Tauck tour company launches new European river cruises

NORWALK, Conn. (AP) — The Tauck World Discovery tour company is offering a series of European river cruises this year aboard a new small luxury ship, the Swiss Sapphire, which launches in late March in the Netherlands.

The 361-foot ship will accommodate 118 guests. It features two hot tubs, a bar and lounge, restaurant and wellness center. Rooms include 14 luxury suites with marble tubs, and 45 outside-facing cabins and mini-suites.

The Sapphire will sail six different itineraries, alternating with a sister ship, the Swiss Emerald, which launched in 2006.

Itineraries include the "Grand European Cruise," 24 days, from $8,090 per person plus air, which begins in Amsterdam and ends in Romania in the Black Sea, and "Holland & Belgium In Spring," 10 days, from $3,290 per person, plus air. The April departure for the Holland and Belgium tour is the ship's very first public cruise; some space is still available.

Other tours on the Sapphire this year include "Budapest To The Black Sea," "The Black Sea To Prague," "The Blue Danube," and "Budapest To Amsterdam."

Details at tauck.com or 800-468-2825.