by Sarah Kuta
Last updated: 12:35 PM ET, Wed March 13, 2024
In front of an audience of travel advisors in Amsterdam today, Riverside Luxury Cruises celebrated the christening of its newest vessel, Riverside Debussy.
Alle Pierce, the ship’s godmother, performed the ceremonial breaking of a Champagne bottle across the vessel’s hull. Pierce is an Emmy Award-winning host, producer, travel expert and founder of Gals Abroad Getaways.
The christening ceremony served as the official kickoff to this year’s American the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) River Cruise Expo. More than 1,300 U.S.-based travel advisors are registered to attend, and nine ships are docked together in front of Amsterdam’s cruise terminal.
The christening of the Riverside Debussy (Photo Credit: Sarah Kuta)
“As she winds her way along the path of the Rhine, my hope is that she carries with her the spirit of discovery and adventure that has really enchanted travelers for centuries,” Pierce said at the event. “I hope that her decks resound with the laughter of friends and the melodies of shared joy echoing against the ancient castles that line these river banks. My hope is that she has boundless voyages that are filled with unforgettable moments and that she is a beacon of calm and luxury on this great river.”
Jen Halboth, chief executive officer of Riverside Luxury Cruises, said Pierce perfectly embodied the soul of the Riverside Debussy.
“She is young, she is vibrant, she has a wise and sage soul,” Halboth said. “She’s captivating and she’s creative and she likes to have fun. She will share her amazing spirit, her curiosity, her love of travel, her love of women, her love of humans and her love of just get out there and do it.”
At the end of the four-day conference, Riverside Debussy will take travel advisors on a 6-night cruise to Brussels, with stops in Dusseldorf, Nijmegen, Maastricht and Antwerp along the way. From there, the ship will make its official debut on the Rhine River on March 23.
Riverside Debussy, formerly named MS Debussy, was once a Crystal Cruises ship. Riverside Luxury Cruises purchased Crystal’s riverboats after the company suspended operations in 2022. (Crystal Cruises has since been reborn.)
Gregor and Anouchka Gerlach, the brother-and-sister owners of the high-end hotel group Seaside Collection, launched Riverside Luxury Cruises in the fall of 2022. The line’s first sailing, aboard the Riverside Mozart, took place in April 2023 on the Danube River.
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