By Olivia Cuccaro
Known for its luxurious vessels, Crystal River Cruises has unveiled an expanded list of itineraries for 2019. If you don’t know your travel schedule this far in advance, not to worry — the brand has added more seven-day voyages to the lineup, meaning you only need to set aside a week for some of these upscale excursions.
The voyages are set to sail Europe’s waterways in March 2019 with a fleet of five river ships: Crystal Mozart, Crystal Bach, Crystal Mahler, Crystal Debussy and Crystal Ravel. Each ship ensures an all-suite, butler-serviced experience complete with an array of dining options as well as Crystal Life Spa on board.
Itineraries range from seven to 16 days, traveling between Amsterdam, Basel, Budapest, Frankfurt and Vienna via the Danube, Rhine, Main and Moselle rivers. The newly unveiled schedules allow guests to immerse themselves in the included cities with overnight stays in port and complimentary Crystal Adventures off the ship.
A variety of experiences are now available to book, with highlights such as the seven-day Wonders of the Danube cruise traveling from Linz to Budapest. The journey encompasses two full days in Vienna as well as calls to Krems and Melk in Austria and Bratislava in Slovakia. Another recent addition is the Danube Dreams & Discoveries cruise, a seven-day cruise that is round-trip to Vienna with stops in Esztergom, Bratislava, Melk and Krems with overnights in Budapest, Spitz and Vienna.
To get in the holiday spirit, the Magnificent Christmas Markets seven-day cruise from Passau to Budapest takes in seasonal festivities with overnights in Passau, Vienna and Budapest as well as a visit to Linz. If you have a few extra days to spare, the 11-day Grand Danube Celebration celebrates Christmas on the Danube and New Year’s Eve with a will call in Regensburg, Germany.
All-inclusive fares for Crystal River Cruises 2019 itineraries begin at $2,805 per person. See the full calendar of voyages here.
For more cruise news from Elite Traveler, read our story on the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection.
Images courtesy of Crystal Cruises