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A Group In Porto Is Offering The 'Worst Tours' Of The City For A Reason

'The Worst Tours'

Sometimes you gotta make the most of a not-so-great situation.

Take three enterprising (and out of work) architects in Porto, the second-largest city in Portugal, a country which has been hit hard economically these past few years. They have created the "Worst Tours" of the city to highlight the--shall we say--more depressing side of town.

The tour takes you around the city's Fontainhas district and to the upper-end of the town's main shopping thoroughfare, Santa Catarina street, highlighting the decrepit buildings and store fronts along the way. (According to the BBC, there are now some 70,000 derelict buildings in town.)

‘We’ll show you the alleys, the abandoned buildings, the squares, the mean streets, the old markets, the cheap tascas, the stories behind them all,’ the company told The Daily Mail. The tours are aimed at "anyone who really doesn’t want to be a tourist while getting to know Porto."

One American couple who is living in Germany said of the tours--which are free, by the way--"This kind of visit helps us understand what’s happening in Europe today."

Portuguese architect Margarida Castro (R) gives explanations to tourists during a tour in central Porto on February 28, 2014. Three Portuguese architects set up "The Worst Tours" to show the other face of Porto to tourists. "Porto is not just a postcard and a few streets where tourists do their shopping. My city is also that," exhorts Margarida with open arms, frozen in front of a row of dilapidated facades. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
A man walks by the Marques Square in central Porto on February 28, 2014. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
General view of the Douro river in Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
US tourist Dean Watson looks at the course of the Douro river. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
Portuguese architect Margarida Castro (R) gives explanations to US tourist Dean Watson. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
Portuguese architect Margarida Castro (L) gives explanations to US tourist Dean Watson during a tour in central Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
Portuguese architect Margarida Castro (2L) gives explanations to tourists during a tour in central Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
A Portuguese flag flutters above houses in Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
A man walks along a street in central Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
A for sale and cemented up building is seen along Santa Catarina street in central Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
Pedestrians walk past the closed Finance Ministry office in central Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
British tourist Louise Watson walks along a street in during a tour in central Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
A man walks past a for sale sign on a building along Santa Catarina street in central Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
A seller talks with clients at the traditional Bolhao market in central Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)
A stuffed toy hangs infron to a window in the traditional Bolhao market in central Porto. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)

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