Cruise cancelled mechanical problemWe want

Just received email from Uniworld confirming Sept 16 departure.. The itinerary is Amsterdam to Basel original itinerary.. whew!!!! I thought I had read Basel to Amsterdam probably had incorrect date🙄....Hopefully Uniworld will be rebooking my airfare...Boston to Amsterdam is a non stop easier I think on your departure...Hopefully all the people that were impacted by this inconvenience will have A happy ending...Appreciate all the support and answers to my questions..

Later Sept. timing could be a blessing in disguise. We much prefer cooler weather, especially for the walking tours. While the port towns will still be very crowded it's always more tolerable when it isn't hot.

Always better to take cash. You can always purchase something on board if you really want it, but don't have any pressure to spend OBC.

Agree on both these counts!

We just received a call from TA that our cruise Aug 22-Sept 4 Amsterdam to Basel was cancelled due to mechanical problem... Uniworld River Queen.. we are trying to decide what to do! Negotiating details flights, travel insurance, compensation. We were offered an alternative itinerary different ship with two dates in August. (No) The date for same ship and itinerary will be departing Sept16... A bit disappointing we are bummed,! We booked our flights through Uniworld and I upgraded to Delta comfort months ago only a number of these seats.. lots to think about.. Travel insurance would that be difficult to change? Any recommendations how to deal with this?

I'm sorry to hear about your situation, it's a shame that trip has been cancelled. I can't offer any advice as to what you should do, but I can provide a little background on the situation. We were on the River Queen last week. Toward the end of our cruise the captain spoke the passenger before dinner one evening. He explained that prior to docking that morning there was 'a lot of white smoke' coming from the rear of the ship. After the lines were set the engineer went to the engine room to find out what happened. A connecting rod in one of the two motors snapped and punched a hole in the side of the engine block. It was still running but obviously the engine was destroyed. We finished our itinerary with one minor adjustment running on the remaining engine.

The captain explained the return trip from Basil to Amsterdam would proceed as normal because most of the time they would be sailing downstream with the current. At that time he didn't know how your itinerary would be handled. He said the Uniworld office in Los Angles was weighing the options. He told us cancelling a trip was the very last resort option but replacing an engine was a major job requiring days in a shipyard dry dock.

I wish you the best in finding a workable solution to your problem. Good luck!

Paul

Thx so much for your info on the River Queen... Disappointing we were scheduled to leave next week.. we given other options different ships but wanted to cruise the Rhine and Moselle. Sept 16 was first available and a few changes on our flights but it's ok...We are sailing Amsterdam to Basel .. Did you enjoy the itinerary and the River Queen..?

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Yes we had a great time on the R.Q. We took our first river cruise last summer sailing on the Scenic Jasper from Budapest to Amsterdam. There was some overlap on this trip (Amsterdam, Cologe, Koblenz, etc..) but there are lots of things to see and do at each stop. We loved all the small quaint villages and towns along the way. You'll enjoy the itinerary.

To be completely hoenst we prefer Scenic's more modern decor, larger cabins and big balconies but Uniworld offers a top notch experience too. I'm sure some of the the staff may change from our cruise until yours but I have no doubt your crew will take EXCELLENT care of you. Capt. Hendrick, the C.D. Tebea, Stoyan the hotel director, 'Dr. Z' behind the bar, Miladan, Lilliana, Pedro, Stevan, Nelson and all the rest couldn't have been nicer.

I'm sure you'll be a Uniworld fan shortly after you board the ship. Have a great trip.

Paul

Paul thanks for your review of River Queen.. The only glitch... we had Delta Comfort seats but unfortunately they are now unavailable. Plane is booked solid.. we had to take what was available😆😆...

Yes we had a great time on the R.Q. We took our first river cruise last summer sailing on the Scenic Jasper from Budapest to Amsterdam. There was some overlap on this trip (Amsterdam, Cologe, Koblenz, etc..) but there are lots of things to see and do at each stop. We loved all the small quaint villages and towns along the way. You'll enjoy the itinerary.

To be completely hoenst we prefer Scenic's more modern decor, larger cabins and big balconies but Uniworld offers a top notch experience too. I'm sure some of the the staff may change from our cruise until yours but I have no doubt your crew will take EXCELLENT care of you. Capt. Hendrick, the C.D. Tebea, Stoyan the hotel director, 'Dr. Z' behind the bar, Miladan, Lilliana, Pedro, Stevan, Nelson and all the rest couldn't have been nicer.

I'm sure you'll be a Uniworld fan shortly after you board the ship. Have a great trip.

 

Paul

Paul, thanks for sharing your thoughts about your trip on the River Queen. My husband and I were really looking forward to our August 23 cruise. When we booked our first river cruise with Uniworld several years ago, our TA told us that what really sets the company apart is their customer service. Although we have always had wonderful experiences cruising on Uniworld ships, this was our first time that their customer service was really put to the test. Since our cruise was cancelled, Uniworld worked with us to find an alternative, given our time restraints, etc. We will be taking their European Jewels cruise next week from Budapest to Amsterdam. It is an itinerary that we had considered taking sometime in the future, so we'll just take it sooner than expected! We are disappointed that we won't sail on the Moselle, but we are really looking forward to our new itinerary. In such a short time, Uniworld provided us with a wonderful alternative, great airfare and additional compensation. Kudos to their customer service! I hope every passenger who was booked on the cancelled cruise has an outcome that is as positive as we've experienced.

The River Queen is one of the prettiest ships on the rivers. Hope Uniworld gets it up and running soon!

Paul, thanks for sharing your thoughts about your trip on the River Queen. My husband and I were really looking forward to our August 23 cruise. ........

You choose wisely! That's the itinerary we enjoyed so thoroughly last summer with Scenic and I know you'll love it too with Uniworld.The Danube is beautiful and some of the little Austrian and German villages are just as charming as those on the Mosel.

I agree that customer service is one of the things that differentiaes one cruise line from the other. They all sail the same rivers and they visit the same towns. It's the staff and the service that makes companies like Uniworld and Scenic stand out.

Have a wonderful trip (wish we could join you :) ).

Paul

You can make a one hour change in Paris if you are in great shape, have running shoes, and a lot of luck. Go through Amsterdam and enjoy life.

We were dreading a short connection there a couple of years ago but were happily surprised when a Air France mini van met us and took us to the flight to the US!

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I'm writhing on the floor with envy! How on earth did you manage to get a van from Air France? Were you flying first class? Did you mention your short change to the crew on the plane? What year did this happen? Please share so others can benefit.

Thought the mini van thru the airport was long gone too! 1995, Brit Air, I think, Rome, long lines, our family of 4, 2 small sons, in economy- and we were all loaded up and had a wild ride to the waiting us bound flight! Royal treatment. Nothing like that ever since and many many hours logged in airport lines! We were just talking about this last night!

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I just checked my favority cruise ship traker and found the River Queen is in a ship yard in Tolkamer, Netherlands getting it's new engine installed. They should have plenty of time to get the job wrapped up in time to meet all of you in Basel on the 4th. Enjoy your trip.

Paul