River cruises are more like land touring than ocean cruising but with the advantages of both. So I use the term River Cruise Tours. Like tours, you travel from city to city, you have lots of time to explore local sites, you taste locally prepared foods, you have a great hotel experience, and you are close to the land as you travel. Accommodation, meals and dinner drinks are all included and often so are most excursions, a great value added feature. But, unlike land tours, you only pack and unpack once, your daily excursions are more varied, and you sleep in your cabin/suite on your mode of transport. Unlike ocean cruising they allow a much closer, more personal experience of the countries visited than a large ship ocean cruise.
Many dock close to a city to enable passengers to disembark and enjoy sightseeing on their own. Sometimes they will stay put for a few nights if there many local sites and attractions. Tours often include options to ride a bike or kayak on portions of the trip, and to immerse in local activities.
There are themed river cruise tours, such as family, gastronomy, and Christmas. They can range from 3 days to more than 21 days. You can mix and match cruises – shorter and longer ones in multiple places, and easily fit shorter cruises into longer trips with tours or your own travels.
What’s A Barge Cruise and How Is It Different?
Barge cruises only travel through canals and provide an even more intimate look at the less travelled routes through regions such as Burgundy, Champagne, Provence, Alsace, and Belgium. Barges, or barge hotels, are often only 22 passengers and are usually seven days or less, allowing you to include it as a unique addition to your independent travels.
Sample Destinations
What kind of sights could you see? With hundreds of river cruises available, we only picked a fraction of sample destinations for those just embarking on this type of journey. Note: All prices depend on availability and are per person, double occupancy. Also note that these prices include your meals, wine and beverages, accommodation, transportation and in most cases a choice of excursions. All are subject to availability.
River Adige, Italy
One enjoyable river cruise is on the 154 passenger ship that travels the Venice lagoon. You begin your journey from Venice by bus to the lakeside town of Mantua, where you will get a guided tour of the city, and then board your ship. Next is a tour of the UNESCO Heritage site of Verona – famous for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and the Two Gentlemen of Verona, it’s Roman amphitheatre, and churches, crypts and piazzas. Sailing to Padua, you can visit the Basilica of Saint Anthony or continue to Choggia (“Little Venice”). With a history of fishing, salt and lace-making, the town also has some picturesque canals.
From Chioggia, you cruise to Venice, visit the Doge’s Palace, St Mark’s Square, cruise the lagoon, then visit the glass-blowing town of Murano. For 7 days this cruise starts at $2,362 pp CAD. There is also a lovely cruise from Milan and Lake Como to the canals of Venice Nine days $3,307 pp CAD.
Rhine River
Often preferred as an introduction to river cruising, the Rhine flows from the Alps in Switzerland to the North Sea. It partly defines the Swiss-Austrian, Swiss-German and French-German borders. Numerous castles, medieval villages, cathedrals and vineyards grace the sides of the river. Depending on your cruise option, the cruises traverse the Rhine through the Netherlands, Germany , France or Switzerland, where you could visit Roman ruins or WWII museums commemorating the towns affected by the war. Prices vary.
Danube River
The most popular river for cruising, the Danube River cruises can start in the Netherlands and run through Germany, Austria and Czechia or Slovakia to Hungary, or portions thereof. Like the Rhine, it is famous for its picturesque landscape and boasts many medieval towns, cathedrals, fortresses, abbeys and authentic central European cuisine. Prices vary greatly.
Mekong River
Quickly becoming a favourite for river cruising, the Mekong River spans both Vietnam and Cambodia, from which you can visit the 12th century Buddhist temple Angkor Wat, see floating markets and discover treasures by bike, walking, or riding a sampan.
On sale now at $2,100 pp CAD down from $ 4,142 pp CAD for a 9 day cruise. Depending on the company chosen, ships are often 28 to 36 passengers maximum.
Duoro River
Cruising the Duoro River is beautiful way to incorporate Spain and Portugal while travelling through scenic hills, touring the pearl of Portugal – Porto, tasting wine and olive oils, exploring Lisbon, and sightseeing the medieval capital of Coimbra. Spain offers the delightful city of Salamanca and the opportunity to indulge in tapas. Prices vary.
Types of Travel – Examples
Cruises vary depending on the size of ship, level of service, date of departure and duration. For comparison, the following are examples of costs from three different levels of service for a Rhine river cruise. All include accommodation, all meals, port fees and WiFi. All prices are per person and for double occupancy, for the cruise portion only and will vary depending on the dates chosen.
10 day Rhine cruise from Strasburg, Germany to Antwerp, Belgium. 128 passenger ship. Included are four excursions, all with two different options, assistance for any tours you wish to take on your own, and showers in room. Not included are airport transfers and one day of suggested activities. Price start from $ 2,770 CAD.
10 day Rhine cruise from Holland to Switzerland. Passenger accommodation ranges from 128 to 168, depending on your ship. Prices includes 90% of the daily excursions and range from $ 4,910 CAD (sale price) up to $ 11,700 CAD. Excursions are varied depending on whether you want to be active, enjoy guided tours or want to discover some subject in depth.
8 day Rhine cruise from Amsterdam to Basel. 110 passenger ship. Price starts at $ 7,380 CAD. Known to foodies for it’s gourmet food, this is the closest to the ocean cruise ship at a luxury level and includes a personal butler, airport transfers, port fees and all gratuities.
What We Can Do
To optimize prices, it is best to pick a destination and approximate date, then determine the level of service you prefer. For example, there are some good discounts for European river cruises in April and May 2025, but these depend on availability. Christmas cruises are much shorter and more affordable. Booking in 2024 for a 2025 date can often reduce the price. Please note there are often discounts based on number of people booking, the company or the date chosen for travel. Depending on the cruise, the single supplement can be waived.
Once you have a sense of what region of the world you wish to travel, dates and preferred budget, let us know and we will be happy to help you develop your itinerary.
We can connect you with river cruises that traverse European rivers, south Africa, Vietnam/Cambodia, the Eqyptian Nile, Galapagos, the Amazon and the Indian Ganges.