How Tony and Julie-anne Kelly were inspired to take three Uniworld river cruises

• This Newcastle couple were so inspired by a Uniworld river cruise event they bought back to back cruises
• They represent their first foreign trips in decades.
• You can get free tickets to the event by clicking the link at the end of this copy.

The last time Tony and Julie-anne Kelly were in Europe, they were backpackers. Today, the retired teachers are returning to Europe with a vengeance – with three extensive river cruises all locked in for the next 12 months.

This week, the Kellys left to spend eight glorious days in Paris before embarking on Uniworld’s SS Bon Voyage for a wine cruise in Bordeaux, followed by another wine cruise in Portugal aboard S.S. São Gabriel.

“We are making up for lost time,” Tony Kelly told Cruise Passenger. “Now that our babysitting days have eased up, we thought it was about time we spent our time travelling again.”

It began when Tony and Julie-anne attended an Aperitivo event hosted by Uniworld in Sydney recently. 

“The Uniworld staff were so welcoming. The cheese platter and matching wine were amazing. We really enjoyed ourselves and were enthralled by the reception and wealth of knowledge as Uniworld staff talked about river cruises in Europe.

“We are impressed by Uniworld’s ships, the quality of accommodation pre-and-post cruise, the quality of food and wine onboard and the excursions offered in different cities.

“As we both love fine wine and good food, we signed up immediately for the 28-day Grand European cruise from Bucharest to Amsterdam, followed by a cruise on the Nile – one of our bucket-list destinations, departing next August.

“We’ve never done anything like this before,” said the 67-year-old Tony.

“While we are both very excited, we are also a bit anxious as we have not travelled overseas in decades. It’s a mix of excitement and anxiety.”

On their first wine cruise in Europe, the Kellys will be part of Brokenwood’s club of wine enthusiasts, discovering the wines of France and Portugal with Uniworld.

After their cruise ends in Portugal, they have also booked a two-week driving holiday in Ireland as they have Irish ancestry and are also keen history buffs.

“It’s all about having different experiences,” he said.

They will be away for six weeks.

When they are not walking their dogs or spending weekends away at their holiday home in Hawkes Nest, the Kellys adore experimenting in the kitchen.

“We adore cooking pasta and slow-cook meals during winter and trying our hand with some Asian dishes,” he said.  

Part of the reason why they have not travelled in the last few years was because their house was burnt down three days before Christmas in 2018.

“We have spent some time rebuilding our four-bedroom house in Newcastle. Then Covid hit, and we were stuck in Australia. Now that the house has been rebuilt, we can afford the time and money to travel again,” he said.

On their big cruise next year, the Kellys will experience the best of Europe on one journey from the North Sea to the Black Sea. They will sail the romantic Rhine, the serene Main, the renowned Danube and visit five capital cities, including Amsterdam. Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade and Bucharest.

This will be followed by a captivating cruise on the Nile on 12 adventure-filled days discovering Egypt, the ruins of the Temple of Karnak, the Temple of Luxor and the Valley of the Kings.

If you want to feel inspired to find out more about Uniworld’s river cruises, the company will be hosting a series of Aperitivo events in October and November.

You will be served a glass of bubbles, with popcorn and ice-cream while you listen to Uniworld’s travel experts on the big cinema screen. The Aperitivo events are held on the Gold Coast, Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth.

To get your complimentary tickets to the event, just key in the discount code: PASSENGER.

Please click on the link.

To sign up for Uniworld’s Aperitivo events on the Big Screen, please click here.

For all those who can’t attend in person, Uniworld is also offering a series of online webinars. Please click here.

Find more information about Uniworld click here.