Porto was our last stop on our Portugal itinerary and I gotta say, we had high hopes! We’d heard from several folks that they liked Porto better than Lisbon, which felt like very high praise considering how awesome Lisbon was.

We flew from the Algarve into Porto – an easy hour-ish flight (that would’ve been a full 7-8 hours of travel otherwise). On our way to our hotel, our Uber driver told us we’d arrived on a very special day – the Festival of São João (or Saint John the Baptist). Each city in Portugal has a patron saint and a special day they celebrate them. We had coincidentally arrived on Porto’s celebration – and what a celebration it was. As the evening went on, more and more people joined together in the streets to head down to the river and get ready for the fireworks show. They also set off paper lanterns throughout night all over the city.

But the most interesting part of the festival was not the fireworks, it was the colorful plastic hammers everyone carried. Passersby would tap each other on the head to be silly, but also as a gesture of friendship.

You better believe we got our own plastic hammers and joined in with the locals! The girls had a blast “bonking” people on the heads as we walked to and from dinner.

This is one of those things that I just love about travel – happening upon unique experiences that you didn’t plan, being part of the unexpected and loving every minute!

The next day we did our own walking tour of the city including checking out the famous Mercado de Bolhao (an open air food market dating back to 1837) and checking out the Lello bookstore that inspired J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series. The afternoon also included a private boat tour of the Douro River and its six bridges.

I have to say, I agree with those that said Porto is their fave. The city is stunning, feels more manageable than Lisbon, and there was even more of the tiled walkways and artwork. Honestly, I wouldn’t hesitate in visiting both cities again.

Enjoy a few pic highlights of day 2 in Porto!