I Put The Highest Rated European River Cruise Line To The Test

I decided to do a European river cruise after a five-year break. The question was, which line should I use? I looked at the latest reviews on Cruise Critic and was intrigued to see that a line I had been on before, and thought was okay but not exceptional, was currently the highest rated line by passengers, with an impressive 4.7 out of 5. So, I booked on one of their Rhine River cruises and boarded with high expectations. And this is what I discovered. Good and Bad.

Welcome aboard, I am Gary Bembridge and as always, I booked and paid for this cruise at the going rate through my travel agent to make sure that I give a fair and balanced review.

The line currently rated highest by past passengers is Avalon Waterways. But who and what are they?

Who are Avalon Waterways?

Avalon is a 20-year-old river cruise company owned by the Globus family of travel brands, who are the largest tour operator in the world.

They sail 15 ships on a wide range of European rivers, including the Danube, Rhine, Moselle, Rhône, Seine, and Douro.

Most of their ships carry 166 passengers, like the Avalon Envision I was on. They also cruise on rivers in Asia, South America and Africa.

Avalon are a four-star Premium river cruising line, falling between 5-Star Luxury lines like Riverside, Scenic and Uniworld, but higher than more 3-star budget lines like CroisiEurope and TUI. Their closest competition are lines like Emerald, Viking, and AmaWaterways.

Avalon focuses on English-speaking travellers, with the vast majority on board from the United States.

They’re best known for one feature, which they talk about more than anything else, which I agree is good so let me start with this and other things that I liked. Before those that work less well.

What Is Good?

Avalon argue the best thing about their ships are the cabins. I agree.

Panorama Suites

Most cabins are Panorama Suites. They claim these are 30% larger than the industry standard and have two standout features.

First, there is no balcony but there are floor-to-ceiling wall-to-wall windows that open very wide, which means great ability to see the scenery and have fresh air coming in. I loved this.

And the bed faces those windows, and therefore the view, when lying in or on the bed.

I found the bathroom was a good size, with nice touches like L’Occitane toiletries and towels in two colours, white and beige, so no arguing over who’s towel is which!

I liked the good soundproofing. And certainly, unlike several river cruise ships I’ve been on, I couldn’t hear people on either side.

There were only two minor negatives I had with the cabin.

First, and probably linked more to the fact that it’s a premium rather than a luxury line, I found the bedding and the pillows not great. A flimsy duvet, and the pillows had a synthetic feeling filling.

And if you’re a North American traveller, it only had European sockets. But there were USB ports by the bed.

They have two other cabin types. A Royal Suite which is much bigger, with separate seating and bedding areas, and larger bathroom. And then on the lowest deck, and three-quarters under they have Deluxe Cabins with windows above the water line.

The second positive I want to talk about is the ship overall.

The Ship

While it’s not particularly unique or different to other river cruise ships because they all must be the same width, height and length to fit in the locks and under bridges, I did find the ship pretty good, although like all river ships facilities were limited.

There was a main lounge, the Panorama Lounge, with the bar, 24-hour coffee machine, and views out on three sides.

It’s used for daily briefings, any entertainment, and importantly as you will hear later, some dining.

There’s another smaller lounge, that I really liked, at the rear of the ship called the Club Lounge.

It has great views, 24-hour coffee machine, huge range of teas, snacks 24 hours a day including cookies, treat of the day like Apple Turnover and muffins, and bags of fruit and nut mix, and sets of games.

There’s a large dining room which I will talk about in more detail when I talk about the food.

There’s a lobby with 24-hoursGuest Services, and the Cruise Director’s desk. Unlike many river cruise ships, it doesn’t have a shop. Thought they had a pop-up Avalon merchandise store one day.

There’s a small fitness centre with bike, rowing machine, and some weights.

They have an elevator between the floors for passengers with more limited mobility.

On the top of the ship is the Sky Deck running the full length of the ship with lots of seating areas many under cover which was fantastic for scenic sailing days like when we went through the Rhine Gorge.

It has a games area with oversized chess, backgammon, a putting green, small hot tub, and a running/ walking track. Unfortunately, unlike some river ships I have been, on no plunge pool.

I found the decor of the ship rather neutral. It is not that memorable or distinctive but it’s practical and worked.

Next, I want to talk about the strengths and weaknesses of the on-board experience, off-ship excursions and importantly dining. I’ll start with that.

Food and Drink

There were some aspects of dining that have changed since I was last on Avalon, which I really liked.

The Dining Room I mentioned offers a buffet breakfast, buffet lunch, and then 4-course dinner.

One day instead of lunch in dining room the chef ran a Grill up on the Sky Deck with burgers and German sausages. It is a great venue and pity it was not used more often.

For dinner, unlike many river cruise lines I have been on, it was open-seated dining, so people didn’t all have to be seated at a fixed time offering more flexibility which I liked.

I also liked the layout of the dining room as instead of all large tables for 6 or more, like many other lines I’ve been on, there were also two long banks of tables with options to dine alone, or as a couple. Admittedly, they’re very close to each other so you do end up sitting next to people and chatting.

The dinner menus were solid, with a decent choice usually with at least one healthy option (called “Avalon Fresh”), a Local Speciality dish, and Vegetarian one. Overall, I found the food good, and absolutely felt it matches their other Premium line competition.

But what I really liked is Avalon have embraced more casual dining.

On most river cruises I found limited options for casual dining.

Avalon offered a room service breakfast, admittedly a small menu but you could have it.

They had a small casual lunch option in the Panorama Lounge, and a casual buffet dinner with selected dishes from the Dining Room menu also in the Panorama Lounge.

I really liked this because it meant that I didn’t have to go and have what usually was an up to 2-hour served dinner, and if docked in town, could pop off and do a bit of exploring, or just relax up on the deck or in my room.

Another positive was there was a meeting with the Executive Chef held on embarkation day to discuss dietary issues or needs.

When it comes to dining there were two areas I think could be improved.

They have afternoon tea every day at 4pm. It was a bit of miss as the sandwiches seem to be prepared a bit too early and were a bit dried and curled up. But every day had different cakes and treats which was well done.

But more significant, I felt they did not embrace and immerse us guests into the regional food and drinks as much as other lines I have been on. An observation I will come back to in another area too.

They did have some regional and local dish here and there on the menu, but I have had much more immersive and fully regional themed dinners and dining on other lines.

On that theme, while the included wines at meals were all European, they were not all from the area, with a red, white and rose wine on each menu from Spain, Italy, France, and even Romania included. Though I suspect this was done to offer variety and wine drinkers I spoke to enjoyed the options and quality.

Wine, beers, and soft drinks were included with lunch and dinner, and there were more included drinks at the daily Happy Hour where I could order from a specific Happy Hour drinks menu with included wines, beers, cocktails, non-alcoholic cocktails, and some alcoholic drinks. The rest of the time drinks were added charge.

As many of you like to explore the food and drinks more, I’ve put the menus for all meals and the full bar menu in a folder which you can view at TipsForTravellers.com/Avalon.

Next is probably one of the big strengths of Avalon, and why I think many past passengers have rated them so very highly.

On-Board Experience

This is the relaxed atmosphere with more flexibility and active options than many river cruises I have been on, underpinned by good efficient service.

I found Avalon to be less formal than many. I think that’s because they’re trying to attract travellers who are more youthful and want to be more active and more casual than the traditional river cruiser.

For example, there is no dress code and if you want to wear shorts and a T-shirt to dinner then you can.

No announcements were made through the PA system, avoiding that feeling I had on other lines of being on a tightly ordered escorted tour.

The open-seated dining and more flexible dining I mentioned again added to the more casual and less structured feeling.

The high level of inclusions also added to the casual feel as hardly any need to sign for or charge things to my cabin.

As well as the drinks and 24-hour coffee stations I mentioned earlier being included, other inclusions were Starlink Wi-Fi where I could connect as many devices as I wanted, a choice of at least two excursions at every stop, daily Fitness Classes run by a dedicated fitness Adventure Host, and the ability to use on-board eBikes and regular bikes to self-explore.

There was no hard sell or “nickel and diming” on board.

The only added charge items were drinks outside the included times, mini-bar items, some additional added-charge premium excursions, gratuities, and transfers.

Another nod to the more youthful and modern approach instead of a printed daily program, it was only on the AvalonGO smartphone app and in-room TV. The App also had all the menus, excursion details, local maps and so on.

Crew and Service

Another positive, and one I saw referred to often in online reviews, is the crew and service.

It’s a healthy crew-to-passenger ratio with 47 crew looking after the up to 166 passengers.

Most of the crew were Eastern European, although there many Asian cabin attendants which is a change from other river cruises I have been on.

But linked to the relaxed approach, the crew and service is less formal with a chatty and friendly format. However, it was still attentive and efficient.

Let me talk about the things I felt were okay, or less good. Starting with one I thought would be stand out due to Avalon being part of the Globus group: excursions.

What Was Just Ok?

I did not find Avalon excursions stood out versus other river cruise lines.

I thought they would leverage much more of the Globus connection because, of course, they do tours in all these places. But talking to some of the guides, they did seem to focus on river cruise lines and work across several different cruise lines.

There was choice of excursions in all the stops which was good to have.

Avalon make much of having three categories of excursions: Active, Discovery, and Classic. But I didn’t really see a big difference between them.

The Classic tours were the same I’ve had on other river cruise lines. These are walking tours of nearby historic towns, with some history, looking at historically significant buildings or areas, visiting the town square, and going to the cathedral.

The Discovery Tours promised to go more off the beaten path or explore a specific topic. Like in Cologne it explored Jewish heritage, and in another exploring the Black Forest and Cuckoo clock making.

The Active Tours were run by the Adventure Host and included a hike to Neiderwald monument high above Rüdesheim, and cycling tours of Cologne and Strasbourg. Although they did stress the host was not a guide and so while would lead the hike or cycle, we would not get an explanation of sights and places.

The tours were like those I have been on other river cruise lines, so I was a little bit disappointed there was nothing unique and different. Of course, the challenge is where the ship stops, they are limited on what is there and so all lines end up doing the same things.

Enrichment and Immersion

Probably though the main thing I was disappointed in was the lack of enrichment, immersion, and entertainment from the areas we passed through.

The daily briefing was probably weaker versus other lines I’ve been on as it just covered the daily program for the next day. But on other lines, we were given talks about the river, area, history and culture too.

So, by the end of those river cruises I felt that I really understood the river and places we were going through. That didn’t really happen on Avalon, there was no overarching story or understanding about the region or the Rhine itself.

While most river cruise lines don’t much evening entertainment, this was particularly low-key. In the evenings there were a couple of game nights, a local band played in the ship in Cologne, but it was a dance band rather than anything cultural and a string trio played in Rüdesheim. But again, there no link to the culture or heritage of region.

Other lines brought on traditional dancers or musicians, or experts to talk.

Worth it?

Bearing all the pros and cons in mind, did I feel that high 4.7 rating is valid?

First off, bear in mind this is a costly trip as all river cruises are. It’s the level of luxury ocean lines per night.

A typical Avalon 7-night cruise, like the Rhine cruise I did, costs per cabin for two people the following: US$1,000 a night for a Deluxe Cabin under the waterline, US$1,600 a night for a Panorama Suite, and $2,100 a night for the Royal Suite.

I booked on a no solo supplement promotion sailing and paid $800 a night for my Panorama Suite.

So, if you are river cruising you must judge value for money knowing it is more costly than most ocean cruise lines and compare it to other river cruise lines not ocean.

With that in mind, I can see why Avalon get such good ratings as the combination of service, competitive food, acceptable excursions, pleasant ships, comfortable cabins delivered with a more relaxed and flexible experience sets it aside from many lines.

It is also why I saw younger, or certainly more youthful guests, including several families with teen and college aged kids.

Does it have elevated food? Does it have great entertainment and good enrichment? Is it very luxurious? No, but it is a great premium line that works for a more laid back, independent-minded traveller wanting to try river cruising.

 

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