Whether you're a seasoned connoisseur or partial to a glass or two, there's no denying that wine can be a huge draw when it comes to choosing your cruise, whether it's a rare wine list on board your ship or world-renowned vineyards in the destination in which you're sailing. Cruises offer a fabulous way to make the most of the world's wine regions, so read on to discover our favourite wine cruises.
The Wine Cruise Collection
Our Insight
Choosing a wine voyage
Some of our favourite cruise lines offer a fabulous way to make the most of the world's wine regions, such as SeaDream Yacht Club who offer unique wine cruises hosted by a representative from a visiting winery alongside SeaDream's Wine Director Martin Arentz. You'll visit wineries and vineyards for exclusive tastings and guided tours, with at least two complimentary wine tastings per voyage and a Winemaker's Dinner, where an Executive Chef's degustation menu is complemented with a selection of top cuvees from the visiting winery.
The winding waterways and terraced vineyards of Europe make river cruising a fabulous way to discover the continent's world-renowned wines, and top river cruise line AmaWaterways offer several sailings hosted by a wine professional, usually from North America to compare the varietals with European grapes. Expect specially curated tastings, visits to historic cellars and vineyards, interactive discussions, and special food and wine pairing dinners. Uniworld offers specially designed wine voyages where you'll have the opportunity to meet local vintners for talks and tastings both on board and ashore, hiking and biking through vineyards and sampling excellent gastronomic combinations - think Médoc oysters paired with white wines.
Many cruise lines also offer exceptional varietals on board such as Oceania, who last year launched a rare wine collection across its entire fleet, featuring 80 labels from top vineyards across the world, or Explora, whose speciality restaurant Anthology's wine list changes every four months alongside a change in chef and menu, with each new chef showcasing unique wine-pairing requests.
cruise lines
The Wine Cruise Lines
AmaWaterways
AmaWaterways is a favourite among river cruise regulars for good reason. The ships are spacious, the crews know how to read the room and you get plenty included without being over-managed. If you want luxury river cruises that prioritise time ashore, this is a super dependable choice. You step off in the middle of the places you came to see, join the included excursion if you want it and still have time to wander off on your own.
Uniworld River Cruises
These award-winning and intimate vessels - with an average capacity of just 130 guests - are beautifully appointed in an English country house style, unsurprising given that Uniworld is a sister company to Red Carnation Hotels. They provide a truly luxurious European river cruise experience and offer a number of itineraries further afield, including India, Vietnam, Cambodia and Egypt.
SeaDream Yacht Club
One of our favourites, what we love about SeaDream Yacht Club cruises is the quirkily unstructured style. SeaDream service is something else - it's like being looked after by your favourite family members, people who really understand you, and can second guess your preferences, (and often look to surprise you). Treats all the way!
