Q: Steve, how did the River of Rewards incentive come about?
Steve Richards: It started shortly after we went live under our own name in this market. AmaWaterways has been around for almost 25 years, but in Australia we’d been represented by APT for about 17 years.
In late 2023 the decision was made to split with APT and come into the market under our own brand because it’s a lucrative market and was doing really well for us.
I officially launched the company here in 2024. A few months into that I thought that we needed to make a bit of a splash and make some noise.
So I went to head office in the U.S. and said: “Can you give us a full‑ship charter on the new AmaSofia?” At that stage she wasn’t even built and was still in the shipyard in Belgrade.
To their credit they backed it. Once we had the ship locked in I went to our team and said we needed to build a concept around the sailing. That became River of Rewards.
Q: What was different about the structure of the incentive?
SR: We didn’t want to put excessive pressure on agents purely around bookings. Yes, bookings would win them cabins, but we also rewarded engagement with Ama – promoting us to their database, advertising us, doing the training, learning the product.
Our view was, if we can get them engaged and educated, the bookings will come down the track.
The program ran for about a year and a half from concept to realisation and the response was fantastic.
The AmaSofia
Q: Do you see this becoming an annual famil?
SR: That’s exactly what I’m working on. We love the River of Rewards name – it’s got great synergy with what we do and we want to build it into an ongoing incentive platform.
I can’t reveal anything right now. The plan is to hopefully surprise everyone on the last night with some news. But yes, the vision is to make it an annual, evolving incentive.
Q: What ambitions do you have for AmaWaterways in Australasia?
SR: So far we’ve hit or outpaced every target set for us. Australia and New Zealand are now the fastest‑growing market for Ama globally in terms of trajectory.
We’re a long way off the U.S. and we’ve still got work to do to catch the UK, but my ambition is clear: I want this region to be the second‑biggest market globally after North America.
River of Rewards, and this mega famil in particular, is a really important step on that journey.
Q: Let’s talk about the ship. What can agents expect from the brand‑new AmaSofia?
SR: There’s something special about a brand‑new ship. The bed you sleep on has probably only been slept in a handful of times; the room’s barely been used. You get that “new ship” feel.
The AmaSofia is a traditional 135‑metre by 11‑metre river ship, but with our signature twin‑balcony concept. That means you get both a French balcony and a step‑out balcony in the same stateroom.
A French balcony is great – you open the doors, there’s a railing and the fresh air pours in – but in August, if you leave those doors open, your whole room becomes outside temperature.
With the step‑out balcony, you can sit outside with a glass of wine or a beer, close the door behind you and keep the air‑con running in the cabin. That combination is something no one else really has at scale.
On top of that, you’ve got a fitness centre, an expansive sun deck, two restaurants plus the lounge and all the features you’d expect from a premium European river ship.
Q: Dining is a big part of any European itinerary. How will Ama showcase food and wine on this famil?
SR: We’re really proud of the culinary experience – it’s a huge part of Europe and something we lean into heavily.
Food is brought on fresh from within about 30 kilometres of the river, which supports local producers, and is then cooked fresh on board. You’ll probably see kitchen staff heading off the ship to buy produce along the way.
There will be more than 30 complimentary wines to choose from across the cruise. The sommelier will offer multiple choices each night and if you loved yesterday’s wine, we’ll bring it back for you.
The real highlight is the Chef’s Table specialty restaurant. It’s a six‑course degustation with matched wines and the menu is inspired by the region the ship is in.
Q: For those who haven’t done the Danube, what will they get to see and do?
SR: The Danube is a very special river. It’s the second longest river in Europe and it goes through more countries and more capital cities than any other river in the world.
On this ‘Melodies of the Danube’ itinerary, we start in Budapest in Hungary, then sail to Bratislava in Slovakia, then Vienna in Austria, so we’re ticking off some major capital cities straight away.
After that we move into the small towns and villages of the Wachau Valley, which is beautiful wine country with vineyards climbing up the hills on both sides.
You’ve got charming little places and real highlights like Melk and the Melk Abbey, which dates back centuries and is just phenomenal. What I think agents will love is the mix of big, grand capitals and intimate village stops.
In terms of activity, river cruising can be as relaxing or as active as you want it to be.
You can spend your time on the sun deck or balcony, or dive into a full program of excursions – hiking, biking, walking tours, wine tasting, culinary experiences.
And the beauty is you can change your excursion choice even an hour beforehand, so it really is a choose‑your‑own‑adventure style of trip.
Q: Beyond the experience itself, what do you want this famil to achieve?
SR: The number one objective is to get high‑quality travel agents on board so they can “see it to sell it.”
A lot of them have already sold Ama, which is great, but having been on the ship and the river gives them far more confidence when they’re talking to clients.
We deliberately kept the itinerary as‑is, rather than tweaking it, so agents are effectively experiencing the same product their guests can book.
They’ll experience the hardware, the service, the excursions and all the little noticeable touches we believe elevate the guest experience.
The other big piece is brand awareness. It’s a crowded river cruise market in Australia, with around seven major competitors with boots on the ground here and another seven or eight with GSA‑type representation. We’re all fighting for our own USPs and points of difference.
Q: Finally, what kind of atmosphere do you expect there will be on board?
SR: Honestly, I think it’s going to be awesome.
You’ll have agents there with their favourite people in the world – their partners or friends – and everyone will be experiencing the product just as their clients would, which is usually as couples or in small groups.
It’ll be fun, it’ll be immersive and it’ll give agents and media more than enough material and confidence to go home and really champion river cruising on the Danube with AmaWaterways. I just can’t wait.
Traveltalk will be joining the River of Rewards famil (Aug 2 – 8) and will be posting updates as the trip progresses.
