My husband Humberto and I were particularly looking forward to the segment of our Regent Seven Seas Mariner’s world cruise visiting Spanish and Portuguese islands off the coast of Africa and ports in Iberia as we have roots there: he in Portugal and Spain and I in Spain.

Of these port calls in Europe –the sixth continent visited on our circumnavigation – here are some favorites:

Santa Cruz de la Palma, Canary Islands – One of eight of the inhabited isles in the Canary archipelago of Spain located west of Morocco, La Palma is rightly nicknamed “La isla bonita” (the pretty island). We signed up for an included tour that combined sightseeing with delightful cultural enrichment.

Our Lady of the Snow in Santa Cruz de la Palma

The excursion began with a drive to Las Nieves, on the mountainous upper part of La Palma. 

We visited the Church of Our Lady of the Snows, a pilgrimage church built by the local people to honor the Virgin Mary, for whom they have great devotion. 

The church has a cherished 14^th century terra cotta statue of Mary over the main altar that is brought down on a silver throne to the city of Santa Cruz once every five years during a festival that runs from late June/early July through the end of August.

After our visit to the church, we headed to Finca La Principal, a farm and gardens in Breña Alta, an area filled with fields cultivated with tobacco plants used in the famous La Palma cigars. 

At La Principal we were treated to a tasting of Spanish specialties including Palmeran wine and cheese, ham and mojo sauce, followed by a violin concert by Raul Bermúdez, a Cuban who fled Communism in 1990 and settled in La Palma. Bermúdez played classical and popular selections including “La Habanera” from Bizet’s “Carmen” and the Venezuelan folk song, “Moliendo Café” (Grinding Coffee). Humberto, a music lover, was in heaven.

Humberto with violinist, Raul Bermudez at La Principal Farm in Santa Cruz de la Palma

Municipal market in Santa Cruz de la Palma

Our tour also included a 90-minute walk through cobblestone streets in the Santa Cruz de La Palma’s 15^th century historic district with its 16^th century town hall, the Church of El Salvador with a tower built of volcanic stone, a full-scale concrete replica of Columbus’ ship, the Santa María (a naval museum), the oceanfront Calle Marina with its gorgeous flower-bedecked traditional 18^th century balconies on buildings, and other attractions.

Humberto and Georgina in the historic quarter of Santa Cruz de la Palma

Santa Maria Museum in Santa Cruz de la Palma

Cadiz, Spain – A favorite port of ours, which we have visited during several Holland America world cruises, we were happy to again see some of its highlights during an included excursion, beginning with its imposing, flag-bedecked Neoclassical City Hall in the Plaza of San Juan de Dios. The City Hall dates from the 18^th century and has a large balcony with Ionic columns and a pediment that depicts Hercules. On a previous visit we went inside the building and saw it also had a white marble statue of Hercules in the courtyard. Legend has it that Hercules was the founder of Gadeira, the original settlement that became modern-day Cadiz.

Cadiz City Hall

Cadiz Cathedral

The City Hall is within walking distance of the Alfonso XIII cruise ship terminal, as is the Cadiz Cathedral, a massive, monumental building in Baroque, Rococo and Neoclassical styles, with an iconic gold dome built on the coastline of Cadiz’ historic old town and visible from cruise ships. 

After seeing it up close during our tour, we had lunch in our ship’s La Veranda buffet restaurant enjoying magnificent views of it.

The Cathedral was finished in the 19^th century and its official name is Catedral de la Santa Cruz sobre las Aguas (Cathedral of the Holy Cross over the Waters) but the locals call it “Catedral Nueva” (New Cathedral) to distinguish it from the older one dating from the 16^th century that sits right behind it and sometimes it is also referred to as “the Cathedral of the Americas,” our guide Tony mentioned, as it was financed, he said, through Spain’s trade in the Americas.

Our excursion from the Seven Seas Mariner also provided a drive along Cadiz’ beautiful beaches including La Caleta, Santa María and Victoria, with a stop at this last one.

The beaches were lively with people using outdoor gyms, playing soccer and other sports on the sand.

There are restaurants and beach clubs with loungers and umbrellas.

Georgina and Humberto in Victoria Beach, Cadiz

Lisbon, Portugal – Most cruise passengers – including us whenever possible – go up on deck to watch the arrival into Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, on the Tagus River, as it is a lovely sail-in with opportunities to see the iconic, fortified, 16^th century Belem Tower, that was built to protect the Tagus estuary and to serve as a ceremonial gate to the city, and other monuments to honor Portugal’s history of discoveries. It is a lovely sail-in.

Belem Tower in Lisbon

We had wanted to take in an included tour out of Lisbon to the Marian pilgrimage site of Fatima, in the district of Santarem, in central Portugal, about an hour and a half from the port. Like Lourdes in France, this is a Catholic site that attracts millions of pilgrims each year. A peaceful enclave, Fatima is surrounded by mountains, green areas and picturesque stone houses. It was the site of several reported apparitions of the Virgin Mary by three shepherd children: Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta, beginning on May 13, 1917, and ending on Oct. 13 of that same year when 70,000 people joined the children and declared they had seen the sun “dancing” in the sky. Unfortunately, the tour was canceled so we put it “on ice” (and now we had a reason to try to return to Lisbon).

In the meantime, since we had already taken in Lisbon’s highlights on half a dozen previous visits, this time we went on a stroll to catch glimpses of the 25 de Abril Bridge, the Cristo Rei statue (Christ the King statue). It was inspired by (but smaller at 92 feet) the iconic Christ the Redeemer that measures 98 feet in the port of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We also wanted to see Lisbon’s cityscape, particularly the Alfama neighborhood, with its red-roofed buildings cascading down a hillside. 

Other Lisbon highlights that we took in on previous trips included the Gothic-Manueline Jeronimos Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where explorer Vasco da Gama is buried, and the ship-like Monument to the Discoveries, designed to resemble one of Portugal’s caravels and with 33 figures of explorers including Henry the Navigator and da Gama.

Bridge and Christ The King statue in Lisbon

Monument to the Discoveries in Lisbon

Some quick superlatives of our European ports of call:

·       Most delightful: the view of flower-bedecked balconies on Calle Marina in Santa Cruz de la Palma.

·       Most imposing: the Cadiz Cathedral.

·       Most scenic: the Alfama neighborhood in Lisbon.

·       Least anticipated: Having to start packing as our epic world cruise starts crossing the Atlantic back to Miami.

Follow along with Georgina and Humberto:
Preparing for a World Cruise | The Adventure Begins | Amazing Americas | Crossing the Pacific | Hawaiian Islands | French Polynesia | Venturing to New Zealand | Australia | Bali | Vietnam | Singapore | Seychelles | Madagascar | Thailand | Richards Bay | Cape Town | Europe | Conclusion

By Cruise Specialists client, Georgina Cruz

Georgina Cruz is a freelance travel writer specializing in cruises. Her work has appeared in national magazines and regional publications as well as on travel websites. She has been on more than 200 voyages including seven circumnavigations, all booked through Cruise Specialists.

See upcoming Regent Seven Seas Cruises >>