AmaWaterways Delays New River Cruises in Colombia

Image: A rendering of the first AmaWaterways ship to sail on Colombia's Magdalena River. (Photo Credit: AmaWaterways Media)
Image: A rendering of the first AmaWaterways ship to sail on Colombia's Magdalena River. (Photo Credit: AmaWaterways Media)
Sarah Kuta
by Sarah Kuta
Last updated: 1:40 PM ET, Mon April 15, 2024

AmaWaterways is delaying the launch of its new river cruises in Colombia.

The Calabasas, California-based company had planned to make its debut on the Magdalena River aboard its new ship AmaMagdalena in early November. Then, a second new ship, AmaMelodia, was scheduled to begin sailing in Colombia in early June 2025.

However, now, AmaMagdalena’s first sailing will take place in January 2025. AmaMelodia is still on track to sail next June.

“As the first major river cruise line to explore this fascinating river and the destinations beyond its banks, it is of the utmost importance to us that we deliver the best possible experience for our guests, not only on board our newly designed river cruise ships, but on shore as well,” according to a statement from AmaWaterways.

“With this in mind, we have made the difficult decision to postpone the launch of our Colombia itineraries, which will give us the additional time we need to ensure our Magdalena River cruise and land journeys meet the high standards of quality our guests have come to expect—and for which AmaWaterways is renowned.”

The cruise line has contacted all guests and travel advisors affected by the change.

Travelers can swap their Magdalena River reservation for another available river cruise in Europe, Asia or Africa during the same season or wait and sail aboard AmaMagdalena or AmaMelodia in 2025. Guests also have the option of getting a full refund.


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Sarah Kuta

Sarah Kuta

Sarah Kuta is a writer and editor based in Longmont, Colorado. Her work has appeared in Travel+Leisure, Conde Nast Traveler, AFAR, Food&Wine, Smithsonian magazine, National Geographic, Lonely Planet, Robb Report, the Toronto Star, the Denver Post and many other publications. Sarah has a degree in journalism from Northwestern University. She can be reached at [email protected]  You can follow her on social media https://www.instagram.com/kutasarah/ and https://twitter.com/SarahKuta

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