Take me to the river
Try cruising along Europe’s canals for city sights and small-town excursions
I nearly cancelled my first river cruise. I thought I’d be bored, or too young, and had a bit of trepidation when I arrived late in the afternoon on a rainy December day at the dock in Nuremberg. Not the nice part of Nuremberg either: an industrial area on the Main-danube Canal next to a highway overpass. This sort of thing is my job, however, so I embarked Amawaterways’ Amalyra with an open mind, setting out on a Christmas Markets sailing from Nuremberg to Budapest.
That was eight years ago, and I still think fondly of that cruise. I was so amazed by the Main-danube Canal’s system of locks that I never went to sleep that first night; I just sat in front of my French balcony and watched the ship be raised and lowered until the sun came up over a storybook German town.
I couldn’t believe the closeness, the intimacy of river cruising. Out my window, cars and trucks zipped by in the early morning hours. People walking dogs on the banks of the Danube stopped to wave hello. I remember smoke wafting from chimneys in the town of Weissenkirchen, and the sounds that the church bells made when they rang out over the water.
I’ve got a few river cruises coming up this fall, so you’ll be reading about these adventures soon. This article even comes to you from a river cruise ship in France. But I wanted to explain what river cruises are, and why they’re a great vacation choice — even for folks who wouldn’t consider themselves “cruisers.”
River cruises are surprisingly active business. Typically, passengers set off on a morning tour and return to the vessel for lunch. In the afternoon, there might be a second tour of the same city, or the ship might reposition to another quaint village or big city for an afternoon of cultural immersion.
In most cases, calls on small towns or villages are half-day affairs. Visits to big-name places like Vienna will be at least one, sometimes two, days in length.
Most river cruises include at least one tour (typically a walking tour) in the cost of the cruise. The majority also include things like beer, wine and soda with lunch and dinner. All offer free Wi-fi, but don’t get your hopes up: It’s pretty slow.
Some river cruise lines have begun offering more active tours in a bid to attract younger clientele. Amawaterways and Avalon Waterways are leading the charge here, with active hikes and cycling excursions. One line — U River Cruises (formerly U by Uniworld) — prides itself on its uncommon offerings for travellers looking for something different, from street art tours in Paris to mixology classes in Amsterdam.
Of course, there is always the option to do your own thing.
On a trip to Vienna years ago, Viking River Cruises’ staff walked us from the ship and taught us how to use the city’s metro system to get around.
It’s probably the most practical and useful thing I’ve had a cruise line teach me, and I’ve used that knowledge on subsequent visits.
The last thing to know about river cruises is that while they still attract a mature clientele for the most part, families aren’t entirely excluded: numerous lines, including Amawaterways and Uniworld, offer dedicated family-friendly sailings during the summer months and over the Christmas break. If your last family trip to Europe looked a bit like the Griswolds’ in National Lampoon’s European Vacation (“Look kids — Big Ben! Parliament!”), a family river cruise might be just the thing.
Happy cruising.
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