AmaWaterways has turned the challenges of low water levels on the Danube into a positive showcase of adaptability, service and the appeal of river cruising, following a successful River of Rewards mega famil for Australian travel advisors and trade media including Travel Weekly.
The River of Rewards initiative, launched around 18 months ago, was designed to reward advisors not only for revenue generated through AmaWaterways bookings, but also for engaging with and learning about the brand.
AmaWaterways Australasia general manager Steve Richards told Travel Weekly that the program had proved highly successful, with advisors able to earn points through bookings as well as activities such as completing Ama Academy training and promoting the brand to their databases.
“River of Rewards has been hugely successful,” Richards said.
“It was a concept that we came up with about a year and a half ago, and we wanted to make it an opportunity for the agents to be able to get bookings and earn their cabins through revenue.”
The concept helped earn AmaWaterways’ Angela Smith Travel Weekly’s 2025 Women in Travel Cruise Marketer of the Year. It is also a contender for Most Outstanding Marketing Campaign – Supplier in this year’s NTIA Awards with the winner to be announced at a gala event in Melbourne on 10 October.
The decision to allow successful advisors to bring a plus one was also deliberate, with AmaWaterways choosing to prioritise the quality of the experience over maximising the number of agents aboard.
Richards said the aim was to allow advisors to experience the product in the same way their own clients would, while also making the prize more appealing.
“We thought they’d engage more,” he said. “The key was that they would experience it like their guests would.”
New recruit
Among those experiencing AmaSofia was Travel Associates advisor Kiyah Rook, who entered the competition after meeting the AmaWaterways team at last year’s CLIA conference.
“I always feel guilty going away without my husband, so I was super excited for the opportunity that he would be able to come,” Rook said.
The trip also introduced Rook to a cruise line she had never previously sold.
Starting straight out of school and now a travel industry veteran of 16 years, Rook spent a decade working in an office in Shellharbour before becoming a home-based advisor six years ago. She moved to Canada after falling in love while travelling, continuing her career as a travel advisor while living in Whistler, before returning to Australia as the economics of life in the Canadian ski resort became increasingly difficult.
Today, about 90 per cent of her business comes from repeat clients and referrals – many of whom have followed her throughout her international moves.
Rook said the AmaWaterways experience had given her plenty to recommend to clients, particularly those wanting the freedom of independent travel without giving up the benefits of travelling with a group.
“I think that it’s great for people who want the flexibility. There’s something for everybody on board,” she said. “It’s relaxed luxury. The service has been great. The boat is amazing.”
Her husband, who is not normally a cruise or bus-tour enthusiast, also adapted to the experience, Rook said, with the itinerary providing opportunities to explore independently.
Highlights on board and onshore
One of the highlights was a shore excursion to Český Krumlov in the Czech Republic – Rook’s first visit to both the country and the historic town.
“I’ve sent customers there for the past 16 years just as a day trip. I now realise that you definitely need to spend at least two nights in Český,” she said.
Low river levels did, however, force AmaWaterways to change the original itinerary, with the company moving quickly to communicate the changes and restructure the journey.
Richards said the team had known for several weeks that low water could become an issue, but waited until operational changes were necessary before implementing the revised plan.
“We don’t cancel, we adapt,” he said.
Advisors were informed immediately of the new arrangements, which included a hotel stay in Budapest followed by a coach journey through Bratislava to Melk, where guests boarded AmaSofia for six of the seven nights.
Richards said there had initially been disappointment and concern among participants, but the response became overwhelmingly positive once the revised itinerary unfolded. That included onboard activities, entertainment and information session and an AI update.
“I think, if anything, we’ve turned a negative into a positive, and I’m quite proud of that,” he said.
The success of the initiative has prompted AmaWaterways to bring River of Rewards back, with the next program moving beyond Europe to the Mekong.
Richards confirmed a full travel-agent charter aboard the new AmaMaya, operating from Siem Reap in Cambodia down the Mekong to Ho Chi Minh City over seven nights.
“It’s going to be super exciting,” he told Travel Weekly. “You’ve got to win it, you’ve got to be on it, you’ve got to go for it.”
For AmaWaterways, the next chapter will provide advisors with first-hand experience of an increasingly diverse river-cruise portfolio, while reinforcing the central lesson of the AmaSofia famil: even when the river changes course, the experience does not have to.
