12 Things to Do in Porto in December

Although December is the winter season, during your visit you will find many things to do in Oporto. You can enjoy cultural, recreational and gastronomic activities. In addition, you have many options for enjoying the city's nightlife. It all depends on your interests.

During your walk through the streets of Oporto you will find several skating rinks where you can enjoy an ice-skating experience, as well as Christmas markets where you can buy souvenirs and mementos. There are also circus and silent film shows, which only take place in December, wine tasting and traditional food.

If you want to make the most of your 3-day visit to Porto in December, you should incorporate a night tour of the city into your itinerary. With this tour you will learn about the history hidden in the squares and monuments of this city while enjoying the beautiful Christmas decorations and hundreds of coloured lights in the streets.

To do this activity you can join a night tour, where an experienced local guide will take you on foot or by bike through the main streets of Porto. You will see the historical sites and fashionable places and discover the best Christmas decorations.

But, if you prefer to do the tour at your own pace, then a good option is to hop on one of Porto's sightseeing buses. You'll have the chance to get off at the sites that catch your eye, explore them, take photos and then get back on another bus.

Christmas celebration atmosphere

In either case, you will see giant illuminated letters with words such as Family, Love, Porto, Festa, among others.

Also, in the Praça dos Aliados, you will find a huge Christmas tree with a height of 30 metres and you will enjoy a pleasant atmosphere of celebration.

Certainly, it is an activity that cannot be missed among the 10 things to do in Porto with children.

During your visit to Oporto in December you can't miss tasting one of the exquisite wines produced in the city. The recommended serving temperature for these wines is between 6 and 12ºC, so the cold weather of the year is a good opportunity to do a tasting and, thus, enjoy the varied notes of this drink of the gods.

In this sense, you will be able to visit some wineries on your own, such as Casa Taylor's, considered one of the oldest in the city and producer of several styles of Port wine. There, between 10:00 and 19:00, you will have the opportunity to do several tastings and try some cheeses.

But if you prefer a more intimate and complete activity, you can opt for one of these interesting options:

• Book a visit to a winery that includes a train tour and cruise: of course, the visit includes a wine tasting and you will also learn many details about the city of Porto.
• Book a winery tour that includes a bus tour and cruise: this option includes a Port wine tasting and a traditional Portuguese lunch.
• Book a winery visit with fadot show: you will visit a traditional winery and enjoy typical Portuguese music while tasting a Port wine.

Visiting the Clérigos Tower during this winter month is a good opportunity to admire the urban panorama at Christmas time, which, after 18:00 hours, is illuminated and offers an attractive visual spectacle. At 76 metres high, the building is considered the tallest tower in the city.

After climbing the 225 steps you will reach the top of the bell tower and get a close-up view of the Clérigos church, as well as a privileged view of the whole city. You can also take the opportunity to enter the building's exhibition hall and admire a permanent exhibition of clothing, furniture and paintings from the 18th to the 19th century.

As the Clérigos Tower is an emblem of the city, it is an obligatory stop on the various tours that bring you closer to its history. I recommend booking a guided tour of Porto or buying a place on a bike tour to get to know the details of this magnificent building.

Useful information

• Price: from 6€ per person.
• When: every day (9:00 am to 11:00 pm).
• Where: Clérigos Tower.

If you plan to spend New Year's Eve in this coastal city, you will have several options to have fun: cruises on the Porto river, parties in the middle of the street or in nightclubs until dawn. You can also opt for a quieter evening on the terrace of a bar or restaurant.

You can go to the following streets:

• Avenida Dos Aliados: this is the favourite meeting point for locals and tourists. There, you will enjoy the countdown, a fireworks show, surprise artists and DJs.
• The Ribeira or Galerias de Paris: this is an area made up of several streets where you will find bars and discos with free entrance.

But if you want to celebrate New Year's Eve in a quieter and less noisy way, you can go to one of the terraces of Ribeirinha, where you can enjoy a traditional menu while watching the fireworks coming from the Avenida Dos Aliados.

Fado is a typical Portuguese musical genre that stands out for its great emotion and expressiveness. Each performance is unique, because the artists often improvise and add personal nuances to the interpretations, which are accompanied by Portuguese guitar and classical guitar.

Taking shelter from the winter cold and enjoying a Fado show that will give you goose bumps while you sip a glass of Port wine is a must-do. I assure you it will thrill you.

Moreover, this show, which by the way is considered intangible cultural heritage of humanity, is performed in an intimate way, so you can even interact with the musicians and live a much closer experience.

Portugal is a country that hides many charms: its gastronomy, its people, its music, its beautiful language... and, without a doubt, its buildings and its nature.

If you are going to be in Porto for a sufficient number of days or if you already know the area and want to explore more, here are some ideas that are perfect for December, since the temperatures are not extremely cold and you won't find crowds or overcrowding:

• Book a trip to Aveiro from Porto: The city of Aveiro is known as the Portuguese Venice because of its canals. Moreover, the bright colours and tiles of its houses and buildings will not leave you indifferent. This tour also includes a ride on a traditional "moliceiro" boat.
• Book an excursion to Braga and Guimarães: on this 9-hour tour you will get to know two of the most beautiful cities in northern Portugal with spectacular historic centres. The tour includes a typical Portuguese lunch.
• Book a tour to the Douro Valley: this 9-hour tour includes a boat trip on the Douro, a visit to 2 wineries with tasting in each and a delicious lunch. A unique opportunity to contemplate the spectacular nature of the Portuguese Douro.
• Book an excursion to the Peneda-Gerês National Park: you have the opportunity to discover the only national park in Portugal, a spectacle for the senses full of idyllic landscapes, waterfalls, valleys, viewpoints, massifs, meadows...

If you are an ice skating enthusiast or just want to do something different during your stay in the city, you will be interested to know that the month of December is full of winter activities in Porto.

Among other things, you will find some ice rinks set up in the main squares of the city.

• Plaza de la Batalla: every year they set up a skating rink with lights, decorations, skate rental and music. It is an ideal environment for adults and children. This square also has a church with interesting mosaics, while in the surrounding area you will find some restaurants and historic buildings.

• Mouzinho Albuquerque Square and D. Joao I Square: every day in December and until the first week of January, there are rinks open between 10:00 and 20:00 approximately, although these times may change yearly and depending on the installation visited.

Useful information

• Price: from €3.5 per person.
• When: from 1 December to the first week of January.
• Where: Plaza de la Batalla, Plaza Mouzinho Albuquerque and Plaza D. Joao I.

Christmas markets are a good option if you don't know what to see and do in Porto in 4 days or more. You will find this series of stalls distributed all over the city, all of them, with lots of things to buy: handicrafts, street food, textiles, souvenirs, etc.

• Artesanatus Market, one of the city's main markets, is located in D. Joao I Square and brings together dozens of artisans from the different regions of Portugal.
• Natal de Matosinhos Market, in the Basilio Teles Park, from mid-November to mid-December.
• Arts and Crafts Market, on Dom Afonso Henriques Avenue. You will find decorations and textiles throughout the month of December.
• Serralves Natal Market, installed in Serralves Park during the first week of December.
• WOW Natal Market, a flea market open until the first week of January at the WOW Museum. Ideal if you are also going to be in Porto in January and want to take advantage of discounts on the products you buy.

There are also some intermittent Christmas markets, which you can find on weekends, such as the Christmas Design Market outside the Palacio de Cristal, among others.

Useful information

• Price: free admission.
• When: last week of November until the first week of January.
• Where: D. Joao I Square, Basilio Teles Park, Serralves Park, WOW Museum, Crystal Palace, among other places in the city.

In your visit to Porto during the month of December you will find really interesting activities. For example, the silent movies with live music, performed free of charge in the cinemas and churches of the city.

To enjoy this show you can go to Cinema Trindade, Círculo Católico Operário do Porto, Fundação Inatel, Cine Passos Manuel and Casa das Artes. Show times tend to vary, so you will need to check from the last week of November onwards.

This is certainly an activity you can incorporate into your 2-day Porto itinerary if you are in the city during the first half of December.

Useful information

• Price: free admission.
• When: the first half of December.
• Where: Cinema Trindade, Círculo Católico Operário do Porto, Fundação Inatel, Cine Passos Manuel and Casa das Artes de Porto.

During the month of December you will find some traditional foods of this winter season, which you will not be able to taste when visiting Oporto in summer or any other season of the year.

Therefore, touring the city's pastry shops, cafés and restaurants is a good idea, whether you do it at your own pace or by taking one of the best gastronomic tours in Porto.

Whichever option you choose, you will find the following meals among the main options:

• Caldo verde: this is a preparation that combines Galician cabbage, salt, potatoes, garlic and sausage. It is also accompanied with corn flour bread.
• Papas de sarrabulho: this preparation is originally from Oporto and you can find it in any restaurant you decide to visit. It consists of a soup with ham, cumin, chorizo, bread, lemon, chicken, pork and pork blood. It is also typical of December because of the pig slaughtering that takes place in this month.
• Bolo Rei: this is a sponge cake filled with candied fruit and with a crown-shaped exterior. You can find it in any bakery or café throughout the month of December and until Christmas.
• Slices: these are slices of bread dipped in wine, milk and egg, which are then fried in oil and sprinkled with sugar.

Useful information

• Price: from €60 per person (guided tour).
• When: every day in December.
• Where: restaurants, patisseries and cafés in the city of Porto.

Every year, in the theatre and concert hall "Coliseu Porto Ageas", there is a circus show that merges the real world with the world of illusions. You will see tightrope walkers, trapeze artists and acrobats on stage and enjoy live music.

The show takes place every day in the second half of December. The schedules tend to vary, so you should check the official website of the Coliseu Porto Ageas for updated information at the beginning of the month.

Each edition offers different surprises: world-renowned Portuguese circus artists, illusionists, musicians, clowns, parkour, among others. In any case, you should know that you will enjoy a display of talent, amazing pirouettes and a very funny repertoire.

Useful information

• Price: from 10€ per person.
• When: Every day in the second half of December.
• Where: Theatre and concert hall: "Coliseu Porto Ageas".

If you are in Porto on the 31st of December and you are a marathon or outdoor walking enthusiast, then don't hesitate for a moment and take part in the annual San Silvestre race.

This is a sporting event with more than 20 years of tradition, which takes place on Avenida dos Aliados.

Depending on your fitness level, you can choose between a 10K run, known as the family race, or a 6K mini marathon, with no finish line ranking. Ultimately, the goal is to have fun while you observe the streets of Porto from another perspective.

Useful information

• Price: from 15€ per person.
• When: 31 December.
• Where: Avenida dos Aliados.

December in Porto is not too cold, as the city is very close to sea level. It is therefore unlikely to experience a drop in temperature to 0ºC. Nor will you see the thermometer reading 1ºC or more than 13ºC. In fact, the average temperature is around 10ºC.

The weather in Porto during the winter is characterised by mild, wet and cold, due to the city's combination of an oceanic and Mediterranean climate.

As a result, in December the temperature tends to rise during the day and fall in the evening hours, but it is usually only about 1ºC. In addition, this winter period is marked by windy and rainy days.

If you plan to visit the city during this month, you will need to pack clothes that will protect you from the cold: thick coats, long trousers, shirts, jumpers and wool or thermal socks, among others.

It is also important to bring waterproof clothes and closed shoes with good traction. In addition, an umbrella is a must during your visit, as in December there are several rainy days and you don't know at what time of the day it will rain.