Riviera Travel plans to add a new river ship to their fleet every 18 months, with the aim of doubling their customers to 200,000 by 2030, CEO Phil Hullah says.
New ships Riviera Radiance and Riviera Rose will be introduced on the Danube and Douro rivers next year.
Potential future destinations for new ships include the Mekong, Nile, and American rivers like the Mississippi and Ohio.
Riviera Travel is also considering expanding into ocean cruising, either through partnerships or building their own ship.
The company’s history dates back to 1981 when founder Michael Wright started with five canvas tents in France, eventually expanding to coach and air travel, long-haul trips, river cruises, and ocean cruising.
The core values and vision of Riviera Travel remain consistent over the years, with a focus on providing exceptional holiday experiences for discerning guests in interesting destinations.
Mr Hullah said: “Riviera has obviously evolved and changed enormously since 1984 but at the heart the values and vision that we have remain consistent. We are here to provide exceptional holiday experiences for discerning guests in the world’s most interesting destinations. In 1992 Riviera had a big breakthrough when the team managed to crack national newspaper distribution and a full-page advert in the Sunday People managed to fill 35 coaches to Paris. In 1994 we moved from coach travel to air, in 2006 long-haul was added to the armoury then in 2009 came the brave new frontier of river cruising. Lord Byron was the first ship specifically built for us by the Scylla team. In 2016 we went into ocean cruise. From that first coach trip to 66 destinations worldwide, taking away 1.45m guests along the way.”
