9 of the best places for drinking and dancing in Porto
Porto is a student city and has a lively nightlife that continues into the early hours of the morning. It can be noisy, particularly at the start of the student year when groups of gown-dressed, chanting undergrads parade the streets. If boisterous bar-hopping isn’t your thing, then Porto is also awash with hidden-away hostelries where you can enjoy a quiet glass of Portuguese wine. There is also always a gig or a show going on somewhere: flyers and billboards are usually the best way to get the details.
Baixa
Café Candelabro
This charming corner spot is found in a former bookshop, and stocks 60 varieties of wine from across Portugal. If the sun is out, take a table on the pavement patio and flip through the open suitcases of second-hand paperbacks. Books on photography, cinema, music and the arts are particular house favourites. In the evenings, black and white silent films are projected on the wall above the bar. There’s also a video art programme that changes every month. Think of it as a quiet and laid-back culture-vulture café, without the pretensions of being so. For another bookshop-bar, you can also try out the similarly characterful Livraria da Baixa, at 15 Rua das Carmelitas.
Address: 3 Rua da Concei??o
Contact: cafecandelabro.com
Opening times: Mon-Fri, 10.30am-2am; Sat, 4pm-2am; Sun, 4pm-12am
Prices: ￡￡
Getting in: It does get busy, so you may have to wait for a table
? The best restaurants in Porto
Santo Ildefonso
Maus Habitos
Maus Habitos (which translates as 'bad habits') is a hip bar, restaurant, gallery, festival and gig venue. Situated in the downtown Santo Ildefonso neighbourhood, this is a fun hang-out for visitors and locals alike. Opt for the benches and long tables for city views or, if it’s privacy you’re after, head to the room tucked around the corner with views of the Coliseu. It can get busy, so it’s worth arriving early or booking a table. The bar is housed on the fourth floor, accessible via an inglorious stairwell or a utilitarian lift. As you decide which to choose, take a look around the Art Deco garage on the ground floor, replete with original tiling, signage and petrol pumps.
Contact: 00 351 937 202 918, maushabitos.com
Opening times: Tues, 12pm-12am; Weds-Thurs, 12pm-2am; Fri- Sat, 12pm-4am; Sun, 12-5pm
Prices: ￡￡
Getting in: Booking recommended
? The best things to do in Porto
Santa Catarina
Passos Manuel
This is one of Porto’s young arty crowd's favourite places. Passos Manuel is housed beneath Coliseu do Porto, a fabulous theatre and concert venue, and the secluded entrance via the theatre’s former box office gives it an undiscovered feel. Fear not though: by the early hours, you’ll find you have plenty of company. Away from the main bar, you’ll find plenty of small nooks if it’s a quiet drink and a chat that you’re after. If not, then head downstairs to the party zone. Dancing shoes essential.
Contact: 00 351 222 058 351, passosmanuel.net
Opening times: Tues-Sun, 10pm-4am
Prices: ￡￡
Getting in: No entrance fee
? The best restaurants in Lisbon
Sé
Hot Five Jazz & Blues Club
Located in an intimate space in the Sé district, Hot Five Jazz & Blues Club is one of the best venues in Porto for live music. You’ll find local and international acts on the bill. Check out the website for what’s on when you’re visiting. Wednesday nights are earmarked for a freestyle jam session: all welcome. It gets crowded, so get there early or book ahead. That said, don’t take the programme times too seriously. Acts often don’t kick off until an hour or more after their scheduled start time. Seating is found around small tables close to the stage or on an upper balcony.
Contact: 00351 934 328 583, hotfive.pt
Opening times: Weds-Sat, 10pm-3am; Sun, 10.30pm-2am
Prices: ￡￡
Getting in: €5 (￡4.50) entrance fee
? The best nightlife in Lisbon
Galerias
Plano B
Not your regular nightclub, Plano B is housed in an old-style Porto townhouse decorated with antique furniture, armchairs and sofas, as well as great lighting. It may feel like a gallery owner’s front room, but don’t be fooled: this is a place to dance and party until dawn. The venue attracts an eclectic mix of DJs from around the world as well as Portugal’s top DJ talent. Think electronic music, house, electro rock, funk, RnB, acid jazz, lindy hop – everything goes. For the real party, head to the basement. A nocturnal institution.
Contact: 00 351 22 201 2500, planobporto.net
Opening times: Tues-Weds, 10pm-2am; Thurs, 10pm-4am; Fri-Sat,10am-6am
Prices: ￡￡
Getting in: €5 (￡4.50) entrance fee
? The best things to do in Lisbon
Tendinha dos Clérigos
Tendinha dos Clérigos is well located in Porto’s downtown bar district, and it occupies the centrifugal point of Porto’s nighttime clubbing scene: late or early, drinking or sober, everyone eventually finds their way to its doors. Heavy on danceable rock, with the occasional foray into Indie pop, its turntables might not be the most edgy in town. But what it does – sucking in the crowds, running a slick bar, not turfing anyone out until dawn – it does well. It doesn’t open its doors until midnight, so many kill a few hours partying at nearby Rádio Bar (Pra?a D. Filipa de Lencastre 175) or HD Bar To Be Wild (Rua da Galeria de Paris 113) beforehand.
Contact: 00 351 22 201 1438, tendinhadosclerigos.com
Opening times: Wed-Sat, 12am-7am
Prices: ￡￡
Getting in: Men €7 (￡6), women €3.50 (￡3)
? The best bars and clubs in Barcelona
Café au Lait
A go-to hang-out in Porto’s LGBT+ scene, Café au Lait is distinctly more chilled than its raucous neighbours in the clubbing quarter that is Rua Galeria de Paris. The music selection is invariably well chosen (a mix of hip-hop, funk and electronic) and the dancing lively. Other popular LGBT+ bars include the retro-loving Café Lusitano (Rua José Falc?o 137) and the newish bar-on-the-block Concei??o 35 (Rua de Concei??o 35, predictably). Famous for its themed parties and late, late night (read: dawn) dancing is Zoom (Beco Passos Manuel).
Address: Rua de Galeria de Paris 46
Opening times: Mon-Sat, 3pm-4am
Contact: 00 351 222 025 016
Prices: ￡￡
Cedofeita
Bar 77
Famous for its cheap beer, Bar 77 has become one of Porto’s most popular watering holes in recent years. The pool table and table football machine give it a slightly student union feel – a sensation reinforced by the young, fun backpacker and student clientele. It's a place where locals and visitors can rub shoulders amicably, and it is open until the early hours, but especially popular in the pre-clubbing hours. Bar 77 isn’t geared up for dancing, but no-one will stop you if you get the urge.
Address: Travessa de Cedofeita 22
Opening times: Mon-Sat, 6pm-6am
Contact: 00 351 22 321 8893
Prices: ￡
Catraio
For years, beer in Porto meant Super Bock or Super Bock. While still very incipient, the city is dipping its toe into the craft beer scene. One of the early pioneers in this brewing renaissance is Catraio Craft Beer Shop, which runs a late night bar once the shop closes up for the day. Many of the brands are sourced from overseas, although the menu has an increasing representation from Portugal itself, with Vandoma and Colossus among those home grown in Porto. If you want a break from port wine, other craft ale haunts around the city include Letraria (Rua da Alegria 101) in Baixa and BOP (Rua Firmeza 575) close to Bolh?a Market.
Contact: 00 351 93 436 0070, catraio.pt
Opening times: Tues-Thur, 4pm-12am; Fri-Sat, 4pm-2am
Prices: ￡￡
