Your Guide To River Cruises: How To Select The Best River Cruise Lines Worldwide
A Brief Primer On Popular River Cruises
Luxury river cruises have come of age. There are over 725 river cruise ships worldwide -- over 200 operating European river cruises! Luxury river cruises are available on the Amazon, the Mekong and Iriwaddy rivers in Southeast Asia, China's Yangtze, Egypt's Nile and others. River cruise lines offer a very different experience from ocean-going cruises, and nearly as much diversity in choice.
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Our river cruise specialists can help guide you to the best river cruise deals, and we offer exclusive savings on many of the best river cruises.
Is A River Cruise Vacation For You?
Those attracted to river cruises are generally interested in culture, art, music, history and heritage, and enjoy the slower pace a river cruise provides. River cruises are destination-focused vacations -- for many they are more authentic experiences than most ocean cruises offer. River cruises don't offer casinos or Broadway-style shows. But they offer:
- an unhurried pace travelers find compelling,
- the convenience of docking in the heart of cities and towns,
- the all-inclusive nature of river cruises: shore excursions are included, as is wine with dinner (on most),
- the more casual and small group size of river cruising,
- the emphasis on cultural discoveries.
Read more about river cruises, view videos and photos, or reference River Cruise FAQ's.
Do River Cruises Cost More?
If comparing the cost to an ocean cruise, it's important to take into account river cruises include shore excursions. Generally you can expect river cruise prices to range from $250 - $600 per person per day, depending on river cruise lines and stateroom category. So what's the difference?
Cruise lines understand for most travelers a vacation is a luxury they've earned and want to enjoy to the fullest. Around the world, travelers are becoming more discerning, and appreciate quality. The best and newest river cruise lines invest in quality furnishings like marble counters in bathrooms rather than plastic, better beds, more comfortable chairs, and larger electriconic windows.
The best river cruise companies also differentiate themselves with better service and upgraded cuisine, something you can't tell from a brochure. River cruise lines are spending nearly double on building new river cruise ships than what they spent a decade ago. As a result the best river cruise lines deliver a better vacation experience and more value.
Exploring Europe On River Cruise
Throughout history, cities were built along riverbanks to provide trading routes, making river cruises convenient to visiting cities and towns, as well as see more of the interior of a country. In addition to the ever-popular Rhine and Danube Rivers, there are river cruises on the Seine, Main, Maas, Moselle, Rhone and Saone Rivers in France, the Douro River in Portugal, and Russia river cruises on the Volga, Dneiper, Neva and Svir rivers. Read more about European river cruises or view our Europe river cruise specials. Read more about our most recommended Europe river cruise lines AMA Waterways and Uniworld River Cruises.
Asia River Cruises
River cruises are not exclusive to Europe. The opening of tourism in China led to a huge growth in river cruising in China on the Yangtze River. Read more about China River Cruises. Asia river cruises in Myanmar (formerly Burma) on the Iriwaddy River are also available, and more recently, Asia river cruises between Cambodia and Vietnam along the Mekong River are growing in popularity as new river cruise boats are introduced. perhaps the most deluxe are offered by Heritage Lines. AMA Waterways and Uniworld are other upscale American-based river cruise lines featuring Mekong River cruises.
Adventure River Cruises On The Amazon
South America's Amazon River offers one of the more exotic river cruise trips, but till now the quality and choice of boats was very limited. Luxury Aqua Expeditions and Delfin River Cruises offer exciting off-beat adventures on the Peruvian Amazon. Other river cruise companies here include Iberostar's Grand Amazon.
Africa: Nile River Cruises & Beyond
There are many cruises along Egypt's Nile River, a journey not to be missed! Our preferred Nile river cruise lines include Lindblad Expeditions and Uniworld River Cruises. A new luxury river cruise is operating 3- and 4-day cruises along the banks of Chobe National Park in Botswana, while Variety Cruises offers cruises on the West African coast.
USA River Cruises
Beginning in April, 2012, the Great American Steamboat Company brings back the largest paddlewheel steamboat, American Queen, plying the heartland of America on the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee Rivers. Cruises on other American rivers include trips along the Columbia and Snake Rivers, Chesapeake Bay, the Intracoastal Waterway, the Hudson, and others. There are some USA river cruises operated by Blount Small Ship Cruises and American Cruise Lines and American Canadian Line. For more on available river cruises in the USA, contact our river cruise experts.
Are You Ready For A River Cruise Vacation?
We work with select river cruise companies that provide the comfort and quality experiences our customers rely upon. Our river vacation consultants can assist you with the right choice, and make all the necessary arrangements. View & compare offers and read more about some of our most preferred river cruise lines and small ship cruise lines that operate river cruise vacations:
Whatever your preference, contact our river cruise specialists who are eager to arrange your river cruise vacation, wherever it may be. Email our experts, or call us at 1-888-779-7447.
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