Although river cruise lines are ramping up onboard programs (adding yoga classes, photography lessons, cooking demos with guests chefs, local entertainment, guest lecturers, and the like), such efforts are—to a large extent—constrained by the size and scale of the vessels.
River cruise ships are unable to offer the same bells and whistles (e.g. full-service spas, casinos, varied specialty restaurants, etc.) enjoyed by passengers on large ocean-going vessels: That’s because they are designed and scaled to cruise narrow inland waterways and dock at smaller ports along the way rather than sail the high seas. Space—especially public spaces—is at a premium.
Yet, despite what some might see as a major drawback of the onboard experience, it’s easy to fall in love with the intimacy of river cruises, which generally carry fewer than 200 passengers. Never boring, their varied and interesting itineraries allow travelers to experience up close the local culture of small cities, towns and villages.
Fresh oysters from the Bay of Arachon
Michelle Baran, senior editor for river cruising on Travel Weekly, an industry publication, recently wrote:
“…Many of the most memorable river cruising moments don’t take place on the water – they take place on land.”
We agree!
On our 8-day Viking River Cruises “Chateaux, Rivers and Wine” itinerary (departing from and returning to Bordeaux, France) we were wowed by three bespoke epicurean excursions offered by the cruise line: Truffle hunting in the Périgord region; creating our own personal blend of cognac at the House of Camus, and sipping local wine while eating freshly shucked oysters from the Bay of Arcachon.
These excursions complemented the other Viking River Cruises tour excursions (focused largely on history and wine) and enriched our understanding of the region—in fact, they were a perfect “side dish” for culinary travelers.
Truffle hunting in the Périgord region of France
You can read my feature story: Epicurean Excursions on a Bordeaux River Cruise in the Summer issue of Food Wine Travel Magazine.
6 Comments
Sheryl
July 11, 2017 at 5:01 pmI agree about the intimacy of river cruises… much preferable, to me, than a huge crowd.
Irene S. Levine
July 14, 2017 at 6:43 pmI agree—I find that small is beautiful when it comes to cruising!
Lauren M
July 12, 2017 at 9:22 pmSounds like a lovely adventure!
Irene S. Levine
July 14, 2017 at 6:44 pmDefinitely was! For me, great excursions define a cruise~
Sand In My Suitcase
July 13, 2017 at 12:26 pmTruffle hunting! How fun! Definitely not your usual shore excursion :-). Years ago, we went mushroom hunting with the chef at a country inn here on Vancouver Island — then had mushroom martinis followed by mushroom-based lunch.
Irene S. Levine
July 14, 2017 at 9:02 amDefinitely exciting!