The Douro, Porto and Salamanca
I was incredibly excited about my first trip on a river cruise; having come from an ocean cruise background and spending almost 6 years at sea. I was looking forward to being back on a ship and seeing what a river cruise experience would be like. This trip was also going to cover destinations which I had never been too before.
Day 1
As it was my first time travelling abroad in almost 5 years I was extremely apprehensive when waking up at 3.30am at a hotel at Manchester Airport. Not only was I about to spend a week with people I did not know; I was about to go through the airport and fly after 5 years.
We arrived at 4.30am and were met by a flowing queue for baggage drop off with EasyJet. It was a little daunting looking at the amount of people there, however there were multiple EasyJet flights departing within the next few hours and I was extremely impressed with how the staff managed the queues and made announcements to call those individuals forward who were on earlier flights so they did not miss them. It did take us 2 hours to get through baggage drop off and security, but it was nice to have that time to meet the fellow travel agents I would be sharing this experience with.
Once landed in Porto, baggage claimed and greeted by Riviera representatives, we were taken on a luxury air-conditioned coach to a beautiful hotel called the Lodge Hotel in the area of Vila Nova de Gaia. Here we were welcomed by our friendly cruise director, provided tea/coffee/water and local pastries. He informed us that our baggage was on the way to the ship which was literally a 2-minute walk away and that we would be able to check-in onboard at 3pm. This gave us plenty of time to explore stunning Porto and have a sneak peak of our ship Ms Douro Elegance.
As I walked over the small foot bridge to the port I was simply in awe of the ship; she was of course a lot smaller than the ships I had been used to, but she looked fantastic and I was incredibly excited about starting my first ever river cruise. During our free time in Porto we were able to go up the cable car and walk across the tram bridge to the older side of Porto. From here we had beautiful views of the river and of our ship. Before we knew it, 3pm was here and we walked over from the hotel. As soon as we stepped onboard we were greeted with a cool towel and a welcome drink little did I know that this would become the norm. There were smiling and friendly faces greeting everyone and taking each of us to our cabins.
As soon as I walked into my Middle Deck cabin I was blown away; it was incredibly spacious and felt like home straight away. That afternoon and evening we spent time getting our bearings around the ship and had a nice drink before dinner. Dinner was fantastic, the service in the restaurant was impeccable and we made friends with our waiters and waitresses straight away. We retired earlier for the evening as it had been a long day and I wanted to be up early to watch us sail away.
Day 2
I awoke early so I could grab a latte from the tea and coffee station and head up to the top deck to watch us depart Porto and enjoy my first real experience of cruising down this beautiful river. The Douro river is only sailed during the day which is a huge benefit as you do not miss the beautiful scenery. It was incredibly peaceful watching the sunrise over the valley and that was when I fell in love with river cruising. After breakfast we had our welcome onboard meeting in the lounge bar; where our cruise director Mario introduced us to our heads of departments and did a presentation about the upcoming ports of call.
After the presentation, I got to experience my first lock called Crestuma-Lever which is only a 46-foot lift. I couldn’t believe that the ship was going to fit, it was certainly a tight squeeze. We then went through a second lock (Lock of Carrapatelo) which was built in 1965, this is the largest lift we would do within the river of 115ft high and is the biggest in Europe. As we came out the other side of this lock was when the scenery changed, and the wine-covered slopes of the Douro Valley came to life. Around 2pm we docked at our first port of call of Pinhao.
We boarded a coach and took a short drive through the Valley to Quinta de São Luís; where we had a tour of the family's beautiful vineyard and learned about the wine production process here in the Douro Valley; before being able to sample their red and white wine. That evening we were back on board for another beautiful dinner. On each menu there were local dishes to try as well accompanied by local wine. After dinner we were treated to a presentation of the celebratory way of opening Port Wine (using fire and cold water); which again we then got to sample this vintage port.
Day 3
We continued to cruise further upstream during the morning towards the Spanish border; the scenery was still stunning and reminded me of being in Norway as the Valley seemed to only just provide enough room on every turn for the ship to steer through. In the afternoon we visited the 12th century walled village of Castelo Rodrigo which is incredibly famous for its pilgrimage church and castle; alongside the local production of almonds of a variety of flavours; almond liqueur and cork products. That evening we enjoyed another beautiful four course dinner followed by a Quiz in the lounge hosted by the Cruise Director. It was great fun and allowed us all to socialize more with other fellow passengers.
Day 4
This morning we departed the ship early on a coach journey across the boarder into Spain to visit the golden city of Salamanca. This city is steeped in so much history and is stunning, we had free time to wander around and visit the square. For lunch, we went to a beautiful hotel where we had traditional Spanish tapas followed by a stunning traditional Flamenco show. This was a first for me and the room was completely silent whilst they performed as everyone was mesmerized by the sounds and movements.
After lunch we then completed a walking tour of Salamanca to learn about the history and the culture, stopping at the historic House of Shells and many cathedrals within the city. That evening after a long day of exploration we enjoyed a more informal traditional Portuguese buffet dinner. After dinner we decided to sit up on the top deck and have a nightcap whilst watching the shooting stars.
Day 5
We awoke this morning sailing back down the river; this morning our Cruise Director gave a talk about the next two days of excursions and what to expect. We started our transition back down the locks this time. We docked just after lunch and headed to Mateus Palace and Gardens. We were able to walk around the vegetable patches, fruit and olive trees, vineyards and the maze in our own time and just enjoy the peace and quiet. Mateus Palace is famous for it being the symbol of the branded label for Mateus Wine; however as we learned it is not produced on the grounds of Mateus Palace and the majority of the wine produced is actually shipped to the UK and other worldwide destinations.
The remaining 30% is kept in Portugal for the British and other nationalities to enjoy when visiting. That evening was a huge highlight for me as we went out for dinner at Quinta da Pacheca. This vineyard was absolutely stunning and having a locally produced 3 course meal whilst having port and wine produced just a few meters away from where we were dining was simply superb. They had a local band playing relaxing music during the dinner service whilst we could watch the sunset over the Valley. As the sun went down the music got more uptempo and there was not one person left sitting as we all got up and danced the evening away.
Day 6
After a morning stretch session and a walk around the top deck we departed for Lamego. We visited the Santuario de Nossa Senhora dos Remedios. Built on top of Mount St Stephen between the 18th and 20th century. The Marian shrine is visited by pilgrims from all over the country especially in September on the day of the Nativity of the Virgin and the high point of the feasts in honour of Our Lady of Remedies. The beautiful steps that give access to the sanctuary are divided over several levels and are aligned by sculptural elements such as statues of the kings and the eight fountains. We then went down to the main town to sample some local fizzy wine known as Spumante.
That afternoon we were sailing again by 1pm, and we then took advantage of watching the picturesque valley pass by from the comfort of a sunbed and taking a dip in the pool whilst we navigated the remaining locks and extremely low bridges (where at times they have to lower the bridge so the captain looks out of a sunroof and all passengers must remain seated as they lower the mast and the canopy too.
That evening we were treated to a Captain's Cocktail party where we were showed our appreciation to all the crew as each department paraded around the lounge from all of our waiters, the Chefs, the front of house, housekeeping and tour escorts as well as the Captain and the deck and engineering officers. It was a fantastic way to thank the crew for everything they had done for us as the week was closing. We then headed to the restaurant for our seven-course gala dinner where the Captain and his heads of departments joined us within the restaurant and had pictures with passengers and talked to them.
After dinner, all passengers then headed to the lounge bar to listen to a local Portuguese folk music group that came onboard to do an hour set. There was certainly a celebration atmosphere within the area, and it was truly wonderful to see the 84 passengers onboard and the crew and officers so happy and enjoying life after the challenging past few years we have all experienced.
Day 7
As we sailed during the morning we arrived back in Villa Nova de Gaia in Porto. That afternoon the majority of passengers completed a Porto City Tour after going to a local port cellar and sampling one of the many famous White and Ruby Ports. The one benefit with all of these excursions was that you did have the choice to do your own thing and there were a few of us who stayed onboard to enjoy the pool and relax before thinking about packing. That evening dinner was a little earlier and more informal as many passengers said their goodbyes to the crew and each other and heading back to their cabins to complete packing before early morning transfers back to the airport.
Day 8
I don’t think we could quite believe that the cruise had come to an end; at the beginning of the week time seem to stand still but as we heading back to Porto it seemed like we were speeding to the end. We departed the ship at 7am for our coach transfer of 25 minutes to the airport. We experienced no delays on our return flight and when we landed back in Manchester it only took us 30 minutes to get through passport control, collect luggage and say goodbyes to the group I travelled with whilst a few tears were shed and headed to collect my car.
My preconceptions of a river cruise were completely wrong, I would strongly recommend cruising not only the UNESCO protected Douro Valley but any of the beautiful rivers within Europe. It was truly an amazing experience where you got to feel you were travelling with family made up from other passengers and the fabulous crew in a breathtaking scenery that even pictures don’t do justice. I will certainly be back as I fell in love with the Douro Valley and Porto.
