All Things Avalon

Hi Ree,

>Will we receive any kind of final paperwork

Yes. My TA prefers to have the material sent to her so that she can check everything before sending it to me

> Will Avalon be able to tell me which dock the ship will be at?

Yes, but not necessarily the exact location.

Look for Hotel Passauer Wolf at http://www.google.com.maps

You will see where all of the boats line up.

Enjoy your voyage.

Ira

Hi

this is our first river cruise so really looking forward to it, as it will be a great way to unwind from ,doing a batlic criuse 2 days before hand!!!!

we sail 27 june amsterdam to budapest on vista cant find any one else on this cruise !!

Is there any way of finding out how many cabins are booked on this cruise ???

Why do you think that a river cruise is a way to unwind? The 2 that I have been on (not Avalon) were quite busy.

if you look at the batlic cruise s you will see they are full on eg. tour st petersburg 3 daysof 8.3am till 5.00pm

I'm hoping you did not really believe those gorgeous Viking commercials about the lazy days of River Cruising and all the beautiful people [emoji15]

Oh dear! BTW I did love my Avalon A to B cruise

It's always an option to skip the tours and relax!

It's always an option to skip the tours and relax!

There's that! [emoji6]

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Hi

this is our first river cruise so really looking forward to it, as it will be a great way to unwind from ,doing a batlic criuse 2 days before hand!!!!

 

we sail 27 june amsterdam to budapest on vista cant find any one else on this cruise !!

 

Is there any way of finding out how many cabins are booked on this cruise ???

I just checked and your cruise is half full. 42 cabins booked, 42 still open. If you want to see which ones are booked and open just go to the Avalon website, select your cruise go to "Dates and prices" select your date and proceed as if you were going to book on line. On the second screen of the booking (way before you need to enter your name or any personal information) you select a cabin and you can see exactly which ones are available.

I just checked and your cruise is half full. 42 cabins booked, 42 still open. If you want to see which ones are booked and open just go to the Avalon website, select your cruise go to "Dates and prices" select your date and proceed as if you were going to book on line. On the second screen of the booking (way before you need to enter your name or any personal information) you select a cabin and you can see exactly which ones are available.

:)

thanks so much for that info

no sure how fast these cruises fill up so looks good at this stage. only half full !!!!

we here from where i am new zealand they did some bussing because of high water is this very common with avalon?

thanks again

:)

thanks so much for that info

no sure how fast these cruises fill up so looks good at this stage. only half full !!!!

we here from where i am new zealand they did some bussing because of high water is this very common with avalon?

thanks again

If there is High or Low water ALL the companies are affected due to the very old bridges that are low.

On our Avalon Amsterdam to Budapest our Avalon boat had no issues while others did But if there is truly High Water there would be issues not matter the company you are sailing.

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:)

thanks so much for that info

no sure how fast these cruises fill up so looks good at this stage. only half full !!!!

we here from where i am new zealand they did some bussing because of high water is this very common with avalon?

thanks again

we have done several European river cruises our last was with APT Budapest to Amsterdam and we enjoyed it especially since we sailed with no low/high water issues. 4 of our Avalon cruises were impacted by water issues and 1 by strikes from memory related to lock workers.

problems can occur and how issues are managed by the cruise operators varies. many experiences have been documented. enjoy your cruise.

After 30+ Ocean cruises we have booked out 1st River Cruise (Enchanting Belgium-May 7-Brussels to Amsterdam on the Luminary).

Would love to hear from anyone who has either done this cruise or cruised on the ship before. Also any optional excursions taken.

After 30+ Ocean cruises we have booked out 1st River Cruise (Enchanting Belgium-May 7-Brussels to Amsterdam on the Luminary).

 

Would love to hear from anyone who has either done this cruise or cruised on the ship before. Also any optional excursions taken.

Hi there - We are doing that itinerary later in May - starting in Amsterdam. Not our 1st river cruise, nor our 1st cruise with Avalon. It is also not our 1st river cruise in Holland/Belgium - as we have done a Tulip time cruise in the past. Am hoping that going in May will mean that there will be less tourists in this area.

I did start a roll call for this itinerary - but no one posted other than me!!

We love river cruising - hope you will as well.

Regards,

Fran

Hi there Fran

Rachel and Doug here...we were with you on the Budapest to Amsterdam Avalon cruise in 2015

We are booked on the Avalon Felicity Zurich to Amsterdam May14th.

Just returned from a marvellous adventure to Antarctica with Celebrity and now looking froward to the serenity and pleasure of a European river cruise....so love the Avalon experience!

Rachel

Hi again Fran

Just realised it was the Cote D'Azur to Paris cruise where we were with you.

You so kindly trekked over the bridge and picked up some of that delicious Valrohna chocolate for us!

Chat soon

Rachel

Fran & Rachel,

We'll be doing the Cote D'Azur to Paris cruise in late April. Any suggestions for things we shouldn't miss?

Hi Rachel ,

My wife and I will be taking the Felicity from Basel to Amsterdam in July. More than likely our cruise will have the same optional excursions as you. Please advise what OPTIONAL excursions you chose and will you be posting a report on your trip ? Please , pretty please !:)

Aron

Hi there Fran

Rachel and Doug here...we were with you on the Budapest to Amsterdam Avalon cruise in 2015

We are booked on the Avalon Felicity Zurich to Amsterdam May14th.

Just returned from a marvellous adventure to Antarctica with Celebrity and now looking froward to the serenity and pleasure of a European river cruise....so love the Avalon experience!

Rachel

Fran & Rachel,

 

We'll be doing the Cote D'Azur to Paris cruise in late April. Any suggestions for things we shouldn't miss?

Hi there

We certainly enjoyed this cruise. We went over early to explore the Normandy coast, then stayed in Nice for a few nights.

We took the local bus to Monaco, and joined up with the Avalon group at the Fairmont. We walked around the small rich municipality of Monte Carlo on our own.

Some of the group went to a special dinner nearby...it was fairly pricey as I recall. We were bussed to Arles to board the cruise ship.....about a 4 hour ride there.

One of the main excursions we paid extra for was to the Pont du Gard in Avignon to see the Roman Aqueduct...very interesting.

The high speed train into Paris was well organised......would you believe it actually reached a speed of 302 kph at one straightaway!

Hope Fran will add more to assist you. We did do all the included excursions, as we enjoy the walks into the little towns and find most guides pleasant and easy to understand.

Cheers

Rachel

Hi Rachel ,

My wife and I will be taking the Felicity from Basel to Amsterdam in July. More than likely our cruise will have the same optional excursions as you. Please advise what OPTIONAL excursions you chose and will you be posting a report on your trip ? Please , pretty please !:)

Aron

Hello Aron

Our planning is coming along nicely for our cruise. We are going over early, to explore the Black Forest area.

Thus far we have signed up for the included tour to Mt. Pilatus. As I understand, it is about 7 hours long and taking place on departure day before boarding the ship.

On a previous river cruise that ended in Amsterdam, we took the optional biking excursion and really enjoyed it. We boarded a small ferry with the group and headed out of the city to the north. Beautiful countryside and very pleasant biking with a guide.

Have you been on other river cruises also?

Rachel

Hi Rachel,

By this time have you not received a list / description of OPTIONAL TOURS for your trip ? If so could you please advise me with a copy of that list ? Ours hasn't come out yet and we are way excited to learn what they are .

Last year we went on a Viking River Cruise from Paris to Prague with a few extra days in Prague....LOVED IT !

Waiting to hear from you.

THANK YOU ,

Aron

Hi there

We certainly enjoyed this cruise. We went over early to explore the Normandy coast, then stayed in Nice for a few nights.

We took the local bus to Monaco, and joined up with the Avalon group at the Fairmont. We walked around the small rich municipality of Monte Carlo on our own.

Some of the group went to a special dinner nearby...it was fairly pricey as I recall. We were bussed to Arles to board the cruise ship.....about a 4 hour ride there.

One of the main excursions we paid extra for was to the Pont du Gard in Avignon to see the Roman Aqueduct...very interesting.

The high speed train into Paris was well organised......would you believe it actually reached a speed of 302 kph at one straightaway!

Hope Fran will add more to assist you. We did do all the included excursions, as we enjoy the walks into the little towns and find most guides pleasant and easy to understand.

Cheers

Rachel

Thanks Rachel! The Pont du Gard tour is at the top of my list for optional tours! We're looking forward to the train ride. Last year we did the TGV from Paris to Luxembourg as part of an Avalon Paris to Amsterdam cruise. definitely beats the bus!

Hi again Fran

Just realised it was the Cote D'Azur to Paris cruise where we were with you.

You so kindly trekked over the bridge and picked up some of that delicious Valrohna chocolate for us!

Chat soon

Rachel

Rachel - so great to hear from you!! Was just saying to Glen that I wondered how you guys were doing!! We did Amsterdam to Basel with Emerald last September, and then our friends Beatrix & Mark (they were on the cruise with us in France) picked us up from the boat in Basel and we spent an extra week in Germany with them.

Besides the Amsterdam to Brussels trip in May (looking forward to seeing Ypres & Flanders) we have booked the Seine with Avalon in September. They had such a great deal on the cruise and air fare that we jumped.

E-mail me off line if you have a few minutes, and we can catch up --> franski@rogers.com

Fran

Hi there Fran

Rachel and Doug here...

We are booked on the Avalon Felicity Zurich to Amsterdam May14th Rachel

Rachel - what day do you get into Amsterdam? Am thinking we may overlap there. Our 1st night is spent in a hotel, so we arrive on May 20th - but don't board until the 21st. Wonder if there is anyway we could meet up?? Would be great to see you and catch up.

Fran

Hi Rachel,

By this time have you not received a list / description of OPTIONAL TOURS for your trip ? If so could you please advise me with a copy of that list ? Ours hasn't come out yet and we are way excited to learn what they are .

Last year we went on a Viking River Cruise from Paris to Prague with a few extra days in Prague....LOVED IT !

Waiting to hear from you.

THANK YOU ,

Aron

Hello Aron

I can give you a brief rundown of the optional excursions that are offered. Also, be sure to sign in to your account under "My Avalon", where you will soon see your examples of excursions.

The prices are in Canadian dollars.

Amsterdam: Evening tour ( Red Light district) $64pp

Keukenhof gardens $65 pp

Biking in countryside $85 pp

Basel Zurich sightseeing $49 pp

Colmar Sightseeing through the area $65 pp

Biking through the Kaiserstuhl $71 pp

Strasbourg Alsace route sightseeing $65 pp

Maginot Line $67 pp

There are the included excursions as well. It was suggested by a CC member that one should sign up for the included excursions. We did that for the trip to Mt. Pilatus on our embarkation day.

Happy planning

Rachel

\\\\\\\\\\\

Hi there

We certainly enjoyed this cruise. We went over early to explore the Normandy coast, then stayed in Nice for a few nights.

We took the local bus to Monaco, and joined up with the Avalon group at the Fairmont. We walked around the small rich municipality of Monte Carlo on our own.

Some of the group went to a special dinner nearby...it was fairly pricey as I recall. We were bussed to Arles to board the cruise ship.....about a 4 hour ride there.

One of the main excursions we paid extra for was to the Pont du Gard in Avignon to see the Roman Aqueduct...very interesting.

The high speed train into Paris was well organised......would you believe it actually reached a speed of 302 kph at one straightaway!

Hope Fran will add more to assist you. We did do all the included excursions, as we enjoy the walks into the little towns and find most guides pleasant and easy to understand.

Cheers

Rachel

Hi - We went into Nice a few days early and then took the train to Monaco to join the tour. We also walked around Monaco on our own. There was an optional to Nice - but had just left there, so didn't feel the need.

We also did the Pont du Gard. We were quite impressed that Avalon offered the Palace of the Popes (the included excursion) in the afternoon for those who did the Pont du Gard in the morning.

We bypassed the walking tour of Tournon and walked across the bridge to Tain L'Hermitage where made a bee-line for the Valrhona chocolate outlet. Not a huge chocolate fan - but LOVE Valrhona chocolate. It is about a 10 to 15 minute walk from the boat. We bought chocolate to bring home as gifts. Lots of free samples so had the opportunity to sample before we bought!!

In Paris , we found that the hotel was situated in more of a business district, so not easy to walk to the tourist areas. However, we had booked our own air so had to get to the airport on our own - and the hotel was across the road from a shuttle bus that takes you to the airport. There was a market around the corner from the hotel, so we did wander through that area.

We took every opportunity to get off the boat and wander around. One stop was just to bide some time (can't remember why) so my friend and I got off and wandered around. We found a lovely little church and some local shops. We only had about 90 minutes but took advantage.

Enjoy!! If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to post again.

Fran