<p class="ingestion featured-caption">The riverboat I sailed on with Scenic Luxury Cruises and Tours could only hold 68 passengers.Jill Schildhouse</p><ul class="summary-list"><li>I took a luxury river cruise through <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/avoid-visa-mistake-no-middle-name-almost-ruined-trip">Vietnam</a> and Cambodia with Scenic Luxury Cruises and Tours.</li><li>There were only 41 of us on board, so it felt like I had the <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/live-boat-traveling-full-time-no-experience-2024-10">boat to myself</a> at times.</li></ul><p>In the cruise industry, there's often a "bigger is better" mentality.</p><p>In fact, this year, the Royal Caribbean launched <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/royal-caribbean-star-of-the-seas-icon-of-the-seas-2023-10">the world's largest cruise ship</a> and announced that its next megaship of the same size would be setting sail next year.</p><p>There's no denying that <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/didnt-like-megaship-but-now-love-expedition-cruises-with-family-2024-10">megaships</a> with upward of 7,000 passengers have a lot to offer, but there are tradeoffs to sailing with the masses, such as the experience not being as personalized.</p><p>I've sailed on four of the <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hated-cruises-changed-mind-royal-caribbean-wonder-of-the-seas-2024-9">largest ships</a> in service this year, and although I had a blast on all of them, I was itching for a more sophisticated and intimate experience. That led me to book a series of cruises that kept getting smaller and smaller.</p><p>I sailed on a ship that held just 600 passengers in February, followed by another that held only 168 guests in March. In September, I booked the <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/luxury-small-ship-cruise-lindblad-expeditions-national-geographic-review-2024">smallest cruise</a> I've experienced yet — a 68-passenger riverboat with Scenic Luxury Cruises and Tours.</p><p>Sailing on the Scenic Spirit made such a difference, even compared to the other two small vessels. The route took us along the Mekong River through Vietnam and Cambodia.</p><p>After this intimate river cruise, I fear I'm now spoiled forever.</p><p><em>Although I received this cruise complimentary from Scenic Luxury Cruises and Tours, the rate for my sailing would've been about $7,075.</em></p>