Riviera Travel River Cruises offers passengers the option to purchase a drinks package on its river cruises but do you need it? In this guide to Riviera Travel Drinks Prices and Packages, we share the drinks menus with prices and explain what’s included in the drinks packages. These prices are correct as of October 2023.
We were invited to take a cruise on MS George Eliot to experience a Riviera Travel river cruise but all opinions are our own.
What drinks are included on a Riviera Travel river cruise?
The following drinks are included on a Riviera Travel river cruise:
- Still/sparkling filtered water
- Tea
- Coffee
- Hot chocolate
- Captain’s Welcome and Farewell drinks
There’s a drinks station found onboard all Riviera Travel’s river cruise ships, where you can help yourself to water and hot drinks.
Riviera Travel give all guests a refillable water bottle, which is very useful.
In your cabin there is a kettle with tea, coffee and hot chocolate that is replenished on a daily basis.
If you choose a cabin on the upper deck, your cabin will have a Nespresso coffee machine and you will receive a bottle of Champagne in your cabin on arrival. This is because guests staying on the upper deck benefit from Riviera Plus.
What is Riviera Plus?
Are drinks with your meal included on a Riviera Travel river cruise?
Wine, beer, spirits and soft drinks are not included at meal times on a Riviera Travel river cruise.
Some river cruise companies do offer included drinks at lunch and dinner. We’ve experienced this on AmaWaterways and Tui River Cruises.
Riviera Travel does not include drinks at meal times as standard but you can certainly order drinks, which will be charged to your onboard account and paid at the end of your cruise.
Alternatively, you may decide that a drinks package is more cost effective – keep reading to find out what your options are.
Riviera Travel Drinks Prices
Let’s take a look at the drinks menus on a Riviera Travel river cruise. These menus were correct as of October 2023.
Riviera Travel Wine List
A choice of recommended wines is offered during lunch and dinner, these are included with the Standard Drinks Package or purchased by the glass or bottle.
| 15 cl | 100 cl | |
| Riesling Pfalz | €4,50 | €27,00 |
| Pino Grigio | €5,00 | €30,00 |
| Chardonnay | €5,00 | €27,00 |
| Dornfelder Rose | €5,00 | €27,60 |
| Dornfelder Pfalz red | €4,50 | €27,00 |
| Merlot | €5,00 | €24,50 |
| Cabernet Sauvignon | €5,50 | €27,00 |
Champagne and Sparkling Wine List
| Gaston Declos Brut 75 cl | €79,00 |
| Biscardo Prosecco 10 cl | €5,00 |
| Biscardo Prosecco 10 cl | €35,00 |
| Kir Royale (sparkling wine, creme de cassis) | €6,00 |
| Aperol Spritz (sparkling wine, Aperol, soda water) | €7,50 |
| Hugo Spritz (sparkling wine elderflower, sparkling water) | €7,50 |
Aperitif Drinks Menu
| Sherry, medium, dry | €4,50 |
| Port, red or white | €4,50 |
| Campari | €5,00 |
| Pernod | €5,00 |
Beer and Cider on Riviera Travel
| Warsteiner Draught 25cl | €3,50 |
| Warsteiner Draught 40cl | €5,00 |
| Radler 25cl | €3,50 |
| Radler 40cl | €5,00 |
| Warsteiner 0.0 33cl | €4,75 |
| Somersby Apple Cider 33cl | €4,75 |
| Gluten-free beer 33cl | €4,50 |
| Konig Ludwig Wheat or Drak Beer 50cl | €5,00 |
| Local craft beer | €5,00 |
Cocktails
In the main lounge there is a cocktail menu with a choice of alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails.
| Alcoholic Cocktails | |
| Scylla 50 years! (Vodka, Blue curacao, Sprite, lemon juice) | €6,50 |
| Rosemary Salty Dog (Gin, grapefruit juice, brown sugar, salt, rosemary) | €9,00 |
| Cucumber and Lime Martini | €9,00 |
| Flat White Martini | €8,50 |
| The Monarch (Gin, Martini Rosso, Triple sec, Angostura) | €9,00 |
| Negroni Sbagliato | €9,00 |
| Turf Club (Vodka, Martini dry, Pernod, lime juice) | €8,50 |
| Margarita | €9,00 |
| Mojito | €9,00 |
| Pina Colada | €9,00 |
| Non-Alcoholic Mocktails | |
| Coconut Kiss (orange juice, cranberry juice, lime juice, coconut syrup | €7,00 |
| Virgin Mojito | €7,00 |
| Try Harder (cranberry juice, apple juice, raspberry puree, lime juice, mint, sparking water) | €7,00 |
| Lime Swizzle (passion fruit syrup, fresh lime juice, pineapple juice, splash of tonic, mint) | €7,00 |
| Scylla (orange juice, tonic, blue curacao syrup) | €5,50 |
Cocktails and Mocktails of the Day
Every day there is a choice of a daily cocktail and mocktail. These change throughout the cruise.
You can find out what these are in the daily programme and at the entrance to the lounge.
Gin
There are four gin and tonics to choose from and if you prefer, it can be served with Fever Tree Tonic for an additional €1,25.
| Gordon’s and tonic | €8,00 |
| Henricks and tonic | €9,00 |
| Pink gin and tonic | €9,00 |
| Bombay Sapphire and tonic | €9,00 |
Rum
There are two rums on the drinks menu.
| Havana Club 3 Anejos | €6,00 |
| Havana Club Anejo Especial Brown | €7,00 |
Vodka
| Stolichnaya | €6,00 |
| Absolut | €6,50 |
Brandy/Cognac List
| Asbach Uralt (used in Rudesheim Kaffees) | €7,00 |
| Calvados Gilbert | €7,00 |
| Hennessy V.S. | €8,00 |
Whiskey
| Johnny Walker Red Label | €6,00 |
| Jameson Irish Whilskey | €6,00 |
| Glenliver Scotch Malt | €8,50 |
| Jack Daniels Tennessee | €8,00 |
Eau de Vie
There is a small choice of fruit brandy on Riviera Travel:
- Apricot, pear, raspberry – €3,75
- Grappa – €3,75
Liqueur menu
If you’re looking for a night cap, you can choose from the following liqueur drinks.
| Amaretto di Saronna | €6,00 |
| Baileys Irish Cream | €6,00 |
| Cointreau | €6,00 |
| Drambuie | €6,00 |
Hot Drinks Menu on Riviera Travel cruises
| Coffee | €3,00 |
| Espresso | €3,00 |
| Double espresso | €4,50 |
| Cappuccino | €4,00 |
| Latte Macchiato | €4,50 |
| English Breakfast tea | €3,00 |
| Earl Grey tea | €3,00 |
| Pure Green tea | €3,00 |
| Lemon and ginger tea | €3,00 |
| Mint tea | €3,00 |
| Rooibos tea | €3,00 |
| Fruit tea | €3,00 |
| Fresh mint tea | €4,00 |
| Tea with rum | €5,50 |
| Hot chocolate | €3,50 |
| Hot chocolate with whipped cream | €4,00 |
| Hot chocolate with rum | €5,50 |
| Rudesheimer Coffee | €8,50 |
| Irish Coffee | €8,50 |
| Cafe Amaretto | €8,50 |
Non-Alcoholic Drinks Prices
| Gerolsteiner sparkling water 20 cl | €3,00 |
| Gerolsteiner still water 20 cl | €3,00 |
| Gerolsteiner sparkling water 75 cl | €4,50 |
| Gerolsteiner sparkling water 75 cl | €4,50 |
| Coca-Cola (reg / diet / zero) | €3,00 |
| Sprite | €3,00 |
| Schweppes (slimline) Tonic Water | €3,00 |
| Schweppes Bitter Lemon | €3,00 |
| Fever Tree Mediterranean Tonic Water | €4,25 |
| Scheppes Ginger Ale | €3,00 |
| Apple / Orange / Grapefruit / Pineapple / Tomato juice | €3,00 |
| Fresh orange juice | €5,00 |
| Martini Floreale | €4,00 |
| Pallini Limoncello | €4,00 |
| Strykk Not Gin | €4,00 |
| Strykk Not Rum | €4,00 |
| Strykk Not Vodka | €4,00 |
| Alcohol-free Chardonnay | €4,00 |
| Alcohol-free Cabernet Sauvignon | €4,00 |
| Alcohol-free Sparkling wine | €4,00 |
Now you’ve seen the individual drinks prices, it hopefully gives you an idea of how much you’re likely to spend on a river cruise.
Riviera Plus passengers will receive one drinks voucher per night to enjoy. This drinks voucher can be used for one drink from the following list:
- Sherry
- Port
- Campari Orange and soda
- Pernod
- House wine
- Sparkling wine
- Warsteiner/Radler beer
- Non-alcoholic Warsteiner beer
- House gin and tonic
- Daily cocktail
- Mineral water
- Coca-cola, Sprite
- Tonic water
- Fruit juice
Riviera Travel Drinks Packages
Riviera Travel offers two drinks packages for river cruises:
- Standard Drinks Package
- Promotional Superior Drinks Package (included with all 2024 European river cruises)
It’s worth being aware that the Superior Drinks Package is not available to purchase but is included for guests on all European river cruises throughout 2024 for no addition fee.
The Standard Drinks Package must be paid for the entire cruise and should be added to your booking prior to departure by contacting the reservations team.
All passengers sharing a cabin must have the drinks package, so if one person wants a drinks package the person staying with them in their cabin must also have it.
Riviera Travel Standard Drinks Package
This drinks package is £129pp for a 7-night cruise. The price does vary depending on the number of night of your cruise.
The Riviera Travel Standard Drinks Package includes the following drinks during lunch and dinner:
- Draught beer
- Non-alcoholic beer
- Soft drinks
- Juices
- Red, white and rose house wines
- Wine recommendations from the menu
Drinks ordered outside of meal times are paid for individually, in addition to the drinks package.
This package is suited to people who enjoy a drink with their meal but are unlikely to drink lots in the evenings.
We think that this drinks package on Riviera Travel is a good price because the wines we had during meal times were very nice. The waiting staff would come round regularly to top up your glass during your meal.
Riviera Travel Superior Drinks Package
The Superior drinks package is available on all European river cruises departing in 2024. You do not need to add this to your booking, it’s automatically included at no additional cost.
The Riviera Travel Superior Drinks Package includes everything in the Standard Drinks Package PLUS drinks from the bar from 6pm to midnight including:
- Cocktail and mocktail of the day
- House spirits and mixers (including gin, vodka, rum and whisky)
- Recommended regional wine during dinner
- Martini and Sherry pre-dinner
- Port and Brandy after dinner
You are not limited to a fixed number of drinks from this list, for example, if you want a few different wines and spirits, you can.
If you don’t drink, there are certainly plenty of non-alcoholic options to choose from and you are not paying extra for a drinks package you won’t use. It means that the drinks you do order will be included.
Our thoughts about Riviera Travel drinks
In our opinion, we aren’t heavy drinkers but the addition of the Superior Drinks Package for 2024 means that you will have a more ‘inclusive’ cruise, which we like. We much prefer to have more included in our cruise, with less to pay at the end.
Some river cruise lines include drinks with your meals as part of the cruise cost. This does take away some of the decision-making but we understand that this is not something that everyone wants or needs.
The Standard Drinks Package is a reasonable price if you enjoy a drink with dinner.
Riviera Travel drinks prices are comparable to prices you’d pay at home so if you choose to pay for drinks individually, it still isn’t overly expensive.
