Tauck launching six new European river cruises for 2024
WILTON, CT – Tauck has unveiled its 2024 portfolio of European river cruises, and the three-time winner of Travel + Leisure magazine’s “World’s Best River Cruise Line” award is adding six new itineraries to its collection for next year – the most new river cruises the company has ever added to its portfolio in a single year.
“We’re absolutely thrilled to be expanding our river cruise offerings in such an unprecedented way, with exciting new itineraries that will appeal to our loyal past guests and new travelers alike,” said Tauck CEO Dan Mahar. Several of the trips, said Mahar, incorporate included pre or post-cruise hotel stays in new-to-Tauck cities including Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany and Montreux and Geneva Switzerland. “These signature land experiences,” Mahar continued, “are included in our cruise prices, they feature exclusive Tauck-guided sightseeing, and they boast stays at wonderful properties such as the Fairmont Montreux Palace, the Riessersee Hotel in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and the InterContinental Geneve in Geneva.”
Mahar went on to note that each of the new river cruises will be highlighted by an included dinner ashore in a lavish setting, with venues ranging from an elegant Viennese palace, to a Dutch castle on its own private island, to an Italian Renaissance-style mansion in a small commune in northern France.
Mahar pointed to two venues as representative of the types of places where Tauck guests will enjoy unique onshore dinners; Palais Pallavicini in Vienna and Schlosshotel Kronberg outside of Frankfurt, Germany. Featured on Tauck’s new “Danube Kingdoms: Bavaria, Austria & Hungary” itinerary (12 days), Palais Pallavicini was constructed in 1784 and has been the home of the Pallavicini family for more than 180 years. The palace has hosted luminaries including Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert, and it served as a major filming location for the classic 1934 film “The Thin Man.” Tauck guests will enjoy an exclusive evening at Palais Pallavicini that includes a reception, gala dinner and classical music selections by performers in period dress.
Dinner and drinks in Dwight D. Eisenhower’s former home
Guests on Tauck’s new “Three Rivers: Danube, Main & Rhine” cruise (10 days) will be treated to an evening at 130-year-old Schlosshotel Kronberg. The former residence of German Empress Victoria Friedrich, Schlosshotel Kronberg housed a U.S. Army officers club during the post-World War II occupation of Germany. It was also the temporary home of General Dwight D. Eisenhower for a seven year period after the war, during which time he designed the on-site, 18-hole golf course still in use today.
The special evening dinners aren’t the only unique food and drink-related experiences Tauck has included in its new cruises. Depending on their itinerary, Tauck guests will also enjoy lunch at the summit of the Zugspitze (Germany’s highest peak at nearly 10,000 feet), at historic Weltenberg Abbey near Regensburg, and at a private ranch in the Camargue region in Provence. Tasting tours are also on tap in a number of cities and towns, including Frankfurt, Strasbourg, and Chalon-Sur-Saône, France. Tauck guests will also have an opportunity to quench their thirsts during wine tastings in Burgundy and the Lavaux region of Switzerland, on a craft beer tour in Dusseldorf, during a brewery tour in Antwerp, and with a tasting of local brandies and apple ciders in Normandy.
And of course, the special access and memorable moments crafted for Tauck guests extend beyond food and wine experiences, and include early “pre-opening” admission to the home, gardens and studio of Impressionist painter Claude Monet in Giverny, France, a guided excursion into the rock-cut tunnels beneath Nüremberg, and a stroll across the Peak Walk by Tissot, a high-altitude suspension bridge connecting two Swiss peaks and offering stunning views of the Matterhorn, Mont-Blanc and Jungfrau.
All of Tauck’s special dining and tasting experiences are included in the price of the company’s river cruises, as are all shore excursions, all gratuities, all onboard beverages (including all beer, wine and spirits), airport transfers, luggage handling and much more.
Tauck’s New 2024 River Cruise Itineraries
Danube Kingdoms: Bavaria, Austria & Hungary
Munich to Budapest; 12 days
Itinerary: Includes a four-night, land-based exploration of Bavaria with hotel stays in Munich and Partenkirchen, plus a seven-night cruise along the Danube visiting Passau, Linz, Salzkammergut, Cesky Krumlov, Melk, Vienna, Bratislava and Budapest.
Highlight dinner: Guests will attend a Tauck Exclusive evening at a private Viennese palace, Palais Pallavicini, featuring a reception, gala dinner and classical music performances. The palace has hosted luminaries including Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert, and it has been the home of the Pallavicini family for more than 180 years.
Three Rivers: Danube, Main & Rhine
Amsterdam to Regensburg (or reverse); 10 days
Itinerary: Ports of call include Amsterdam, Nijmegen, Köln, Bonn, Koblenz, Boppard, Frankfurt, Wertheim, Marktheidenfeld, Würzburg, Bamberg, Bayreuth, Nürnberg and Regensburg.
Highlight dinner: Guests will enjoy an evening at the opulent Schlosshotel Kronberg. The former home of German Empress Victoria Friedrich, Schlosshotel Kronberg took four years to build (1889 – 1893). Today, Schlosshotel Kronberg is operated by the royal House of Hesse as a luxury hotel, and it is set amid parklands featuring an 18-hole golf course designed by Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Rhine Connoisseur: Montreux to Brussels
Montreux to Brussels (or reverse); 11 days
Itinerary: Begins with a three-night stay at the Fairmont Montreux Palace and explorations of the Lavaux Vineyards, Montreux and Glacier 3000. A subsequent seven-night cruise visits Strasbourg, Rüdesheim, Koblenz and Düsseldorf along the Rhine before traveling on to Gorinchem, Antwerp and Brussels.
Highlight dinner: A Tauck-exclusive reception and dinner are featured at Slot Loevestein. Set in a nature reserve on a private island open only to Tauck guests for the evening, the 14th-century castle has served as a prison, residence and toll station at the strategic confluence of the Maas and Waal rivers.
Hidden Waterways of Flanders and Holland
Brussels to Amsterdam (or reverse); eight days
Itinerary: Ports of call along the scenic Dutch waterways include Brussels, Antwerp, Bruges, Gorinchem, Leiden, Rotterdam and Amsterdam.
Highlight dinner: A Tauck-exclusive reception and dinner are featured at Slot Loevestein. Set in a nature reserve on a private island open only to Tauck guests for the evening, the 14th-century castle has served as a prison, residence and toll station at the strategic confluence of the Maas and Waal rivers.
River Seine: Châteaux, Impressionism & Normandy
Begins and ends near Paris at Le Pecq; eight days
Itinerary: Visits Auvers-sur-Oise, Les Andelys, Tilly, Mont-Saint-Michel, Étretat, Honfleur, the D-Day Beaches of Normandy, Rouen, Giverny (where Tauck guests enjoy exclusive early-entry admission to the home and gardens of Impressionist painter Claude Monet) and Le Pecq.
Highlight dinner: Tauck guests will enjoy a private evening with a tour, dinner and music at Château du Taillis. Set on a parkland estate in Duclair, France and built in 1530, this Italian Renaissance mansion with baroque interiors is a brilliant architectural showcase.
La Belle Vie: The Rhône, Geneva & The Riviera
Cannes to Geneva (or reverse); 14 days
Itinerary: This 14-day itinerary includes a nine-night river cruise along the Rhône bookended by two, two-night hotel stays with guided Tauck sightseeing in Cannes and Geneva. Along the way, guests have the opportunity to experience Aix-en-Provence, Arles, La Camargue, Avignon, Uzès, St-Rémy, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Tain l’Hermitage, Mâcon, Cluny, Chalon-sur-Saône, Beaune, Tournus, Cormatin and Lyon.
Highlight dinner: Tauck guests will enjoy an exclusive evening at Duché d’Uzès featuring a private tour, dinner and cocktails. The family castle of the Duke of Uzès, the home was once the site of a Roman governor’s residence and the haven of an exiled 9th-century duchess.
The article Tauck launching six new European river cruises for 2024 first appeared in TravelDailyNews International.