Thinking of a Douro River Cruise? Please Consider...

[CJcruzer]

Thom,

Thanks for the information. I did see the video on Vantage's website, but it didn't provide much information. I think we go to the castle and Belem as well as the coach museum.

I was in Lisbon in 1985, but didn't go to Porto.

We are doing the Sintra optional excursion. It should be great fun.

 

George

 

make sure to go up to Pena Palace while in Sintra - just amazing! the National Palace is in Sintra town, its claim to fame is the double chimneys and also a large ceiling frescoe/painting - but Pena Palace is magical.... can send you some pics to whet your appetite.

 

Carol

[pinotlover]

We did the Madrid-Lisbon cruise/tour on Uniworld this September and loved it. The scenery along the river is wonderful, and we were glad that we were awake, sailing during daylight to see everything, including the highest lock in Europe. Uniworld does a great job with this tour. The bus rides were a hoot, upriver, with some very interesting switchbacks and vertical drop-offs.:D Being a former Airborne Ranger, I was getting a kick out of it, while some where almost hiding in the floorboards! :p

 

I believe, from my readings, one of the main reasons that cruises are not scheduled for late in the year is because of the flow of the river. Even in September, the water depth in some parts of the river was touchy. There have been issues in some years with October and later cruises, because of this factor. It is quite a bit cooler, upriver than down. Just part of that terrior' for the grapes and the ports.

 

One has to realize that the river ,used by the boat companies, is only a little over 120 miles long. Divide that by the number of days you are on the river and you'll find that you are not really sailing that long. Most of the time is actually spent on tours, out doing and sight seeing, not just motoring along as you might be doing on other rivers. Everything on the river is closely choreographed to ensure there are no long waits at the seven docks or backups on those narrow portions of the river which are (barely) wide enough for only one boat at a time to pass through. In fact, the one morning that we had an early sail it was considered a blessing. Later out of bed and a leisurely breakfast was nice change of pace instead of the hussle of eating and getting on the bus for the morning tour.

[caviargal]

The review of this itinerary by one of the editors here noted how unlike a typical river cruise the Duoro is, and that it was difficult to stay active. Much more relaxation than she expected. My friend made similar comments.

 

I am not one to relax and observe so this just does not appeal to me. I read the detailed cruise companion Uniworld posts for this cruise as well as AMA's detailed itinerary to be sure I understood the program. We will visit here by land.

[pbnjrockette]

Hmmm... "Relax and observe"... Reminds me of the M&M commercial, "sometimes I feel like a nut, sometimes I don't!!" Many (most) of our river cruises have been filled to the brim with activities -- looking forward to one where we can have a little 'cruise' time. One of my favorite cruise moments was sailing the river through Germany and just listening to the piano player and the ship slowly moved downriver. This after a few hectic days of cobblestone streets, beer drinking and touring!

 

Pre-trip in Madeira (soooo loooking forward to that!) slow sailing the Duoro and seeing a bit of Portugal and then a few days on our own in Oporto--oh, and drinking lots of Port wine!!

[caviargal]

Hmmm... "Relax and observe"... Reminds me of the M&M commercial, "sometimes I feel like a nut, sometimes I don't!!" Many (most) of our river cruises have been filled to the brim with activities -- looking forward to one where we can have a little 'cruise' time. One of my favorite cruise moments was sailing the river through Germany and just listening to the piano player and the ship slowly moved downriver. This after a few hectic days of cobblestone streets, beer drinking and touring!

 

And this is exactly why detailed research is so important, IMO. We are not interested in coming home with any extra "baggage". Being able to walk 8-10 miles a day (our average) is a must in order for us to be able to enjoy the food and wine of the areas we visit. We are not the average river cruise passengers. :)

[Host Jazzbeau]

Hmmm... "Relax and observe"... Reminds me of the M&M commercial, "sometimes I feel like a nut, sometimes I don't!!" Many (most) of our river cruises have been filled to the brim with activities -- looking forward to one where we can have a little 'cruise' time. One of my favorite cruise moments was sailing the river through Germany and just listening to the piano player and the ship slowly moved downriver. This after a few hectic days of cobblestone streets, beer drinking and touring!

 

Pre-trip in Madeira (soooo loooking forward to that!) slow sailing the Duoro and seeing a bit of Portugal and then a few days on our own in Oporto--oh, and drinking lots of Port wine!!

 

Have some Madeira, M'dear:

[pinotlover]

I think for caviar gal it's just different strokes for different folks, the Douro may not be right for you. We are a high energy couple, but we don't have to walk 8-10 miles per day to enjoy a cruise. We absolutely loved our Oceania cruise in Feb that went from Sidney, Australia to Auckland, N.Z. That cruise had several "sea" days as the ship traversed the various seas. We were never bored in that we found numerous activities, including an occasional nap ;), to keep us entertained. A seaday would probably drive caviargal and her DH crazy, as they would only want a cruise that does 10 days-10 different ports, no sea days. Each to his own and different strokes for different folks! The Douro is obviously not for you!

[4774Papa]

I think for caviar gal it's just different strokes for different folks, the Douro may not be right for you. We are a high energy couple, but we don't have to walk 8-10 miles per day to enjoy a cruise. We absolutely loved our Oceania cruise in Feb that went from Sidney, Australia to Auckland, N.Z. That cruise had several "sea" days as the ship traversed the various seas. We were never bored in that we found numerous activities, including an occasional nap ;), to keep us entertained. A seaday would probably drive caviargal and her DH crazy, as they would only want a cruise that does 10 days-10 different ports, no sea days. Each to his own and different strokes for different folks! The Douro is obviously not for you!

DW and either bike 30 miles every other day or walk 3.5. We like to keep active. On a TA we use the fitness center and walk the deck in good weather.

 

We have done river and ocean cruises and our bucket list is getting shorter and shorter. I visited Lisbon and southern Portugal in 1985 and loved the people and country.

 

We have taken cruises like one of the British Isles where we had 8 straight port days. It would have been nice to break up that routine with a port day.

 

Our Vantage Portugal tour, including the river cruise includes three days prior to the cruise and a full day tour of Salamancia. It will still provide us with enough activity.

[caviargal]

Each to his own and different strokes for different folks!

 

Exactly my point.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

The review of this itinerary by one of the editors here noted how unlike a typical river cruise the Duoro is, and that it was difficult to stay active. Much more relaxation than she expected. My friend made similar comments.

 

I am not one to relax and observe so this just does not appeal to me. I read the detailed cruise companion Uniworld posts for this cruise as well as AMA's detailed itinerary to be sure I understood the program. We will visit here by land.

 

Sounds divine to me, and just right. I love being active, but don't like being "on the go" continuously, I enjoy downtime.

 

Hmmm... "Relax and observe"... Reminds me of the M&M commercial, "sometimes I feel like a nut, sometimes I don't!!" Many (most) of our river cruises have been filled to the brim with activities -- looking forward to one where we can have a little 'cruise' time. One of my favorite cruise moments was sailing the river through Germany and just listening to the piano player and the ship slowly moved downriver. This after a few hectic days of cobblestone streets, beer drinking and touring!

 

Pre-trip in Madeira (soooo loooking forward to that!) slow sailing the Duoro and seeing a bit of Portugal and then a few days on our own in Oporto--oh, and drinking lots of Port wine!!

 

Yes, totally, sounds great. We like to travel at a desultory pace. Which company has a pre-trip to Madeira? (We've done a day in Funchal on a cruise and loved it, btw.)

 

On our recent Nile cruise with Uniworld, downtime was important, at least to us. The excursions are packed in, since everyone wants to maximize their experience of the antiquities and local colour, but they were paced nicely, with downtime on the boat frequently in the middle of the day, when it was hot. We loved that. A dip in the pool, a cool drink on the deck, a nap watching the river go by...perfection.

 

On land we do not scurry from sight to sight, but take our time and savour the destinations as much as we can.

[caviargal]

 

On land we do not scurry from sight to sight, but take our time and savour the destinations as much as we can.

 

As do we. Limited port times and long bus rides cut into that opportunity significantly.

Edited December 27, 2015 by caviargal

[TravelerThom]

...Which company has a pre-trip to Madeira? (We've done a day in Funchal on a cruise and loved it, btw.)...

I know that Vantage offers Maderia as a pre-trip (don't know about other companies). I have not crunched the numbers on that particular trip, but I generally find that extensions are poor values.

 

{My 2 Apr 2016 Vantage Douro trip is listed on line as completely sold-out. About every week I get an upsell offer from Vantage for EXACTLY the same additional price I could have paid originally. If I had wanted that cabin at that price I would have bought it originally. Clearly they have oversold lower price cabins and are hoping to sucker someone into paying more. I'm sitting tight and seeing what happens:cool:.}

 

Thom

[Host Jazzbeau]

Our plan for this trip is to take the Madrid--Salamanca--cruise to Porto--Lisbon itinerary with AMA and then rent a car for a week to hike in Andalusia before returning to Madrid. It might make more sense to do it the other way, so we exercise first and then rest. But either way is a good mixture of active and restful.

[pbnjrockette]

Relaxing and observing is different from just sitting and vegging! We certainly do our share of keeping active if not when on tour, then on our own. I've even worn out the smallest fitness track on rivercruise ships (50 laps = 1mile :eek: LOL) if that was all that was available! Have yet to come home from a cruise weighing more than when I left!! But I do enjoy meeting people, chatting and just sailing down the river be it day or night.

 

We got the Madeira pre-trip on a special deal with the flights --am thinking our extra time there will be well worth it.

[4774Papa]

Our plan for this trip is to take the Madrid--Salamanca--cruise to Porto--Lisbon itinerary with AMA and then rent a car for a week to hike in Andalusia before returning to Madrid. It might make more sense to do it the other way, so we exercise first and then rest. But either way is a good mixture of active and restful.

It appears that you will be crossing the border from Portugal to Spain. If you plan to rent the car in Portugal and drop it in Spain, you will incur a very, very significant additional cost. I suggest you check out a proposed car rental well in advance.

[Host Jazzbeau]

It appears that you will be crossing the border from Portugal to Spain. If you plan to rent the car in Portugal and drop it in Spain, you will incur a very, very significant additional cost. I suggest you check out a proposed car rental well in advance.

 

Thanks. Yeah, I wondered if that would be a problem. Might be better to take a train from Lisbon to Sevilla and only drive in Spain. Already deleted Gibraltar from the itinerary for similar reasons. :)

[Host Jazzbeau]

It appears that you will be crossing the border from Portugal to Spain. If you plan to rent the car in Portugal and drop it in Spain, you will incur a very, very significant additional cost. I suggest you check out a proposed car rental well in advance.

 

I just checked on this. We can rent a car for the week from $150 (VW Polo manual) to $300 (Volvo S60 manual) to $550 (various automatics). Non-stop air is only TAP turboprop @ $285 pp. No direct train. Buses not up to AMA luxury coach standards :( But since I'm a very shifty guy, we can do very well driving.

[little britain]

What would you say the demographic would be on a UNIWORLD cruise please?

Age range, mostly Americans or Europeans...? And how is the food?!;)

TIA

[pinotlover]

little Britain;

 

We did the Douro with Uniworld this past September. The age range on that cruise was primarily between 55 to 75. The larger majority of travelers were probably in 62-68 range. Of the passengers on board, all but one was very mobile. It was a very energetic and sophisticated group with more dancing and partying than the ages may suggests! :D A really wonderful cruise.

 

The food on the Isabel was extremely good, and far surpassed the quality that we had on a Viking river cruise a year earlier. Likewise, the wines that were served for the meals far surpassed the quality (phlonk) that Viking had served.

 

The entertainer on the ship was great. He was a bundle of energy that consistently got the cruisers into a general party mood. The tours were generally well ran, and it was great not having the guide and drivers standing around having their hands stuck out after every tour. ALL adult beverages are included except for just a couple of older vintage ports that were priced very fairly, and many of us took the occasion to sample them.

 

You will enjoy this cruise on Uniworld! :D

[little britain]

Many thanks PinotLover! Have taken the plunge and booked - I will be at the younger end of the spectrum and my 90yr old mother will be at the other I suspect!!!

[Riversanddale]

We did a Christmas cruise on the Duoro with Viking in 2014 and it was one of two (Paris and Duoro) favorite trips out of 7. We'd go back in a heartbeat. The people were wonderful and the itinerary very good. Weather was another story with rain off and on for much of the river cruise. The river actually rose too fast and we were touch and go the entire last night as to whether the lockmaster would allow us back down the river to Porto. We hope to go again! And, Lisbon is a great city to visit and we've enjoyed three visits.

[Solent Richard]

I agree about the Po. Unless one is really all about Venice (which we are not ) then that is the furthest itinerary possible from an actual river cruise. It is more of a floating hotel with bus trips. We love Italy but that is the last way we would ever choose to visit our favorite destination.

 

We definitely plan to visit Portugal one of these days, and more research is required on my end to figure out the best way for us to see it, our way.

 

It's always good to research and plan.

 

My wife and I sailed on the Viking Hemming along the Douro recently and to be honest couldn't fault it.

 

I wrote a full review here...

 

http://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2014/08/06/viking-hemming-and-portugals-river-of-gold/

 

We did one coach visit that was over an hour away but that was to Salamanca, out of Portugal and into Spain.

 

I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

 

[dcruisers]

It's always good to research and plan.

 

My wife and I sailed on the Viking Hemming along the Douro recently and to be honest couldn't fault it.

 

I wrote a full review here...

 

http://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2014/08/06/viking-hemming-and-portugals-river-of-gold/

 

We did one coach visit that was over an hour away but that was to Salamanca, out of Portugal and into Spain.

 

I wouldn't have missed it for the world

 

 

My DH and I ( with another couple)are leaving for our Viking Douro cruise next month and your review and comments have made me more excited! I was looking forward to it but concerned about the long bus rides. As I read your review, I realized I will enjoy watching the scenery as we sail during the day.

This will be our 2nd Viking river cruise - our first was Budapest to Amsterdam - 2weeks. We enjoyed being able to walk off the ship in most of the towns. But I look forward to seeing Portugal and enjoying the Douro!

Thanks for your review and all the great info.

[jpver]

A few years agoo (2012) we have done a Douro cruise with Croisieurope.(Ship ms Fernao de Magalhaes This company has a good price/quality level.

You can fly to Oporto, the airport is not far away. We stayed several days in advance in Porto as it is a very nice town with a lot of things to visit.

The cruise went to the Spanish border. It was worthwhile to take the excursion to Salamanca Spain. The excursion prices on Croisieurope are honnest in price and well organised. On the Douro and around also interesting to take some excursions. The Lockx are quite impressive!

 

After our cruise we have combined our voyage with inland Portugal from Porto to Lisbon. We have rented a car in Porto and we re-delivered it at Lisbon airport. (of reasonable as it stays in the country) A lot of nice places Sintra, Coimbra, Santarem. And of cours Lisbon and around.

Routes and highways are quite good in Portugal.

[4774Papa]

I just checked on this. We can rent a car for the week from $150 (VW Polo manual) to $300 (Volvo S60 manual) to $550 (various automatics). Non-stop air is only TAP turboprop @ $285 pp. No direct train. Buses not up to AMA luxury coach standards :( But since I'm a very shifty guy, we can do very well driving.

 

Interesting, when I researched renting a car in Madrid and dropping if off in Lisbon, I ran in to a prohibitive price. Not sure if policies have changed regarding car rentals, since I just ran a test rent a car on kayak Porto drop-off in Madrid and cost was similar to what you found.