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Day Trip from Porto to Santiago de Compostela and Valença
4.7
470 Ratings
Porto
Embark on a full-day pilgrimage site tour from Porto to Santiago de Compostela and Valença do Minho. Explore the magical city of Santiago, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and visit the famous pilgrimage way. Then, stop at Valença do Minho to admire its stunning Vauben-style fortress. Don’t miss this opportunity to discover the beauty of these two southern European cities!
Duration:
10 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Porto - Your expert guide will collect you from your hotel/accommodation or meeting point and will drive you to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. On your way to Santiago, the guide will give you insights regarding the Portuguese history, development and cultural facts of portuguese heritage. Crossing the border and entering in Spain, insights regarding the pilgrimage and the story and facts of Santiago will be given. - Santiago de Compostela - Once in Spain, you will arrive to our main destination. Santiago de Compostela, is one of the most magical cities in Galicia, Spain. Santiago concentrates in itself, culture, religion, people, academic life and tourism. And, because of its beauty, the city won the title of World Heritage. Its famous pilgrimage way, known as the “Caminho de Santiago” (St. James way) won also the title of World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Visit this amazing City, exploring the one of the most important pilgrim sites in Europe. You will have free time to explore on your own the historical city center of Santiago and its famous Cathedral. - Cathedral De Santiago de Compostela - Once in Santiago, you guide will give you free time to explore this incredible site. You will be able to visit and explore the Cathedral! - Santiago de Compostela. Casco Historico - IN CASE YOU CHOSE THE LUNCH INCLUDED OPTION, the guide will escort to a traditional tapas restaurant at the historical city center so you can taste and drink some of the traditional food from Galicia! Drinks are included on your meal as well. - Valenca - After lunch it’s time to return to Portugal, to your next stop: Valença do Minho! Standing on the border with Spain and overlooking the River Minho, Valença is surrounded by walls and displays all the characteristic features of a town that was fortified in the seventeenth century in the style of the French military architect, Vauban. Its first name was “Contrasta”, which referred to a village standing opposite another one and was clearly a reference to its position directly across the River Minho from the Galician town of Tui. Today, it is a city with a flourishing trade, in which some of the most popularly sought after items are the pieces produced by the local craftsmen.
What's Included
- Tour Expert escorting the group all day
- Porto City Walking Tour (available from the day after your experience)
- Transportation in a comfortable small-group minibus
- Lunch Included with Drinks (If the option is selected)
- Free time in Santiago de Compostela
- Guided Visit in Valença do Minho Fortness
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Hotel pick-up and drop off
Additional Information
Santiago de Compostela holds a bewitching charm being one of the most enchanting cities in Galicia, Spain. It’s a melting pot of culture, religion, academia, population and tourism. Its captivating beauty led it to be designated a World Heritage site. Its known pilgrimage route, the ‘Caminho de Santiago’ or St. James Way, has also been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Embark on an exploration of this remarkable city, one of the most significant pilgrim destinations in Europe. On your way back, do not forget to tour Valença do Minho, renowned for its impressive Vauben-style fortress.
Experience the captivating allure of these two southern European cities on a comprehensive day tour from Porto.
- Usually our tours run in one language but there are cases of one extra language.
- Tours run in small groups up to 27 passengers.
- We support our communities. By taking a tour with us you are contributing to our cause: we offer a meal for the homeless and people in need.
- Please kindly be aware that the overall duration of the activity could be influenced by traffic conditions. We highly advise against scheduling any additional activities or making other plans within the hour following the anticipated completion time.
- Vegetarian and Gluten-free meal options are available if requested before the day of the booking. Make sure you inform us before the tour starts.
- Discover Porto in a unique way with a Free Walking Tour with Living Tours, available to all customers who book this activity. Our Free Walking Tour is available on a daily basis, in English and Spanish, at 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. departing from Living Tours Agency located in Rua Mouzinho da Silveira 352, 4050-418 Porto
Location
R. de Mouzinho da Silveira 352
Rua de Mouzinho da Silveira
We collect you from the Tourist Service/Living Tours located at Rua Mouzinho da Silveira, 350, Porto - next to Porto - São Bento train station.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.7
(470 Ratings)
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Mariadocarmoo53
Jul 25, 2024
Paulo tour guide and driver was excellent! - Paulo is very knowledgeable and conduct us very well over the history of the historical sites and drove us safely too. Recommended tour indeed!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Karl_b
Jul 22, 2024
Recommended - The whole trip was really good. Educational and fun. Fascinating to visit Santiago de compostela. Andre was an excellent tour guide with a wealth of knowledge and tips and extremely helpful throughout the day. The lunch we had was absolutely delicious lovely local food.
Review provided by Viator
Pioneer16648478951
Jul 21, 2024
Note 10 - Excellent planning and excellent driving of the Guide José Luiz, very qualified. We will be back because of the good service. Ronaldo Bretas and Suzana
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Voyager43796710735
Jul 21, 2024
Professional agency with friendly staff. - José Luis is a great Guide! With a lot of knowledge and sympathy. We'd all like to do more tours with the agency!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Maps53909187920
Jul 18, 2024
Santiago de Compostela - Recommended. Cozy tour with competent guide and driver. The food we were served was one of the better I have been served on any guided tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Juliacu8069lo
Jul 17, 2024
reccomend! - Great trip, our guide Paulo was amazing! Professional, but also funny and joyful. It was a pleasure having him as a guide!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Godwins668
Jul 13, 2024
Would recommend this tour and also Jose as a tour leader - All places we visited where extremely enjoyable. Tour leader (Jose) was well informative, safe driver, advise spot-on such as restaurants, when best time to visit attractions to avoid long queues. Even managed to find time to introduce us to different types of Portuguese music
Review provided by Tripadvisor
203hilaryh
Jul 12, 2024
Take this tour to Santiago de Compostela! - Our tour of Santiago de Compostela was AHMAZING!!! Great guide and driver who shared important points and key highlights of the region and pilgrimage site. Valdemar is the best guide! We strongly recommend both him and the tour company.
Hilary H
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jadeba4194gb
Jul 11, 2024
Excursion with Manu! - This is an excursion to do! Manu was a perfect Guide, very kind and speaks French very well which is nice! The view was splendid and we discovered beautiful landscapes! In addition, during the trip, Manu tells us a few anecdotes that make the time shorter.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Catherineacoghill
Jul 25, 2024
Skip the organised lunch… - A day trip from Porto to Santiago de compestela is a great thing to do, but the tour we were on was not ideal.
We were told departure time is 7.30 & to arrive 5 minutes early.. at 7.40 after standing waiting we are told it’s actually not until 7.45… we don’t end up leaving until 8am because they were waiting for people. This meant we didn’t get to Santiago until 12.20 & those wanting to attend mass could not… organised lunch was at 1pm & took 1 hr … given the church reopens post mass at 1pm this was not good timing.. doing our own thing for lunch would have been better..
And then, an elderly couple got confused about the time zones / meeting points & we waited 20 mins or more for them to return to the bus , reducing our time in Valença.
More time at Santiago would have been better & skipping Valença. The guide was knowledgeable on the area / history etc but this tour doesn’t include a guided tour inside the cathedral.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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