Looking ahead to 2023, one clear certainty is that many river cruise lines are putting the trade at the heart of their growth plans. For Riviera Travel, it has a long-term commitment to travel agents, says the line head of agency sales Thomas Morgan, with its agent partners set to play a “huge role” in 2023, he adds.

That’s music to agents’ ears, and more good river news came in October, when research from Uniworld found that a third of guests who took an ocean cruise prior to the pandemic have since chosen to do their first river cruise in 2022/2023. The survey found that 41 per cent of clients preferred smaller ships and fewer passengers, while 30 per cent said river cruises provide more varied scenery and views.

Speaking of scenery, there’s no better way to see the inner workings of some of the globe’s finest cities than on a river cruise, and this publication is designed to give you another selling tool when chatting to clients – whether they happen to be experienced cruisers, new to cruise, or even new to river.