Table Of Content
- Best European River Cruise Line for Active Travelers: Avalon Waterways
- Can solo travelers take a river cruise?
- Columbia and Snake Rivers
- Avalon Waterways
- Which? Travel at 50 – the story of the UK's longest running travel magazine
- Book a cruise on UniWorld
- Best European River Cruise Line for Unique Destinations: CroisiEurope
In celebration of its 25th anniversary, Viking is offering special fares, reduced airfare and a$25 deposit on select voyages. Adventures by Disney is the best option for families since they curate their onboard and onshore activities with kids and teens in mind. Uniworld is also a good choice with an array of added perks for kids of all ages. However, Crystal Cruises has some excursions that incur an added cost, and all of the American Queen Steamboat Company excursions are additional (although they do offer hop-on hop-off bus tours). Adventures by Disney, the guided, family vacation arm of the Walt Disney Company, offers unique journeys sprinkled with signature Disney magic.
Best European River Cruise Line for Active Travelers: Avalon Waterways
The Best Mississippi River Cruises to Discover America's Heartland - Condé Nast Traveler
The Best Mississippi River Cruises to Discover America's Heartland.
Posted: Fri, 29 Mar 2024 07:00:00 GMT [source]
The Tauck Suites are large, at over 300 square feet and have a large bed as well as a fold-out sofa. Most cabins have floor-to-ceiling windows to save space in the cabin, and the most affordable is Category 1, which is about 150 square feet and has small windows and a little bathroom with a shower. Many of the staterooms have balconies that offer panoramic views and fresh air. Their twin-balcony staterooms feature both a French balcony and an outside balcony. While the suites are about 350 square feet, the standard stateroom is about 170 square feet with fixed windows at the waterline.
Can solo travelers take a river cruise?
In addition to the main dining room, ships have smaller venues where every passenger can have a meal. There's also the exclusive Table La Rive fine dining experience for Diamond Deck suite guests. Daily activities feature a wide choice of included shore tours so you can personalize your cruise experience. When it comes to a river cruise line in Europe, Scenic's all-inclusive fares are hard to top. They cover all premium drinks, including a minibar in every cabin, plus specialty dining, butler service and gratuities. With all this competition, it takes something truly special to clinch the No. 1 spot, but Crystal Cruises wowed travelers at every turn.
Columbia and Snake Rivers
Whether you're fascinated by American history, culture and cuisine, or you've enjoyed river cruising in Europe but are now looking to explore closer to home, U.S. river cruises are an easy and enjoyable vacation option. Leading luxury tour operator Tauck has its own fleet of award-winning 84- to 130-passenger river ships cruising the Danube, Douro, Rhine, Rhone and Seine. The big selling point here is that a Tauck tour director and three Tauck cruise directors are on board all departures, assuring that guests are catered to. Programming and excursions are geared toward kids, To that end, expect a focus on storytelling rather than straight history lessons. You'll also find plenty of energetic and engaging activities, like tobogganing, 4x4 tours and bike excursions.
River Cruises Plan a River Cruise - Cruise Critic
River Cruises Plan a River Cruise.
Posted: Mon, 06 Nov 2023 21:36:09 GMT [source]
Insightful port talks provide information on the next day's program that cover all questions, such as how much walking is involved and difficulty levels. "Having traveled on seven Viking longships that are virtually indistinguishable from one another, I believe it's the consistency that makes Viking one of our favorite ways to travel," said one reader. The longships are light-filled floating boutique hotels with a Scandinavian-design aesthetic, indoor and outdoor dining, and herb gardens up on top. Viking's carefully crafted itineraries and "good value" also received praise from readers. "Met wonderful new friends. Absolutely outstanding service and terrific food," said one fan.
The entry-level cabin, the Petit Suite, is about 188 square feet is larger than most standard rooms, while the Deluxe Suite has French balconies, and opulent Explorer Suites boast large windows. All are butler-serviced river ships with a high, almost one-to-one staff-to-guest ratio. Solo travelers will appreciate that there are dedicated Solo Traveler Suites with no surcharge for a non-double occupancy booking, which is unheard of with cruising. AmaWaterways ups its dedication to active cruisers with a bevy of wellness spaces as well, including massage rooms, a fitness center, open-air spin classes on the sun deck and a pool.
In addition to the major rivers of Europe, Uniworld cruises the less-traversed Po River in Italy (from Venice) and has ships on the Nile and Mekong as well as the Ganges in India. AmaWaterways hits a sweet spot for both foodies and active travelers (and families on the Disney sailings). USA River Cruises offers an 11-day Alaskan Explorer Cruise aboard the American Constellation that provides an up-close-and-personal trip to breathtaking sights. You might see whale pods breaching the surface of the water or glaciers that seem to glow with an otherworldly blue light. Our environmentally controlled jet boats are designed to safely navigate Alaskan rivers...
You won’t find the range of on-board facilities of the vast ocean liners, but then you won’t be spending whole days at sea either. Follow the footsteps of the ancient Egyptians with Viking's voyages down the Nile. Delve into the history of those that called Cairo home, built the Pyramids, and looked upon the great Sphinx. With stops in Luxor, Quena, and Esna before docking in Aswan—it’s a timeless voyage you won’t want to miss.
Best European River Cruise Line for Unique Destinations: CroisiEurope
If that size river cruise sounds too small for you, Uniworld is a great boutique-style option for sailing Europe's rivers.. The line is more high-end than European Waterways and decor runs maximalist. Uniworld's ships are each distinctly designed and outfitted, and the all-inclusive itineraries include tours, meals, liquor and wine, fitness classes and more. Nearly 165,000 T+L readers completed the 2023 survey, an increase of nearly 25 percent over pre-pandemic voting levels. A total of more than 685,000 votes were cast across over 8,500 unique properties (hotels, cities, cruise lines, etc.).
Special family departures — Tauck Bridges — cater to multigenerational families, adding such kid-friendly adventures as a scavenger hunt at the Louvre in Paris. Some staterooms on the newer ships are lofts with high ceilings and a raised seating area; some ships have a Jacuzzi and putting green on the sun deck. Included shore excursions go beyond the standard tours that most lines offer, such as a visit to the Szechenyi baths in Budapest. If you prefer independent travel, Scenic provides a nifty GPS gadget about the size of a cellphone, loaded with maps and commentary that is automatically activated at points of interest. Most of the ships have a pool on the sun deck, along with a fitness center and spa. There are also four different dining venues (more than most river ships), and that choice has proven popular with previous passengers.
If you book a river cruise between now and 2025, you can receive 30 percent off your voyage. Most luxury river cruise companies offer all-inclusive packages, with alcohol, shore excursions, airport transfers and gratuities factored into their fares. You can also expect superior service, magnificent ships, five-star amenities and exceptional cuisine. The line also offers reduced solo-traveler surcharges on higher-grade cabins on select sailings. Tauck's ships carry fewer passengers than riverboats of a similar size, so it's easy for solo travelers to make new friends.
Catherine on the Rhone and Saone, for instance, boasts a $1 million art collection. Or consider our Prince William Sound Cruise — a truly Alaskan adventure package. Ready to cruise the protected waters of Prince William Sound aboard the Pacific Provider? Then hop aboard, and prepare for a smooth trip across calm waters that are home to the world’s densest concentration of tidewater glaciers. Fish for salmon, kayak to a glacier, hike through green, rugged forests, or just relax aboard the ship and watch the sunset.
“I loved every minute of the cruise,” said one voter, who traveled on the River Countess, which has since been refurbished and rechristened as the S.S. The excursions were carefully selected so that we saw the best of everything. This was the second cruise I’d taken with Uniworld, and I plan on going again.” Other readers echoed those sentiments.
Children must be 10 years old or older to take part in Emerald’s kid-friendly voyages. Both itineraries have been modified and feature destinations the whole family can enjoy. The Danube Explorer includes stops in Germany, Austria, Slovakia, and Hungary. While the Jewels of the Rhine explores the Netherlands, Germany, France, and Switzerland. Most companies in this category offer all-inclusive fares, so you don’t have to worry about getting a hefty bill onboard. You’ll also find top-notch amenities, state-of-the-art ships and extras such as specialty restaurants.
You'll also find a high number of inclusions, such as all drinks from the bar and with meals, to create a stress-free sailing with no hidden extras. There are river cruise lines, however, that stand out as being more luxurious than others. Amawaterways is now accepting reservations for its highly anticipated cruises on Colombia's Magdalena River departing from both Cartagena and Barranquilla in 2024. Both seven-day itineraries explore Colombia's rich musical and cultural history, along with a chance to experience the country's natural wonders and local cuisine. Amawaterways is the first major river cruise line to highlight Colombia’s beauty with these types of voyages. Ship amenities are plentiful, as both vessels feature staterooms with balconies, a main restaurant, a fitness center with three spa treatment rooms, and a sun deck with a relaxing whirlpool.
