Douro river cruise

[Galadhrim]

Condocat thank you so much for your prompt report. It was however, distressing. Perhaps I will cancel my reservation since I have only paid the deposit. As Galadhrin states some of these items should be sorted out - although inexplicably this often doesn't happen. Most likely they wont change the eating off ship since they would have to make a major overhaul of their tours. I don't go until the end of October. Certainly hope that more updated reports are posted.

Condocat where do you live in NC? I live in Cary.

Again thank you both Condocat and Galadhrin.

PS Would be nice to have the Uniworld spokesman pop in and respond to this.

 

As I said, I expect that all the minor issues here talked are solved by October. I’ve stayed in a couple of hotels during their opening weeks and encountered similar problems. A couple of months later they were fantastic.

 

Regarding the food, before deciding to go on the cruise I read several online and printed reviews of Uniworld’s Douro cruise and all of them spoke highly of the food quality. But then again, food quality is a highly subjective matter.

 

I would wait for more reviews, especially of cruises made during June and July. October was suggested to me as the best time to visit the Duoro because it’s wine harvest season. For personal reasons I couldn’t book the cruise for that time, so decided that spring was the season to go.

 

Good cruising to everyone.

[qmcmret]

To those of you with angst regarding the Duro River trip with Uniworld, my wife and I are leaving Tuesday 6/7 for the 6/9 trip. We are spending an additional day in Lisbon. I will try and write a review when we return. We have traveled with Uniworld three times before, so I will have a comparison with their other ships, although I have read that they do not own the Duro river boat, but lease it. I would hope they attempt to maintain the standards of their other boats.

[Condocat]

Enjoy your upcoming trip. It's a beautiful part of Europe.

 

You are correct, the Douro ship is leased and I believe this contributes to part of the problem, however having cruised with Uniworld on two other occasions, one as recently as this past December, these shortfalls I described should not have occurred as they do not meet Uniworld's level of standards.

 

PS: Bring a fly swatter, they were a bit overwhelming on the river and as they came onboard were annoying at dinner and in your room. The ship did nothing to help control them, i.e fly paper, bug zappers.

[BBWC]

Condocat -

 

could you tell me something about the dress code on board? Were the men wearing jackets for the captain's welcome dinner as mentioned in the Uniworld brochure? We like to dress up but will try to pack light for this cruise.

[Condocat]

I would say 50-60% of the men wore jackets. Many just wore silk printed short sleeve shirts or a long sleeve dress shirt. My husband bought a jacket with him for the three weeks we were in Portugal and never wore it once, mainly because it was too warm, 80+ degrees. I think your husband will be fine without it. He may want to bring a lightweight sweater vest as the Douro valley can cool down in the evening, but we experienced a bit of heatwave last week! I always pack a sweater due to AC, but the dining room on the ship was very comfortable temperature wise as well as all the restaurants in Europe.

[toodles7]

Hello everyone!

My husband and I are on the Douro cruise and staying an extra night in Porto.

Any suggestions on accomodations would be appreciated.

Susan

svlockwood@aol.com:)

[pacmom]

We used ponts and stayed at the Quality Inn--room OK, breakfast very good, location very central at the square where the main shopping street starts. Right next door there was a very good restaurant. There was a nice mall and we also had dinner there. Be prepared, Porto, like most of Portugal is very hilly. If you want more info, I'll get out my journal. It was a wonderful trip. Pat

[H2Otstr]

We stayed at the Hotel da Bolsa, which was recommended by another traveler. It was OK. I wished that we would have spent the extra money and stayed at the hotel that is right on the river front (sorry, don't know the name of it). We walked from our hotel down to the waterfront several times a day; it was about 3 blocks, and as Pat mentioned, VERY hilly. We also took the HoHo bus and really enjoyed that.

 

We had a very nice lunch at Sandeman Port Winery. We sat outside in the café and ate, watched all the people walking by and all the boats on the Douro.

 

Have a wonderful trip.

[simba3]

Hi

Condocat, you mentioned what the men wore...how about the ladies? I was planning on capris or slacks, perhaps a very low key (not cut) "Tee-Shirt/Sun dress"? Susan, we too will be staying in Porto for an extra night. After a lot of research on Trip Advisor, we chose Ibis Porto Centre with breakfast. It's a non smoking hotel which is something that we look for, price was right including breakfast if you pay upfront.

Jane

[rundent]

Hi, The Ibis is on my list too. Even though we'll only be there for 24 hours I'd like to know if it was as nice as it's reviews would indicate. Also, how did you arrange for the included breakfast and how much extra was it? As long as I've got you here I'd like to ask it you flew on TAP and what was your experience. Thanks, Larry

[simba3]

Hi Larry,

 

We have not taken our trip yet, not until Mid August. I went on the Ibis website and they offered breakfast for 6 euros p/p. We paid in advance and I think it came to about 60 euros. We're also booked on TAP and are staying the extra night in order to fly non stop into Newark. It's worth the extra night away for non stop. So far, I'm not too thrilled with TAP. They have changed our departure out of Newark from 6:30 ish to after 10 pm. I will keep you informed as to the rest of our experience. I did get a response from Uniworld regarding all the problems on the first few crises. They apologized and said everything should be up to Uniworld standards.

 

Enjoy your weekend.

Jane

[Condocat]

In the evening slacks, capris, sundresses will be perfect. The night of the Capt.'s dinner women got a little more glammed up and a few sparkly tops came out along with matching jackets and dressier pants. I just wore a silk knit top with beads and dress pants which was fine. Have fun packing!

[toodles7]

We used ponts and stayed at the Quality Inn--room OK, breakfast very good, location very central at the square where the main shopping street starts. Right next door there was a very good restaurant. There was a nice mall and we also had dinner there. Be prepared, Porto, like most of Portugal is very hilly. If you want more info, I'll get out my journal. It was a wonderful trip. Pat

 

 

Hi Pat,

Thanks so much. Yes, I would appreciate any additional information you can provide. Are the streets cobblestone? Quaint old city? Or just certain sections? How far from the river is the main street?

Also wondering about distance to airport from main center of city.

Susan

[toodles7]

Hi

Condocat, you mentioned what the men wore...how about the ladies? I was planning on capris or slacks, perhaps a very low key (not cut) "Tee-Shirt/Sun dress"? Susan, we too will be staying in Porto for an extra night. After a lot of research on Trip Advisor, we chose Ibis Porto Centre with breakfast. It's a non smoking hotel which is something that we look for, price was right including breakfast if you pay upfront.

Jane

 

Jane,

I appreciate the info on Ibis Porto Centre. Is it on the water? I will check into it.

When do you travel?

Susan

[simba3]

Susan

 

We are on the August 17th trip. I don't think the hotel is too close to the water, it's in the center of the city. I think I read that it's a short walk to the water. When is your trip?

Jane

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Hi,

We're booked on the Douro Spirit in Nov. and now I am concerned. Hope that others on more recent trips post her and I also would like to hear from Uniworld. Should we cancel?

Also we are thinking of staying 1-2 days extra in Porto so would love to hear from anyone who has done that and where they recommend staying.

Thanks.

Susan

svlockwood@aol.com:)

 

Definitely stay in Porto for a couple of days. It's a beautiful and very interesting city. I can't really recommend a hotel--we stayed north of the centre, and that was great but a little isolated--next time I'd try to stay right in the old gothic quarter, if I could. Don't miss going to a port lodge for a tour--we did Sandeman and had a great time, and tasted some very nice port. There's also the Port Museum in town.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

I'm going to be watching to see how this ship shakes down. It looks like Uniworld is the only game in town on the Douro right now. I've been wanting to do this ever since we were in Porto and northern Portugal in 2006, and am keeping my eyes open for 2013.

 

Does anyone know what the best time of year would be? I know September/October would get you into wine harvest, which would be fun. We were there in late June and the weather was lovely. But how would it be in the spring? I'm thinking perhaps April, but just wondering if anyone has done the trip at that time of year.

[H2Otstr]

I'm going to be watching to see how this ship shakes down. It looks like Uniworld is the only game in town on the Douro right now. I've been wanting to do this ever since we were in Porto and northern Portugal in 2006, and am keeping my eyes open for 2013.

 

Does anyone know what the best time of year would be? I know September/October would get you into wine harvest, which would be fun. We were there in late June and the weather was lovely. But how would it be in the spring? I'm thinking perhaps April, but just wondering if anyone has done the trip at that time of year.

 

 

We went with AMAwaterways to Portugal in 2008; AMA still has a tour there. We went in early Sept. and it was very pretty. The down side of fall is that the evenings are shorter and it gets dark earlier. No big deal, though.

[QuietThinker]

I just booked the Uniworld Douro River cruise for May 2012; I got it as a single with no single supplement. Looking forward to hearing more as other people take the trip this year.

[ozymandias4491]

We have recently returned from a cruise on the Douro in Portugal on the new DOURO SPIRIT, its second voyage, in my opinion the only place it should be cruising to is the scrapyard.

We had a dreadful holiday, so many serious things wrong with this ship, everyday a new problem, water leaking through ceilings in cabins, blocked toilets lift not working, dreadful food, queuing for meals, understaffed, outings not very good. workmen taking thinmgs apart all week that we were on board, Oh I could go on, yes also the chef left the ship as well

[rundent]

I know that this last posting is from a passenger from a cruise that was reported on previously, but it is disturbing. Having been in the Navy I know that a ship needs shaking down even after a yard period but would like some reassurance that all items are being taken care of and she'll be shipshape and ancillary matters also made perfect. That said,I've never read anything like this on these boards. Perhaps you're having trouble with the ship's owners, and if that's so, let us know so we can be warned - you really don't want to be badmouthed on Cruise Critic. If you'd like to leave a name and contact info. that would help.

[toodles7]

I know that this last posting is from a passenger from a cruise that was reported on previously, but it is disturbing. Having been in the Navy I know that a ship needs shaking down even after a yard period but would like some reassurance that all items are being taken care of and she'll be shipshape and ancillary matters also made perfect. That said,I've never read anything like this on these boards. Perhaps you're having trouble with the ship's owners, and if that's so, let us know so we can be warned - you really don't want to be badmouthed on Cruise Critic. If you'd like to leave a name and contact info. that would help.

 

 

This info is disturbing and I hope that Uniworld updates us on their progress to make thing right. We are booked on the Nov. tour and were looking forward to it very much.

Please advise as soon as possible - both for your sake and reputation as well as our travel plans and those of many others. :confused:

[Condocat]

My heart goes out all of you as you look ahead to what should be an enjoyable vacation adventure and not one filled with disturbing anticipation from the few of us who have reported our experiences from this problematic cruise.

 

I would strongly suggest writing Uniworld in CA rather than assuming or waiting for them to respond to this thread on cruise critic. I believe a letter sends a strong message you're serious. Good luck!

 

Here's the address:

 

Mr. Guy Young

President

Uniworld River Cruises, Inc.

17323 Ventura Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 91316

 

PS: If you are working with a travel agent, I would also cc that person.

[simba3]

Here is part of a response that I received from Uniworld on June 5th."...We are aware of the start-up issues the Douro Spirit has experienced, and many of the issues have already been rectified. Since it is a chartered vessel, we continue to work with the company that owns and operates the ship, and we are confident that the ship will be operating to the Uniworld standard very soon. We have some key Uniworld personnel currently onboard, and the services and accommodations are improving quickly."

I hope we hear from cruisers going on the next several trips with better reports. We are all spending too much money for a bad trip.

Jane

[Condocat]

I agree Jane, it is a lot of money for a bad trip. I think Uniworld is trying but they have a long way to go and some things I fear may be out of their control. When we were on the ship, the 4th sailing, now 2 weeks ago, there were two men who were rumored to be executives from Uniworld's culinary staff. They never mingled with the guests, but worked very intensely with the chef and others. The food onboard was very good. So their efforts were paying off.

 

One of the biggest problems is the ship itself. I will venture to guess the ship was not in "tip top" shape to begin with and Uniworld is also trying to accommodate too many people on it, which I think brings down a entire cadre of problems. The dining room is small which is again brings about more problems. We sailed with 112 people and it's listed to have capacity for 128. I would not want to be in that dining room with a full ship.

 

The cruise itinerary should also be reviewed and with its current

stucture could be made into a 5 day cruise rather than a 7 day one (excluding the hotel stay in Lisbon). That however is not just merely the opinion of myself and my husband, but the majority of the people on our May 19th cruise.

 

Many things happened I have not even discussed here, but the bottomline, the value for one's dollar was not there. I have made everything very clear to Uniworld and expect an answer from them as this cruise did not measure up to their standards of performance.