NYCMOM50, thank you for your list! I'll also go look at tripadvisor. I think 2 day trips is probably the most I want to do on our trip however.

maitaitom, yes i read about the francesinha sandwich! I don't know if even sharing it with my son whether we will be able to finish one!

Now I'm wondering, should I drop Aveiro and opt for Coimbra for my second day trip instead? The draw of Aveiro is the fact that it's a bit different from Porto and Guimaraes, and fingers crossed for a nice day we can go on a bike ride around the lagoon.

I loved Coimbra, but you are correct in thinking that Aveiro would provide more of a contrast.

A big YES to the cable car in Guimaraes! There are huge boulders to walk on and around along paths. It's really cool. Amazing views from the cable car and from the hilltop. I don't even remember seeing a church up there LOL or if I did see it, I didn't go in. There were church bells ringing for probably 20 minutes though and that added to the magic.

5. Livraria Lello... I'm sure my son would love to visit it, but he also is practical in terms of not willing to stand in a long line to visit. Wondering if anyone have tips on visiting it?

I can possibly help with this question. We just went in early December 2024. You have to buy a ticket online ahead of time, so it is a timed entry. We only waited for about 5 minutes before we were allowed it. We went in the evening at the last time spot. Not sure if it gets busier at other times, or at other times of the year. I could guess that it might.

I do not know Aveiro.
Guimaraes had some charm.
Braga was boring.

Coimbra has an amazing museum with ruins, a take your breath away golden library, a botanic garden with the best banyan tree, students in Harry Potter capes, more. I loved it and I seldom do side trips, day trips.

in Porto, the boat ride, cork museum and sardine cannery May delight both you and your son!!

I see several of you have recommended the sardine cannery... my son dislikes most fish and definitely doesn't eat sardines, so I don't know if he'll want to go at all.

I have to think again between Aveiro vs Coimbra. I know Coimbra is beautiful, but more of whether my son will enjoy it? The big draw of Aveiro is the possibility of doing some biking, however, the amount of information on bike routes etc in the area is quite limited as far as I could find on the web.

Aveiro is unusual in that it is flat, or at least mostly so. I would think there would be numerous routes one could bike, and I suspect the tourist information office there would have information.

Unless things have changed, one can only visit the library NYCMOM50 mentions -- the Biblioteca Joanina -- on a tour of Coimbra's university.

We did not have a tour of Coimbra in early December. We did have to buy a ticket and select a time for the library. Our time was half a hour later. So perhaps things have changed.

YK, as for your son’s interests, you know best. The cabinets of curiosity at Coimbra..early scientific instruments, snakes in jars may or may not intrigue. It definitely is too hilly to bike.

As for the cannery, well some are served at the end of the tour but you need not eat them. It is a workplace that has not changed much in 70 years so I thought of it asa factory tour that happened to be about sardines. It does not smell fishy. It is in a flat part of town and I think people do cycle to get there. I am sure another Fodorite or your fine research can tell you for sure.

kja & NYCMOM50 Thanks for your additional inputs. I'll put the sardine factory on our list. I got in touch with a friend/acquaintance who moved to Lisbon 1.5 years ago. Her kids went to m-yk's school here but were a few years younger than him. I asked her about Coimbra vs Aveiro and she said definitely Aveiro. Since she knows me and m-yk, I'll take her advice! Or if the day on our day trip it looks like rainy weather, then we will scrap Aveiro and opt for Coimbra instead. We can literally decide the morning of, since we won't be making any advance reservations. It's good to have options!

Coimbra in the rain? I surely wouldn't want to try climbing those steep, cobbled streets in the rain! Maybe that's just me.