notamermaid

Welcome to Cruisecritic. A great time to be on the river with Spring fully there and the weather normally stable and pleasant. Have a great cruise. notamermaid

Thanks. Actually, I was just referring to the beer, did not see the u Umlaut thing as my brain tells my finger to go straight to that key on my German keyboard. The Scenic cruise options look nice, the new Douro ones perhaps being the most attractive for those that are looking for something different and active. Melk Abbey was stunning already, with its spiral staircase a gem, would love to see Gottweig Abbey. notamermaid

@Host Jazzbeau quick note regarding your post: it is Altbier in Düsseldorf. notamermaid

There are many docking locations on the Danube in Germany and Austria. And many of those are managed by "Donau Schiffsstationen GmbH". I missed this at the time, the Melk one got revamped in 2022. This is what it looks like: https://www.donaustationen.at/en/current-information/hafenspitz-melk-has-opened-62/ The view of Melk Abbey is stunning. More or less opposite Melk is the place called Emmersdorf an der Donau. River cruise ships can dock there, too. We will have a look at that in more detail. notamermaid

I see. Misunderstood the last question of your post. I wonder if there is a term for Avalon if Viking is "Walmart". It reminds me that a couple of folks have posted in the last year or two that there is supposed to be not enough room (seating) for all passengers in the lounge during the information talks when the ship is fully booked. True or not, the crowded feel is obviously there. notamermaid

I cannot compare the cruise lines but can compare the itineraries. You are looking at two considerably different routes although both are in Western Europe and here in the realm of the Rhine and its tributaries. The first is three countries (via a short sail into Germany), the second is four countries. The first is on elevations barely above 60m (excursions get you higher), the second is over 200m (at Basel) with the hills close by and excursions taking you quite a bit higher. The first is culturally a closer unit, meaning Low German/Dutch/Flemish, the second is a more varied mix of Germanic and Alsatian/French. For want of a better comparison. The first gives you beer mostly, the second wine and beer. The first is longer in days than the second. It depends on what you would like to focus on. I regard them both as interesting itineraries. notamermaid

Whooheyy! Or something. Means I am a bit surprised and happy that I am right about Boppard. Great to read that you will see this splendid part of "my" river. An added bonus to the itinerary. Enjoy. Just a quick note about the Main river. There is a thread https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2670259-the-river-main-infos-and-river-cruising-experiences/ in which you will read that the river has so many low bridges that the sundeck may be closed for a long time while you are sailing. Most ships are too high for the superstructure to stay up, that is the wheelhouse (which will be lowered as needed) and the tarpaulins (for hiding from rain and sun) and even potentially the railings. That is something not unique to the Main, but there it is kind of standard. On the Rhine this is almost never a problem. Another bridge that is sometimes a problem, i.e. when the river level gets high, is the one at Passau. More details on that are in the Danube thread. notamermaid

First river cruise and on Viva Cruises sounds unusual. Are you in Europe? Viva Cruises have recently been targeting the North American market but are far from a household name there yet. notamermaid

Welcome to Cruisecritic. It is tricky. All in all, a river cruise is not a good option for people with mobility issues. But it is manageable. As the previous posters have said, the stones and stairs are a problem. Assume that you will encounter stairs that you will have to navigate. The advertising that you can walk off the boat into town only gives you the best pictures and words, i.e. the loveliest scenario that is not incorrect but just, you know, the ideal... The problem I see is with the river cruise that does not go as planned due to lock issues, strikes and other delays or water levels. It may be uncomfortable. I would not go with a long itinerary that would have a lot of hours on a coach as a result. Not sure if a return trip would be a better option than a town A to town B cruise. On the Moselle towns and villages are accessible well and you do not get low water issues. The Netherlands are also good for more flat terrain but cobblestones tend to be omnipresent in old towns. You may want to look at the ships in more detail as some are split-level, meaning it involves steps to get from cabin to restaurant no matter what level your cabin is on (lifts are available but remember that these normally do not go to the sundeck). Would you be willing to also consult a TA familiar with river cruises apart from the great advice you will receive here from past cruisers? It could help narrow down where your interests lie and what is doable. Edit: just seen your response regarding hand rail. That is good, so ships should not be a problem. Getting of the boat is a bit trickier but hand rails are usually available. Crew are also there for assistance of course. Have fun planning. notamermaid

I see. Hmm, I would not put it such words as you say, but I do not like Rüdesheim either. The cable car is great if you enjoy heights and views but other than that I cannot see that sailing the distance from Mainz, here I mean mouth of the river Main, to Rüdesheim is merited by what you get to see. I regard Bingen (on the other river bank) and Eltville (nearby town) as superior in interesting cultural aspects. Yet, if one enjoys the old charm of a town that lives from wine and of wine/river tourists including day trippers then it is pleasant enough. It is not for me. For anyone new to "alternative" towns, here is a thread on them: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2516698-rhine-beyond-the-standard-ports/ Both Bingen and Eltville are featured. notamermaid

Quick interlude and return to a topic of last year - the accident at Iffezheim lock. This was major and it may well affect you slightly this year on an itinerary as at Iffezheim still only one lock chamber is usable. One gate at the second lock was severely damaged when a ship hit it and will now finally be replaced. This is a German news article: https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/baden-wuerttemberg/karlsruhe/schleuse-iffezheim-reparatur-nach-schiffsunfall-rhein-100.html notamermaid

That is interesting. So you did not go to Rüdesheim and a bit further. Have seen a couple of itineraries where there was a sailing into the Gorge. Down to Boppard and then back to Mainz is a good way of doing this, one does not need to go all the way to Koblenz. notamermaid

Hello to you in Melbourne. That is one of the itineraries that I put in the "Grand European" category, but it is an unusual one. Sailing from Basel to just before Mainz and then "turning right" to sail the Main and all the way to Budapest on the Danube is an interesting variation. Will there be a short trip into the Rhine Gorge either sailing or by coach? If you sail straight onto the Main river you will not see it. notamermaid

A-Rosa have been busy finding new excursion options. This is the news article: https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/tour-operators/a-rosa-adds-50-extra-excursions-to-2024-programme More info is available from the company press release: https://www.arosa-*****/fileadmin/media/presse/PM/2024/KW09/A-ROSA_PR_New_Excursions_26.02.2024.pdf notamermaid

Welcome to Cruisecritic. I was also going to suggest a "Grossraumtaxi" for your group. Many train options indeed and Munich is a great city to explore. If you rent a car and would like to explore smaller places then the villages of the Bavarian Forest are nice. But the Alpine region is more spectacular. If you have any questions about Vilshofen you can also contact the tourist-information centre: https://www.vilshofen.de/index.php/kontakt-tourismus-information Have fun planning. notamermaid

Yesterday I was in the hilly region of the Westerwald in the North of my state. While I was sitting in a café far away from any river cruise and even a navigable river I thought that it is a shame that so many little known places you will likely never be offered to see during an excursion. And then I remembered something I read about A-Rosa. I will post this in the thread about the popularity of river cruising but here are more details about this. This is the original news article I saw: https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/tour-operators/a-rosa-adds-50-extra-excursions-to-2024-programme Not many details, but "Idar-Oberstein" caught my eye, so I checked A-Rosa: https://www.arosa-*****/fileadmin/media/presse/PM/2024/KW09/A-ROSA_PR_New_Excursions_26.02.2024.pdf And there is the info: "Alternatively, there is a new group excursion from Trier to the historic gemstone city of Idar-Oberstein and the possibility to marvel at over 100 historic airplanes from aviation history in a nearby museum after." Idar-Oberstein is literally a gem town, you will find the gem stone museum there: https://www.edelsteinland.de/en/sightseeing/all-sights-and-attractions/jewellery-and-gemstone-town-of-idar-oberstein-kopie.html But that place of aviation history?? I found it, it is a private museum and what a place it is. You can find it in nearby Hermeskeil. This is the website with video: https://www.flugausstellung.de/ They have a "Tante Ju" and a replica of the Concorde, among many other historic objects. I really like that A-Rosa has been adding these rarer places. Probably sheer coincidence that we had a conversation here on CC about Idar-Oberstein a couple of years ago discussing it as a possible excursion... The Palace of Gödöllö in Hungary by the way was offered as an excursion on my river cruise in 2013 (another German company). I am surprised this has so far not been part of the A-Rosa portfolio. notamermaid

The magnolia tree is doing well, already looking more pink than on Wednesday (see post further above). Kaub gauge long-term forecast is really looking good, stable and pleasant. Ships are getting ready to sail to ports to pick up their first passengers of the season, more by the day (the sailings that is). In Cologne Niehl the dock is still full with ships but they will soon leave one after the other: One Viking river cruise ship left this popular winter harbour earlier today, the Viking Ullur. The S.S.Antoinette is docking in Cologne just North of Hohenzollern Bridge tonight. And exciting news: the Amina is signalling in Gendt! Not sure if she is still on test runs or now ready and out and about on the river proper. She is the new ship of Phoenix Reisen and will be christened in Bonn on 3 April. This her inaugural sailing is two nights, Bonn to Rüdesheim return, and is sold out. After that she will, typically for this time of year, sail the Netherlands on five day trips, before transferring on a long itinerary to the Danube, a sailing from Cologne to Passau in May. notamermaid

For my river cruise I used a TA and the advice I got was useful. I travelled by train so booked that in addition to the river cruise from her and it was really convenient. I could have done it myself but I was happy to hand booking the package over to a professional. You may feel the same about sorting out flights - you intend to stay longer in Europe so could there be a transfer which may be good if your TA did it? As regards specifics for the US I of course need to leave that to others to answer. I cannot think of a better time to see the Rhine - unless it is for magical Christmas markets. Of the two itineraries, which look the same at first glance and only differ in sailing direction, I prefer the Enchanting Rhine one. Details matter, and with this one it matters to me that the description says Burg Lahneck. You will be the only tour group there of all international river cruise passengers (and I am not sure if the owners have German river cruise passenger groups at all). I have not been inside, but have read good things about it. The small restaurant serves really nice waffles (and other food) and the view over the valley is good: Have fun planning. notamermaid

Time to have a look at what the river did in February. This is Kaub gauge: We see highs and lows, coming and going, all due to rain basically, there has been no pronounced snow melt. It has been a mild winter all in all and temperatures in February did not vary much week on week. The winter has also officially been wetter than usual (which we may have guessed from the situation in December). The month ended on a level above mean water but far away from any level that would affect sailing. In the last week we have seen a further drop so we go into the river cruising season at a very pleasant level that is neither low nor high. Lake Constance gauge is running above the mean in the annual graph, so the Rhine's natural reservoir is filled well. notamermaid

Thank you for the review. As you sailed in (very) low season, how would say it this compares to spring and summer? My specific questions. Could the fewer crowds, which you have put as a plus, make up for the uncertainty of the weather in a relatively boring, grey landscape? Was there enough daylight for you to enjoy the sailing and excursions? Where there any ports that were different from standard spring and summer sailings? notamermaid

APT and Travelmarvel in 2025: https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/travel-agents/apt-travelmarvel-unveils-2025-european-river-cruise-programme Interesting that Travelmarvel has UK and Ireland exclusive cruises. Other companies do this of course but I would not have thought that an Australian company would go for this. I guess it makes perfect sense to put the shorter cruises, which are not worthwhile coming to Europe from Australia for, only on the UK and Irish markets. notamermaid

From what people have reported here on CC over the years, this is the least favourite excursion on a Viking Rhine river cruise. The coach tour seems not to do the Black Forest justice. Good that you mention this. You appear to have put the Rhine into your considerations because you may be bored on the Douro sailing. The Douro scenery is more spectacular all in all compared to a Rhine river cruise but judging from the Douro photos I would say that "my" river is more varied. As regards how the two rivers "work" I would say you have two almost opposing ways of cruising/excursion/sailing time and distance set-up. But the others have explained that in more detail already. It really depends on what you are looking for. Also remember that you have two quite different areas of Europe; life in the countries, that is Portugal vs. Switzerland/France/Germany/Netherlands, that you will visit is not the same. Especially in summer heat. The Douro villages looked a bit sleepy in the documentary I saw. I will go with Gourmet Gal and suggest that you look at a Rhine/Moselle itinerary instead of the Basel to Amsterdam Rhine Getaway by Viking. Unless you would like to see Cologne Cathedral. But if you enjoy travelling by train the options in Europe are almost endless anyway, so you could go to Cologne by yourself. The Rhine is a busy waterway, the Moselle is a bit like the Douro apparently but with different wine... The Moselle does have barge traffic. Both are lock-controlled by the way, i.e. the Douro and the Moselle. The Rhine partially where river cruise ships sail. notamermaid

Let us have a quick look at what the Danube did in Germany in February. This is Pfelling: At Pfelling we are normally concerned with low water. In winter and sometimes during other months we do see high water and the authorities issue a river traffic ban at 620cm. The river was high in February, starting above 500cm and showing two more spikes due to heavy rain. Thankfully, dry days allowed the river to recover in between them so that flooding did not become severe. No river traffic ban was necessary. At Passau we have that problem with the low bridge and of course the high water coming through Pfelling. That is what the reaction at Passau looked like: The highs did not reach a level that would have impeded sailing under the low bridge. The authorities have put this (as a guideline) at 630cm. notamermaid

The river cruising season on the Elbe is starting on Monday for Viking with the first "Elegant Elbe" itinerary, i.e. Berlin land stay advertised for 11 March. The German company Plantours is sailing on Sunday. They are starting in Berlin as well but will not be on the Elbe before Viking. The reason is: they are going East! Yes, you can do that from Berlin if you have a small ship. The MS Sans Souci: https://www.plantours-kreuzfahrten.de/reise/kulturschaetze-am-oderufer-san0124-san0224/?tab=IhrSchiff Viking's ships, although adapted for the Elbe and therefore smaller than those for the Danube, etc., are bigger than the Sans Souci. Another small ship perfectly suited for the Elbe is the Swiss Ruby. I mentioned her in a previous post in connection with the winter sailings of Viva Cruises. Of course, the company is using the ship for more sailings in the area. On 29 March the Swiss Ruby sets sail from Berlin to Prague. More dates and the reverse itinerary are also available: https://www.viva-*****/en/reise/higlights-der-elbe-und-moldau notamermaid

Aaahhh, not to worry, half meant in earnest. Was going to answer, but wanted to put some info in the Elbe thread anyway, so all over there. Thank you for following there. Interesting that you looked at Nicko Cruises. They have some nice itineraries. They are on the Rhine of course. For all those not familiar with the company - they have spread their marketing internationally but I have no idea how successful they are with that and what the international or at least-bilingual cruises are like. notamermaid