Our resident researcher Tamera Trexler has compiled 2020 pricing comparisons for the Rhône River. Her comparisons are thorough and extremely detailed, and they derive true per diems that allow readers to determine how much they will actually spend on their Rhone river cruises once all items are factored in – port charges, gratuities and other expenses that are not always included in the initial cost of a river cruise.
This post sets out to answer the following questions: What is the average cost of a Rhone river cruise? How can I save on a Rhone river cruise? Should I make my decision about which company to cruise the Rhone based on the lowest per diem? What’s the best value for a Rhone river cruise?
Rhone River Cruise Prices Ranges & Averages
Prices on the Rhone for 2020 range from a low of $309 per person a day (Viking’s June 16, 2020 sailing) to a high of $691 per person per day on Tauck. The average per diem of a 2020 Rhone river cruise for the dates we researched is $504 per person. AmaWaterways, Avalon, CroisiEurope, Scenic, Tauck and Uniworld are above that average. Emerald, Riviera and Viking fall below the average price.
For the 2020 Rhone river cruise shoulder season, rates range from $290 per person per day on CroisiEurope to $557 per person per day on Tauck. The average shoulder season rate across all nine river cruise companies is $442, with AmaWaterways, Avalon, Scenic, Tauck and Uniworld coming in above the average, and CroisiEurope, Emerald, Riviera and Viking below the average per diem.
In most cases, you should expect to pay around $1,000 per stateroom, double occupancy, for each day of your cruise (excluding disembarkation day) during peak season, and a little less than $900 per stateroom for each day of your cruise during shoulder season.
Those numbers, however, don’t tell the whole story. Upgrading to a balcony, for example, skews the per diems. Rates for balcony staterooms range from $286 (CroisiEurope) to $1,299 (Avalon) per person for the duration of your Rhone river cruise. Worth it? Yes, if you have the discretionary income. We’ve enjoyed waking up in the mornings and stepping out on our balcony (or sliding open the doors of a French balcony) to admire the river. We’re sure you’d enjoy the convenience of a balcony too.
If the upgrade to a balcony stateroom does not break your budget, then we emphatically recommend going for it. Remember, you are buying an experience, and you want that experience to be as good as it can possibly be. This is not the time to be a parsimonious river cruise passenger. Splurge. You’re paying for your experience, after all.
How To Save On A Rhone River Cruise
If a balcony would break your budget, then by all means, opt instead for a fixed-window stateroom. You can leave the stateroom and go to the top deck for your “balcony” experience. It’s not quite as convenient as having a balcony right beside your bed, but if your budget is tight, go for the entry-level stateroom.
An entry-level stateroom will save you money. Another way to save: Choose a cruise outside of peak season. Shoulder season cruises on the Rhone during 2020 are considerably less pricey than peak season cruises. Of course, this stands to reason, as pricing is based on supply and demand, and typically there is more demand during the peak season. The exceptions to lower shoulder season rates are Scenic, where the shoulder season rate is a tad higher than the peak season rate, and Viking, which has the same rate in late October as it does in mid-June.
With all other cruise companies the shoulder season savings are significant when compared to summer sailings. On its June 25, 2020 departure, for example, AmaWaterways’ seven-night Colors of Provence itinerary will cost you $585 per person per day in a 170-square-foot fixed window stateroom, but only $457 per person per day for the same stateroom on October 29, 2020. That’s a savings of more than $250 per day per couple if you are willing to cruise in the late fall.
Other ways to save: Take advantage of promotions. They happen frequently and they can convey a significant savings, especially if the offer is an air credit or a deep discount. River cruise promotions are a moving target, and while we do our best to let you know about special offers, keeping up with them is more than our small team can manage. We recommend that you work with a travel agent. Travel agents can tell you about all of the promotions instead of you having to go to each river cruise company website to look for them yourself.
Moreover, you will often get equal or better rates from a travel agent, plus possible perks that you may not receive by going direct to the cruise line. That equation could change, however, if your travel agent charges a fee. There are plenty of travel agents who do not charge a fee. They are compensated with commission payments from the cruise companies. What this means is that the cruise company pays the travel agent, not you. What’s the catch? There isn’t one. The cruise will not cost you more from a travel agent than it does from a cruise company. If it does, let us know. Something’s wrong.
Shouldn’t I Just Go With The Lowest Per Diem?
The old adage is at least partially true: You get what you pay for. With river cruising, that isn’t always the case, because all of the cruise companies, with few exceptions, offer good accommodations, complimentary excursions, included wine and beer with lunch and dinner, and much more. Some cruise companies go above and beyond, however, and this is reflected in their higher per diems, so, in effect, you are getting what you pay for.
What do those cruise companies do that is above and beyond? One example is AmaWaterways, which spends millions of dollars a year to provide its guests with fast free internet, not an easy task on a moving ship. In our experience, AmaWaterways has the most reliable internet – and the fastest – on the rivers. AmaWaterways also proclaims to offer the most active experiences of any river cruise line. The company provides bikes, gyms, yoga classes, hikes and more. Scenic, on the other hand, strives to be the most inclusive of all river cruise companies. Not only are gratuities and 24/7 bar included, but also laundry service and nearly everything else you can think of. Scenic also distinguishes itself with multiple dining venues, and it too carries a fleet of bikes on its ships.
Even companies with lower per diems excel in certain areas. Viking’s value proposition is what the company refers to as “affordable luxury.” To give you just one example of what Viking means by “affordable luxury,” the bathroom floors in your stateroom are heated. You won’t find bikes on Viking, but there are bicycling excursions (the bikes are simply stored ashore). CroisiEurope’s all-inclusive cruises impress us with their French flair, inventive itineraries and innovative ships, including paddle-wheelers that can operate on the Elbe and Loire. Plus, CroisiEurope is French, which has some cachet when cruising the Rhone.
One company that we don’t mention in our comparisons is Teeming River Cruises. That’s because Teeming doesn’t offer a full season of 2020 Rhone river cruises. But if you can cruise on April 2, 2020, Teeming’s Lyon-roundtrip Rhone river cruise can save you a bundle, priced at $1,248 for seven days, which works out to a per diem of around $200 per person (remember, our calculations do not include disembarkation day).
Which Company Is The Best Value For A Rhone River Cruise?
Let’s break it down by the cost of a Rhone river cruise cruise on a daily basis per square foot of stateroom. Why? Well, why not? It gives us a place to start the discussion. At first glance, Viking’s 150-square-foot entry level staterooms on peak season Rhone river cruises arguably offer the best value, at $2.06 per square foot. During shoulder season, however, CroisiEurope and Emerald command the lowest spatial rates, at $2.07 per square foot.
It’s a bit of an absurd suggestion. After all, I’m doubtful that you’re going to be standing in your room thinking that this square foot cost me a bit more than $2 today ($4, including the spouse). It goes to illustrate, however, that choosing a river cruise can be challenging because of such factors, as well as the number of rivers in Europe and the number of river cruise companies operating on those rivers.
Even on a single river, such as the Rhone, river cruising is full of complexities. Each river cruise company has its own style, and each has its own set of inclusives, which can make comparing companies difficult. It’s not like choosing a hotel, where all you get is a room, and possibly breakfast. With river cruising, you’re evaluating a number of variables, including room sizes, itineraries, excursions, costs and what’s included – and equally as important, what’s not.
The complexities are amplified for single travelers and for those at the other end of the spectrum, family travelers. Think you can cruise with your kids? Think again. Viking doesn’t allow them under age 18. Others have age-restricted policies as well. And traveling single? It’s not like a hotel room where you pay the same rate no matter if there are one or two in the room. River cruise companies impose single supplements, which are typically 200 percent of the cost of the cruise. That is to say that if you are occupying a stateroom by yourself you may as well find a friend to travel along with you, because you’re going to pay what two would pay anyway. River cruise companies sometimes waive single supplements or reduce them, but single supplements are just one more of the variables that make river cruising a complex buy.
That’s a long way of saying that there is no best value in river cruising. There is only a best value for you. Do your research and if you get lost, feel free to complete by Get My Recommendations form.
A Rhone river cruise serves up the very best of France, mixing heritage and history with the country’s ever-present charm and beauty. Check out our videos Riverside Chat Episode 2: Rhone River Cruises | Video: A Cruise On France’s Rhone River With AmaWaterways
gerald eich says
we are looking to take a cruise on the rhone river. not decided north or south with pre or post stay in paris, another is trip in germany, but not a trip down the rhine we have made 3 trips already. not until 2020 or 2021, for 2 at this time both seniors i in eighties.
Patricia Fiedler says
My sister and I are planning a river cruise either early spring of late fall 2020. We are both experienced world travelers and with the exception of a tour to China have usually planned and traveled on our own. I have been on Princess Cruise ships to Alaska and Hawaii but this would be my first European cruise. I have not yet been to Vienna, Budapest or Germany and am interested in this area. I live in Arizona and my sister in Idaho. We have a moderate budget so we do not want to skimp but do not require top of the line accommodations. So far I have narrowed it down to AMA or Viking but am not totally committed.