2027 Strasbourg & Romantic Rhine Mini-Cruise

LeShuttle to Calais and overnight stay in eastern France on a bed and breakfast basis. 

2027 Strasbourg & Romantic Rhine Mini-Cruise

Spend the day exploring Strasbourg at your own pace before boarding our river cruise later this afternoon. Wander the picturesque streets of the historic centre, admire the distinctive half-timbered buildings or stop for lunch in one of the city’s cafés. Later, board the MS Gerard Schmitter and settle in for the start of our Rhine adventure. We sail this evening, cruising through the night towards Koblenz.

2027 Strasbourg & Romantic Rhine Mini-Cruise

We sail north along the Moselle towards Koblenz, where the river meets the Rhine. This afternoon, explore the town at leisure or join the onboard guest services team for a stroll through its historic streets. We’ll moor here overnight, giving you the chance to head back into town after dinner. For one of the best views across Koblenz and the rivers, take a ride on the cable car over the Rhine to Ehrenbreitstein Fortress and enjoy the panorama from its grounds.

2027 Strasbourg & Romantic Rhine Mini-Cruise

Today brings one of the most scenic stretches of the cruise. Sail down the Rhine from Koblenz to Rudesheim, passing vineyard-covered hillsides, riverside villages and castles perched above the water. Look out for the famous Lorelei Rock, a steep slate cliff rising high above the Rhine and linked to the legend of a beautiful siren whose song lured sailors to their fate. Arrive in Rudesheim in the early afternoon, with time to explore independently or choose one of Croisi Europe’s optional excursions (at extra cost). Options include a tourist train journey with wine tasting and a visit to the Mechanical Music Cabinet museum, or a hike through the surrounding vineyards.

2027 Strasbourg & Romantic Rhine Mini-Cruise

Sail upstream along the Rhine towards Mannheim, passing the riverside towns of Wiesbaden, Nierstein and Worms along the way. On arrival, our own coach will meet us for an included visit to Heidelberg. Explore this historic university city at your own pace, or join our optional guided excursion to Heidelberg Castle, including the funicular ride up to the castle for panoramic views across the city and Neckar Valley. Return to Mannheim for our final night on board, with a special gala evening and dinner before we sail overnight back towards Strasbourg.

2027 Strasbourg & Romantic Rhine Mini-Cruise

Disembark in Strasbourg and meet our coach for the journey to Nancy. Spend some free time exploring this elegant French city, perhaps admiring the grand Place Stanislas or stopping for lunch at leisure. Later, continue to our overnight hotel in northern France.

2027 Strasbourg & Romantic Rhine Mini-Cruise

After breakfast, we check out of the hotel and head to Calais for our journey home on LeShuttle. 

Explore Strasbourg’s Grande Île UNESCO World Heritage, where half-timbered facades lean over canals and cobbled lanes. Wander La Petite France and gaze up at the filigree west front of Strasbourg Cathedral, its pink sandstone catching the light.

Independent time rewards with bakery aromas, boutique windows and quiet quaysides. The city’s Franco-German character comes through in Alsatian winstubs, arcaded squares and bilingual signs—an elegant setting for photographs and people-watching.

Visit Nancy to stand in the sweep of Place Stanislas, a UNESCO-listed royal square framed by creamy classical facades. Admire the gilded gates by Jean Lamour and ornate fountains that anchor its perspectives—a civic stage designed for promenading.

Commissioned by Duke Stanislaw Leszczynski in the 18th century, the ensemble links old and new towns with measured elegance. Nearby streets hint at the École de Nancy Art Nouveau heritage, rewarding a short detour for lovers of sinuous ironwork and floral glass.

Experience Heidelberg Old Town, threading baroque lanes beneath the castle’s terraces. Stroll the Hauptstrasse to the Karl Theodor Bridge (Old Bridge) and the Church of the Holy Spirit, all in the shadow of Germany’s oldest university.

Views along the Neckar are superb from riverside quays or, for a gentle climb, along the famed Philosophers’ Way panoramas. Cafés, bookshops and student traditions lend a scholarly, lived-in atmosphere to this enduringly romantic city.

Toast your voyage with a welcome cocktail in the lounge as the crew sets the tone for relaxed discovery. This convivial moment is a chance to meet your Tour Manager and fellow travellers, settle in, and feel the sailaway mood take hold.

Your host outlines life on board—from dining to shore visits—while the bar serves an included selection of house wine, beer, spirits and soft drinks. It is an easy, sociable introduction to river cruising on the Rhine.

Celebrate the journey with a gala dinner, a chef’s multi-course menu paired with regional flavours and Rhine wines. Elegant service and candle-lit tables lend a festive air to this final evening on board.

After dessert, the lounge fills with live music and conversation—perfect for a farewell toast with new friends or a quiet moment on deck watching river lights drift by.

Join an optional guided excursion to Heidelberg Castle, including a ride the funicular railway (additional cost, bookable on tour). Ascend to red-sandstone terraces for panoramic Neckar Valley views across the Old Bridge, church spires and the university quarter.

Inside, your guide reveals courtyard facades, the terrace panorama, the vast Great Tun wine barrel and the Pharmacy Museum—vivid layers of courtly life and scientific curiosity.

Opt for a Rudesheim wine tasting, travelling by tourist train to a cellar for pours of Rheingau Rieslings and Spätburgunder (additional cost, bookable on board). Between sips, wander the lively Drosselgasse lined with timbered taverns and vine-draped balconies.

Continue to Siegfried’s Mechanical Music Cabinet to hear orchestrions and self-playing pianos spring to life—quirky, hypnotic sounds housed in a former aristocratic manor.

Choose a guided vineyard hike above Rudesheim, following sun-warmed paths through Riesling terraces to the hilltop Niederwald Monument (additional cost, bookable on board). Wide Rhine panoramas reveal castles, barges and the green folds of the Rheingau.

A local leader shares stories of soil and slope as you pause amid vine rows and forest edges. Sturdy footwear is recommended; the pace is unhurried and the views, generous.

Sail the Moselle towards Koblenz, tracing sweeping river bends beneath steep, slate-clad vineyards and storybook villages. From lounge or sun deck, the scenery unspools at an unhurried pace—terraces, church spires and hillside farms mirrored in still water. Light and shadow play across the valley as the ship glides on.

Approaching the city, the ship glides to the Deutsches Eck confluence, where the Moselle meets the Rhine—a dramatic crossroads shaped by winegrowing since Roman times. Expect crisp Riesling country and soft evening light that flatters every viewpoint.

Cruise the celebrated Romantic Rhine Gorge between Koblenz and Rudesheim, gliding past vineyard-lined banks, medieval towers and slate cliffs. From the sun deck, watch castle silhouettes sharpen around each bend and listen for the legend of the Lorelei Rock as river traffic threads the narrow channel.

Sail through the UNESCO-listed Middle Rhine Valley, with sightings of Marksburg, Pfalzgrafenstein at Kaub and Schloss Stolzenfels. The mix of terraced vines, barge horns and castle-crowned cliffs sets an evocative mood—ideal to pause for photos and reflection as history and landscape merge.