AmaWaterways Cruises: Colors of Provence River Cruise review

If you love food, wine, art, and history, then we bet you'll love the Colors of Provence river cruise with AmaWaterways cruises as much as we did! Read our full honest review of our experience sailing up the Rhone River on the AmaKristina as part of the Colors of Provence river cruise.

Strolling by 1,000-year-old olive trees to walk across an ancient Roman aqueduct bridge that's still intact.

Sampling France's famous cheeses, escargot, and pastries in food halls named after revered classic French master chefs.

Observing a trained truffle hunting dog and then sampling the estate's wines, truffle butters, and truffle oils.

If these sound like dream travel experiences to you, then keep reading to learn more about the incredible Colors of Provence river cruise with AmaWaterways!

About the Colors of Provence river cruise

The Colors of Provence river cruise offers the ultimate excursion itinerary for foodies. Alain and I were in food and wine heaven as we explored vineyards, indulged in chocolate and wine tastings, went on our first truffle hunt, and more.

And, we were surprised and delighted by the high quality, creative cuisine served onboard the AmaKristina.

The 7-day river cruise takes you up the Rhone river, adjacent to the western edge of the Provence AOC wine region, starting in Arles, France. Then the AmaKristina sails up the Rhone River and ends in Lyon, the gastronomic capital of France, bordering the southern edge of the Beaujolais AOC wine region.

Along the way, you'll make stops in Viviers, Vienne, Tournon, and Avignon. The boat stops in one new port each day.

Colors of Provence Itinerary

For our first river cruise, we couldn't have chosen a more perfect itinerary or cruise ship.

You can read our full review of the AmaKristina, onboard dining options, and our tips for first time river cruisers. And you can read more detailed descriptions of individual excursion experiences in our articles about the food and wine excursions, Arles, and Vienne.

In this article, you'll find an overview of the day-to-day itinerary for the Colors of Provence river cruise with AmaWaterways.

Day 1 - Travel day and embarkation

Departing fom Portland, Oregon, we flew to Chicago, Illinois, then to Munich, Germany, and finally to Marseille, France. Because our flight landed several hours before embarkation started at 3:00pm, we opted out of the transfer that is included with the cruise and choose to take public transportation so we could explore Arles for a couple of hours.

From the Marseille airport, we took a short 15-minute bus ride to the train station. The bus tickets cost a total of 1.20 Euros each.

Then we hopped on the train to Arles. The tickets cost 28 Euros each, and the ride took approximately 45 minutes.

The port was a short and straight 5-minute walk from the train station. We dropped off our bags and enjoyed some light refreshments in the lounge before headed out to explore the city.

During our two hours, we were able to walk along the riverfront and into the city center, which was a 15-minute walk from the boat. There, we rambled along the streets, stumbled upon the beautiful Roman arena (you can't miss it!), and enjoyed a glass of wine in one of the city's squares, soaking up Arles city life.

We also stopped in a wine shop and met the lovely owner who sold mostly local wines made mostly by women winemakers. Of course we bought a bottle to take back to the boat with us!

Shortly before 3:00pm, we headed back to the ship. There, we were able to check into our room and unpack. See our full review of the AmaKristina for photos of the ship and our room.

DAY 2 - Arles

I fell in love with the charming French city of Arles during our short time walking around the city on our first day. The second full day cemented this city's place in my heart.

AmaWaterways offers at least two excursion options on most days. On this first full morning, we had the choice of doing an Arles walking tour, a bike tour, or the Van Gogh walking tour.

Arles morning excursion

We chose to do the Arles walking tour, which started at 9:00am. Our guide was an artist and longtime local, whose enthusiasm for Vincent Van Gogh was evident.

As we walked along the streets toward the city center, we stopped at various places where Van Gogh painted some of his most famous paintings, including Starry Night on the Rhone River and Café Terrace at Night.

Arles is a truly beautiful city full of charm - and Roman ruins. The Roman Arena sits majestically in the center of town, surrounded by other remnants of Roman rule such as the Roman theatre and and the Church of Saint Trophime.

Day 3 - Avignon

Avignon is known as the City of Popes, with seven popes having lived in its Palais des Papes during the 14th century.

In the morning, we had the option to do a walking tour and Papal Palace, Tastes of Avignon, or an Avignon bike tour. We chose the Tastes of Avignon.

Then in the afternoon, we had an option to visit the Pont du Gard, an ancient Roman aqueduct bridge.

Tastes of Avignon morning excursion

At 9:00am we met our guide outside of the ship and walked within the 800-year-old stone walls that surround Avignon.

Our first stop was at Les Halles d'Avignon, a large indoor food market filled with local specialities. Here, we did a cheese and wine tasting, as well as a tapenade tasting. Then we had about 40 minutes to explore on our own.

We loved wandering around Les Halles d'Avignon and feasting our eyes on all of the local delicacies. There's a huge fresh seafood section with several vendors along one side of the market. We also marveled at the displays of several pastry stands, cheese stands with hundreds of different types of cheeses, and an impressive herbs and spices stand in the back of the market.

As wine enthusiasts, we also enjoyed perusing the small wine shops and seeing all of the local French wines that don't usually make it to the United States. All at incredibly affordable prices, too! If you're a wine lover, save some room in your checked luggage for bottles to take home.

Our next stop was to a local sweets shop, which sold classic cookies/biscuits, sugared gelées, and other fun treats.

Then we had a little over an hour on our own to explore Avignon before heading back to the ship.

Pont du Gard afternoon excursion

After lunch on the ship, we boarded a bus for a short 40-minute drive to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Pont du Gard.

This Roman aqueduct bridge is a masterpiece of ancient engineering, and truly incredible to witness close-up in person. We had enough time to cross over the main level, then hike up to the top. You aren't allowed to walk across the top level, but the views are spectacular.

At Pont du Gard, your tour also includes tickets to the museum. We were able to pop into the museum for a few short minutes. There are also two restaurants onsite if you have time for a leisurely lunch.

Day 4 - Viviers

Day four was such a treat!

We started with a 50-minute bus ride to the hilltop village of Grignan. There, we met Christian Allegre, a 5th generation truffle farmer. Joined by his trusty trained truffle hunting dog, Ollie, he shared his family's history with us and how they train their dogs to hunt for truffles.

Some places use pigs to hunt for truffles, but here in Provence they use dogs. They apparently used pigs long ago, but the pigs always ate the truffles.

We watched while Christian and Ollie demonstrated how they hunt for truffles in their oak orchard. The farmers plant oak trees because oaks have a symbiotic relationship with truffles.

While we were there, Ollie dug up two truffles. I'm pretty sure I watched him eat one, but the the other large truffle was saved.

Then we went inside and enjoyed some of the estate wines from their vineyard, as well as truffle butter and truffle oil made from their truffles.

DAY 6 - Vienne

In Vienne, we had three options for a morning excursion. The afternoon was spent onboard sailing to Lyon.

Our morning excursion options included:

• a "Footsteps of Ancient Romans" walking tour
• a Mount Pipet Hike, or
• a ViaRhôna bike tour.

We opted for the walking tour, and it did not disappoint. Our tour followed the footsteps of the ancient Romans, stopping at the well-preserved Temple of Augustus and Livia. We also saw the remains of a Roman assembly that were 2,000 years old, the Cybèle garden, and the stunning Saint Maurice Cathedral, a Gothic church that took more than 500 years to build.

Alain and I loved Vienne. And it's not just because we found four incredible pastry shops within a half mile of each other (although the food options were a delightful find!).

The stunning contrast between modern day living and beautifully preserved Roman ruins and Gothic architecture was fascinating. The city lively and bustling without being too busy and crowded. It was a lovely French city that we would definitely love to visit again.

Day 7 - Lyon

As we sailed on from Vienne, the calm quiet rural French countryside gave way to bustling city streets and large buildings neatly stacked in compact rows.

Lyon is the second largest city in France, after Paris, and it definitely has a vibe all its own.

For our final full day of exploring, we had both morning and afternoon excursion options in Lyon. Our morning excursion options included:

• a Lyon city tour
• a Les Halles Paul Bocuse Market Tour
• a Lyon bike tour.

Lyon morning excursion: Les Halles Paul Bocuse food tour

Lyon is a true foodie haven. Home to more than 90 Michelin-starred restaurants, it has the second most in the world (Paris is #1 with approximately 120). And being the birthplace of culinary legend Paul Bocuse, the food hall named after him is an incredible experience we couldn't pass up.

Larger than the Les Halles d'Avignon we visited earlier in the week, Les Halles Paul Bocuse similarly had an abundance of local Lyon delicacies. We indulged in the famous Lyon Saucisson sausages, local cheeses, fresh breads and a famous regional praline tart.

Most butcher shops had Bresse chicken, a famous Lyonnaise chicken that is grown free range and noted by its signature blue feet. These are sold in markets with their heads still attached, although you can request to have them taken off when you purchase a chicken.

We purchased some treats that we thought might travel well back home (always macarons!), and headed back to the AmaKristina.

Lyon afternoon excursion: Beaujolais wine tasting

After lunch onboard the AmaKristina, we boarded a bus that took us approximately 50 miles north to the small village of Oingt, located in the Beaujolais wine region.

Known as the Pays d’Or or “land of the golden stones,” Beaujolais is known for growing Gamay grapes. Beaujolais Nouveau is a young wine that must be sold only on the third Thursday of the month after harvest.

Here, we visited the Domaine de Fond-Vieille. Owner Dominique's family built the property in 1742; he is the 4th generation to take over and grow Gamay grapes in this stunning hillside. Mascot the vineyard dog is the star of the vineyard, but inside it's the delicate, delightful Beaujolais wines that shine.

We tasted through a white, rosé, and two red estate wines. You can read more about our experience with this excursion in our article about the Colors of Provence food and wine excursions.

After dinner, our last night aboard the AmaKristina was mostly spent packing up for the long journey home.

Day 8 - Disembarkation in Lyon

Every guest submits their disembarkation details ahead of time, so the AmaWaterways staff has disembarkation down to a science.

Based on our travel arrangements, we were given a specific time we had to have our luggage placed outside of our staterooms with color-coded luggage tags. We were also given a time that we were to exit the ship and board our pre-arranged transfers.

It's a bittersweet time, saying goodbye to our new river cruise buddies and to the AmaWaterways staff. We had a flight booked from the Lyon airport at 12:50pm and boarded our bus transfer along with about 10 other couples at 9:30am.

The bus dropped us off outside of the train station, which you walk through to get to the airport. It's about a 15-minute walk through the train station. Lyon is a larger airport than Marseille, but still manageable. Even if you have Global Entry, as we do, you should still plan to arrive at least two and a half hours before your flight boards.

Overall impressions of the Colors of Provence river cruise

Overall, Alain and I truly enjoyed the Colors of Provence river cruise excursions.

A few of the many positives:

• The itinerary included different activity levels - gentle, regular, and active - so everyone could participate in the excursions in some way.
• We liked the timing of the excursions. Most morning excursions left around 9:00 or 9:30am and finished between 11:00 and 11:30am, giving us time to explore each city on our own and enjoy a meal in town or onboard. Each afternoon excursion left around 2:00 pm and returned around 4:30 to 5:00 pm, giving us time to freshen up and rest a bit before dinner.
• There was a good variety of excursion activities that would be of interest to a wide variety of people. From architecture and history buffs, to food and wine enthusiasts, to active adventure seekers.
• The guides were great! All of our excursion guides were enthusiastic about their tour locations, and most were very knowledgeable about the history and stories of each location.

Some things we thought could use improvement:

• We thought the Arles city tour was too much of a Van Gogh tour, considering there was a separate Van Gogh tour.
• The Arles Roman arena was closed due to a holiday (nothing AmaWaterways could do about that). We would have liked to have spent more time looking inside the arena.
• In Vienne, we tool a little train up to the church and viewpoint. The train was cute -- but also not in the best condition. The brakes squealed loud enough that most guests were putting their hands over their ears for most of the ride. We understand AmaWaterways is not responsible for those train conditions, but perhaps other, safer, more reliable modes of transportation could have taken us up there instead (or the train company could service their trains more).

We highly recommend this cruise for anyone wanting to explore more of this part of the world. You'll see some amazing sights, meet incredible locals, and really get a good introduction to this beautiful French region.

Want to learn more? Sure you do!

Read our review of the AmaKristina river cruise ship here (coming soon).

Visit the AmaWaterways website for full details of booking your own Colors of Provence river cruise.

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