First time river cruising!
I was lucky enough to go on Riviera’s M.S Jane Austen to sail down the River Seine. This was my first river cruise and was a trip that really left an imprint on me. The stops along the Seine were amazing and full of history and culture, it really is not to be missed!
Our trip started in St Pancras in London as we took the Eurostar to Paris. This was a great and the most sustainable way to travel, we met fellow Riviera travellers there too. We were then met at Gare du Nord by taxi for transfer to the ship.
The hand picked itinerary was perfect for a history lover such as myself. Our first stop after sailing all morning was Les Andleys home to the Chateau Gallard, a gorgeous castle built by Richard the Third. It was a lovely little village which made a great introduction to France.
October was a beautiful time to go, sailing along enjoying the autumnal scenery and white chalk cliffs in the sunshine, it was incredibly relaxing. You can unwind either from the plunge pool or the bistro at the back of the ship where I spent a lot of time reading and chatting with other guests in the self service tea/coffee bar during the day.
On our second Day we visited Rouen. The day started with a guided tour looking at important sights and culture points of the capital of Normandy. We visited the gorgeous Notre-Dame de Rouen cathedral and had some free time to explore the markets before having a tasty lunch on board whilst sailing to Caudebec for the highlight day of the trip tomorrow.
My favourite day of the cruise was also the busiest. We had an early start to visit the Bayeux tapestry which I was really excited for. Going through the museum was really special and getting to see the tapestry was breathtaking. The town of Bayeux is charming and I highly recommend having a wander around to visit the patisseries and the cathedral here.
Following this we went to visit the Bayeux War Cemetery which is the largest commonwealth cemetery of world war II. This was really emotional but also very important to visit and I’m so glad I had this opportunity to be reminded of the sacrifice made by so many.
Our final stop of the day was Arromanches, a town of the Gold Beach where 25,000 soldiers landed on D-Day to change the direction of WW2. The museum here was amazing and it was a humbling visit to invasion beach Gold seeing the parts of Mulberry harbour that were left behind. This was really the best part of the trip and makes this cruise one that really needs to be on everybody’s cruising bucket list.
The next day was a lot more relaxing with a visit to Honfleur and some time to shop and enjoy the town. One really special thing we did this evening which made Riviera stand out was the specialty dining in the Bistro which I loved. During the day you would see the cruise team getting off the ship and coming back with lots of local treats from the markets which were then served in La Brasserie that you could book in for as many nights as you wanted. We had French onion soup, a selection of cheese and meats and breads, delicious eclairs and great wine.
As we came to the end of the cruise we had a lovely morning getting to explore Claude Monet’s gardens which was another highlight of the trip, as I loved getting to see places I knew from his famous paintings. The house was beautiful and the pastel themed rooms were my favourite part of this visit. Once again we boarded the ship for a lovely lunch. My favourite part of the lunches was the fresh food prepared by a chef in front of you and on this day they had steak sandwiches which were beautiful. All of the food we had on Riviera was some of the best I have eaten and the chefs were amazing at creating delicious menus especially on the gala night which was a really exciting night.
We finished off with a day in Paris, visiting the heart of the city. The Riviera team were incredible and arranged a guided coach tour of the sights. We had some free time before getting back on the cruise for our final dinner and to say goodbye to the ship.
