If you can only do one French river cruise, do this

The three main French river destinations are all delightful, but if you’re only going to do one, which should you choose for a cruise?

The Seine River in Normandy, Rhone and Saone rivers in southern France, and an estuary and two rivers around Bordeaux provide a seductive threesome of river-cruise destinations. You can actually cruise a fourth French destination, the Loire, though only with CroisiEurope.

A Viking river cruiser at Les Andelys on the Seine – asking which river is best is like asking whether Brigitte Bardot or Catherine Deneuve is your favourite star of the silver screen.

Asking which is best is like asking whether Brigitte Bardot or Catherine Deneuve is your favourite star of the silver screen. Each to their own, but both are beautiful. Still, not everyone has the luxury of time or budget to sail all three rivers, so it seems only fair to provide an answer.

Okay, then. Do a cruise on the Rhone and Saone. This is where you’ll find the most variety in history, landscapes, architecture and food. You don’t have to go without the art angle common to Seine River cruises, nor the wine experiences that are such a big feature of Bordeaux cruises.

Furthermore, the Rhone-Saone takes you through three great French regions instead of one. Provence is Mediterranean, sunny, contoured with olive trees and features crumbling limestone towns and spectacular Roman-era ruins. Top spots are medieval papal stronghold Avignon and Arles, much painted by van Gogh.

Further north, Rhone-Alpes has wonderful scenery at Tain l’Hermitage, where vineyards rise towards distant snowy mountains. Gastronomic delights include illustrious wine producer Chateauneuf-du-Pape and France’s gourmet capital Lyon.

Lyon and the Saone – an ideal cruise and city combination.Credit: iStock

I reckon Lyon is one of Europe’s best river-cruise cities thanks to its riverside promenades, distinctive neighbourhoods and striking contemporary architecture.

From here, the Saone River takes you into Burgundy amid green rolling hills, old abbeys, smug trading towns and famous Beaujolais vineyards. Wine capital and former ducal seat Beaune is the highlight, especially for its striking medieval hospice.

Lovers of dramatic landscapes will be disappointed on any French cruise, but the Rhone-Saone also has a slight edge. The only other decent river scenery in France is at Les Andelys on the Seine, where cliffs sit on a lazy river bend, topped by Richard the Lionheart’s 12th-century Chateau Gaillard ruins.

You’ll pass out in ennui on a Bordeaux cruise while waiting for anything less than flat. Do a Bordeaux cruise if you’re a wine lover, since you sail through the world’s premier wine country. This region was never at the centre of French affairs, however, so don’t expect magnificent sights.

Seine cruises do take you through a centre of French history and commerce, and offer an interesting art angle. Rouen and Honfleur were favourites of the Impressionists, and excursions visit Monet’s house at Giverny. You can also do excursions to the Normandy battlefields.

I’ve really enjoyed Seine cruising, but if it’s all about having to make cruel choices, then a Seine cruise is short (you sail in both directions), and you’ll spend part of that time marooned in Paris, which isn’t hard to visit on your own. On the Rhone-Saone you sail ever onwards, surely a delight to any cruiser.