Oporto - Ponte de Dom Luis I

Walking east from the Centro Regional de Artes Tradicionais, passing by innumerable stalls, shops and simple restaurants, the visitor arrives at the lower tier of the Dom Luis I Bridge. From here it is possible either to walk over the bridge, enjoying the view of Oporto's sea of houses, and ending up by looking around one of the port lodges in Vila Nova de Gaia, or carrying on with the tour to the north and the Cathedral.

The bridge of Louis I, the Ponte de Dom Luis I, leads directly from the center of Oporto to Vila Nova de Gaia. An iron bridge, it was built between 1881 and 1885 by the Belgian Willebroeck Company and spans the Douro in a single arch 172m/565ft wide. There are two roads, the lower one 10m/33ft, the upper one 68m/223ft above the water. From the upper road, which is also open to pedestrians, and from the south end in particular, there are magnificent views of the city and the river within its steeply sloping banks.