Interested in a first time river cruise.

[Yaya999]

Considering a river cruise for group of friends in 50’s and 60’s. Heard no nightlife on board, but will it be exciting enough for us? Interested in all recommendations including do’s and dont’s as well as best destinations. 

[capriccio]

I suggest you start your research with all the stickies at the top of this forum's home page (https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/115-river-cruising/) and then ask more specific questions.

[robertmartha]

Yaya999

 

Definitely agree with capriccio on their suggestion about reading the stickies as a start.

Being in your age range 😉 and having sailed one sailing to date on AMA - it really depends on what type of nightlife your group likes - esp if you have sailed on ocean sailings and are using that as a comparison. 

 

If you read other posts and reviews you will get a really good sense of "evening" entertainment and what is offered.

We have sailed on ocean sailings with groups of friends and on our river sailing and afterwards we talked about which friends would enjoy a river cruise and which ones would be ready to jump ship (those who love the casino followed by big production show and then dancing the night away till the early hours!). River cruising is all about the ports - we view the ship as a floating hotel getting one from point A to point B in comfort.

 

BTW - love Boston - our youngest did her undergrad and is entering her grad program in the fall in Boston. Such a great city - hope she comes back to the NY area after graduation!

 

 

[doverboy]

Sailed the Danube as our first river cruise with another couple. Evenings consisted of comparing notes about what we had seen and done on an excursion, making friends with people from many different countries, singing to the piano player. Can't think of many evenings where we felt the need to close the bar because the days are filled with the exercise of moving about a new city. Ocean cruises are a different animal all together

[sharkster77]

Days are so active, that by evening, many river cruisers are tired and ready for sleep.  Morning excursions leave around 8:30-ish, so it's early-to-rise.

[dogs4fun]

14 hours ago, Yaya999 said:

Considering a river cruise for group of friends in 50’s and 60’s. Heard no nightlife on board, but will it be exciting enough for us? Interested in all recommendations including do’s and dont’s as well as best destinations. 

River cruises are wonderful but lack the onboard activities offered on the large ocean ships. We love river cruising for the ports visited and onboard activities are of little interest to us. We often get off the ship in the evenings and experience the local activities in the city (opera, concert, dining, pubs, etc.) - much more interesting than anything offered onboard. I think you would find a river cruise quite an exciting experience if, like us,  you are willing to venture off on your own. The Danube or Rhine might be a very nice option for your first river cruise.

[Coral]

Hopefully you and your friends can keep yourself entertained at night. Don't expect much in evening entertainment and that is fine with me.

[Floridiana]

If you and your friends are not into sightseeing, a river cruise may not be for you. It's a bit like a very comfortable bus tour without unpacking. 

[Lois R]

Hi, I agree with the other folks, if "exciting nightlife" is what you are looking for, then a river cruise may not be your cup of tea.

River cruising is very relaxing in the evenings. There might be some local entertainment brought on board (singers, for example) but overall, a river cruise is all about touring during the day and most times, after dinner and a drink or 2 I was ready for bed.

It is very opposite of what ocean cruises have for entertainment but then again they are totally opposite cruising experiences.

River cruises, again, are all about seeing the places you are sailing to...….Getting ready to take my 2nd river cruise in October and I can't wait

[Roz]

I find river cruising to be interesting and enriching, but I wouldn't describe it as exciting.  What exactly are you hoping to get out of the experience?

 

Roz

[Marjan1]

 

As said, river cruising us about the towns you visit just about every day.  

 

You will be off the ship for at least 4-5 hours each day, most of that time spent walking and sightseeing.  I was quite surprised how active the days were.  

 

Evenings are a talk about the visit the next day and any tours, then dinner from 7pm until around 9pm, followed by a singer or music in the lounge.  Most evenings we set sail for the next destination once everyone was aboard, usually during dinner, so options to “do your own thing” ashore in the evenings would have been just about zero. 

[Hoyaheel]

1 hour ago, Marjan1 said:

 Most evenings we set sail for the next destination once everyone was aboard, usually during dinner, so options to “do your own thing” ashore in the evenings would have been just about zero. 

 

This is definitely very itinerary specific. I've read reviews of river cruises where people were able to go ashore in the evenings quite often. We did a Christmas market itinerary (NUE-BSL) and were only in port late one evening - and alas, it was an industrial port so nothing to walk off and do for or after dinner. Was happy we did our own pre & post-cruise stuff or we wouldn't have been able to see any of the markets lit up for the evenings!

 

Actually, whether or not you can just "walk offi" into an interesting port without having to take transportation into town is also itinerary specific. We probably could for half or slightly fewer of our stops....