PortoAges 11+
Porto’s Old Town: Amazing Secrets and Fresh Scoops
79 min · 3.1 km · 10 stops
Starts at São Bento Station
What they learn
Porto's beginnings through the statue of Vímara Peres and the medieval Torre da Rua de Baixo
4.3 (188 reviews)
School trip to Porto: a city quest for your class.
Six to eight teams, one phone each, 60 to 120 minutes on foot. €5 per pupil, teachers free.
More than 3,000 classes and groups have played Questo together.
- 4 quests for schools
- ages 8 to 14
- start points shown in the app
- 3 to 6 km
Real students playingWhat teachers and students say
More than 3,000 classes and groups have played Questo together.
We are a group of language students and we played the game with our teacher: a great and fun way to practise, and learn interesting stuff about our city that we didn't know.
Perfect with a group of A Level pupils. Loved it.
Quests for classes
Quests a class can play in Porto
A school day with Questo in Porto usually begins at São Bento Station, where two strong routes for classes start. Porto's Old Town: Amazing Secrets and Fresh Scoops takes Key Stage 3 teams up Avenida dos Aliados, past the statue of Vímara Peres and down to the Infante Dom Henrique monument, while Hidden Magic of Porto is a shorter history quest around the Clérigos Tower and the Escadas da Vitória. Key Stage 2 pupils can follow Porto by the Ocean from the Ponte da Arrábida to the fort and lighthouse at Foz. The Siege of Porto adds the Liberal Wars. Quests cover ages 8 to 14.
- PortoAges 8+
Porto by the Ocean
145 min · 5.1 km · 15 stops
Starts at Ponte da Arrábida
What they learnCoastal defence and navigation at the Forte de São João Baptista and the São Miguel-o-Anjo lighthouse
4.4 (40 reviews) - PortoAges 11+
Hidden Porto: War and Passion
80 min · 5.8 km · 14 stops
Starts at Super Bock Arena
What they learnScience on the route: the Botanical Garden and the planetarium
4.1 (32 reviews) - PortoAges 11+
The Siege of Porto: Fight for Freedom
100 min · 4.4 km · 12 stops
Starts at Museu Militar
What they learnThe Liberal Wars and the Siege of Porto of 1832 to 1833
4.1 (11 reviews)
Teams, supervision and logistics
Teams and supervision
Teams of 3 to 5 share one phone.
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For under-14s, one adult per 2 to 3 teams with agreed checkpoints; 14 to 18 per school policy. Ribeira's crowded lanes slow regrouping.
Getting around
Metro do Porto, buses and trains share Andante tickets, priced by journey; we found no group ticket, so budget one card per pupil.
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The centre is walkable but steep.
Toilets
Public toilets are scarce: Porto has about 25, ten in the historic centre, and busy cafés increasingly refuse non-customers.
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Plan stops at free museums, or buy something before using a café.
Lunch
The Jardins do Palácio de Cristal are free and suit a picnic with river views; Jardim da Cordoaria near Clérigos is a central alternative.
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Take all litter away and leave the peacocks alone.
Wet weather
The Centro Português de Fotografia, in a former prison, usually has free entry, and Mercado do Bolhão is free (closed Sundays).
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If rain spoils the day, replay the quest free within 30 days.
Caution: Teams crossing the upper deck of the Dom Luís I Bridge share it with Metro line D trains, 45 metres above the Douro. Brief them to stay on the walkway and together.
What they learn
History
Early and medieval Porto (Vímara Peres, the Torre da Rua de Baixo, the cathedral), the Age of Discoveries (Infante Dom Henrique), Baroque Porto (Clérigos Tower, Igreja do Carmo), coastal defence at Foz (Forte de São João Baptista), and the Liberal Wars and the Siege of Porto of 1832 to 1833 (Os Mártires da Liberdade, the old city prison).
Geography
Urban geography of a river city, from the Ribeira waterfront and Vila Nova de Gaia across the Douro to the river mouth and Atlantic coast at Foz, and from the dense centre to the gardens and residential streets of the west. Map reading and orientation on routes of 1.7 to 5.8 km.
English and languages
Reading and following written and audio instructions in English. Four quests (Old Town, Porto by the Ocean, Hidden Porto: War and Passion, The Siege of Porto) are also available in Portuguese, which suits a class studying the language.
Citizenship and teamwork
Sharing roles in a team (navigator, reader, timekeeper), making decisions together against the clock, behaving responsibly in public space, and discussing political freedom and justice through the Siege of Porto quest.
Price and terms
€5 per student.
No minimum group, no time slot.
- Pay by card when you choose a quest: €5 per student, as many as you need
- Or ask for an invoice and pay by bank transfer
- Free teacher preview from home
- Rain on the day: replay free within 30 days
- Teachers and chaperones play free
A class of 30 on one quest: €150.
Choose a questPrefer to pay by bank transfer?
Tell us the quest or city, the class size and the dates. We send an invoice to the school.
In short
Porto for a school group, in short
A school trip to Porto with Questo is a self-guided city quest. Pupils in teams of 3 to 5 follow a route of 10 to 15 stops on foot, solving a puzzle at each, in 75 to 145 minutes. 4 quests suit classes aged 8 to 14. There is no guide and no time slot: the class starts when it arrives. The price is €5 per pupil, and teachers play free.
- 4.3
- average rating, from 271 reviews
- 100,000+
- pupils have played in class groups
- 4
- quests for schools in this city
- 75 to 145
- minutes on foot, by quest
Pupils are an estimate: groups of four or more teams starting one quest together, at about four pupils a team, across all cities since 2018. Ratings are from players of these quests.
What the research says about trips like this
One trip changes how pupils think
In a randomised study of 10,912 students, a single cultural trip raised critical thinking, tolerance and interest in culture weeks later.
History learned where it happened
458 Amsterdam pupils walked the medieval city in teams, solving tasks on phones at real locations. They learned more than classmates taught the same topic in lessons.
Source: Huizenga et al., Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 2009
Games with a story teach
Across hundreds of studies, game-based learning beats non-game teaching on knowledge and retention; story and playing together are what make the difference.
Source: Sailer and Homner, Educational Psychology Review, 2020
Questo or a guided tour
| A Questo quest | A guided walking tour | |
|---|---|---|
| Who is active | Every pupil, in a team | 30 pupils listening to one guide |
| Start | When you arrive | 10:00 sharp |
| Pace | Each team at its own, pause for lunch | The group moves on |
| What the teacher gets before | Plays the whole route free | A confirmation email |
| Price | €5 per pupil, teachers free | €12–€25 per pupil, teachers often charged |
01 / 05
Who is active
- A Questo quest
- Every pupil, in a team
- A guided walking tour
- 30 pupils listening to one guide
02 / 05
Start
- A Questo quest
- When you arrive
- A guided walking tour
- 10:00 sharp
03 / 05
Pace
- A Questo quest
- Each team at its own, pause for lunch
- A guided walking tour
- The group moves on
04 / 05
What the teacher gets before
- A Questo quest
- Plays the whole route free
- A guided walking tour
- A confirmation email
05 / 05
Price
- A Questo quest
- €5 per pupil, teachers free
- A guided walking tour
- €12–€25 per pupil, teachers often charged
Teacher FAQ
Questions about Porto
Which Porto quest suits which age group?
For Key Stage 2 (ages 8 to 11), choose Porto by the Ocean or Porto Highlights: Audio Tour & Cinematic Detective Quest. For Key Stage 3 (ages 11 to 14), choose the Old Town quest, Hidden Magic of Porto, The Siege of Porto, Hidden Porto: War and Passion or Porto's Art and Soul. Older groups can play the Key Stage 3 routes.
How long does a quest take?
Between about 1 hour and about 2.5 hours of walking and puzzles. Hidden Magic of Porto is the shortest at about 1 hour and 1.7 km; the Old Town and Hidden Porto quests take about 80 minutes; Porto by the Ocean is the longest at about 2.5 hours and 5 km. Allow extra time for a class, toilet stops and regrouping.
How many pupils share a phone?
Teams of 3 to 5 pupils share one phone, either a staff phone or a pupil's own if your school allows it. A class of 30 needs 6 to 10 phones. Teams can start a few minutes apart from the same point, so they do not crowd the first stop.
Where do we start?
Three quests start at or beside São Bento Station in the centre, reached by train or Metro Line D. The Siege of Porto starts at the Museu Militar near Heroísmo metro, Hidden Porto: War and Passion at the Super Bock Arena in the Palácio de Cristal gardens, and Porto by the Ocean at the Ponte da Arrábida, reached by tram line 1.
How much does it cost?
5 euros per pupil, so 150 euros for a class of 30. Teachers and chaperones play free. You can pay by card or by invoice, and you can preview a quest free from home before the trip. There is no booking slot, so you start whenever the class is ready.
What happens if it rains?
You can pause and continue later, or replay free within 30 days if the weather ruins the day. In the centre, the free Centro Português de Fotografia in the former prison by the Clérigos Tower and the covered Mercado do Bolhão are both close to the São Bento quests and work as indoor fallbacks.
Do pupils need accounts or mobile data?
Pupils do not need accounts. Each team's phone needs mobile data, or the quest downloaded beforehand on school Wi-Fi. Charge every phone fully and bring power banks, as the quests run for an hour or more and several Porto routes advise carrying one.
