Portugal · budget cars
Cheap car rental in Porto
The lowest daily rates on car rentals in Porto, Portugal. Expedia Cars compares budget brands against the majors — economy cars and the majors side by side.
- ✓Cheapest daily rates across Porto's rental fleets
- ✓Economy, compact, and intermediate filters
- ✓Pay-later and flexible plans shown per booking
- ✓No hidden fees · Powered by Expedia Cars
What things cost in Porto
A Z2 Andante trip is €1.40 on top of the €0.60 card, an Andante 24 day pass is €5.15, and the airport run is €2.25. A francesinha with chips runs €10 to €14. A fino of Super Bock is frequently under €2. A port lodge tasting tour starts around €20 depending on the vintages poured, and Serralves is the other real ticket cost.
What first-timers get wrong in Porto
Buy an Andante card once for €0.60, then load Z2 tickets at €1.40; the airport counts as Z4 at €2.25, and you must validate on every leg even when changing lines. Restaurants bring couvert, the bread, olives and cheese, and it is charged unless you send it back. Gaia across the bridge is a separate municipality and its lodge tours often cost less.
What's actually worth your time in Porto
The Ponte Luis I carries metro trains across its upper deck and pedestrians below, and walking the top at sunset costs nothing. Sao Bento station's twenty thousand azulejo tiles are free to stand and look at. Livraria Lello charges entry, but the ticket doubles as a voucher redeemable against a book. Clerigos tower is a spiral climb of over two hundred steps. The port lodges are across the river in Gaia.
What to eat in Porto
The francesinha is a layered meat sandwich under melted cheese and a beer-and-tomato sauce, and Cafe Santiago is where the argument usually settles. Tripas a moda do Porto explains why locals are called tripeiros. Bolhao market has reopened in its restored hall. Port is tasted in the Gaia lodges such as Taylor's and Graham's, while dinner is more often poured with Douro reds.
Porto after dark
Galerias de Paris and Candido dos Reis are two narrow streets where the whole city drinks, largely standing outside with plastic cups until the small hours. Nothing opens before eleven. Piolho is the old student cafe. Ribeira's riverside is for early evening and visitors, while Foz has the sea-facing bars. A small draught beer is ordered as a fino here, never an imperial.
When to go to Porto
| Best months for cheap-cars | Avg daily high | Rain days |
|---|---|---|
| August | 24°C / 75°F | 3 days |
| July | 24°C / 75°F | 4 days |
| September | 23°C / 73°F | 8 days |
The month to avoid is December — around 15°C (59°F) with roughly 16 rain days. Prices and crowds track the weather here: August is the sweet spot, December the month most people skip.
Pack for peak season: Summer clothes, plus one light layer for air-con and evenings, Comfortable walking shoes — every guide on this site assumes you'll use them.
Where to base yourself in Porto
- Ribeira — UNESCO riverside — colorful houses, restaurants, the Dom Luís I bridge.
- Vila Nova de Gaia — Port wine cellars across the river — tasting flights, sunset terraces.
- Foz do Douro — Where river meets sea — beach cafés, seafood, the lighthouse promenade.