Till There Was U

This is not your grandmother's river cruise...or even your dad's.

It's geared for a youthful audience under age 40 --- okay, 45 if you're cool --- who doesn't expect as much luxury and prefers a la carte choice rather than having it all packaged together.

You still get inclusions, including some shore excursions, but not as many.

You do lunch on your own.

You pay for all your alcohol.

As such, you won't rush back to the ship like your mother for lunch, but instead find a little park to share a bottle of wine and a loaf of bread with your new friends.

This is a much more active and DIY approach to river cruising, and because you are willing to give up niceties your parents expect, you get lower pricing.



Are they the best suites on the river?

No.

But do they have a "Silent Disco" where you all wear headphones while partying under the stars on the top deck?

Yes they do.

This is not a backpacking trip.

There aren't a lot of loose ends and sleeping in strange places, but you're a little beyond that, aren't you?

While U no longer bans people over 40 from taking this cruise, it's not recommended for them.

If you're old enough to remember seeing the scenes with Paul's grandfather in "A Hard Day's Night" at the movies, you don't want to be today's version of him.



If you lamented John Lennon's untimely death in real time, then you should definitely be looking at lines like Viking River Cruises, geared to your demographic,

How different can the appeal be based on ten or twenty years age difference?

Well, how does a pub crawl in drag sound to you?

How about a tattoo lover's cruise?

Those were recently announced as special themed cruises to appeal to Millennials, though hopefully not ALL Millennials (not that there's anything wrong with that ;).

If you're a Millennial and more into hipster-wear, that's more the norm on most River Cruises by U.  Here is a link to more common shore tours: Excursions: Step Off the Ship and Into the Great Wide Open.

Oh, and by the way, if you're under 45, you can still enjoy those more upscale cruise lines.  If your parents are going with you...or taking you...that's an even better reason to choose more traditional lines, but you are always the secret ingredient that makes your vacations great, even if you don't think that's U.