AMSTERDAM -- Amadeus River Cruises' Corina Luftner smashed
the champagne bottle against the company's newest ship on Wednesday.
The 162-passenger Amadeus Queen is perhaps the chicest
addition to the Luftner family's 14-ship fleet.
While the Amadeus Queen falls into the company's Silver
class of vessels -- which also encompasses the Amadeus Silver, Silver II, Silver
III and Provence -- the ship's interior design is subtly midcentury modern with various
shades of brown and gold and pops of turquoise.
Also unlike the other Silver-class ships, the Amadeus Queen
has a lap pool with a retractable sun roof at the aft of the vessel and an
atrium-style central staircase that allows public areas to be flooded with
natural light.
Furnishings pay a subtle nod to midcentury modern design. Photo Credit: Michelle Baran
The 443-foot long Amadeus Queen has staterooms that are 172
or 188 square feet, as well as 12 suites at 284 square feet with small step-out
balconies. The 188-square-foot staterooms are unique in that they have a
walk-in closet, which is not common in river cruise cabins. They also have a
drop-down window that functions as a kind of balcony when lowered. There are
several lower-deck cabins that can serve as connecting staterooms for families
traveling together.
There is a massage room and salon room on the lower deck, a
fitness room, a bar and lounge area with outdoor seating at the vessel's bow on
the third deck, and a restaurant on the second deck. An elevator connects the
three lower decks.
A highlight that makes this vessel quite distinct from its
predecessors is the pool area that also serves as a bar and lounge.
Amadeus said Wednesday that it will add another vessel to
its fleet next year, the 162-passenger Amadeus Star. Both the Amadeus Queen and
the Amadeus Star will sail the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers.
The Amadeus Queen was built by the De Hoop shipyard in the
Netherlands.
Amadeus River Cruises is owned and operated by Luftner
Cruises, a family-run company based in Austria.