• AMAWATERWAYS. The festive, traditional Christmas Markets of Vienna, Regensburg, Cologne, Prague and Paris are among the highlights of AMAWATERWAYS’ winter holiday voyages on the great rivers of Europe. Strolling through bustling village squares decorated with lights and Christmas trees, passengers can shop for everything from home-made gingerbread to hand-carved wooden toys, returning at the end of the day to a ship festooned with a holiday décor. In addition to such special touches as a formal Christmas Dinner and New Year’s Eve Gala Dinner, the company is offering “wonderful winter savings” with “Companion Cruises Free!” pricing. Passengers traveling in single accommodations may elect to waive the single supplement charge.
• AVALON WATERWAYS. Travelers can experience the holiday season the Central European way with Avalon Waterways on deluxe “Christmastime” river cruise vacations on the legendary Danube and Main Rivers. They will enjoy the enchanting atmosphere of 1,000-year-old-Prague and delight in the sights, smells and tastes of local Christmas markets in Frankfurt, Nuremberg, Regensburg, Würzberg, Bamberg, Miltenberg and Vienna. And, when they’re ready to return to the ship after festive sightseeing, they’ll enjoy moving scenery from their spacious staterooms complete with floor-to-ceiling windows and French balconies as well as regionally inspired cuisine aboard award-winning ships. Cruisers booking before November 3, 2009 can receive 50 percent off airfare on already reduced winter savings.
• UNIWORLD BOUTIQUE RIVER CRUISES. Come one, come all with Uniworld’s 2 for 1 Savings and Single Supplement Waived Offers on 2009 Europe Holiday River Cruises. Cherish all the glory and magic of the season in grand European style as you cruise along the magical rivers during this festive time of the year. Uniworld’s 2 for 1 Savings and Single Supplement Waived offer applies to the following cruises: European Holiday Markets, Vienna to Nuremberg, December 14; Rhine Holiday Markets, Basel to Cologne, December 20; and Rhine & Main Holiday Markets, Nuremberg to Cologne, December 17. Cruises include: elegantly appointed riverview staterooms, meals with complimentary wine, beer, and soft drinks, celebratory events and entertainment, fully escorted shore excursions, and all transfers on arrival and departure days.

En Route To Prague, The Czech Republic (December 31, 2006) : Recapping events of our seven-day cruise from Budapest to Nuremberg, Cordula Deeken, hotel manager on AMAWATERWAYS Amadagio, proudly proclaimed that we were close to breaking an all-time record: 279 bottles of wine consumed, only 23 bottles shy of a record set last summer. The audience applauded during the cocktail reception on the final night of our cruise. We were sure to surpass the standing record, because dinner and a New Years Eve “practice” party still were ahead of us, and on Amadagio corks go popping with great frequency thanks to the ships policy of “wine and beer included: with dinner.

Our cruise started in Budapest on Christmas Eve, sailed along the Danube River to the visit the Austrian cities of Vienna, Melk, Ybbs, Linz, called on Germanys Passau and Regensburg, transited the manmade Main-Danube Canal and crossed the Continental Divide (a feat that required locks to lift our ship approximately 1,400 feet above sea level) before ending in Nuremberg.

In each port of call, AMAWATERWAYS included well-organized city tours as well as nominally priced optional tours. At least one tour in each port is included, because the company strives to be as all-inclusive as possible. Also free of charge: the use of bicycles carried on board, bottled water in staterooms, “infotainment” systems in every stateroom equipped with a monitor and keyboard for internet access (wireless internet is available in the Verandah Lounge), TV, movies (approximately $5 per rental, with at least one feature movie free of charge each day), music playlists and a satellite phone with rates of about $1.25 per minute to call home.

Built in 2006, the 150-passenger Amadagio is AMAWATERWAYS newest vessel. A sister ship, Amalegro, will be delivered in the spring. Standard staterooms measure 170 square feet, and all but a few feature French balconies, with floor-to-ceiling glass spanning the entire exterior wall. Beds rival those of the finest hotels, with plush European-style down pillows and down duvets. Also in staterooms: terrycloth bathrobes. The ships also feature four Junior Suites, measuring 255 square feet, with bathrooms that feature a bathtub and shower.

Catering primarily to North Americans and Australians, Amadagio has a nonsmoking policy, except on the exterior Sun Deck; presentations and announcements are in English only. The ships open-seating dining arrangement has many tables for two. Though meals are tailored toward Americans, regional specialties (and regional wines) also are served.

With four interior public decks, Amadagio also features an elevator and one of the most attractive public rooms weve seen on a river cruiser, the Verandah Lounge, situated Aft, with glass doors all around and comfortable furniture for lounging as the banks of the river float past (during drydock, the lounge will be converted to a library). Additionally, Amadagio features a small spa, whirlpool, beauty salon and fitness facility.

Our near-full sailing took place around the Christmas holidays. AMAWATERWAYS, and a few other river cruisers, operate so-called “Christmas Markets” cruises from late November through December. These cruises visit the traditional Christmas Markets in Hungary, Austria and Germany.

Almost all cities and towns on the itineraries have some sort of Christmas activities as well as market stalls set up in a central area. Also available is traditional food (such as Lebkuchen — or Gingerbread) and drink (such as Gluehwein — or mulled warm red wine).

Nuremberg boasts the worlds largest Christmas market, with more than 100 red and white canvas-topped stalls offering an assortment of childrens toys, tinsel angels, dolls, Nutcrackers, dollhouses and more. Our cruise took place the week after Christmas, however, and some of the markets were closed.

One of the highlights of our cruise would take place not on the ship but during the included post-cruise program: two nights in Prague. We were looking forward to spending New Years Eve in the city that the German poet Goethe called “the prettiest gem in the stone crown of the world.” It seemed to be a perfect and appropriate way not only to end the year and begin a new one but also to conclude what had been a wonderful week floating past some of Europes grandest cities.

With its young fleet, AMAWATERWAYS new ships will appeal to those who prefer familiar foods (but with opportunities to try regional wines and specialities), a familiar language and a near all-inclusive cruise experience.

“Attention ladies and gentlemen. We are approaching a very low bridge, and we kindly ask that you vacate the Sun Deck until we have passed.”

Welcome to river cruising in Europe, where the experience is unlike any other you’ve ever encountered.

Floating down the Moselle River toward Germany’s border with Luxembourg and France, Peter Deilmann River Cruises’ Heidelberg is passing under a bridge — a low bridge. The crew moves to remove not only all tables and deck chairs from the Sun Deck but also the side railings, and even the captain’s pilot house must be lowered so that it is flush with the upper deck.

With the bridge only 100 yards away, I squeeze my head through a canopy draped over the stairwell to the Sun Deck, completely flush except for the captain’s bald crown poking above the deck from the pilot house.

We make it under with only two inches to spare. “The captain has been with us a very long time,” jokes Wilhelm Bahrs, Heidelberg’s affable hotel manager. When I fail to get the joke, he rubs his head to indicate that the low bridges have scraped the captain’s noggin bare.

Crossing The Divide

Cruising Europe’s rivers is a relatively new phenomenon that began in 1992. The completion of the Main-Danube Canal that year meant that river cruisers could travel, via locks, from the North Sea to the Black Sea, opening up 2,200 miles of river through 13 countries, and allowing itineraries from Amsterdam to Budapest.

The manmade channel crosses the Franconian Alps to link the Main and Danube rivers. Transiting the canal, river vessels cross Europe’s Continental Divide, which requires a series of locks to lift the ships approximately 1,400 feet above sea level.

A bit less than 40 feet wide, the canal’s locks restrict the width of river cruisers, which are essentially barges with rooms and other amenities above. River cruisers are, in fact, little more than floating hotels.

Night and Day

Some river cruise itineraries allow ships to overnight in ports and cruise during the day; others require that ships cruise during the night and tie up in port during the day.

Peter Deilmann’s Heidelberg, for example, transited the Rhine and Moselle rivers during the day, passing beautiful countryside characterized by vineyards, ancient castles and small towns. The ship remained docked in charming villages overnight.

On the Danube during a Christmas Market’s cruise in December, AMAWATERWAYS’ Amadagio cruised between destinations during the night and spent much of the daylight hours docked in cities and towns.

Uniworld’s River Empress overnights in Budapest and in Passau at the beginning and end of its Danube cruises and sails between destinations during the daylight hours and overnight.

Both approaches allow for dinners ashore and late-evening strolls into town. And both beat motorcoach tours of Europe hands down. On river cruises, you pack and unpack only once; there’s no need to get up at unspeakable hours in the morning to board a bus for the next destination. You and your hotel cruise along together.

First-Time Cruisers

Europe has more navigable rivers than any other region in the world — and arguably more diverse cultures along its river banks than any place else. A cruise along the entire length of the Rhine and Danube rivers exposes travelers to 10 countries in Eastern and Western Europe.

First-time river cruisers typically begin with the Danube, according to Rudi Schreiner, president of California-based Amadeus Waterways, founded in 2002. “The Rhine River seems to be one river that is mentioned worldwide,” he says, “but the majority of cruises in Europe actually take place on the Danube.”

You may be familiar with the names of some of the cities along the Danube: Budapest, Hungary; Vienna, Austria; and Passau, Germany.

“With the Moselle and Rhine river towns, however, even some Europeans are not familiar with the names,” Schreiner says. “So the typical first-time cruiser goes on the Danube, sees the beauty there, then wants to go on other rivers: the Moselle, the lower Danube, and to Holland and Belgium for tulip cruises in the spring.”

Of course, you can always opt for the grand tour of Europe, cruising from Amsterdam to Budapest — and beyond. Along the way, you’ll look out on charming villages, storied cities, fairy tale castles, vineyards and the slow pace of life along the river — all from your floating hotel.