Q – We have been traveling on luxury programs abroad for the past twelve years including four of the cruise ranked “Best in The World” on your sister site, “Cruisetruth”. Recently, at the urging of close friends, we are planning on doing both the Danube and the Rhine next year on the best rated riverboat line. But here it gets a tad confusing – Viking gets all the awards but not yours. Instead, you seem to rank Scenic, Tauck, and AMA at the top without a very clear winner.
Our interests are as much comfort and space as possible with nice suite options as well as, hopefully, the best cuisine on the rivers. We are less interested in evening entertainment or shore excursion quality (we’ll likely do our own thing). Given this profile, we were wondering what your best recommendation might be.
A – Your concise summary is helpful. You are correct – Viking wins all the “Reader’s Choice” Awards and they are also the largest industry advertiser. Coincidence?
You have also noticed something fairly adroit. The clearance of various bridges along the routes together with water draft requirements creates a design similarity among river boat brands that you don’t find in the cruise industry.
That said, the brand that will most closely meet your needs is Riverside Luxury Cruises. This is a fairly new line that purchased the Crystal Riverboats when that line went bankrupt. They are the most specious and best designed ships currently sailing Europe’s rivers. We are currently ranking them # 1 for cuisine and wine. They have one of the highest crew to passenger ratios and we think you will find the more intimate experience you are seeking on Riverside. It is worth noting that riverboat cuisine has always been hampered by the ting kitchens aboard each boat. When it designed its fleet, the original Crystal line made changes creating the largest kitchens on the river. This is one reason that Riverside Luxury Cruises currently features the finest food on the Danube and the Rhine.
