To paraphrase a phrase from a giant cruise line’s TV commercial, “Suddenly it dawns on you that this is much LESS than a cruise”. That was my pleasant reaction to my first experience with river cruising. It certainly won’t be my last, after a week cruising the south of France on the River Royale, operated by Uniworld. The River Royale is the company’s latest river boat (the captain was quick to point out that our vessel was a boat, not a ship), starting its second year of service.
The first thing you notice upon embarkation are the wall to wall smiles from the attentive crew. There were about 80 passengers aboard for the April 14th departure from Arles, France. The ship holds 140 at capacity and crew members said it is virtually full for the rest of the season.
If rock climbing walls, lavish stage shows, enormous casinos and expansive pool decks are your thing, then river cruising may not be your cup of tea. But if you are looking to explore some awesome places conveniently and comfortably then the river fleet operated by Uniworld could be just the ticket.
The Royale was tastefully decorated. Public rooms are limited to a basically the Renoir lounge and the Cezanne dining room. Both rooms comfortably accommodate all passengers. Dining was open seating buffets for breakfast and lunch with an excellent with a variety of choices ranging from fresh omelets to hand carved pork and delicious pasta dishes. While galley facilities are not as extensive as on larger cruise ships, the variety and freshness of the cuisine made up for it several times over. Dinner was open seating served tableside by the always smiling crew. Usually there were 2 fixed entrees, salad, desert and the ever-popular cheese side board where guests could help themselves to an incredible variety of local cheeses (after all we were in France!). The next evening’s menu is delivered to your stateroom during turn-down service and the maitre d’ was happy to arrange an alternate main dish if the selections were not to your liking.
It was also clear that the chef was taking advantage to the incredible local seafood, and produce available at the numerous country markets we docked near. And the soups were to die for! The bread and deserts would make a French country bistro chef jealous.
In addition to the 3 main meals, a small ante room just outside the dining room, the Patio served coffee and pastries 24/7. There was no room service available and dining choices outside meal times was limited. Most guests stocked up their staterooms with snacks and beverages (great local wines were about $8 per bottle and no need to “sneak” it aboard) to tide them over. As we always docked right “in town” it was usually a quick walk to nearby super markets to stock up on items for the cabin.
Traveling with less than 100 people allows guests to meet and mingle with new people everyday. While there are tables for two, most passengers are quick to join others in the dining room encouraged by the family atmosphere that is spearheaded by the genial crew. By the end of the week, we had made several new friends and plans to keep in touch after the cruise.
Staterooms on the River Royale are the largest in the company’s fleet but even these would be considered “compact” by contemporary cruise ship standards. All are outside and the top deck cabins have a small French balcony that allows you to stand but not sit outside. Cabin lighting and closet space is fine for a week if you don’t bring everything you own. Dress on board is quite casual. There were 2 “formal” nights for Captain’s welcome and farewell parties but most of the men wore sport jackets and about 50% of us went tie-less. During the day it’s jeans, climate friendly tops and comfortable walking shoes.
The most important distinction of river cruising is how and where you go as compared to ocean liners that dock at large ports. We sailed from Arles on the Rhone River and visited a series of unique ports in France transiting north from the Rhone at Lyon to the Saone River and ending our cruise in Chalon sur Saone. In every port, there was a complimentary shore excursion which was usually a walking tour of the area conducted by superb local guides. Care was taken to select tours that were not overly arduous with only a moderate amount of walking required. In some cases, our cruise manager, Christian, arranged taxis for guests who had mobility issues. In 2 ports of call, optional excursions were offered that were excellent in quality and were priced fairly at about $45 Euros per person. Note that while the guest list is predominantly North American, all charges for shipboard accounts are in Euros.
All announcements and programs are conducted only in English although there are many multi-lingual staff on board. Christian, alone spoke 5 languages fluently. All in all, the feeling on board was more North American than international.
Many of the guests on onboard were confirmed river cruisers who would not dream of setting sail on a large cruise ship. On the other hand, several were equally at home cruising on traditional ships as well as river boats. And there were quite a few like myself who tried it for the first time but not the last. Of course, for travelers who have concerns about “mal de mer” (seasickness) – not to worry as the vessel never leaves the ribbon like smoothness of the river. On our cruise, we passed through several locks which raised the ship as much as 60 feet. A fascinating and unique experience. In some locks there was only about 3 inches clearance on each side of the boat so the captain truly earned his pay maneuvering in and out.
Speaking of engineering marvels, it was fun to watch the old timer’s guage the reaction on the newbie’s faces when the crew began to lower the entire sun deck awnings, railings and navigational equipment to allow the boat to pass under some of the lower bridges en route. Imagine our surprise when the captain lowered the entire pilot house several feet hydraulically one afternoon and then popped his head out of the “sunroof” to guide the ship under a bridge.
The entire river cruise voyage is composed of unique experiences which one is unlikely to find in other forms of water borne travel. It is exciting and adventuresome yet ultimately comfortable. Foreign yet with a feeling of being at home and with family.
And most of all, it is a chance to get to know more intimately some of the lesser known destinations in Europe and beyond. One of the more interesting side bars to the trip was the fact that the local residents of the Provenance region that we visited could not be more friendly and amicable. Sadly, our first experience with less than gracious rude people was in Customs and at the McDonald’s counter at Newark Airport. Go figure!
All in all, a great trip and one to put on your “must do” list of future vacations.
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2 comments:
Can you tell me what the weather was like on teh River Royale in May in Provence? Was it too cool to sit on the deck? Does the ship move fast enough for it to be breezy?
When we were there, it was unseasonable warm. Highs in the 80’s. But normally the late spring is low to mid 70’s. The ship moves slowly but does provide a breeze on the top deck.
Hope this helps!
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