Conference Location. Our destination at a glance.

Porto: The second largest city in Portugal is Porto, or Oporto, and offers visitors many things to do and see. Porto Portugal is the entryway to the Douro Valley, Minho and Trás-os-Montes. The wine-making region of Vila Nova de Gaia is worth spending a few days in for sightseeing. Vila Nova de Gaia in Porto is where Port wine is mixed and aged and where visitors can try the different varieties. Porto is the heart of wine production in the country and is the best place to taste and purchase the famous port wine. The Vila Nova de Gaia in Porto Portugal is also a great area from which to take a Douro River cruise.

The coast of Porto Portugal is laden with holiday resorts. The Espinho beach area is popular with tourists. Here you can find plenty of fantastic seafood restaurants serving up fresh seafood dishes and other popular Portugese cuisine. The port of Matosinhos is also a well traveled area mainly due to its thriving casino. There is a friendly rivalry between Porto Portugal and the Lisbon and much like the capital Porto has some wonderful old quarters to explore, the most famous being the historic center of Oporto. There are contemporary areas as well filled with bustling avenues that are great for shopping.

A flight to Porto will land at Francisco Sa Caneiro Airport whether domestic or international. The airport is only just over 6 miles north of the city and visitors can access it via roughly 30 international destinations. Normally there is a direct flight to Porto available from Madrid, Paris, London, Amsterdam and Frankfurt.

A cheap flight to Porto is hard to find as budget airlines tend not to fly there. Booking transportation a few months ahead is one way to arrange a cheap flight. Also try less popular flight times such as early morning or late at night as well as mid-week rather than a weekend departure. Flexibility with dates can also be helpful in finding an affordable flight to Porto.

There are many choices for a hotels in Porto when staying in the area. The Ipanema Park hotel is located just a few minutes from both the parkway that leads to the airport as well as the bustling city center, where prices range from 54 Euros and up. Satellite TV, wireless internet, 24-hour rooms service, and an onsite restaurant and bar are some of the amenities provided at this Porto Portugal hotel.

The Grand Hotel is a circa 1880 Porto Portugal hotel found right in the city center. Many attractions are within walking distance from this attentively renovated classic. Situated on an all-pedestrian street loaded with small shops rooms start from 60 Euros per night but get price details before booking. Rooms at this Porto Portugal hotel are equipped with min-bar, TV, internet access, safe and spacious tiled bathroom.

Hotels in Porto come in all different shapes and sizes. The Hotel Fenix Porto lies in the cultural center of Boavista in the city. It’s surrounded by shopping centers and is close to the railway station and the airport as well as the sports stadium. Amenities include air conditioning, internet access and satellite TV and prices start at 55 Euros but check before reserving a room. Hotels in Porto abound and the area is a UNESCO World Heritage site that draws many tourists every year. Many hotels in Porto can be found directly in the city center allowing convenient access to area attractions and things to do.

Cheaper hotels in Porto can also be found in the city center. Sao Jose Hotel Porto offers attentively decorated suites and many modern amenities. This hotel has rooms starting from 44 Euros but be sure to confirm before booking. Sao Jose Hotel is near the beach, movie theaters, historical centers, and commercial areas. Laundry, parking, room service, cocktail bar and a business center are all available for guests.

A Porto Portugal hotel acts as a gateway to the city’s many interesting attributes. Stroll along walkways during warm evenings, take in a wine tour or simply sit back and relax on your vacation in Porto.



Portugal has emerged as a country with a consistent economic growth and one of the sources of the prospering of the Gross Domestic Product is the tourism industry which in recent times has been responsible for adding huge revenues to the economy as a whole. Statistics have revealed that tourism has contributed about 5% of the total Gross Domestic Product of the country. According to recent statistics, the country has been visited by a whopping amount of 12.8 million tourists in the year 2006 only. In fact it has made the city of Lisbon the most popular travel destination among the scores of other European cities, second only to Barcelona, with about 7million tourists visiting it in 2006. Moreover, the reduction in the airline prices has also facilitated travel to these destinations.

While the most popular travel destinations in Portugal include the Algarve and Madeira, Lisbon, other regions like the northern part of the Douro Valley, Alentejo and Porto Santo Islands are also fast emerging as attractive options to the tourists. The reason why these areas have been successful in luring tourists is because of the rich history of Portugal. Once a part of the Roman Empire, it was then acquired by the Christian invaders and finally attained independence in the 12th century. Apart from possessing a booming economy, Portugal also has a rich cultural history and heritage with myriad painters, musicians and literary scholars having received world wide acclaim and all this has positively affected tourism. For tourists visiting Portugal presents a lucrative opportunity of reliving these historical junctures. Also Portuguese wines and vineyards are world famous and visiting the vineyards and watching extraction and processing from the grapes to produce wines are a treat indeed. The tourism sector is emerging in Portugal and current figures suggest that it will soon make its way as becoming one of the significant sources of income leading to economic prosperity.