In a bid to capture early 2021 business, the all-inclusive operator will enable guests to change travel dates or itinerary up to 90 days before departure.
New for next year are visits to World War I sites in Ypres and Passchendaele and two culinary itineraries highlighting French gastronomy with the Tastes of Southern France on the Rhone and Flavours of Bordeaux itinerary cruising the Garonne.
The new culinary cruises include an on board dinner prepared by Michelin star chef Didier Goiffon and a cooking class at three-star Michelin chef Georges Blanc’s restaurant.
Guests can also learn the family secrets of regional recipes with Scenic’s new Ancestry of the Kitchen programme. This includes a series of cooking classes held in the homes of locals including Dutch Apple Pie baking in Hoorn, Bulgarian Banica in Vidin and traditional Portuguese bread-making.
The brand also has new a four-night sailing from Vienna to Budapest, which concludes with an exclusive classical concert at Budapest’s Godollo Palace. Prices for the four-night Tastes of Imperial Europe itinerary start from £1,570pp based on a 25 April 2021 departure.
Joseph Grimley, The Scenic Group’s UK director of trade sales said: “We’re seeing our loyalty members and new customers look to the future with high engagement levels on our digital marketing and upward trends in bookings. Our Book with Confidence programme offers flexibility and peace of mind combined with certainty, reassuring those ready to plan their Europe river cruise next year.”
Bookings made before 31 July 2020 qualify for savings of £1,200 per couple, private door-to-door chauffeur transfers and Scenic’s new deposit protection plan. Another discount of £125pp is offered on 2021 bookings paid in full by 31 October 2020.
