River Cruising In An Age Of Uncertainty

At Cape Reinga (at the northern tip of New Zealand) after a tough day of battling headwinds on a bicycle. Had I heeded the advice of those in my hometown, I’d probably still be stuck there, having missed out on four beautiful decades of exploring and experiencing the world. The message: Get out there.

When I was in 20s, few, if any in the small town where I lived, urged me to pursue something I wanted to do: cycle across this vast nation of ours. Their reasons were many but basically boiled down to this: uncertainty. There was no guarantee that the weather would participate or that my bike (or stamina) would hold up or that I would not get injured or killed in an accident. All valid concerns.

I remember thinking that I could heed their advice to stay home. But that would have felt as if I were hiding behind a tree, fearful of venturing out for what could happen. Or I could go. I packed my bags and pedaled away. It was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Now, as back then, we’re faced with all kinds of uncertainty. Will there be chaos at the airports? Will I lose my luggage? Will the water levels cause deviations in my travel? We want guarantees and assurances. Perhaps now more than ever – with a global pandemic not yet ended, war in Ukraine, climate change – guarantees and assurances are hard to come by. That explains in part why folks are reluctant to book too far out.

Indeed, Michael DaCosta, general manager of CroisiEurope North America, told me on Friday that his company was seeing an unusual trend: 40 percent of CroisiEurope’s recent North America bookings have been for cruises in October of this year. Others were booking only into the holiday season, and in fact, space is still available for holiday cruises. See Special Offers On CroisiEurope's 2022 Holiday Season Highlights Available To Book Now

“People were delaying [booking 2023 cruises] because they couldn’t be sure,” Mike told me. “They were interested, but they weren’t pulling the trigger.”

We’re not surprised. Some of our readers expressed reluctance to plan ahead in our post Three Concerns Still Keeping Some From River Cruising.

The tide seems to be turning, however. CroisiEurope recently published a brochure of its 2023 offerings. An email campaign that the company distributed to announce the new brochure “got the best response of any campaign we’ve ever distributed,” Mike said. “We’ve never had a campaign perform so well or had so many requests for brochures.”

Are we at the inflection point? As we move into fall and soon winter, yes, it appears that folks are beginning to make plans for the future. I'm experiencing the optimism personally as my April 2023 barge trips are nearly sold out.

When it comes to my own travels, I've often took inspiration from a quote by Helen Keller. Back in 1940, she wrote: Security is mostly a superstition … Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure … Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.

It's time to once again set out on daring adventures. Are you ready? – Ralph Grizzle

P.S. You can find CroisiEurope’s brochures here or you can ask for our recommendations for river cruises that match your budget and interests.

Article ID: ART4994

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