About the tour: Cruising Portugal’s River Douro by Air

Fly to Porto, and transfer to your cruise ship the MS Infante Don Henrique, for seven nights. Depending on your flight arrival time you may wish to join our optional Porto by Night excursion (subject to availability on arrival), a unique opportunity to admire the city of Porto by night during a panoramic tour by coach. During the tour, your guide will schedule a stop at the Sao Bento railway station to look at its magnificent azulejos.

• Included meals: Dinner

Enjoy free time this morning or join our optional sightseeing tour of Porto (subject to availability on arrival). Porto is one of the oldest cities in Europe and has been awarded UNESCO World Heritage status. It stands out from the steep banks of the Douro river with its mixture of grey facades and red tiles interspersed with unusual architectural masterpieces. We’ll discover The Palácio da Bolsa (Stock Exchange Building), built in 1834 by the city's Commercial Association. After climbing up the beautiful granite and marble stairway, we’ll visit the former Tribunal Room, the Golden Room and the Arab Room, decorated in the exotic Moorish Revival style. We’ll also visit the Igreja de São Francisco (Church of Saint Francis), known as the “Golden Church”, and visit a port wine cellar to taste the ‘precious nectar’ made from local grapes grown along the banks of the River Douro. Tonight, we enjoy a Fado themed evening.

• Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today, we offer an optional excursion to Guimaraes. This charming Portuguese town boasts winding cobbled streets lined with bars and cafes. We explore on foot to discover Nossa Senhora de Oliveira Church, the Palace of the Dukes of Braganza, a medieval estate and former residence of the first Dukes of Braganza with striking architecture, as well as the labyrinthine lanes and picturesque plazas of the medieval heart of Guimaraes. We return to the ship and sail to Régua, through fabulous scenery and the gigantic lock at Carrapatello. We enjoy dinner on board this evening.

• Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Join our optional excursion to Vila Real, which enjoys a spectacular location between the gorges of the Corgo and Cabril Rivers and is famed for the diversity of its religious architectural styles. Aristocrats built grand palaces here during the 16th and 17th centuries. Stroll through the beautiful gardens of Solar de Mateus, the most beautiful and astonishing manor in northern Portugal, made with a subtle mixture of granite, white walls, statues and Baroque style pilasters, before returning to the ship. The cruise continues into the heart of the most famous vineyards in Porto and we enjoy dinner on board ship.

• Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Join our included excursion to Salamanca; another UNESCO World Heritage site, the Old Town of Salamanca has been listed since 1988. Visit the cathedral whose successive extensions created a mixture of styles from late Gothic to Baroque, including Renaissance, and then see one of the world’s oldest universities (opened in 1218), the “Escuelas Mayores”.The university building has a sumptuous gate adorned with the city’s most famous design: a frog atop a skull, and the library brims with old manuscripts dating back to before the 19th century. Enjoy time to explore the city on your own before returning to the ship and enjoying your evening meal and an evening of entertainment.

• Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

We spend the morning sailing before stopping in Ferradosa for an optional excursion to visit the ‘Wines of Porto’: follow the sinuous road, which extends over 100km along the Douro river all the way to the Spanish border, through the vineyards to San Salvador do Mundo and Sao Joao da Pesqueia, stop at an overlook surrounded by vines and visit a quinta (wine cellar) to taste the famous Porto. We return to the ship in Pinhão to enjoy free time exploring at your own pace, see Pinhão's splendid ‘azulejos’ (typical Portuguese tiles) before returning to the ship for tonight’s gala evening.

• Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Join our optional guided tour of Lamego and discover the Nossa Senhora dos Remedios sanctuary, with its 686 step Baroque staircase ending in a rocaille style shrine. The first stone was laid in 1750 and gave way to the construction of a massive temple overlooking the city and providing breath-taking views over the misty mountains of the surrounding landscape. We return to the ship and spend the afternoon sailing back to Porto through a number of large locks. Tonight we enjoy a traditional folklore themed evening.

• Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Disembark this morning. Transfer to Porto airport for our return flight to the U.K.

• Included meals: Breakfast