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LUXURY TRAVEL MAG EXCLUSIVE 2025 / Our Picks For You In The New Year / The Best Boutique River Cruise Lines / By Victoria Starbuck / luxurytravelmag
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Multiple Regions river
These are the best boutique river cruises, chosen for their array of offerings and unique insight to local cultures
Regardless of which of the world’s waterways you choose for your next river cruise, these brands will ensure the voyage is not easily forgotten
From the Mekong to the Danube, these boutique river cruise lines offer some of the best inland cruise experiences. These top cruise lines offer unique onshore experiences while prioritising sustainability in their operations. Without further ado, let’s dive in to the best of boutique river cruising.
Uniworld Boutique River Cruises
Set sail aboard Uniworld Boutique River Cruise in destinations across Europe, Egypt, Southeast Asia, India and Peru. The fleet’s ships have an average capacity of 120 guests and the fleet boasts one of the highest crew-to-guest ratios. Guests aboard a Uniworld cruise can expect high quality shore excursions, gourmet cuisine, hospitality and all-inclusive benefits. Plus, Uniworld was 2023’s Gold List Award winner for the Luxury Ocean Or River Cruise Brand (With Ships Under 300 Guests) category.
Uniworld’s fleet features 17 ships – with an 18th set to debut in 2025 – that are crafted to reflect the destinations in which they sail. The fully-immersive approach includes farm-to-table cuisine with local delicacies and fine wines served daily as well as all-inclusive amenities.
Sustainability is at the heart of Uniworld operations with sustainable attention given to both on- and off-shore activities. As a signatory of the Glasgow Declaration, Uniworld is committed to limiting carbon emissions while holding other travel companies and organisations accountable.
Some of the other sustainability initiatives undertaken by Uniworld include reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050, partnering with Leanpath to reduce onboard food waste and a ban on 60 types of single-use plastics. Guests aboard a Uniworld cruise can take part in a Make Travel Matter Experience, which is designed to advance at one of the United Nations Global Goals.
Such experiences include visiting the Calcutta Rescue, meeting the women who run the Iraq Al-Amir Women’s Cooperative, visiting Weinessiggut Doktorenhof for vinegar tasting and tasting the chocolates, jams and honeys at Wachau Saffron Manufactory.
Unique experiences aboard a Uniworld cruise include the Cruise & Rail itineraries which allow guests to see more of their chosen destination by combining the two travel methods. These distinct trips are currently on offer in Europe and India.
Uniworld prides itself on its all-inclusive amenities that include daily shore excursions, meals, beverages, room service, Wi-Fi, gratuities and complimentary laundries with Miele appliances. Its crew-to-guest ratio is one of the highest in the river cruise industry, making cruising with Uniworld a truly special experience.
Avalon Waterways
A trip aboard Avalon Waterways takes all of the little details into account: from ‘relaxed luxury’ to an all-inclusive experience that features complimentary bikes and the AvalonGO app for personalised travel tips. With a fleet of 19 ships, Avalon takes guests to locations across Europe, Southeast Asia, Egypt, Peru and the Galapagos Islands. Avalon Waterways ships accommodate an average of 150 guests.
Avalon Panorama Suites fit cabins with open-air balconies, ensuring an unobstructed view from the edge of the guestroom to the world beyond. These Panorama Suites offer views 30% larger than the industry average. Beds facing the open-air balcony ensure that views beyond the cabin window are still accessible while relaxing.
Guests aboard Active and Discovery cruises can choose from Active, Discovery and Classic excursions daily. With up to 28 excursion options, the Active and Discovery itineraries let travellers craft a truly unique trip. Special interest itineraries include beer, wine, history, photography, and celebrity-hosted Storyteller Series sailings.
Cuisine on Avalon ships is farm-to-fork and features locally sourced ingredients and regional wines. Avalon Waterways and its parent company, Globus, partner with several organisations like Trees4Travel and The Ocean Cleanup to ensure sustainability measures are met.
Attained sustainability goals include eliminating single-use plastics on ships and in corporate offices, investing in local farmers, using shore energy at dozens of ports while docked and reducing onboard paper waste by 80%.
Future plans include installing electric bow thrusters and adopting bio-fuel to reduce carbon emissions by 50%.
Scenic River Cruises
Australian cruise line Scenic offers all-inclusive river getaways in Europe and Southeast Asia. Guests voyaging in Europe can choose from active excursions like Kayak on the Pinhão River, cultural activities such as taking a day excursion to the Normandy beaches or interactive excursions like shopping with a chef in Avignon.
Those travelling with Scenic can choose from active, moderate and relaxed excursions. Examples include a tethered balloon ride in Siem Reap, cruising Tonlé Sap Lake and a lantern making class in Hoi An, respectively.
Unique experiences onboard include cooking classes in the dedicated cheese and wine cellars of Scenic DIamond and Scenic Sapphire. These two vessels were redesigned to better satisfy customers’ luxury needs, such as reducing the number of cabins onboard to create two large Royal Owner’s Suites. A vitality pool and expanded wellness centre were also added.
Tauck
Tauck takes guests to European destinations near various rivers such as the Rhine, Rhône, Douro, Seine and Danube. With nine vessels (that’s five more than they had in 2014!), Tauck offers a variety of experiences across its growing fleet.
Tauck prides itself on cultural experiences, with river cruise options ranging from a private tour of the baroque libraries of Prague to an imperial evening in Vienna. They also host Christmas Market cruises on the Danube and Rhine rivers as well as from Amsterdam to Brussels.
Viking River Cruises
Viking’s river cruise offerings range across Europe, Southeast Asia, Egypt and North America’s Mississippi River. Viking prides itself upon its culturally immersive cruises with unique options including Christmas Market adventures on the Seine, Moselle, Main, Elbe, Danube and Rhine rivers as well as tulip peeing trips in the Netherlands.
Onboard, Scandinavian touches accentuate each trip from the vessel’s shape to the interior design and decor choices. Dining is destination-focused, meaning that meal options onboard reflect those available ashore.
vikingrivercruises.com
Abercrombie & Kent
Abercrombie & Kent’s river cruises offer intimate luxury aboard each voyage in Europe, Egypt, China and Southeast Asia. A&K is the only one on this list to offer river cruises in China. From Beijing to Shanghai, guests aboard one of these voyages will see iconic destinations such as the Great Wall, the terracotta warriors in Xian and the three gorges of the Yangtze River.
A&K’s Connections river cruises take guests to Prague and the Danube as well as Switzerland and the Rhine. Luxury European canal barge cruises carry travellers on smaller waterways aboard a ‘floating country inn.
’ These small group voyages are limited to 20 or fewer passengers, depending on the barge. Destinations include the Scottish highlands, Britain’s Thames River, Germany’s Moselle River, various French waterways and Holland.
Riviera River Cruises
Exclusive to Europe, Riviera focuses on bringing the history and culture of a destination to guests. The fleet’s 16 river cruise ships – most of which are named for famous authors – sail on seven rivers plus the Dutch waterways.
One of Riviera’s more unique offerings is its solo travellers’ cruises, which exclude singles’ supplements – where an additional fee is placed on those booking a room solo. Solo trips are currently available in Portugal, France, Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
rivierarivercruises.com
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