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Narrator
Welcome to the luxury travel podcast, where you will discover information on luxury travel right around the world. And hear amazing stories, tips and secrets from experts and luxury world travelers. Please fasten your seat belt low and tight and remain seated for the show. Now here’s your luxury travel Captain, Allen Suss.
Allen Suss
Welcome, everyone. This is Allen Suss from TravelManagers Australia, the river cruise expert, speaking today with Rachel Javier, Sales Manager for Victoria, Tasmania and the Northern Territory of Travel the World today we are going to be talking about Riviera Cruises. Hello, Rachel.
Rachel Javier
Hi, Allen. Great to be here.
Allen Suss
Nice to have you here.
Rachel Javier
Thank you.
Allen Suss
Let’s start off and just talk a little bit about, a very short synopsis of how you got into travel, and what you’re doing now.
Rachel Javier
Sure, after finishing Year 12 at school, I was over studying, I want to do the shortest course possible. And I really wanted to go into hotel management. But they didn’t let me because I hadn’t worked at McDonald’s. So they told me to go back to McDonald’s, work there for six months. And I can come back and do the hotel management course. So I thought, I am not going to do that. And they said well, I wanted to do the travel course. I did that. And hence that was the start of my travel journey. And I’ve been doing it now for 30 years and all different aspects basically with in wholesaling, started off as a junior in reservations and worked my way up to being state manager. And now with Travel the World for the last 10 years as a sales manager and loving all the products I represent.
Allen Suss
Just think, if you would have gone to McDonald’s, you could have traveled the world eating McDonald’s.
Rachel Javier
Absolutely.
Allen Suss
Today, we’ll be talking about Riviera cruises, river cruises. Why do you think Riviera Cruises are good for Australians? And why should Australians be thinking about traveling with Riviera cruises?
Rachel Javier
Well, a couple of things. So the full name is Riviera Travel River Cruises, and they’ve been around for 37 years. So they definitely know what they’re doing. And it’s a UK-based company. And because of Australia’s affiliation with the UK, I think it’s a great fit, and like onboard all English-speaking staff, as well, which is definitely a plus. And they’ve got something quite unique that I haven’t heard of before with any other company what they call a happiness guarantee. So This means by day two of your river cruise, if you’re not totally satisfied, you can leave the cruise, and they’ll actually give you a full refund. So how amazing is that?
Allen Suss
That’s pretty amazing. I would have liked to have given me by the end of the cruise rather, that, no, no, they won’t get away with that one will we?
Rachel Javier
Unfortunately, no, no, but as I said, they’ve been around for 37 years. A UK based company, and have been doing European river cruises that whole time.
Allen Suss
So just to make sure I’ve got this right. All the staff onboard the cruise ships themselves are English, they are English speaking or they are English.
Rachel Javier
English, English speaking. So they come from multicultural backgrounds, but a prerequisite in English speaking as probably 98% of our clientele on board, or that come on board are all English speaking.
Allen Suss
Now where do all the cruises, are they only in Europe, on the European rivers
Rachel Javier
At the moment? Yes. So everything from Amsterdam to Budapest to Cologne to Budapest right through the Black Sea cruises in Paris as well. And there’s ones that have just in Germany river cruises just in also in the Netherlands. And but what’s exciting is and the ones that I want to do next is the one in Portugal, along the Douro,
Allen Suss
Portugal has been very popular for Australians, from my own, and knowledge of these things. And I have been to Portugal and I can tell you, Portugal is very much different to most other European countries. Not only is language different, the food they eat is different as well, that it’s just has a different personality to the rest of Europe.
Rachel Javier
Definitely does.
Allen Suss
And both Lisbon and Porto, most interesting cities, very hilly.
Rachel Javier
Yeah.
Allen Suss
But most interesting cities. Okay, and why do you think Australians would enjoy going on a river cruise within Europe, and with Riviera Cruises in particular?
Rachel Javier
Well, again, one, because we’re a UK based company, two. because of that Holiday Happiness Guarantee that we do offer. And also we make you feel like a part of a family when you come on board. There’s no airs and graces, it’s quite casual, but it’s still luxury. So you’ve got the best of both worlds. So we really believe that luxury travel shouldn’t cost the earth, we really believe in quality and that’s what we provide at Riviera.
Allen Suss
Okay?
Rachel Javier
And it’s all about choices that you can make as well. So we do all the hard work, all you need to do is decide which cruise you want to go to, and leave the rest to us.
Allen Suss
Okay, can we talk a little bit about the cabins and perhaps also talk about the meals? Can we start with the cabins, accommodation onboard the cruise ship?
Rachel Javier
Okay. Yeah, we’ve got cabins as well as suites on across our fleet, our fleet is actually quite young, Our oldest ship at the moment is probably, came into commission about 2015. And the youngest one at the moment is about 2019 to 2020, sorry, 2019, 2020. So we’ve got a very young fleet, which is great. And you’ve got the choice of cabins, over three different decks. The ones on the lower deck, they’ve only just got a picture window, but 80% of our cabins on board, our suites that either have a French balcony, or a full sized balcony, where you can sit on and have your breakfast if you want, or just sit on the balcony and watch the world go by. But having said that, with the ones with the French balcony, they’ve got the floor-to-ceiling window. So what you can do is you can place the chair right up against the French balcony. And literally, then your whole cabin becomes a balcony. And you can watch the world go by and cruise along that way as well.
Allen Suss
Can we talk about the cabin itself? What’s inside the cabin? I mean, there’s let’s talk firstly, about the suites. Firstly, I think.
Rachel Javier
Sure, the suites are generally on the second and third level. And they all, all our cabins have private facilities. So there’s no sharing of that at all. They’ve all got amazing amenities, from complimentary Wi Fi, to tea and coffee making facilities in the cabin, you are provided with a refillable water bottle, and you can get water throughout the ship. So that says all the toiletries are included as well.
And when you do your shore excursions, which we include one in every port, you get the headset, so with the headset so that you can follow the local tour guide as they’re guiding you along. And that’s all set up in your room as well. You’ve got a safe, little fridge, etc, to keep your cold drinks in. So it’s definitely, it’s definitely well appointed.
Allen Suss
Your own toiletries and your bathrooms as well, do you
Rachel Javier
Yes, you do?
Allen Suss
Now what about let’s talk about meals. Everybody loves a meal. So oh,
Rachel Javier
Absolutely. Yeah, so all your meals are included on the river cruise. So breads, breakfast, lunch, and a four course dinner every evening. And you’ve got a choice of two different restaurants to choose from. You’ve either got the main dining room, or you’ve got at the stern of the ship or the back of the ship is a restaurant there that only seats 28 patrons at any one time. And that’s where the chef serves up in the evening, his specialty of the particular region that we’re in. So for example, when I went on board is one of the French river cruises, ate in that particular dining room or in that restaurant one night. And it was the first time that I ever experienced Escargot and also frogs legs, which is quite different.
Allen Suss
Very different. Yeah.
Rachel Javier
Have you ever experienced that, Allen?
Allen Suss
No, and I never will.
Rachel Javier
OK.
Allen Suss
I will never eat Escargot or frog’s legs, though. I am told they are tasty.
Rachel Javier
Yes, they are. So with every evening, what happens is you’ve got a four-course meal. But you’ve also got what we call the local flavors. So the chef will prepare one of the local famous cuisines of the particular region that we’re in. And a lot of the produce on board would have just been bought from the local market during the day. So you know that everything is all fresh, and which it has to be because with the river cruise being quite small, there really isn’t a lot of space to store a lot of food. But then that works to have a big advantage because the food is always fresh daily
Allen Suss
Now, what I like about the ships is they have these most interesting names.
Rachel Javier
Yes, they do. Yeah.
Allen Suss
Would you like to go through?
Rachel Javier
Sure, sure. So with that Five Star Fleet, they’re all named up the same as English authors. Everything from Emily Bronte, Thomas Hardy to Oscar Wilde, Robert Burns, William Wordsworth, and who else? Geoffrey Chaucer. It? Yes. And also Jane Austen. George Eliot.
Allen Suss
Interesting. Yes. Very interesting.
Rachel Javier
Yeah, except along the Douro. Those ships are named after the Douro. So we’ve got the MS. Douro Elegance and the MS. Douro Splendour
Allen Suss
It’s interesting in its own right. Let’s talk a little bit about touring. You arrive at a particular city and you moor at that city and you’re going to do some touring. How does that operate? And how does that work?
Rachel Javier
Okay. So in every city that we do arrive in, we always have one local tour included. And most of the time, depending on which city we’re in, it’s normally a walking tour. So, because I’ve done the French rivers,
Allen Suss
Yeah, right.
Rachel Javier
I can give you a couple of examples here. So there’s this quaint little town called Vienne. And that when you get taken by a local guide, along all the beautiful cobblestone streets, and literally, as you’re walking past, looking into a lot of the local housing, and you’re seeing how the French actually live in those towns, and was quite interesting, as you’re walking through the cobblestone streets, you can smell the freshly baked baguettes, it was just amazing. And then we also went up the steep alleyways. And we got to the church, which is at the top of the hill and we got an amazing view of the valley. And then when we came back down before we went back onto the ship, we met the locals, and actually learned how to play Petanque with the local and the local wine of the region. So that was yes, yes.
Allen Suss
Excellent. Excellent.
Rachel Javier
It reminded me of the Grappa in Italy, was quite potent. No. No, not not as strong, but it’s still very, very potent. One.
Allen Suss
Yes, sorry. Go. Go on. And what I like and which is very important, is Wi-Fi is included on the ships, 24/7.
Rachel Javier
Absolutely. Correct. So you can always stay in contact with your family back home. And as soon as you for example, if you’re just using your phone to take photos, you can always automatically upload them onto Instagram and also Facebook.
Allen Suss
What about solo travelers? Do you accommodate your fellow travelers?
Rachel Javier
Absolutely. On every single voyage or journey on all our river cruises, we have a certain number of cabins that are set aside for our solo, where there’s no additional cost. So they actually get a cabin that has got a queen size bed in it. So it’s normally a cabin for two people. But we provide that, for a solo traveler at no additional cost. That is excellent value.
Allen Suss
That is excellent. Okay, we’ve spoken about solo travelers. Now, what happens, can you explain if somebody wants to fly from Australia and go on a cruise, they get on the plane in Melbourne, Sydney, wherever it may be, hopefully after COVID. And we can do all these things. And what happens they arrive in a city let’s say they arrive in Amsterdam, in the Netherlands? Well, I have arrived at the airport, is somebody there to look after them, take them to a hotel, or what happens then?
Rachel Javier
Well, if they’re coming straight onto the ship, we can actually organize the transfers for them. Or if they’re going to a hotel, provided that it’s quite close to the port. We can arrange the transfers for them as well. And I’m just trying to get the information, the latest information for you with regards to the detail
Allen Suss
Don’t worry about I can send it to me will as it vetting that a little bit later. That’s fine. That’s not a problem. Okay. But we thank you very much for talking with me today. Because believe it or not, we’ve come to the end of our allotted time on the podcast. And today. I want to thank Rachel Javier for joining me on the podcast today. This is Allen suss from TravelManagers, Australia, the river cruise expert. If you have any questions, just email them to me at [email protected].
Allen Suss
And also, if you need an experienced travel agent to help you with your next river cruise call or email me, and you can call me on 0433203713,
Allen Suss
Finally, thanks Rachel for joining me. And thank you everybody.
Rachel Javier
Thank you.
Allen Suss
I hope that you have enjoyed listening to my special guest today, traveling and needing an experienced travel agent to help you book your trip. Call me directly on 0433203713 and, as always be on the lookout for our next Luxury Travel Podcast episode. This is Allen Suss of TravelManagers Australia, wishing you a wonderful day.
