The river cruise operator will launch on Thursday (29 February) three new itineraries exclusively for solos, bringing the total available for single travellers to 12.
“We literally take the whole ship and make it just for solo travellers,” head of product Will Sarson said. “I don’t think this is something many other operators do.”
The new itineraries include a six-day Christmas cruise on the Danube departing in December 2024 and 2025, as well as a five-day journey along the Rhine to visit next year’s Christmas markets.
Customers looking instead for a spring getaway will have the opportunity to embark on an eight-day trip to Bruges, Flanders, Amsterdam and the Dutch bulbfields in April 2025.
According to Sarson, solo customers have responded extremely well to the new offering due to Riviera’s prices, which range between £1,599-£2,499pp.
“Rather than charging everyone a single separate rate, we take the whole ship and base the pricing around that,” he added. “Pricing is a little bit higher than a standard cruise, but we’ve worked really hard with our shipping partners to make sure that all fees in general are as low as we can possibly get them.”
The announcement comes as Riviera expands its 2025 programme with a raft of combination cruises following a surge in demand for longer journeys.
Ranging between 15 and 29 days, the sailings allow customers to visit the likes of Germany and Switzerland as well as Budapest and the Balkans without having to change cabins.
“Some of these itineraries give a really good flavour of the different parts of Europe that you can visit on the rivers,” Sarson added.
Riviera will support agent partners, as trade bookings have surged by around 52% year-on-year. The operator will offer training, visits to the new ships – Riviera Radiance and Riviera Rose – as well as webinars and marketing support.
Agents will also continue to receive monthly incentives for all destinations and holiday types as well as additional ones to celebrate Riviera’s 40th anniversary.
“We’ve got lots of different surprises and incentives to keep things really exciting for the trade because they support us so much,” concluded head of trade Vicky Billing.
