Avalon Waterways Sporty River Cruises
By John Roberts
Keeping active is a way of life for the Dutch and Belgians.
So, I felt right at home pedaling and paddling during my river cruise with Avalon Waterways during a mid-summer voyage from Ghent to Amsterdam.
I joined the weeklong cruise eager to experience Avalon’s Active & Discovery program, which the line began in 2017.
I’m a big advocate for active travel and fitness in general, so I was excited when Avalon Waterways launched the program that brings wellness to the forefront on select itineraries throughout the year.
John and other passengers enjoyed many bicycle rides during his Avalon Waterways river cruise in Netherlands and Belgium. * Photo: John Roberts
The program has blossomed to offer six distinct cruise itineraries and more than three dozen departures each year.
Active & Discovery cruise are available on the Danube, Rhine, Moselle, Rhone and Seine rivers and also the Dutch and Belgian Waterways.
I was on 128-passenger Avalon Tranquility II to cruise the waterways in Belgium and the Netherlands, visiting Ghent, Brussels, Antwerp, Rotterdam and Amsterdam.
Most of my fellow travelers were from North America, with a handful from the U.K., Asia and South Africa. Ages ranged from about 40 to 80, with most in their late 50s.
The 128-pax Avalon Tranquility II. * Photo: John Roberts
Here are six things you should know about the Avalon Waterways sporty river cruises program on the Dutch waterways that will help you decide whether this type of itinerary is what you are looking for.
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1. You Have Plenty Of Options To Stay Busy
With Avalon Waterways, the program incorporates both the “active” and “discovery” elements to keep culturally curious and active travelers busy every day.
Avalon stands out because of the huge portfolio of daily excursions offered in its river cruise ports around the world. Cruisers are offered complimentary tours every morning and then a menu of for-fee extra outings during afternoons.
Through the course of a week on an Active & Discovery voyage, cruisers can choose from among 30 or more excursion options, with about 25 of them included in the cruise fares.
This means you can do two shore excursions every day to fill your time with fun and immersive ways to explore a destination.
I’ll talk about all the active options in the next section, but we also had a great variety of tours that focused on food, history or other aspects of the rich culture of the region.
For instance, among others, my cruise included these complimentary excursions:
- “Oyster Town Tour with Wine” and “Ancient Merchant Town” tours in Middelburg
- “Ghent Graffiti Tour”
- “Discover Brussels and DIY Chocolate Workshop”
- Tour of Antwerp’s Red Star Line Museum (a liner that sent immigrants to America)
- A canal cruise in Amsterdam
Two of the excursions that I chose during my cruise were the “Dutch Masterpieces in Blue and White,” a complimentary tour to the Royal Delft Museum and Pottery Factory. and a “Bites & Highlights of Rotterdam” walking city and food tour (for an extra fee).
In the morning, I hopped onto a bus with about 20 others, and we drove the 45 minutes from our cruise pier in Rotterdam to the town of Delft, where iconic blue and white earthenware has been the hallmark of the town since 1653.
The iconic blue and white earthenware Delft is known for. * Photo: John Roberts
We toured the museum, had a break for tea and apple strudel and then tried our hand at decorating our own Delft ceramic tiles, painting on patterns with fine brushes as instructors explained the techniques that have been used for centuries to create plates, vases and household décor.
Strudel break in Rotterdam. * Photo: John Roberts
I had a light lunch back on Avalon Tranquility II so that I wouldn’t spoil my appetite for the afternoon foodie tour around Rotterdam. Our guide Rob met us just outside the ship and we walked over to a speed boat to hop on for a look at the city from the middle of the Maas River.
Spending a day in Rotterdam. * Photo: John Roberts
After our 45-minute boat ride, we began our wander around Rotterdam, stopping to see several points of interest among the mix of modern and older architecture.
On our walking tour of Rotterdam. * Photo: John Roberts
Our Dutch treats included herring from a street vendor and a chicken sandwich from a Surinamese restaurant. (Suriname is a former Dutch colony in South America, and the countries share close ties to this day.)
Then, we enjoyed some chocolates from De Bonte Koe and finally a beer and kapsalon, which is a popular bar comfort food created in Rotterdam that consists of fries, gyro meat, slices of melted Gouda cheese and the Indonesian hot sauce sambal.
The famed kapsalon. * Photo: John Roberts
The tour provided a wonderful taste of Rotterdam, and our wander around the city had me wanting to return for a longer vacation.
The chocolates shop. * Photo: John Roberts
2. Avalon Is A Top Choice for Fitness-Focused Travelers
An adventure host directs your daily activities in coordination with your cruise director.
We had the energetic Raluca leading our adventures during my week onboard (including exercise classes on the boat and bicycle rides and kayaking in port). And further, Cruise Director Karolien was always available and engaging with her guests on Avalon Tranquility II, displaying the knowledge and passion for her job gathered over more than 20 years with the company.
When Avalon Waterways began its Active & Discovery program, it joined AmaWaterways in creating a program attractive to people who like to work out, keep fit and prefer to be active when they travel, whether on a cruise or otherwise.
The AmaWaterways program also allows for personal training sessions and bigger fitness areas than on most river ships.
Other river lines that have also embraced the trend toward fitness and healthier lifestyles as we age include Emerald Cruises, whose ships feature activities managers who offer yoga classes, aqua aerobics, hikes and other activities, and CroisiEurope, which has certain cruise itineraries that are hiking or biking themed.
RELATED: Heidi reviews her sporty AmaWaterways cruise in the Netherlands and Belgium.
RELATED: John Roberts reviews his active Emerald river cruise in Europe.
During my voyage in Belgium and the Netherlands, there were three of us who started each day early (7 a.m.) with a morning exercise session with Raluca. We did Pilates, yoga or a dynamic stretching class to begin the day before downing a specially prepared smoothie brought to us in our exercise room, which was the Panorama Lounge.
Then, it was off to breakfast before we started our daily excursions.
There also were several fun bike tours available during the week. Be sure to sign up via the MyAvalon App before your cruise to avoid getting closed out of your preferred tours, as capacity is limited for many of the active tours.
I joined “Belgium on Two Wheels: Brussels Countryside,” a 20-kilometer ride that ended with us all sprinting back the final few kilometers as the rains came down before lunch.
The “Antwerp on Two Wheels: Something Old and Something New” tour was a more casual ride through the city center for our group of 13.
Our Antwerp cycle tour. * Photo: John Roberts
There was a similar bike tour in Rotterdam to explore the entire city center and points of interest therein. The ride in Amsterdam took cyclists into the Dutch countryside.
I also mixed in some morning runs before Raluca’s classes to ramp up my active portion of the cruise. It was lovely to get out just after sunrise in Brussels and Rotterdam to cross bridges and see the cities come to life.
But my favorite excursion of the week was the “Kayak Adventure on the Canals of Amsterdam.”
John kayaking in Amsterdam. * Photo: John Roberts
This was an optional (for-fee) tour, and I joined four others to paddle through the legendary maze of canals around Amsterdam’s city center.
There was a bit of drizzly rain that came and went during our outing as we ventured more than eight miles under bridges and past tied-up houseboats to make our way all around the city. It was a thrilling way to view the skyline of this beautiful European capital — and a great workout.
VIDEO: Here’s a video recap of my cruise on Avalon Tranquility II on the waterways of Belgium and The Netherlands.
3. The Ship Offers A Simple & Convenient Layout
Avalon Tranquility II carries up to 128 people in 64 staterooms on the basic four-deck European river ship design.
We had 82 people onboard, and most gathered in the ship’s Panorama Lounge or the intimate Club Lounge at the aft of the ship on Deck 3.
The Panorama Lounge. * Photo: John Roberts
The Panorama Lounge features a bar and dance floor, and this is where cruisers enjoy scenic sailing views through the windows while seated on comfy couches and chairs that ring the room. Cruise Director Karolien also delivered nightly port recaps and briefings here. Plus, evening entertainment in the form of live music from guest performers or trivia contests take place here.
We had two especially noteworthy shows on our voyage. La Strada (a string trio) was superb and The Groovy Gents (a trio playing rockabilly, rock and blues covers from acts like the Monkees, Cheap Trick, Lionel Richie and Roy Orbison) filled the room with cruisers who danced and sang along late into the night.
La Strada. * Photo: John Roberts
Avalon Waterways offers a fantastic cabin design for all of its ships, with the distinctive feature being the window-facing beds (on other boats and ships, cabin beds often do not face the windows, surprisingly).
On Tranquility II, I stayed in a Panorama Suite. There are 50 of these 200-square-foot suites on the ship.
I loved settling in at night or waking each morning and seeing moonlight, the flowing river or picturesque rolling hills straight ahead just outside the floor-to-ceiling wall of glass at the end of my bed.
The design allows that space to serve as an always-visible and ever-changing wall of art. The windows slide open to give the room a French-balcony feel with a railing.
The view from my Cello Deck cabin. * Photo: John Roberts
These cabins also offer a small couch and a chair with a little table in case you want to enjoy a continental breakfast in your stateroom. There is no room service available unless you book the top suites, and even then, these meals come with a fee.
The cruise program is a la cart, so you pay for drinks outside of the included beer, wine and soft drinks at lunch and dinner, and the daily happy hour before dinner. Drinks are priced around $3.50 for sodas, $9 or less for cocktails, wines and beers.
Rooms have a mini-fridge stocked with a selection of chargeable items.
The top cabins are the two French Balcony Royal Suites (300 square feet), with a separate living room, two TVs, and a large bathroom with two sinks.
Down on Deck 1, 12 Window Cabins offer 170 square feet of space.
VIDEO: Here’s a tour of my Panorama Suite on Tranquility II
The Sun Deck at the top of the ship has the standard turf surface with a walking track around the perimeter, and loungers and seating throughout, some arranged under canopies to provide shade.
There is a small hot tub that was lightly used during our cool and rainy week. This deck also has a space dedicated for a barbecue lunch setup that is offered when the weather cooperates (not on our cruise).
You’ll also find the fleet of bikes carried onboard up here. There are 16 bikes and two e-assist bikes available.
The fleet of cycles carried along. * Photo: John Roberts
4. A Casual Bistro Dining Alternative To The Main Restaurant
Panorama Bistro is a small eatery in a space at the front of the Panorama Lounge. This is the ship’s casual restaurant that serves early breakfast, as well as lunches and dinners. The lunch and dinner menus in the bistro are a sampling of the menu that is being served in the ship’s main dining room.
I liked this option for dinner because I could pick exactly the items I wanted and enjoy the smaller portions that were placed out on small plates and be done in less than an hour instead of the two hours-plus that the more formal main restaurant offered.
The main dining room. * Photo: John Roberts
Overall, the menus included a mix of flavors from the region and international cuisine. Starters always included fresh-baked breads, appetizers like watermelon cocktail with Vermouth wine and Parma ham, soups like an onion soup with Dutch-cheese crouton, and main courses of pasta, seafood, chicken or beef and vegetarian meals as well.
The everyday menu features grilled chicken breast, tenderloin beef and grilled salmon.
The daily live cooking station and pasta a la minute always drew lines of eager eaters at the lunch buffet. I loved the harissa and honey-roasted chicken at the carving station, braised beef cheeks and the chicken laksa hot pot
We also saw Fischfrikadellen (Dutch fish cakes), roasted crisp pork with dark-beer gravy, traditional Indian chicken curry, pink-roasted herb-marinated veal loin and Belgian waffles on the menu.
Belgian waffles, but of course! * Photo: John Roberts
Club Lounge is where cruisers settled in to play board and card games (sometimes late into the evening) or sit with a book in the afternoon. There is a coffee machine and plenty of teas available, as well as a machine dispensing a variety of flavored healthy waters. This is also where you can grab some mixed nuts or a sweet treat like chocolate chip cookies or doughnuts.
The Club Lounge. * Photo: John Roberts
The Club Lounge is also home to afternoon tea every day, complete with sandwiches and pastries like cake and pie.
5. You Visit Beautiful Places
This was my second Dutch waterways river cruise. These voyages traverse a series of interconnected canals and small rivers throughout Belgium and the Netherlands, providing a wonderful glimpse at life in the countryside and the bigger cities on the route.
Amsterdam is a popular city on Rhine River cruises, and we sailed roundtrip from the gorgeous capital of the Netherlands. This city is filled with museums and other wonderful things to see and do.
Don’t miss the Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, NEMO Science Museum and others. The Anne Frank House is popular, of course.
John in Amsterdam. * Photo: John Roberts
Avalon Waterways offered the optional (for-fee) early-morning excursion “Behind the Scenes at the Aalsmeer Flower Auction” that took flower fanatics (not me) to see the setup and execution of the largest flower auction in the world.
But it’s the other stops in between Amsterdam that will charm you.
Middelburg is the capital of the Netherlands’ Zeeland district, and it’s filled with cobblestone streets. It has a beautiful Gothic town hall and an abbey, and the city owns a rich and important history because of its role as an important harbor for the Dutch East India Company.
Ghent, Brussels and Antwerp in Belgium and Rotterdam in the Netherlands all are larger cities along the waterways that are great places to bike, wander the Old Town areas and sit down for a coffee or beer and snack while soaking in the scenery.
Antwerp’s beautiful 16th-century City Hall. * Photo: Heidi Sarna
When in Rome …er, Antwerp. Definitely try the delicious beer! * Photo: John Roberts
The rivers and canals that serve as important arteries for commerce and travel within the cities make these spots unique in the world — and contribute to their beautiful landscape.
Naturally, the time sailing on Avalon Tranquility II going from port to port also offered the best bits of scenery and relaxation, as we covered more than 405 miles and transited 15 locks on our journey.
The famous windmills of Kinderdijk. * Photo: Heidi Sarna
We cruised through remote countryside, past riverside homes, castle ruins, small beaches and the famous windmills of Kinderdijk. There is also time cruising through more industrial areas, as commercial shipping is big business in the region.
VIDEO: The famous windmills of Kinderdijk in action, on a river cruise Heidi recently enjoyed.
6. More Affordable Price Point Compared To Other River Cruise Lines In Europe
Overall, Avalon Waterways offers good value for the budget conscious traveler, generally coming in lower priced than river lines like AmaWaterways.
For instance, at press time, the Dutch and Belgian Waterways cruise I did with Avalon is priced at less than $2,500 per person for some sailings in the 2025 season, while AmaWaterways’ version of this itinerary is listed at least $1,000 more per person.
What’s Included On An Avalon Waterways River Cruise
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Sparkling wine at breakfast
- Wine, beer and soda at lunch and dinner
- Choice of a daily shore excursion
- Wi-Fi
- Use of bikes
John heads out on one of the many Avalon Waterways bicycle rides he enjoyed all week. * Photo: John Roberts
Why Go?
Avalon Tranquility II carries only 128 passengers and has two large lounge areas and an open sun deck. The ship won’t feel as crowded as some other lines. (Viking and AmaWaterways’ ships carry 160 to 190 passengers, for example.)
The Active & Discovery itinerary in particular would be a reason to book this cruise, as you can choose from a wide variety of activities onboard and ashore from morning until night.
In my opinion, Avalon seems to attract a livelier and more energetic group of cruisers than some lines do, making it similar to the trips I’ve done with AmaWaterways and Emerald Cruises because of their strong wellness- and activity-based programs.
Watch Out For…
I found the food to be average overall. Some meals were good and others subpar. The Bami Goreng Asian stir-fry noodles at the live cooking station for lunch were fantastic, but the cheeseburger (a pre-made patty with no flavor) was almost inedible, for example.
Also, meals in the main dining room tended to drag on way too long between courses. I was traveling alone, and for several meals I dined by myself and was not ordering every course. It was hard to wait for 15 minutes between my courses because the servers were not able to bring me my main course while the rest of the dining room was still having appetizers or other intermediate courses.
That’s why I found the Bistro in the Panorama Lounge to be a better option if I wanted to eat quickly so I could get off the ship to go for a sunset walk or into town for some other independent exploration.
The casual bistro area in the Panorama Lounge. * Photo: John Roberts
The Itinerary
The Active & Discovery in Holland and Belgium itinerary went as follows:
(Note: I joined the ship in Ghent two days into the sailing.)
- Day 1 — embark Tranquility II in Amsterdam
- Day 2 — Middelburg
- Day 3 — Ghent
- Day 4 — Brussels
- Day 5 — Antwerp
- Day 6 — Rotterdam
- Day 7 — Amsterdam
- Day 8 — Amsterdam, disembark
My Final Thoughts On My Avalon Waterways Active River Cruise
Avalon’s Active & Discovery cruise is a good option for travelers who want to see and do more on their river cruise.
I loved the chance to do a little bit of everything, from joining cycling and kayaking tours, to food-focused excursions and a visit to the Delft factory for some history and trying my hand at making my own masterpiece.
The Avalon program offers more than 30 Active & Discovery excursions (free and some for-fee) so that you likely can find a tour or activity to suit your interest. This differs from many other cruise lines’ shore excursion programs, which I have found can be limited in what they offer for the daily included tours, which often are a simple walking tour of a city center.
And so, in conclusion, the variety of excursions definitely stands out, giving cruisers a lot of choice. I’d say Avalon Waterways is good value for the budget-minded cruiser — though a notch below in food and service quality when compared with AmaWaterways and Viking.
Interested In An Avalon Waterways Sporty River Cruise?
Here’s a link to the itinerary, with fares starting at $2,449 per person.
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HEIDI SARNA
