Portugal is a hot vacation destination these days. It's also far less expensive than other top destinations in Europe. Wine production has been modernized and the country is overflowing with great wines you've probably never experienced.
What does this mean to you, the person planning to travel in 2013? Well, hop on a river cruiser and see the Douro Wine region. It's beautiful country.
About.com has produced a couple of videos to convince you of this fact: Tour of the Douro Wine Region of Portugal and Profile of the Alto Douro in Portugal.
The 5-Star Luxury accommodations mentioned in the video cost less than a reasonably decent hotel room in an Italian city. Check them out yourself: Hotel Casa da Calcada Relais & Chateaux - Amarante (book direct).
For more on the wine regions, see our Spain and Portugal Wine Regions Map. Remember, where there's great wine, there's also great food.