News

As part of Saga’s 2023 river cruise itineraries released today for Saga’s new ships Spirit of the Rhine and Spirit of the Danube, the travel specialist has also announced that both ships will become all-inclusive from the 2023 season, so all meals and drinks will now be covered including in the intimate, speciality restaurants.

The change comes as part of a range of updates that will align the customer experience more closely to that of Saga’s ocean cruise proposition.

Other new benefits also include the option to book back-to-back cruises, which will be clearly marketed as such and guests selecting them will receive a further ten per cent off their booking. This is in addition to the introduction of a simpler pricing model that means early bookers are rewarded with discounts of up to 25 per cent off the full price. If, for any reason, the price should be reduced after a guest books, Saga will automatically give them the difference back as part of its price promise.

Each cruise will also guarantee a proportion of dedicated cabins for solo travellers, although travellers should book early to secure them as they are always very popular.

Other already excellent inclusions remain in place such as the complimentary door-to-door chauffeur service, travel insurance with up to £5m covid-cover, at least three sight-seeing excursions on all seven-night cruises and up to eight included on longer cruises and gratuities.

Nigel Blanks, CEO of Saga Cruises, said: “We know our guests want an exceptional experience and real value for money so the ‘Spirit’ cruises moving from 2023 to all-inclusive, along with back-to-back itineraries with 10% off and discounts starting from 25% off are all in response to their feedback. And these are in addition to the complimentary chauffeur service, travel insurance and a range of included excursions we already offer.

“We’ve got a lovely line-up of itineraries too, with plenty of new cruise options on-board the brand-new Spirit of the Danube and Spirit of the Rhine along with some firm favourites and our guests can travel with us safe in the knowledge that everyone on our ships must have both vaccines and at least one booster, and our covid safe protocols remain firmly in place.”

All of this is in addition to an exciting line-up of cruises with itineraries ranging from between seven and 16-nights across the two brand-new ‘Spirit’ ships, which only had their official naming ceremony last month.

New to the line-up for 2023 will be:

The Golden Age of Art on the Rhine where guests will cruise the Dutch waterways stopping to view iconic artwork in the world-renowned galleries of Amsterdam, Utrecht and The Hague. Joined on board by famous art-dealer and Antiques Roadshow star, Rupert Maas. Seven nights on board Spirit of the Rhine, departing May 8, 2023 starts from £1,241 per person.

Autumn Colours of the Danube is a beautiful ten-night journey on Spirit of the Danube taking in the seasonal scenery along the famous river, with stops in Budapest, Bratislava and Vienna. Prices start from £1,574 per person, departing on November 11, 2023.

Art on the Danube takes in Budapest’s Hungarian National Gallery, the Danubiana Meulensteen Museum, Bratislava’s City Gallery and a plethora of galleries in Vienna. The eight-night art-themed river cruise departs on October 27, 2023 on Spirit of the Danube with prices starting from £1,499 per person.

Firm favourites:

Flowers on Parade with Charlie Dimmock is a popular seven-night cruise on Spirit of the Rhine that travels through Antwerp, Utrecht and Zaandam visiting the 17th annual Floralia Brussels flower show, Utrecht botanical gardens, Keukenhof, Haarlem annual flower parade and finishing with a tour of Amsterdam. The cruise departs on April 17, 2023 and prices start from £1,649 per person.

To book guests can visit saga.co.uk/rivers-2023 or call 0808 258 2031.

Spirit of the Rhine and Spirit of the Danube build on Saga’s boutique design philosophy of its ocean-going vessels, Spirit of Adventure and Spirit of Discovery, and offer a luxury cruise experience for customers on Europe’s famous riverways.

With designs inspired by the nature and culture found along the iconic waterways, both ships have been built with guests central to their design. Each vessel has four passenger decks and 91 guest cabins, hosting up to 182 customers and up to 50 crew. Each ship also features the first-class Saga facilities that guests have come to expect, complete with an en-suite bathroom and walk-in shower. There are two different types of cabin available on both ships. All have a clean, sophisticated design with Spirit of the Rhine reminiscent of Saga’s larger ocean ships and Spirit of the Danube based on an Art Nouveau and Danube Delta theme, with elements such as migratory birds used throughout the ship.

Saga will also be introducing four new owned river ships between 2023 and 2026 (one per year), capitalising on the growing popularity of river cruising.

The full brochure of cruises can be found on Saga’s website.

A factsheet on the new river cruise ships can be found here at the Saga Newsroom.

Images of the new ships can be located here and a selection of 2023 river cruise images, here.  

ends

May 3, 2022

For further information, please contact sagatravel@headlandconsultancy.com.