From Porto: 516 Arouca Bridge And Paiva Walkways Guided Tour

Ines (the guide) is very friendly, professional and knowledgeable about the place, including the history and geography of the place we visited.

Our guide Ines, was great. Very knowledgeable about the area and the flora and fauna. I was a little worried about the bridge but it was very steady. The sun and heat made the walkway a little uncomfortable but the views were great. The dip in the river at the mid-point was very refreshing. We couldn't continue on the walkway due to it being closed for maintenance. We bought the lunch option. The meal was great in a very nice restaurant followed by an assortment of sweet treats. Our driver Vitor was good. He was good about telling us where we were going and where he'd pick us up after lunch. The Tour provided us with a nice selection of fruit, snacks, and water at the beginning of the trip.

Our guide Joao (John) was very knowledgeable & had good sense of humor. He looked after us very well & explained the different trees/plants/flora. Also taught us a lot about the nature & the environment. To put surprise he took our photos & sent us the link. We requested vegetarian lunch which was delicious & the local Arouca sweets were heavenly. We would thoroughly recommend to book with Just Come. We were transported to the venue by Vitor who was very knowledgeable & he drove carefully through the windy roads.

John was a great guide along with lots of history and information of plant life as we walked through the forest back down from the suspension bridge!

Great experience to see the nature and beauty of this area. Suspension bridge and walkways were amazing. Our guide was very knowledgeable.

Our guide Joao was fantastic. Being a biologist he was happy to share his knowledge and his input greatly enhanced our day. "Just Come" tours were highly professional, providing backpacks with water & snacks. Our tour included lunch and the traditional lunch supplied in Arouca was probably the tastiest meal I have had so far in Portugal. Possibly our only negative was our driver from Porto to the suspension bridge & back. We found his driving a bit erratic, braking hard on the corners, then accelerating. I would suggest he sit in the back of a van while someone drive the same so he understands how a passenger gets thrown around when they don't have a steering wheel to hang onto.

Bridge views are really nice, beautiful nature, worth exploring but over time gets a bit borrowing. 10.5 km end to end. Mostly flat, just with a few hiils and stairs. Our guide did a great job keeping us engaged with knowledge and interaction.

Beautiful and enjoyable experience. Guide was great. About 9 km of walking, mostly downhill. Expect this to be hot and sunny during the summer, at the end of May it was warm but pleasant. Transfers from Porto were organized and efficient.

Excellent trip with awesome guide and driver, Sergio was a lot of fun, we where the only people on the bridge, so a good photo opportunity for us. Would recommend this trip.

Great views of nature, exciting adventure, Bridge, and positive tour, guide, knowledgeable, and friendly includes food. Had a good time.

The tour was fine with a pickup directly from my hotel. Transfer by a new car. Tour guide very friendly and multilingual.

We had a great day with Sérgio our driver and Inês our guide. We had a full day that included an exhilarating walk across the tallest pedestrian bridge (516 Arouca Bridge) followed by a long, beautiful nature walk along the Paiva River. We had a communal lunch with the other guests in our party (only 8 total, a nice small group) and really had a chance to get to know the other folks on the tour. Sérgio took us into the town of Arouca for sweet treats, a coffee and a look at the local Church. It was a nice way to end our adventure before we headed back to Porto. I highly recommend if you are looking for a little time in nature outside the bustle of the city.

Short review: Just a lovely day, with lots of walking in beautiful scenery with a nice, happy driver and fantastic guide. Long Review: Our family of four (mom, dad, and two sons ages 22 & 24) had a terrific day with Sergio (our lovely, energetic and kind driver) and Ines (our delightfully informative, friendly, English speaking tour guide). We were picked up by Sergio in the minivan with four other people at the designated spot at 8:30am and drove an hour and half (on some very curvy roads) to a parking lot with restrooms where we met Ines and were each handed a backpack with snacks and water for our journey. We had a beautiful 20 min. walk to the suspension bridge where Ines told us all about the native trees and rocks along with the history of the lovely town of Arouca. The suspension bridge was amazing!! The highest in the world and second longest. Our little group was the first and only group there so we had the entire bridge to ourselves. It was a little scary but totally safe and I’m generally nervous with heights but made it across and back with no problem. Even when the winds picked up and it started to rain. After the bridge Sergio was waiting for us and we drove to the entrance of the Paiva walkways. This is a custom built wooden walkway that goes alongside the gorgeous Paiva river for 4.5km. We walked for well over an hour with information from Ines along the way. Note that the walkways can get a little slippery when wet. Also this is a lot of walking if you’re not used to it. But the scenery is lovely and well worth it. At the end of the walkways we went to the local restaurant near the river and had a yummy lunch. Sergio picked us up and then drove us in to the charming town of Arouca where we had coffee and sweets at a little cafe in the town square. Sergio took us in to a little monastery on the square and gave us a bit of the history. Then we headed back to Porto and got home around 6pm. Ines took photos during the day and kindly sent us all the photos at the end of the excursion. Such a great day and well worth it.

Wowwwww!! What a day, what a tour :) it’s an experience once in a life time. Thanks to the tour leader Joao Silvia. He is amazing and makes you feel at home away from home. Very knowledgeable about the place and makes everything possible so that you will enjoy your day! Highly recommend :)

Top notch service for the whole trip: nice vans, skilled drivers, pleasant guide, backpack of drinks and snacks during the trip, pictures & more picture, comaraderie with others, end of trail lunch, a quick sweet stop on way back. Full day. Highly recommend Just Come Tours

There is so much to say about this day. The bridge is quite an experience, especially if you are technically minded or have an engineering background. The bridge crossing and walk was professionally guided by Ines who was very knowledgeable giving the right safety guidance and very informative about the bridge & valley but in a humorous way at times. We were collected and driven by Sergio who is true very likeable, very kind and really great man. He really engages with people, doesn't speak the best English but he is learning it, uses Google translate and is always apologetic about it, but let's be fair Sergio's English is far far better than my Portuguese, I should be apologetic. Sergio has great local knowledge, took us for convent cakes and drinks on the way back, took us into the monastery church opposite and takes group photos. This day will never be forgotten. Thank you Ines & Sergio.

Inez was a great guide! She took wonderful care of us and we are so grateful for the help she provided.

The views were truly amazing and Joao, our guide, made it the best trip. He was caring and understanding. In addition, he used his biology degree to provide some exacting facts about the plants in the area. Further, my wife had trouble walking, he arranged for a jeep to pick us up midway. Custer service at its best. Thanks Joao Silva.

Hi, this is a tour worth your money and time José, the driving guide is a very nice guide and human being and it has been a pleasure meeting him. The tour is very well organized, with a specialized guide, from the area, that walks you through Arouca Bridge and Paiva Walkways. There is a lot to walk, so be prepared, especially if the day is sunny, but it's beautiful and the walk is not hard, just long. The local guide, Alvaro, that does the Arouca Bridge and Paiva Walkways is very well prepared with knowledge about the UNESCO protected area, and history of the place. Make sure you stay close to him to get the good info. Also, there is one more guide, brazilian, that helped with making sure the tour participants, us, have everything they need. Overall, a prepared and nice team, you will absolutely enjoy the day and the nature!

Really nice and relaxing day out, definitely recommend this tour. Don't forget to treat yourself to well deserved beer and traditional steak sandwich at Bar Recanto Do Paiva

Our driver was very knowledgeable and managed our excursion perfectly. The views were stunning. We loved all the stops, breaks and meals. I would highly recommend this tour.

I highly recommend booking this. The whole day was fantastic and well organized. The walking and driving guides were fantastic, energetic, and knowledgeable. The suspension bridge and walking trail was truly memorable. The additional stops for lunch and sweets were great. It is a full day and there is lots of walking/stairs (going down mostly). We totaled about 5.5 miles. Again great excursion and good value. Enjoy your trip!!

The whole experience was great! Ines is a great guide. Her English is very good and she is very knowledgeable regarding the area and culture. She’s very friendly and didn’t mind taking as many photos of us as we wanted! I definitely recommend her! Snacks were good, lunch was great. The whole experience was amazing!

Amazing day trip, best views and walk! Honestly, I was terrified to cross the bridge but managed to afterwards, and the reward was spectacular! The walk path is absolutely stunning! Our guide, Ines was friendly and helpful! Even with a bit of rain from time to time was still the best experience. Absolutely recommended!!!

What a wonderful trip! To start Sergio came to pick us up in a minibus. A warm welcome that immediately puts you at ease. After an hour and a half on the bus, we arrived and Joao welcomed us and accompanied us to the bridge. Impressive but the view is incredible and definitely worth it! Then we walked along the canyon, a walk commented by our guide, a biology and environment enthusiast, so funny, who made us wonderful picture. To finish we ate in the small restaurant at the end of the route, the meat is exceptional, nothing to complain about! We went there with friends and we highly recommend

It was such a great experience. We took the tour from Lisboa. Our driver Sergio was a sweetheart and gave us so much information about Portugal. Then at the suspension bridge, our guide, Ines, was great. She was also very informative and was attentive to all members in our group. She ROCKS!!! Thanks again Ines. We will return to Portugal and will be back in Arouca for this tour

Amazing trip and very recommendable! Our guide João knew a lot about the area, and he had many interesting things to tell about the nature, history, and biology. The tour was filled with beautiful views both before and after passing the big bridge, which was such an experience! Our driver Pedro was very pleasant and helpful the whole day through. His driving was pleasant (which is not always a matter of course we’ve learned) so it was much appreciated! He took us to the coffee shop and also made sure we had the time to see the monastery before leaving. Overall 5 out of 5 stars - more if possible. Thank you!

A great experience, a great and friendly guide. She explained us a lot of things about the bridge and the area. A Very sympathetic and empathetic person.

Excellent experience.. I thought the bridge would be the highlight of the trip… but the view and the hike by the river is so magnificent.. and our guide she was so kind and super friendly

This trip was the highlight of my trip! Our driver, Segio, was so accommodating and friendly. He tried very hard with his English and did a great job! I found our guudes, Joa and Innes were so easy going and knowledgeable! The trip was wonderful and I thoroughly recommend this to anyone wanting a bit of adventure. I also recommend taking the lunch option. It was delicious and worth every cent!!

We had an amazing day today. Excellent guide who explained everything and mostly made us feel relaxed. The bridge and its views were incredible. The walkways were also great. We definitely got our steps in. We would recommend adding the lunch and transportation options to the reservation.

João is a veteran tour guide. The walk to the Bridge through a small village was lovely. The Bridge and walkways are breathtaking. After the tour, you return to Arouca for an amazing late lunch.

Inês was really top, we understood the whole visit in English while not fluent. We ate a typical dish, the transport was top especially with the surprise of the pickup tour, magnificent hike that marks our stay in Porto. Thank you for this day, I recommend this excursion.

The sound of the wild river in the valley and the smell of the water made this SPECTACULAR suspension bridge walk unforgettable.

We enjoy a new and exciting experience throughout a day in which we receive all the attentions to enjoy the day fully. Our Guide - Agnes - showed great knowledge and sympathy that made our experience even more rewarding. The driver, Pedro, was very close in the deal, always trying to please us as much as possible. The experience itself was stunning on the bridge course, while the scenery gave us spectacular views.

A great hike with great views and a bit of adrenaline. The bridges are spectacular, great plants along the way, cork trees and much more. It's totally worth it.

The beauty of the bridge and the Paiva River is stunning. There is a total of 10 km of road behind us, which was not burdensome, especially as we drove in the direction of the meadow. Our driver left and arrived on time, and at the end of the program we also stopped at a cozy pastry shop, where we could taste local delicacies with a good coffee!

It was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. I had high expectations and they were still exceeded. The contact with nature and the recharge of life I had is exciting.

A superb getaway from start to finish. Our guide was waiting for us with backpacks containing sweet and savory snacks, an apple, juice and water... and... ponchos, very useful given the weather. As it was raining we didn't have anyone, the ride is magnificent. Our guide adapted to our pace and as we were a small group of 4 it was perfect. Black guide was taking photos of us and shared them with us for free. Nice meal and dessert. THANKS !!

Exceptional. To do again with the same guide. Magnificent landscapes. Thank you João for this wonderful day. Anne and Pascal