The Peneda Gerês National Park is a popular destination in the North of Portugal and a great place to explore nature outside of the bigger cities such as Porto and Braga. During our stay in Porto, we decided to drive to the Peneda Gerês National Park for one day in order to escape the noises of the city. Before starting our trip to Gerês, it was not easy for us to decide what to do in Gerês and where to go. This blog article should help you to plan your trip and to enjoy a perfect day in the Peneda Gerês National Park.
Driving from Porto to Gerês by car and passing the Cávado river
As we stayed in Porto with our own car, we decided to drive by car to Gerês. After an early breakfast, we shortly went to the Bolhão market to get some healthy snacks for our lunchtime.
If you are searching for a healthy and gluten-free snack, we can highly recommend the place of Verde Vida. They freshly prepare various sorts of South-American inspired onigiris every morning and it’s a not expensive, but healthy snack for spending a whole day in the Peneda Gerês National Park.
The whole drive from Porto to the Gerês National Park took us around 90 minutes. On the last route section, you will have a beautiful view over the Cávado river close to Gerês. This river is also a “praia fluvial” and attracts many locals from the neighbouring towns, because it’s popular for water sports such as stand up paddling or driving jetski. In combination with the great view to the mountains of the Gerês National Park, we can totally understand why this place is an insider tip from locals.
Miradouro da Pedra Bela: Great place for a picnic
Arriving at Gerês National Park, our first destination was the Miradouro da Pedra Bela. Therefore, we drove straight into the park, coming from Vilar da Veiga and finally turned right to the Rua da Pedra Bela. The small streets from Rua da Pedra Bela are relatively easy to drive by car. However, during winter seasons or when heavy rain or snow is arriving in Gerês, it’s not recommendable to drive into the Gerês National Park.
After driving for around 10 minutes on the Rua da Pedra Bela, we finally arrived at the Miradouro da Pedra Bela. Here, we found a parking lot on the side of the road and went the last minutes to the viewpoint by foot.
When we arrived, we were impressed by the view this Miradouro has to offer. From the top, you were able to see the river Cávado and the surrounding area. That’s why, we decided to enjoy our lunch here at the top. In addition, the Miradouro da Pedra Bela has many places and tables to do a picnic.
First stop: Cascata do Arado waterfall and Miradouro das Rocas
Our next destination was the Cascata do Arado waterfall. To get there, we had to get back into the car and follow the street for 10 minutes to arrive at the waterfall. After a short walk, we finally arrived at the Arado waterfall and climbed down in order to put our feets into the water and enjoy the beautiful waterfall from the bottom.
We have to admit that we visited Gerês and the Cascata do Arado during summer time and on this day, the temperatures were quite high, so that we enjoyed the refreshing water from the Cascata do Arado.
When we went back to our car, we also took a short visit to the Miradouro das Rocas, which is very close by. From there, you also have a wonderful view over the entire landscape of the Gerês National Park even if the climb to the top of the Miradouro is quite challenging. However, we would recommend the sporting activity to the top of the Miradouro, as it’s less crowded and you can really enjoy the calm atmosphere there.
Enjoying the Cascatas do Tahiti waterfall inside Gerês
Arriving at our car, the afternoon sun slowly began to set and we needed another cooling down. This time we decided to visit the Cascatas de Fecha de Barjas (also called Cascatas do Tahiti) which were only 15 minutes away from the Arado waterfall. Nevertheless, be prepared that the parking situation for the Tahiti waterfall is quite challenging as there are not many parking places around. Therefore, we parked our car again on the side of the road and walked the last meters by feet.
During our arrival, the waterfall was already well frequented with many locals enjoying cool water at this breathtaking waterfall. Nevertheless, we found a great place to sit and enjoy this magical place right in the Gerês National Park. For us, it did not feel real that all these amazing waterfalls are located in Portugal just a few minutes by distance. One thing we have to tell you is that the ground of the waterfall and its stones are very slippery. Be careful when you climb down the Tahiti waterfall!
In harmony with nature at the Miradouro de Fafião
Unfortunately, our perfect day at the Peneda Gerês National Park slowly came to an end, but we still had one spot on our to-do list: The Miradouro de Fafião. As the sun began to set down, we arrived just in time to enjoy this impressive place surrounded by nature and birds flying around.
The Miradouro de Fafião was definitely one of our highlights on this day, as the place allowed us to feel in harmony with nature. In addition, this Miradouro was the less frequented place from all and remained in our heads.
If you now want to enjoy a dinner, we would recommend to check out the Portuguese Restaurante Fojo dos Lobos. Unfortunately, we visited another restaurant a few minutes away, but we were not that satisfied. However, we heard many good things about Restaurante Fojo dos Lobos and also former FC Porto coach André Villas-Boas already visited this restaurant.
Perfect day trip to the Peneda Gerês National Park
Now, the perfect day in the Peneda Gerês National Park came to and end and we really wished to have more time. That’s why, we would recommend anyone of you who has the chance to stay longer than one day in this beautiful nature, to do so.
There are still so many places and waterfalls to see, but for one day this is impossible to do. If you plan to drive from Porto, Braga or the surrounding area for one day to Peneda Gerês, this travel guide should help you to get a good overview of the National Park and to see many great places.
