We always write about river cruises here on River Cruise Advisor, but in the next few weeks we’re going to give you the opportunity to virtually sail along with us as we sail on two very different river cruise lines to two unique destinations within Europe.
Beginning Friday June 20, River Cruise Advisor’s own Avid Cruiser, Ralph Grizzle, will embark CroisiEurope’s Botticelli in the magical city of Paris, France for a weeklong voyage along the Seine to the beaches of Normandy.
Besides Paris, Ralph’s journey will also take him to Vernon, Caudebec-en-Caux, Honfleur, Rouen and Les Andelys, where CroisiEurope offers an optional excursion to Martainville Castle.
Of course, the history of Normandy and the 70th Anniversary of the D-Day Allied invasions during World War II will feature prominently in this itinerary. But it’s also noteworthy for another reason: CroisiEurope only recently began actively targeting the North American cruise market, and Ralph’s trip will be an excellent opportunity to discover what has made this Strasbourg-based line – which is still family-owned – so successful within Europe.
Botticelli is what CroisiEurope calls a “4 Anchors” ship – meaning, one of the line’s more deluxe vessels. She was built in 2004 and has a capacity of 151 guests.
If you have questions about CroisiEurope, ask away! Ralph’s day-by-day reports will be posted here as they are filed.
In early July, I (Aaron Saunders) will travel to Budapest, Hungary to board Emerald Cruises’ Emerald Sky on a voyage along the Danube to the historic German city of Nuremberg.
Not only is the Emerald Sky brand new, but so is Emerald Cruises: in effect, both began true operations this April. An offshoot of Australian Scenic Tours, Emerald Cruises has a look, feel and style that’s all their own. They’re designed to offer a modern, trendy river cruise product at an affordable price. So while that means slightly less inclusions than their more expensive counterparts at Scenic, it doesn’t mean skimping in the features department: Emerald Sky even has a swimming pool that can convert to a cinema in the evenings.
My eight-day Danube Discovery journey will take me from Budapest to Bratislava, Slovakia; Vienna, Austria; Melk; Austria; Durnstein, Austria; Linz, Austria; Passau, Germany; Regensburg, Germnay; and Weltenburg, Germany before arriving in Nuremberg.
My journey will run here on River Cruise Advisor from Saturday, July 12 to Sunday, July 20, 2014. Emerald Cruises is the newest kid on the block in the river cruise industry, so don’t hesitate to ask questions both in advance and during the voyage.
But we’re not stopping there – there’s going to be plenty of live coverage from waterways around the world coming here in the next few months, offering a first-hand look at just how diverse the river cruise industry has become.
