Luxury riverboat cruises are an increasingly popular way to explore Europe. Most costs are locked in months prior to departure and having to unpack only once to see many top cities and sites is always an appealing idea.
Germany is water rich with many major rivers complemented by an extensive canal network that make cruising on more than one river or even river system possible. The most popular rivers for cruises are the Rhine (Rhein), Danube (Donau), and Elbe.
- Not all internet reservation services can book special discounts for children or major birthday and wedding anniversaries so always compare. Always read the fine print to confirm exactly what is included in the advertised price – cruises sold in the European and especially the vast German market often include fewer meals and onshore excursions than those marketed internationally.
Luxury Riverboat Cruises on the Rhine River, Germany
The Rhine River is arguably the most popular river for inland cruises in Europe. Many permutations are possible from short hour-long trips to multiple day trips that include other rivers as well.
The Rhine is navigable from Basel in Switzerland all the way to the North Sea in the Netherlands. Popular sights en route includes Strasbourg in France as well as the German cities Speyer, Worms, Mainz, Koblenz, Bonn, Cologne (Köln), and Düsseldorf. Many cruises offer excursions to nearby sights including the Black Forest, Baden-Baden, Heidelberg, and Frankfurt.
- The most beautiful and romantic section of the Rhine, and a very popular half-day cruise, is the steep, narrow valley from Rüdesheim to Koblenz with the Loreley and numerous castles, vineyards, and picturesque villages.
Multiple-day cruises on the Rhine can be as short as three days or as long as two weeks but are mostly around a week.
Popular combinations of the Rhine and its tributaries may include the romantic meandering Mosel (Moselle) and/or the Main River with its wide S-bends. The Main-Danube Canal makes it possible to cruise both the Danube and Rhine river systems on the same boat. Brendan has a 28-day mega cruise from Trier on the Mosel via the Rhine and Main to the mouth of the Danube at the Black Sea.
- Better-known luxury boat cruise companies that operate on the Rhine include Peter Deilmann, Tauck World Cruises, Brendan, Amadeus Waterways, and Viking River Cruises.
Luxury Riverboat Cruises on the Danube River, Germany & Eastern Europe
The Danube River is navigable from Kelheim (and the Main-Danube Canal) all the way to the Black Sea. By far the most popular departure point for Danube cruises is Passau in Bavaria on the German-Austrian border at the confluence of the Danube and Inn Rivers.
Cruises on the Danube are mostly around a week although can range from a few days to three weeks. The most popular section of the river is between Passau in Germany and Budapest in Hungary (via Linz, Melk, and Vienna in Austria and Bratislava in Slovakia).
- Luxury boat cruise companies that operate on the Rhine include Peter Deilmann, A’Rosa, Tauck World Cruises, Brendan, Amadeus Waterways, and Viking River Cruises.
Luxury Riverboat Cruises on the Elbe River, Germany & the Czech Republic
The Elbe River is a distant third in popularity when it comes to cruising on German waterways. However, the destinations en route are no less interesting and when combined with other rivers such as the Spree, Havel, and Vltava (Moldau) include UNESCO World Cultural Heritage sites as diverse as Berlin, Potsdam, Dessau, Lutherstadt-Wittenberg, Dresden, and Prague.
Cruises along the Elbe are usually a week but can be as short as four days or up to two weeks. The most popular section of the river is from Prague to Magdeburg with extensions to Berlin, whether by boat or bus, often included.
- The number of riverboat companies operating on the Elbe is much more limited than on the Rhine and Danube Rivers. The only two cruise lines that market extensively internationally are Peter Deilmann and Viking River Cruises.
Henk Bekker - Henk Bekker is a freelance travel writer currently living on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland.
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