11 river cruises that offer something extra

On Journey Latin America’s new 12-night land-and-river Magdalena River Cruise: Colombia’s Hidden Gems trip, you’ll explore one of Latin America’s most storied waterways, with eight days aboard one of a pair of stylish riverboats (max: 60–64 passengers). It’s a chance to explore an iconic artery that once ferried gold stolen by the Spanish and now offers far greater cultural treasures. Starting amid the colonial walls of Cartagena (above), you’ll drift on to Palenque, the first free city in Colombia, and El Banco, birthplace of cumbia (a fusion of African and Indigenous music), as you explore the cultures that define the country’s Caribbean coast. A birdwatching trip to the wetlands of Magangué and a finale amid the trails of Tayrona National Park also opens up a wilder side of the region.

Journey Latin America. Year-round; 12 nights from £4,800pp, excluding international flights.

Martin Randall’s new The Rhine: Empire, Reformation and Romanticism cruise offers a floating lesson in northern and central European history aboard the privately chartered MS Amadeus Queen (max: 100 passengers). Beginning in Basel and finishing in Amsterdam, each stage showcases a chapter in the continent’s evolution, from the Romanesque cathedrals in the heartland of the Holy Roman Empire (Speyer, Mainz, Worms), where the upheavals of the Reformation shook its foundations, to Heidelberg and the Middle Rhine, where legend and landscape converged to inspire the great artists of the Romantic era. Highlights include a stop in Cologne (pictured right), a medieval metropolis supercharged by its position on the Rhine, as well as visits to castles, vineyards, and a private tasting of traditionally made sekt sparkling wine.

Martin Randall. 12 Sep 2027; 7 nights from £3,850pp, excluding international trains or flights.

Most people head to Portugal’s Douro Valley wine region in early summer, when the hills are at their greenest, or in autumn, when the steep, terraced vineyards welcome harvest season. Avalon Waterways’ Festive Season on the Douro cruise offers a charming alternative, as you set sail on the Avalon Alegria (max: 101 passengers) through towns and villages lit by fairy lights in the run-up to Christmas. Embarking in Porto, you’ll drift towards the Spanish border and the medieval walls of Castelo Rodrigo (pictured above) and the golden stone of Salamanca, home to the oldest university in the Hispanic world. It’s a fully immersive cruise, with guests learning to bake Portuguese tarts, craft traditional ornaments and taste vinho verde at a historic estate. And one thing is certain: you’re never far from a glass of port.

Avalon Waterways. Tailor-made; 7 nights from £2,435pp, excluding international flights.

Discover lesser-known parts of the Mekong on Audley Travel’s land-and-river Cruising the Mekong from Ho Chi Minh City to Siem Reap trip. Seven nights aboard one of several stylish Pandaw riverboats (max: approx 60 passengers), equipped with spacious staterooms and wooden balconies, see you travel between the two very different faces of Southeast Asia. Starting in Vietnam’s ultra-modern Ho Chi Minh City, you’ll traverse mangroves and bamboo forests, foxholes and killing fields, and riverside villages and markets en route to the ancient temple complex of Angkor in Cambodia (pictured below). Pit stops include a journey by sampan (wooden skiff) through the mangroves, cycling quiet backroads and immersing yourself in rural Mekong life as you slow down and explore a side of the region that few see.

Audley Travel. Year-round with weekly departures; 14 nights from £6,135pp, including international flights.

Viking’s new land-and-river trip, Wonders of India, squeezes in a visit to the country’s famed Golden Triangle (New Delhi, the Taj Mahal of Agra [pictured left] and Jaipur) before hitting the waters of the Brahmaputra River for eight days on the Viking Brahmaputra (max: 80 passengers). It’s the latter that raises the hairs on the back of your neck, as you encounter villages along the banks and search for one-horned rhinos and buffalo in Kaziranga National Park in the far northeastern Indian state of Assam. You’ll also explore the cultures of Majuli, one of the world’s largest river islands, home to dozens of satras (Vaishnavite monasteries) that serve as centres for religious and artistic training. Just as exciting are relics of the Ahom Kingdom in Nimati Ghat, who ruled this part of Assam for nearly 600 years until the British annexed it.

Viking. Departures in Jan, Mar & Dec 2028; 14 nights from £9,995pp, including international flights.

Designed exclusively for solo travellers, JustYou’s Inspirational China & Yangtze Cruise takes the classic China tour (Shanghai, Xi’an, Chongqing, Beijing) and offers a chance to slow things down by cruising the more leisurely upstream route from Yichang to Chongqing on the Yangtze. By battling the current, you get an extra day on the water as you chug past the Three Gorges Dam, the largest hydroelectric dam in the world, aboard the Victoria Jenna (max: 378 passengers). There are excursions to learn about local cultures, while the more eagle-eyed may spot the xuanguan (1,000-year-old hanging coffins) high on the cliffs. After disembarking, there’s the porcelain heritage of Ciqikou, the Terracotta Warriors (pictured below) of Xi’an and the panda breeding sanctuary of Chengdu all to look forward to.

JustYou. 19 Apr, 6 Sep & 11 Oct 2027; 15 nights from £4,899pp, including international flights.

Some rare treasures of the Nile are brought to life by onboard Egyptologists on the new land-and-river tour featuring the new AmaNubia riverboat (max: 76 passengers), where even lower-deck staterooms feature French or twin balconies. It begins sailing the Secrets of Egypt & the Nile itinerary this November, with guests experiencing a five-star stay in Cairo – taking in Giza’s pyramids and the Grand Egyptian Museum – before hitting the water for seven nights. Iconic stops include the temples of Luxor and Karnak and the burial grounds of the Valley of the Kings. But it’s the time spent in Qena, which most cruise itineraries skip due to time constraints, where this trip proves its worth. You’ll explore the little-seen reliefs (including a likeness of Cleopatra) of the Temple of Hathor at Dendera, dedicated to the goddess of joy and love, before cruising back to Luxor in style.

AmaWaterways. Regular departures from 7 Nov 2026 on AmaNubia; 11 nights from £5,819pp, including international flights.

With large cruise ships now mostly excluded from Venice’s historic centre (pictured right), as the city fights back against the crowds, Uniworld’s Venice and the Jewels of Veneto itinerary offers a rare opportunity to experience the region from the water, away from the masses. The SS La Venezia (max: 126 passengers) ferries guests to lesser-seen parts of the Venetian islands and the wider area on a floating ode to the old maritime republic, replete with Murano glass, gilded accents and artistic etched designs. On Burano, for example, Uniworld is the only cruise operator to have an overnight docking station. But it’s the exclusive excursions that catch the eye, as you enjoy a private visit to St Mark’s Basilica after dark and visit the Doge’s Palace before it opens to the public, then join a women’s co-operative that champions a unique style of gondolier rowing.

Uniworld Boutique River Cruises. Multiple departures Apr–Oct 2027; 7 nights from £2,499pp, excluding international travel.

Sometimes, you just want a bit of luxury. Floating yoga, private balcony suites, high tea in palaces and encounters with master craftspeople set the tone for Scenic Cruises’ Colours of South India & Luxury Lower Ganges River Cruise. This 23-night land-and-river adventure takes in some of India’s most evocative waterways, beginning in Kochi, where the option of drifting the backwaters of Kerala in a luxury kettuvallam (wooden houseboat) should be taken up. But the trip truly finds its river legs on the Hooghly, beginning in Kolkata. Aboard the Scenic Aura (max: 44 passengers), you’ll explore palaces, Jain temples, the ‘gardens’ of Khushbagh, craft villages and the French colonial town of Chandernagore on a serene trip through West Bengal.

Scenic Cruises. 10 Nov & 7 Dec 2027; 23 nights from £9,305pp, including international flights.

One of the great things about river cruises is that they take you far off the beaten track. By combining a luxurious cruise on India’s Brahmaputra with one of the world’s great cultural celebrations, TransIndus’ 15-night land-and-river Hornbill Festival and Brahmaputra Expedition offers a glimpse of the mountainous northeast of India in style. From Kolkata, guests are taken to Kisama, where the Hornbill Festival brings together Nagaland’s Indigenous peoples to celebrate and showcase their heritage. Thereafter, you’ll board a train to Guwahati to board the RV Kindat Pandaw (max: 36 passengers). Over seven nights, you’ll drift the Brahmaputra to Assamese villages, see rock carvings up in the Bamuni Hills and visit India’s remotest national parks, searching for rare birdlife in Nameri and one-horned rhinos (pictured above) and tigers in Kaziranga.

TransIndus. 3 Dec 2026; 15 nights from £7,995pp, excluding international flights.

The Christmas markets of Austria and Germany are magical affairs, scented with glühwein and laced with fairy lights. Those looking to add even more flair to the occasion can add a cruise on the Danube, with Great Rail Journeys’ Danube Christmas Markets: Vienna to Nuremberg offering six nights on the MS Amadeus Star (max: 164 passengers). Beginning in Vienna, guests have time to soak up the Habsburg extravagance of the Schönbrunn Palace and its markets before cruising on to the Wachau Valley, where the Baroque beauty of Melk Abbey looms over the Danube from the cliffs. From there, the historic centres, cobbles and markets of Passau and Regensburg (pictured right) await, before finishing in the shadow of the Imperial Castle of Nuremberg, amid the stalls of the city’s famous Christkindlesmarkt.

Great Rail Journeys. 23 Nov & 29 Nov 2027; 8 nights from £3,099pp, including international trains.