![]() ![]() ocean cruisingīesides going where ocean liners don’t, or in most cases, can’t, river itineraries tend to be more immersive than those by sea. ![]() Standing at the bow of the ship for the dramatic reveal provides an indelible eyeful of the lavish 11th-century Melk Abbey against a rocky outcrop. Among the more stunning visuals between Regensburg, Germany and Budapest, Hungary, is when the concrete gate of the Melk locks slowly opens to expose western Austria’s grand Wachau Valley. (Photo by David Dickstein)Īnother amazing European journey is Viking’s 8-day eastbound “Romantic Danube” cruise. A European river cruise goes through a series of locks. For only 20 or 30 euro, that could be the best souvenir purchase on the entire trip. The icing on the French yogurt cake is buying an original piece of signed art from an entrepreneurial painter working at said spot on the bank of the Rhone River. Just walk off the ship in treasure-filled Arles, France, take a few steps to the right and you’ll be standing in the very spot where Vincent Van Gogh painted “Starry Night” in 1888. One of those magical memories is guaranteed on Viking’s 8-day “Lyon & Provence” cruise, and so easy to get. Serenely sailing through parts of Europe where nearly every view is a picture postcard, with or without a charming castle or formidable fortress on a lush hilltop above, a river cruise can be full of fairy-tale moments. Following in Vincent van Gogh’s footsteps is a highlight of a river cruise that includes Arles, France. The Mississippi is mighty and the Mekong is mysterious, but when Mother Nature passed out amorous dreaminess to the world’s rivers, at the front of the line were the Rhone, Seine, Dordogne and Gironde, all meandering in France, along with the Danube and Rhine, Europe’s other glistening gems. Romantic is a descriptor rarely associated with non-European waterways. And within this travel-enticing destination, France is la première with seven of the most popular itineraries in the crowded and competitive industry.Ĭhateau de Tarascon is a majestic sight on the Rhone River between Nimes and Avignon in France. Rich in resplendent waterways, the continent across the Atlantic is the world’s unrivaled river cruise capital. ![]() Think going to a gourmet shop instead of a supermarket for your regular groceries.Īlso, think Europe when considering an introduction to river cruising. We’re talking a bona fide luxury river cruise of at least a week - the kind that, because of their relaxed nature and intricate itineraries that take guests to more nice-to-see’s than must-see’s, may not be the best for newbies. We don’t mean those half-day sails with sardine-treated tourists on boats as dense as flourless buche de noel. Zoltan Csabai of the Viking Gullveig navigates the Danube River in Bavaria. But if the potential for déjà vu sounds like a vacation with more blah than ooh la la, consider this French twist: Take a river cruise. No one is suggesting that a reunion with Italian noblewoman Lisa del Giocondo in the Louvre or another pop-in at King Louis XIV’s palace west of Paris wouldn’t be special. But what about for second-timers? Does the extraordinary become ordinary on a return visit? For first-time delegates of the red, white and blue in the land of the blue, white and red, each of these and many others are pinch-me experiences. The list of must-sees in La République française goes on and on like a busking accordionist at a Metro station in the 7th Arrondissement. Get bedazzled by the sparkling Eiffel Tower at night, experience pure opulence at Versailles, take an obstructed selfie with the mesmerizing Mona Lisa, wine taste your way through Bordeaux, compare their Disneyland to ours - not that all those things were possible when Gene Kelly sang and danced his way through France … or at least the MGM lot in Culver City. It doesn’t take being an American in Paris or seeing “An American in Paris” to know the must-do’s when visiting France. ![]()
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