Quickly Learn About European River Cruises on Our Website
By Hank Schrader, USMA ’71, Europe Destination & Europe River Cruise Expert
Everybody wants to quickly and easily learn about any topic they want to know more about. That’s why a section of our website, European River Cruises is so valuable if you want to learn more about European River Cruises.
We have an exceptional section on our website to gain a complete understanding of Europe River Cruising. It contains a great overview about what European River Cruising entails , compares river cruise companies, provides a vibe of 8 river cruise companies, informs you of possible European river cruise routes and has a link to the 67 Blogs we have written about all aspects of European River Cruising.
So, this week, I’d like to write about the value of our website and why it is a great resource for you to quickly learn about European River Cruising.
Ready?—let’s go together and learn all about Europe river cruising!
Overview
Bratislava Castle
We have an excellent overview of European River Cruising. It defines exactly what a European River Cruise is and a summary of the major cruise routes; provides a comparison of ocean cruises to river cruises; and uses our photos so you can see what a typical river cruise ship looks like. For a person who has never been on a Europe River Cruise, it helps you grasp the key elements of this type of vacation.
Sailing into Passau, Germany on the Danube River
Company Comparisons
As many of you know, we have one of the best, in-depth, Europe River Cruise Comparisons available anywhere on our website. We have updated our 2016 version to provide even more accurate information on the ever changing Europe river cruise scene.
This is an excellent summary—it ranks always on the first page of Google (this is earned—we have never paid to boast anything on the internet). Getting unbiased information about the various river cruise companies is difficult. There is no one company that is right for everyone. We believe we know enough to guide you to the right company that matches your travel style.
We want to emphasize all of these river cruise lines are good values and special trips. Many have won awards and there is really no official ranking system to provide you a valid comparison method.
To help overcome the lack of an official ranking system, we have found that The Berlitz River Cruising in Europe & the USA guide to be as fair an evaluation as presently available to the public. This book evaluates individual ships in its rating system instead of entire companies, so we have decided to compare the best rivership from each company to determine a ranking system as our method of comparison.
Here is a sample of one of our slides in the Comparisons PDF Slide Shows
We have also provided our own personal rankings of each line with comments.
So, let’s explore these ranking together, by going directly to our full PDF presentation at this link:
READ OUR COMPLETE 86 SLIDE PRESENTATION
River Cruise Vibes
Since 2009, I have studied Europe River cruising to try and learn all I could about the river cruise industry. A few industry experts have tried to make comprehensive comparisons of the different lines. Each has a slightly different approach.
We have taken a unique approach by creating a PowerPoint presentation. Our 86 slide 2019 Comparison Guide is very good but even that lacks one factor—the vibe of the line and its ships.
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines vibe as “the feeling that someone or something gives you.” So, here goes—my evaluation of the vibe or feeling you will get on 8 river cruise lines.
This really matters, since there is little information of the company vibes in one place that you can quickly determine the vibe or feelings you will probably experience on a European River Cruise. This blog goes beyond just facts—it tells the story of each river cruise line.
These pictures capture a little bit of these vibes—two great lines, AmaWaterways (first photo) and Scenic—we know the vibe of both and want to help you understand the differences!
AmaKristina Lounge 2018 decorated for Christmas
Did we provide a good summary of each lines feelings? Will that help you decide on which line best fits your desired vacation experience?
Route Guide
Our comprehensive guide of the available Europe River Cruise Routes is the best single resource available for you to quickly learn about European Rivers. It is designed so you can easily decide on which route will be the best for your next Europe river cruise vacation.
Old Town Lyon—a port on the Rhône River—one of the Routes we describe in our guide
Europe has the distinction of the continent with the largest number of navigable rivers compared to other regions of the world. They are often devoid of major obstacles such as waterfalls and rapids, and are usually wide and deep enough to allow a steady passage of people and material on all types of sailing vessels.
Combine the easy navigation with captivating sights such as castles, vineyards, capital cities and small, quaint villages and it is clear to me why folks would want to sail these amazing rivers!
Europe Rivers Map from AmaWaterways
It will describe the river, point out a couple of highlights and why you might consider sailing on this river. The routes may be very short or may cover larger distances. While there are some variations, many lines essentially cruise the same route on the most popular European rivers.
Since most folks want to know what the best starting rivers are if they have never taken a European River cruise, by far the two most popular rivers are the Rhine and the Upper Danube, so let’s explore them first together. Then will examine the remaining Europe Rivers you might want to consider for your vacation.
The Watchman of the Danube Schönbühel Castle
Sailing into Rüdesheim Germany on the Rhine
Ready?—Let’s cruise together!
River Cruise Blogs
If you believe Google, I am the number one Europe River Cruise Blogger.
Our blogs, by design, are much more detailed than most other blogs—usually 2000 words or more. There are two types of blogs we use to help you understand characteristics of Europe river cruises.
In the first type, we try to tell the story of each topic in a way you can see yourself there—can we capture the experience for you?
While some blogs easily fall into storytelling type of blog, others are designed as informational, data blogs, our second type of blog. This blog is more the informational type blog.
Both have immense value, in my opinion. Sometimes you just need the data in a form you can understand and make comparisons. But this alone is not enough—you need to know what you will experience on a Europe river cruise to get the full story. A key element of the blogs is a clear separation of facts (usually there is a source) and our opinion. When possible, we use many pictures in each blog to help enhance our descriptions.
As you can see from this blog, we break up our blogs into sub headings to make it easier to understand. Often, there is quite a bit of research that goes into the content—we try to sift through the overwhelming amount of information and advertising to paint an easily understandable summary of each topic. Most is first-hand information from our experiences, but some is news or research, or information facts (internet, blogs, books, travel publications, company brochures or other sources) you need to know to become a better traveler.
Our blogs have two goals—the most important is to inform you so you can decide if a Europe river cruise is right for you. The second, a bit more subtle, is to help you decide if we are the right folks to help plan your river cruise.
We Are the Right Folks to Plan your Next European River Cruise
Our knowledge of Europe river cruises is exceptional. We have been on 18 Europe river cruises, written over 60 blogs about all aspects of Europe river cruises, have 3 items on the first page of Google, we have 51 port guides (they are free) for you, and we have help dozens enjoy river cruising in Europe. And if that we not enough, we have 50 free guides to most Europe Cities you might want to visit before or after your Europe river cruise.
My Final Thoughts
Wow—What a quick way to get exceptional information about European River Cruising We want to earn that trust from you to use us for your vacation needs.
We are travel experts, ocean and river cruise experts, and Europe destination experts. We have first-hand knowledge of almost anywhere you want to visit in Europe. We know our products and the vendors who sell them to you. We have designed special tours for dozens of clients, led several and will continue to find just the right vacation that will exceed your expectations. As you can see, our full service agency can get you to almost anywhere you desire to travel and provide you a great experience and vacation.
When you are spending your hard earned money for a vacation, you want an advisor who can match you with the right trip. You want someone who will understand your expectations and fuel your anticipation (or excitement) to get you the best possible trip experience.
Whatever your Dream Destinations are, we are here to help you get the best possible vacation based on what is important to you! We will provide you high quality, expertly planned travel. Please give me a call 713-397-0188 (Hank) or email me at hschrader@dreamdestinations.com. We want to help you: Savor life…make memories…Visit Dream Destinations! Your journey begins here!
HANK is a certified Western European Destination Specialist (DS) who has been traveling to Europe for 48+ years. He is also an Accredited Cruise Counselor (ACC), conferred by the Cruise Line International Association (CLIA). This recognized expert in cruise and leisure travel is a retired Army Officer, and taught World Geography for 8 years. He is a `71 graduate of West Point and has earned 2 master’s degrees. His other Certifications:
AmaWaterways River Cruise Specialist
Viking River Cruise Specialist
Scenic River Cruise Specialist
Emerald Waterways Specialist
Avalon Waterways Specialist
Brit Agent
