TOP

Canary Islands Crossing

Aboard Seven Seas Splendor with Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Departure Date

13 March 2025

Duration

16 Nights

Fly Cruise From

£6,704pp

Cruise Reference

ART-2CARE18

Cruise Overview

Welcome to the Cidade Maravilhosa, or the Marvelous City, as Rio is known in Brazil.

Synonymous with the girl from Ipanema, the dramatic views from Christ the Redeemer atop Corcovado mountain, and fabulously flamboyant Carnival celebrations, Rio is a city of stunning architecture, abundant museums, and marvelous food.

Rio is also home to 23 beaches, an almost continuous 73-km (45-mile) ribbon of sand.As you leave the airport and head to Rio's beautiful Zona Sul (the touristic South Zone), you'll drive for about 40 minutes on a highway from where you'll begin to get a sense of the dramatic contrast between beautiful landscape and devastating poverty.

In this teeming metropolis of 12 million people (6.2 million of whom live in Rio proper), the very rich and the very poor live in uneasy proximity.

You'll drive past seemingly endless cinder-block favela, but by the time you reach Copacabana's breezy, sunny Avenida Atlântica—flanked on one side by white beach and azure sea and on the other by condominiums and hotels—your heart will leap with expectation as you begin to recognize the postcard-famous sights.

Now you're truly in Rio, where cariocas (Rio residents) and tourists live life to its fullest.Enthusiasm is contagious in Rio.

Prepare to have your senses engaged and your inhibitions untied.

Rio seduces with a host of images: the joyous bustle of vendors at Sunday's Feira Hippie (Hippie Fair); the tipsy babble at sidewalk cafés as patrons sip their last glass of icy beer under the stars; the blanket of lights beneath the Pão de Açúcar (Sugarloaf Mountain); the bikers, joggers, strollers, and power walkers who parade along the beach each morning.

Borrow the carioca spirit for your stay; you may find yourself reluctant to give it back.
Around two hours from Rio de Janeiro, Búzios is a string of beautiful beaches on an 8-km-long (5-mile-long) peninsula.

It was the quintessential sleepy fishing village until the 1960s, when the French actress Brigitte Bardot holidayed here to escape the paparazzi and the place almost instantly transformed into a vacation sensation.

Búzios has something for everyone.

Some hotels cater specifically to families and provide plenty of activities and around-the-clock child care.

Many have spa facilities, and some specialize in weeklong retreats.

For outdoor enthusiasts, Búzios offers surfing, windsurfing, kitesurfing, diving, hiking, and mountain biking, as well as leisurely rounds of golf.
According to Salvador's adopted son Jorge Amado, "In Salvador, magic becomes part of the every-day." From the shimmering golden light of sunset over the Baía do Todos os Santos, to the rhythmic beats that race along the streets, Salvador, while no longer Brazil's capital, remains one of its most captivating cities.

A large dose of its exoticism comes down to its African heritage—at least 70% of its 2,675,000 population is classified as Afro-Brazilian—and how it has blended into Brazil's different strands, from the native Indians to the Christian colonizers.

Salvadorans may tell you that you can visit a different church every day of the year, which is almost true—the city has about 300.

Churches whose interiors are covered with gold leaf were financed by the riches of the Portuguese colonial era, when slaves masked their traditional religious beliefs under a thin Catholic veneer.

And partly thanks to modern-day acceptance of those beliefs, Salvador has become the fount of Candomblé, a religion based on personal dialogue with the orixás, a family of African deities closely linked to nature and the Catholic saints.

The influence of Salvador's African heritage on Brazilian music has also turned the city into one of the musical capitals of Brazil, resulting in a myriad of venues to enjoy live music across the city, along with international acclaim for exponents like Gilberto Gil, Caetano Veloso, and Daniela Mercury.

Salvador's economy today is focused on telecommunications and tourism.

The still-prevalent African culture draws many tourists—this is the best place in Brazil to hear African music, learn or watch African dance, and see capoeira, a martial art developed by slaves.

In the district of Pelourinho, many colorful 18th- and 19th-century houses remain, part of the reason why this is the center of the tourist trade.

Salvador sprawls across a peninsula surrounded by the Baía de Todos os Santos on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other.

The city has about 50 km (31 miles) of coastline.

The original city, referred to as the Centro Histórica (Historical Center), is divided into the Cidade Alta (Upper City), also called Pelourinho, and Cidade Baixa (Lower City).

The Cidade Baixa is a commercial area—known as Comércio—that runs along the port and is the site of Salvador's indoor market, Mercado Modelo.

You can move between the upper and lower cities on foot, via the landmark Elevador Lacerda, behind the market, or on the Plano Inclinado, a funicular lift, which connects Rua Guindaste dos Padres on Comércio with the alley behind Cathedral Basílica.

From the Cidade Histórica you can travel north along the bay to the hilltop Igreja de Nosso Senhor do Bonfim.

You can also head south to the point, guarded by the Forte Santo Antônio da Barra, where the bay waters meet those of the Atlantic.

This area on Salvador's southern tip is home to the trendy neighborhoods of Barra, Ondina, and Rio Vermelho, with many museums, theaters, shops, and restaurants.

Beaches along the Atlantic coast and north of Forte Santo Antônio da Barra are among the city's cleanest.

Many are illuminated at night and have bars and restaurants that stay open late.

Cruise Itinerary

Aboard Seven Seas Splendor

Launch Year: 2020 Length: 224 Width: 31 Currency: USD Capacity: 732 Crew Count: 567 Deck Count: 10 Cabin Count: 366

To perfect luxury, Seven Seas Splendor™ elevates every detail, combining exquisite style and comfort with exemplary service, superb cuisine and all-balcony suites. Get to know this newest ship in the Regent Seven Seas Cruises® fleet.

Seven Seas Splendor Facilities

Seven Seas Splendor Includes

Cabin Details

No matter how large you choose to live on Seven Seas Splendor™, the same exceptional standards of design and comfort apply to every suite. Layouts range from 307 to 4,443 square feet, and all include a furnished private balcony.

As a guest of these exceptional suites, you have the extraordinary opportunity to experience the highest level of service and travel in expansive spaciousness. Additionally, our most sumptuous included amenities are reserved for our Distinctive Suites, from guaranteed dining reservations to personalised Butler service, and you have the ability to customise even your most personal items, such as bed pillows and bath products, exactly to your tastes. We designed these suites to satisfy your every wish, exceed your highest expectations of comfort and become your favourite address as you explore the world.

You don't have permission to register