We’re on a long-delayed (two years) Avalon Waterways river cruise down the Saône and Rhône rivers in France. If you’ve never taken a river cruise, or especially if you have done only ocean cruises, you owe it to yourself to try out a river cruise, especially in Europe.
What’s so good about them? First off, it lacks the bag-drag (in common with ocean cruises). You unpack once, then visit multiple places. However, unlike ocean cruises which often drop you via a tender or in a slightly seedy port area, river cruises (especially in Europe) often leave you in the middle of town, with easy access to everything.
Next, river cruise ships are smaller, so they are manageable. You can’t possibly get lost on one, and they’re easy to navigate. The other side of this is they lack some of the extravagant attractions of ocean cruises: no climbing walls, water slides, or go-cart tracks. Maybe a tiny gym, a single closet-sized spa, no casino, no art auctions, no shops. Depending on your tastes, these may all be good or bad.
Unlike ocean cruises, which usually cruise overnight, leaving you to visit a new port each day, river ships cruise both during the day and night. Seeing the countryside is part of the experience (the ocean view rarely changes, except when entering/leaving port), and it is not at all unusal to go on an excursion from one place and meet back up with the ship in another place. There are also opportunities on river cruises to go out on your own (picnic, ride bikes, etc.) and meet up with the cruise down the river (of course, with prior coordination).
Because of the smaller size, the river cruise experience is more intimate. With 1-200 people on board, you may literally meet everyone during the cruise. There are no assigned seats, but there are assigned meal times (snacks and quick bites are available other times), where you choose your meal companions (or dine alone). Menu options often include regional fare bought that day, so it’s fresh and authentic, but that means fewer choices, too.
Like ocean cruises, lines have reputations (party boats, specialty themes, more or less formal) so it pays to research. Also, lines offer wildly disparate options, so comparing prices is a chore: free drinks versus Wifi packages versus free excursions, for example. And on river cruises, the itinerary is far more important than the ship. There are no “days at sea,” so your cabin is mostly a bed and place to freshen up, and the ship a means to get from here to there. Which is not to say it’s any less luxurious: the crew to passenger ratios are very similar, depending upon the line.
Some of the oddities of river cruising? Your cabin may have a balcony or floor-to-ceiling windows. But when you dock in a town, the cruise ships all line-up side-by-side, connected. Which means when you throw open your window, you may be looking directly into the cabin on the ship next door! It does make embarking and disembarking interesting, as the crews make sure you get to the correct ship.
Long ago in Europe, news that the Vikings were coming spread terror throughout the land. Now that river cruising in Europe has exploded–with Viking Cruises leading the way as the mass-market choice–history repeats itself. One doesn’t get the frenzy that accompanies several ocean cruise ships disgorging all at once (ever see Venice during this experience? It’s worse than a flood!), but you can find yourself hitting the same tourist sites at the same time, all following along your designated flag and getting the same packaged tours. But river cruises often allow you to skip off on your own, too.
Like ocean cruises, there are options to fit every budget and traveling style. Want a weeklong cruise in a wine region where you only go one hundred kilometers? They got that. Want the grand tour from the Atlantic to the Black Sea via the Rhine, Main, and Danube? Got that too. Cruises aimed at local foods, wines, history? Check!
The river cruising set skews even older than the ocean cruising demographic. River cruises are generally more expensive, and they never attract the hard partyers, Spring-breakers, or casino enthusiasts. They are more sedate, more seasoned travellers, and more independent. Most Americans are familar with ocean cruises due to the numerous Carribean and Pacific cruises; river cruises in the States are just starting to take hold.
It’s possible (but highly unlikely) that you may get seasick on a river cruise. Weather plays out differentlythan on ocean ships: you’ll see no videos like those of ocean cruises which encounter heavy seas or hurricanes, but very-low or high water on a river cruise can result in bus transfers (around bridges) or even hotel stays. If it disrupts the cruise significantly, I have heard of cruise lines offering full refunds (in the form of future cruise credits).
Like ocean cruises, you’ll only get a taste of the towns you visit. It’s great if you want to try out a region, or if you already know a place and just want to make a quick re-visit. You will be well-fed (and drink-ed), pampered, and there are plenty of opportunties to go off on your own. Most lines have pre- and post-cruise extensions, which often give you a few days in major cities like Prague, Nice, or Barcelona, which aren’t on the cruise. We find river cruising an expensive but efficient form of travel vacation; hope you enjoy one soon!
Enjoy your cruise! Looks like a beautiful way to travel and see things!
Pat, thanks for the delightful and memory-inducing commentary. Our sole river cruise was with Avalon from Amsterdam to Basel in 2016. We were stationed in Munich for a couple years in the early 70s and only saw the Rhine once…when we stopped in Koln, where you could still see war damage. Being able to take the river from end to almost-end was a treat. You can’t beat Strasburg for beauty…until you drive a bit further from the river to Colmar. Avalon gave an optional tour to the Maginot Line, and of course I took it.