5 Ways VIVA Cruises Differs from River Cruising as You Know It

Travel Market Report recently returned from a week onboard VIVA Cruises’ brand-new vessel VIVA Two, sailing on the Danube River. Joining us onboard were the company’s COO Andrea Kruse and vice president of sales and marketing for North America, John Dennis.

If you haven’t heard of VIVA Cruises, it’s because the German-based cruise line launched in 2018 but due to the pandemic, the introduction to the North American market was delayed until now. 

Headquartered in Dusseldorf, Germany, VIVA has a fleet of eight ships: VIVA Moments, VIVA Tiara, VIVA Voyage, VIVA Gloria, Swiss Diamond, Swiss Ruby, VIVA One, and VIVA Two. A new vessel (which will be identical to VIVA Two) will launch in 2024. Its parent company is Scylla AG, a builder of luxury river vessels.

Undeterred by the number of river cruise lines already in the market, VIVA Cruises’ executives told TMR its mission is to deliver a distinctive cruise experience coupled with outstanding value.

Here are five ways VIVA Cruises differs from the competition. 

1. VIVA Cruises offers an International Cruise Experience
Although based in Germany, VIVA markets itself as an international brand. Roughly 50% of its guests are from German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, and Luxembourg), and the rest are primarily from the Scandinavian countries, Israel, and a smattering of others. At this point, the line has only had a smattering of North American cruisers, but Kruse and Dennis told us the line aims to grow its North American customer base to 10%.

Guests are mainly couples, age 60+, and retired.

German and English are the official languages spoken onboard. Announcements, lectures, and printed materials are in both languages. Guests are congenial and social, and we observed many European guests speaking English as well as their mother tongue, with German being most prominent. 

With a large European clientele, your clients might wonder about the smoking situation onboard VIVA Cruises. Smoking is only permitted in designated outdoor areas. On VIVA Two, these were located at the bow and stern of the ship. All interiors (including staterooms) and all other outdoor areas including the top viewing deck are smoke-free.

So, who are the perfect clients for VIVA Cruises?

We’d recommend advisors target clients who are well-traveled, open to meeting travelers from other parts of the world, and are comfortable cruising with people who speak different languages. VIVA Cruises is not for clients who prefer to be around others just like them.

2. VIVA Cruises Sails Year-Round
VIVA Cruises is the only cruise line that operates year-round in Europe. All others generally shut down between January and March. As such, VIVA offers its guests a chance to see the rivers and cities from a different perspective – away from the busy season, large crowds, and heat.

Clients also benefit from lower pricing during the winter months.

3. VIVA Cruises Offers Unique Itineraries
VIVA’s Winter program offers four-night wellness cruises on the Rhine that include a massage treatment, and wholesome menus featuring low-carb meals, healthy bowls, freshly-squeezed juices, detox waters, and organic teas. Other winter cruises include four-night “City Trips” that sail through Belgium or The Netherlands.

VIVA is currently working on cruise-tour packages that combine short sailings with city stays in places such as Munich, Passau, and Dusseldorf.

In the spring, summer, and fall, VIVA sails on the Rhine, the Rhône, the Main, the Moselle, the Seine, and the Danube. Its itineraries range from three- and four-night “highlight” sailings, as well as standard week-long cruises to longer Danube sailings of up to 15 nights.

VIVA also operates unique seven- and nine-night sailings along Germany’s Baltic Coast, which is a rare offer. Sailing roundtrip from Stralsund in north-eastern Germany, the cruise visits quaint coastal villages and into Poland via the Szczecin Lagoon. It’s a great option for clients with German and Polish heritage or those who have done a lot of European river cruising and want to try a different destination.

4. VIVA Cruises Offers Outstanding Value
For the North American market, VIVA Cruises operates on an all-inclusive basis. VIVA’s fares include all meals, all-day beverages (including a stocked mini-bar), Wi-Fi, crew gratuities, and one excursion at every port. 

Breakfasts and lunches are served buffet-style, accompanied by cooked-to-order eggs at breakfast and a selection of hot entrees at lunch. Dinner is table service. Restaurants operate open-seating style, meaning guests can dine any time during the posted hours and sit wherever they like.

A secondary restaurant – VIVA’s Bistro – specializes in seafood and offers table-service lunch and dinner.

Debuting on VIVA Two is the Moments restaurant, which is open for breakfast and lunch, and serves a special five-course wine-pairing dinner. Other than reservations being required for dinner at VIVA’s Bistro and Moments, there is no extra charge to dine in either restaurant. VIVA’s menus feature local specialties as well as international cuisine, and every meal we sampled was beautifully prepared and delicious.

The beverage menu is quite extensive, but there is one difference wine-loving clients will want to know about. Local wines are only featured on occasion or by request. The house wine on our sailing was from South Africa, but if you wanted something different, the staff was happy to fetch it.

Standard in river cruising, the excursion included at every port is a port-highlight walking tour. Special interest excursions are available for purchase. All excursions operate in English and German, with separate buses and guides for each language.

5. VIVA Cruises is Green
VIVA Two has received the gold certificate from the Green Award Foundation, given only to vessels with the highest environmental standards. Sustainable practices onboard VIVA’s fleet include using virtually sulfur-free fuel that reduces emissions, and using shore power where available. Guests receive reusable water bottles, which can be filled with sparking or still mineral water at centrally-located dispensers. There are also 76 solar panels built into the top deck on VIVA Two to help offset some of the ship’s energy usage.  

How to Present VIVA Cruises to your clients
With the plethora of river cruise lines in the market, it is important to differentiate between the brands and present the right one to your clients. Here are VIVA Cruises’ top-selling features: 

• VIVA’s all-inclusive pricing offers one of the best values in the marketplace. The lead-in rate for a seven-day sailing is just under $2,000. Other than VIVA, all-inclusive river cruises are only offered onboard luxury brands, and those are at a much higher price.

• Short river cruise sailings are uncommon, so VIVA’s three- to five-night voyages make great add-ons to a land-based vacation or as sampler cruises for those wanting to try river cruising for the first time.

• VIVA’s variety of embarkation/debarkation ports – such as Passau, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, and Strasbourg – gives clients lots of options of where to begin and end their cruise, and are great for pre- or post-cruise stays. (Other river lines typically start and end their sailings in Amsterdam, Budapest, and Basel.)

• While VIVA’s international guest mix is an excellent way to meet people from all over the world and engage in cultures different from our own, not all clients are comfortable with the concept. It’s important to qualify properly and to ensure they are open to sailing onboard a line with an international clientele and atmosphere.

Selling VIVA Cruises
With a goal of expanding its North American clientele to 10% of its total, VIVA Cruises’ Kruse and Dennis told TMR they are eager to help travel advisors with product and sales training. Advisors can email sales@us.viva-cruises.com to register themselves to earn commission and receive notices on upcoming training opportunities such as webinars and FAM trips. Once registered, advisors can make bookings online. VIVA offers 15% commission with no NCFs. The VIVA Cruises North American office is located in Ft Lauderdale, and its U.S. website has company and ship information, itineraries, and pricing. VIVA’s call center can be reached at 1-833-YES-VIVA (9am to 9pm ET) or by email at info@us.viva-cruises.com.