Douro
Douro: what to see and how to get there from the airport
From the terminal to your hotel door, with a driver waiting and the price fixed before you set off. The Douro runs for over 100 kilometres — the price depends on where you are going.
Pickup at Aeroporto Francisco Sá Carneiro (OPO), Maia
- The three sub-regions of the Douro, from Baixo Corgo to Douro Superior
- One hour of free waiting time on airport transfers
- Your driver in the arrivals hall, holding a sign with your name
- We track your flight — a delay moves the pickup automatically
- Price fixed before departure, with no surprises for tolls or waiting
A direct transfer between Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport and anywhere in the Douro Valley. The region follows the river from Mesão Frio to the Spanish border, so there is no single price: there is the price of your destination.
Where it is, and why that changes the price
The Douro Demarcated Region covers 250,000 hectares and follows the river from near Mesão Frio to the Spanish border. From Porto airport, the nearest point is about 89 kilometres away and the furthest 200. In travel time, that is the difference between just over an hour and two and a half hours.
That is why you will not find a price for "the Douro" here. You will find the price of the place where you are staying, which is the only figure that matters before you book.
The three sub-regions
The division is not a tourist invention: it is official. The Douro and Port Wine Institute separates the region into three sub-regions, bounded by river confluences. They follow the Douro upstream — and, with it, the distance from Porto.
Baixo Corgo
The coolest and wettest, and the most densely planted: 13,204 hectares of vineyard within 45,000. It reaches as far as the confluence of the river Corgo, and it is the closest — Mesão Frio, Santa Marta de Penaguião, Peso da Régua, Vila Real, Lamego and Armamar all lie between 89 and 119 kilometres from the airport.
With a published fixed price, by vehicle type:
Cima Corgo
From the Corgo confluence to the Cachão da Valeira. It covers 95,000 hectares, 20,427 of them vineyard — the largest planted area of the three. This is where Pinhão is, and with it the stretch of the valley that appears in most photographs. From the airport, between 117 and 143 kilometres.
With a published fixed price, by vehicle type:
Douro Superior
The largest and the hottest: 110,000 hectares, 10,077 of vineyard. From the Cachão da Valeira to the Spanish border. It is also the furthest — Carrazeda de Ansiães, Torre de Moncorvo and Vila Nova de Foz Côa lie between 155 and 200 kilometres, which often makes more sense as a day trip than as an arrival transfer.
With a published fixed price, by vehicle type:
What there is to see
- Miradouro de São Leonardo de Galafura, above Peso da Régua — the viewpoint the poet Miguel Torga called "the Douro sublime"
- Miradouro de Casal de Loivos, in Alijó, looking over the terraces and the villages on the slopes
- Pinhão railway station, with the tiled panels telling the story of the grape harvest
- Museu do Douro, in Peso da Régua
- Côa Valley Archaeological Park, in Vila Nova de Foz Côa — a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with more than 60 clusters of Palaeolithic open-air rock art along 26 kilometres
The routes with a fixed price
The eleven journeys above have a price fixed before departure, broken down by vehicle type. For anywhere else in the Douro — an estate, a hotel, a river quay — give us the address and we work out the price for that exact point.
Give us the hotel or the town and you get a fixed figure
Perguntas frequentes
How much is a transfer from Porto airport to the Douro?+
It depends where in the Douro. The nearest point is about 89 kilometres from the airport and the furthest 200. For Peso da Régua and Pinhão the price is published; for anywhere else, give us the destination and you will have a fixed figure before you confirm.
How long does the journey take?+
Between just over an hour, for the mouth of the valley, and about two and a half hours for the Douro Superior. Peso da Régua is roughly 88 minutes and Pinhão about 102, in normal conditions.
Can you take us straight to a hotel out among the vineyards?+
Yes. The destination can be an exact address and does not have to be a town. Give us the name or the address when you book and the price is worked out for that point.
How many people can you take?+
Up to 8 passengers in one vehicle, in a Mercedes-Benz van. For larger groups, tell us the number of people and bags when you ask for a price.
What if our flight is delayed?+
You do not need to do anything. We track the flight number on the booking and the pickup moves automatically. Airport transfers include one hour of free waiting time.