It’s been three weeks since we returned from the busy and beautiful city of Porto where we shot our latest campaign. We had four days to get our AW23 lookbook shot and because we were based at various locations across the city it meant that we got to explore a little. The weather didn’t disappoint and allowed us to shoot outside, as well as in our key location. Here are our take aways from our short visit.
WE STAYED
For accommodation we needed two locations so that the team could access the city easily. We booked clean and basic apartments on AirBnB for our bases, knowing we wouldn’t be there much of the time. The first apartment was based in Boavista a residential and quiet area but was a close walk to the Douro River which has a fabulous food hall. The second location was in Vitória, centrally located, close to the hustle and bustle of the city and surrounded by a great choice of bars and restaurants.
Douro River | Parque de Serralves
WE ATE
During the day we had to grab and go, we hit the Traditional cafés filled with locals for small bites, coffee and sweet pick-me-ups.
In the evenings we had some amazing dinners to celebrate a successful day’s shooting. The most memorable was Ólume a Portuguese restaurant serving a chic spin on traditional dishes, the décor was cosy and modern. The staff talked us through the menu with suggested Portuguese wine pairings. A must visit but be sure to book ahead to guarantee a table. Secondly, we visited The Herdade 1980, a contemporary restaurant with a traditional menu serving a variety of snacks and main meals, based on local Portuguese meats and seafood. It’s a beautiful spot with clean and relaxing interiors, located in the centre of the city on the first floor of the famous Mercado do Bolhão. For lunch on the final day, we returned to Mercado do Bolhão a chic undercover food market to get some respite from the sun. Here you can grab small bites from the deli. We tried local cold cuts and signature green wine from the Douro region.
Behind the scenes | Ólume
WE SAW
With a packed schedule we didn’t have much spare time but on the last afternoon, we visited the Parque de Serralves to see the gallery space and the Art deco villa filled with the works of Joan Miro and Alexander Calder. We then strolled the famous sculpture gardens which features pieces from sculptors such as Claes Oldenburg and Anish Kapoor. It was the perfect way to end a successful trip.
Our biggest take-away from Porto is that it’s a beautiful city full of colour, tiled facades, lovely people and we barely scratched the surface. We will return for a long weekend to devour more of what the city has to offer!
Next up Paris for our AW24 inspiration trip…
