my husband and i chose this, our first river cruise, with some concern. u river cruises, a fairly new cruise line, targeting millennials, was initially restricted to passengers between 21 and 45 years of age. when the ship could not be filled, the age restriction was lifted. and we booked, but we worried that, because of our age (we are both in our 60s), we might not fit in or feel welcomed on The A. that fear, thankfully, was unfounded. about half the passengers on the ship fell in the target age range, and the other half were older, like we are. regardless of age, passengers interacted with each other easily and comfortably.

the ship has a youthful vibe. the experience, while high in quality, is not formal, but casual in dress and presentation dinners on our cruise were most often served buffet style at shared tables, but two nights of our 7-day itinerary, dinner was presented family-style. the food was varied, fresh, and quite good. the wine list, while short, offers a nice variety. having access to a free laundry room was great!

staterooms are very small. unless you are booked in a suite, the stateroom is not a place in which you would choose to hang out. but, the rooms were attractive, clean, thoughtfully laid out and quiet. we had a french balcony, which really is not a balcony at all, but a full length window which opens, having a bar across the middle so you can stand IN your room and look out and feel the weather. something i did not know about river cruises, is that the river cruise ships park on the banks of the river, side by side, sometimes three-deep. it is a good thing that windows have privacy shutters, because when the ships are in port, your stateroom window can be only inches away from a neighboring ship's stateroom window. another thing that i did not know is that when you exit your ship, it may mean passing through several other ships as you make your way to shore. Read more