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The Douro? What Do You Think?


Lois R
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Hi folks, I am researching (again) River Cruises for the spring and never seriously looked at The Douro.  AMA has a new Riverboat that sails PORTO to PORTO......I  sailed with them once before and LOVED IT:classic_biggrin:...….I know the usual choices are the Danube, Rhine, Seine, etc......seems The Douro is not as well known...….any thoughts from those you who have sailed this River? I have not been to Portugal before and looks interesting. 

Any experiences ya'll want to share would be appreciated!  Oh, I am looking at April 2019 and really need to decide as I know River Cruises book up quickly!

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Did this several years ago on Uniworld. Beautiful scenery but very small towns along the way. At that time all the ships were run by a portguese company. The only Uniworld employees was the tour manager and hotel manager. The trip was much quieter but we had some nice port tastings and vistis to small towns along the way. I wish I would have come in a day earlier to spend time in Lisbon. 

 

Edited by luv2travel90266
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Hi Lois, I'll be watching this topic with great interest.  I loved Lisbon, and from everything I've read and seen Porto is even better.  The negatives I've read about with this cruise is that none of the 'port' cities except Porto are actually on the river, so it's a bus ride for every stop.  One of the best things about European River cruises is that you're often tied up right in a lovely little town. The river itself is supposed to be gorgeous though, so the cruising part is quite nice.  I know that Fall is also supposed to be a great time to go because of the wine harvest maybe?

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Hi Amy, oh......I didn't know that......a bus ride for every stop? I am going to see about calling AMA tomorrow and see what information I can get about it.  I don't want to wait until the fall to go:classic_biggrin:

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Lois, I haven't done the cruise, so don't look to me for the real answers!  That's just what I've read, and one thing that has kept me from booking it up to now.  That's why I'll be watching this thread, to hear from real people that have done it :classic_ninja:  I'd LOVE to read that's not necessarily true.  I know for sure that Salamanca is a bit of a ride, but they say it's worth it.  I suspect any time is a good time for Portugal 😊

 

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Hmmmm……..I will call them and see what they say and will post back for you (and for anyone else who is interested).

And I will google a few of the places listed on the itinerary.

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Hi Lois, I’m considering the Amawaterways Douro Cruise also, but the one way one, not the round trip. Vega de Tournon to Porto. Anything I find out I’ll report here. I’m also looking into the Ama extension in Libson. I understand it might be different than other river cruises but we want to visit the area as we’ve never been. 

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I’m taking the Douro cruise on Emerald Waterways in two weeks, with three days in Lisbon. I was informed by my travel agent that cruises on the Douro have Portuguese crews (except the cruise director) due to the laws. I did find this report to be helpful in terms of what to expect   https://www.nancyandshawnpower.com/douro-river-cruise-review-portugal-spain/ 

I’ll update after our trip! 

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Another option is to book the AMA one-way cruise through Backroads.  It costs more, but they include special shore excursions every day [with a focus on hiking].  There will still be a ride from the ship to the good stuff, but in a smaller van.  Also the itinerary is much more varied [we were turned off the regular AMA – and every other river line – itinerary because it seemed to be port tasting, port tasting, port tasting...]

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I would add a couple of thoughts. If you decide to do the Backroads trip with hiking avoid the summer. We were told that temperatures go up to 110F or so--not good hiking weather in my opinion. I really like the AMA one-way cruise with the extensions in Lisbon and Madrid. It's nice that they do a high speed train between Porto and Lisbon rather than the long bus ride.

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We did this cruise in Dec of '17 with Viking. Read Fuel Science's review. It matches our experience on the Douro part with the same stops except we went round trip from Porto. I think most companies subcontract to Azul the Portuguese company and itineraries are the same. If possible, I would do a one way trip and do the Spain extension as well as Lisbon. Lisbon was included with Viking. It was one of the highlights of the trip. Gladly answer any questions. 

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Thanks to all of you.  Jazz, I am not a hiker and that looks pretty active. 

 

Amy, I called AMA today...…this is a very popular itinerary and there were slim to none choices on the time frame I want to go. I want to sail in April (for various reasons). 

 

I am going to check a couple of other companies and see what I can find.

 

 

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I'm not surprised they're booked up.  I think the ships are smaller on the Duoro?  Does Uniworld still do that trip?  Like someone said upthread, the laws require locally built ships and local crews, so there might not be a whole lot of difference in cruise companies like there is on the other European rivers.

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Just returned from a Viking Duro cruise and can highly recommend it to you. We did a two day pre-cruise in Lisbon and post cruise in Santiago de Compostela, both Viking extensions. Both were quality hotels and Viking personnel were with us every step of the way. They even accompanied us to the Santiago airport and stayed through check-in. 

 

The ships have small, intimate spaces and provide enough room for the limited number of passengers to have their own space or mingle with others. Our crew were Portuguese however most of the dining staff were Bulgarian (students maybe?). 

 

The Duro is very picturesque with hundreds of vineyards doting The countryside. There are five locks to transit and all in all a relaxing cruise during the daylight sailing.

 

The ports are intensive with mostly bus transportation but the guides are with you and talk to you along the way describing the countryside and the sights at the next stop. The Viking tour guides were terrific in another way as well, when one of our group needed medication she took us to a pharmacy and translated for us. She also arranged for a cab and rode with us to catch up with our group.

 

I would sail Viking again and recommend the Duro. 

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Haven't done a long cruise on the Douro but spent 4 weeks in Porto in June and am posting this from Vila do Conte, a seaside town near the northern end of Porto's metro where we are currently. 

 

While in Porto in June we took a day cruise down the Douro (the deal we bought include a train from town to meet the boat) which convinced us that rather than doing a Viking River cruise in the future, we would instead probably DIY it in a car or with a driver if we wanted to do a vineyard tour. The river is lovely but unlike the Danube or others, not that long and as others have posted the towns (with a couple of exceptions) aren't right on the river. 

 

As a PP suggested, definitely add Lisbon to your trip no matter how you end up visiting Portugal. I would also highly recommend getting out to the seaside towns in either (or both) Porto or Lisbon.  They are lovely, picturesque, and best of all FLAT!  After the hills of both big cities, we are really enjoying being able to walk comfortably!

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Hi everyone (especially Amy:classic_biggrin:)….I spoke with a rep at UNIWORLD and am probably going with them.  I have a cabin on hold actually. They can hold it for 3 days but I should know something before then.   It is pre-cruise in Lisbon for 3 days and then sailing with the cruise ending in Porto.   Will let you know when I actually give them $$ for a deposit.

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We drove round Portugal a few years ago, staying in Lisbon, Obidos, Coimbra, Porto and a little port wine finca on the Douro itself (sorry cannot remember which, but if you Google Douro finca stays you will probably find one). It was all beautiful. I especially liked a day tour to see the prehistoric carved horse / wild cow etc pictures in Vila Nova de Foz Coa - the countryside is wild and stunning and the carvings amazing! I am sure the river cruise will be lovely, and yes please do the extensions at each end - it's a long way off the beaten track to go to just do a few days on the river. Also liked visiting Chateau Mateus! (I used to drink Mateus Rose - but they assured me there that the actual wine they produce was much better!)

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This is all great information.  I've been trying to decide whether to combine a river cruise with a driving vacation, just drive, or just cruise.  I know I want to drive a bit, and I love the thought of staying a while.  Lois, I think you'll like Uniworld.  We did a Danube cruise with them years ago, and it was quite well done.

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Hi again, I was reading the other thread about the rivers and it seems for 2 years in a row the water levels on the Douro have been too high:classic_sad:...…..after all this, not sure I want to spend this kind of $$$ and have a chance sailing will either be too difficult or not at all.  I know you lose 200.00 if you cancel but this is giving me serious food for thought.

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Well, Lois, the good news is that if you end up on a bus tour, it's a stunning part of the world for it :classic_biggrin:  Also, as we all know, year after year things change quite a bit.  It's just as dicey on the main European rivers too.  I say, do it! 

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