As I continue to catch up on the large number of things I did in Portugal from, now, *several* months ago... this is the one review I have left that is probably the least likely to have changed in a few months, of a building whose main attraction is the beauty of the building itself, beauty that was all constructed... not recently. Though I did also appreciate the tour, mainly in the history of the building, a building honoring not a king or a royal line like the other glamorous historical building we stopped at earlier in the trip, the royal palace in Madrid, but the history of commerce itself in the country, and the continued independence of a small nation surrounded by Spain on several sides, mostly on the power of their *money*. Money, which of course, they also used to construct this impressive building, that *reminds* you of a building a historical king would construct to honor his own family with stolen riches, but in this case, the riches seem to have been earned more... legally, at least. It is still also used at least sometimes for its original purpose (impressing foreign businessmen, i.e. business meetings), but obviously now mostly for our purposes it's a spot on all the tourists' list of half-hour tours. Definitely worth a stop if you're never been - though it is too bad tickets sell out somewhat in advance, in that I bought 2 tickets to this weeks earlier, not counting on my wife to be feeling rather sick that day and unable to join a tour. I don't think tours are unreasonably priced, given it's a unique, historical, and quite impressive building, but it was definitely not worth it at the effective twice the cost it ended up being when my wife couldn't make the tour. That said, you don't have to reserve the *time* in advance, though as other reviews have pointed out, if you only speak English, they have tours in 3 languages, so you want to get there relatively early the day of your tour, and redeem your tickets, valid for any tour the day, for passes, valid for a specific tour, before all the spots on the *English* tours are taken. They do have tours all day, though. At the end of the tour, they also have a small, presumably subsidized, shop selling pastel de nata, glasses of one specific bottle of Port, and espresso. I say presumably subsidized because, even by the standards of food and drink in Porto, already somewhat better than in the US, all three of those items were... inexpensive, and solid. Obviously that isn't why we went on the tour, but I did have a goal of trying as many of all of those as I could in the time I was in Portugal, so it was a fun bonus. read more

See all

Impressive palace harkening back to Porto's mercantile past. Palácio da Bolsa is a neoclassical stock exchange palace built in the mid 19th century to impress visiting delegations when Porto was the commercial gateway into Portugal. We booked an English group tour (€14) that gathered at the Hall of Nations, a central courtyard with a glass iron dome up top encircled by 25 gold gilded crests symbolizing the countries of that age with friendly trade relations to Portugal. We toured various ornate rooms belonging to Porto's mercantile association. At the Commercial Court Room, a renaissance painting on its ceiling above portrayed the angel of justice with eyes open based on the city's belief. From there we passed by a small studio where Gustave Eiffel once worked on city projects. Next were the Golden Room and General Assembly Room where large wood paneling was made instead with plaster, an innovative approach at the time and the first application in Porto. From the Kings' Portraits Room we finally stepped into the stunning Arabian Room, a massive hall of staggering opulence that was meant to awe visiting trade delegations while resembling the Alhambra Palace. Intricate Moorish revival style details, elaborate geometric patterns from wall-to-wall, and beautifully colored stain glass left us speechless. We finished the tour heading down a grand marble staircase. Skip it or hit it? We found the tour visit incredibly informative and well worth the admission to see Porto's trading roots & past wealth on display. read more

See all

The main attraction on this tour is the Arabian Room. It's the only room that caused many wows and gasps. It shows the Ottoman influence. It might seem trite to mention the floors but they were truly the work of craftsmen. In one room the floors created an optical illusion. In another room the floors featured wood from Brazil. If this sounds interesting to you, go for it. The tour only takes 30 minutes. read more

Palácio da Bolsa - The Arabian Room. It's extraordinary but difficult to photograph. - Museums Near Me - Porto, 13

Totally blown away by the architecture, glitz and glamour of this building. I wish I could have my wedding in the Arabian room, which is available to rent! That room came as a total surprise behind the ornate, closed door. I purchased my tickets in advance online. They're good for any time during the date you reserve. I made sure we arrived at 9am (opening), and there were only six people including us two in our tour. Our group pretty much had the entire building to ourselves. The tour guide was phenomenal! When we left about 45 minutes later, the queue was already long! Buy your tickets in advance, get there for the first tour, and enjoy this spectacular building! I was truly wowed. read more

See all

This Palácio da Bolsa was built over more than 87 years and a donation by Queen Mary II who established the edifice as a place of commerce. So it never operated as a Place for the royals or a stock exchange. It is the House of the Commerical Association of Porto. It is a must see in Porto as it is designated World Heritage Site by UNESCO and an absolutely delightful visit! We could not book online as the app was not working. So, we went on site and purchased two tickets for €18 for the English tour. We used the hour to visit the Church & Museum of the Sao Francisco Oder. Where you can find fine art granite coupole that celebrate the hard working culture of Porto! My favorite room was the Arab Hall that is a clear reminder of the architectural details of the Alhambra National Palace! read more

See all

Almost skipped it; glad we didn't. Beautiful rooms worth the time and entry fee. The gift shop has nice unique postcards with photos of the rooms. read more

Rather normal for a palace (yeah, even if it's a false friend the decor isn't too far off from that of palace) except for 2 things: the entrance chamber which is huge and has designs representing various foreign countries, and the splendid orientalist Arabic room, the highlight of the visit (wisely put at the end of the tour, to ensure you don't get jaded) Tours are pretty frequent... But not always in your choice of language (English/French/Spanish/Portuguese). It helps to speak more than one read more

See all

My wife and I were on a Gate1 tour and we visited Stock Exchange Palace in the historic center. It's a beautiful place with exquisite neoclassical façade and ornate gilded Arabian Hall - interesting note was the part designed by Muslims; two doors facing each other were supposed to be completely opposite each other - but it didn't, "'cuz Man is imperfect, as only Allah is perfect." Hate to have them build planes and bridges! The palace was built in the 19th century by the city's Commercial Association, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. read more

See all

This is not actually a palace. Is is commerce building. It is a actually a stock exchange. It build in 19 century. It located next to Saint Francis Church. The visit is only the guided tour. The first room is the glass dome shape room. This metallic dome not just the glass dome. Below the glass show each country flag symbol. The center floor is the mosaic with many beautiful tile. The room include the tribunal room, Arab room, and more. I like the most is the Arab room. It is decorated with Islamic pattern. This is the most luxurious room. You can rent it for 11,000 euro a night with empty room. The entire building includes the decorative wood floor. Some look like 3D pictures. The color contrast is due to different species of tree. There is an office that Gustave Eiffel has use to overlook the river and bridge project. read more

See all

This is a stop full of history and beauty, an elaborately designed structure that appears rather ordinary on the outside but stunning on the inside! Gustave Eiffel's office is part of the tour, but the last room will leave you speechless. For a lot of money, you can rent that room for your wedding, upwards of US$40,000 daily! read more

See all

This is one of the best things to see in Porto! Get tickets (in advance!) for a 30-minute tour in either English, Portuguese, Spanish, or French. The "Palácio da Bolsa" is the old stock exchange and current chamber of commerce. Our tour guide was very helpful, and it was a blast to explore the building and learn more about Porto's history with port wine trading. It's a bit expensive at €10 for only 30 minutes (hence why only four stars). But worth it once to see and learn. read more

See all

Formerly the HQ for the rich merchants of Porto and today the center of the chamber of commerce, you will want to take one of the short guided tours of this place next to the famous golden church. Tickets cost €10 and you will be guided through some historic and breathtaking rooms in the Stock exchange palace. Tours are offered in different languages throughout the day and you just need to pop into the ticket office to find out the day's schedule as it varies (apparently). We arrived 9:40 and we able to book the 10:15 English tour. Each group has around 50 people which can be a bit tedious. The tours follow a consistent plan beginning in the lofty hall of nations and ending in the amazing Arabic room. You also see the business court room and several others of note. We were done in a little under an hour. read more

See all

The former Porto Stock Exchange that is now a historic building. They have guided tours but the line to buy tickets was too long. You can buy tickets in advance. read more

Palácio da Bolsa - Palácio da Bolsa - Museums Near Me - Porto, 13

This building once served as the stock exchange of Porto. The rooms are very beautiful as are the halls and entrance. Once it was the business center hub of Porto, which makes it a significantly important part of the city's past. If you have time, then yes I do recommend including this tour in your trip here. The tours are in several different languages. read more

See all

It's a nice historical building to visit. You might stand in line longer than the actual tour. The tour is 30 minutes... so I would not put it in the list if you have limited time... It is a guided tour and NOT a museum..... In fact, the staff is VERY mean about it and VERY rude if you wonder around....even if you did NOT know you were not suppose too.... Most museums in Porto let you wonder at your leisure......this is NOT one of them.... read more

Breathtaking beauty! Really don't know how someone gave it 1 star. Claimed it was fake? For 12€ it is worth the wait. Have to take guided tour. However, a lot of history shared and incredible architecture. A must when in Porto read more

Palácio da Bolsa - Grand Lobby entrance - Museums Near Me - Porto, 13

Cyndy's Bottom Line: Lots to see and learn about the history of Portugal A great tour which was informational. Decent knowledgeable. Beautiful building and furnishings. read more

See all

It's interesting, but you can only go in with a guided tour, and the tour is slow, so I cannot recommend waiting a long time for a tour when there are so many wonderful things to see and do in Porto. This is modern history. I wouldn't rank visiting this building full of plaster painted to look like its gilded above visiting something truly old and actually gilded. read more

Awesome tour! This is a must go when visiting Porto! I bieve it's by your only. We did the English tour and had the most amazing guide ever! Magali was fun, energetic, and very knowledgeable! My wife and I wished we could of had her as our personal tour guide for all of Porto! Not to mention the building is incredibly beautiful! read more

Waste of money. Very few rooms most of the stuff is fake even the guide admits it. Save yourself some euros and go see the church of San Francisco nearby where there is actual gold. read more