November Sun-Porto

Portugal in November? Why not, it's easy to get to, but is it worth it...
So the short drive to LGW, then swiftly through the priority lane (One of the benefits of BA silver) we only ever take hand baggage on the short hops such as Porto.
Saw us back in familiar territory- the BA lounge - but the quietest I think I've ever seen as it was late afternoon.
But time to fill up with a meal and a few beers courtesy of the brewdog bar which is situated upstairs, just pour yourself a nice cold one (or more!), and the glasses are in the fridge which is a nice touch.

The flight soon had go to gate , immediately followed by boarding, this can go one of two ways with BA we've found. You either get to the gate and they've rushed you through just to stand in the airbridge for another 20 mins or you wait forever and do nothing then get told there's a delay.
The former today ! as silver you're either in group 1 or 2 so at least get to board 1st so no issues with hand baggage in lockers if it's a full flight.
Exit row seats - as I hate being squashed up even for a short flight, and the other perk of silver - seat choice .

After the obligatory delay for no apparent reason,(no BA you can't everyone in 20 minutes but you always try !!) and we're off.
After a relatively short flight and surprisingly quick transit through Porto we're now faced with a choice, nice cheap public transport which is a bit of a faff (to city centre) or an Uber- whilst a bit more expensive it's just me and the Mrs and way more convenient- bit of a tip here - either get through the airport quickly and get your uber or wait a bit longer until the flight traffic dies down - you can really get caught with the dynamic pricing when it's busy.

After a while we arrived at our hotel hotel Porto bay teatro and a quick check saw us eating in their on site italian restaurant which was very nice.

Time to get our heads down , nice comfy beds then breakfast which was good and plentiful, then time to wander firstly up to the market then down towards the river and the hustle that exists around that.

Nice and warm , just in time to sit and watch the world go by over a cold beer, but be warned the bar we sat at only took cash -  so a little wander to a cash point as we hadn't got any euros.
Still quite busy for November. 
Then wander over the bridge for what Porto is famous for...Port . This side of the river feels different and plenty of restaurants and things to do.
Now after all that , you have to go back up the through the old streets and of course tourist shops before having a break and finding a real Gem of a restaurant for evening meal.
We searched on Fork and found an unasuming place with 20% off with great reviews just around the corner restaurante costume bistro
Wonderfully service and great food at a great price- you wouldn't even know it was there.
Back to the hotel for another good night's sleep, a late check out , with a short walk to the metro saw us back at the airport.
The lounge at Porto is huge with the usual beers/wines and snacks, seating is comfortable enough and its nice and quiet to while away your last few hours.

Flight is called and we're boarded quite quickly and again seated in exit row with no one in the 3rd seat again.

An uneventful flight snacking on a few bits and bobs from the lounge (otherwise its a glass of water and a biscuit- thanks BA - unless you feel like paying for some snacks)

We land ahead of schedule and that's another bit of Winter Sun done- was it worth it? I'd say yes - sure beats sitting at home watching the rain on the windows.






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