cruising porto

In order to offer our clients as many options of itineraries as possible when cruising porto, we operate from 2 bases: Porto and Pinhão.

While cruising Porto, we can also board and disembark from any pier or marina, as long as it offers the necessary safety conditions.

This way we can cover all 210 km of the navigation channel!

DOURO river

The Douro river begins in Spain, at an altitude of more than 2,000 meters, in the Serra de Urbión, and enters Portugal near Barca d'Alva. With a total length of 927 kilometers, in Portuguese territory, this river is only 210 km long and is navigable along the entire route, thanks to its five dams.

It finds its mouth on the banks of the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia, ending its journey on the Atlantic

The Douro is the third largest river in the Iberian Peninsula, encompassing other rivers such as the Sabor, Tua or Távora, and serves as the main source of irrigation for the grapes used to produce the wine. The vines are grown on farms that were established by cutting terraces on the steep banks of the river. The product of the harvest then goes down the river to Vila Nova de Gaia where the Port wine is distilled.

Before reaching the Atlantic Ocean, the Douro River passes through several cities and, along the way it takes, many areas classified as World Heritage have risen, such as Vila Nova de Foz Côa, where the largest museum is located. outdoors of rock art, the Alto Douro Vinhateiro and, finally, the Historic Center of Porto.

Throughout its journey, the land is fertile, because it is irrigated by the waters of this river, and we cannot forget that Man passed and settled in these areas due to these waters, where he could fish to eat or water the land he cultivated. For all these reasons, the Douro River is more than a landscape or a navigable medium, it is history and the mark of a people.

There are many legends that try to explain the name of this river. One of them says that, along the steep slopes, some shiny stones rolled down to the river, which they discovered to be of gold (Douro: of + gold). Another points out that the name may come from the Celtic word 'dur', which means water, but there is still another that tries to explain the name of the river with the Latin word 'duris', which means 'hard' and which could be an association with harshness of the landscapes that surround the Douro River.

Welcome aboard!

Sail with us along the river, clicking on the suggested spots to know more!