AmaWaterways wine cruises add a unique epicurean dimension to a variety of itineraries at no additional cost. Join one of these wine cruises with a special wine host and be treated to a menu of exclusive wine and culinary experiences designed to delve deeper into the wonderful flavors and tastes of Europe.
European cities transform into majestic winter wonderlands for the holiday season – and we invite you to experience all their splendor with us. In addition to our variety of daily excursions, you will also have the opportunity to visit festive Christmas Markets in select destinations and participate in nostalgic traditions.
Maximize your Christmas experience by embarking at the height of the holiday market season with daily or near-daily visits to Christmas Markets.
Get "just a taste" of the holidays in mid-November or late December with visits to one or two Christmas Markets during your river cruise.
We are pleased to offer guests the opportunity to experience Floriade in 2022 while sailing along the Rhine River and Dutch and Belgian Waterways between April 14 and October 9. Right outside Amsterdam, this rare experience calls for its visitors to “explore, touch and change” as part of their journey into Floriade – which is set to feature stunning gardens, innovative sustainable gardening exhibits, live entertainment, talk shows, souvenirs and food stalls.
We invite you to join our incredible cruise on the Rhône with a Latin Touch, featuring bilingual cruise managers, daily tours with Spanish-speaking guides, Latin-inspired music nights and other distinctive elements.
Explore the rich history of classical music along the Danube River where famous composers lived, worked and performed. Plus, be treated to a variety of live performances on this melodious journey.
Based on the overwhelmingly positive response received from the announcement of our first-ever “Soulful Experience” on the Rhône River in 2023, we are delighted to announce four new opportunities for guests to celebrate their heritage and discover Black history and culture along the rivers with us in 2024.
Join award-winning television host and travel expert, Samantha Brown, Godmother of AmaMagna, as we cruise through four countries along the Danube River. Special events and Travel Talks are included on this exclusive sailing.
Join Chef Joanne Weir, award-winning cookbook author, restaurant owner and host of PBS television series “Plates & Places” as she hosts a special 7-night Flavors of Burgundy river cruise.
We invite you to join our incredible cruise on the Danube with a Latin Touch, featuring bilingual cruise managers, daily tours with Spanish-speaking guides, Latin-inspired music nights and other distinctive elements.
Based on the overwhelmingly positive response received from the announcement of our first-ever “Soulful Experience” on the Rhône River in 2023, we are delighted to announce four new opportunities for guests to celebrate their heritage and discover Black history and culture along the rivers with us in 2025
Explore the rich history of classical and folkloric music along the Danube River where famous composers lived, worked and performed. Plus, be treated to a variety of live performances on this melodious journey.
Countries Visited: Austria, Hungary, Slovakia
Join award-winning television host and travel expert, Samantha Brown, Godmother of AmaMagna, as we cruise through five countries along the Danube River. Special events and Travel Talks are included on this exclusive sailing.
We invite our loyal past guests to join us once again on these special Loyalty Cruises, offering unique experiences in multiple ports, commemorative gifts, and many more surprises and delights.
Imagine if there was a way to combine luxury river cruising on the iconic Danube with the opportunity to indulge your passion and play golf. We have created the perfect package to enable you to do just that with our Exclusive Concierge Golf Program. Discover Europe, complete with award winning cuisine, incredible service and a choice of excursions in every port, as well as up to 5 rounds of golf at some of the leading championship courses on the continent.
AmaWaterways’ Exclusive Concierge Golf Program is available on select Magna on the Danube cruises sailing aboard the AmaMagna.
Hello! "I'm Kristin Karst, Co-Founder and Executive Vice President of AmaWaterways and I'm passionate about river cruising. Each month, I love to share with you my thoughts, personal stories, travel tips and latest news on the people and places that help turn every mile of our guests' river cruise experience into one of their most cherished memories!"
So wrote The New York Times – and a huge cheers to that! Kölsch beer is the distinct local beer of Cologne, a major cultural metropolis over 2,000 years old – equally known for its imposing majestic Cathedral and romantic Hohenzollern Bridge, weighed down by thousands of love locks.
A clear, all-barley pale brew (one of the palest German beers, in fact) with a bright, straw-yellow hue – Kölsch beer has a characteristically fruity flavor, is subtle and light in body as much as appearance and is celebrated for its wonderful hoppiness. This is all derived from its own special ale yeast, with which the brew is warm-fermented (at about 55-70 degrees Fahrenheit) and then aged and mellowed (or ‘lagered’) near the freezing point – a nearly two month process. Kölsch is always served in the traditional straight-side, narrow, cylindrical 6.75 fluid ounces (or 0.2 liter) glass called a Stange (which translates to ‘rod’ or ‘pole’ in English). The glass is six inches tall but just two inches in diameter, making it almost two and a half times smaller than a British pint glass.
First produced in 1906 – although it did not start officially being called Kölsch until 1918 – Kölsch did not become popular until after World War II. But the city of Cologne has been brewing beer for over a thousand years – that’s more than two hundred years before its UNESCO World Heritage Site, Cologne Cathedral, was even built. Back then, as in most of Germany, beers were of the ale variety. As the Middle Ages neared its end, brewers started making lagers (the so-called ‘new’ beers).
Fast-forward to the 18th century when new inventions in malting techniques allowed the kilning of pale barley malts. Cologne’s brewers began developing new beer filtration styles and scientific yeast management systems, setting it quite apart from other German pale lagers. It is Germany’s only all-barley, pale ale as Bavaria’s Weissbier (or Weizen) is made mostly from wheat. Düsseldorf’s Altbier is usually made entirely from barley.
While the German government recognizes and protects Kölsch beer, only allowing specified brewers to legally call their lagers ‘Kölsch’ – the brew is mainly popular in the native city it derives its namesake from. Cologne, of course, is called Köhn by the Germans. And so the very term Kölsch loosely translates to ‘Cologne-ish.’ It can be used as an adverb, for various people and places. But naturally, the beer is most locals favored definition!
So drink up in a traditional Brauhaus (a German pub) where the Köbes are happy to serve the ale one after another until you say no (or put the beer pad down!). It is the most authentic way to imbibe the beer and enjoy like a local Köhn!
Taste Kölsch for yourself on select sailings when you cruise the Rhine River to Cologne with AmaWaterways!