While it’s true that many people, when talking about a summer vacation, think about a long walk down the beach, a river cruise is actually a stunning alternative. You still get to enjoy the sun and water, but in a slightly different environment that has some notable advantages over those sandy beaches.
That being said, whether you’re looking at Vietnam river cruises, or planning a trip down the Amazon river, here are 6 reasons that make a river cruise an awesome experience.
6 Reasons Why a River Cruise is an Awesome Experience
You Get to Visit Places an Ocean Cruise Won’t Reach
The first thing about river cruises is their versatility. When compared to an ocean cruise, you’ll be floating in a much smaller ship. This allows the river boats to go to locations that would be impossible for an ocean cruiser to reach. You’ll be able to enjoy docking right in the middle of attractive destinations. You will literally walk right off the vessel and you’re into town, or on an adventure, depending on the cruise.
What makes things even better is the fact that you’re constantly surrounded by beautiful landscapes. With many ocean cruises, you’re usually surrounded by water. But with a river cruise, you’ve got beautiful scenery all around you, and you’ll enjoy every minute of it.
It’s an Intimate Experience
When discussing cruises, many people think of them as a place where you’re basically stuck with thousands of other people with whom you have to share everything. But on a river cruise, things are very different.
Even though the vessels themselves aren’t too large, there’s usually not a lot of guests, and as an individual, you have a lot more room to enjoy. Oftentimes you can enjoy larger rooms, a spacious common deck, and if you’re with a partner or a friend, better privacy. You won’t have someone around you at all times, and you can take the time to relax whenever you want.
To add to this, because there are fewer guests, the staff on board will be able to ensure service that’s a lot more personal. After a day or two, they’ll know you by name, and you can enjoy incredible attention to detail.
The Shore Excursions are Beautiful
One of the main things about river cruises, especially those who go down popular rivers like the Mekong river, or Amazon, is the fact that you have stunning shore excursions. You can enjoy things like cycling excursions, kayaking, paddling, spotting rare animals, and all while enjoying beautiful landscapes and rather distinct culture.
Of course, no two cruises are the same, so what you see depends on the river cruise you opt for. But there is certainly no lack of options, and whichever one you go for, you’ll love the excursions. If you’d rather avoid such activities, you have that as a choice as well, and you can opt for something more laid back instead.
6 Reasons Why a River Cruise is an Awesome Experience
You Can Make Friends That Last a Lifetime
This kind of ties in with the fact that a river cruise is a pretty intimate experience. Considering there aren’t too many people on board, you can actually socialize in a rather relaxed setting. You get to know more about the guests, and with things like open-seating dining, you can enjoy dinner with them and make friends for life.
There is also the fact that most of the organized tours and shore excursions also put you in a setting that allows for socialization, so you can hang out with them there, too. Cruises are overall social events, and a great way to meet new people, get to know them better and make lifelong friends by sharing an amazing experience together.
You’ll Love the Accommodation
This is one thing a lot of people aren’t too sure about, but river cruises tend to come with really great accommodation. Yes, this does depend on the specific cruise you’re on, but usually, you get all the things you need to enjoy your time there, whether you’re in a cabin or a stateroom. And if you choose well, you’ll love it even more.
To make things even better, the vessel is sailing in calm waters, so you won’t have to deal with seasickness or anything similar, which makes the stay (and the overall experience) even better.
There are Plenty of Cultural Activities
One of the best things about river cruises is that they tend to attract crowds that want to learn something new about the culture and the location they’re at. And while there is no denying that this is best done on the shore excursions, which we already spoke about, many cruises will offer cultural activities onboard.
Whether it’s a mini-concert, or native performers, or sometimes even food that’s characteristic for the culture, there’s always that little something that makes the entire experience even better. So do not hesitate to book a river cruise as you will soon find out, these experiences are life-changing.