2023 Tour code: DOR23
About the tour
Travel to shimmering Lisbon and resplendent Sintra on a Portuguese voyage of discovery before continuing on a fantastic 7-night cruise along the golden Douro.
Highlights
What’s included
Itinerary
We meet at the airport today, where you are introduced to your Tour Manager. From here, we board our flight to Lisbon where we are transferred to our hotel. On arrival, we are greeted with a welcome drink after which you are free to settle into your room. For dinner this evening, we head to our hotel's excellent restaurant for our first meal of the holiday. Afterwards, you may wish to acquaint yourself with the city a little before you retire for the night.
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Reviews
4.5 / 5 · 12 reviews
David Luckett
Submitted 29/Sep
Excellent, centrally placed hotel in Lisbon. VG, interesting and informative 3 hr tour of Lisbon, including tram ride.. good train excursion to Sintra and Cascais, but would have liked a little more detailed information. Efficient, interesting train transfer from Lisbon to Porto. River Douro cruise: disappointing not to stop at any villages along the route but very relaxing cruising and interesting transiting the numerous locks. .Interesting excursions but often spoilt by guides who talked nonstop with often irrelevant and unnecessary historical dates and facts without giving information about the places we were passing, especially going in to Salamanca. However the city guide there was excellent. The ship, Douro Serenity. was excellent but the cabin 314 was very small, considering this was an upgrade this was very expensive and not worth the expense, the only benefit being an upper deck.. All the staff were excellent and helpful. The food was varied and with good choices. Full of praise to staff who were happy to arrange a table together with friends we had made on the tour. Interesting visit to the Sandman’s for Port tasting in Porto. Tour manager was not as good as those we had on previous Great Rail holidays. Although an enjoyable river cruise and city visit, this was not as good as the River Danube or the Adriatic cruises.
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L Ogilvie
Submitted 22/Sep
This was the first experience of river cruising but we would definitely do it again. We liked the fact that it was small scale. On board the accommodation was excellent and the was food was delicious and generous. All staff were charming, attentive and professional. The excursions were well planned with knowledgeable local guides.
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M Harrington
Submitted 20/Sep
Lovely ship, lovely food, lovely scenery, lovely crew, one hell of a lovely holiday
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P Eveson
Submitted 20/Sep
The whole holiday was very well organised. The city tour of Lisbon was excellent including a tram ride. The all day pass to Sintra was great as we visited the lighthouse and Caiscais on the way back to Lisbon. The boat trip up the River Douro was spectacular, excellent food and the excursions were good, especially the tour to Salamanca. It was a most enjoyable experience. I would recommend this tour.
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John
Submitted 20/Sep
Excellent service and facilities on board.
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Robert M
Submitted 7/Jul
All transfers were fine and on time. Lisbon and the hotel were excellent. The river trip was good and the trips out varied, so no complaints. The food on the first night buffet was chaotic with not enough food for all the passengers. We were able to get some food but other passengers went without. The served meals were excellent but on the other occasion when a buffet was supplied it was disappointing. Having paid over £3000 for the holiday I was not expecting a second buffet meal of disappointing standard. Give me served meals any day. Having been on a Danube cruise with GRJ, the Douro buffet food was a disappointment. GRJ realise the pitfalls and have offered £100 voucher for another European holiday but only until December 2022, which is only 6 months away. I won't be able to take advantage of it.
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A Portuguese voyage of discovery
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21/05/2020 · By Sukie Chapman
There’s a reason why summer travel is historically so popular and that’s the weather. As an island nation with no guarantee of sun, it’s fantastic we have so many destinations to choose from that ensure we get our fill of vitamin D.
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08/01/2020 · By Rashmi Guha Ray
There’s something deeply romantic about train journeys. In a fast-paced world where the skies are dotted with aeroplanes and air traffic has become the norm, the nostalgic appeal of trains can hardly be denied.
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12/04/2017 · By Persephone Hallow
River cruising is becoming one of the most popular holiday choices, particularly for leisurely travellers over 60, offering a scenic escape with some wonderful perks. Today we’re exploring why the river cruise has become so popular in recent years, and whether it might just be the right holiday for you.
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