Riverside Debussy Ship Tour
Hank Schrader, USMA '71, Europe Destination & Europe River Cruise Expert
Anne Schrader, Certified Travel Counselor & Certified Luxury Cruise Specialist
With the bankruptcy of Crystal River Cruises, their 4 (four) 135-meter river cruise ships were purchased by Riverside. Then, the German Company, Riverside, leased 2 of these ships to Uniworld. Then the other 2 were added to their double wide Mozart, which can only sail the Danube, to make the current Riverside fleet 3.
The Ravel, one of these leased 135-meter ships, sails on the Rhone River. The Debussy, the other 135-meter river cruise ship sails the Rhine and Main Rivers. So, let’s take a look at this ultra luxury rivership.
The Debussy
The Debussy was built in 2018. It holds only 110 passengers (55 suites), and all guest rooms are above the water line on the upper 2 full decks. Here is a picture of the ship in port in Cologne.
At the bow, right above the name of the boat, is the wheel house. Most other ships have a collapsible wheel house that is in the center of the top deck. The top glass windows on the right are the Palm Lounge and directly below is the Waterside Restaurant.
Restaurants
There are 4 possible eating venues.
The Waterside Cafe is the main dining area.
Breakfast and Lunch are served buffet style in the Waterside Cafe. Here are some pictures of the waterside Cafe setup:
During lunch and dinner, unique among river cruise lines, is a pasta station available for every lunch and dinner meal—you can see the chef ready to make the pasta in the middle of the hot service buffet area in the photo above. Typically there was a couple of meat or fish dishes, and a vegetarian option .
The next pictures are of a typical dinner meal. It is served at your table after you order from the menu. Here is our first night menu:
Anne’s Gouda Soufflé
Anne’s Soup
My fresh made pasta dish
My Veal Dish
Anne’s Rissorto
My dessert
The Bistro is a more informal area to eat during your cruise. It serves late breakfast, and a light lunch.
Among the items offered is a range of specialty coffees and teas and a selection of sweet treats. Here is the sweet treat selection:
Another cool feature is to get up late one day and still get eggs benedict instead of just some bread or sweet rolls as a late riser!
The specialty dinning room is the Vintage Room. It is only available if enough guests agree to pay the extra charge
The Outdoor Grill Area
Weather permitting, once a sailing, they try to have an outdoor lunch.
The Top Deck Vista Bar
Perhaps the single best feature on the Debussy is the pop-up bar on the top deck. On most river cruise ships, the wheel house is a pop-up and down area to help the ship pass under low bridges. This ship has the wheel house in the front of the ship and uses the space normally dedicated to the wheel house as a pop up bar. Here is a photo:
Common Areas
Among the shared areas on the ship are the Plam Court Lounge. a swimming pool (on deck 3), guest laundry, a fitness room and spa treatment room, which are located on the lowest deck with the crew cabins..
Here is the Palm Court Lounge
Deck 3 (Riverside Deck) and Deck 2 (Seahorse Deck) Staterooms
There are 3 types of suites on Deck 3. The 2 Debussy Suites are 506 square feet. This acutually can expand to an Owners suite configuration by adding an adjacent Riverside feet to 754 square feet. The 16 Riverside suites are 258 square feet. The 8 Symphony suites at the stern of the ship are 194 square feet.
On Deck 2, there are 3 types of suites. There are 20 Seahorse suites, which are 258 square feet. Three is one smaller Seahorse suite which measures 237 square feet. At the stern of the ship are 8 Melody Suites which measure 194 square feet.
Our Stateroom
We were in stateroom 301 which is 258 square feet.
Bikes
Our Final Thoughts
This is an all-inclusive, luxury experience! We really enjoyed our vacation onboard and would recommend this line for a good time on the Rhine River. It is luxury in every aspect of your vacation and you will experience the same great food and services we did.
We are travel experts, ocean and river cruise specialists, and Europe destination experts. We have first-hand knowledge of almost anywhere you want to visit in Europe. We know our products and the vendors who sell them to you. We have designed special tours for dozens of clients, led several and will continue to find just the right vacation that will exceed your expectations.
When you are spending your hard-earned money for a vacation, you want an advisor who can match you with the right trip. You want someone who will understand your expectations and fuel your anticipation (or excitement) to get you the best possible trip experience. And, you want someone who can help you with the decision making process. We think we have all these qualities.
Whatever your Dream Destinations are, we are here to help you get the best possible vacation based on what is important to you! We will provide you high quality, expertly planned travel. Please give me a call 713-397-0188 (Hank) or email me at hschrader@visitdd.com . We want to help you: Savor life…make memories…Visit Dream Destinations! Your journey begins here!
ANNE has earned a degree from the University of Houston in Hotel and Restaurant Management. Serving as the President of Visit Dream Destinations, LLC, since 2016, she is uniquely experienced professional travel advisor with over 26 years’ experience in the travel industry. Among her numerous certifications, she is a Certified Travel Counselor (CTC) by the Travel Institute, considered the gold standard in travel agent certification and she is also an Accredited Cruise Counselor (ACC) by the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), as well Luxury Cruise Specialist also from CLIA. Having traveled often to Europe since 1989, she has expanded on her certification as a Destination Specialist in Western Europe (DS) with extensive first-hand experience in luxury vacations. She holds numerous other specialty designations from individual vendors. An expert photographer, she delights in capturing the true essence of destinations to share with all.
HANK is a certified Western European Destination Specialist (DS) who has been traveling to Europe for 53 years. He is also an Accredited Cruise Counselor (ACC), conferred by the Cruise Line International Association (CLIA). This recognized expert in cruise and leisure travel is a retired Army Officer, and taught World Geography for 8 years. He is a `71 graduate of West Point and has earned 2 master’s degrees. His other Certifications:
AmaWaterways River Cruise Specialist
Avalon Waterways Specialist
Emerald Waterways Specialist
Riverside Luxury Cruise Specialist
Scenic River Cruise Specialist
Viking River Cruise Specialist
Brit Agent