WHY IT RATES: The Avalon View will be the cruise line’s 17th suite ship and 14th suite ship in Europe. —Janeen Christoff, TravelPulse Senior Writer
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Mastering the art of blending luxury with comfort isn’t easy. Nor is it easy to blur the lines between outside and in. Avalon Waterways’ Panorama Suites–available on two full decks of every ship in Avalon’s fleet have done just that. And that’s not all. In addition to launching the new Avalon Envision in April with godmother and best-selling author Elizabeth Gilbert, the river cruise company is announcing plans to launch the new Avalon View in 2020.
Providing travelers with the most consistent ship and stateroom experience fleet-wide available from any river cruise operator across the globe, the new Avalon View will mark Avalon Waterways’ 14th Suite Ship in Europe; its 17th Suite Ship worldwide. In fact, Avalon Waterways is exclusively sailing new, Suite Ships with an average age of just six-years-old.
“On Avalon’s signature Suite Ships, we provide our guests with two full decks of 200-square-foot, one-of-a-kind Panorama Suites,” said Pam Hoffee, managing director of Avalon Waterways. “And, this year, for the first time, there’s only one point-of-view on an Avalon Waterways river cruise: The suite view. Avalon’s entire fleet of ships, worldwide, is comprised of new Suite Ships giving our travelers exclusive access to the industry’s only Open-Air Balconies and beds facing the incredible views for which river cruising is famous.”
Avalon’s Suite Ships have made a splash in river cruising since the Avalon Panorama debuted just eight years ago (in 2011) and have not only garnered industry awards – including the “Best Cabins” in river cruising from Cruise Critic for four years in a row; they have also won-over river cruisers across the globe.
According to a survey of nearly 700 past Avalon cruisers:
—95 percent prefer Avalon’s Panorama Suites to other cruise line cabins and would choose Avalon Waterways again, based on their Panorama Suite experience.
—95 percent also would choose Avalon’s Open-Air Balconiesto traditional French balconies.
—Further, 92 percent of travelers said beds facing the views is “important” or “extremely important” when booking a river cruise.
Avalon’s Open-Air Balconies for the “win.” According to survey respondents, their favorite feature of Avalon’s Panorama Suites are Open-Air Balconies which feature wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling windows that offer the widest-opening windows on two full decks (they open 7-feet wide in Europe; 11-feet wide in SE Asia) to invite the outside-in, without compromising room space. Avalon’s Panorama Suites also feature large marble bathrooms and beds facing the views.
Both the Avalon Envision (new for 2019) and Avalon View (new for 2020) are 443-feet long with two Royal Suites (300-square-feet) and 65 Panorama Suites (200-square-feet) on two full decks, as well as 16, 170-square foot staterooms.
The Avalon Envision will sail on the legendary Danube River while the Avalon View will ply the romantic Rhine River.
The Suite Life Sales Event: Book a 2020 Europe cruise early and receive $299 air and SAVE $1,000 per couple on select sailings.
SOURCE: Avalon Waterways press release.
