The Gate

The rooms were clean and a good size, and the location is wonderful. The staff were the real highlight: I'd left my Kindle behind, and they kindly posted it to me on the very day I checked out. Highly recommend it for a Porto stay.

The location was great, but I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone. We booked with a CitiBank Strata elite credit card and expected basic standards. We spend 4-6 weeks each year in Europe, and this didn't feel like a 3-star facility. There was mold at the bottom of the curtains, apparently because the balcony doors leaked, and the first room smelled of raw sewage. Dirty linens left in the hallway on every floor smelled like laundry that had fermented for days when we stepped out in the morning. The patio furniture was cheap Ikea with broken slats, the paint on the dividers was peeling, and the wall unit wasn't fixed to the wall. The curtain track was hanging from the ceiling too. Ibis and other hotels offer better value.

For a few nights we had a basic twin room, with little beyond the bare necessities: no art or decorations, no cabinets, and just one open dresser with barely enough hangers. Breakfast covered most of what you might need, but it was simple and didn't seem worth €12,50 per person. The walls are thin, so you'll probably hear your neighbors. Given the price, the quality was fine. The general location is good, although the street itself isn't great, which isn't something the hotel can change.

From our central Porto base, we could walk to nearly all the tourist areas. I had a top-floor room with a balcony and lovely views over the city. It was clean and serviced daily as needed. I also liked being able to go straight to the room without passing reception each time, which made the stay feel very private. Recommended.