Viking in Portugal?

I have a river view bottom go boat cabin on hold for the rivers of gold Lisbon to Porto.

Any advice?

Is the river view a bad choice? Do I need to pay for a balcony?

is this a good itinerary?

I am traveling solo.

Thank you!

Before my first river cruise, I hemmed and hawed about booking an "aquarium class" room or going up a deck for a better view. The price was the determining factor for me and I am so glad we ended up below water. The pace and the intinerary of our trip was so intense that we rarely spent any time at all in our room. Even our friends who did book a balcony room said that they only had time to use it one afternoon!

If you plan on seeing the sights of Portugal, you won't need a balcony to see them because you'll be on the ground and on your feet exploring them. River cruise itineraries emphasize port time over leisure time. Save your money for better onshore experiences and when you want a beautiful view, head up to the sunny top deck.

I can't comment on your specific itinerary, but if it works for you, then it's right. There are some river cruise lines that do not have a singe supplement. Tauck, I know, has several sailings where they welcome single travellers with no additional fees.

I haven't done this cruise, although I've been to Portugal several times, and I highly recommend it. With the proviso about aquarium class that apparently the Douro cruises do cruise during the day, not at night. So you will have time onboard to enjoy the lovely scenery on the river. But presumably you can enjoy that up on deck, not in your cabin.

We are considering Viking's river of gold for our next trip so will be following this thread with a great deal of interest.

One question: If you cruise during the day how are the excursions factored in?

Thank you.

We did the Viking Douro last year and had a veranda cabin. We barely used its balcony. While cruising we sat outside at the bow on armchairs where glass panels shield you from the breeze and watched the fantastic scenery come towards us on both sides of the river.

Re daytime cruising -- the navigable part of the Douro is quite short, there's not a great distance to travel of your 10 days, 2 will be spent in Lisbon, one on the coach from Lisbon to Porto. One full day moored on the border while you coach to Salamanca

Not hours of cruising to get to places, but what cruising there is has dramaric, stunning scenery.

On our Douro cruise, we were either in port or sailing on the river during the daytime, so balcony is not a requirement to enjoy this itinerary. The Douro does not allow nighttime sailing, so going from one port to another is done during the day and you get to see beautiful country. A great cruise no matter which company your choose.

Cole