What would you do if after two years meticulously planning a major travel event, Mother Nature threw a massive spanner in the works?
That was the dilemma facing AmaWaterways ahead of their ‘Mega Famil’ taking place on the Danube this week, with more than 100 travel agents getting to experience the luxury cruise line first hand.
Steve Richards, the extremely affable Managing Director for Ama in Australasia, told Traveltalk ahead of the trip how he’d asked his bosses for a full-ship charter on the new vessel, AmaSofia.
“At that stage she was still in the shipyard in Belgrade, not even built,” he told us.
“I said, “Promise me it’s going to be on time,” and they said, “Yeah, it’s going to be good.”
Little could he have foreseen that it wouldn’t be the potential late delivery of the ship that might scupper his plans, but a European heatwave that would break all records.
The knock-on effect of the heatwave was to shrink the Danube to record low levels, which is an obvious major concern when planning river cruises. Our ‘Melodies of the Danube’ itinerary was in danger of losing its voice completely.
“At Ama, we don’t cancel. We adapt,” Mr Richards (left) told a cheering audience at the welcome gathering in a Budapest hotel.
So although we didn’t get to sail from Budapest (main image) to Melk, we still got to spend a few hours in Bratislava before joining up with the AmaSofia in Austria to continue our Danube adventure.
“This is only her 22nd cruise and here you all are, the agents on the first ever mega famil. Thank you so much for coming. It is so exciting and I’m stoked you are all here,” he told an equally rapturous crowd at the opening cocktail night aboard the new ship.
The lucky agents earned their place onboard through the eight-month ‘River of Rewards’ incentive campaign, the largest promotion in the company’s history.
The initiative ran from July 2025 to February this year and saw agents earn points in various means alongside a sales incentive. The top two sellers earned a suite each on the new ship while the top two points scores also bagged one of the sought-after rooms.
“You are all winners and you generated more than $2.3 million in revenue during the campaign period to come onboard, so we are massively grateful,” added Mr Richards, who signed off by hinting that the famil could become a regular event.
“We are running this as a true guest experience so you can sell this to your clients when you go back home.”
