The new itineraries build on three of Riviera’s most in-demand seven-night sailings – Cologne, the Rhine Gorge and Medieval Germany; Paris, Normandy and Historic Treasures of the Seine; and The Moselle, Luxembourg and The Majestic Rhine.
A total of 15 new departures are available for agents to book, sailing from April to October next year. They join an addition 13 European river cruise itineraries that went on sale late last year.
Riviera head of agency sales Tom Morgan told TTG a pre-registration email will go out shortly allowing agents to pre-register interested clients ahead of the new departures launching on 31 January.
Speaking at a launch event in London on Wednesday (18 January), Riviera chief operating officer Robin Shaw said Riviera was seeking to fill a gap in the market after identifying growing demand for 10-day voyages "where seven days isn’t quite long enough" while two-week voyages saw people "itching" to get home.
He said the line’s "experiment" with the announcement last year of a 10-night Lyon, Provencal Rhone and the Camargue itinerary for 2023 had paid dividends, revealing the first three to four months of sailings this year were already sold out.
The three new 10-night itineraries are:
- Cologne, the Rhine Gorge and Medieval Germany (from £2,999pp), which includes 10 guided tours of Cologne, Andernach, Rudesheim, Mainz, Miltenberg, Wertheim, Wurzburg, Ochsenfurt, Bamberg and Nuremberg. It also features a visit to Braubach, a drive along the Romantic Road to Rothenburg, and a sailing through the Rhine Gorge
- Paris, Normandy and Historic Treasures of the Seine (£2,699pp) comprises seven guided tours of Paris, Auvers-sur-Oise, Rouen, Normandy’s D-Day beaches, Honfleur or Etretat, Abbey Jumieges and Abbey St Wandrille, and the Château de Malmaison, plus two additional visits to Caudebec-en-Caux and Claude Monet’s house and garden
- The Moselle, Luxembourg and The Majestic Rhine (from £2,899pp), meanwhile, includes nine guided tours of Koblenz, Luxembourg, Trier, Cochem, Rudesheim, Worms, Heidelberg or Schwetzingen Palace Gardens, Marksburg Castle and Cologne, plus three visits to Andernach, Speyer and Bonn and a sailing through the Rhine Gorge
Prices include return regional flights at no additional cost, or Eurostar on select itineraries; full-board; and all scheduled visits and tours.
Excursions are available every day, while sailings also include onboard lectures, port talks, entertainment and authentic regional menus, as well as the services of a Riviera Travel cruise director and concierge throughout.
An optional onboard drinks package, offering a selection of drinks during lunch and dinner, is available on the 10-night sailings from £219pp.
Katja Hildebrandt, Riviera’s head of river cruise product, said the longer sailings were "perfectly tailored" to see the highlights and hidden gems of each itinerary, offering additional time to allow guests experience each destination or attraction.
Travel concierge
Shaw also revealed Riviera would be launching a travel concierge service, one he said would likely appeal to a small but significant portion of Riviera guests seeking more flexibility. "It won’t be for the majority of customers, but it will be for a valuable cohort," he said.
Options and extras, he said, would include full control of preferred airline and departure airport, door-to-door transfers, UK rail travel, and pre- and post-trip stays to further tailor guests’ holidays. Further information will follow “in due course”, said Shaw.
Morgan added agents bookings before 3 March can still win one of nine iPad Pros through Riviera’s peaks incentive, with a £150 Amazon voucher available every week for the agent making the highest value Riviera booking.
