Why you should escape on a solo cruise this Christmas

Ever wondered what it might be like to escape family dramas and experience Christmas as a solo traveller in Europe?

If so, a festive river cruise could be the perfect option for you.

DELIGHTFUL DANUBE

Stimulate your senses with the scent of freshly baked cookies and the soothing sounds of an alto choir during a six-day sailing with Riviera Travel along the River Danube.

Departing from Budapest in Hungary, you’ll call at the great cities of Vienna and Bratislava.

In the Austrian capital you’ll get to explore traditional Christmas market stalls to the charming sound of chimes from the 13 bells atop St Stephen’s Cathedral.

On a guided tour of Bratislava you’ll take in the bright lights and markets of Slovakia’s fast emerging capital before wandering around its cobbled old town, which has a backdrop of Baroque architecture such as Grassalkovich Palace and Trinity Church, recently restored to its former glory.

Between stops you can admire the beautiful banks of the Danube, where the landscapes are scattered with stark alder and black poplar trees, while enjoying a complimentary superior drinks package, which is available on all Riviera Travel’s European river cruises.

ROMANCE OF THE RHINE

Alternatively, a little nearer home you can discover the magical ambience of Germany’s Christmas markets on the Enchanting Rhine and Yuletide Markets River Cruise.

Experience Rudesheim, a quintessential riverside town with crooked houses, then sip a zesty glass of gluhwein as you peruse 160 festive stalls beneath fairylights outside Cologne Cathedral.

Riviera Travel will offer 37 festive departures in 2025, across six itineraries on the Rhine and the Danube. Six cruises will include optional extended stays on land – so you can avoid disputes about the TV remote for a few more days.

Get onboard

Riviera Travel’s six-day 'The Danube’s Imperial Cities and Yuletide Markets River Cruise for Solo Travellers' aboard MS Emily Brontë, return from Budapest via Bratislava and Vienna, departs on 18 December 2024.

Riviera Travel’s five-day 'Enchanting Rhine and Yuletide Markets River Cruise for Solo Travellers' aboard MS Geoffrey Chaucer, return from Cologne via the Rhine Gorge, Rudesheim, Koblenz and Bonn, departs on 18 December 2025.