RiverView Conference 2023 - Vienna

The 2025 CLIA RiverView Conference will take place from Saturday 8 – Monday 10 March in Budapest, Hungary, returning to the Danube river, supported by our Headline Sponsors, Travel Weekly and Mail Metro Media. The Conference Business sessions and Networking Trade Fair will be held at the Marriott Hotel, situated perfectly on the banks of the river, moments from the river ships that will be docked nearby.

A total of 6 river cruise operators will have ships moored in Budapest and available for agents to visit across two days. Delegates will spend two nights onboard the ships, with hosted dinners and evening entertainment. Overnight host brands include Riviera Travel, VIVA Cruises, Scenic, AmaWaterways & TUI River Cruises, with Riverside Luxury Cruises additionally available to view as part of the ship tour programme. All other CLIA river cruise operators will be attending, plus a selection of associated businesses, all available to meet at the Networking Trade Fair.

Conference Business sessions hosted by CLIA’s Andy Harmer and Travel Weekly’s Lucy Huxley will include river cruise trends, marketing opportunities, innovation, new itineraries, and attracting first-time customers.

New-to-Selling River Cruise Masterclass:

A New-to-Selling River Cruise Masterclass will take place just before the main program on the morning of Saturday 8 March, which attending agents can pre-register for.

Breakout sessions:

Following the popularity of our 2024 sessions, these will be repeated as part of the Conference Trade Fair on the Sunday morning. Details of the pre-bookable breakouts will follow early in 2025.

FAM Trips:

We are excited that a number of our supporting ships will host delegates on short FAM sailings to Vienna at the close of the Conference. Details of the sailings will be shared with registered delegates, along with a link to register your interest. This will allow delegates to experience an iconic stretch of river, sailing between three capital cities – Budapest, Bratislava and Vienna. We will strive to accommodate requests, however we will be limited by the total number of cabins available, and places are not guaranteed. If you are requesting a FAM trip place then it may be worth holding off on booking inbound travel until confirmation is received.

Pre-night Hotel:

Any accommodation for the night of Friday 7 March will be at your own arrangement. As an option (and subject to availability), we have a rate at the Conference venue – the Marriott Hotel – and a unique booking link will be shared with Conference delegates after registration.

Register:

• Registration will open on Wednesday 11 September. We encourage you to book promptly as the event is expected to be popular.
• If interested in a FAM Trip sailing, please complete the FAM application form before Friday 27 September. This will allow us to confirm places across the month of October, allowing delegates to get their travel confirmed without delay.

Preliminary schedule:

Saturday 8 March 2025

• Morning - Optional New-to-Selling River Cruise Masterclass, hosted by Debbee Dale
• Afternoon – Registration from 13.00 & Conference Business sessions
• Evening – Hosted overnight stays onboard river ships, including Dinner

Sunday 9 March 2025

• Morning – Networking Trade Fair & Breakout sessions
• Lunch – hosted onboard a number of river ships
• Afternoon – Ship Visits in guided tour groups
• Evening – Hosted overnight stays onboard river ships, including Dinner

Monday 10 March 2025

• Morning - Ship Visits in guided tour groups
• 14.00 (approx.) - Close of event
• Afternoon – A number of FAM trips will depart on a 1 or 2 night sailing to Vienna

Included in your registration:

• Two nights of overnight accommodation onboard river ships, including breakfast
• Two hosted Dinners onboard river ships
• Buffet Lunch on arrival (Saturday 8 March) and Lunch on Sunday 9 March
• Half-day of Conference Business Sessions
• Opportunity to register for the optional New-to-Selling River Cruise Masterclass (morning of Saturday 8 March)
• Access to the Networking Trade Fair to meet with all sponsoring companies, and opportunity to pre-register for Breakout sessions
• Ship Visit Programme – including AmaWaterways, Riverside Luxury Cruises, Riviera Travel, Scenic, TUI River Cruises and VIVA Cruises
• The opportunity to apply for a place on a 1 or 2 night FAM sailing to Vienna (offer of place not guaranteed)

Date and time:

Saturday 8 – Monday 10 March 2025