Portugal, Spain & The Douro - Luxury All-Inclusive River Cruise with FREE Flights*!
11 days from Lisbon to Porto
Your journey starts in Lisbon, the city that launched some of the world’s most renowned explorers. Following the Douro River through Portugal and into Spain, you’ll cruise past steeply terraced hillsides, quaint villages and acres of ripe vineyards. Dine on traditional fare in majestic Coimbra, the birthplace of six Portuguese kings; enjoy private tastings of Port; and explore Porto’s historic Ribeira district, home to iconic rabelo boats, cutting-edge cuisine and a thriving art scene.
Wind your way through the dramatic landscapes of the UNESCO-designated Douro Valley, heading ashore to visit charming quintas and meet the winemakers who operate them. In Salamanca, Spain, you’ll see the city’s famous university. Return to Portugal with a visit to the fortified village of Castelo Rodrigo and historic Guimarães. There’s no better way to discover Europe’s best-kept secret than this scenic and all-inclusive river cruise!
DINING
- All meals onboard, prepared using the finest and freshest ingredients
- 10 breakfasts, 7 lunches, 7 dinners
- Gala Dinner
- Unlimited beverages onboard, including fine wine, beer, spirits, specialty coffee and tea, soft drinks and mineral water
EXCURSIONS
- 8 days of excursions, including “Choice Is Yours” options, all fully hosted by English-speaking local experts
- Guided “Do as the Locals Do” program
- State-of-the-art Quietvox portable audio-headset system on all excursions
- Use of bicycles and Nordic walking sticks
EXPERIENCES
- 2 countries: Spain and Portugal
- 7 UNESCO World Heritage sites
- Services of an experienced Uniworld Cruise Manager
- All transfers on arrival and departure days
- All gratuities, both onboard and onshore
- Captivating onboard local entertainment
- Cultural enrichment, including a Signature Lecture
DAY 1: Lisbon
Arrive at Lisbon Portela Airport. If your cruise/tour package includes a group arrival transfer or if you have purchased a private arrival transfer, you will be greeted by a Uniworld representative and transferred to the hotel.
DAY 2: Lisbon
Everything old is new again in the Portuguese capital, which is undergoing a remarkable rebirth of late. Get to know this hilly metropolis with a city tour that shows you all the top sights and treats you to an iconic, locally-made pastry with an intriguing tale all its own. Vibrant, colorful and picturesque, Lisbon will continually surprise you. Glorious historic architecture reflects the wealth brought in during the “Age of Discovery,” when the Portuguese owned the seas, but it is also a modern center of finance and international trade.
Featured Excursion: Lisbon city tour
DAY 3: Lisbon
Experience your own “Age of Discovery” with a full day to explore Lisbon however you wish. Get out and see the city on your own. Ride the famous iron elevator from the Baixa district up to the Bairro Alto, the cultural and bohemian heart of Lisbon, and catch a fantastic view of the city from the vantage point of São Pedro de Alcantara Belvedere. Once you reach Bairro Alto, head for São Roque, whose plain façade hides a magnificent baroque interior. The city hosts remarkable museums and excellent shopping. Your options at Centro Comercial Colombo, the biggest mall in the Iberian Peninsula, are seemingly limitless. Or try a flea market, perhaps the Campo de Santa Clara, if you prefer to hunt for unique treasures. Natives of Lisbon boast that they have the best food in the world; the many cafés and taverns tempt you to verify that claim.
DAY 4: Lisbon, Coimbra, Transfer to Porto (Embark)
You’ll check out of your Lisbon hotel and board a motorcoach, heading north through Portugal’s picturesque countryside toward Porto. En route to Porto, you’ll stop in Coimbra, home to an ancient university and a lavish baroque library considered one of the most beautiful in the world. Admire the lingering traces of the town’s Moorish and Roman past after sitting down to a traditional Portuguese lunch. After lunch, continue on to the port city at the mouth of the Douro.
Featured Excursion: Coimbra tour with Joanina Library visit and family-style lunch
DAY 5: Porto, Cruising the Douro River, Porto Antigo
There’s much more to Portugal’s second city than its eponymous fortified wine—historic architecture, cutting-edge design, fabulous food and wine, and a hip, laid-back vibe. Discover its many charms with your choice of distinctively different tours today. Portugal’s second city (after Lisbon), Porto gave its name to the nation’s most famous export, Port wine, and to the nation itself. The city is a fascinating combination of historic buildings and cutting-edge architecture, tradition and vivacious modernity. You must choose between two distinctive—and distinctively Portuguese—ways to explore Porto.
Choice of Panoramic city tour or Exclusive “Do as the Locals Do” Porto walking tour with local tastings and vintage tram ride
Your ship sets sail after your tour, cruising up the Douro toward Porto Antigo.
DAY 6: Cruising the Douro River, Régua, Pinhão
As you cruise along the river today, take note of the little chapels you see along the banks. Though the river is slow and calm now that it has been tamed by dams, it was once extremely hazardous. These tiny chapels mark spots where entire rabelo boat crews perished attempting to get their cargo of Port wine to Porto. Today we learn about wine, which has been cultivated in the Douro River Valley since ancient Roman times. Get a crash course on the history of Port during your visit to the Douro Museum.
Featured Excursion: Scenic wine route to Pinhão Valley
Choice of Douro Museum and Quinta de Avessada wine estate or Scenic sailing lunch onboard
DAY 7: Pinhão, Vega de Terrón
Feel the centuries fall away as your ship winds its way through the pristine, dramatic, UNESCO-protected landscapes of the Douro River Valley. Head ashore for a choice of excursions, a tasting at a prestigious port wine estate or a vineyard hike with a wine tasting at a local quinta.
Choice of Quinta do Seixo guided tour with tasting or Vineyard hike and wine tasting at a local quinta
In the evening, a special Gala Dinner will be prepared for you.
DAY 8: Vega de Terrón (Salamanca), Barca d’Alva
What adventures await you in Spain today? The ship docks near the Spanish border today, where you may head across the country to the historic university town of Salamanca—the “Golden City”—famous for its sand-colored buildings and abundance of churches.
Featured Excursion:
Salamanca - the Golden City and Spain's oldest university
DAY 9: Barca d’Alva, Pocinho, Cruising the Douro River
A tiny village surrounded by mountains, Barca d’Alva is your base for today's adventures. Go medieval today at Castelo Rodrigo, both the name of a hilltop castle as well as the village that surrounds it. It has been singled out as one of Portugal’s 12 historic villages for its medieval beauty. The view from the top is incredible and the village is a charming place to ramble, relax and replenish. Or, if you wish, you can also lace up your hiking boots and unleash your inner Indiana Jones with an up-close gander at some prehistoric carvings during a visit to Portugal’s first archaeological park, Foz Côa.
Choice of Castelo Rodrigo or Archaeological Park of the Côa Valley
DAY 10: Cruising the Douro River, Porto (Guimarães)
Guimarães or Porto? That’s the question of the day today (you really can’t go wrong either way). Guimarães is the town where Portugal was born and its well-preserved architecture and stylish young residents make it a pleasure to visit. Or opt to explore one of Porto’s oldest neighborhoods, picturesque Ribeira, considered the soul of the city. A tough choice awaits you today: Do you venture off to historic Guimarães, Portugal’s first capital, or do you stay in Porto and explore the Ribeira district on foot?
Choice of Guimarães city tour or Porto surprise discovery tour
DAY 11: Porto (Disembark)
You’ve experienced the best of Portugal, Spain and the pristine Douro River, but now the journey comes to a close and it’s time to disembark the ship. If your cruise/ tour package includes a group departure transfer or if you have purchased a private departure transfer, you will be transferred to Porto Airport for your flight home. Your Uniworld adventure may be over, but we know you’ll enjoy the memories you’ve made for years to come.
LIMITED TIME ONLY: Book a 2020 Uniworld river cruise of Europe (departing between 01 Mar-15 Nov 2020) by 31 AUG 2019 and you can fly FREE to Europe and back - or fly Business Class return from just $3,999 per person or if you don't need flights, you can save $1000 pp on your cruise.*
Below prices based on Classic Stateroom using the 2020 Air Offer*:
Twin share - from $7099 per person*
- 26 Mar 2020
- 02 Apr 2020
- 09 Apr 2020
- 12 Nov 2020
- 19 Nov 2020
Twin share - from $7699 per person*
- 16 Apr 2020
- 23 Apr 2020
- 30 Apr 2020
- 05 Nov 2020
Twin share - from $7799 per person*
- 02 Jul 2020
- 09 Jul 2020
- 16 Jul 2020
- 23 Jul 2020
- 30 Jul 2020
- 06 Aug 2020
- 13 Aug 2020
- 20 Aug 2020
- 27 Aug 2020
Twin share - from $8599 per person*
- 14 May 2020
- 21 May 2020
- 04 Jun 2020
- 11 Jun 2020
- 18 Jun 2020
- 25 Jun 2020
- 03 Sep 2020
- 10 Sep 2020
- 17 Sep 2020
- 24 Sep 2020
- 01 Oct 2020
- 08 Oct 2020
- 15 Oct 2020
Twin share - from $8899 per person*
- 28 May 2020
Solo traveller rates available on request. Please call 1300 414 198 for details. Why not extend your stay in Europe - we can book your accommodation and assist with travel insurance.
Uniworld’s S.S. São Gabriel provides an up-close and unforgettable view of Portugal’s Douro River Valley—a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site—renowned for its dramatic, rugged scenery and pristine waters. Named after Portugal's beloved queen, this boutique 112-passenger vessel is the most unique and stately ship on the Douro, a wonderful place to admire the region’s steeply terraced hillside vineyards and charming wine estates.
Travel at 60 and supplier booking conditions apply. Please contact us for more information.
DISCLAIMER - *Flight offers are only valid for new bookings made between 27 March and 31 August 2019. Prices are per person and represent adult fares including any applicable taxes and fuel surcharges. The offer is based on fares to the nearest available online European city to the cruise embarkation point or an available alternative as advised at time of booking. Participating air carriers are Qatar Airways and Singapore Airways, and are selected at the discretion of Uniworld, based on available fare classes at the time of booking and must be purchased in conjunction with an applicable 2020 Uniworld Europe departure. Departure from Australia can be taken when convenient for the guest and not prior to 1 March 2020, subject to availability. The airfare cannot be sold in isolation and is subject to availability. Uniworld reserves the right to correct errors or omissions and to change all fares, fees and surcharges at any time. Airfares are valid departing from SYD/MEL/ADL/PER/BNE and arriving into AMS, ATH, BCN, BER, BRU, BUD, BUH, CPH, DUB, EDI,FRA,GOT, IST, LON, MAD, MAN, MIL, MLA, MOW, MUC, NCE, OSL, PAR, PRG, PSA, ROM, STO, VCE, VIE, WAW, ZAG and ZRH, subject to selected carrier and routing. Surcharges apply if the required booking class is not available and a higher booking class is required and for select arrival cities. Payment terms Economy Airfares: 10% cruise deposit and a non-refundable $1,500 per person additional deposit is due within 5 days of booking. Payment terms Business Class Airfares: 10% cruise deposit and a non-refundable $1,500 payment towards business class airfare is due within 5 days. Final payment of cruise fare and balance of any airfare is due 120 days prior to cruise departure. Guests who do not wish to book airfares under this air offer, may receive a $1,000pp discount off their cruise fare. In this case, standard Uniworld booking conditions apply. By paying the applicable deposits you accept the Terms and Conditions of the Uniworld Air Offer, and tickets will be issued. Our partner airlines reserve the right to advise an earlier airfare Ticketing Time Limit date, subject to booking conditions and restrictions. Stopovers are subject to an additional surcharge and flight restrictions apply. After ticket issuance, date changes and cancellation fees apply. For customers purchasing Uniworld Gold Seal Protection (GSP), GSP will not apply to the additional deposit collected to participate in the air offer. Any cancellation charges will be deducted from the GSP credit – see website for full Terms and Conditions. The promotion is capacity controlled, and may not be combined with any other offer, except for River Heritage Club savings. This offer is valid on all available cabin categories on all 2020 departures across Europe (excluding Holiday Season voyages) sailings from 1 March to 15 November 2020. For cruise departures where flights are out of date range at time of booking, we will issue tickets only when the return date is within range, approximately 331 days prior to the selected return date. Tickets will only be issued when proposed flights have been confirmed by you or your travel advisor, and must be ticketed by 15 November 2019, unless out of date range, at which point tickets must strictly be issued 3 days after flight confirmation from Uniworld. We will do everything reasonably possible to fulfil the air offer. However, if we are unable to fulfil the flights for any reason, we will revert your booking to the cruise only early booking promotion available at the time your booking was made. Offers may be withdrawn or amended at any time. Please contact Uniworld for details.
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