Set on seven hills on the banks of the River Tagus, Lisbon has been the capital of Portugal since the 13th century. It is a city famous for its majestic architecture, old wooden trams, Moorish features and more than twenty centuries of history. Following disastrous earthquakes in the 18th century, Lisbon was rebuilt by the Marques de Pombal who created an elegant city with wide boulevards and a great riverfront and square, Praça do Comércio. Today there are distinct modern and ancient sections, combining great shopping with culture and sightseeing in the Old Town, built on the city’s terraced hillsides. The distance between the ship and your tour vehicle may vary. This distance is not included in the excursion grades.
Lively, commercial Oporto is the second largest city in Portugal after Lisbon. Also called Porto for short, the word easily brings to mind the city’s most famous product – port wine. Oporto’s strategic location on the north bank of the Douro River has accounted for the town’s importance since ancient times. The Romans built a fort here where their trading route crossed the Douro, and the Moors brought their own culture to the area. Oporto profited from provisioning crusaders en route to the Holy Land and enjoyed the riches from Portuguese maritime discoveries during the 15th and 16th centuries. Later, port wine trade with Britain compensated for the loss of the spice trade and the end of gold and gem shipments from Brazil. In the 19th century, the city went through a period of new prosperity with the rise of industries. In its wake followed the building of workers’ quarters and opulent residences. Since the declaration of Oporto as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, the city aims to build up a cultural reference that will provide it with a new image, based on deep historical roots. Among the attractions that make Oporto such an interesting place are its graceful bridges spanning the Douro River, a picturesque riverfront quarter and, most notable, its world-famous port wine lodges. Although Oporto is a bustling centre and home to many different businesses, the source of its greatest fame is the rich, sweet fortified red wine we know as port.
Bordeaux as a whole, rather than any particular points within it, is what you’ll want to visit in order to understand why Victor Hugo described it as Versailles plus Antwerp, and why the painter Francisco de Goya, when exiled from his native Spain, chose it as his last home (he died here in 1828). The capital of southwest France and the region’s largest city, Bordeaux remains synonymous with the wine trade: wine shippers have long maintained their headquarters along the banks of the Garonne, while buyers from around the world arrive for the huge biennial Vinexpo show (held in odd-number years).Bordeaux is, admittedly, a less exuberant city than many others in France, but lively and stylish elements are making a dent in its conservative veneer. The cleaned-up riverfront is said by some, after a bottle or two, to exude an elegance reminiscent of St. Petersburg, and that aura of 18th-century élan also permeates the historic downtown sector—“le vieux Bordeaux”—where fine shops invite exploration. To the south of the city center are old docklands undergoing renewal—one train station has now been transformed into a big multiplex movie theater—but the area is still a bit shady. To get a feel for the historic port of Bordeaux, take the 90-minute boat trip that leaves Quai Louis-XVIII every weekday afternoon, or the regular passenger ferry that plies the Garonne between Quai Richelieu and the Pont d’Aquitaine in summer. A nice time to stroll around the city center is the first Sunday of the month, when it’s pedestrian-only and vehicles are banned.
Bordeaux as a whole, rather than any particular points within it, is what you’ll want to visit in order to understand why Victor Hugo described it as Versailles plus Antwerp, and why the painter Francisco de Goya, when exiled from his native Spain, chose it as his last home (he died here in 1828). The capital of southwest France and the region’s largest city, Bordeaux remains synonymous with the wine trade: wine shippers have long maintained their headquarters along the banks of the Garonne, while buyers from around the world arrive for the huge biennial Vinexpo show (held in odd-number years).Bordeaux is, admittedly, a less exuberant city than many others in France, but lively and stylish elements are making a dent in its conservative veneer. The cleaned-up riverfront is said by some, after a bottle or two, to exude an elegance reminiscent of St. Petersburg, and that aura of 18th-century élan also permeates the historic downtown sector—“le vieux Bordeaux”—where fine shops invite exploration. To the south of the city center are old docklands undergoing renewal—one train station has now been transformed into a big multiplex movie theater—but the area is still a bit shady. To get a feel for the historic port of Bordeaux, take the 90-minute boat trip that leaves Quai Louis-XVIII every weekday afternoon, or the regular passenger ferry that plies the Garonne between Quai Richelieu and the Pont d’Aquitaine in summer. A nice time to stroll around the city center is the first Sunday of the month, when it’s pedestrian-only and vehicles are banned.
Best known as the port from which Sir Francis Drake and the port which the Pilgrim Fathers set sail from, Plymouth is awash with history. Walk down its cobbled streets, step back in time and discover the historical landmarks and sites.
Cork City’s nearby harbor district has seen plenty of history. Cork Harbour’s draws include Fota Island—with an arboretum, a wildlife park, and the Fota House ancestral estate—and the fishing port of Cobh.
Dublin is making a comeback. The decade-long “Celtic Tiger” boom era was quickly followed by the Great Recession, but The Recovery has finally taken a precarious hold. For visitors, this newer and wiser Dublin has become one of western Europe’s most popular and delightful urban destinations. Whether or not you’re out to enjoy the old or new Dublin, you’ll find it a colossally entertaining city, all the more astonishing considering its intimate size.It is ironic and telling that James Joyce chose Dublin as the setting for his famous Ulysses, Dubliners, and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man because it was a “center of paralysis” where nothing much ever changed. Which only proves that even the greats get it wrong sometimes. Indeed, if Joyce were to return to his once-genteel hometown today—disappointed with the city’s provincial outlook, he left it in 1902 at the age of 20—and take a quasi-Homeric odyssey through the city (as he so famously does in Ulysses), would he even recognize Dublin as his “Dear Dirty Dumpling, foostherfather of fingalls and dotthergills”?For instance, what would he make of Temple Bar—the city’s erstwhile down-at-the-heels neighborhood, now crammed with cafés and trendy hotels and suffused with a nonstop, international-party atmosphere? Or the simple sophistication of the open-air restaurants of the tiny Italian Quarter (named Quartier Bloom after his own creation), complete with sultry tango lessons? Or of the hot–cool Irishness, where every aspect of Celtic culture results in sold-out theaters, from Once, the cult indie movie and Broadway hit, to Riverdance, the old Irish mass-jig recast as a Las Vegas extravaganza? Plus, the resurrected Joyce might be stirred by the songs of Hozier, fired up by the sultry acting of Michael Fassbender, and moved by the award-winning novels of Colum McCann. As for Ireland’s capital, it’s packed with elegant shops and hotels, theaters, galleries, coffeehouses, and a stunning variety of new, creative little restaurants can be found on almost every street in Dublin, transforming the provincial city that suffocated Joyce into a place almost as cosmopolitan as the Paris to which he fled. And the locals are a hell of a lot more fun! Now that the economy has finally turned a corner, Dublin citizens can cast a cool eye over the last 20 crazy years. Some argue that the boomtown transformation of their heretofore-tranquil city has permanently affected its spirit and character. These skeptics (skepticism long being a favorite pastime in the capital city) await the outcome of “Dublin: The Sequel,” and their greatest fear is the possibility that the tattered old lady on the Liffey has become a little less unique, a little more like everywhere else.Oh ye of little faith: the rare ole gem that is Dublin is far from buried. The fundamentals—the Georgian elegance of Merrion Square, the Norman drama of Christ Church Cathedral, the foamy pint at an atmospheric pub—are still on hand to gratify. Most of all, there are the locals themselves: the nod and grin when you catch their eye on the street, the eagerness to hear half your life story before they tell you all of theirs, and their paradoxically dark but warm sense of humor. It’s expected that 2016 will be an extra-special year in the capital, as centenary celebrations of the fateful 1916 Easter Rising will dominate much of the cultural calendar.
SUITE DESCRIPTION
The Owner’s Suite was designed to epitomize the yachting lifestyle, with outsize suite and terrace spaces inviting unparalleled entertaining and ultimate comfort. The suite’s expansive private terrace truly wows with a whirlpool, dedicated outdoor dining table and conversation spaces that blur the lines of indoor-outdoor living, all to the sweeping backdrop of majestic sea views. The suite itself is distinguished by a second full bath with shower, a full bar with seating, two living/conversation areas and a dining table that comfortably seats 6 guests.
SUITE HIGHLIGHTS
MAGNIFICENT OCEAN VIEWS
SPACIOUS SUITE ACCOMMODATIONS
PERSONALIZED SERVICE AND AMENITIES
ACCOMMODATIONS
Bed & Bath
Suite Features
Size
SERVICES AND AMENITIES
The View suite brings the outdoors in with its expansive length of dramatic floor to ceiling glass and private terrace, offering unmatched views and capturing the sea breeze from Juliet balconies in the living, bed and bath areas. These views are meant to be shared, with the large private terrace, living and dining areas allowing guests to entertain out of sight of the suite’s bed and bath area.
SUITE HIGHLIGHTS
MAGNIFICENT OCEAN VIEWS
SPACIOUS SUITE ACCOMMODATIONS
PERSONALIZED SERVICE AND AMENITIES
ACCOMMODATIONS
Bed & Bath
Suite Features
Size
(Suite 734 & 735)
SERVICES AND AMENITIES
The Loft suite is a study in duality: a lower level designed for rest and relaxation, and an upper level perfect for socializing and entertaining. With a powder room and expanded living area upstairs, this space easily converts into a second private sleeping area for guests traveling with children or travelers sleeping separately. The expanded desk and dressing table in the lower level provides uninterrupted views through an oversized picture window.
SUITE HIGHLIGHTS
MAGNIFICENT OCEAN VIEWS
SPACIOUS SUITE ACCOMMODATIONS
PERSONALIZED SERVICE AND AMENITIES
ACCOMMODATIONS
Bed & Bath
Suite Features
Size
SERVICES AND AMENITIES
The Grand Suite offers a distinctly residential suite experience, allowing guests to feel at home upon the sea. The suite features dual walk-in closets, a dining table that comfortably accommodates 4 guests, plus added space on the private terrace and in living and bath spaces to spread out and relax.
SUITE HIGHLIGHTS
MAGNIFICENT OCEAN VIEWS
SPACIOUS SUITE ACCOMMODATIONS
PERSONALIZED SERVICE AND AMENITIES
ACCOMMODATIONS
Bed & Bath
Suite Features
Size
SERVICES AND AMENITIES
SUITE HIGHLIGHTS
MAGNIFICENT OCEAN VIEWS
SPACIOUS SUITE ACCOMMODATIONS
PERSONALIZED SERVICE AND AMENITIES
ACCOMMODATIONS
Bed & Bath
Suite Features
Size
SERVICES AND AMENITIES
The Terrace Suite provides a foundation for the very best amenities enjoyed by all suite categories on board, including a private terrace, king-sized bed and double vanity. Best of all, guests enjoy the superlative service of an assigned suite ambassador.
SUITE HIGHLIGHTS
MAGNIFICENT OCEAN VIEWS
SPACIOUS SUITE ACCOMMODATIONS
PERSONALIZED SERVICE AND AMENITIES
ACCOMMODATIONS
Bed & Bath
Suite Features
Size
SERVICES AND AMENITIES
Designed with intimate seating arrangements, the spacious main restaurant offers a thoughtfully-designed balance of privacy and social connection. A menu of locally inspired creations change with the seasons to reflect the passing scene. The menu highlights the varied cultures, lands, and sights that are best explored at The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection destinations.
Creative interpretations of Southeast Asian cuisine are paired with sophisticated, laidback luxury in this sleek, contemporary restaurant. Sit down at the sushi bar, enjoy a more family-style table experience, or dine outside and watch the day’s destination disappear with the setting sun.
Indulge in a specialty dining experience designed by Chef Sven Elverfeld of Aqua, the three Michelin-starred restaurant at The Ritz-Carlton® in Wolfsburg. S.E.A. offers an inspired European tasting menu in a sophisticated setting with a contemporary feel. Cruise dining has never been more refreshing. Reservations required, additional fee applies. Located on Deck 6.
Come as you are, for lunch or a romantic dinner al fresco. The Mediterranean-inspired menu features fresh local catches, while prime cuts are prepared to order from the grill. The deck serves as one of the best views on the yacht to enjoy dinner or drinks. Located on Deck 8.
Guests will wake to freshly roasted coffees and baked pastries at the espresso counter and bar. An array of ready-made culinary treats are also available for day trips and late nights.
Dine in the comfort of your suite or on your private terrace when you order from the All-Day Dining menu, featuring influences from every dining venue onboard. For guests looking for further flexibility within all of The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection suites, a Late-Night Dining menu will also be available.
From a leisurely breakfast for early risers to late-night dining, this casual eatery serves a variety of cuisines prepared à la minute in an open air space. Enjoy a relaxing meal or casual bite at this inspired poolside restaurant.
Sitting right at the water’s edge, the Marina offers sun loungers and a generous choice of water toys. Like a private beach with seamless entry into the sea, it’s the go-to spot while at anchor. Just steps above, the Marina Terrace serves handcrafted cocktails and light bites with stunning view
Top-deck views erase the borders between land and sea, an inspired setting for lounging, cocktails or socializing. At twilight, the space is transformed into a venue with cocktails and live entertainment, extending into a late-night hangout. Whether exploring on luxury repositioning cruises, luxury Baltic cruises, US-based cruises, or anything in between, The Observation Lounge is your vantage point for sightseeing anywhere at sea.
Cap off your day with a premium cognac in this intimate lounge with its comfortable furnishings. An excellent selection of premium, hand-rolled cigars are showcased in the state-of-the-art humidor.
From exclusive sportswear and branded apparel to jewelry and leather goods, leading labels offer enticing options. In select ports, your shopping experience is further enhanced by bespoke collaborations with local artisans who come on board to showcase their offerings.
Bold shades of blue reflecting the sea provide a vibrant accent to the yacht’s gathering place, with its chic, comfortable furnishings and library with travel guides and best sellers. Diffused lighting transforms the space into a cocktail lounge with piano bar, dancing and live music later on, making The Living Room one of the most popular Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection onboard features.
This intimate lounge serves premium labels from around the world and also offers champagne and caviar pairings.
An infinity oasis of blue is just steps away from The Pool House, where guests can enjoy all-day dining. Frozen treats and refreshing water mistings pamper guests on the sun loungers and banquettes or soaking in the whirlpools. A spacious venue for deck parties and open-air movies.
Listen to the gentle lap of waves while reclining on a massage table, savoring a therapeutic spa treatment from the private terrace of one of our treatment rooms. Inspired by the destinations we visit and curated to fulfill your needs, our treatments feature the finest ESPA products to awaken the senses, refresh the body and renew the spirit. Arrive early, stay a while and drift away into relaxation aboard your oasis at sea.
The Fitness Studio is home to a health and wellness program that integrates fitness and spa with lectures and nutrition that can be customized for each guest. From personal training to sunrise yoga and mat Pilates, each voyage has opportunities to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
The Salon offers a variety of beauty and hair services including manicure and pedicure treatments, hair consultations, cutting, styling and blow drying. Next door at The Barber, gentlemen can enjoy a close shave or invigorating facial before heading ashore to explore the port feeling refreshed and revitalized.
Families exploring the world together are welcome aboard The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection. With its own dedicated space on board, Ritz-Kids® is an educational and fun-filled program that encourages children ages 4 to 12 to explore the world around them. Enhanced programming will be available during holidays and summer months.