Here's a prediction that is starting to feel a bit like a broken record: For 2014, river cruising shows no signs of slowing its relentless acceleration.
Viking River Cruises, which launched 10 ships this year and six in 2012, will continue to break its own records by launching an additional 14 vessels in Europe in 2014.
The year will also be marked by the launch of the first new river cruise line to enter the game in six years: Scenic Tours has announced it is introducing Emerald Waterways in 2014, a four-star, value-oriented alternative to its existing upscale river brand, Scenic Cruises.
Emerald will kick off with the launch of two newbuilds in Europe, the 182-passenger Emerald Star and the 182-passenger Emerald Sky, on April 15. Defining features of the new ships will be a heated swimming pool, a movie theater and two restaurants.
Competition is also coming from abroad. The largest river cruise company in France, CroisiEurope, started selling 2014 river cruises to the U.S. market this fall, when it launched a website and call center devoted to U.S. retailers and their clientele. The company is hoping to court U.S. customers with the promise of low-cost river cruises that host a multicultural mix of passengers.
High-end tour operator Abercrombie & Kent resisted the river cruise market for years, but no more: It is expanding its offerings for 2014 from three departures it offered in 2013 (on the Luftner Cruises-owned Amadeus Brilliant) to 18 departures on a fleet of three Amadeus ships. The river cruises are being offered through Connections by A&K, the company's lower-priced product line.
With all these new ships in Europe, there will also be more tweaks and shifts in innovation and amenities. Look for river cruise lines to unveil enhancements such as all alcoholic beverages included, or additional dining venues, as well as more dynamic shore excursion programs. The stakes are getting higher, and that can only mean more and better options for passengers.
While the Rhine, Main and Danube continue to be the bread-and-butter waterways of the European river cruise industry, attention is turning toward France in 2014, with new ships and relocations steering toward Bordeaux and Provence.
Of the 14 Viking Longships launching in 2014, three are slated to sail in southern France: the Viking Buri, Viking Heimdal and Viking Hermod. Additionally, Viking is introducing a seven-night Bordeaux itinerary in 2014 on the 190-passenger Viking Forseti, a vessel that was christened this year.
Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection will unveil its new S.S. Catherine, sister ship to the 164-passenger S.S. Antoinette, on France's Rhone and Saone rivers this spring. The company's 132-passenger River Royale, which is currently sailing those rivers, will move to France's Bordeaux region, a new destination for both Uniworld and Viking.
Tauck is also enhancing its presence in France, deploying its 118-passenger Swiss Sapphire to sail two new itineraries on the Seine River in 2014.
River cruise operators are always looking for emerging river markets to invest in, so there will be more and more activity on rivers such as Myanmar's Irrawaddy, India's Ganges and the Peruvian Amazon.
While Myanmar is a market on the entire travel industry's radar, its Irrawaddy River actually represents a unique opportunity for the river cruise industry. With a lack of hotels to meet the exploding demand for travel to the Southeast Asian nation, river cruise ships offer a quick solution to fill the void.
Haimark Ltd. is introducing a 56-passenger vessel in September, the Irrawaddy Explorer, which is being built by Haimark's partner in Myanmar, Ayravata Cruises.
Being constructed exclusively for Haimark, it will offer a colonial luxury design, sailing nine-night itineraries from Mandalay to Yangon, stopping in Bagan along the way and thus alleviating some of the pressure tour operators are facing in booking hotels in Myanmar. Passengers then have the option to travel to Inle Lake in Myanmar following the river cruise.
AmaWaterways has also introduced Myanmar for 2014, with two new river cruises that will take place on the 56-passenger AmaPura: an 11-day Golden Treasures of Myanmar and a 15-day Hidden Wonders of Myanmar.
Pandaw River Expeditions, which was more or less alone on Southeast Asia's rivers for many years, is also introducing two newbuilds in Myanmar, slated to launch in July.
Pandaw, a Singapore-based operation with headquarters in Scotland, has contracted with the Sinmalike shipyard in Yangon to build two 40-passenger vessels, the Kindat Pandaw and Kalaw Pandaw. The Kindat and Kalaw will join the Indochina Pandaw and Orient Pandaw in Myanmar, bring the company's Burmese fleet to four vessels, for a total capacity of 200 passengers.
Several other tour operators and river cruise lines have also inked deals in Myanmar.
In India, Haimark is building a vessel to be launched in 2015 on the Ganges, where it appears to be more or less unchallenged for now (though that is likely to change), and the Peruvian Amazon continues to represent opportunities for smaller, upscale river cruise ship product.
Follow Michelle Baran on Twitter @mbtravelweekly.