This was our first river cruise so we asked friends for their recommendation. They had no hesitation in recommending Viking and particularly the river Douro. We departed Manchester on a KLM flight, changing at Amsterdam then onward to Lisbon. The flights were comfortable and kept to the scheduled times. On arrival in Lisbon we were welcomed at the airport by the Viking representative who escorted us to the Viking coach for transfer to our hotel. We stayed 2 nights at the sumptuous Tivoli Hotel and , during our stay enjoyed a most informative conducted coach tour of Lisbon and the surrounding area.

Following our stay in Lisbon, we traveled by coach to Porto where we were welcomed on board the "Osfrid" and ushered to our individual staterooms. The whole process of embarkation and disembarkation was handled with great care, Viking staff helping and guiding at every point.

Our Journey took us up the river Douro, calling at vineyards, castles, places of worship, places of learning and all within a very informative and interesting environment. The guides were very experienced and knowledgeable. In addition to the inclusive excursions it was also possible to book additional ones to other places of interest, however, we never felt the need as the inclusive coach excursions proved to be more than enough to keep us occupied during the entire holiday. Read more