only to have to hike another 3 hours to get back to the car! We plan to hike on a Saturday after spending Friday night in Aveiro. From Passadicos do Paiva we will drive to Porto and stay several days. I don't fancy driving in Porto and plan to park the car for the time we are there. We have accommodations by the river but I would be willing to park the car on the outskirts of town and take public transportation to our apartment if someone could offer advice on the best way to manage this.

Will Porto not be your final stop and you'll need a car after your 3-night stay there?

Helena can best advise you of Porto parking garages and their rates, but I'll just say that I definitely wouldn't want to drive again in Porto, given our experience just in getting back to Campanha rail station from the Douro in our rented vehicle in heavy traffic.

There is parking, P3, at the airport. You could park your car there and take the metro, then taxi or uber to your apartment in the Ribeira area, or just take a taxi or uber from the airport directly to your apartment.
https://www.aeroportolisboa.pt/en/li...omfort/parking.

Passadiços do Paiva: taxis are easy to catch. They stand there just waitting someone to appear. Last time I heard about it, it was a cheap ride from there to your car. (I've never done the "Passadiços" thing, and I think I'll never will. Not my kind of thing. But my friends are always trying to convince me, they say it's great). Since you are doing "Passadiços" you might be interested in visiting bridge 516. Another thing I didn't do and think I never will. And perhaps just because you are in that region, you might be interested in visiting "Pedras Parideiras", at "Serra da Freita", Arouca. This one I did, I know "Serra da Freita" very well, as I own a small piece of land there. "Pedras Parideiras" is a place where rocks are born from other rocks, it's a phenomena, and it only exists in very few places (here, in Russia and I think also in Japan). "Serra da Freita" is a mountain where you can find a lot of interesting things: old villages that have only a few people living there, beatifull views, a river that goes underground and suddenly appears in a hole at rocks (I really don't know how to explain, sorry, the name is "Frecha da Mizarela"), and at Arouca, that is the town at the base of the mountain, you can eat the best (one of the best, the other is at Trás-os-Montes) meat (veal? calf? I don't know the name in english, but well, litle cows). And also some delicious pastries (That as usual in Portugal are made with eggs and sugar, I jope Melqn is not reading this).

Parking in Porto: where exactly are you staying "by the river"? That can mean a lot of places, from Freixo to Foz. Anyway, you have "Parque da Alfândega", 20 euros for 72 hours, you can go in and out anytime, "Parque da Estação de São Bento", at São Bento train station, 10 euros per day, and of course you have the option of parking at the airport, which I think is 5 euros a day.

If you choose airport, then it's an easy ride to Porto: take the metro (if you have a visa card you can use it without buying a ticket, one visa card for each person, just pass the visa card at a blue validator, the cost is 2 euros. If you don't have a visa card, you must buy an "Andante" card at any machine placed there, choose a Z4, charge it with one ride, and validate in any validator (blue or yellow). Price: 60 cents for the Andante card, 2 euros for the ride. Metro from airport ends at Trindade station, where you must go underground and take the metro towards Santo Ovidio. After just two stops, leave the metro, at São Bento. Then walk. If you are by the river, it's an easy walk, going down. In 5 minutes, even with luggage, you will be there, by the river.

Helena

Many thanks to both of you for your helpful replies. You are the best! Maribel, we are keeping the car in Porto because we will be using it after Porto. Helena/Fatima - I'm excited to look into your suggestions for other sites around Passadicos do Paiva. All sound delightful to me!
We are staying at Avenida Gustavo Eiffel 218 and by looking at google maps, I found parking nearby but having been to Porto once before, I KNOW I do NOT want to drive through town. If I recall correctly even getting to the Sao Bento train station requires some city navigation and has limited parking spaces. Usually on our mom/daughter trips, I drive and daughter navigates. She is excellent at guiding me through some of the craziest routes (a road I am convinced was a former goat path in Croatia springs to mind!) but I would rather avoid difficulties if I can plan around them. Would the least painful/most convenient negotiation be to leave the car at the airport, take the train to Trindade and then uber/taxi to our apartment? I am thinking it would be cumbersome to haul luggage through the train stations and then through the streets. We'll probably be arriving in Porto late afternoon/early evening on a Saturday. Not sure if the day makes a difference.

Helena/Fatima, I researched the bridge 516 and it is definitely on my list of "must do's" but I was confused about how to access the entrance. Will we be able to access it from the Passadicos do Paiva if we walk the entire length? Do we need an additional ticket to be able to walk across the bridge? Thanks so much for sharing your insight about the area.

rancherswife, from where you are staying, Parque da Alfandega is really convenient. You must arrive to Porto through Ponte do Freixo, and imediately catch Av Paiva Couceiro and continue to Av Gustavo Eiffel. It's the same avenue, only the name changes. Paralel to the avenue, there is a street closed to cars, right in front of your booking. So maybe you can contact them and ask if they can open it for you at your arrival (it's is closed with a stick that goes up and down). Just conitnuing in front through the same avenue you will enter Ribeira area, and only after the tunnel you will find some traffic, but not much. You just go straight ahead, no turnings at any point, and after D. Henrique square (Praça Infante D. Henrique), like 100 or 200 mts, there is, at your left, parque da alfândega. 10 minutes walking to your booking.

The other option is as Maribel suggested, and you describe: leave car at aeroporto.

Leaving here a link to Passadiços+Ponte.

https://516arouca.pt/en/

Will provide some details after speacking with my friends that went there.

Thank you! Your parking information is invaluable! Your directions are wonderful and I'll try it.

Rancherswife

Funicular dos Guindais closed end March, and there is sipposed to be closed for sometime (no one knows how much time). So a minibus started operating this week, from 8h00 to 22h00 wekk days, 24h00 weekends (Friday and Saturday). Price is the same as for funicular, and stops in the exact same place.

This can be very usefull for you, as you will be staying near the funicular stop by the river. You are at the bottom of one of the worst hills, of course there are stairs, but it's more than 220 steps.

I appreciate this advice! As always you are so helpful. Thank you