Portugal & Spain: Treasures Along the Golden Douro - 2022

Depart the U.S. and board an overnight flight to Madrid, Spain.

Arrive in Spain’s capital city. If you purchased your airfare from Vantage, our representative will meet you outside the arrivals area at the airport and assist you with your transfer to the hotel. Travelers on the optional pre-trip extension to Barcelona will meet up with fellow travelers on Day 2. Enjoy a Welcome Briefing and Dinner this evening.

Explore vibrant Madrid on foot, walking through Plaza Sol and Plaza Mayor, savoring city views, and passing multiple other historic monuments. Then, embark on a panoramic drive and walking tour that includes the Atocha Station, Retiro Park, Gran Vía, and an outside look at the Royal Palace. Later, visit the city’s Mercado Central for an included tapas tasting! The rest of the afternoon is at leisure to further explore or enjoy optional tour to Prado. Tonight, witness Spanish history come to life during a stirring flamenco dinner show, with dinner.

Vantage Exclusive:

• Panoramic Madrid excursion with a walking tour of major landmarks

• Mercado Central visit and included tapas tasting

• Flamenco dinner show

Enjoy a free day to pursue your own interests with recommendations provided by your Cruise Director or join full-day Toledo optional tour. Wander the city’s many squares, shop for espadrilles and other classic Spanish products, and get your fill of tapas!

Discover the magic of Salamanca on a walking tour. Then, explore its UNESCO-listed Old City and see the town’s grand cathedral and baroque Plaza Mayor, where you can seek out churros and do some shopping and independent wandering along the town's main street. Lunch, typically tapas, will be on your own. We’ll depart for Madrid after lunch — practice your pronunciation during the drive, with a Spanish language lesson and an introduction to Spain! Afterward, transfer to the pier and embark the m/s Douro Serenity. Tonight, enjoy a Welcome Drink and Briefing before your first dinner on board.

Included Feature:

• Guided Salamanca walking tour, with visit to the UNESCO-listed Old City

• Language lesson and introduction to Portugal

• Tonight, we’ll begin our sail down the UNESCO-listed Douro River, lined with terraced vineyards and quintas, or rural estates. During the length of our cruise, we’ll pass multiple locks and offer onboard commentary on certain stretches, and you’ll enjoy slow sailing to savor every view!

Turn back the clock 600 years today on a visit to the fortified hill town of Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo. A coach and walking tour takes you to the city’s old walls, 16th-century pillory, the local parish church, and more. You’ll also enjoy a small tasting of local products here, which will introduce you to the culinary culture of the area. Continuing the culinary theme today, you can later participate in an onboard demonstration of the classic Portuguese egg pastry, pastéis de nata. (You'll get to compare your recipe to a local version later in Lisbon.) You'll also enjoy an authentic Portuguese tea experience — complete with pastries — while learning about the traditions surrounding tea drinking and tea production.

Included Feature:

• Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo walking tour

• Regional food tasting in Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo
• Portuguese tea experience onboard
• Onboard cooking lesson: Pastéis de nata

Today will go down as a highlight of your journey after you make a special full “Harvest Day” visit to Quinta da Avessada, hosted by Luis Barros, the estate’s fifth-generation owner. Located at the highest point on the Douro, this winery produces a staggering 30,000,000 bottles of light, fruity, fortified muscatel wine. Along with a tour of the cellars and museum, pick grapes in the vineyard, enjoy local entertainment, and channel your inner Lucille Ball during a grape stomping experience — a classic way to celebrate the culture of the UNESCO-listed Alto Douro Wine Region. Return to the ship for an afternoon at leisure. After dinner tonight, gather in the lounge for a movie and popcorn.

Harvest Season Exclusive:

• Full-day “Harvest Day” excursion to Quinta da Avessada, hosted by Luis Barros

After breakfast, get “A Look Inside Portugal” with another lecture, then visit a local quinta to sample more fantastic regional wines in yet another breathtaking Douro setting. Return to the ship for lunch as you sail to Lamego, site of your afternoon explorations. This quaint town is filled with terra-cotta rooftops, tree-lined streets, and a 700-step staircase that leads to the grand Santuário de Nossa Senhora dos Remédios. Your tour begins at the church. Then, you can descend all 700 steps and admire the surrounding gardens filled with monuments, terraces, fountains, and pretty tile mosaics. You’ll also visit a former episcopal palace that’s now the Lamego Museum, which houses a collection of works by Portuguese painter Grão Vasco. Before dinner, catch a demonstration on how to open and decant a fine vintage port in preparation for serving, followed by a tasting — the perfect prelude to tonight's delightful Captain's Dinner, complete with traditional Portuguese fado music.

Harvest Season Exclusive:

• Learn how to open and decant a fine vintage port, followed by a tasting

• Lamego tour, with entrance to the Lamego Museum
• Afternoon quinta visit and wine tasting

• Onboard lecture: “A Look Inside Portugal”
• Fado music performance in the lounge

A plethora of cultural delights awaits you today! Begin the day in Régua to visit its Museu do Douro to learn about the storied Douro River during a lecture and wine tasting. Alternately, skip the museum and explore more of the town on an active walk. Lunch is on board as the ship sails to Bitetos. Here, a short drive brings us to Aveleda Winery for an upgraded tasting of Vinho Verde and snacks, including Portuguese sausage and cheeses. Enjoy dinner on board tonight, then let music transport you back in time when local performers come on board to play favorites from the '60s, '70s, and '80s.

Harvest Season Exclusive:

• Aveleda Winery excursion with enhanced wine and cheese tasting

• Onboard music performance in the lounge

• Régua active walking tour

After breakfast, get insights into Portugal's booming cork industry as you sail to the port wine capital of Porto. No visit to Porto is complete without enjoying its signature wine, of course! So, we’ll seek our port-wine at one of the city’s best-known cellars. Lunch is back on board before a panoramic city tour of Porto, including a visit to the historic center — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — and the market area. Back on the ship this evening, a local artisan will give a talk on “Portuguese Filigree.” Following dinner, enjoy a lively performance by a local tuna band.

Vantage Exclusive:

• Port wine tasting in a celebrated Porto wine cellar

• Guided city and panoramic tour of Porto

• “Portuguese Filigree” onboard talk by a local artisan
• Tuna band performance in the ship’s lounge

Enjoy your choice of excursions today: A morning guided tour of the UNESCO-listed historical center and castle of Guimarães, a preserved medieval city; or, discover more of Porto with a walking tour of its oldest district, Ribeira. However you choose to spend the morning, you’ll reembark the ship for lunch and an afternoon at leisure in Porto. Later, enjoy a special “World of Discoveries” themed dinner on board, and perhaps joining your Cruise Director for a pub crawl.

Included Feature:

• Your choice of tours: Guided Guimarães sightseeing or a walking tour of Porto’s Ribeira district

This morning, say goodbye to the m/s Douro Serenity and transfer to the final city on your tour: Lisbon. On the way, stop for lunch in Nazaré, a beach town famous for its monstrous waves and surfing culture before exploring Óbidos, a town full of beauty and medieval history. Tonight, gather in the hotel restaurant for a Farewell Dinner.

Included Features:

• Óbidos walking tour
• Sightseeing and lunch in Nazaré

Begin the day with a guided panoramic and walking tour of Lisbon’s famed monuments, including Belém Tower and the courtyards of the Jeronimos Monastery, both UNESCO World Heritage Sites. During your city tour, you’ll sample a classic Portuguese pastry: the mouthwatering pastéis de Belém. One taste of this creamy egg custard wrapped in buttery, flaky crust, and you’ll see why this is Portugal’s favorite treat! Enjoy the rest of the day at leisure by exploring Lisbon’s cobblestoned charm on your own, perhaps even joining your Cruise Director for a pub crawl.

Included Feature:

• Guided panoramic and walking tour of Lisbon and its monuments

• Pastéis de Belém sampling

A day at leisure lets you enjoy more time in Lisbon. Active travelers can embark on a hike through the Seven Hills of Lisbon, a trademark for must-see views of the city. Or, you can head over to Castelo neighborhood for a trek up to São Jorge Castle, which offers a stunning overlook of the city and shopping opportunities for everything, from local pottery to Portugal’s famous azulejo tiles.

After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your flight home. Or continue your travels by next heading to the island of Madeira on an optional extension.