Tag Archives: Adventures by Disney

A challenging start to a promising year

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By Michelle Baran
As European river cruise vessels file into winter dry-dock this week, closing up the 2015 season, there is bound to be some nervousness for an industry waiting to see how the 2016 season will play out once it gets underway in the spring.

The dormant winter season offers an opportunity to spruce up older vessels and make final arrangements for the launch of new ones, investments that will hopefully pay off throughout the season. And this coming year has a lot to offer; Both Crystal Cruises and Adventures by Disney (through a partnership with AmaWaterways) will introduce new river cruise products in Europe, and all the major river cruise lines are adding new vessels to their fleets.

Michelle Baran
Michelle Baran

There’s a lot to look forward to, and yet 2015 ended with a bit of a question mark in the aftermath of the Nov. 13 Paris attacks in terms of how much the attacks will impact travel in Europe (and consequently river cruising) this year. Surely the hope is that a quiet couple months  – fingers crossed – prior to the start of the 2016 season will help keep pre-existing bookings on the books and reinvigorate the flow of new ones to get 2016 back on track to being as robust as it promised before the attacks.

Meanwhile, there are a lot of exciting developments elsewhere in the world to distract from the situation in Europe. Uniworld is starting its first cruises on India’s Ganges River this month, a new product the company has said has exceeded its expectations in terms of how successful the bookings have been.

And back in the US, it will be interesting to see if we hear anything more from Viking about its plans to launch modern-style Mississippi River vessels in 2017 and from the Delta Queen Steamboat Company about whether the fabled 89-year-old Delta Queen will receive the Congressional exemption it needs to sail again.

Indeed, despite some uncertainty as we start off the year, 2016 still promises to be an exciting and interesting one in river cruising, both in terms of the announcements we already know about and in terms of the surprises we’re always counting on the industry to provide us.

River cruising for millennials

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It’s no secret that the dominant river cruising demographic is retirees. Older travelers have embraced river cruising with a fervor that has fueled the segment’s unstoppable growth for the last several years.

But there doesn’t seem to be any obvious reason why river cruising couldn’t appeal to younger travelers, as well.

In an ongoing attempt to widen the market beyond boomers, several river cruise lines — notably AmaWaterways with its recent partnership with Adventures by Disney — have been courting families. But what about travelers in their 20s, 30s and 40s? What about the Gen Xers and? Thus far, there really hasn’t been a river cruising product that caters to that segment of the market.

Some argue that river cruising is too expensive and too inactive for these younger folk. But perhaps G Adventures’ new foray into the river cruising market is an indication that there could be some room for more youthful travelers on river cruise ships.

G Adventures, which caters to a younger, more active and often more budget-oriented traveler, isn’t getting into traditional European river cruising just yet: the company has offered river itineraries on the Peruvian Amazon, and sailings will start on the Mekong, Ganges, Amazon and in France’s Burgundy region next year.

But the simple fact that G is dipping its toes in the river cruising market could indicate the dawn of a new era for river cruising, one where the booming travel trend isn’t reserved just for seniors anymore. It will be interesting to see what G Adventures’ version of river cruising looks like compared with competitors’ river product, and how and whether river cruising resonates with the G Adventures traveler.

As a 30-something who happens to have been on countless river cruises, I’ve always thought there was a bit of a missed opportunity in this market. Yes, the product would require some tweaks. It would help if the price point were lower and if more free time were built in (two things that are actually not mutually exclusive). More activities off the ship and fewer onboard meals included in the price (potentially freeing up passengers’ money for dining in town) could help, too.

But otherwise, there really isn’t any reason why the 25-to-45-set couldn’t, well, get onboard, so to speak. And maybe G Adventures is the perfect company to extend the gangway to them.

On the Danube, a sneak peek at Disney river cruising options

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Baron Peter von Wethelm, a Salzburg tour guide and relative of the Von Trapp family on which "The Sound of Music" was based, points out a fountain featured in the "Do-Re-Mi" scene.

Baron Peter von Wethelm, a Salzburg tour guide and relative of the Von Trapp family on which “The Sound of Music” was based, points out a fountain featured in the “Do-Re-Mi” scene.

SALZBURG, Austria — In one of its most ambitious product launches since Adventures by Disney was founded 10 years ago, the tour brand earlier this year announced that it would introduce river cruises in 2016 in partnership with AmaWaterways. And not more than a month after unveiling the river cruises, Disney was adding departures to meet what has clearly been a strong response to its new offering.

The travel industry won’t know until next year, when the first Adventures by Disney river cruises set sail, exactly how the operator’s family-friendly take on river cruising will look, feel and fare compared with existing river cruises.

But to get a sneak peek at some of the land experiences Disney will offer along its Danube itineraries, I joined an Adventures by Disney Central Europe tour last week, which includes several of the same stops in Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic that will either be visited on upcoming river cruises or offered as pre- or post-cruise extensions.

One of the main Disney differentiators quickly became apparent in the first city on the tour, Prague, which will be offered as an extension on Disney cruises: youthful fun.

It’s not that river cruising isn’t infused with plenty of adult-style fun, often in the form of wine and cheese and dancing in the lounge after dinner. But as a global leader in family travel, Disney has a knack for finding experiences that truly engage children. In Prague, that meant not just attending one of the popular marionette shows (that would come later in Vienna), but actually making our own marionette dolls, bringing to life an old Czech tradition for kids on the tour.

Many of us adults also had a blast making marionette dolls. Likewise, I thoroughly enjoyed the trick fountains at the Hellbrunn Castle in Salzburg and making pretzels. In fact, I took delight in all the activities that were geared to the younger tour participants. There’s something really refreshing about having permission to be a kid again.

Adventures by Disney tour participants make marionette dolls in Prague.
Adventures by Disney tour participants make marionette dolls in Prague.

Take the “The Sound of Music” tour in the Austrian town of Salzburg. When else can you get a pass on singing your heart out to the movie’s iconic sound track while riding a motorcoach to visit sites from the film?

If Adventures by Disney runs its river cruises in a fashion similar to how it executed the Central Europe tour (and I was assured there will be a fair amount of overlap) participants can expect plenty of fun activities for kids and for any adult’s inner child, as well:

• Active experiences, such as our rigorous hike to and through the ice caves of Eisriesenwelt Werfen in the Austrian Alps.

• Relevant movies and music.

• Well-trained Adventures by Disney guides who ensure that the program caters to both adults and children.

• Accessible information about the culture and history of the destinations provided by local guides.

Clients on the river cruises also will have a high-class, floating hotel to return to at the end of each adventure-filled day.

Adventures by Disney will be chartering AmaWaterway’s 170-passenger AmaViola, a custom-built river cruise ship launching in 2016. There will be five Adventures by Disney sailings along the Danube in summer 2016 and two holiday-themed sailings in December 2016 through Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Hungary.