Last week we talked about river cruising in the United States. Hundreds of you enjoyed our video and many took advantage of the offer we described.
Others who contacted us said one of these two things:
- “I’m not ready to travel yet”
Everyone has a different comfort level with travelling planning at the moment, so I certainly understand if you’re not ready yet. I’m not here to talk anybody into anything, but when you’re ready to discuss options, I’m ready to help.
2. “I still want to go to EUROPE, and I can wait till 2021”.
So that what this week’s message is about.
All of the river cruise companies as well as the small ship ocean cruise lines are reporting that ships for next season are fuller than they normally would be so far in advance.
It makes some sense – many people simply pushed their plans ahead one year.
In most cases, availability is not so tight that you’ll have trouble finding what you want, but we are seeing evidence of the pent-up demand for travel presenting itself already.
Lately, I’ve been looking more closely at Crystal Cruises.
Crystal is an interesting company. They have a small fleet of river ships in Europe, they have three small ocean ships, and they have the Crystal Skye, the world’s largest private jet. Incidentally, Bob and I had the chance to ride on that jet a just a few months ago (seems like a million years ago). Here’s a short video: https://youtu.be/4YaJcEpBsSc .
Crystal is owned by a very large parent company Genting Hong Kong (which also operates Star Cruises in Asia).
Crystal is considered to be a luxury, all-inclusive cruise line.
Other river cruise lines in this category include Scenic, Tauck and Uniworld.
(For context, Viking Cruises would be considered a premium, semi-inclusive river cruise line, in the same category as Ama Waterways and Avalon).
When you book a Crystal river cruise, you get a lot of inclusions that you often have to pay extra for, such as:
- All Gratuities (both onboard and ashore)
- Complimentary fine wines, premium spirits and beer throughout the ship, open bar service in all lounges and prepaid gratuities for bar staff
I think these are the biggest advantages though:
- They have the youngest fleet on the rivers. Crystal started as an ocean cruise line and expanded to the rivers in 2016.
- Each ship has a Fitness Center, pool, and complimentary yoga classes on deck
- Bicycles are available
- 24-hour room service and in-suite dining
- King size bed (or 2 twins)
- Butler service for every stateroom category (not just the premium suites)
- MUCH larger staterooms (for example Viking French Balconies are 135 square feet, and with Crystal they are 188-253 sq. ft.)
- Crystal’s ships are exactly the same size as Viking but there are far fewer guests on board (190 guests on Viking vs. just 106 guests on Crystal).
- More space in the public areas, due to the fewer number of passengers. Crystal says “double the space per guest”
- Impeccable service. Viking and the others do an excellent job with service, but Crystal is truly “6-star”. Crystal has more crew to serve fewer passengers! (for example, Viking has 50 crew to serve 190 guests; Crystal has 55 crew for 106 guests i.e. 1 staff member for every 1.55 guests).
Given these differences, Crystal river cruises are usually very expensive.
However, I recently became aware of an incredible deal from Crystal Cruises. I’m always reluctant to push out specific deals, simply because most “deals” don’t really stand out all that much when you start looking into them. This is one of the exceptions.
With Crystal’s “Advance Purchase Savings” promotion, you can save up to 50% on 2021 European river cruises.
Here’s how it works:
- There are 10 different itineraries to choose from, all 7-day itineraries on the Rhine or Danube
- 73 different sailings are available (March through November 2021)
- The fare is $3699 per person + port charges (approx. $196 pp)
- For this set price, you can choose the best available stateroom at time of reservation. This includes any suite in categories S1 – S5 (these are all French Balcony staterooms, although Crystal calls them “Balcony-Windows”)
Here’s a sample comparison between Crystal, and the next best deal I could find (on a different cruise line) on each of the Rhine and Danube rivers for May of 2021:
| CRYSTAL’S Advance Purchase Savings | NEXT BEST DEAL |
| Example #1: Rhine River | Example #1: Rhine River |
| Basel to Amsterdam – May 7, 2021 | Basel to Amsterdam – May 7, 2021 |
| French Balcony: $3699 (253 square ft. room) | French Balcony: $3999 (135 square ft. room) |
| Example #2: Danube River | Example #2: Danube River |
| Budapest to Vilshofen (Bavaria) – May 8, 2021 | Budapest to Nuremberg (Bavaria) – May 8, 2021 |
| French Balcony: $3699 (253 square ft. room) | French Balcony: $4199 (135 square ft. room) |
| INCLUSIONS: | INCLUSIONS: |
| Open Bar at all times (beer, wine, spirits) | Beer & wine with meals |
| Gratuities included | Gratuities additional $125/week |
| Port fees additional $196 | Port fees included |
| 4 dining venues plus 24-hour room service | 2 dining venues. No room service |
| Butlers for all suites | Not available |
| King sized bed | Queen bed |
| Maximum guests: 106 (& 55 crew) | Maximum Guests: 180 (& 50 crew) |
Both cruise lines include an excursion in every port, and on-board WiFi.
You can see from the comparison chart that Crystal’s price is actually lower, you get a larger stateroom, and you get more included.
You’ll also get a $125 per person on board credit when you book any Crystal river cruise through our agency. You would not receive this by booking directly with Crystal.
There are lots of other departure dates and itineraries included in the Crystal deal too, so don’t feel constrained by the example above.
So… what’s the catch? No real catch, but here is the fine print:
- The promotion is capacity controlled and is being honored on a first-come, first-served basis. That means the offer can be withdrawn at any time. It also means that the best staterooms will get booked first, since they are all the same price.
- Payment in full is due within 7 days of booking. (Funny, I thought this was a ‘big deal’ when I first saw it. But then I remembered that with Viking, final payment is normally due 12 months in advance anyways).
- The fare is non-refundable. You do have the opportunity to change your departure date or itinerary as long as you do it before Dec. 31, 2020 (you must move to one of the other 73 Advance Purchase Savings departures, subject to availability). You’ll want to make sure you have cancellation insurance in place.
If you were thinking about a Rhine or Danube river cruise next year, then this definitely worth considering.
If you really want to experience a high-end luxury product on the European rivers, then this is a great opportunity to do so, while paying a price even lower than we see on other river cruise lines that offer fewer inclusions.
I’m excited to share this enticing opportunity with you!
If you’re planning a trip, I’d love to help! Click here to get in touch today.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sue Bradley
Sue Bradley
