Special-interest river cruises offer guests an opportunity to connect with the world through a particular passion while sailing through the backyards of history and local daily life.
River cruise lines offer sailings that cater to special interests from golfing, music and cuisine to hiking, biking and environmental concerns, allowing agents to target groups and partner with special-interest organizations. Successful agents have built groups and sold FIT cruises through horseback riding academies, church groups, country clubs and golf clubs, gardening groups and more, and 2009 brings great opportunities. A sampling of upcoming offerings follows.
Peter Deilmann Cruises’ Classical Music Sailings take clients to the Semper Opera House in Dresden.
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Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection is targeting culinary interests with a new Epicurean Adventurer Program on nine itineraries, featuring special wine and food pairings, master chef cooking demonstrations and guided shore excursions to castles, vintners’ homes for private wine tastings and local food markets to sample regional treats. (www.uniworld.com)
In April and early May, many lines converge on Belgium and Holland for a tulip display to gladden the hearts of gardeners. Among them is an AmaWaterways’ spring sailing that showcases the gorgeous displays. Guests can see the famous windmills, sample local cuisines and wines and tour cities including Edam, Netherlands, and the Belgian cities of Antwerp, Ghent and Bruges. (www.amawaterways.com)
Fall brings another set of special interests. Viking River Cruises is setting aside, at no extra cost, special theme sailings on October and November itineraries. In October, the Elegant Elbe itinerary will be designated "Following Luther’s Footsteps," tracing the life and work of Martin Luther, the German theologian who became the father of the Protestant Reformation. Ports of call include Dresden, Meissen and Wittenberg, Germany.
During this season, Viking’s Epicurean Discoveries will be offered on some sailings of the Vineyards and Vistas (Trier to Nuremberg, Germany), the Portraits of Southern France itinerary (Chalon to Avignon, France), and the Grand European Journey (Amsterdam,
Netherlands to Budapest, Hungary) itineraries. Passengers will enjoy special wine tastings, seminars on food and wine pairings, local cuisine and traditions and exclusive onshore meals. (www.vikingrivercruises.com)
Avalon Waterways has set up a bouquet of special-interest cruises, including new five-night holiday cruises and a wine sailing. A 15-night Magnificent Europe sailing from Amsterdam to Budapest is geared toward music lovers. The itinerary includes a performance by the Avalon Youth Choir in the Rhine Valley or a visit to the Opera House in Bayreuth, Germany, home to the annual Richard Wagner Music Festival, a full-day excursion to Mozart’s Salzburg, Austria and an organ recital in Melk, Austria, plus a Strauss concert in Vienna, Austria. (www.avalonwaterways.com)
Peter Deilmann Cruises is introducing classical music sailings on the Elbe and Danube rivers in 2009. Classical music aficionados can choose a roundtrip cruise from Munich, Germany, aboard the 106-passenger Dresden, sailing from Hamburg, Germany, to Dresden on April 25 and on Oct. 24, or sailings aboard the 200-passenger Mozart, sailing April 26 and Oct. 4. In addition to classical performances onboard, passengers can purchase excursion packages that include five shore excursions and concert performances ashore for $257 per person on the Dresden and $395 on the Mozart.
Golfers on the Danube Region’s mv Mozart Golf Cup 2008 sailings play at courses in Germany, Hungary and Austria, including one of Austria’s best — and toughest — courses at Golf & Sports Club in Oberwaltersdorf. Deilmann also offers special-interest cruises that focus on wine and hiking. (www.deilmann-cruises.com)
Imperial River Cruises has announced spring and fall, 13-day Tchaikovsky cruises aboard the 285-passenger Furmanov. The May cruise will depart Perm, Russia, in the Ural Mountains and sail about 720 miles southwest to Moscow, with trips to Votkinsk, the composer’s birthplace, and his home in Klin, where he wrote many works, including the "Pathetique" Symphony. The cruise also includes visits to museums, galleries, churches, mosques, operas, ballets and crafts villages. The reverse direction is offered in September. (www.imperialrivercruises.com)
Closer to home, American Canadian Caribbean Line will sail a fall foliage itinerary from Rhode Island to Quebec City, Canada. Onboard, lecturers highlight the natural and historic topics along the route through the Hudson River, St. Lawrence Seaway and the Erie Canal. (www.accl-smallships.com)
One of 2009’s most unusual theme cruises is offered by Aqua Expeditions, with Butterfield & Robinson’s second Destinations at Risk trip in the Peruvian Amazon with co-host Celine Cousteau aboard the 130-foot Aqua. Sailing roundtrip from Lima, Peru, the six-day cruise up the Amazon examines the past and future of this key ecological area. Accommodation is offered in 12 large guest suites with private bathrooms, air-conditioning and panoramic windows. The ship has indoor and outdoor lounges, a bar, a dining room and observation lounge. (www.aquaexpeditions.com)
Special-Interest River Cruises
American Canadian Caribbean Line
Twelve-night fall foliage cruises from Warren, R.I., to Quebec aboard Grand Caribe and Grande Mariner are available with departures Sept. 30, Oct. 3, Oct. 12 and Oct. 15 and are priced from $3,185. Destinations include West Point, Kingston, Troy, the Erie Canal, Oswego, Clayton, Alexandria Bay and Ogdensburg — all New York — and Montreal, Quebec. The waterways navigated include the Warren River, Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island Sound, Block Island Sound, the East River, New York Harbor, the Hudson River, Erie Canal, Mohawk River, Oneida Lake, Oswego Canal, Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence Seaway.
www.accl-smallships.com
AmaWaterways
Ama’s April nine-day Tulip Time cruises, priced from $2,899, sail roundtrip from Amsterdam, calling in Volendam, Antwerp, Ghent, Willemstad, Dordrecht and Utrecht with departures April 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19 and 24.
At the other end of the calendar, the line offers two holiday itineraries. The Christmas Time cruise offers two nights in Prague and a seven-night cruise to Budapest, with pricing from $1,999 and departures Nov. 20, 22, 27 and 29. The Christmas Wonderland cruise couples three nights in Paris with a seven-night cruise to Amsterdam from $2,499, with departures Nov. 18 and 28 and December 2, 12 and 16.
www.amawaterways.com
Avalon Waterways
A 15-night Amsterdam to Budapest cruise departing Oct. 18 is geared to music, with a performance by the Avalon Youth Choir in the Rhine Valle, or a visit the Opera House in Bayreuth, home to the annual Richard Wagner Music Festival, a full-day excursion to Salzburg, the city of Mozart’s birth, and an organ recital in Melk, plus a Strauss concert in Vienna. Pricing is from $3,849.
Avalon’s new five-night Christmas in the Heart of Germany cruise on the Main includes guided city sightseeing in Würzburg, Bamberg and in the Bavarian village of Miltenberg, along with the Old Town Christmas market in Prague, priced from $1,709.
www.avalonwaterways.com
Butterfield & Robinson
Butterfield & Robinson, with Aqua Waterways, offers their second Destinations at Risk program on the Amazon with Celine Cousteau co-hosting. The Aqua departs Feb. 17 for the five-night cruise beginning and ending in Lima, Peru. Pricing is $9,695 per person, double.
www.butterfield.com
Imperial River Cruises
Imperial River Cruises’ 13-day Tchaikovsky cruises start at $2,400, including all concerts, excursions and meals. The May 10 departure sails from Perm, Russia, in the Ural Mountains and journeys about 720 miles southwest to Moscow. The Sept. 25 sailing reverses the itinerary. Side trips to Vladimir and Suzdal are optional.
www.imperialrivercruises.com
Peter Deilmann Cruises
Classical music cruises are offered on the 106-passenger Dresden sailing between Hamburg and Dresden on April 25 and Oct. 24. Fares start at $1,625 per person, double. On the 200-passenger Mozart, weeklong cruises depart April 26 and Oct. 4 roundtrip from Munich (Passau). Pricing is from $2,000 per person, double. In addition to the classical performances onboard, passengers can purchase excursion packages that include five shore excursions and concert performances ashore for $257 per person on the Dresden and $395 on the Mozart.
Deilmann will extend its season on the Rhine and Danube rivers this year to offer its three- to five-night Christmas Market cruises. The five-night itinerary between Cologne and Strasbourg also visits centuries-old craft markets in Heidelberg, Koblenz, Mainz, Manheim, Rudesheim and Speyer. Priced from $1,625, departures are Nov. 28 and Dec. 3, 8, 13 and 18.
www.deilmann-cruises.com
Tauck Cruises
Tauck’s 10-day Holland and Belgium in the Spring sailing between Amsterdam and Brussels in April combines history, tulips, windmills and Van Gogh with visits to Hoorn, Nijmegan, Maastricht, Antwerp and Bruges from $3,690.
www.tauck.com/journeys/travel-type/river-cruising/
Uniworld Boutique River Cruises
Uniworld offers 11-day March and April departures on its Tulip and Windmills itinerary between Amsterdam and Antwerp, including two nights at each end. Guests will visit Hoorn, Enkhuizen, Nijmegen, Rotterdam, Dordrecht, Veere and Bruges; pricing starts at $1,699.
Uniworld’s Epicurean Adventurer Program will be available on the following 2009 cruises:
• Danube Discovery. Nine days from Vienna to Nuremberg with fares starting from $2,099
• Rhine Discovery. Nine-day itinerary from Nuremberg to Basel with fares starting from $2,099
• Grand European Discovery. 16 days from Basel to Vienna with fares starting from $4,049
• Legendary Rhine & Moselle. 14 days from Amsterdam to Basel in 14 days with fares starting from $3,599
• Paris & the European River Romance. 11-days from Paris to Nuremberg with fares starting from $1,999
• Paris & the Heart of Europe. Travel from 18-day cruise from Paris to Vienna with fares starting from $4,059
• Paris & the Grand European Waterways. 32 days from Paris to Bucharest in 32 days with fares starting from $7,259
• Burgundy & Provence. Nine days from Arles to Chalon with fares starting from $2,059
• Grand European Explorer: 30 days from Basel to Bucharest with fares starting from $8,199
www.uniworld.com
Viking River Cruises
Viking River Cruises’ special 12-day October sailings of the Elegant Elbe itinerary, Following Luther’s Footsteps, trace the life and work of theologian and professor Martin Luther. Sailing between Berlin and Prague, with two nights in each, guests visit Potsdam, Dessau, Wittenberg, Torgau, Meissen, Dresden, Bad Scandau, Litomerice and Melnik, with pricing starting at $2,099.
In the fall, Epicurean Discoveries will be offered on some sailings of the Vineyards and Vistas (Trier to Nuremberg), the Portraits of Southern France itinerary (Chalon to Avignon), and the Grand European Journey (Amsterdam to Budapest) itineraries. The seven-night Vineyards & Vistas calls in Cochem and Koblenz, Rudesheim. Heidelberg, Wurzberg, Bamberg and Nuremberg; October pricing is from $1,749.
www.vikingrivercruises.com
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