A trip on the Funicular dos Guindais is a two-minute ride up the steep bank of the Douro River, from the base of the Luís I Bridge up to near Batalha Square. There are great views of the Gaia side — Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar — and the river.
I took it once in May 2013 and the rest of the time I’ve walked up from Ribeira or taken the stairs, of which there are two sets: Escadas dos Guindais and Escadas do Codeçal.
If you’re not in a hurry, I recommend the stairs as you will see much more. This is where people live: you’ll see kids playing, neighbours chatting between themselves as they hang laundry out the window, cats sleeping in window sills, the sounds of a football match through an open door. The stairs may be harder, but if you go slow enough you won’t even notice.
The Funicular dos Guindais is more than a hundred years old (1891), but don’t worry, it was refurbished. It runs daily from 08:00-20:00, but from May-June and September-October it runs until 22:00 Sunday-Wednesday, until midnight from Thursday-Saturday. In August it runs until midnight every day.
For the most up-to-date information, see the Metro do Porto page for the Funicular:
http://www.metrodoporto.pt/PageGen.aspx?WMCM_PaginaId=10035
In 2013, a couple of months after I took my one and only trip on the funicular, Metro do Porto decided that riders couldn’t use the blue Ocasionais Andante cards for the funicular. Instead, only a gold monthly Andante card which includes C1 is valid on the funicular. Although I live here, the way the Andante system works doesn’t make the monthly pass a better deal for me because I’m all over the city, not in the same zones all the time. It’s a shame because if I had a regular daily itinerary I would be able to use a monthly card and take advantage of extras such as the trams and the funicular without paying extra. Alas…
I took these photos from the Muralha Fernandina, and I was able to get a clear shot of the terrace of Guindalense Futebol Clube, which I passed while taking Escadas dos Guindais. The terrace looks like it has a marvelous view, but the door is always closed when I go by. Do I need to be a member? Access is only by secret knock? I need to find out.
April 5, 2016
Album: Portugal [Spring 2016]