Lisbon vs Porto: which riverside city is right for you?
When travelers set their sights on Portugal, two cities typically come to mind: Porto and Lisbon.
When travelers set their sights on Portugal, two cities typically come to mind: Porto and Lisbon. In Porto, you will find copious amounts of wine, architecture that has stood the test of time and a varied flavor-packed food scene. While in Lisbon, spend your evenings watching sunsets from the city's numerous viewpoints, dine to the sounds of fado music reverberating through the room and discover how a city can evolve after disasters like the 1755 earthquake.
Today, two Portugal-based writers debate what makes each city so special and worthy of a visit, leaving you to decide where to head first. 
Pick sunny Lisbon, the innovative capital with old-city charm
Author of two editions of Lonely Planet Portugal and two of Pocket Lisbon, Sandra Henriques has called Lisbon her home city since moving there from the Azores nearly 30 years ago.
My first trip to Lisbon in my late teens was a “try run” to pick where I’d attend college, and our connection was immediate. Two years later, after lugging my belongings up three floors in a building without an elevator, I knew I was home, and the feeling hasn't waned since. In the last three decades, I’ve witnessed Lisbon’s (sometimes bittersweet) change into a top tourist destination – one day, she breaks my heart by shapeshifting into whatever the travelers want from her, and then in the next, she pulls me into one of those lesser-known spots that remain true to my memories.
The city shows a blend of old and new Europe
I know Porto has more of an “old Europe” feel, but only because Lisbon lost most of its riverside neighborhoods in the 1755 earthquake. Marquês de Pombal's strict reconstruction plan gave the city sprawling squares and the perfect gridline of cobblestoned streets lined with the same-height buildings we now know as Baixa.
Not all traces of old Lisbon are lost, though. On the streets of Alfama, the oldest neighborhood, you can find traces of a Roman wall, portions of the 13th-century medieval wall, and where the old Jewish quarter used to be (easier to spot on a Jewish Lisbon Walking Tour). But the most impressive repository of Lisbon’s history is under a bank's headquarters at the Núcleo Arqueológico da Rua dos Correeiros, and free to visit.
Porto has one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world; Lisbon has the oldest one still in business. At Livraria Bertrand, in Chiado since 1732, you don't need to buy a ticket and wait in line to visit. And once you've browsed all the books or stopped for a drink at Café Bertrand in the back, look for other places with the Lojas Com História sign – this city council’s program lists stores, cafes and restaurants with well-preserved noteworthy architectural features. One of them, art deco/art nouveau style A Brasileira cafe, is just up the street from the bookstore. 
Lisbon is quick in adapting and reinventing itself: old factories and warehouses became alternative shopping areas, art hubs, and startup incubators (LX Factory, 8 Marvila, and Unicorn Factory Lisboa); produce markets made space for restaurants and food courts (Mercado da Ribeira and Mercado de Arroios). And, since 2016, hundreds of startups have converged in the Portuguese capital to attend Web Summit, one of the most important events in the tech industry.
Lisbon has a burgeoning art scene
Although Porto is famous for its creative vibe and active artistic community, Lisbon doesn’t fall behind, showcasing contemporary urban art in unconventional venues for free: graffiti murals on the route of Elevador da Glória (GAU – Galeria de Arte Urbana), art exhibitions in a deactivated underground public bathroom (WC), and a full calendar of community- and family-friendly activities at the gardens of the old psychiatric hospital (Jardins do Bombarda). Even Metro stations are covered in art since the first line opened in 1959 – colorful and flashy Olaias is, perhaps, the most memorable.
This is the birthplace of fado music
Fado was born in Mouraria’s sleazy tascas (taverns), and attending a live performance at a traditional Casa de Fado is the most “typical Lisbon” activity for travelers and, unfortunately, a common tourist trap. For those not interested in dinner, a more fair-priced alternative is one of Real Fado’s one-hour concerts in three fixed and unconventional venues: bar Pavilhão Chinês, concept store EmbaiXada, and underground water reservoir Reservatório da Patriarcal.
Craving culture, sophistication and sandwiches? Consider Porto
Austin Bush is a Lisbon-based writer and photographer who frequently heads to Portugal’s north to cover food and drink stories.
I’ve lived in Lisbon, Portugal, for around three years now, and I’m very happy there. But whenever I visit Porto, part of me thinks – sometimes out loud – why don’t I live here instead? Let me walk you through my thought process.
Portugal's second city has grace and sophistication
Lisbon is undeniably charming, but in a scruffy, sometimes chaotic, southern European way – more Palermo than Paris. Porto, on the other hand, manages to feel graceful and sophisticated by comparison. Much of this is due to the city’s architecture. Porto is home to structures that date back to the 14th century, yet it’s the city’s “new” neo-Gothic structures, such as the Livraria Lello, the art nouveau-influenced residences in the Bonfim area, or contemporary marvels such as the Casa da Música, that seem to define it. A more modern and efficient public transportation system – Porto’s metro was only inaugurated in 2002 – provides a slick, sophisticated veneer to all of this, and also makes it a snap to navigate.
Porto competes with bigger cities for its art scene
Lisbon is Portugal’s capital and biggest city, and not surprisingly, is home to some of the country’s premier art institutions. But Porto, a fraction of the size, pulls above its weight class in this category. The sprawling Serralves Foundation is one of Europe’s best contemporary art museums, and the greater compound, with its art deco buildings and nature, is a pleasure to explore. The Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis, housed in a former palace, holds what is arguably Portugal’s greatest collection of domestic art. And the Centro Português de Fotografia (Portuguese Center for Photography), itself located in a former prison, hosts some excellent temporary exhibitions – and is free. 
Plenty of places for dramatic views at every turn
Lisbon is known as the City of Seven Hills, and its miradouros, or viewpoints, are not to be missed. But I’ll risk being run out of town to suggest that Porto’s are even more dramatic. Schlep to the top of the Torre dos Clérigos, an 18th-century tower that puts the ancient city center at your feet. Cross the Douro River on foot via the Gustave Eiffel-designed Dom Luís I Bridge – a genuine thrill. Scan the riverside port houses from above via the Gaia cable car. Or combine astounding views with a fino (the local term for a small beer) at the Guindalense Football Club.
This is the place to try a francesinha
Porto’s gastronomic legacy will most likely always remain fortified wine, but locals know that it’s actually various combinations of meat and bread – a culinary genre in which it crushes Lisbon. Porto’s most infamous sandwich is the over-the-top francesinha, a combination of a thin steak, two types of sausage, ham, cheese, a fried egg and a spicy sauce; get one at Francesinha Café. In Lisbon, the bifana is a dry, grilled slice of pork in a roll. In Porto, that pork has been sliced thinly, braised in wine with bay leaf and garlic, and is drizzled with chili oil; you can’t go wrong at O Astro or Conga. Good luck finding a cachorrinho – literally “little dog” – a tasty combination of spicy sausage and melted cheese pressed in a long roll, in Lisbon; in Porto, simply go to Gazela. And Porto is dotted with old-school places that serve rolls stuffed with slices of cured ham from the smokehouses of the north such as Casa Louro or Chico dos Presuntos.
Porto is the gateway to the Douro Valley and dramatic landscapes to the north
If asked to choose between the oceans and mountains, I’ll always opt for mountains. Porto – only 5km (3 miles) from the mouth of the Douro River – has the former but it also has easy access to the latter. The city is the natural jumping-off point for some of Portugal’s most rugged territory. A mere 100km (62 miles) northwest of Porto is Parque Nacional Peneda-Gerês, the country’s only national park, and a home to wolves, ancient villages and trails. Head east from there, and you’re in Trás-os-Montes, a region that’s home to landscapes that feel more Nepal than Portugal, and where people still live in stone houses. And a simple train ride east from Porto along the Douro Valley grants access to landscapes much more dramatic than you’d expect in such a small country.
