notamermaid

So you are actually administratively speaking not in Frankfurt. The hotel is just within the boundaries (red line) of Offenbach (hence the hotel name): I did not know that ships let passengers embark there in the harbour in the Ostend district. What kind of hotel is this?! I hope the cruise will make up for your adventures so far. I am tired from just reading about your trip 😄. Hope you have had a dry walk trough Frankfurt. notamermaid

News in brief due to limited time this weekend. Busy at work and computer problems. Through work I have been reading up on the insolvency at Engers Palace near Koblenz. It is now clear that the hotel and restaurant will close for good during this autumn and there is no takeover by another investor. Not sure what will happen to the other buildings (other than them closing) but the hotel rooms in the Palace itself will come under the management of the music school and academy. I think this means that there should be no change to how Avalonwaterways organizes their dockings at Engers as the concert hall and all other connected facilities will still operate. Please contact Avalonwaterways if you want to find out more. Kaub gauge: 241cm and rising. Peak of this current wave expected at Mainz during the night, so at Kaub during tomorrow. Maxau gauge falling again so no high water levels that could lead to flooding. Rainy weekend, temperatures due to rise to 20 Celsius in warm regions next week. notamermaid

This small country in Europe borders on the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg and France, but also has a coastline along the North Sea. Despite the country bordering on the popular river cruising countries there is the somewhat curious fact about Belgium that none of the large and at the same time popular river cruising rivers flow through it. Yet the country is sometimes visited on river cruises that focus on this part of Europe. The Meuse is the longest river that flows through Belgium but of the over 900kms only 183kms are actually in Belgium. And the Meuse is sailed by river cruise ships but nowhere nearly as much as the other rivers we so often talk about. So we need to have a different approach here I think and say: tell us about Belgium! The country, the towns, the excursions from the Netherlands, the waterways that crisscross Belgium and are used by river cruise ships. To start us off with the waterways here is the European map, which you need to enlarge quite a bit to see the waterways of Belgium: https://unece.org/DAM/trans/main/sc3/AGN_map_2018.pdf notamermaid

Here is the thread on the Main river. It runs entirely through Germany from East to West and joins the Rhine opposite the old town of Mainz. The river is navigable for a length of 388km from Bamberg to the mouth as a federal waterway, a few more kilometres can be sailed by small boats. At Bamberg (harbour) barges and river cruise ships divert into the Main Danube Canal leading to the Danube. To continue with more info here is the wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_(river) Like the Moselle, the Main is a river that is rarely sailed by river cruise ships on its own, but is combined in an itinerary with another river or canal, a standard shorter route is for example from Frankfurt to Nuremberg, which is already on the Main Danube Canal. So much from me as a start. Over to you. Tell us about your experience. Further travel tips and info always welcome. notamermaid

Cruisecritic.co.uk ran this story on 11 April: https://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/news/3982/ TUI, apart from being a European well-known package tour operator, rang a bell with me as regards river cruising. There was something, in German, let me think... I have found it, TUI Sonata! Digging a bit deeper in my brain and consequently the internet, I re-found this article about the end of river cruising for TUI: https://www.schiffe-und-kreuzfahrten.de/sonstige-reederei/kein-tui-flussgenuss-mehr-aus-fuer-flusskreuzfahrtschiffe-ende-oktober/52455/ The TUI Sonata was one of four ships of TUI Flussgenuss that was an enterprise serving the German river cruising market. Sailings only started in 2011, it ceased operations at the end of the 2014 season. As a company not being a complete newcomer to river cruising as such, this article from the German correspondent with Seatradecruisenews, reads a little differently: http://www.seatrade-*****/news/news-headlines/tui-returns-to-the-rivers-with-three-vessels-for-the-uk-market.html And this is how travelweekly ran the news: https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/TUI-launching-river-cruises-in-2020 TUI UK will operate these three ships solely for the UK market. The vessels have not been confirmed yet, it will be interesting to learn which ones they have chosen. The WT Sonata mentioned in the article, when it started sailing for TUI, was a new-built, a so-called twincruiser, a design that is a kind of pushboat in that the driving vessel is separate from the passenger vessel, both parts together have a standard length of 135m, the longest allowed on the rivers she operates on. notamermaid

There are rivers and landscapes beyond the standard Rhine, Main, Moselle, Danube, Seine and Rhone, or even the Elbe and the Douro, the last one getting ever more popular. Here is the catch: you cannot see them on a 135m ship. Even the 110m ships might not be small enough. Do not get me wrong, I am not talking of the very expensive barge cruises on the canals in France. I mean other rivers and canals built as trading routes. They criss-cross Europe and give you access to towns and landscapes that you might never have heard about... So, in order to see such places you need to downsize, go for the smaller ships and forget about multiple dining options, swimming pool, sundeck lounge, etc. If you are still interested read on. One example of such a cruise crossing Europe is CroisiEurope's offering: Amsterdam to Berlin! Yes, there is a different way out of Amsterdam, you do not need to go to Cologne. :) The problem: there are very few sailings. But to give you an idea what is possible on smaller ships, here is the itinerary: http://www.croisieurope.co.uk/cruises/amsterdam-berlin-formula-port/port-without-transfer I have given the Neckar and Oder rivers their own threads and mentioned a few companies in those. More info to come. And please ask away... beyond the language divide I might be able to find out something for you. :) notamermaid

The ITB (Internationale Tourismusbörse Berlin) is behind us and one of the topics that has left me contemplating is "overtourism". Even if you are new to the subject the idea is easy to grasp: there are places in the world that are so heavily visited by tourists that the negative side effects are straining the place and the people who live there. On the "negative bucket list" this year is - among others like Venice with 22 million visitors a year :eek: - also a popular river cruise destination: Amsterdam! Those are the places people should not go to this year to give them a rest. Here is an introduction to the topic: http://www.dw.com/en/overtourism-where-will-it-take-us/a-42863355 And this is the situation in Amsterdam: http://www.dw.com/en/overtourism-swamps-amsterdam/a-41746155 Now, river cruising is still a niche product which becomes apparent in the fact that the ITB had no separate section for it but listed the articles and events under cruising on its website. Yet with small places like Rüdesheim on the Rhine having a relatively high number of tourists, overtourism is something that could affect us river cruisers more than we like. I do not mean to be a spoilsport but living on a river and working in the industry has made me sensitive to the subject. Your thought and comments are very much welcome. notamermaid

As the UK-based company moved onto the North American market last year I think it is time that past and future cruisers and all those interested in the company as such were given a "venue" to discuss and share info. You may also post as a present cruiser from a ship, of course. :) Just a few basics. Riviera Travel has been around for some years, offers also land trips and is expanding with its river cruise section. Their latest ships have all been given names of famous novelists and poets of the United Kingdom and this is the latest offering for river cruisers. The Robert Burns, soon to be christened: http://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/Omega-World-Travel-CEO-named-godmother-river-cruise-ship notamermaid P.S.: the photo or rendering of the Robert Burns was taken in front of the Lorelei rock on the Rhine

First of all, where is the river and why do I start a thread on it? The Neckar is a river in Germany for its entire length and is a tributary to the Rhine coming from the South East, i.e. joining the Rhine at Mannheim on the right bank. The Neckar is 362km long and has been an important trading route for centuries - first for food from the large foresty areas and later, since the industrial revolution, for the large factories developing on its banks. This may lead you to think that the Neckar is a dirty canalized river with little appeal - you are right to some degree, but also mistaken. I will come back to that later. The Neckar has some relevance for river cruisers as it is not only a river used by barges but river cruise vessels are also allowed to sail it - up to a length of 105m, the ships that is. Ok, this would mean that you past cruisers on the large ships have not sailed the Neckar, but many of you have at least have seen its banks - at Heidelberg on an excursion from your Rhine cruise! Here is the wikipedia page on the Neckar: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neckar notamermaid

You might have heard of this river in Europe, but you will be forgiven if you have not. For river cruisers it leads a sleepy existence compared to its famous nearest larger river, the Elbe. In geographical and political terms it is a very import river (and not a short one in Europe either) as it is part of the border of Germany with Poland. The Oder is navigable for a very long stretch and turns into an "inland sea" flowing into the Baltic Sea. River cruises are available. But first here is the wikipedia page about the Oder: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oder notamermaid

Beyond the standard ports... part 1 I would like to start with a port that some of you have stopped at, some have been to on an excursion and the city is well known: D?sseldorf, the capital of the "Land" of North-Rhine-Westfalia . However, being relatively close to the more alluring Cologne it is not a typical stop for river cruise lines. Comparing it to Cologne one can say that it is younger, somewhat less historically interesting in an all-encompassing sense due to the lack of Roman antiquities, more stylish and vibrant in a fashion sense and with a leaning towards modern art. The harbour area has been refurbished with modern architects having been "let loose" with ideas. ;) D?sseldorf is said to have the "longest bar" in Germany in the old town. The district of Benrath with its baroque palace has an unusal claim to fame: it is a dividing line between German dialects - very important for linguists - called the "Benrather Linie". Here is a short video to give you an idea of what to expect: http://www.dw.com/en/a-checklist-for-d%C3%BCsseldorf/a-36475922 notamermaid

Hello everone, I would like to start this thread on the Moselle, a tributary to the Rhine and a beautiful river to cruise along. Some of you already have, so I would like to invite you all to share your experiences and any tips you might have for future cruisers. I will try to add some facts and trivia and tips of my own. The Moselle has its source in the Vosges mountains in France, forms the border between Luxembourg and Germany and then flows through Germany, meeting the Rhine in Koblenz at the famous Deutsches Eck. In folklore the Rhine is often referred to and depicted as "Father Rhine" and the Moselle as "Mother Moselle". The Moselle is often called "lovely" or "gentle" as opposed to the "wilder and stronger" Rhine. Most cruisers go as far upstream as Trier, for example on the Viking Cities of Light itinerary; there are some companies that turn, i.e. let the passengers disembark, at Remich, a small town further upstream. It is possible to go further into France and barges do so on a regular basis serving the industrial areas of Lorraine, the region in France bordering on Luxembourg and Germany. The Moselle meanders a lot and that explains some of its appeal in my opinion. The towns are not as industrial and large as on the Rhine, making the cruising less spectacular but giving plenty of "small town charm" to travellers' experiences. Trier, of course, is the exception being a large university town and the oldest town in Germany. In the hills overlooking Trier there was a Celtic settlement and the Romans founded the town giving it the name that evolved into present-day Trier. notamermaid

Here is a cruise critic article on the popularity of river cruising among UK travellers: http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=6885 A recent study published by IG River Cruise shows that in 2015, for the first time, North-American travellers outnumbered German travellers on European river cruises. The German news agency dpa issued an article. But more on that later. notamermaid

I have not found the river Meuse featured yet under the river cruise basics sticky, so, as Avalon will be sailing on the river from this season I have decided to write a little about this river in Western Europe. Hostjazzbeau, might the cruisecritic editors have some time during the season to write a little for all cruisers? The Meuse has a wikipedia site in English. Here goes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meuse You might be surprised to learn that it is 925 km long, making it a major river in Europe. The Meuse is navigable for small boats, but a section has been altered so that it can be used for industrial river transport. Companies line the river especially around Lüttich, i.e. Liege. Other areas are more picturesque, the town Namur is famous for its scenic setting. The Meuse has - as you can probably imagine - played a major role in the two World Wars. The river played a prominent part in the Third Reich expansion plans. The Ardennes mountain region that the Meuse flows through is most known for its role in the Battle of the Bulge. The Meuse joins the Rhine (Waal) to form the river delta around Rotterdam. It would be interesting to find out how much river cruisers like the new itinerary. notamermaid