What It’s Really Like to Take Your First River Cruise on the Rhine
“Do you want to drive the boat?”
Joe and I laughed when the captain asked us that while we were visiting the bridge on our Viking River Cruise. Then he stood up from his seat - and we quickly realized he wasn’t joking.
“You’re going to want to start turning,” he added calmly, “so we don’t end up in the bank over there.”
Five minutes later, Joe was at the helm, carefully navigating a wide bend in the river as we made our way toward Kinderdijk. It was one of many memorable moments on our first ever river cruise.
After years of planning river cruises for clients, I finally experienced one for myself this past March, sailing Viking’s Rhine getaway from Basel to Amsterdam with my husband Joe. The best part? My parents joined us for the sailing, a trip I’ve been dreaming of planning for all of us for many years.
Our 7-night sailing confirmed two things for me: the Rhine is perfect for first-time river cruisers, and river cruising is an ideal way to travel with family or groups.
We chose the Rhine because we wanted to start with a week-long sailing, and ending in Amsterdam would allow us to meet up with my younger brother for a bike race after we disembarked. Basel (a short train ride from Zurich) and Amsterdam make for easy gateway cities from the US.
I thought river cruising was perfect for traveling with my parents. We could split up during the day – some days they would go on a Viking excursion while we explored on our own, other times we would go on excursions together – then at the end of the day, we’d meet up in the lounge for a glass of wine and a debrief. The nature of river cruising – that your hotel room moves along with you – allowed for us to really cater the trip to our own pace.
After catching up in the lounge, we’d eat dinner together in the restaurant. The food was great, with a variety of options to appeal to all palates. After dinner, we’d either go back to the lounge for the evening entertainment or return to our room for an early night.
It was my dad’s first time on any kind of cruise – river or ocean – and it had been many years since my mom’s last ocean sailing. Like many people, they had concerns about how they would like the ship and river cruising in general.
The verdict? The scenic sailings were some of my parents’ favorite parts of the whole trip – they loved being able to relax on board while sailing past the many scenic towns, hills, and castles along the Rhine. They are already planning their next river cruise, if that tells you anything!
As someone who travels independently more often than in groups, I had some apprehensions about if the river cruise would feel too structured. I found that we had plenty of free time and could pick and choose the structured elements if it fit what we wanted. For example, we participated in Viking’s excursions when it fit what we wanted on a particular day, or would get off the ship and explore on our own when it didn’t.
The small size of river ships – under 200 passengers –allows guests to come and go with ease. Sometimes we would be in a city and stop at the boat for a quick bathroom break or to grab a sweater – something we would almost never do on an ocean ship.
Overall, river cruising is a great way to experience many places in one trip, without being totally exhausted by changing hotels, transferring between destinations, and managing many logistics. It’s a very relaxing and easy way to travel.
- First-time river cruisers
- Travelers who want an easy introduction to Europe
- Couples, families or friend groups who want flexibility without planning every detail
- Anyone who doesn’t want to unpack and repack
- All four of us loved the Middle Rhine scenic sailing. Unfortunately we had cold weather that day, but we still bundled up and enjoyed viewing the castles along the Rhine from the upper deck. It would be even more wonderful on a warm sunny day!
- I loved dining while sailing. There’s something really lovely about eating lunch or dinner while sailing along a river
- Strasbourg was a favorite stop for Joe and me. It’sa beautiful town that’s perfect for wandering, shopping, and dining along the river
- Amsterdam! This was the first European city I set foot in back in 2013, and I immediately fell in love. I’m happy to report that 13 years later, it’s still a wonderful (though much busier!) city.
- The service onboard was excellent. We all agreed that Viking provided some of the best hospitality we’ve ever experienced.
If you’re thinking about trying a river cruise, I’d love to help you plan something that fits exactly what you’re looking for. Reach out below to get started!
