Reviewing My First Sailing With AmaWaterways!
By Erika Macias
I recently went on a European River Cruise with AmaWaterways and it was a dream come true for me. Literally! I’ve been dreaming of a European Christmas Markets river cruise with AmaWaterways since I first became a Travel Agent in 2016!
In my mind, AmaWaterways was the height of attention to detail when it comes to river cruising, and now that I’ve sailed with them I can say with absolute confidence that Amawaterways is spectacular!! There’s so much I could say about them, but I’ve decided to focus my thoughts on the top three things you should know about cruising with Amawaterways, so here we go!!
Inclusive Packages
First, although there may be other European river cruise companies out there that, at first glance, may appear to be a better deal than AmaWaterways, it actually may not be. Here’s why: there’s SO much included in an AmaWaterways sailing!
For example, every day of our trip, there was at least one, sometimes two, opportunities for an outing to explore the area we were sailing in. There were usually three choices for a morning outing. We had an option of what we wanted to experience and there was always an accomodation for varying physical requirements, so it was rather inclusive in that way. Then, in the afternoon, we usually either had another set of activities to choose from or even free time to explore the city we were ported in.
Here’s the important piece of this information here, these tours were all included with the price of our sailing!! I cannot state what a value that winds up being.
Food Quality
Second, many of the value river cruise companies simply don’t pay much attention to the quality of the meals they serve onboard. AmaWaterways is not one of those companies! I already knew they cared about their food from the research I had done before my sailing, but I wasn’t prepared! It was so yummy! I’m laughing even as I write this because I have too much to say on the matter, but this isn’t a food review post! I’ll say this, if they offered a cookbook for purchase, I would absolutely buy it.
This may sound silly, but the thing I looked forward to the most every day was their soups! I know. What can I say? They were velvety and delicious! I tried, every time, to figure out how they accomplished the texture. With each bowl, it became more like a mystery to me that I really wanted to solve! I never did figure it out, but the flavors were always clean and robust.
Every meal had several options - all a reflection of the region we were traveling in and they put a lot of care into the wine offerings for meal times - all included. Personally, I’m a bit of a teetotaler, so I didn’t partake, but my travel companion, my mom, loved it all!!
On Board Entertainment
Third, take advantage of the entertainment that’s offered in the evening time. AmaWaterways typically has entertainment come in for an after dinner performance. River cruises are all roughly the same size because they have to be able to fit through the locks in the river they’re traveling in, so if you’re thinking of a sea cruise ship, this is much smaller. There are a lot less people on a river cruise and the options for where to eat and what to do are less varied than a sea cruise.
But, I will say, that you’re packing a lot into every day, so I rather appreciated the low key approach to the evening entertainment. There were musicians, singers, and dancers that all came in to perform. It wasn’t uncommon for the guests to join in on the singing or even the dancing! I’m chuckling just thinking about it! I saw the same people all week, so it was lovely to interact with each other in this way that was free and unguarded. I don’t know that I expected that at the beginning of the sailing. While the entertainment took place, many people watched or had conversations with each other, enjoyed a drink or even played games. It was cozy and inviting. Now, I’m writing about it, I’m missing that little group.
Would I Sail Again?
Listen, it was my first sailing with AmaWaterways, but definitely not my last!! As mentioned above, those are just three things I loved and think you should consider as you dream about your own European River Cruise! Happy sailing!
Erika grew up in Southern California, so the magic of Disneyland has been a part of her life since she was a little girl. Both as a child and as an adult, she has always been drawn to the whimsey and imagination that are found in the Disney parks. Erika fulfilled a lifelong dream in 2008 when she visited Walt Disney World for the first time. She was blown away by the range and adventure offered in those parks. Since then, she and her family have visited Disney World every year. In particular, she loves Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park where she is transported to an exotic jungle with lush greenery and colorful birds flying overhead! Aside from Disney, cruising is her favorite way to travel. She finds cruising allows for both rest and adventure all in one trip!
If you want to work with Erika to plan your next great adventure on a European River Cruise, a Disney Park or beyond you can fill out a quote form here!