The Best Museums in Porto

Porto’s museums range from a world-famous contemporary art museum in a beautiful park to interactive journeys through the Age of Discoveries, a chocolate museum and a celebrated concert hall. Here are the best museums in Porto, with 2026 prices.

Quick answer: the highlights are Serralves (contemporary art and a huge park with a treetop walk; park about €15, all-access about €24), the Palácio da Bolsa (€14, guided tour), the World of Discoveries (€16, great with kids), the museums of WOW in Gaia (about €25 a museum or €35 for all five) and a tour of the Casa da Música (about €12).

Why visit Porto’s museums

Porto is best known for its streets and river, but its museums explain how the city got its wealth and character: trade, port wine, faith and, more recently, bold modern architecture. Several are worth seeing for the buildings alone. They’re also your best plan on a wet day, and Porto gets plenty of those from November to March.

The best museums

Serralves

Portugal’s leading contemporary art museum, in a building by Álvaro Siza, set in a vast park with an Art Deco villa, a farm and a treetop walk through the canopy. For visitors from abroad, park tickets cost about €15 and the all-access ticket about €24 (residents of Portugal pay less). Under-12s go free, and 12 to 17s, students and over-65s get half price. Allow at least half a day. See the Serralves guide.

Palácio da Bolsa

The 19th-century stock exchange, famous for its dazzling Arab Room. By guided tour only (€14, with reduced prices for students and over-65s). Tours take about 30 to 45 minutes and run in several languages, including English. You join the next tour in your language, so in summer you may wait. See the Ribeira.

Igreja e Museu de São Francisco

A Gothic church with a stunning gilded baroque interior, a museum and catacombs where members of the order were buried, with an ossuary you see through glass (about €8 to €10). It’s next door to the Bolsa, so pair the two.

Clérigos Tower and Museum

Climb the tower’s 225 steps and see the museum’s religious art (about €6 to €10, depending on the ticket). In busy seasons there are evening tower tickets too. See the Clérigos Tower guide.

World of Discoveries

An interactive museum in Miragaia about Portugal’s explorers, with a boat ride through recreated scenes. €16 for adults and €10 for children aged 4 to 12, with family tickets available. Allow about 90 minutes. See Porto with kids.

WOW (World of Wine)

A cultural quarter in old port lodges in Gaia, with five museums: the Port and Wine Experience, the Chocolate Experience, the Pink Palace (rosé), the Art of Drinking and the history of the Porto region. In 2026 a single museum costs about €25 for adults and a Day Pass for all five about €35. See our WOW guide.

Casa da Música

Rem Koolhaas’s landmark concert hall, opened in 2005. Guided tours last about an hour and cost about €12 (free for under-12s with a paying adult, about €5 for 13 to 18s). Better still, catch a concert. It’s at the Casa da Música metro stop.

Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis

Portugal’s first public art museum, in the Palácio dos Carrancas, with Portuguese painting, sculpture and decorative arts. Its long-term exhibition was renewed in 2023. Roof restoration work started in late 2025, but the museum has stayed open. Tickets are about €10.

Casa do Infante

A medieval building by the Ribeira, linked with Prince Henry the Navigator, with Roman mosaics and displays on the city’s history.

The Tram Museum

Historic trams in an old power station by the river (about €8 for adults, less for young people). It usually opens Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 6pm. Combine with a ride on tram 1. See Porto public transport.

Planetário do Porto

Star shows for all ages (about €6.60 for adults, €4.40 for children, with a family ticket). Check the programme for shows in English.

How long to spend

• Half a day or more: Serralves, if you want both the museum and the park.
• About two hours: the Bolsa and São Francisco together, or one or two WOW museums.
• About 90 minutes: the World of Discoveries, Soares dos Reis or the Tram Museum.
• About an hour: the Casa da Música tour or Clérigos.

Getting around

• The centre: the Bolsa, São Francisco, Clérigos, Soares dos Reis and the World of Discoveries are all walkable from São Bento.
• Boavista: Casa da Música is on the metro. Serralves is further west: take STCP bus 201, 207, 502 or 504, or the Metrobus from Casa da Música. See Boavista.
• Gaia: walk across the lower deck of the D. Luís I bridge to WOW (it has been closed to cars since 2023, so it’s calmer on foot), or take the metro to Jardim do Morro and walk down. The Gaia cable car links Jardim do Morro with the riverside (about €7 one way). The Guindais funicular on the Porto side has been suspended since July 2026.

A rainy-day museum route

Start with the Palácio da Bolsa and São Francisco in the morning (about two hours). Have lunch in the Ribeira, then walk to Soares dos Reis or the World of Discoveries. End the day with a museum and a port tasting at WOW in Gaia.

Tips

• Check opening days: many museums close on Mondays.
• Book ahead: the Bolsa and WOW get busy in summer and on wet days.
• The Porto Card used to give free or discounted museum entry, but sales were reported suspended in July 2026 and its official page now redirects to the Visit Porto homepage, so don’t plan around it unless you see it on sale again.
• Students and seniors usually get reduced prices, so carry ID.
• Kids: under-12s go free at Serralves and on the Casa da Música tour with a paying adult.
• Rainy day? These are perfect. See Porto in winter and Porto on a rainy day.

Tickets: you can book official entry tickets for Porto’s sights in advance on Tiqets, with mobile tickets and free cancellation on many.

FAQ

What is the best museum in Porto?

For art and gardens, Serralves. For a single jaw-dropping interior, the Palácio da Bolsa’s Arab Room. With children, the World of Discoveries.

Are Porto’s museums open on Mondays?

Many are not. The Tram Museum, for example, opens Tuesday to Sunday, so check each museum’s days before you plan a Monday.

Do you need to book the Palácio da Bolsa?

Visits are by guided tour only. You can buy at the door or online, but in summer tours fill up, so booking ahead saves a wait.

How much does Serralves cost?

For visitors from abroad, about €24 for all spaces or about €15 for the park and treetop walk only. Under-12s go free.

More: things to do in Porto and the best museums in Lisbon.

See also: the Palacio da Bolsa, Boavista, the Serralves guide, the Gaia guide, Porto’s historic trams, Casa da Música and São Francisco church.

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