River cruises generally offer good value for money when you consider the fact that in many circumstances the price you pay will not just include your accommodation, but your food, drink, excursions and even gratuities too. However, even though you can get so much from an interesting and exciting itinerary, there are still ways to enhance your experience even more.

So if you are planning to book a river cruise in the future, or you are counting the days until you depart on one that you have already arranged; perhaps taking these steps will make it all the more enjoyable.

Cruise and Stay

One of the great things about a river cruise is that they tend to begin and end in a major city, due to the fact that these are usually served by more airlines. However, if you only arrive a few hours before you are due to embark and then fly home again soon after disembarkation, you will miss the chance to explore these wonderful ports.

Cruise and stay options allow you to extend your trip at the beginning or end of your cruise to give you more time in these initial and final destinations. After all, you are already in the city and so the price to enhance your holiday could simply be the cost of two or three nights in a local hotel.

For example, opting to extend your trip on our ‘Enticing Douro’ itinerary from AmaWaterways will give you further opportunity to see the sights of Lisbon, Porto or even both.

Take Advantage Of Every Opportunity To Explore

As mentioned above, many river cruises include shore excursions in the price. This is a great way to see the main sights of any port, but you may want to include some exploration of your own if you want to see things that are a little more off the beaten track.

AmaWaterways have a fleet of bicycles on all of their ships which are available to guests who want to explore under their own steam. As well as this, you are always free to organise your own adventures if the pre-arranged excursions don’t appeal to you or you would rather see something different.

It is also a good idea to do a bit of research around the excursions that are on offer. If you have a choice of two things that you can do on arrival in an unfamiliar city, you will be in a much better position to make an informed decision if you know all about what each trip offers. Study the options before you leave and do a bit of online research.

Get To Know The Crew

The intimate and friendly nature of a river cruise often means you have the perfect opportunity to not only get to know your fellow passengers but the crew members as well. After all, the fact that they will have sailed your current route many times before will mean they have plenty of insight to share regarding your surroundings.

This also includes any guest lecturers that may be on board. This is particularly the case during themed cruises when river cruise operators will invite experts on board to talk about the subject of the trip, be it wine, chocolate, beer or music. Their wealth of knowledge is sure to include some top tips for enjoying the various themed locations you will visit.

If you would like to make the most of your trip, be it a European river cruise or any of our other itineraries, then you can always talk to the team at Fred. about cruise-and-stay options and other ways to enhance your trip. Just call us on the number at the top of the page or fill in an online enquiry form and we will get back to you.