AmaWaterways Postpones Launch of Magdalena River

Despite an overwhelming response to the booking launch of its Magdalena River product in Colombia, AmaWaterways has been forced to postpone operations on the river until early next year.

“As the first major river cruise line to explore this fascinating river and the destinations beyond its banks, it is of the utmost importance that we deliver the best possible experience for our guests, not only on board our newly designed river cruise ships, but on shore as well,” a spokesperson for the company told TMR.

“With this in mind, we have made the difficult decision to postpone the launch of our Colombia itineraries, which will give us the additional time we need to ensure our Magdalena River cruise and land journeys meet the high standards of quality our guests have come to expect.”

AmaWaterways is set to become the first river cruise company to offer sailings on the river, with two ships sailing seven-night itineraries.

The first of the two ships, AmaMagdalena was originally slated to begin sailing in March 2024, but was pushed back to November of this year. Its first sailing will now occur in Jan. 2025. Sister ship AmaMelodia will not begin sailing until June 2025.

Both ships will offer a river cruise experience similar to what the cruise line offers on the Mekong and Zambezi Rivers. The one-week sailings will travel between Cartagena and Barranquilla, and vice versa.

According to AmaWaterways, all guests affected by the delay (or their travel advisors) have been contacted with alternative travel options. Guests can either move their current reservation to another available river cruise through Europe, Asia, or Africa during the same season, or onboard AmaMagdalena or AmaMelodia in 2025.

Alternatively, they may request a full refund in the form of payment used for their current AmaWaterways reservation.