Visiting Douro Valley, Portugal

Tuesday, September 24, 2024

I woke up at  07:00, showered, shaved, and dressed. I packed my remaining clothes and chargers and prepared to check out of the Gran Cruise House in Porto, Portugal.

Inna and I walked downstairs to the hotel's restaurant for our 08:00 breakfast. We sat at our usual table and ordered scrambled eggs, cheeses (Azores, Ricotta), and deli meats (Iberian Ham, Turkey Ham). We also ordered two cappuccinos (but I was thirsting for a mocha).

At 08:40, our restaurant waiter informed us that our transfer to the airport was waiting. We quickly finished breakfast and headed to our Ruby room to pick up our luggage.

Since our transfer driver required cash, he showed me a nearby ATM, where I withdrew some euros to pay him. We loaded our bags and drove to Francisco Sa Carneiro Airport (OPO). He dropped us off at the Hertz Car Rental. There was heavy rush hour traffic on the way there, and it took us about 30 minutes.

I had a reservation for a Nissan Qashqai from Hertz. Although my original quote was for 580.00 euros (for six days), it doubled when I added insurance coverage. Since I would be driving on very narrow Portuguese roads, Inna suggested adding the insurance to have peace of mind.

The Nissan had a very easy, light clutch and a smooth-shifting 6-speed manual transmission. It was a delight to drive, except in Eco mode, when the engine would shut off at inopportune moments. Nissan's entertainment and navigation systems were unusual, and until I enabled Apple CarPlay with my iPhone, I did not like using them.

The drive to Ventozelo Hotel & Quinta in Ervedosa de Douro went well, though the road was windy, and I encountered periods of rain. 

On the way there, we stopped briefly at Fundacao da Casa de Mateus and at Quinta de La Rosa  (for lunch). I write about this stop in a separate blog post link.

After lunch, we continued our drive to the Ventozelo Hotel & Quinta. We were assigned room #17, which overlooks the Douro River and offers gorgeous views of vineyards. 

We enjoyed the room, especially the shower and the easy-to-access terrace, where we sat and drank the excellent Quinta de Ventozelo 2018 LBV Port wine.

After some rest, we decided to try hiking along the river bank. Ventozelo staff provided us with a free phone with hiking directions, which we used to navigate along the enormous Ventozelo property  (it was easy to take the wrong turn). 

We hiked 4 kilometers along the Douro River bank and returned before dark.

We had made dinner reservations at Cantina de Ventozelo for 20:30. When our reservation time came up, we walked in the dark on a cobblestone path to the restaurant. 

We ordered the following items:

• Appetizer: Beef Pie
• Inna: Chicken
• Boris: Portuguese Beef
• Dessert: Chocolate Cake

The Pie was excellent, and my Portuguese Beef was not bad either.

Wednesday, September 25, 2024

We woke around 07:50, and I took a shower and shaved. We had breakfast reservations for 08:30 and arrived at 08:40. Many other guests had already finished ahead of us.

After reviewing the menu, we ordered the following items:

• Appetizer: Iberica Ham, Cheese Plate, Bread Plate with sweet croissants
• Drinks: Cappuccinos
• Boris: Scrambled Eggs with tomatoes and mushrooms

After breakfast, we inquired about possible activities. We considered wine tasting (but it was only available at 17:00), jeep tours (all booked), and hikes.

Though rain was forecast, it was cloudy and delightful outdoors, so we decided to try hiking around the vineyards. We walked around, marveling at the beautiful views of vineyards, the Douro River, and the surrounding countryside. 

We saw many ripe grapes that needed to be harvested. We were unsure why they had not been harvested, as many grapes were already falling on the ground.

After the hike, Inna rested by the pool while I packed the suitcases. We checked out at noon and started our two-hour drive to Aquadome.

Douro Valley Trip Report

Highlights

• Touring the beautiful gardens of Casa de Mateus (the mansion itself is less attractive)
• Hiking around the beautiful vineyards of Ventozello
• Trying the vintage Quinta de Ventozelo 2018 LBV port

Lowlights

• Lunch at Quinta de La Rosa was mediocre
• Small insects that bit (especially at night)
• Unable to book any Jeep or Wine tasting tours on short notice
• Light rain on the way to Ervedosa de Douro.