Rhine River Cruises

Embark on a river cruise along the Rhine - stretching from the Swiss Alps to the North Sea you'll cruise through France, Germany and the Netherlands. Choose from 5,143 river cruises along the Rhine travelling with the world's leading river cruise lines.

Quick Search Search 5,143 river cruise Departures along the Rhine

Popular Rhine River Cruises View all

8 Days Amsterdam to Basel

Operator: Avalon River Cruises

From 2,795pp
Save 1,384pp

8 Days Basel to Amsterdam

Operator: Avalon River Cruises

From 2,891pp
Save 1,380pp

8 Days Amsterdam to Basel

Operator: Viking River Cruises

From 2,199pp
Save 800pp

8 Days Amsterdam to Basel

Operator: Uniworld River Cruises

From 3,561pp
Save 1,081pp

The Rhine River

Map of the Rhine River

Where does the Rhine start & finish?

The Rhine River originates in the Swiss Alps and flows through six countries including Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, France, and the Netherlands. The river ultimately empties into the North Sea at Rotterdam after covering a distance of approximately 1,230 kms (760 miles), making it one of Europe's major rivers.

Castle-Studded Journey

The Rhine boasts the highest concentration of castles in the world along its Middle Rhine section, particularly between Koblenz and Bingen. This stretch is known as the "Romantic Rhine" and offers a fairy-tale backdrop.

The Lorelei Rock

This steep rock on the eastern bank of the Rhine near St. Goarshausen, Germany, has inspired myths and legends for centuries. According to folklore, a siren named Lorelei bewitches sailors from atop the rock, causing them to crash — adding a dash of intrigue to your journey.

Culinary Cruising

The Rhine valley is not just rich in scenic beauty but also in gastronomy. It's a wine lover's paradise, with regions like Alsace in France and the Rheingau in Germany producing some of the world's finest Rieslings.

Popular starting ports for cruising the Rhine

Amsterdam, Basel, Cologne and Zurich are the most common logistical starting ports for your Rhine river cruise.

Rhine in Flames

If you time it right, you could experience the "Rhine in Flames," an annual event where spectacular firework displays are set off from castles and boats, illuminating the river. It's a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle that adds magic to your river cruise.

FEATURED RIVER CRUISE OPERATORSFeatured Operators View all

Viking
A Viking river cruise is the discerning traveller’s dream. Whether you choose to visit Egypt, Asia, Europe or the Mississippi, our itineraries are designed...more to immerse you in the history and culture of each destination. With us, you could be exploring a local food market with our head chef one day and experiencing an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of a world-famous museum the next. Our state-of-the-art ships take you right into the heart of each destination, and you won’t find any kids or ‘nickel and diming’ on board. In fact, our fares include everything you need - from meals, beverages and Wi-Fi to a culturally enriching shore excursion at every port of call. This unique combination of features has become affectionately known as ‘the Viking difference’. Viking has 70 award-winning river ships sailing all over the world, and we can’t wait to welcome you on board to discover the Viking difference for yourself.
Rhine Rivers2,032
Budget:Premium
Known For:Scandinavian Design
Fleet Size:94
AmaWaterways
From the moment you step aboard AmaWaterways award-winning ships you'll be welcomed by a dedicated crew committed to making your voyage unforgettable....more Sail through the heart of Europe, Asia, or Africa and explore enchanting destinations while indulging in exquisite, locally inspired cuisine and world-class amenities. AmaWaterways thoughtfully designed excursions immerse you in the rich culture and history of each port with every detail of your itinerary crafted to exceed your expectations and create memories that will last a lifetime.
Rhine Rivers775
Budget:Premium
Known For:Twin-Balconies
Fleet Size:29
Scenic
With Scenic, it’s more than a 5-star river cruise...it’s a seamless journey from start to finish that places you, our guest, at the heart of everything...more we do. It’s taking you to extraordinary regions and immersing you in meaningful and enriching experiences. It’s exquisite cuisine, indulgent wellness, and a world-class team who will anticipate your every need. You'll find the difference is in the details with Scenic: the innovative ship design, expertly trained crew, immersive journey, and an unrivalled focus on health and safety protocols.
Rhine Rivers277
Budget:Premium & Luxury
Known For:Luxury Cruising
Fleet Size:14

Discover Must Do Experiences and Highlights Along The Rhine

Amsterdam
Amsterdam

Cycle the streets and explore the winding canals. Or dive into the arts with a visit to the Van Gogh Museum and explore the Rijksmuseum, with works dating back to the Middle Ages.

Cologne
Cologne

Discover medieval treasures and vibrant galleries in Old Town, visit the Dom, Germany's largest cathedral, or just sit back and enjoy a crisp Kölsch beer - only brewed in Cologne - Prost!

Rüdesheim
Rüdesheim

Delight in picturesque Rüdesheim with a stroll through Drosselgasse lane, sample wines from the surrounding Rhine Valley vineyards or marvel at the Mechanical Music Museum.

Strasbourg
Strasbourg

A cultural fusion of France and Germany, Strasbourg's UNESCO World Heritage Grande Île does not disappoint, showcasing the Strasbourg Cathedral as well as the charming la Petite France.

Freiburg
Freiburg

Set in Germany's Black Forest Region, take in the expansive views of this vibrant and eco-friendly town from Schlossberg, or quietly wander down cobblestone streets in Münster market.

Latest Reviews What our clients are saying about their journeys along the Rhine

Italian Treasures and Budapest to Amsterdam river cruise   , VIC, Australia, Sep 2025
Global Journeys made the booking easy with many questions answered and good pricing. We have been using them for many years without issues too. TravelMarvel tours were truly wonderful, people, coaches, guides, ships, we had a few issues with a couple hotels particularly in Florence (had to change rooms 4 x!) and the coach tour was busier, as in faster,... read more than we anticipated, some of us struggled with the pace but the guides and tour director was always fun and interesting.

Italy was manic with tourists even in this shoulder season, Vatican City particularly was very poorly organised by the venue, then people crammed through. We missed the museum and weren’t allowed to hover around taking pics, the crowds just carried you on! The Rome sites were all like this, so spoilt the tour. Koln was just awful, we visited 20 yrs ago and loved it so really looking forward to seeing it again, but it was horrible all the interesting shops and shopping areas have been replaced with tourist shops and the streets were seething with people, and smoking people at that.

Venice was magical, apart from the crazy way that tourist buses are forced to use water taxis to get to the hotel even though the hotel is adjacent to the bus terminal! Amsterdam’s name of Little Venice is appropriate too, nice place to stay for a few days exploring, but you need to see both sides of the Main Street, one side is quiet and sophisticated the other (red light side) is loud and blustering, both are interesting in their own way though.

We had to swap ships halfway up due to low water levels (they said?) and the difference in the crews was quite obvious, Capella crew was very relaxed and fun, vs Polaris who were quite restrained in approach and function, we felt that maybe the Capella crew was more experienced and comfortable with each other vs Polaris who we thought may have still been “training” a little. All in all it was a wonderfully tiring experience with TravelMarvel - yet very professional too 👍👏👏
Viking River Cruise   , NSW, Australia, Sep 2025
The Ship (Egdir) is a wonderful newish river cruise ship with great staterooms and ammenities. This was our first river cruise and most likely we won’t do another. The entire atmosphere of this particular river cruise was very laid back and may attract whose who are comfortable eating their dinner and going to bed around 8-8:30pm. There is a small piano... read more up in the lounge where sitting down and have drinks while listening to the pianist. All drinks need to be paid for as the drink package of very ordinary local beer, wine and soft drinks are only available during lunch and dinner. Even if you wanted to have a soft drink outside of these hours you had to pay.

If you missed breakfast or lunch there’s absolutely nothing to eat and there’s no room service. Absolutely no entertainment at night. The first few locks was the entertainment while on the ship. Then after a few more locks that also became boring. We arrived back on the ship at 1:30pm after an included walking tour and the dining room was closed and nothing to eat on board until 7pm. That’s not a holiday or glamorous as seen on Getaway or other similar advertisements on TV. We filled the river cruise review while I board and gave our suggestions in how to improve the entire concept of river cruising. Let’s see if any notice of our suggestions actually become implemented.
European Jewels Review   , ON, Canada, Sep 2025
The trip was a river cruise. The trip started in Budapest on the Danube River and went through Austria and then on the Main River through Germany on the Danube Main Canal ending on the Rhine River in Amsterdam. The cruise was in the River Duchess. The ship was nice and the stateroom was spacious. A very pleasant experience.
Viking Rhine Cruise with Good Friends     , NSW, Australia, Aug 2025
We loved every minute of this cruise. We have now completed five cruises with Viking with more to come. This was the first with our long time school friends who were also impressed with the Rhine cruise. Georgie from Global Journeys has been fantastic help for many years. We can’t thank her enough and can throughly recommend the Rhine cruise.