Julie’s ‘Next Level’ Win: From Sandals to Staterooms on a Luxury Murray River Cruise

Meet our Murray River Cruise Competition Winner, Julie Patterson from Geelong, who will be returning to her favourite holiday destination after 30 years.

“Is this all fair dinkum then?” exclaimed Julie as I called her to confirm that she was the winner of Cruise Passenger’s luxury seven-night river cruise holiday for two.

Julie and her good friend Helen will be staying in an attractive stateroom on board Australia’s newest luxury steam-powered river ship, PS Australian Star, on the Murray River. They will be stopping along the river for a variety of exciting activities, including a winery tour, plenty of wildlife spotting, and even a campfire experience under the stars.

Julie could hardly believe that she was the winner of the competition.

“I’m not the luckiest person around – winning this competition is ‘next level’. I’ve only ever won sandals and sunscreen. I’ve gone from sandals to staterooms.”

The Murray River holds a special place in Julie’s heart. She particularly loves the wineries in the region and the sound of the boats bobbing on the river. When Julie’s kids were younger, they would go camping on the Murray River in Moama, every year without fail for 10 years straight.

Julie has fond memories of her kids being reunited with their ‘Murray River Friends’ and of the peaceful haven that Moama was to her and her family. 

Despite going on ocean cruises in both the South Pacific and the Mediterranean before, Julie has never experienced a river cruise and is excited about the opportunity to do something new.

She will head to the Murray River with Helen in April next year, giving her some time to recover from a knee injury that has prevented her from working for five weeks. Julie stated that her competition win has come at a great time, as she has something to look forward to next year whilst she recovers from her torn meniscus.

When she posted about her win on Facebook, she amassed over 70 comments from friends and family congratulating her, and also sharing her sentiment that they can’t believe she won.

Cruise Passenger is now offering the chance to win a fabulous adventure cruise around Tasmania. Enter here.