Hotel Palanca — Hotel in Porto

The Hotel Palanca is a nice 2 star hotel situated just a 5 minute walk from Marques Metro station (line D Yellow) which itself is only a few stops from Sao Bento rail station also after Sao Bento the tram/metro travels on before crossing over the top level of Ponte de Dom Luis bridge with it's stunning views over the river and to metro stop Jardim do Morro for Vila Nova de Gaia.||If arriving by metro as you walk up the escalator to exit the metro into the small square with it's trees, cafe, small bandstand and it's seating benches around this nice square, walk a few metres to the road in front of you and then walk left along that road and up ahead you will see a large red Firestone sign on the side of a building and just past this there is a set of traffic lights, turn right at these lights and the Hotel Palanca is about 150 metres up on the left.||On arrival I was met with a warm welcome, all the staff on the front desk were very helpful especially Peter and Anabela and all spoke English, also on the ground floor is a lounge area with television and a relaxing seating area and behind this is the hotel breakfast area, on the subject of breakfast a couple of reviews were not to kind about breakfast but I found it to be perfectly adequate, cereal, meats, cheese, different types of rolls, fresh fruit, yogurt etc certainly enough to get you through the morning.||My room was on the 5th floor with a decent size double bed, television with satellite channels, the bathroom was not huge but served it's purpose. Also there are 2 lifts (Elevators) so you should not have to wait to long for one.||The hotel was very clean and as mentioned the front desk staff were very good and very helpful regarding getting around Porto, well just very helpful with almost any question you had. As already mentioned getting around and into the centre was not a problem, one thing I would mention is that all the tickets machines at Marques Station (there is no ticket offices on the metro system) were out of service for 4 of the 6 days I was there, so get you tickets or Andante card at the Airport or another station and what I was doing was topping up my Andante card when needed at another station so I did not get stuck without a ticket to travel, fines are heavy if you do not have a ticket and you will see inspectors checking on the metro fairly regularly.||Overall I was really pleased with my stay at the Palanca it was great value for money, clean with helpful front desk staff and as mentioned no problem about getting in and about town. On the price situation the busier this hotel gets the more they put the room prices up and into a whole new price range (Not just high season) and at these much higher prices I would certainly start looking elsewhere, but for the price I paid for my 6 night stay at the Hotel Palanca I would say it really is worth a look at while checking out a place to stay in Porto, my stay was indeed enjoyable.||||Thank you for taking the time to read my review and may I wish you happy travels but above all may they always be SAFE one's.||||||Chris Leavy.||Independent Traveller.||||With 3 Credits in The Rough Guide Travel Books.||France, ...

This is a very clean well run hotel where all the staff work hard and try very much to please. The lady in the dining room never stops working, replenishing the buffet food, clearing and resetting tables making sure breakfast runs smoothly. It was very cold whilst we were there and the lady on reception came to our room twice to make sure we were warm enough, when we weren't sure how to get the room warm. We asked for an extra pillow which she brought to us after only 2 to 3 minutes of asking.||||Our room and bathroom were spottlessly clean as were all the public areas. The bed was a little too firm for me but may suit others. There was a wardrobe with shelving and a table and chair on the room. The television had English speaking channels. Wifi in the room was a bit weak and intermittent.||||It's a little hotel in a very pleasant suburb of Porto ideal as a base for exploring the city. Only 5 minutes walk from Marques metro station, line D which takes you into the heart of the city in minutes. 2 stops - Aliados or 3 stops - San Bento or 4 stops - Morro after crossing the famous Luiz 1 bridge you step out at the fabulous viewpoint on the Gaia side right by the cable car.|||| The Marques area has plenty of small shops, a lovely square with a fountain and several eateries. Recommended by the hotel the restaurant Sabores De Basto round the corner from the hotel would take some beating, a friendly places, traditional Portuguese food and great...

The location of the hotel isn't bad, Some face lifting could be done to this place, Breakfast very simple, Quite noise from the road, from the other rooms (I have never encounter before a situation like that, that you can hear your next door neighbour talking or even when they use the toilet) it was a little strange to the point that I told to my partner mind your voice or we will ended up disturbing some. Came back at 04:00 am from a night out with old friends and did awake at 11:25 cause the cleaning lady was knocking at the door of next door neighbour telling them that they was need to leave, (Even when is stated in the reservation that you need to leave your keys at the reception at 12:00). I might come back again in future and if yes then I will try to make up my mind and see about the star review for this place. But at the moment my only word is they do have some good staff at the reception but the remaining staff and other situations maybe need a little adjustment. With...