River Cruising - a New Type of Adventure!
Life is constantly giving us opportunities to think outside of the box, perhaps go outside of our comfort zone, and try something that we’ve never tried before. And in travel, this almost certainly results in an amazing adventure. I had this opportunity this summer when I took my very first river cruise on the Danube, sailing through Germany, Austria, Slovakia, and Hungary, and a visit to Prague at the start. As an avid and regular ocean cruiser, the idea of floating on a river was indeed different for me, but it turned out to be an amazing trip!
River cruising allows cruise-lovers the opportunity to visit inland locations but with the convenience of cruising. One of the biggest draws to cruising for my husband and I is the ability to unpack once in a dedication space while also getting to visit multiple locations that would otherwise be long journeys from each other. But, ocean cruises are limited to ocean ports of call (or shore excursions that are a drivable distance from the coast). The inland locations, accessible only by road, plan, or river, are missed out on if you only sail on the ocean. And this is a shame, as the inland cities are true gems. Prague, Budapest, and Bratislava were our favorite cities to visit on the Danube. A Nile River cruise will take you past Cairo to Luxor and Aswan and Abu Simbel. Sail on the Yangtze River to go deep into the heart of China and visit the gentle giant pandas in Chengdu before you sail. Or follow the Seine River from Paris into the heart of France.
The view of Bratislava, Slovakia and the Danube River from the Bratislava Castle. It was a BIG hill to climb, but the view was worth it!
River boats are different from ocean liners. There are obvious differences, such as the shape and size. Where an ocean liner can be 20 decks tall, river cruise boats typically have just 3 decks to enable them to fit under bridges. To compensate for height, river cruise boats are very, very long. While certainly not as long as an ocean liner (an average river boat is only half as long as the massive new Icon of the Seas), proportionally compared to the height of the ship, they look incredibly stretched out. In fact, I had a hard time getting a picture of our ship, the Avalon Passion, with the entire ship in the frame without standing very far back! Where ocean ships can fit thousands of guest, a river boat typically sails with just a few hundred. You won’t find tons of flashy entertainment options like surf simulators and go cards that the ocean liners have, but there are still lounge spaces, bars, and a rooftop deck for outdoor games like cornhole and lounging. Some river boats even have pools. And there is always live entertainment. While the ocean liners have space for theaters and Broadway shows, river cruises provide more intimate evening options of music and dancing. And, because the ports of call are all within a reasonable driving distance of each other on a river cruise, entertainers will often be locals who hop on board for the evening.
Our ship, the Avalon Passion, with Melk Abbey in Austria in the distance.
The food on our cruise was outstanding and comparable in quality to any ocean liner I’ve sailed on. Breakfast and lunch were served buffet style on our Avalon Waterways ship, while dinner was a multi-course, plated affair. There were multiple options and there was always a plant-based option. Where our river cruise differed was the selection of different dining locations. Ocean liners can come with dozens of locations to eat a meal, many with an additional cost to dine. On a river boat, there’s space for one dining room, for the most part. But, this allows you to find comfort in routine. We ended up sitting at the same table most of the time, even though our ship had open seating, and we had the same waitstaff each day. They got to know us, bringing us our favorite drinks even before we started to order. Soda, wine, and beer were included during lunch and dinner, and also during our ship’s “Happy Hour” which was the hour before dinner. If you wanted a drink out side of those times, there was a charge. Compared to many ocean liners, however, this is a great bargain, as larger ocean cruise companies do not include beverages in the cost of your sailing.
Speaking of inclusions, shore excursions on most river cruise lines are included in the cost of your sailing. This is something that is almost never done on ocean liners, at least not until you get to the ultra-luxury lines. At every port of call we visited (and also in Prague, which we had booked as a land package through Avalon), we had several included shore excursion choices and one or two “optional” excursions (meaning, we paid for them). We did a mixture of both. The included options were generally bus or walking tours to get an introduction to the city we were in. They always had a “gentle walker” group you could join, though we found that in the “regular walker” groups, the walking was not super intense. The optional, paid for shore excursions allowed you to get a more in-depth look at the city you were in. We found the ones we booked to be excellent. For example, we took a tour of Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna on one afternoon and on another, an almost private (there were 5 of us total) tour of the Budapest Opera House. On our evening in Prague, we enjoyed a dinner show with folklore dancers and musicians (including an 80-year old hammered dulcimer player who had a wicked sense of humor!) We were glad we had paid for the extra excursions, but if you only stuck with the included options, you would still have an amazing overview of the city. Touring on your own was also an option, which we did during our mornings in Vienna and Budapest. While it’s important to note “all aboard” times on any cruise (don’t be that person who gets stuck in the port!), it’s especially important on a river cruise, as the ship will often visit one city in the morning and sail to another while you’re eating lunch. This is different from ocean liners, which typically dock in one port all day long.
All in all, we had an amazing time on our first river cruise down the beautiful Danube River. We’re already looking at other rivers that we can visit on our next adventure!