The new European river cruise that's a local secret

Gleaming in the sunshine, the two-deck Elbe Princesse II is moored a 15-minute walk from the Charles Bridge. We set off late morning for Slapy dam and passengers watch from the sun deck as the spires of Prague give way to wooded hillside sprouting the occasional chalet. Overhanging trees dapple the mirror-calm water and there is no other river traffic unless you count ducks and two paddle boarders. For the landlocked Czechs the river is a place to relax, go hiking or boating and perhaps build a modest holiday home. “C’est jolie,” says a French passenger. 

Although English is widely used onboard, passengers are mostly French, with a handful of Dutch and British. Rooms are simply but comfortably furnished, with good showers and porthole windows or sliding glass doors to a Juliet balcony. Instead of an a la carte menu we’re served three courses of well-portioned French cuisine (think Alsace-style salad, sea bream in a beurre-blanc sauce and crepe Suzette) accompanied by free-flowing wine.

The Vltava finds its derivation in the Germanic “wilt ahwa”, or wild water. In the early 1900s steamships brought tourists downriver to see rapids that squeezed between rocks. Now tamed by a system of dams called the “cascade,” the rapids are no more. Instead, there is a 60-metre-high barrier wall and on the other side, a vast artificial lake popular with boaters, swimmers, kayakers and weekenders from Prague.

We moor overnight at nearby Stechovice for a visit to Konopiste Castle, the last residence of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. The assassination of him and his wife, during a journey to Bosnia in 1914, would precipitate the First World War. Family photographs, a table spread with Meissen porcelain, a rose garden and a grandfather clock engraved with the couple’s wedding date make for poignant viewing. 

Back in Prague the next day we dedicate an afternoon to the city’s castle. It’s an excellent excursion, bypassing queues and furnishing us with just enough information on the key parts of the vast castle complex. That evening I skip dinner onboard and take a sunset stroll, enjoying a Czech beer at a pub in Mala Strana. I follow this with a Bohemian speciality: a calorific trdelnik, or “chimney cake” – dough cooked over coals and filled with cream. 

The Elbe Princesse emits a barely audible purr and I’m fast asleep when she sets off for Melnik. The eight-hour journey is filled with commentary about the historical lochs and other buildings of interest on route, and the captain invites passengers to the bridge. 

From Melnik it’s a half-hour drive to the castle at Nelahozeves, which houses a collection of Old Masters paintings. The town is also known as birthplace of Czech composer, Antonin Dvorak. His restored family home will re-open in April next year as the Dvorak Birth House Museum and a landmark for music lovers.

The other passengers would overnight in Melnik ahead of a visit to the Residenzschloss (Residence Palace), in Dresden. Reluctantly I leave the ship here. As she sails away, her rotating paddles churn a satisfying spew of water. Even if there was any other traffic on the river, she would still be the most handsome craft on the water by far.

Book it: A six-night Prague, Dresden and the Castles of Bohemia cruise departing in May 2024 (cruises run from May to September) costs from £1,544pp. Includes meals, drinks and excursions; croisieurope.co.uk