Tom Stieghorst
The European river cruise business has traditionally gone into hibernation after New Years. But that is starting to change.
For at least some operators, winter is no longer a no-go zone. They are experimenting to see what level of demand might exist during the cold, dark months for cruises that typically make hay when the sun shines. One example is AmaWaterways, which in February and early March will offer three itineraries on two rivers, the Rhine and the Danube. Those two rivers are the big sellers during the summer season, so it stands to reason they would be good test cases.
Who really wants to go to Europe in the dead of winter? A look at the pricing on Ama's Captivating Rhine itinerary offers some clues. Prices for a seven-night cruise departing Amsterdam on Feb. 9 range from $2,239 for a lower deck berth to $5,358 for a top suite. The range for the same cruise departing Sept. 4 is $4,419 to $8,123.
Throw in the fact that the lowest three cabin categories for the February cruise are already sold out, and it suggests that price is one reason winter cruising isn't as crazy as it sounds. Not to mention that airfares to Europe in winter are dramatically lower.
Another factor cited by cruise executives is more elbow room. Amid the rising chorus of complaints about overtourism, hardly anyone considers crowded tourism destinations a serious problem in February. And while it can be bitterly cold in some European areas, the temperature in Cologne, Germany, in February ranges from 33 degrees to 44 degrees Fahrenheit, with an average of only eight days of rain.
Besides, cruise executives say, many repeat customers will find a whole new experience awaits at a different season, from snuggling up in the cozy wine taverns of Strasbourg to marveling at the masks and costumes of Fasching, the German Mardi Gras.
The road to winter cruising has been paved in part by the success of Christmas market cruises, which operate in November and December and have become so popular that they're increasingly difficult to book, river lines have said.
Among the first lines to take the plunge year-round have been Viva Cruises and Viking, with a portion of its 80-ship fleet. To some degree, year-round cruising signals that river cruising has become too big a business, with too many assets, to leave those assets sitting idle for a quarter of the year.
Starting Jan. 5, Viking will operate a new itinerary on the Danube in January, February and March, connecting Budapest with Passau, Germany, on a 10-day voyage. Viking also offers a 10-day cruise on the Rhine River in the winter. It cites smaller crowds, easier access to landmarks and opportunities to savor local tradition as some of the reasons to book.
River lines aren't the first ones to push the envelope on conventional seasonality. Before Norwegian Cruise Line began year-round cruising from New York in 2003, the thinking was that flying to Florida for a tropical cruise was mandatory during the winter.
But NCL correctly intuited that after 9/11 there were many New Yorkers who would rather motor to the West Side cruise piers than get on a plane. Now winter cruising from New York has become an established part of ocean cruising from, occasional snowstorms and rough seas notwithstanding.
The change gives travel advisors more options to please a wider variety of clients. And in river cruising, there's a whole new market for off-season travel just waiting to be tested.