Normandy with Avalon, AMA or Tauck

I throw this out for fun, since I'm doing research on a possible trip in 2017. Opinions and experiences invited. I'm doing a comparative analysis of this cruise on these three lines. Won't consider Uniworld despite our previous excellent cruise with them, because the cabins on River Baroness are way too small. Won't consider Viking, Vantage or GTC for various reasons. Or Scenic, thanks. We are booked on a Tauck trip this fall, AMS-BUD and expect it to be exceptional, but won't experience them until September.

I'm comparing per diems on mid-range French balcony cabins. I've factored-out trips that are "cruise only" versus included land stays so I can better compare prices. Most don't have 2017 prices yet, so prices are rough, but are pretty close to each other.

Of course, if you factor-in included amenities, Tauck has a leg up, since they include all gratuities and drinks. AMA and Avalon include beer and wine with lunch and dinner, but not gratuities. Big minus for us, but not a deal-breaker.

Tauck sails all the way to Le Havre; the others sail only to Caudebec. AMA and Avalon seem to offer more D-day options (although our interest there is low), and only Avalon seems to offer an option to see the Bayeux Tapestry. Not sure Tauck does an excursion to Honfleur; the others bus you there. Otherwise the excursion offerings appear very similar, and are pretty well completely complimentary by the looks of it.

Bottom line is that all three lines appear to offer a very similar product. Avalon has the best cabin, with the bed angled to look out the window, at 200 sqft (on Tapestry II; Creativity cabins are smaller.) Tauck would no doubt have smaller tour groups. All three use, I presume, use the Whisper VOX boxes like we had in Egypt.

I won't decide this for some time, perhaps not until after my September Tauck trip, if that seems feasible for a fall 2017 booking. But at the moment, I'm leaning towards Avalon. Perhaps that's because I've been reading threads here, or maybe it's just that yummy-looking cabin on Tapestry.

So what are the intangibles here? Ambience, quality of tours and guides, quality of dining, passenger mix? (Not all North American is a plus for us.) Tours that might just be "drive bys"? Free time versus organized time? Day cruising versus night? Lectures onboard? Do tell! And please try to resist the urge to barrage me with suggestions that I really should try Grand Circle, or Viking, or whatever. I know that all three of these choice are good ones, and that they would take great care of us that we'd have a wonderful time.

I've been on two Avalon cruises and there have been Australians, Canadians, Brits, and New Zealanders on both cruises. The majority were American but there were more than a few nonAmericans. We went in July.

I have been on 2 Tauck land tours and everything was top notch. Cruised with AMA for 14 days with no complaints. Having wine and beer included was enough for us as we do not drink hard liquor. Why pay for something you know you will not be using? We will be on AMA again in September. AMA seemed to have mostly Americans but Australian and NZ pax on board also. Never cruised Avalon. Whichever line you choose, enjoy your trip. Out of all our cruising I have to say River cruising is our favorite!

We are happy Avalon cruisers. We hace completed 5 journeys with them. On two of those bookings, I found an offer for included gratuties.

Yes, we love the Suite ship cabins and the overall layout of the ship. We don't have to ponder about which size cabin to book. The aquarium suites are just a little smaller than the suite cabins.

On all of our journeys the guides have been excellent. Yes they use the whisper VOV sets.

We book with our favorite online travel company and we get great discounts in addition to the 5% return traveler Globus Journeys Club discount.

Our first river cruise was on the Seine from Paris to Normandy, but not with Avalon. (I jumped and booked on a group trip that sailed on a European cruise line.)

I advise looking closely at the Seine itineraries since you can have very long time on a bus depending on where you dock.

I have 2 cruises on Avalon (Rhine and Rhone) and did not care for them. This was probably about 3 or 4 years ago and things may have changed. The dining was terrible (food and acoustics). Nice tours. I was not impressed and would prefer a more upscale company in the future.

I have 2 cruises on Avalon (Rhine and Rhone) and did not care for them. This was probably about 3 or 4 years ago and things may have changed. The dining was terrible (food and acoustics). Nice tours. I was not impressed and would prefer a more upscale company in the future.

Thanks for that observation, especially about the dining room acoustics. Do you remember the names of the boats involved? I had assumed Avalon was "up there" with AMA, and just slightly less luxurious perhaps than Tauck or Uniworld.

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I advise looking closely at the Seine itineraries since you can have very long time on a bus depending on where you dock.

Thanks, details about the ports, where the boats docked, and length of bus rides is all stuff I'd like to hear about.

Do you remember the names of the boats involved? I had assumed Avalon was "up there" with AMA, and just slightly less luxurious perhaps than Tauck or Uniworld.

When I was doing my research, I ranked Avalon below AMA, and nowhere near Tauck or Uniworld. AMA is the one I would categorize as just slightly less luxurious, but that was based more on what was included in the cost of the trip. I also liked the unique décor of Uniworld, which of course is not everyone's cup of tea.

If prices are similar (and without doing any research on the itineraries), I'd rank them Tauck, AMA and Avalon.

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If prices are similar (and without doing any research on the itineraries), I'd rank them Tauck, AMA and Avalon.

I agree, but the devil is in the details, as they say. I would like to avoid long bus rides, and have the most walkable docking areas. And the best cabin.

Having done this cruise on Uniworld last year, I totally understand you not wanting to consider them because of cabin size. They were really small! And, not only the cabins, but the ship, in general, was too small. We traveled late March, and with only one lounge on board, there was only one place to go. We did, however, thoroughly enjoy the cruise, and the itinerary.

Looking at the 3 choices you have decided upon, I would opt for Avalon, based on itinerary. We did see the Bayeux Tapestry, which, along with the town, was incredible. On Uniworld, this was one of the options included with the landing beaches. Bus ride from Rouen was about 2 hours, each way.

Honfleur was definitely our favorite, and for us, was part of a day which included Etretat and lunch at a Cider farm, where we had a farm fresh lunch and sampled Calvados.

Because we went in March, the gardens at Giverny weren't open yet, so Versailles was substituted.

The guides we had also did the Avalon tours, so the quality was equivalent.

We are sailing on Avalon in late April, on the Visionary, and have booked a Panorama suite. We are very excited, after our walk-in-closet last year:-) I'm looking forward to the additional public space, and cruising in warmer weather. I will also add that I had a similar complaint on the River Countess (Venice) in the main dining room, with regard to noise in the dining room-something about the frequency and low ceilings really bothered me at dinner. The same didn't apply on the Baroness. I'll be sure to report back after our cruise in April.

Robin

Hi again Wendy,

I believe the two river boats we were on were Artistry 11 for Rhine and Scenery for Rhone. The Scenery had the really bad acoustics.

The river was high is certain areas on both cruises and we had to travel by bus for portions of the Rhone and the Rhine.

Looking at the 3 choices you have decided upon, I would opt for Avalon, based on itinerary. We did see the Bayeux Tapestry, which, along with the town, was incredible. On Uniworld, this was one of the options included with the landing beaches. Bus ride from Rouen was about 2 hours, each way.

 

Honfleur was definitely our favorite, and for us, was part of a day which included Etretat and lunch at a Cider farm, where we had a farm fresh lunch and sampled Calvados.

Here's an example where the devil is in the details. Bayeux is absolutely worth doing, and the way it is set up you are given an audio set that moves you through the tapestry at a set pace -- so being on a group tour is no sacrifice. Hopefully they let you watch the movie, and also give you some time to explore the museum -- but the tapestry is the main event. Honfleur, on the other hand, is a cute but small port that would work ok as a day visit -- but is much better if you can stay over because there are wonderful restaurants and the vieux port is quite different at night when the tourists are gone and the locals are enjoying their town.

Hi again Wendy,

I believe the two river boats we were on were Artistry 11 for Rhine and Scenery for Rhone. The Scenery had the really bad acoustics.

 

The river was high is certain areas on both cruises and we had to travel by bus for portions of the Rhone and the Rhine.

Hmm, well that deserves some study. It's the Tapestry II that has the Panorama Suites on this route. They don't look identical, but I'll have to think about that.

Here's an example where the devil is in the details. Bayeux is absolutely worth doing, and the way it is set up you are given an audio set that moves you through the tapestry at a set pace -- so being on a group tour is no sacrifice. Hopefully they let you watch the movie, and also give you some time to explore the museum -- but the tapestry is the main event. Honfleur, on the other hand, is a cute but small port that would work ok as a day visit -- but is much better if you can stay over because there are wonderful restaurants and the vieux port is quite different at night when the tourists are gone and the locals are enjoying their town.

We like wandering on our own in museums, especially if they give you an audio set, but if the pace is set with no deviations, I guess it doesn't matter. I would go to the Commonwealth Beaches (and the Canadian memorial at Juno), only if the tour did include the Bayeux, since I'd far rather see that. We saw some amazing tapestries last fall in Paris, and want to see more. I see that Juno Beach is not as far to drive. Obviously going from Le Havre on Tauck would be an advantage, if they offer it. I have asked over on the Tauck forums, but they are not very active. Anyone know if Tauck offers alternatives on that day?

As for Honfleur, we've been there, for a day, and we also thought it was wonderful. Being there at night would be fun, for sure, mostly to catch the bistro scene and have a nice dinner.

Hmm, well that deserves some study. It's the Tapestry II that has the Panorama Suites on this route. They don't look identical, but I'll have to think about that.

 

 

 

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The Artistry 11 was brand new and Scenery was an older riverboat. I have not looked at the cruises and it sounds like the Panorama Suites may be larger and a newer ship?

For us, it was the quality of food, acoustics while dining, a terribly long time to get food served, and in the end the whole tipping deal was rather tacky. We would prefer all inclusive in the future.

We did however, really enjoy the ports and many times just went off on our own or if the need to bus, we used it for the transpiration to the place we wanted to see on our own.

Things may have changed for the better and smart to do your due diligence early on.

 

The Artistry 11 was brand new and Scenery was an older riverboat. I have not looked at the cruises and it sounds like the Panorama Suites may be larger and a newer ship?

For us, it was the quality of food, acoustics while dining, a terribly long time to get food served, and in the end the whole tipping deal was rather tacky. We would prefer all inclusive in the future.

We did however, really enjoy the ports and many times just went off on our own or if the need to bus, we used it for the transpiration to the place we wanted to see on our own.

Things may have changed for the better and smart to do your due diligence early on.

Thanks. It looks like Artistry II and Tapestry II are the same generation and style of boat, but Tapestry is newer by two years.

I agree about the all-inclusive. We endured that in Egypt because it's apparently a cultural thing, but it was a royal pain for us, having come from only all-inclusive ocean cruising.

Wendy - I was preparing to suggest that you might wish to add Crystal River Cruises to your short list for a cruise on the Seine from Paris to Honfleur, as Crystal is launching its new river boats in 2017 and will likely offer a product equal or superior to the competition. Further, the Crystal itinerary includes two nights on the boat in Paris at the beginning of the cruise and two nights at the end, which would appear to be great for people who have not spent a lot of time previously in that wonderful city.

However, and this is a major however, upon reflection I question the wisdom of spending four nights in Paris on a riverboat, as opposed to doing the same time in the City of Light on land, considering the amount of money involved. Thus, rather than throw your thread wildly off-topic, I will begin a new thread on the subject of "Overnights on a Riverboat - Wise or Profligate?" Stay tuned.

Cheers, Fred

Wendy - I was preparing to suggest that you might wish to add Crystal River Cruises to your short list for a cruise on the Seine from Paris to Honfleur, as Crystal is launching its new river boats in 2017 and will likely offer a product equal or superior to the competition. Further, the Crystal itinerary includes two nights on the boat in Paris at the beginning of the cruise and two nights at the end, which would appear to be great for people who have not spent a lot of time previously in that wonderful city.

 

However, and this is a major however, upon reflection I question the wisdom of spending four nights in Paris on a riverboat, as opposed to doing the same time in the City of Light on land, considering the amount of money involved. Thus, rather than throw your thread wildly off-topic, I will begin a new thread on the subject of "Overnights on a Riverboat - Wise or Profligate?" Stay tuned.

 

Cheers, Fred

Fred, I totally agree, and I've responded to your new thread. Does this mean you're actually considering this itinerary? ;)

We did the Tapestry II last summer; it was fantastic...our first river cruise after doing over 16 ocean cruises...would recommend Avalon without question; from crew, to dining, unlimited wine at dinner, sites, cabin. We really enjoyed the French balcony; would get a cappucino at the lounge in the morning, before breakfast and watch the scenery go by...this summer is Uniworld on the Douro in Portugal...we love river cruising now.

I'm doing this trip on Avalon this year. We specifically picked the Creativity vs the Tapestry. I did the Rhine on Avalon a few years ago on the Felicity - a sister ship to the Creativity. We were happy on the Creativity & didn't think we needed to spend the extra $ sine we really weren't in the cabin much. I will post a review once we are back.

I have 2 cruises on Avalon (Rhine and Rhone) and did not care for them. This was probably about 3 or 4 years ago and things may have changed. The dining was terrible (food and acoustics). Nice tours. I was not impressed and would prefer a more upscale company in the future.

I have cruised several times with Avalon and agree with the above. Avalon was a generic experience in all aspects and IMO a big step down from our AMA and Uniworld experiences. We have never looked back since graduating to AMA.

The best part of our Panorama cruise was the cabin. Food, service, wine quality, staff, entertainment, CM and crew did not come close to what we experienced on our 6 sailings with AMA.

We have never really looked at Tauck so cannot comment.

Wendy, I don't have the personal river cruise experience that some of the others do but I can give you some advice:

Avalon's Suite Ships are AMAZINGLY beautiful, modern and really spacious! If you get one with the French balcony, try to get one that is farther away from the midship atrium area. There's so much marble there that it echos and can get loud at night when everyone is saying their "good-byes".

The itinerary you're considering is Avalon's #1 best seller, so book early.

Another thing to consider is that Tauck also provides coins for bathroom breaks. ;)

 

Avalon's Suite Ships are AMAZINGLY beautiful, modern and really spacious!

We were on Panorama and it was attractive but IMO and IME no comparison to AmaSerena, AmaCerto, (both are stunning) AmaReina and the SS Catherine (not my taste but very luxurious and elegant).

I found the decor on Panorama to be bland and reminiscent of an airport Marriott.

Our Panorama suite was very nice and the bathroom well appointed. For us, the stateroom was the highlight of the experience.

Thanks for the great feedback. Our Uniworld guide also provided coins when necessary in Egypt, although we passengers also helped each other in that regard, since coins are very hard to come by there.

BTW, the two Avalon boats listed for this itinerary are Creativity and Tapestry II.

They just announced on Facebook last night that they will have a new SS sailing this route in 2017.

Robin

They just announced on Facebook last night that they will have a new SS sailing this route in 2017.

Thanks, I'll keep an eye open. At the moment there's no info on the SS Joie de Vivre at all but I presume it will be similar to the Antoinette et al.

We did this itinerary on the Creativity last September. It was our second river cruise; the first was on the Luminary on the Danube. We didn't find that the dining area was noisy at all, and I'm usually sensitive to noisy restaurants. Maybe we were enjoying our conversations with new friends too much to notice! We found that the dining, both the food and the service, on both ships was excellent. I have a sensitive stomach and avoid rich foods when traveling, not wanting to risk a stomach ache,and there were always delicious choices that I could eat without worry. On the other hand, my DH can eat anything and enjoyed some of the richer entrees.

The Creativity is one of the 'older' ships but well maintained. We found the decor lovely. Can't compare to Marriott because I don't care for the chain and we never stay in one. We did pass through a Tauck and AMA boats when rafted on the Danube. The Tauck was definitely more luxurious and glitzy; the AMA didn't look much different than the ship we were on. I think the decor is a very personal thing; what you like I may hate and vice versa!

We enjoyed every excursion and had excellent guides on each. We had the same guide for two days, Honfleur and Normandy beaches. She was very well versed in the history of the region and made the tours more interesting due to her commentary. The evening before the Normandy tour Avalon had a speaker who gave slide show and discussion on the Normandy invasion.

Tauck is all inclusive and AMA seems to becoming all inclusive as well, which is important for some. I personally prefer to pay a lower price and pay for what I choose to do, but that's just my preference. The great thing about the variety of river cruise companies is that you get to choose what works for YOU and not what someone else insists is the only way to go!