São Gabriel: the new river cruise ship for Americans by DouroAzul

DouroAzul, the river cruise company in the Douro region owned by Porto entrepreneur Mário Ferreira, has welcomed its 13th river cruise ship, São Gabriel. The ship was built at the shipyards of Viana do Castelo and will exclusively cater to the North American market.

According to a statement from DouroAzul, São Gabriel, with a capacity for 100 passengers and 37 crew members, “is a modern river cruise ship with architectural innovations, featuring an impressive open central staircase and a luxurious panoramic elevator.”

“The São Gabriel, representing an investment of 14 million euros, signifies a new evolution in DouroAzul’s fleet, with improvements in passenger and crew comfort, the introduction of state-of-the-art technology to make the ship more sustainable and environmentally friendly, thus reducing energy and fuel consumption. It stands as an example of the quality of naval construction in Portugal,” highlights the river cruise company.

The new river cruise ship by DouroAzul is already docked at Vila Nova de Gaia’s pier, ready to start the river cruise season on the Douro River, pending “the lifting of the ban on tourism navigation in national ports by Portuguese health authorities.”

“We have our teams ready, our ships prepared, and thousands of customers, both national and foreign, eager to sail on our Douro River again, with all comfort and reinforced sanitary safety conditions, complying with all determinations of Portuguese authorities,” says Mário Ferreira, CEO of DouroAzul.

São Gabriel will operate exclusively for the North American market, which, according to Mário Ferreira, will bring “qualified tourism to the region,” providing further impetus for the reopening of these ships’ activities on the Douro River.

“After a year of weak activity in the Douro region, which prevented São Gabriel’s debut in 2020, the latest and most luxurious river cruise ship in our fleet is now in Gaia, along with 12 other DouroAzul ships, ready to operate exclusively with American tourists, bringing qualified tourism to the Douro region, which eagerly awaits the resumption of activity,” asserts the CEO.

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