Explore Vila Nova de Gaia

Cockburn's Port Lodge is the cellar of the Port house Cockburn's on Rua Serpa Pinto in Vila Nova de Gaia, up the hill from the riverside. The firm was founded in 1815 by the Scotsman Robert Cockburn and has belonged to the Symington family since 2010. Guided tours pass long aisles of stacked casks and the lodge's cooperage and end with a tasting.

Taylor's Port Cellars are the lodges of the port house Taylor's, founded in 1692, in the historic quarter of Vila Nova de Gaia. The cellars, about 300 years old, hold oak casks and large vats of ageing port, with Vintage Port kept in tunnels below; a self-guided audio tour with films and exhibits ends with a tasting.

Fonseca Port Cellars are the Vila Nova de Gaia lodge of the Port house Fonseca Guimaraens, on Rua do Choupelo above the riverside, in cellars that are centuries old. A visit with an audio guide explains the Douro valley, the house's vineyards and how port is made, includes a test of port aromas, and ends with a tasting.

Cálem Port Cellars are the lodge of the Port house Cálem on the Gaia riverside, across the Douro from Porto's Ribeira. The firm was founded in 1859 by António Alves Cálem. The tour leads through an interactive museum on port wine and the Douro valley and through cellars of large vats and casks, and ends with a tasting; some sessions add a fado show.

Graham's Port Lodge is the Vila Nova de Gaia cellar of W. & J. Graham's, a port house founded in 1820 and owned by the Symington family since 1970. The lodge keeps the wooden beams and iron pillars of its 1890 building and holds about 3,200 casks of ageing port; visits tour the cellars and end with a tasting.

Burmester Cellars stand on the Gaia riverbank next to the lower deck of the Luís I Bridge. The Port house traces its origins to Burmester, Nash & Co., founded in 1750 by Henry Burmester and John Nash. Guided or self-guided visits lead through an old warehouse of casks and a cellar of vintage port and end with a tasting.

The Clérigos Tower is the 75-metre baroque bell tower of the Clérigos Church in Porto, designed by the Italian-born architect Nicolau Nasoni and built between 1754 and 1763. Visitors climb about 240 steps to a gallery overlooking the old town and the Douro, and the ticket also covers the church and a museum on the Clérigos brotherhood and on Nasoni.

Sea Life Porto is an aquarium on the seafront beside the Castelo do Queijo fort, opened in 2009 and run by Merlin Entertainments. Its themed zones lead from Douro river species and rock pools past a sunken ship to a main tank with rays, blacktip reef sharks and a sea turtle, seen from an underwater tunnel; outside there is a play area.