New Year on the Rhine River Cruise - MS Oscar Wilde
Holiday Highlights
- Cruise through the spectacular Rhine Gorge to Rüdesheim, a classic Rhine wine village with crooked houses sloping down from wooded hillsides, and enjoy a Rheinish folklore show.
- Discover Frankfurt on our informative guided tour, visiting sites such as the the Kaiserdam, and use your free time to further explore this beautiful city.
- Visit the historic city of Koblenz, dramatically located in the confluence of the Rhine and Moselle rivers.
- Explore Cologne's old town and magnificent cathedral with our local guide.
- Welcome the New Year on board our luxury ship, delight in our New Year's Eve gala dinner, enjoy a live classical music recital and midnight drinks & canapés.
What's Included
- Prices are per person for this German river cruise, based on two people sharing a twin cabin with a limited number of Sole Occupancy cabins available on all decks at the relevant supplement. The price includes:
- Full board during your cruise from dinner on your day of arrival until breakfast on your final day
- Free drinks package
- New Year's Eve Gala dinner
- Complimentary on-board tea and coffee
- Complimentary on-board Wi-Fi (connection speeds may vary)
- All visits and excursions as mentioned
- Live classical quartet recital on board
- Rhenish folklore show on board
- Return flights or return Eurostar
- Coach travel as mentioned
- Transfers from the airport or station to and from the port of embarkation
- English-speaking expert guides
- The services of a Riviera Travel Cruise Director and Concierge
Itinerary
Day 1
Arrival in Cologne - Fly to Düsseldorf or Cologne, or take the Eurostar from London St Pancras to Brussels. On arrival, transfer by coach to your five-star cruise ship moored in historic Cologne, whose skyline is dominated by the twin spires of its magnificent cathedral. The dedicated English-speaking crew welcomes you on board and helps you to your cabin. After settling into your spacious and tastefully furnished accommodation, there’s time to familiarise yourself with this splendid ship.
Day 2
Rhine Gorge & Rüdesheim - As you wake to a sumptuous breakfast, the delights of the Rhine begin to emerge as we proceed upstream past the first rolling hills of the Rhine Valley. Journeying further you explore the most famous of all the rivers’ reaches and a real highlight of the cruise, the dramatic Rhine Gorge: steep vineyards give way to almost vertical outcrops towering above the sweeping valley sides of this wintry landscape. Sailing past many ruined castles, there’s a real sense of the myths surrounding this historic river coming alive around you. The river twists and turns towards the famous Loreley Rock, where legend has it, unsuspecting sailors were lured to their deaths by enchanting maidens. After lunch we moor in Rüdesheim, a classic Rhine wine village with crooked houses sloping down from wooded hillsides. If you imagine a typical Rhine town, then this would be it. During this afternoon’s delightful walking tour, witness the bustling marketplace, the half-timbered Klunkhardshof and Bromersburg Castle, which dates from 1275. Enjoy some free time to make your own discoveries perhaps stopping for a warming Rüdesheim coffee with its fortifying shot of locally distilled Asbach brandy and a dollop of whipped cream. After welcome cocktails and another superb dinner, prepared by your chef, enjoy an entertaining folklore show in the welcoming surroundings of the ship’s lounge.
We have deliberately avoided the current trend for a minimalist style where you could be anywhere in the world, creating instead a unique yet exquisite blend of understated taste, style and elegance at the highest level. Immediately striking is just how exceptionally spacious this new vessel is as you enter a gleaming, richly coloured marble-floored lobby flooded with natural light from a stunning atrium above. Moving inside, exceptional creativity from Europe’s finest design studio has produced a superbly balanced masterpiece of onboard style, utilising sustainable rich hardwoods, gleaming brass and polished copper, sparkling glass and intricate wrought iron. The ship is beautifully illuminated throughout – including the exterior and imaginatively furnished with harmonious colour schemes, all designed to create the serene atmosphere reflective of the golden age of cruising which time after time you tell us you adore.
Cabins
A gleaming wood door opens revealing your exceptionally appointed suite. At 17 square metres (183 square feet), its generous dimensions are amongst the largest you will find on a cruiser gracing any European river. Imaginatively designed and appointed to the highest specification, with all the luxury you would expect to find in a smart ‘boutique style’ hotel, your comfort definitely won’t be compromised on any level!
The sparkling marble bathroom features a powerful fully glazed shower with a large ‘rainshower’ head, superbly refreshing after a hard day’s sightseeing. Clever design allows for ample space, and contemporary lighting, complimentary quality cosmetics and fluffy towels, makes preparing for the day ahead an absolute pleasure.
The chic styling of a talented designer’s eye extends to the entire suite with generous use of hand-crafted tropical hardwoods blended with premium fittings, discreet thoughtful lighting and a colour scheme of calming neutral tones, creating an ambience to put you in the most relaxed frame of mind from the very first minute! A full size bed assures a good night’s rest in crisp cotton linen of the finest quality - a turndown service each evening adds the finishing touch. Please note all suites have two twin beds with individual bedding which can be moved together or separated accordingly.
You will enjoy a particularly generous seating area with two chairs and a table, enabling you to unwind in comfort in the privacy of your own suite whilst a bow camera conveys live images of the ship’s progress to your flat screen TV, ensuring you won’t miss a thing. Careful consideration has been given to the tiniest details with individually controlled air-conditioning so you set the temperature that you desire, a hairdryer, safe, mini fridge, telephone and the convenience of tea (our meticulous planning even extends to familiar teabags!) and coffee making facilities ensure a home from home experience.
Suites on the Diamond and Ruby Decks have ‘French Balconies’ – panoramic floor to ceiling sliding glass doors bringing riverside life just that little closer!Â
View a 360 tour of the MS Oscar Wilde
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