The goal in listing my favorite river cruises is to help you with decisions about your own river cruise. I’m fortunate to have experienced more than 75 river cruises since 2006, and I’m happy to share what I’ve learned along the way. For the past 35 years, my goal has been to provide resources to help you make informed cruise vacation decisions.
On this page, you’ll find my favorites from 2026 back through 2015 — from ultra-luxury sailings on the Danube to hotel barges on the backwaters of France, from the Rhine and Moselle to the Douro and Seine. Whether you’re a first-time river cruiser or a seasoned traveler, there’s something here to inspire your next voyage.
In the interest of full disclosure, all of my river cruises were hosted by the cruise companies that I write about. I hope you find the information useful for your planning. If I can help you along the way, please click on Get My Help.
1. AmaWaterways AmaCello, Lyon to Burgundy on the Saône
Cruised April 2026
A week ago I was on a 22-passenger barge, ducking through a tunnel under Besançon’s citadel at first light. A week later I was on AmaWaterways’ AmaCello, watching the sun set over the Pont Saint-Laurent in Chalon-sur-Saône. The contrast is worth noting — and the Saône rewarded the slower attention it asks for.
AmaWaterways has changed since I last sailed it. A rebrand is underway — new rust-red hull color, new CEO Catherine Powell — but the onboard experience felt like continuity of everything that made the company great. Our junior suite had a French balcony open to the river, laundry service delivered back within hours, and regional wines included at every dinner. The Chef’s Table at the stern — no extra charge — was the week’s best meal, a wine-paired dinner guided by two sommeliers that none of us will forget.
What sets AmaWaterways apart on this itinerary is activity. Bikes available to every guest at no charge. Guided bike tours most port days. A wellness host running morning sessions throughout the week. The highlight was a cooperage visit in Seurre — two thousand years of barrel-making history, followed by actually making one. Book it.
One more thing. We are not dancers. And yet on several nights aboard the AmaCello, Marucia and I were the first ones on the floor. A river cruise will do that to you. Read more about that →
Read my full AmaCello review →
2. CroisiEurope Daniele, Besançon to Dijon via the Doubs & Burgundy Canal
Cruised April 2026
The Daniele’s first move is unexpected. Rather than turning west into the open Doubs, the barge noses toward the base of the Citadelle — and then into it. A tunnel cut through the limestone bluff beneath Vauban’s fortress draws you in, lit and narrow, stone walls close on both sides. Then daylight again, and the Doubs opening up beyond. This is how barge travel begins from Besançon. Not with a departure, exactly. More like a passage.
Seven days, 52 miles, three waterways: the Doubs giving way to the Saône, the Saône to the Burgundy Canal. The Daniele carries 22 passengers and a crew of six — small enough that you know everyone’s name within the first hour, and navigate waterways that river cruise ships can’t reach. We had seven consecutive days of spring sunshine. We had a remarkable crew. Cruise manager Christophe ran the operation with the particular skill of someone who has mastered the balance between structure and ease. Dining steward Margo made the room warmer simply by being in it. Laszlo, who kept cabins refreshed, delivered humor with the timing of someone who missed a calling on the stage.
At the end of the week, nearly every guest went to hug Margo goodbye. That tells you what you need to know.
3. CroisiEurope Anne-Marie + AmaWaterways AmaKristina — Camargue Canals to the Rhône
Cruised October 2025
The most illuminating thing about this two-week journey through southern France wasn’t either vessel individually — it was the contrast between them.
We began on CroisiEurope’s Anne-Marie, a 22-passenger barge threading the canals of the Camargue from Sète to Arles. White horses on open plains, pink flamingos in shallow pools, the landscape changing color with the light — France few travelers ever see, at five miles an hour, close enough to the waterline to hear birds in the reeds. Then we stepped off in Arles and onto AmaWaterways’ AmaKristina for seven nights north to Lyon: Avignon, Viviers, Tournon, Vienne, the vineyards of Hermitage, the Roman ruins and the city lights of Lyon reflected on the Rhône.
The barge was intimate and close — compact cabins, everyone knowing everyone’s name by day two, the kind of travel that makes strangers into easy friends. The river cruise offered space and scale — a pool, bikes, a wellness host, the Chef’s Table at the stern. Together they told the same story from two angles: one close-up, one panoramic.
When I asked the group which they preferred, no one could decide. That’s the right answer.
4. Riverside Mozart, Vienna to Tulln — The Queen of the Danube, Reborn
Cruised February 2025
When Crystal River Cruises collapsed in 2022, it left a void at the very top of the river cruise market. Riverside Luxury Cruises stepped in to fill it — purchasing all five former Crystal ships and setting out to build something that could reclaim Crystal’s crown.
I sailed Mozart in early 2025, and I’m happy to report that the ship is in excellent hands. Familiar faces from the Crystal years are back — including Senior Hotel Director Sonja Gruber, who helped launch Crystal on the rivers and is now doing the same for Riverside. The DNA is intact: all-suite accommodations, an extraordinary crew-to-guest ratio of roughly 1:2, and a dining experience that Riverside CEO Jen Halboth says costs double what competitors spend per passenger.
What’s new is the ambition. Riverside is positioning itself squarely at the ultra-luxury traveler — targeting guests 45 and up with a youthful mindset, pricing aimed at $1,000 per person per day, and a flexibility-first philosophy that lets guests control the rhythm of their cruise. Four dining venues on Mozart (including the exclusive Vintage Room, a multi-course private dinner at €320 supplement), 200+ cocktails, and a wrap-around promenade that remains unique among river cruise ships.
One detail worth calling out for solo travelers: Riverside currently offers no single supplement — one of the most attractive solo programs in the industry.
Mozart isn’t for everyone. But for travelers who stay at the Four Seasons and want that same standard on the rivers of Europe, there’s nothing quite like it.
Read my full Riverside Luxury Cruises review →
5. AmaWaterways AmaPrima — Rhine & Moselle, Amsterdam to Basel
Cruised October 2024
Nearly two years in the making. I’d wanted to host a Dream Cruise on Europe’s most beautiful rivers at the best time of year — and October on the Moselle, with the grape harvest underway and the foliage turning, is exactly that. Thirty-six of us boarded AmaPrima in Amsterdam. We almost didn’t make it: Hurricane Helene had just devastated our hometown of Asheville, North Carolina days before departure.
The itinerary was the thing. Eleven nights instead of the standard seven — long enough to settle into the rhythm of the river rather than spending the whole time thinking about leaving. The Moselle, which many river cruisers never see, is the jewel of the route: fairy-tale towns, steep vineyards, Riesling harvests, Reichsburg Castle above Cochem. We were one of only three attempts to cruise the Moselle that season, and the only successful one. Even then, rising water levels pushed us to Treis-Karden instead of Bernkastel — and we found a beautiful forest, a castle, and apple cake and coffee on the bike ride back. That’s the Moselle: wherever you dock, there’s something worth finding.
The cruise ended in Basel; 20 of us continued on to Switzerland — Lucerne, Zurich, then a few extra nights in Colmar. Nearly three weeks in total, and not one of them wasted.
6. CroisiEurope Raymonde — The Oise River, Paris to Compiègne
Cruised May 2024
If there was a moment that defined our seven days on the Oise, it was the last night of the trip. Charlène, our young Portuguese dining steward who had served us three meals a day and countless glasses of wine all week, slipped away after dinner, changed clothes, and came back to the dining room in a black frock with embroidered floral designs. She took the stage, held a glass of port, and performed Fado — a style of Portuguese music that in her version expressed the sadness of loved ones leaving. By the time she finished, people across the room were dabbing their eyes with napkins.
That’s what CroisiEurope’s barge trips are. Living rooms, not floating hotels. Twenty guests on a vessel where everyone knows everyone by name on the first day, and where the crew — all five of them — were standing on the dock waving as the bus pulled away at the end.
The Oise itself surprised me. Starting moored beneath the Eiffel Tower with a picture-perfect view, we moved through Bougival — where Monet painted and Joséphine de Beauharnais lived at Malmaison — then overnighted in Auvers-sur-Oise, where Van Gogh spent his final two months painting 70 canvases before his death at 37. We learned to make Chantilly cream at the Château de Chantilly. We visited Compiègne, where Joan of Arc was captured. Eleven locks over 121 miles — unhurried, layered with history, and impossible to replicate on a larger vessel.
7. Backroads + AmaWaterways AmaLyra — Normandy by Bike, Seine River
Cruised May 2024
I’ve cruised the Seine several times. I’d never seen Normandy the way Backroads showed it to 21 of us over seven nights in May — on two wheels, at exactly the right pace.
AmaLyra was our floating hotel, but this was only partially an AmaWaterways experience. Each morning we gathered outside for a 10–15 minute briefing — bits of string representing rivers, bottles standing in for hills — and then set out. E-bikes leveled the playing field. A support van traveled with us all day, carrying snacks, handling first aid and bike repairs, and shuttling anyone who wanted out of the saddle. Lunch was at venues Backroads had chosen in advance: the standout was the Auberge des Ruines in Jumièges, where chef Christophe Mauduit cooked from locally sourced ingredients in the shadow of a 1,500-year-old abbey.
The most potent memory: pedaling through the flowery fragrances and birdsong on the way to Monet’s Gardens in Giverny. You could take a motorcoach to Giverny. It would not be the same experience.
The closest analogy I can offer is an expedition cruise — the bikes were our Zodiacs, the Backroads team leaders our expedition guides. Total immersion in the landscape, at a pace that made the difference between tourist and traveler.
A note on 2018–2023: Several of my favorite cruises during this period were on Crystal River Cruises, which ceased operations in 2022 when parent company Genting Hong Kong collapsed. Others were interrupted by the pandemic. Many were on CroisiEurope’s canal barges — a form of travel I cover separately. You’ll find those barge stories throughout the site, and I host barge trips most years if you’d like to join me.
8. Avalon Visionary, Active Discovery On The Rhine & Moselle
Cruised April 2017
Next up in April was Avalon Waterways, a company that I had not experienced since cruising Avalon Creativity several years ago. Creativity had none of the bells and whistles of Avalon Visionary, a so-called “Suite Ship.” On Avalon’s Suite Ships, staterooms are large by industry standards. The top two decks have 200-square-foot and 300-square-foot suites with beds facing the sliding glass wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling windows. I also liked what is called Avalon Fresh, a healthy dining option, and Active Discovery, a program focused on engaging guests in immersive, local experiences. Check out From Amsterdam To Paris On An Avalon Waterways’ Active Discovery Cruise.
9. Viking River Cruises: Rhine Getaway
Cruised 2017
Koblenz, Germany — It had been awhile since I was on a Viking Longship, and although I had attended christening events and even did a couple of weeklong cruises on Viking a few years ago, too much time had passed since I’d stepped on a Longship. That changed when I boarded Viking Hlin in Basel for a seven-night “Rhine Getaway” voyage to Amsterdam. Midway through the voyage, as I sat in the Aquavit Lounge on a gorgeous day while Viking Hlin was docked alongside the Deutsches Eck in Koblenz, I realized something I had nearly forgotten — and that was just how good Viking is. Read more: What I Learned About Viking River Cruises While Cruising The Rhine
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10. Cruising The Rhône On AmaWaterways: Lyon To Arles
Cruised 2017 & 2025
I produced a video from my Rhône river cruise with AmaWaterways in the spring of 2017. What I love about the Rhône is that it combines the beauty of the river with the charm of Provence. You’ll see all of it in the video, A Cruise On France’s Rhône River With AmaWaterways. Also, check out a second video about the Rhône, Riverside Chat Episode 2: Rhône River Cruises and be sure to read my post featuring Rhône River Excursions On AmaWaterways.
11. In Bordeaux, What Scenic Does Differently
Cruised 2017
Five companies operate river cruises in Bordeaux: AmaWaterways, CroisiEurope (with two ships), Scenic, Uniworld and Viking. All five companies run similarly sized vessels, similar itineraries and similar land programs, and visit more or less the same destinations. My story identifies what Scenic does differently in Bordeaux, from boasting the largest suites of any river cruiser in the region to its on-board cooking school, butlers for every suite and longer (11-night) Bordeaux cruises. Check out In Bordeaux, What Scenic Does Differently.
12. A Cruise Along The Seine With AmaWaterways
Cruised 2017 & 2024
The Normandy region is renowned for its beauty, its palatable flavors, its gorgeous countryside and the D-Day Landing Beaches. Bookended by Paris, a cruise along the Seine speaks to the sublime pleasures of exploring a narrow ribbon of river that inspired a handful of French Impressionists and that continues to inspire Francophiles today. I produced a video from my August cruise with AmaWaterways on the Seine river. Check out A Cruise Along The Seine With AmaWaterways. Also be sure to see my 2018 Price Comparisons On The Seine and a second video, Riverside Chat: Six Reasons To Cruise The Seine
13. A Barge Trip Along France’s Petit-Seine & Yonne Rivers
Cruised 2017, and many other barge trips since 2015 — with two planned for 2027
In September of 2017, I hosted a barge trip along France’s Petit-Seine & Yonne rivers on CroisiEurope’s Raymonde. Barge travel ranks among my favorite forms of travel for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the intimate size of the barge itself. Check out the video, A Barge Trip Along France’s Petit-Seine & Yonne Rivers. I’ll be hosting a similar trip in 2027 from Paris to Champagne. See 2027 Hosted Barge Trips.
14. A Cruise Along The Douro With Emerald Cruises
Cruised 2017
With more than 20 ships operating Douro River Cruises, your choices are abundant. Why choose Emerald Cruises? After spending eight days on the new Emerald Radiance during November, I identified six ways that the company differentiates itself from its competitors on the Douro. See Douro River Cruises: Six Reasons To Choose Emerald Cruises
15. AmaWaterways’ Taste Of Bordeaux
Cruised 2016
When I think back to this past spring in Bordeaux, I think of bicycles and bountiful vineyards. Boarding in the beautiful UNESCO-designated city of Bordeaux, I spent seven nights on AmaDolce, operated by AmaWaterways. This itinerary basically offers Bordeaux wine tours via boat and bike. Read more …
16. Eastern Europe On Emerald Sky
Cruised 2016
I felt like a true adventurer on Emerald Sky’s Enchantment of Eastern Europe cruise in early April of 2016. That’s in part because Emerald Sky took me to developing countries I had not been to before, namely Romania and Bulgaria. The 10-night voyage started in Bucharest and ended in Budapest, perfect bookends for exploring this beautiful and fascinating region of the world. Read more …
17. Boats & Bikes With Backroads & AmaWaterways
Cruised 2016
Do you enjoy bicycling and seeing new places? If so, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better mix than bicycling in Europe during your river cruise. In August, I did just that, traveling with my 19-year-old son on a “bikes and boats” trip with AmaWaterways and Backroads. The combination of cycling and river cruising was a match made in heaven, and a perfect way to travel for this father and son duo. Read more …
18. Amsterdam To Budapest, Two Weeks, Three Rivers, Five Countries
Cruised 2016
The duration of the cruise, spanning 14 nights/15 days, is perfect for those who have the time for a truly immersive European experience: three rivers, five countries and scenic cruising through the heartland of Europe. And time to absorb and reflect on it all. Read more …
19. Sampling Bordeaux On CroisiEurope
Cruised 2016
CroisiEurope is the only company that I know of that offers Bordeaux cruises of four different durations. The company operates two ships in Bordeaux, Cyrano de Bergerac and Princesse d’Aquitaine, on 5-, 6-, 7- and 8-day cruises. My four-night/five-day sampler cruise provided only a taste of Bordeaux on Cyrano de Bergerac, and while four nights is too short of a cruise for those who endure a trip across the Atlantic, four nights is a good option for those who couple the cruise with an extended stay in France. Read more …
20. On The Seine Again With AmaWaterways
Cruised 2016
AmaWaterways operates in three regions of France: Bordeaux, Provence and Paris/Normandy. One of my favorites is along the romantic Seine. The seven-night voyage begins in the “City of Light,” where the AmaLegro was docked within view of the Eiffel Tower. Read more …
21. Provence, New Year’s Eve On CroisiEurope
Cruised 2016
I spent the days after Christmas up until New Year’s Day in France. Part of my time was spent in Paris, where I visited a friend before heading off to Lyon to cruise into the new year with CroisiEurope. Traveling by TGV rail, I arrived in Lyon two hours after leaving Paris. Once in Lyon, I paid about a euro to take the tram from Gare Part-Dieu Villette to Université Lyon I, where CroisiEurope’s Mistral was docked just a few steps away on the Rhône. Read more …