Via Catarina Shopping Centre, Porto

Come rain or sun, early in the day or late at night, ViaCatarina is the beating heart of Rua de Santa Catarina, Porto's main thoroughfare, all the same. If you are a passionate fashionista, or very much into interior decoration, or, perhaps, looking to update your wardrobe at affordable prices – ViaCatarina Shopping Mall is the place! Same is true if you're keen on healthy food, or perhaps not so healthy, or traditional, or whatever.

This mall sits in a modern building that takes up an entire block, with different accesses from the streets of Santa Catarina, Fernandes Thomas, and Formosa. It has nearly 100 outlets spread over four floors, plus a spacious underground parking space – particularly useful, considering that the surrounding area is fully pedestrianized.

Just as any other mall out there, ViaCatarina is full of shops of all stripes, and a food court at the top, serving both traditional Portuguese and international cuisine: pasta, pizzas, sandwiches, woks, ice cream, waffles, etc., by innovative franchises. Other than the food itself, this floor is also pleasing to an eye, being originally decorated to simulate the Ribeira neighborhood, featuring replicas of Portuguese houses.

ViaCatarina is a family-friendly venue, equally suitable for the young and old, from dawn to dusk.