{"id":6005,"date":"2012-08-10T00:55:05","date_gmt":"2012-08-10T06:55:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/?p=6005"},"modified":"2022-05-27T06:38:33","modified_gmt":"2022-05-27T10:38:33","slug":"river-cruising-2013-the-next-big-destination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/2012\/08\/river-cruising-2013-the-next-big-destination\/","title":{"rendered":"River Cruising 2013: The Next Big Destination"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The river cruise industry is hot – red hot – and 2013 is poised to be one of the best years on the books for nearly every major line. Public awareness has taken off in recent years, and more and more travellers are looking to book their own journey down one of the world\u2019s most scenic waterways.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Avalon Creativity docked in Conflans Sainte-Honorine, France. While European river cruising will be hot as ever next year, we’ve got our eyes on some up-and-coming destinations. \u00a9 2012 Ralph Grizzle<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Of course, the destination most of us think of when we picture river cruising is Europe. And understandably so. Europe offers a stunning array of ports, rivers and ships, each more breathtaking than the last it seems. But despite the popularity of the \u201cOld World,\u201d there are a few other standout destinations that look like 2013 may just be the year they break into the public consciousness in a big way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What do we have our eye on for 2013? Let\u2019s have a look:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Portugal<\/h3>\n\n\n
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The spectacular Douro River Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Photo \u00a9 2012 Peter Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Although it\u2019s usually tucked away near the back of the brochures, Portugal\u2019s Douro River Valley is one of the most scenic destinations you can visit. The epicenter of port wine production (based in Porto, Portugal), Portugal is such a hot  destination that Uniworld Boutique Cruises<\/strong><\/a> is bringing a new ship, the Queen Isabel<\/strong>,<\/a> on-line in 2013. But all is not lost for Douro Spirit<\/strong>, which will transfer to Viking River Cruises<\/strong> <\/a>to become its Viking Douro<\/strong> as the line pioneers its first foray into Portugal. Also worth watching: AmaWaterways<\/strong><\/a> inaugurates both the brand new AmaVida<\/a> <\/strong>and its own itineraries along Portugal’s  Douro River in the spring of 2013.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Italy<\/h3>\n\n\n
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One of the luxuriously-appointed and furnished suites aboard River Countess. Photo courtesy of Uniworld Boutique River Cruises.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Uniworld Boutique River Cruises<\/strong><\/a> is taking something of a calculated gamble on Italy\u2019s Po River next year. Tidal fluctuations have kept many river cruisers at bay in the past, but a stunning itinerary that features a cruise through the Venice Lagoon aboard River Countess<\/a> <\/strong>sounds too good to pass up. Our bet: Other cruisers will think so too and make this one of the hottest destinations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asia<\/h3>\n\n\n
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Almost Unheard Of: the spacious indoor pool and spa area aboard Century Legend and Century Paragon. Illustration courtesy of Uniworld<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

If river cruising is hot, Asia is positively on fire. Much like the explosion in popularity that deep-ocean cruising has seen in the region recently, river cruises that explore the wonders of Asia\u2019s most fabled waterways have hit their stride, with cruise lines bringing new ships on-line along the Mekong and the Yangtze. And these are no ordinary vessels; luxury-mavens would do well to seek out voyages that sail here, as the ships that ply these waters are some of the most lavish and amenity-laden afloat. Look for the new Century Legend <\/strong><\/a>and Century Paragon<\/strong><\/a>, operated dually by Avalon Waterways<\/strong><\/a> and Uniworld Boutique River Cruises<\/a> <\/strong>to shake things up even further in 2013.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

North America<\/h3>\n\n\n
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The rebirth of the American Queen became official this past June. Photo courtesy of the American Queen Steamboat Company.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

With the re-emergence in June of the classic American Queen<\/strong><\/a> steamboat under the watchful eye of the newly formed American Queen Steamboat Company<\/strong><\/a> and the introduction of American Cruise Lines<\/strong>\u2019 brand-new<\/a> Queen of the Mississippi<\/strong><\/a> just last week, expect the turf wars on the Mississippi to heat up in a way that hasn\u2019t been seen since the late 1990\u2019s. A few years ago, a cruise along the Mississippi was nearly impossible. Now, it could well be the next \u201cbig thing\u201d in river cruising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, 2013 is shaping up to be an exciting year, but don’t forget, there’s still time to river cruise in 2012.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The river cruise industry is hot – red hot – and 2013 is poised to be one of the best years on the books for nearly every major line. Public awareness has taken off in recent years, and more and more travellers are looking to book their own journey down one of the world\u2019s most […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[308,6,85,358,356,349,231,306,132,319,72,29,288,87,276],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6005"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6005"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6005\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6005"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6005"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6005"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}