Kids on Deck

Can a European river cruise be child-friendly? Kerry Spencer finds out

- Kerry Spencer

KEEP UP, MUMMY,” bellowed Sebastian, my fearless five-year-old, as he and my husband, Eamonn, descended into a crypt under Antwerp’s cathedral. A shiver crept up my spine as I stood among the crumbling tombs, so I returned to the ground floor to gaze at the Baroque masterpieces by the Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens.

The three of us reconvened at the cathedral’s bar and bistro, De Plek, which serves its own brews, with names like Aurora and Memento Mori. Only in beer-loving Belgium, I thought to myself, would you find craft ales served in a cathedral.

This was day six of a seven-night family cruise along the Rhine aboard the Sena, a new ship from A-Rosa Cruises. Our voyage had started in Cologne, Germany, and taken us northwest to the Netherlands: Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Dordrecht. Antwerp was our final stop before returning to Cologne.

River cruising and families don’t typically go together: most lines cater to a more mature demographic and offer few kid-friendly facilities. A-Rosa, which is based in Germany, set about changing that with the 2022 launch of the Sena.

The ship, which is partially powered by electricity, is one of the largest on the Rhine, carrying up to 280 guests. The vessel also boasts some nifty industry firsts. There is a kids’ club; 12 family-size cabins that sleep up to five, each measuring 300 square feet and with built-in bunk beds; and a dedicated kids’ splash pool on the top deck, right next to the main pool.

It’s all part of A-Rosa’s mission to draw more families to river cruising. “We have 32 children on board, and all of our family cabins are occupied,” Serkan Bilici, the ship’s assistant hotel manager, told me. “During summer, this was even higher, with more than 40 children sailing from more than 20 different countries.”