Crystal River Cruises (Updated 2018)

Crystal River Cruises aims to redefine river cruising. The exteriors of its ships are the same as most other river cruisers, with the exception of Crystal Mozart, which is double the width of the standard river cruiser. The others are all the same width and length as most river cruisers operating on the rivers in Europe. Where Crystal’s River ships differ is in delivering Crystal’s renowned luxury product. The company has had more than 25 years to perfect its luxury travel experience on the high seas, and so it was well-prepared to adapt its award-winning product to the rivers.

Crystal now has a fleet of European river ships that are garnering wide acclaim. Crystal Mozart was the first to launch in the Spring of 2016, followed by Crystal Bach and Crystal Mahler in 2017. The last of the sister ships, Crystal Debussy and Crystal Ravel, made their debut in 2018.

I have been on Crystal Mozart twice now (and once when it operated for Peter Deilmann). Crystal Mozart is a beautiful vessel with unique attributes and activities, a good choice for those wanting the style and sophistication of Crystal Cruises, on the Blue Danube. Because of its width, Crystal Mozart is limited to sailing the Danube.

Based on my experience, I can confidently say that Crystal is raising the bar for food, service, and activities. See Crystal River Cruises: In A Class Apart

Unlike Crystal Mozart, Crystal’s four newbuilds boast an entirely new design, having been created from the ground-up to deliver Crystal’s award-winning brand of luxury.

Tub in Crystal Suite 225. © Ralph Grizzle

The bottle breaks. Photo courtesy of Crystal Cruises

Crystal Mozart godmother Elisabeth Gürtler, managing director of both the Hotel Sacher, Vienna’s most famous hotel, and the city’s historic Spanish Riding School. Pictured with Thomas Mazloum, Crystal Cruises' COO. © 2016 Ralph Grizzle

Measuring 883 square feet (with connecting stateroom 227) the Crystal Suite features a fireplace (with convincingly real flames), dining room table seating four, and three bathrooms. © 2016 Ralph Grizzle

Game changer? Launched in July 2016, Crystal entered the market with the nearly 30-year-old Mozart. See our photo gallery from the christening in Vienna in the slideshow above.

Crystal created its own chart to show how it differs from other river cruise companies. While not everyone would categorize the river cruise companies as Crystal does in the chart, the information provided is valuable even if you were to ignore the categories. Of particular interest is the number of crew, the crew-to-guest ratio, and stateroom sizes.

With its ubiquitous butlers, multiple dining venues, its distinctive crew-to-guest ratio and all of the Crystal Cruises’ hallmarks in place, Crystal Mozart is outperforming Crystal’s own highly-rated ocean cruise product, according to Walter Littlejohn, managing director for Crystal River Cruises. Mozart’s QAP score (the line’s Quality Assurance Program based on guest feedback) is the highest in the entire Crystal fleet, he says. “And our new ships will have the same caliber of food, service and amenities as the Mozart,” he adds.

The four new ships also will have indoor pools as on Mozart. “You will know right away that they’re sister ships [to Mozart],” Littlejohn says. “The only difference will be, while they won’t be as wide, they’re going to carry a lot fewer guests, 106 guests with 68 crew. So they actually will have a better crew-to-guest ratio than Mozart has.”

Want to cruise Crystal now? With per diems as low as $379 per person, Crystal Mozart serves up quite a good value.

Click here for a list of posts featuring Crystal River Cruises.

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Crystal River Cruises Ship Reviews

To read a review of a particular ship, click the link under "Read the Review." If applicable, our Live Voyage Reports offer a day-by-day overview of an actual cruise onboard. In some cases, there may be more than one report, to be sure to see if your favorite destination is represented.

Ship	Live Voyage Report
Crystal Bach
Crystal Debussy
Crystal Mahler
Crystal Mozart	My Favorite River Cruises Of 2016: A Visit To Vienna For Crystal Mozart’s Christening
Crystal Ravel

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Crystal River Cruises (Updated 2018)

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Crystal River Cruises Ship Reviews