Saga marks first anniversary of Spirit of the RhineSaga marks first anniversary of Spirit of the Rhine

Since launching in Saga livery,  the vessel has made a further 27 river sailings on the Rhine under her master, Captain Marinus Pols. 

Guests have undertaken 350 excursions, with top favourites being the Keukenhof gardens, Lake Titisee and the Strasbourg canals.

Spirit of the Rhine’s longest trip was over 2,000 km as she travelled the Rhine to Strasbourg, the Moselle to Trier and the Main to Aschaffenburg over the course of 14 days.

The pandemic prevented her naming ceremony from taking place when she launched, but this was remedied in March ths year when she was officially named alongside her new sister ship, Spirit of the Danube by godmother, Dame Jenni Murray. 

Both ships are owned by Rijfers Nautical Management and built by Vahali Shipyards. They can host up to 182 guests who are served by up to 50 crew. The vessels have four decks and 91 guest cabins. They are 135mtr in length and 11.4mtr wide. 

All-inclusive

Cruises on both Spirit of the Rhine and Spirit of the Danube will become all-inclusive from the 2023 season.

Other benefits for 2023 onward include the option to book back-to-back cruises, which will be clearly marketed as such and guests selecting them will receive a further 10% off their booking. Each cruise will also guarantee a proportion of dedicated cabins for solo travellers.

Door-to-door chauffeur service

Other benefits include a complimentary door-to-door chauffeur service, travel insurance with up to £5m covid-cover, gratuities, at least three sight-seeing excursions on all seven-night cruises and up to eight included on longer cruises.

Nigel Blanks, CEO of Saga Cruises, said: 'This year we’ve already marked the first and third anniversaries of our ocean ship, Spirit of Adventure and Spirit of Discovery, respectively, so we’re delighted to also be celebrating a year since Spirit of the Rhine took to the rivers.'