Coming in 2016: Year-round cruises on the Elbe

River line CroisiEurope has announced plans for the first year-round cruises on Europe's Elbe River.

The France-based cruise operator says it will launch a paddle wheel-powered cruise vessel on the river in 2016 that will be capable of navigating the low water levels that have prevented year-round cruising in the past.

The two-deck-high, 322-foot-long Elbe Princesse will have two specially designed paddle wheels that will give it an unusually shallow draft for a river ship. The vessel will offer cruises between Berlin and Prague along the Elbe and Moldau rivers that include stops in the German towns of Potsdam, Wittenberg, Meissen and Dresden, and in Litomerice in the Czech Republic.

Slightly smaller than a shallow-draft paddlewheeler the line is launching on France's Loire River in 2015, the Elbe Princesse will have 40 cabins with room for up to 80 passengers. It'll also feature a panoramic restaurant, lounge bar with a central dance floor and a large sun deck with chairs.

Demand for river cruises in Europe has been soaring, prompting lines to look for ways to expand their offerings.