Photo: Viking Longship on the Rhine River
 

Viking kicked off its 2024 European river season yesterday with its award-winning fleet of Viking Longships setting sail throughout the region.

Accommodating 190 or fewer guests, the company’s river fleet of sister ships sail a variety of itineraries on the Rhine, Main, Danube, Seine, Rhône, Douro, Moselle and Elbe rivers. 

New this year is the 10-day Treasures of the Danube, which sails between Budapest and Passau from December 2024 until early March 2025, giving guests the chance to call on ports along the Danube River during the winter months. Guests can also explore the Rhine River during the winter season with the 10-day Treasures of the Rhine, which debuted in December 2023 and sails between Amsterdam and Basel.

On what to expect this year, Torstein Hagen, Chairman of Viking, said: “With its rich history, culture and scenic regions that are best explored by river, Europe remains our most popular destination. As more curious travellers become familiar with river voyages as a seamless method for exploring, we are pleased to begin a new season on Europe’s iconic waterways.”

Sailing March through December, some of Viking’s other popular river itineraries in Europe include:

• Rhine Getaway (8 days, Amsterdam-Basel): Highlights include calls in Amsterdam, Cologne and Basel, with guests exploring turreted fortresses, grand cathedrals and medieval towns along the way.
• Danube Waltz (8 days, Budapest-Passau): Guests will enjoy a steam at a Budapest thermal bath, learn to waltz at a Viennese dance school, visit Göttweig Abbey and explore lesser-known Central European cities like Bratislava and Passau.
• Romantic Danube (8 days, Budapest-Regensburg): While on this journey, guests will visit Budapest’s Castle District, cross the famous Chain Bridge, explore Göttweig Abbey, make dumplings with Wachau Valley apricots, visit historic Salzburg, and enjoy two days in Vienna.
• Paris & the Heart of Normandy (8 days, Paris roundtrip): Guests will dock in the heart of Paris, visit Normandy’s beaches, explore Giverny and the house and gardens where Claude Monet lived and worked, all while on this exciting itinerary.
• Lyon & Provence (8 days, Lyon-Avignon): While on this journey, guests will take an Arles painting class, explore the world’s largest Gothic palace at Avignon’s grand Palace of the Popes and hunt for truffes. 
• Christmas on the Rhine (8 days, Basel-Amsterdam): Guests will immerse themselves in the spirit of Christmas as they journey through storybook villages, sample yuletide treats and admire the twinkling lights, wine cellars and markets of Cologne. 
• Portugal’s River of Gold (10 days, Lisbon-Porto): Highlights include exploring two of Iberia’s oldest university towns – Coimbra, Portugal and Salamanca, Spain – as well as a hotel stay in Lisbon.
• Grand European Tour (15 days, Budapest-Amsterdam): Considered Viking’s most iconic itinerary, this tour traces the Rhine, Main and Danube Rivers and includes such highlights and sampling the food and wine of Austria’s Wachau Valley and learning the Viennese waltz at Budapest’s Café Gerbeaud.

For more information go to viking.com.

Source: Travelweek