In the next in my series of blogs which looks at which river is best for you, I look at the best cruises to choose if you’re a lover of nature or history.

For the history buff

It’s fair to say there’s history to be found wherever you look but if it’s something which truly interests you and forms the focus of your holiday, there are some rivers which truly tick the history buff box.

When it comes to modern world history, a cruise along France’s Seine which travels north will likely take you to Normandy, where there’s the chance to visit the infamous beaches forever etched into our history after the D-Day landings. Staying with the Second World War – Arnhem is a place of great historical significance, being the site of the notorious bridge made famous by the wartime epic A Bridge Too Far and a site you can visit on a Dutch Waterways cruise. The Elbe can also take you on a journey through both Second World and Cold War history, as you’ll call at Berlin, where there’s the chance to visit the Reichstag and the Berlin Wall.

If you’d prefer to travel a little further back in history however, a Volga river cruise through Russia will offer you the chance to visit both Moscow and St Petersburg. The former is of course home to Red Square and the incredible Kremlin complex, while St Petersburg is where you’ll find one of the world’s biggest and oldest museums and a true historical treasure-trove, the Hermitage.

Prefer to go further back still? Well, when it comes to ancient civilisations, they don’t come much more influential than the Egyptians, and a Nile river cruise will give you a chance to explore both their ancient monuments and legacy for yourself. A trip to the Far East is also a great opportunity to explore history, with a Yangtze River cruise giving you the chance to see two of the continent’s greatest historical wonders – the Great Wall of China and the awesome Terracotta warriors of Xian.

For the nature-lover

I’ve waxed lyrical about the ever-changing scenery on a river cruise and it’s true that, wherever you go, you’re sure to see something special. However, there are some areas which are especially noted for their natural beauty, which you can explore on a river cruise.

Probably the most famous of these is the Rhine Gorge in the Upper Middle Rhine Valley – a stunning UNESCO World Heritage Site with its own micro climate. However, Germany’s most famous river is also your ticket to the legendary Black Forest, an area renowned for its natural beauty which you can visit on a number of Rhine river cruise excursions.

The Netherlands is famous for being flat and while admittedly, that may not leave much scope for sweeping valleys and soaring mountains, it does boast one of the world’s most spectacular floral displays in the form of the bountiful Keukenhof, home of over seven million flowers spread over 79 acres. If you book a Danube river cruise which follows the epic waterway to its Black Sea conclusion, you’ll pass through the river’s most celebrated area of natural beauty, the Danube Delta. Its Europe’s and home to over 300 different bird species and 45 different species of fish.

Somewhat further afield, the Three Gorges Dam is one of China’s most stunning areas of natural beauty and a Yangtze River cruise gives you the chance to see it up close – really close – as you pass through each of the gorges including the exceptionally beautiful Qutang Gorge.

In my next blog I look at the best rivers to cruise if you’re an art lover or a shopaholic.