Porto Bicycle Trips

A great active adventure that ticked so many physical and mental goals for us! Accommodation, transfers, bike hire and maps were all arranged for us, meaning all we had to worry about was pedaling the distance!

The trip was well organised from start to finish. The bikes were really good quality and route was easy to follow from the apps. The hotels where basic but met our needs after cycling all day with good food and comfortable beds.

We had a fabulous trip. It’s what we have come to expect with Explore to be honest but all the same it needs to be said. Tour leader Alex was brilliant all week as was Paulo the van driver and lunchtime caterer supreme! The trip was run at a really good pace that kept everyone together - no mean feat in a group of 16. In the interests of openness and for feedback I would suggest that the hotel in Porto was rather basic. We paid for an extra night here before the event and do not consider the rate we paid was value for money for such a basic hotel room. It was of a lesser standard than a UK travelodge. Other hotels along the route were all of a good quality with Monday and Thursday being especially so.

It was a fabulous trip! Our leader Alejandro was so kind, patient and helpful. Our support person Paulo was also incredible with his fabulous daily lunch spread. My concerns are as follows : 1) We only had 15 minutes in Obidos, which is somewhere that merited a visit for at least a couple of hours. I was looking forward to visiting Obidos as one of the highlights of our trip as it is such a unique and historic place. According to the itinerary-we were to have a walking tour. Perhaps for the future, the cycling could start a little earlier on the Óbidos day and the coffee break and or lunch could be in Óbidos. 2) We also felt as though the coffee stops every morning were a bit long and generally unnecessary. This is the first cycle trip that we’ve been on where we’ve stopped at restaurants for morning coffee. Perhaps in the future the van could meet cyclists along the route with a snack/refreshments if needed (this is what we’ve always experienced) 3) on our last day we cycled on unpaved roads that were billed as “well graded” on the itinerary.. I would go so far as to say they were barely graded, rocky alternating with sandy and very uncomfortable to cycle on.

Loved the 5 days of cycling, along with Porto and Lisbon. Alex our guide was excellent and Pablo who worked alongside him was fabulous, great picnics and videos. Bikes were excellent, I had one of the e-bikes, which made life so much easier. Pretty flat cycling but last couple of days there were some hills. Some great scenery along the way. Would recommend the trip.

This was an excellent trip. Our leader was outstanding - a great communicator, conscious of safety, excellent at bringing the group together. & conscious of the group’s varied needs. We’ve done 5 other cycling trips with other companies & this was the best. The Paulo picnics were perfect. I think starting the ride at Vila Nova de Gaia would be safer. The quality of the bikes while new was a bit disappointing. The leader & driver worked hard so the bikes were fully functional. Thank you. MM