Thurgau Travel, a Swiss river cruise operator, is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2027. The company was founded in December 2001 by Hans Kaufmann in Weinfelden with 10 employees. Today, the family-owned business employs around 40 people and has a fleet of 17 ships, offering approximately 350 departures on 35 waterways in 22 countries per season.
Since 2019, Daniel Pauli-Kaufmann has been at the helm of the company, taking over the management from his father-in-law Hans Kaufmann. In July 2025, Pia Pauli-Kaufmann became the chair of the board of directors, marking a full transition of the company’s operational and strategic leadership to the second generation.
Expansion and New Markets
Over the past 25 years, Thurgau Travel has explored various new cruise areas. In 2004, the company became the first river cruise operator to bring guests to the lower Mekong. In 2010, it introduced its first own ship, the RV Thurgau Exotic 1, in Myanmar. A year later, Thurgau Travel became the first Western river cruise operator to bring a ship to Kaliningrad.
In 2022, the company added another new cruise area in India with the RV Thurgau Ganga Vilas. The same year, Thurgau Travel also established its own branch in Berlin, expanding into the German market. In 2023, the company realized a 54-day journey from Varanasi to Assam with the RV Thurgau Ganga Vilas, covering 3,200 kilometers and 27 river systems, which it claims is the longest river cruise in the world.
Fleet Expansion and Sustainability
The company’s fleet is being further expanded, with four new builds between 2022 and 2025. The MS Thurgau Avanti is scheduled to be put into service in May 2027, followed by the MS Thurgau Arva in summer 2028. This will increase the fleet by a total of six new ships within six years.
In the area of sustainability, Thurgau Travel became the first river cruise operator worldwide to receive the TourCert certification in 2026 and has been publishing an annual sustainability report since 2024. The company’s collaboration with partners such as Myclimate, The Ocean Cleanup, and Fair Cruise Work underlines its commitment to sustainability.
For its anniversary year, Thurgau Travel has planned seven special cruises, ranging from a three-day trip to Alsace to a 25-day anniversary cruise on five rivers. Additional cruises will take place on the Rhine and its tributaries, as well as on the Danube, complemented by special program points and anniversary activities.
Thurgau Travel is also expanding its regular offering in 2027, with new plans including a trip to the Frankfurt Book Fair, a tour on the theme of architectural heritage from the Havel to the Baltic Sea, a family trip in southern France, and Advent cruises on the Seine.