Age of River Cruisers

[Kansas Gal]

What would you say is the average age of river cruisers?  Does it vary somewhat by which company you use?(we're early 70's, but 30 year old son is interested in coming along.  I'm afraid he will be bored from looking at the brochures).

[notamermaid]

You are closer to the average than your son, no surprise there. I have heard mentioned 60 to 65, with perhaps a higher average on some lines. A-ROSA in Germany has a lower average, I am sure others can give some more details on North-American lines.

 

You could look for a more active cruise like AvalonWaterways has, with bicycle rides and the like. That way you can do the usual while he goes off on a tour. The only thing he cannot have is evening entertainment into the night, unless the ship stays in a port overnight.

 

Look carefully at the excursions together with him and see what fits you all best.

 

notamermaid

 

Edited June 7, 2019 by notamermaid
Missing word

[Roz]

Maybe take a look at U by Uniworld?

 

Roz

[Coral]

15 minutes ago, Roz said:

Maybe take a look at U by Uniworld?

 

Roz

I hate to say this but this looks like a project that went badly. I am curious if they will even be in business in a year or two. It is unclear if the 2nd ship will return. I doubt the 70 year old parents would feel comfortable on U.

[Sturmin]

15 hours ago, Kansas Gal said:

What would you say is the average age of river cruisers?  Does it vary somewhat by which company you use?(we're early 70's, but 30 year old son is interested in coming along.  I'm afraid he will be bored from looking at the brochures).

I apologize if I sound rude, but I mean this as constructive if blunt info. 

You're son is 30, if he hasn't learned to entertain himself by now, leave him.  If he is mature enough to enjoy some different culture,  history and great company on the river cruise, then encourage him to come.  The cruise itself plus being pampered is a great stress reliever,  but listening,  visiting and getting to know other cruisers is the other half of an enjoyable river cruise.  

This is your vacation in your twilight years.  If you're just going to worry about his happiness,  again, leave him.  If he wants to come with to spend time with you and enjoy your company encourage him to come along🙂.

[Coral]

1 hour ago, Sturmin said:

I apologize if I sound rude, but I mean this as constructive if blunt info. 

You're son is 30, if he hasn't learned to entertain himself by now, leave him.  If he is mature enough to enjoy some different culture,  history and great company on the river cruise, then encourage him to come.  The cruise itself plus being pampered is a great stress reliever,  but listening,  visiting and getting to know other cruisers is the other half of an enjoyable river cruise.  

This is your vacation in your twilight years.  If you're just going to worry about his happiness,  again, leave him.  If he wants to come with to spend time with you and enjoy your company encourage him to come along🙂.

I am going to add to this. When I was 30 - I loved trips to Europe, history, culture, etc... I would have loved a river cruise even if others were older. I am still on the young end of river cruising - I did one in my 30's and another at 48. I am fascinated by other passengers and the adventures they have gone on. You don't have to stay with the group tours - you can go off on your own. There are several German towns I can think a 30 year old man would definitely enjoy the breweries in. There are often brewery tours on some lines. Just the chance to see parts of Europe has fascinated me since I was a teenager. My Mom grew up in Germany so I was always envious of her. My most favorite trip so far was a 6 week European trip when I was 18. Thinking back - we didn't do anything different than a group of 30 year olds or 50 year olds would have done on that trip. We would have seen the same sites, etc...

[Kansas Gal]

1 hour ago, Sturmin said:

I apologize if I sound rude, but I mean this as constructive if blunt info. 

You're son is 30, if he hasn't learned to entertain himself by now, leave him.  If he is mature enough to enjoy some different culture,  history and great company on the river cruise, then encourage him to come.  The cruise itself plus being pampered is a great stress reliever,  but listening,  visiting and getting to know other cruisers is the other half of an enjoyable river cruise.  

This is your vacation in your twilight years.  If you're just going to worry about his happiness,  again, leave him.  If he wants to come with to spend time with you and enjoy your company encourage him to come along🙂.

Thank you, but as usual when one doesn't know all the facts, you are way off base.  Son lives halfway across the country (New York) and certainly knows how to entertain himself.  He has been to Europe half dozen or so times, and in fact is going to Denmark later this month to perform Hamlet with the Oxford Shakespeare Company.  He has been on ocean cruises and does enjoy the "nightlife" there which is why I questioned if he would be bored.  We travel a lot (we are not that far in our "twilight years") and he occasionally goes with us so we can spend some time together.

 

Thanks to those answering my question about the ages on board.  I'll let him know, if he doesn't decide to go, we will be making other trips he may decide to accompany us on.

[Coral]

34 minutes ago, Kansas Gal said:

Thank you, but as usual when one doesn't know all the facts, you are way off base.  Son lives halfway across the country (New York) and certainly knows how to entertain himself.  He has been to Europe half dozen or so times, and in fact is going to Denmark later this month to perform Hamlet with the Oxford Shakespeare Company.  He has been on ocean cruises and does enjoy the "nightlife" there which is why I questioned if he would be bored.  We travel a lot (we are not that far in our "twilight years") and he occasionally goes with us so we can spend some time together.

 

Thanks to those answering my question about the ages on board.  I'll let him know, if he doesn't decide to go, we will be making other trips he may decide to accompany us on.

The nightlife really is lacking on river cruises. You may have a local musician or on my last trip Sound of Music trivia and singalong. Maybe a piano player playing. Thankfully, on my last trip, we had 4 overnights which allowed people to go into town. Only 2 were planned and this was due to low river levels. If he does go, I would definitely prepare him for not having "nightlife". On the flip side, our itinerary was very busy (all day tours most days) and after dinner (9:30ish), I was ok going back to my room as breakfast was at 7 (tour at 😎 and I had to answer emails from back home.

[need2travel1]

Just wanted to see if I can help answer your question about ages of river cruisers.  Hub & I did our 1st river cruise in our mid 40's & loved it.  We were among the youngest on the ship but we didn't care-we were seeing sites we wanted to see with a group of people who were interested in the same things.  We've now done 3 & are booked on our 4th river cruise & are in our late 40's/very early 50's.  

 

Look into Uniworld River Cruises-they have bikes you can take out & even some biking/hiking excursions on their trips.  

 

And remember-age is only a number, people of any age can enjoy spending time with other people of any age!  I know we certainly do.  Good luck with your planning!

 

[acwmom]

Is there big ship entertainment? No. Does a river cruise need it? No. A river cruise is all about the ports. I did my first river cruise in my 40's, and have been close to the youngest on 4/5 (I'm not counting the aberrant elementary aged two on our Paris cruise last year) On our Rhine cruise, we had a couple of families traveling. One had sons ranging from 29-16. They had a great time. 

 

My husband and I tend to be amongst the last to retire in the evenings (usually between 11 and 12). We always enjoy talking to others on our cruise, sharing stories about the day, about where we're from, what we do, etc. We've never encountered the "roll call" type on any of our cruises. There's no "diamond, elite" etc.....Your son shouldn't have any issues if he enjoys the art of conversation.

 

Uniworld has bikes, but so does Ama. I can't recall if Avalon did, or not. 

 

Robin

[acwmom]

2 hours ago, Coral said:

There are several German towns I can think a 30 year old man would definitely enjoy the breweries in. There are often brewery tours on some lines.

 

Could you list those? This early 50's lady would like to visit them😁

 

Robin

[Daisi]

Our Avalon cruise was mostly older couples, however we did have one family (parents in mid 40's, two teen girls about 18 - 20) who fit in perfectly.  I think the girls had more fun going around and hearing the history and tours more than a lot of the older people we saw.  I think the main thing is how a younger person is with older people....if they are comfortable with people who are 20+ years older for a week or so, they will have no problems.  If they "need" fancy entertainment at night, night clubs etc, river cruising just isn't for them.  We were actually on the younger side to most of our cruisers, however we had no problems fitting in.

 

Robin, Avalon has a couple of cruises set up for beer lovers,  not sure about the others.  We had been thinking of doing one, but decided history was more in line, and we could sample the beer while touring.  They also have bikes on board, the family on our cruise used them a lot.  There were 3 alternate bike tours you could take where they brought in bikes for the tour as well.

 

 

[dogs4fun]

I have found the average age to be roughly in the range of 63 - 68.

[CutieKakes]

I definitely think a 30 year person could enjoy a River Cruise!  River Cruises don't have as many options at night as a bigger ship - this is a plus for us personally, but not for everyone obviously.  

 

Like someone else mentioned above - he can choose to do his own thing during the day if the organized tour is not to his liking.

 

He can catch up on his reading at night!  We've been on 2 cruises (1 River & 1 Big Ship) and on both, I read so much!  It was such a treat for me...it's just not something I get to do as often as I want at home.  Nighttime entertainment is not something that I am personally interested in...but that's just me.

Edited June 8, 2019 by CutieKakes

[yoshi]

We all enjoyed our AMA Rhine River cruise during Christmas market season. My 20 year old sons did the biking & hiking tours while we did the walking tours. As was said above, many of the young people actually enjoy tours of historical/art/cultural venues. Sometimes there are also other groups that have events in the evening that us older folks don't go to. Take him along and have an awesome trip!

[Marjan1]

Unless your son is accompanied by a friend, he is likely to be the only one on board under 50+.  And most of the travellers will be in couples or groups.  The chances of finding other younger people are remote to none. 

There is very little entertainment after dinner, mostly a singer and music aimed at the 60+ demographic.  Certainly nothing like what is available on ocean cruising. 

Many cruises leave port around dinner time to be at the next port in the morning. 

So unless your son is a bit of a loner and happy with his own company, I would advise him to rethink this choice, or persuade a friend to come along.    

 

Edited June 8, 2019 by Marjan1

[josumello]

13 minutes ago, Marjan1 said:

Unless your son is accompanied by a friend, he is likely to be the only one on board under 50+.  And most of the travellers will be in couples or groups.  The chances of finding other younger people are remote to none. 

There is very little entertainment after dinner, mostly a singer and music aimed at the 60+ demographic.  Certainly nothing like what is available on ocean cruising. 

Many cruises leave port around dinner time to be at the next port in the morning. 

So unless your son is a bit of a loner and happy with his own company, I would advise him to rethink this choice, or persuade a friend to come along.    

 

 

Spot on. 

We did one river cruise and decided it wasn’t for us. Nice people but I really think it would be a stretch for a 30 year old to honestly enjoy the fellow passengers for a week. 

Frankly the “entertainment “ in the evening was yawn inspiring. However the 90 year old couples were happy with it. BTW we were in our late 60’s. 

Also touring with people who sign up for walking tours but can’t keep up also put a damper on things. We ended up on occasion splitting from the group and did our own thing. 

Your son sounds like a very interesting young man. I am sure whatever you decide will work out just fine. 

[dogs4fun]

On 6/6/2019 at 7:11 PM, Kansas Gal said:

What would you say is the average age of river cruisers?  Does it vary somewhat by which company you use?(we're early 70's, but 30 year old son is interested in coming along.  I'm afraid he will be bored from looking at the brochures).

IMHO, whether or not your son would enjoy himself is dependent on your son's level of cultural & historical interest. Is he more interested in mingling with people his own age and/or more interested in onboard activities geared toward a younger group? Or is he more interested in seeing the historical sites in the ports of call?

We have traveled with our nieces and nephews on both river and ocean cruises - they are all in their 30's. Two of these were river cruises (China & Danube). They enjoyed themselves immensely on both river cruises. Our days were filled - we often ditched the included tours on our Danube cruise and elected to DIY. Usually, by the end of the day and after dinner, everyone (including the 30 somethings) were exhausted from the day's outings and simply fell into bed rather early in anticipation of getting an early start the next morning. We even elected to DIY in some ports on our China cruise (although we also availed ourselves of the included tours).

[Lois R]

17 hours ago, Kansas Gal said:

Thank you, but as usual when one doesn't know all the facts, you are way off base.  Son lives halfway across the country (New York) and certainly knows how to entertain himself.  He has been to Europe half dozen or so times, and in fact is going to Denmark later this month to perform Hamlet with the Oxford Shakespeare Company.  He has been on ocean cruises and does enjoy the "nightlife" there which is why I questioned if he would be bored.  We travel a lot (we are not that far in our "twilight years") and he occasionally goes with us so we can spend some time together.

 

Thanks to those answering my question about the ages on board.  I'll let him know, if he doesn't decide to go, we will be making other trips he may decide to accompany us on.

Sounds like he is quite well traveled and although 30, he may really enjoy a river cruise, although the night life is quiet. If that is very important to him, he may give it more thought.   After being off the boat all day seeing the sights, I was happy to just relax in the evenings but I am quite a bit older than your son.   I do love a river cruise though!  And I would have loved it 30 years ago as well.  So it really does depend on the person.

 

[Got2Cruise]

On 6/6/2019 at 9:11 PM, Kansas Gal said:

What would you say is the average age of river cruisers?  Does it vary somewhat by which company you use?(we're early 70's, but 30 year old son is interested in coming along.  I'm afraid he will be bored from looking at the brochures).

I’m a teacher so I always travel in July. There are always young people traveling with their families during July. Not many but a handful on each sailing. They were all there for family time. If your son is ok spending quality time with the folks he’ll enjoy it. 

Amawaterways has an active excursion in every port bikes and hikes. He can do these. The Danube is great for the hiking/biking plus. 

[Got2Cruise]

16 hours ago, acwmom said:

 

Could you list those? This early 50's lady would like to visit them😁

 

Robin

Have you done the Danube with extension to Munich? Munich is beer lovers paradise. lol. I usually don’t drink beer but in Munich I had to. Lol. 

 

On the Rhine both Cologne and Amsterdam I know for sure breweries. 

Edited June 8, 2019 by Got2Cruise

[philw1776]

The problem with being 30 is that there likely will be no peers aboard.  Sure I've been on a couple Viking (tends to be very old) river cruises with a 20 something couple aboard but he'd be a 3rd wheel.  BTW the 20 aged folks had a great time.
Since he's Euro traveled, he'll enjoy the day tours and time with parents.  Easy to head off on your own after notifying the tour guide and do your own thing.  
The problem will be after dinner.  The good news is that most dock sites are right in town or a short cab ride away at worst.  Were I a social 30 something, walking into town after dinner to local spots would be a fun experience.  Just avoid the onboard entertainment which is aimed at us geezers.

[acwmom]

30 minutes ago, Got2Cruise said:

Have you done the Danube with extension to Munich? Munich is beer lovers paradise. lol. I usually don’t drink beer but in Munich I had to. Lol. 

 

On the Rhine both Cologne and Amsterdam I know for sure breweries. 

I was mostly kidding, lol. We did the Danube on Avalon, and pre-cruise did Salzburg (Stiegl Brewery) and Munich post -cruise, yes, plenty of beer. We attempted to get our CD to arrange a trip to Engelhartszell to visit the trappist brewery there, but the best he could do was suggest a cab. The brewery in Cesky was closed for renovation.

 

I've looked at the one Daisi mentioned above, but it interferes with The Masters, so is a no. We could make a tulips cruise into a beer cruise on our own (I prefer Belgian beer to German beer) and do have that on our radar

[sbjornda]

On 6/7/2019 at 2:02 PM, acwmom said:

 

Could you list those? This early 50's lady would like to visit them😁

 

Robin

Bamberg! Rauchbier! Dozens of competing breweries! But the one thing in common: They all taste like beer plus bacon. Mmmmm. 

OK, it`s a bit of an acquired taste. 🙂

[Hoyaheel]

My husband (and FIL) adore the rauchbier. So many people on our cruise were giving him their bottles (we each got a free token for a bottle and a tote, if I recall correctly). I do NOT like the smoked beer, gave him mine as well. We carried quite the load back to the ship ;-) And he's brewed a couple at home as well - I guess they came out good. True to the style,  for sure ;-)

 

[I studied in Belgium when I was in college and my husband is an avid homebrewer - sadly, we do not overlap much on beer flavor preferences. But malty belgians are where we can meet - a Belgium beer tour is definitely in my future travels list - but will do a land/train trip for that]

 

As for ages and back on topic...We have done one river cruise (Avalon christmas markets, 9 days NUE-BSL) at age 41 & 46. We were definitely among the youngest but there were a few intergenerational families on board and some younger couples as well. My husband and I did our first cruise together on HAL, in our late 20s. Age does not ever bother us ;-) I do not like the nightlife, a river cruise is about the ports (and for me, the Markets!) and I am fine with "early to bed, early to rise". I have never, in any ocean cruise I've been on, been to an evening theater show. So from my perspective, not a problem. However, if your son wants to stay up late(ish) and dance or listen to music with a group of others, a European river cruise is unlikely to provide that experience.

 

We're getting ready to do a river cruise along the Mekong river and I do not anticipate we will be in the average age range ;-)

 

I would definitely make decisions based on what you want to do, and not how old people are. 

Edited June 8, 2019 by Hoyaheel