By George Pitiranggon, Director of Marketing & Web Strategies

If you’re reading this article right now, chances are you know, or at least have heard of, a river cruise. And if you know what a river cruise is, you’ve probably heard of Viking, Avalon Waterways, Uniworld, and others. Now we have a new player in the game and their name is U by Uniworld, a completely new sister brand to Uniworld Boutique River Cruises. But I want you to take a deep breath and gather everything you know about river cruising and completely throw it out the window. Just forget it all. That’s because U by Uniworld has completely changed the river cruise game and depending who’s reading this, it’s definitely for the best. Keep reading to find out what I mean.

Watch The Video Review For U by Uniworld:

The A: Your Floating Hotel

I recently had the opportunity to sail on the Rolling On The Rhine itinerary, the inaugural sailing of their completely refurbished ship now called The A (formerly the River Ambassador from Uniworld’s fleet). There was even a renaming ceremony held onboard to celebrate the first official sailing of The A.

The ship was thoughtfully designed and before even going in, you knew this wasn’t going to be your typical river cruise ship. Covered in it’s stylishly cool matte black paint job, you feel like you’re walking into a modern ship that doubles as a stealth fighter. As you walk in onboard, it becomes obvious the ship was designed for an Instagram era with trendy, hip design choices. Around every corner was a ‘gram worthy moment. From the Ice Bar on the top deck, to the stateroom cabins, to the lobby, you just got a really good vibe when lounging around in any part of the ship.

When I said they’ve completely changed the river cruise game, there is one thing they thankfully kept the same and that’s the exceptionally high service level from crew members. Cruises and river cruises are generally known for the amazing service the crew is able to provide day in and day out and I’m happy to report that I experienced the same legendary service from crew onboard The A.

Related: View All Sailings On The A

My favorite part about river cruising is the fact that you only have to unpack once. In the case of U by Uniworld, you have a floating designer hotel that takes you from place to place without ever having to pack and go every other night. With 2-3 exceptionally good meals included daily, turn down service, all day coffee and tea, it’s your home on the water for the week.

The ‘A-menities’

There’s lots to love with The A, from free coffee and tea all day, laundry machines onboard, resort style lounge chairs on the sun deck, free use of the onboard bicycles, and floor-to-ceiling windows in your cabin that slide open to transform your entire room into a balcony, you could literally ignore the itinerary and stay onboard all day and feel 100% content (which I did for a day or two).

The most important thing, the food was all locally sourced and inspired. The crew goes shopping every day for fresh local ingredients and the chef cooks it up daily. I was surprised at the high quality of the meals – and frankly everything else – at this price point.

The Itinerary

Even though U by Uniworld is a brand new company, it’s actually an off-shoot of its sister brand Uniworld. This mean it’s still run by the same experienced people in the background so you can be confident that any itinerary you pick is going to be well thought out and logistically sound. From my own experience, I’m happy to report the legendary quality of Uniworld crosses over just as well to U by Uniworld.

On my itinerary, Rolling on the Rhine, we had options to cycle around, make cheese and taste wine, and row our own dragon boat. Included excursions included city walks, but in U-fashion, these were sometimes at night and end at a pub or bar for drinks with the group.

Is U For You?

Before removing it’s age restriction of 21-45 only, you’d be remiss to think this was just a booze cruise. Even now with all ages welcome onboard, there is a specific traveler who this river cruise caters to. It not just for the young but also for the young at heart. If you’re an easy going type of traveler, who enjoys a low key vacation with less structure and more of your own control, it doesn’t matter how old you are, you’ll love U by Uniworld. Me personally? I’m already looking at which U by Uniworld to take next year!

View All U by Uniworld Sailings Now

George Pitiranggon
Director of Marketing & Web Strategies
Email: [email protected]
Toll Free: 1-800-935-2620 Ext: 171
Direct: 281-269-2671