ITTN’s Shane Cullen interviews Michelle Daniels (Country Manager for Viva Cruises – Ireland | UK | Australia | New Zealand) and Stephen Sands, who has joined European river cruise specialist, Viva Cruises, as a consultant for the Irish market. Furthermore, Viva Cruises has launched its latest trade incentive campaign, designed exclusively for all travel agents and partners.
Viva Cruises – A New Brand with a Wealth of Experience
Viva Cruises launched as recently as 2018. Although considered new to the market, its parent company is Scylla AG, a Swiss shipping company with half a century of experience. For decades, Scylla has built, managed and chartered river cruise ships for travel partners. In 2018, the company established its own river cruising brand, Viva Cruises and within this offering, a premium Viva Boutique brand.
Coffee Break with Michelle Daniels & Stephen Sands
Viva has one of the youngest fleets on the rivers. Her flagships, Viva Enjoy and Viva Two, are modern, stylish and contemporary with split-level decks offering an abundance of light and a feeling of space.
Viva’s flagships offer up to three onboard restaurants with all-inclusive dining, no restricted dining times and free seating. Michelle shares that “it’s very much about promoting freedom, flexibility and choice for our customers – they create the river cruise experience that they want.”
Guests can opt from a variety of itinerary lengths from short-themed (3-5 days), many of which are themed itineraries including wellness, culinary & wine-tasting, theatre and sailboat racing.
Viva Cruises – “Exclusivity without the extra cost”
Viva Cruises offers an all-inclusive package. This includes all meals at all restaurants onboard, as well as unlimited drinks throughout the day (including alcoholic beverages). Equally, there are complimentary tea & coffee stations around the ship. The package also includes all gratuities & high-speed 5G WiFi.
The only extras are shore excursions, which start from c.€15 per person for a city walking tour, while more immersive experiences incur a higher cost. Michelle explains, “We purposely don’t include excursions because… we want our customers to create the holiday that they want to…”. Equally, guests have the flexibility to explore the destinations at their leisure or book the complimentary bicycles onboard and cycle through the city streets or countryside at their own pace.
Onboard, guests have mini bars that are replenished daily, Nespresso Coffee machines, rain showers in the bathrooms, along with Rituals amenities. This is a premium product offering
Viva Boutique
Viva Boutique is a separate brand within Viva, offering a more immersive, refined, premium experience. Viva Boutique has 3 themed pillars -Culinary, Culture & Lifestyle and Art Impressionism. Their next Viva Boutique flagship, Viva Unique, will be christened & will launch in Venice in 2027, joining Viva Beyond in the premium offering, with sailings in France and Italy:
- Seine | Viva Beyond | 2026 – the city & sights of Paris, castles of Normandy & rugged Atlantic coast
- Italy’s Po | Viva Unique | 2027 – the beauty, culture & cuisine of Venice, Chioggia, Bologna, Cremona & Verona
Itineraries & Bookings
Viva Cruises will have 2 separate GSAs in Ireland to sell its cruise products. Equally, they are committed to attending trade events and conferences to increase awareness of the brand in the Irish market.
Viva Cruises also has a dedicated Group department to cater for group bookings with free places & free excursions available for tour leaders. Contact Stephen Sands or Michelle Daniels to arrange a trade agreement with Viva Cruises – email [email protected]. In addition, agency login & contact details are available here.
Trade Incentive Campaign – 1 November 2025 to 31 January 2026
European river cruise specialist Viva Cruises has launched its latest trade incentive campaign, designed exclusively for all travel agents and partners.
The VIVA Boutique Incentive offers one lucky partner the opportunity to attend the exclusive christening ceremony of Viva Beyond in Paris in May 2026. This once-in-a-lifetime experience includes round-trip travel, accommodation at a top Paris location and attendance at the official naming ceremony of Viva Beyond – the first ship in the new VIVA Boutique premium line.
Michelle Daniels said, “We want to celebrate this milestone with valued trade partners whose dedication and support have been instrumental in the success of Viva Cruises. This incentive is our way of saying thank you and help us to celebrate the christening of Viva Beyond, our first Viva Boutique ship.”
How to participate
- Booking period: 1 November 2025 – 31 January 2026.
- Eligible bookings: Every confirmed booking of Viva Beyond or Viva Unique during the incentive period counts as one entry.
- Winner selection: One winner will be chosen at random at the end of the campaign.
- Prize: An exclusive invitation to the Viva Beyond christening ceremony in Paris (for one partner only – not transferable to guests or customers).
The prize: an unforgettable weekend in Paris
The winner will enjoy:
- Round-trip travel to Paris
- Accommodation at an exclusive location
- Attendance at the official Viva Beyond naming ceremony
- A weekend filled with Parisian charm – shared with the Viva Cruises team and selected industry partners
For full details and terms, visit the Viva Boutique B2B Campaign page
More in ITTN’s Coffee Break Series
For more episodes of ITTN’s Coffee Break series, check out:
- Caitriona Toner & Francis McCabe – JetBlue
- Eoin McGloughlin – Dublin Airport
- John Price – Virgin Atlantic
- Victoria Houston – Abercrombie & Kent
- Christian Gandolfi – Meliá Villaitana Resort in Spain
- Kay Sion – Scenic & Emerald Cruises
- Abbie Cook – Princess Cruises
- Barbara Preininger – Meliá Hotels- Costa Brava, including Zel Costa Brava
- Aaron Fletcher & Gary Anslow onboard NCL’s Aqua
- Scott Harman – H10
- Lisa Burton from Adventure Company – EXPLORE
- Stuart Pearce & Peter Ryan onboard Azamara Journey
