Tag Archives: Avalon Waterways

No break in river lines’ France fever

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By Michelle Baran
InsightThere appears to be no end in sight to the growth in demand for river cruising in France. Last fall, I wrote about river cruise companies that were adding more capacity throughout the country for 2014, and the trend is continuing into 2015.

Avalon Waterways announced this week that it will increase its France capacity for 2015 by 95%. The company is putting its 128-passenger Avalon Poetry II, christened last month in Dordrecht, Netherlands, on the Saone and Rhone rivers in 2015; and the 128-passenger Avalon Tapestry II, launching next year, will sail France’s Seine River.

That comes after an already huge christening season in France that saw Viking put three new ships in Provence, Uniworld launch its new S.S. Catherine there as well, and both companies introduce one vessel each in Bordeaux (Viking a newbuild and Uniworld a repositioned vessel).MichelleBaran

“We are very excited about the growth opportunity in France,” said Richard Marnell, Viking’s senior vice president of marketing. “Because of strong demand already this season, we have decided to increase capacity on those two itineraries in 2015. We will add a second ship, Viking Rinda, in Bordeaux, and a fourth ship on Portraits of Southern France, Viking Delling, which will be new for 2015.

“We also continue to see strong demand for our other itineraries in France and are nearly sold out for the entire summer season,” added Marnell.

AmaWaterways, Tauck and Scenic Cruises all repositioned vessels to France this year as well.

Direct-to-consumer operator Grand Circle Cruise Line announced last month that it was getting in on the France action too, having acquired the River Cloud II (from Sea Cloud Cruises), a 90-passenger ship that will operate a new itinerary in Bordeaux beginning in March.

And let’s not forget the little 96-passenger paddlewheeler, Loire Princess, that French river cruise company CroisiEurope plans on introducing on France’s Loire River next April.

So, what’s the deal? Are river cruise lines running out of space on the Danube? Or are river cruise passengers just embracing France with a new fervor? Guessing it might be a bit of both.

A look ahead at 2014 launches and christenings

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By Michelle Baran

InsightOK, I’ll be honest: This end-of-year insight in which I summarize the christenings and launches for the following year has become an invaluable tool for me in planning my year ahead, and that’s largely why I’ve maintained this tradition over the past few years.

But my hope, of course, is that it can and does serve as a useful tool for all you travel planners out there, as well. Happy 2014!

March 17: Viking Cruises will hold a christening ceremony in Avignon, France, for the 14 Viking Longships that are launching next year. Viking has not said which or how many of the Longships will be in Avignon for the ceremony, but the three 2014 Viking Longships that are slated to sail in that region are the Viking Buri, Viking Heimdal and Viking Hermod.

March 26: Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection will inaugurate the 159-passenger S.S. Catherine in Lyon, France, marking Uniworld’s first expansion of its European fleet since 2011, when the vessel’s sister ship the S.S. Antoinette set sail.MichelleBaran

April 5: The 223-passenger American Empress (formerly the Empress of the North) will be rechristened in Portland, Ore., and will sail on the Columbia and Snake rivers, after having been refurbished by the American Queen Steamboat Co.

April 15: Emerald Waterways, the first new river cruise line to launch since Scenic Cruises came onto the scene in 2008, will kick off with the launch of two newbuilds in Europe, the 182-passenger Emerald Star and the 182-passenger Emerald Sky. Emerald Waterways is aiming to be a more value-oriented alternative to existing river cruise lines.

July: Pandaw River Expeditions is launching two new 40-passenger vessels in Myanmar, the Kindat Pandaw and the Kalaw Pandaw.

September: Haimark Ltd. is introducing the 56-passenger Irrawaddy Explorer in Myanmar; as well as the 68-passenger Mekong Navigator that will sail in Vietnam and Cambodia.

November: AmaWaterways is introducing the all-suite AmaPura on Myanmar’s Irrawaddy River.

Late 2014: Sanctuary Retreats, a division of Abercrombie & Kent, is launching the 48-passenger, all-suite Sanctuary Ananda in Myanmar.

Also in 2014:

• Tauck is launching two newbuilds in Europe, the 130-passenger Inspire and Savor, that will each have 57% more suites than the company’s existing vessels.

• AmaWaterways will introduce two more ships in Europe in 2014, the 164-passenger AmaSonata and AmaReina. The vessels will be sister ships to the 164-passenger AmaCerto, which launched in 2012.

• Avalon Waterways is introducing three new river cruise vessels in Europe in 2014 — the 128-passenger Avalon Poetry II; the 166-passenger Avalon Illumination; and the 166-passenger Avalon Impression.

Peruvian Amazon heating up with fresh investment

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Peruvian Amazon heating up with fresh investment

By Michelle Baran
La Estrella Amazonica, the new vessel International Expeditions is using for Amazon River cruises in Peru.There’s been a groundswell of renewed investment and interest on the Peruvian Amazon of late, with companies launching new ships, refurbishing old ones and introducing new Amazon itineraries.

Last month, International Expeditions launched the 31-passenger La Estrella Amazonica, replacing the 28-passenger La Amatista. La Estrella Amazonica is a newbuild with 15 outward-facing, 220-square-foot cabins featuring private balconies. The vessel also has a fitness center and a 1,000-square-foot observation deck.

International Expeditions designed La Estrella Amazonica in collaboration with Expediciones Amazonicas, the ship’s owner.

Prices for 10-day Amazon cruises on La Estrella Amazonica start at $4,398 per person, including daily naturalist-guided excursions, most meals, transfers, precruise accommodations at Swissotel in Lima and tours of Lima and Iquitos in Peru.

La Estrella Amazonica joins another Amazon newbuild, the 32-passenger Queen Violet, which launched in May and is being chartered by G Adventures.

The Queen Violet has 16 outside-facing cabins, 10 with side-by-side twin beds and six with queen-size beds. The vessel also has an upper sun deck with a bar area for briefings as well as an area for lounging on deck chairs and hammocks.

Prices for G Adventures’ nine-day Amazon trips, including a six-day cruise and transfer flights between Lima and Iquitos, start at $1,875 per person.

Avalon heads to the Amazon

In 2014, Avalon Waterways will begin offering Peruvian Amazon itineraries, having partnered with Aqua Expeditions to charter the 32-passenger Aria for an 11-day itinerary that includes a three-night cruise from Iquitos through the Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve.

The Aria, which launched in 2011, is Aqua’s second ship on the Peruvian Amazon. This year, Aqua Expeditions refurbished and relaunched its original 12-suite Amazon vessel, Aqua Amazon, which has been sailing the Peruvian Amazon since 2007.

The 130-foot Aqua Amazon (formerly the Aqua) received an updated interior. Suites have new wall coverings, bedside tables, lighting, bathrooms and curtains.

Both ships sail from Iquitos and navigate the Amazon waterways west of there for three-, four- and seven-night cruises.

The Avalon itinerary will begin with two days in Lima, followed by a flight to Cuzco for four days of visiting the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. On day seven of the trip, passengers will fly to Iquitos to board the Aria. The cruise will include piranha fishing and experiencing the Yanalipa Flooded Forest.

Avalon is offering 13 departures of the Peru itinerary in 2014 and five departures in 2015. It is priced between $5,599 and $5,999 per person, based on double occupancy.