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European River Cruise Assurance

Hungarian Parliament Building in Budapest at sunset

European River Cruise Assurance

Our River Cruise Assurance explains what we do to keep your holiday going and the compensation we pay if we are unable to do so when river conditions, industrial actions, mechanical faults, or other factors impact your cruise.

Cruising along the major rivers of Europe is one of life’s great pleasures. It is a great way to see the world and a wonderful way to travel. These magnificent waterways have been carrying people for centuries, and the majority of trips pass without incident. However, on occasion, river conditions, industrial actions, mechanical faults, or other factors may impact your cruise.

Our River Cruise Assurance explains what we do in such circumstances to keep your holiday going and the compensation we pay if we are unable to do so. It’s all included in the price of your holiday, with nothing extra to pay, giving you another reason to book with Riviera Travel with confidence.

Please note this assurance applies to European river cruises. For cruises outside Europe and for our land-based tours please refer to our booking conditions.

Disruption – delays to your cruise

If progress along the river is disrupted, we will endeavour to keep your holiday going by doing one or more of the following:

Remaining moored another night, postponing departure to the next day;
Arranging excursions to the itinerary destinations or equivalent alternatives by coach, with no more than 2 hours journey each way;
Swapping ships – transferring you past the affected part of the river to join another ship. The maximum length of coach journey we will undertake to do this is 4 hours.

If we are unable to do the above, or despite doing them your holiday itinerary is delayed or significantly disrupted, we will automatically compensate you for every complete 24 hours affected.

Cabin grade	Maximum compensation per complete 24 hours per person
Lower deck	£80
Middle deck	£100
Upper deck	£120
Superior and Deluxe Suites	£140

Please note we will not pay compensation if the delay is due to civil or military hostilities, or for any other losses incurred beyond the cost of your holiday.

Curtailment – having to come home early

If the disruption is such that we are unable to continue your holiday, we may decide to terminate the cruise.

In this instance we will, at our cost, transport you back to the UK if you originally travelled with us. If you made your own way to the ship embarkation point we will return you at our cost to the original disembarkation point, or the nearest major European city if you prefer. Please note if you join our outbound UK flight, or make your own way to the ship embarkation point, having first flown in from another country, we strongly advise that you take out travel insurance to cover your originating flight into the UK or Europe.

If your holiday is cut short, we will also automatically refund you on a pro rata basis for each full 24-hour period of your holiday that has been lost. For example, if you have lost 3 complete days on an 8-day holiday, we will refund you 3/8ths of your original purchase price.

Cancellation prior to departure

Our shipping company partners constantly monitor river conditions. Whilst we will try to give as much notice as possible, please note that forecasts tend to be short, as river conditions can improve quickly, and hence the shipping company may make a final decision close to departure. If it is looking likely that your cruise would be significantly disrupted across multiple days, we will attempt to provide an amended or alternative cruise of equivalent quality. If we are able to do so we will endeavour to contact you at least 48 hours before departure to ask if you want to go on the alternative.

If no alternative cruise of equivalent quality is available, your holiday will be cancelled. In this instance, you will be refunded the full cost of your holiday.