Like the tulips that bring the tourists, peak season for Europe’s river cruise lines is right around the corner. And while the current crisis in Ukraine has raised some concerns for those planning travel to Europe, the cruise lines and the travel advisors who sell the cruises insist that the year continues to hold the promise of a bountiful harvest as the weather warms.
Final payments for April and May have come and gone without too much attrition, most report.
“The numbers are holding, and as the news [about omicron] gets better, we are seeing a significant number of new bookings by people who have been waiting on the sidelines,” said Tauck vice president of global sales Steve Spivak.
“Up to December, we were at record numbers for 2022,” said Avalon Waterways managing director Pam Hoffee. “And then things slowed down dramatically through the omicron surge. But … we’ve seen web traffic and bookings ramp up again — and some really strong signs in the U.K. market since they dropped travel testing requirements [for vaccinated inbound travelers].”
Hopefully that’s something that will become more commonplace around the globe, possibly even in the U.S., Hoffee said.
It helps, of course, that river cruises fit the times, with small numbers of passengers and welcoming ports. In a Travefy webinar last month, AmaWaterways co-owner Kristin Karst noted that “there was never a port that refused a river cruise ship,” unless the country itself had temporary restrictions in place, and “I don’t foresee this happening again this year.
“Denmark and Norway have released all Covid restrictions, and Sweden will follow very soon, so I don’t have any worries for 2022 about itinerary changes to accommodate Covid-19 restrictions,” Karst said. “I think we all agree that after two years of Covid restriction, we are ready to move carefully forward.”
But, of course, travel is never 100% predictable; a couple of travel advisors have already reported losing groups bound for Eastern Europe over fears of Russian military maneuvers. Still, they haven’t canceled; they are sailing in France instead.
- Related: Cruise lines cancel Ukraine and Russia calls
“It’s going to be a good year,” Spivak predicted. “Among our clients, the sentiment is, ‘If Tauck is going, we are going.'”
And with three years’ worth of customers compressed into one, the schedule is pretty full.
“We have some who may have booked in 2018 for 2020; about half our guests are using future credits and half are new people who just can’t wait any longer,” Spivak said. “People do not seem deterred from traveling everywhere we go: Africa, South America, Antarctica, but especially river cruising in Europe, where we are so close to land. And the experience is going to be everything they dreamed of, not some minimal, acceptable version of that.”
A new Wave
One thing that likely will be different this year is the selling cycle, said Ama’s new senior vice president of sales, Alex Pinelo.
Where in the past, Wave season would bring “a huge influx of bookings, I think this year it will be more spread out,” Pinelo said. “But I’m seeing a lot of discretionary income out there, and when people do book they are taking longer journeys, upgrading accommodations, adding land extensions, upgrading to business class, traveling with their families, doing multiple cruises.”
While declining to cite exact figures, Pinelo said Ama “is in a very good booked capacity for 2022, ahead of where we were at this point in 2018 looking ahead to 2019, or even 2019 looking ahead to 2020. Our call volume is picking up, our bookings definitely are stronger for the second half, and we are discussing some promotions that will help drive the close.”
Leave it to the younger generation to find new ways to sell river cruises while traveling themselves — and to those with more experience to put new twists on tried-and-true ways.
Uniworld Boutique River Cruises, too, is seeing a spike in “trip stacking, where guests are booking back-to-back sailings on our European cruises,” as well as “wow” trips in exotic places, said CEO Ellen Bettridge. There are increases in solo travelers and sales of cruise-and-rail combo itineraries as well as the new Mystery Cruise unveiled for 2022; its inaugural sailing sold out in less than 48 hours, she said.
“Overall, we’re seeing that travelers are ready to make the most of their banked vacation days and really treat themselves to a bucket-list trip they’ve been dreaming of,” Bettridge said.
Viking, meanwhile, anticipates operating its full river fleet in Europe when the season starts in March, citing “strong demand for our European river voyages as more destinations continue reopening and lowering entry requirements,” said executive vice president Richard Marnell. “Notably, we have seen increased interest for our longer itineraries, such as the 15-day Grand European Tour or the 23-day European Sojourn, which appeal to guests who are looking to maximize their time abroad.”
For travel advisors, meanwhile, it’s always a good idea to set clients’ expectations by walking through a Plan B of what exactly will happen if things go wrong. Talking to them in advance about where they will stay, where they will eat, what the cruise line and travel advisor will do to protect and care for them is always encouraged.
Clients need to understand what is covered by their insurance. They should also be instructed to take their laptop along so they can work if they are quarantined and to be sure they have enough medication to last through an extended quarantine.
“This is going to be an incredible year for every cruise line in every destination on every river, and it’s because of travel advisors working for years now, many without income, managing the same bookings over and over again, staying by their clients and inspiring them,” Spivak said. “We owe this triumphant return to you.”
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