Cruise & Cruise Line

Emerald Cruises Plans To Operate 38 European River Sailings in 2021

Image: The Emerald Sun. (Photo via Emerald Waterways)
Image: The Emerald Sun. (Photo via Emerald Waterways)
Theresa Norton
by Theresa Norton
Last updated: 11:55 AM ET, Thu July 1, 2021

Emerald Cruises will welcome U.S. guests back to river cruises on the Douro, Danube and Rhine this summer. In total, Emerald plans to operate no fewer than 38 river cruises in Europe between July and December 2021.

As previously announced, the first Douro River sailing will depart Porto on July 31, while the first newly announced Rhine sailing will depart Basel, Switzerland, on Aug. 19, and the first Danube cruise sailing will depart Nuremberg, Germany, on Aug. 30.

Emerald Cruises is offering savings of up to $2,000 per couple, with reduced, refundable deposits, and free single supplements, on 2021 bookings made by Aug. 31. The new 2021 bookings are fully refundable should Emerald need to suspend sailing.

Emerald's eight-day "Jewels of the Rhine" itinerary will operate between Basel and Amsterdam. The 15-day "Splendours of Europe" will sail between Amsterdam and Budapest in the fall.

A variety of eight-day Danube itineraries will also operate through the fall, including "Danube Delights" between Nuremberg and Budapest, "Danube Explorer" between Passau and Budapest, and "Enchantment of Eastern Europe" between Bucharest and Budapest.

In late November, Emerald Cruises will offer several Christmas market sailings, with eight-day itineraries on the Danube and Rhine as well as a 15-day "Christmas Markets of Europe" between Budapest and Amsterdam.

Emerald Cruises is requiring that all guests be fully vaccinated at least two weeks before departure.

Emerald Cruises offers a diverse lineup of river and yacht cruises on three continents. Emerald Azzurra, the line's first ocean-going vessel set to debut in January 2022, is a 100-guest, luxury superyacht that will sail the Mediterranean, Adriatic, Black and Red seas. On the rivers, Emerald Cruises sails eight branded Star-Ships in Europe and one on the Mekong, as well as a chartered river ship on the Russian waterways (MS Nizhny Novgorod).


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