I am beginning to see river cruising in a whole new light.
I’ve had the opportunity to interview a couple of key players in the industry in the past week as I’m conscious that it is a sector of the travel industry that I confess to having a rather vague knowledge of.
I suppose, that like most people, I tend to associate river cruising with either barge holidays or tourist boats on the River Thames, rather than the majestic working rivers on the Continent and further afield. It is appreciating that river cruising provides a whole new angle on exploring and sight-seeing that captures the imagination.
Of course, I’m familiar with the great rivers of Europe such as the Rhine and Danube but haven’t really explored much deeper than that.
Obviously the 134,000 Britons who took a river cruise last year can’t be wrong, no doubt attracted by the ability to visit a series of top destinations as their vessel moors up centrally at each point thereby avoiding the need for lengthy coach excursions.
Stepping off your ship and into the centre of some of Europe’s historic gems, for example, does have a certain allure.
And that’s seems to be what’s drawing more people to river cruising, with numbers from the UK up by 8% last year over 2009 and continued popularity forecast by specialists in the business.
Given that the level of growth in the field outstripped that of ocean cruising last year – albeit from a far smaller base level – I wanted to find out what I’d been missing.
Floating hotel
The first thing that struck me was how modern and sophisticated modern river cruise vessels are. These are sleek machines which, while not able to cram on all the amenities of ocean-going ships, more than match up in terms of space of cabins and suites, service levels and cuisine.
With sun decks, swimming pools, bars, lounges and restaurants often serving quality complimentary wines with meals, river vessels couldn’t be further away from the average pleasure cruiser I’d be more aware of.
While the age profile of river cruisers tends to be more in the 60-plus range, the appeal of sightseeing by river continues to attract a wider and younger audience.
Families are even catered for on some vessels and those seeking a more active holiday can make use of bicycles made available for use by most river cruise companies.
The destinations available from your floating hotel also proved to be an eye-opener to me. The Volga between Moscow and St Petersburg in Russia is one I’d not expected – offered by Virgin Holidays Cruises with partners APT and AmaWaterways – while the Danube covering Vienna and Budapest conjures up romantic visions of classical music concerts, history and culture.
The rivers of Europe have fuelled the growth in popularity of river cruising with those taking a Rhine cruise up by almost a quarter last year to 22,500 while demand for cruising the picturesque Douro river in Portugal rose by more than 80% to more than 8,600 passengers from the UK.
Nile river cruises have traditionally been the most popular, due to the unprecedented opportunity to take in the ancient sites of Egypt at a relatively leisurely pace.
But it’s possible to cruise on more far flung rivers such as those in China such as the Yangtze and the Mekong on exploration vessels taking in the Golden Triangle in northern Thailand and combining it with Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, once pretty much the preserve of backpackers but now opening up to many other travellers with a sense of adventure.
Naked truth
I’ve even discovered that cruises especially for naturists are being launched by niche and river cruise specialist eWaterways in Croatia next summer.
Two different itineraries on small sailing vessels are available with clothes only required when in port and during meal times, according to the company.
The eight-day nude cruises are designed for “liberal holidaymakers” who “can enjoy day trips to tranquil islands and secluded beaches for snorkelling, swimming or sunbathing – perfect for working on that line free tan”.
These cruises “can be as action-packed or as laid back as desired with skinny dipping on the daily agenda and the option of snorkelling, cave exploring, hiking or even white water rafting available – all of which can of course be enjoyed in one’s birthday suit,” according to eWaterways.
While I’m far too modest to take the clothes-free plunge, I do intend to try out my first rivers cruise next year and will be finding out a lot more about the sector at the UK industry’s first river cruise convention to be held in Amsterdam – the starting point for many European voyages – next month. I’ll report back more on the sector then.
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