Arthur's Blog: A Look Inside the Fast Growing World of European River Cruising

River cruising, especially in Europe, has become one of the major sectors of travel. New river cruise companies are rapidly being added to the list of participants or becoming known in the United States (where Tauck River Cruises and Scenic Tours are the latest to gain attention), while the number of rivers on which they sail is continuing to grow. What used to be limited to the Rhine, the Rhone, the Seine, and the Danube is now a touristic network of at least a dozen famous or not-so-famous rivers in France, Germany, eastern Europe, and Russia.

The picture is not always a happy one. Because of apparent climate change, river levels rise and fall dramatically. When they fall because of drought conditions, river ships sometimes get mired in the mud and are unable to proceed. When they rise because of heavy rainfall, river ships are sometimes unable to pass below low bridges, and passengers must transfer to motor coaches for a part of their cruise itinerary. A substantial number of river cruises, especially in spring, have encountered those problems and passengers have been inconvenienced.

Because there's so much interest in a vacation activity that hasn't yet been comprehensively described in guidebooks and articles, my daughter and I decided to invite a river cruise expert, Carolyn Spencer Brown (editor-in-chief of Cruise Critic), onto our Sunday radio program this past weekend. She proved an engaging and totally honest commentator, who candidly described some of the river level problems that river cruises have recently encountered.

She also proceeded to describe the "personalities" of different river cruise companies -- the features that make some of them distinctive.

The fast-expanding and upscale Viking River Cruises (tel. 800/304-9616; www.vikingrivers.com) is one such river enterprise that's come in for a great deal of attention. Its newly-built "longboats" -- larger than the usual river ship, and with balconies attached to oversized, suite-like cabins -- have been almost universally praised, but because they differ in quality so greatly from some of the line's older ships, some passengers assigned to the older ones have complained. It's important to inquire when you book a Viking cruise, Ms Brown advises, whether you're scheduled for one of the older or newer ships.

Tauck River Cruises (tel. 800/788-7885; www.tauck.com), one of the newer entries in the industry, are expensive, upscale vessels that would compare with a Ritz Carlton in the hotel industry (they're heavily decorated with crystal and other such designer touches). They are booked most heavily by Americans (sophisticated ones), and are less likely to be used by the Australian, New Zealand, and British passengers found so often on other lines, according to Brown. And as compared with the Eastern Europeans who staff most service positions on some of the other lines, Tauck more often employs crew from the Philippines and Indonesia, well-known for their service and meticulous attention to passenger comfort.

AMA River Cruises (tel. 800/510-4002; www.amarivercruises.com) has recently scored a coup by equipping its river ships with a great many bicycles used by passengers for shore excursions. The river banks of Europe and the villages alongside are excellent locations for bicycling, and cyclists are much appreciated by the local populations. AMA's own, sponsored ship excursions or onboard classes have also been made heavily "experiential," according to Brown, and have recently featured hands-on European cooking classes much appreciated by passengers. Recently, she related that the relatively-new river cruise company called Scenic Tours (tel. 866/689-8611; us.scenictours.com) has stolen a march on AMA by equipping its boats with electric bicycles capable of easing one's journeys uphill. Passengers, apparently, are wildly enthusiastic about those electric bikes.

As for Avalon River Cruises, (tel. 877/797-8791; www.avalonwaterways.com) those are well known for their capable program directors, who keep the atmosphere on board lively and productive of new learning. Danish modern furnishings are the interior style; the setting and atmosphere are never fancy or fussy, but rather like a good, standard, Hilton hotel. And finally, the upscale Uniworld River Cruises (tel. 800/555-8333; www.uniworld.com)have recently installed an indoor swimming pool on their newest ship, a first for the industry, and their ships are otherwise decorated like an elegant country home. Uniworld also claims to offer electric bicycles to their passengers.

For the full flavor of Brown's assessment of the major river cruise companies, go to WOR710.com, scroll to the bottom of the page, click on The Travel Show, and then click on the 2d hour of the program for October 21; her interview starts that second hour.