Great location; parking available; nice breakfast; very helpful staff; but the room was dark, on an air vent (so no outside air and no view), and small, though the bathroom was big! I thought it was fine; my sister disliked it.

We had made our decision to use this hotel after reading some of the reviews here, but just before our stay, I had seen some of the more recent ones, and I was a little nervous about what we would find. We were very impressed with what we experienced. We arrived on a late flight, and beforehand I had contacted the hotel to advise them we would arrive late. They responded to me immediately, and were helpful in the advice they gave me. We arrived to be given a room with a double bed instead of twin beds, and they were efficient despite the hour in putting us in another room which was equally as nice, with no fuss. Although the lighting was a bit dim and the water in the bathroom very eratic (running very hot and very cold at times, but with nothing in the middle!), especially at peak times, the decor of our room was nice. We overlooked a quiet street and not the main thoroughfare, and it was extremely quiet. We only ate breakfast once in the restaurant, which was adequate and stood us in good stead for a day's sightseeing. During our stay it was my birthday, and the hotel gave us a bottle of champagne and some wonderful friend. We found the hotel staff friendly and efficient, especially with booking our restaurants and taxis during our visit. We are planning to visit Porto again, and will definitely consider staying at this hotel

Hotel may have been grand in its day but it certainly needs updating. I think it was expensive for what you got. The location is OK if you want to go shopping but as you are in the shopping district there aren't many bars or restaurants around. Our room was beneath the restaurant and when we arrived inthe early evening they were having some kind of wedding party right above our heads. The concierge assured us that it would be ending soon which indeed was the case. I wouldn't recommend this hotel as there are plenty of more modern hotels in better locations.

Stayed for two nights late March 2008. Agree with most comments provided by recent contributors. Faded charm combined with helpful staff made for an above average stay. We stayed in three hotels in Porto over the perod of a one week and this one was my favourite. Would return on any future visits to the City.

We just returned from Oporto this week and stayed at the Grande Hotel do Porto for 2 nights. Although the website says "Private Parking", when we arrived there at 1pm on a Saturday, the front desk said their lot was full and we needed to park at a public lot at the rate of 2euro/hour. We found street parking far away but later decided to return our Hertz rental car. When we walked into room #203, there was a horrible smell from the bathroom. Since there is no exhaust system in the bathroom and they keep the bathroom door closed when the room is unused (it opens out and blocks you from exiting the front door), the curtains reeked badly enough to give me a headache. The room is very dark and dingy (the dark navy bed spreads don't help to brighten the room). There is a heavy metal roll-up window with metal slats that you can open to get some fresh air. But the minute you do that, the noise from the pedestrian walkway echoes loudly. Even when both windows are closed, you can still hear the yelling in the streets late at night. On the plus side, the breakfast buffet is wonderful. There is much to choose from in a bright, beautiful dining room. The common areas are nice and comfortable. Since we had an early flight on our last day in Oporto, the front desk had a pre-made breakfast sent up to our room the night before. Some of the front desk people are very helpful, but a few don't seem to like their job and are very rude. If I were to visit Oporto again, I would find another hotel to stay at.