River Cruise Fleet to Add 21 New Vessels by 2027

The global river cruise fleet will expand in 2027 with the arrival of 21 new vessels, according to an announcement made by Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) on October 13. The announcement includes Celebrity Cruises' entry into the river cruise segment and new additions from already established operators such as AmaWaterways, Emerald Cruises and Uniworld, among other companies.

AmaWaterways will add three vessels, AmaRudi, AmaFiora and AmaMaya, while Celebrity will debut in the sector with Celebrity Compass and Celebrity Seeker. Emerald Cruises will add Emerald Lumi, which will sail the Seine, and Emerald Nova, bound for the Douro, while Uniworld will add S.S. Audrey, S.S. Marlene and S.S. São Rafael. Other lines such as Amadeus River Cruises, CroisiEurope, Century Cruises, Riviera Travel, Saga, Scenic, TUI, VIVA Cruises and American Cruise Lines will also add new units, which will be deployed beyond the Rhine and the Danube to waterways such as the Douro, the Seine, the Mekong and the Amazon.

Celebrity's first two vessels will sail the Rhine and the Danube starting in August 2027, on an itinerary between Basel and Amsterdam, and the company is building lighter vessels with a shallower draft. The interior design of Celebrity Compass and Celebrity Seeker is being handled by Dutch firm Willemsen Interieurbouw, which is working with lightweight materials such as Metawell aluminum sandwich panels to reduce weight, an aspect considered key given how sensitive these vessels are to draft. The company, which has around 35 river vessels on order in its portfolio, will outfit nine river vessels per year in 2026 and 2027, a figure that will rise to ten starting in 2028, and is already working on ten vessels for Celebrity River Cruises.

CLIA noted that river cruise operators are expanding their geographic reach beyond Europe toward long-haul rivers in Asia and South America, and that there is growing demand for short three- to five-night trips, local culture and gastronomy experiences, off-season departures with fewer tourists, and cruises for solo travelers. Andy Harmer, CLIA's Managing Director for the UK and Ireland, stated that the 2027 additions span both traditional European rivers and long-haul destinations.