winegirl

Uniworld's ship Joie de Vivre travels the Seine and it was a spectacular ship.  All inclusive. We loved it and will use Uniworld again.  

For those who asked about travel insurance with pre-existing condition waivers that can be purchased at the time of final payment:

I bought policies with the help of Steve at the Trip Insurance Store which is highlighted on the CC website.

The policies I bought (for 2 trips in 2022) were IMG Global iTravelInsured Travel LX.

You can find this with a number of online travel insurance websites, and they all charge the same premium since this is a highly regulated industry.  So you don't have to beat your head against every website looking for a better price. 

As I recall, our ship docked near the town.  We visited a fish market ( L'Hippocampe poissonnerie) that was close to shore and from there walked to the ship. I don't recall any long bus ride like the one to the Normandy beaches.  Maybe my memory is mistaken, it was in 2018. Mea culpa.  Will keep my notes to myself from now on. 

We took a Rhine River Christmas Markets cruise from late November to early December.

Comfortable weather proof hikers/boots would work well.  Not the boots that we Wisconsinites use to shovel snow, but some lighter weight trail hikers: I have some Vasque Gore Tex lined hikers that are low cut like sneakers.  

Warm, lightweight wool or polypropylene socks.  No cotton, if they get wet, they stay cold and wet. Also recommend some warm gloves and a hat if your jacket does not have a hood. 

I took a midweight walking coat that was somewhat water resistant.  We had no rain.  But the mistake I made was not taking an insulating layer under that coat.  I wore fleece shirts underneath, but I should have also taken my Eddie Bauer lightweight down vest that I could wear under the coat. 

All was well until Strasbourg: it was bitterly cold and clear that day, with a light wind.  I'd say in the teens.  We were touring and in town all day, waiting for a dinner reservation in the evening.  Once the sun started to set, I was just frozen.  We ducked into shopping malls, stores and bars until it was time for our dinner (which was well worth staying for.)  

Having taken two cruises on AMA Waterways (Tulip Time and Rhine Christmas Markets,) and on Uniworld (Seine River Paris to the coast and Bordeaux):

For a Seine River cruise, look into Uniworld.  Their ship Joie de Vivre is spectacularly beautiful and elegant.  I took my spouse, daughter, brother and sister in law on the Uniworld Seine River cruise and they all loved it.

Embarked at the Quai de Grenelle in Paris, with lovely view of Tour Eiffel.  Excellent on board experience and lovely fellow travellers made for fun in the evenings! At Honfleur, walked short distance from ship to the town center, looked around, and had a lovely galette lunch in a little hole in the wall restaurant.  One of the favorite ports.  Giverny in full bloom mid October, another favorite stop.  And a full day to the D-Day beaches and American cemetery.  

AMA Waterways also lovely cruise, excellent cruise director and much merriment on board due to the season.  Ship not quite as elegant as the Uniworld Joie de Vivre and AMA is not "all inclusive," which means some drink tabs, tipping, etc.  Not a deal breaker IMO.  

If your mom needs an elevator, explore which ships have those.  Joie de Vivre did have an elevator and a nice self laundry as well, if you want to use it. 

River cruisers do tie up next to each other at ports.  You usually can walk through the reception areas from boat to boat. But not always and you may be climbing to the sun deck and down more stairs as you traverse the ships to shore.  You may find your balcony cabin is looking right into another cruiser's cabin window.  We've had both upper tier balcony cabins and lower deck cabins with just port hole windows.  I actually preferred the privacy of the lower deck cabins, which tend to be smaller but full of comforts.  Although you trade some light for that privacy.

We are now embarking on our first Scenic cruise (Danube) which I picked for the specific itinerary/stops.  We've travelled along the Danube by automobile in the past, and I wanted my daughter to be able to visit Nuremberg (our family comes from there.)  The logistics and communications have been a little challenged.  If you use a travel agent rather than booking directly with Scenic, they will communicate and send materials to the TA, not to you directly.  We got the Glen Moroney letter a few weeks ago, to my personal email.  Will roll with the punches and hope for the best, so jury is out on Scenic at this time.   

Put a deposit on a Scenic land/river cruise (Prague to Budapest) September 2022 with our daughter and some friends we met on a prior cruise. We have not travelled anywhere since October 2019, when we spent 3 weeks in Australia/NZ.  Scenic has an option to have air included or we get a credit.  We have until March to decide about that. Will purchase trip insurance at the time of further deposits (found a company that will waive pre-existing conditions when you make your FINAL payment, rather than the initial deposit.) 

I would like to know that we will be able to enter and exit Europe without a lot of hoops and restrictions. So hoping that Omicron will taper off and COVID infections will become endemic, rather than pandemic, later this year. We are all fully vaccinated and boosted, but the protection declines dramatically after about 10 weeks from the booster date, as I recently read.  The requirement for a COVID test within 24 hours of boarding a US bound return flight is also kind of bothersome.  I sure don't want to be stuck in Europe looking for a test, having to change flights or quarantining if worst comes to worse. 

I'll keep a close eye on COVID developments until we have to make further deposits and final payment.  Right now, if we can't take the cruise and can't get credit for our deposit, we are only out $ 1,500.  I can live with that.

With regard to the cruiser who wanted to book a trip within France:  Here is a recently updated link to the US Department of State website with details on travel there: https://fr.usembassy.gov/covid-19-information/

Are U.S. citizens permitted to enter France? No

• Broad restrictions on non-essential travel from many countries outside the European Union, including the United States, remain in place. The French government has defined essential travel as entry by French citizens, residents of France, all foreign (including United States citizen) students (with appropriate visa or residence permit), and spouses and children of French citizens.
• In rare cases, the French government will consider allowing travel in humanitarian situations and in cases of business activity important to the French economy, and have announced a program to allow unmarried couples to reunite. Persons may inquire about such allowances with the French Embassy in Washington, DC (visas@consulfrance-washington.org).
• The United States Embassy has no standing to intervene or advocate for the private travel of United States citizens to France. Please contact your nearest French Embassy or French Consulate or refer to France Visas. 

Same rules apply to travel to Germany. https://de.usembassy.gov/covid-19-information/  If you meet one of the narrow exceptions, you may be admitted but will have to quarantine.  Leisure travelers do not meet the exceptions and are not currently admitted.

As another person mentioned, we've also had very good experiences on AMA Waterways.  Not "all inclusive" like Uniworld but the ship, food, cruise director and itineraries were excellent.

I also echo comments about Uniworld's Seine cruise on the "Joie de Vivre."  We took this cruise in October 2018. The ship was beautiful, food was great, staff superb and our cruise director was surprised at how well the passengers bonded and had a great time.  The lounge was rocking every night due to well chosen singer/entertainers who got everyone up on their feet.  I took my spouse, my daughter, my brother and sister in law and everyone really enjoyed this cruise and cruise line.

In Normandy, we opted for the trip to the American Cemetery and D Day beaches, since the others had not been there before.  And if you want to see Giverny, check the dates it opens and closes and cruise within that time. Giverny was glorious in mid October. 

Re: Christmas Markets-- I am German and from Wisconsin, so we are used to cold weather. And the culture in Germany is so reminiscent of my upbringing.  I did not realize how much my immigrant grandparents influenced me.  I was really glad my daughter was along to get a taste of that.

Winter is my husband's favorite time of year, since we can enjoy winter sports and no lawn care!  That being said, if you do book for a Christmas Markets cruise, layer up.  The stop in Strasbourg was the coldest, windiest day of the cruise: it was biting cold, and we were off the ship from morning until late in the evening since we booked a dinner at a nice French restaurant in town.  

Happy travels everyone!

If you book on Uniworld's Joie de Vivre Paris to Paris, you will be pleased.  It is a gorgeous ship. Top notch staff, excellent dining.  We  cruised Uniworld in October 2018, when we took our adult daughter, my brother and sister in law.  They were veteran ocean cruisers but did enjoy the river cruise and Uniworld's product quite a lot. 

That being said, I don't think you can go wrong with AMA Waterways as well. We used AMA for Christmas Markets on the Rhine, and Tulip Time.  Both cruises started in Amsterdam, which is one of our favorite cities, and very easy to visit.  Everyone speaks impeccable English. Great walking and public transportation cities.  Lots to see and do. Safe to wander.  On the Christmas Markets cruise, we walked from our hotel near the Central Station waterfront to the ship.  Couldn't have been easier.

AMA is not "all inclusive" like Uniworld, where they will have you sign a tab for some things like drinks (although there were events with free drinks included.)  Both AMA and Uniworld offer daily excursions, sometimes multiple per day for no extra charge.  A few special ones, like a tour in Cognac, cost a small extra amount, well worth it.  I have to say, the Christmas Markets Rhine River cruise on AMA was my favorite river cruise:  Europe was all dressed up, the staff was extra merry as were the passengers.  Just a good vibe.  I can't wait to do Christmas Markets on the Danube, since my family is from Nuremberg and some of the  tours stop there. 

Live in suburb of Milwaukee. Two brochures from Oceania today. Offers some September cruises in Europe.  We had planned to go to France in October, but dropped the plans when the second airline we booked with cancelled the flight we booked.  We'll try again next year.  When I went to see what flights were available from the US to Europe, there were slim pickings from Chicago O'Hare and the flight arrangements were unattractive.

As for the postal service, my sister in law is a USPS carrier in the CIty of Milwaukee.  She says the USPS makes money on the parcel service that they carry out for Amazon.  Nothing else. The current administration would like to deep six the postal service altogether, and may do so by budget cuts.  So that would mean the end of any first class mail service, and parcels would go to the other commercial carriers, at higher prices.  Perhaps a private firm would do some first class mail service but it would only make sense from a  profit standpoint to do that in major urban areas.  Not the last mile delivery that USPS currently has as a mandate.   

We like small ship sailing, after having sailed on Holland, Oceania, Seabourn, WIndstar and for river/canal cruising, AMA, Uniworld and I think it was Abercrombie & Kent (long time ago in Burgundy.)

I choose the cruises for our family:  I pick based on itinerary and low passenger count.  After using Holland for Alaska inside passage, we decided we definitely did not care for a ship with 2,000 passengers.  Even Oceania Insignia, with 700, was bigger than we preferred (but the dining, port intensive itinerary were great.)  Ships carrying those numbers seemed too busy for our taste, and the service was less personal than the smaller ships.  We enjoyed Seabourn (400 passengers on the Sojourn,) but our favorite is Windstar with only 140 on the smaller sailing yachts (WIndstar and WIndspirit.)  That's like having your own personal yacht IMO.  Great staff and service.  Can get into ports that the big ones can't, so the port isn't overwhelmed with numbers when it docks. Spouse felt most relaxed on the Windstar.  Got his resort diving certificate while in the Mediterranean, with the sole attention of the two diving instructors.  Experience of a lifetime.

As far as river cruises and canal barges go, they are all small.  We liked Uniworld and AMA equally.  Uniworld was "all inclusive" for the most part, which was nice when we took our entire family along:  no charge slips to sign.  Dining was very good to excellent on both, cruise directors were phenomenal.  We will use one of the two for Christmas Markets on the Danube in the future.  I heard from a friend that I trust that French Country Waterways is the way to go for a canal barge cruise at this time.

I don't stick to any one line, it's itinerary driving the choice as long as the passenger count is low and reputation is high.  "Perks" and freebies don't matter to me. 

Best food we've had on a cruise was on Oceania Insignia.  Both the main dining room and the specialty restaurants were quite good. I especially liked the variety of choices from the daily menu, the spa menu and some of their takes on local cuisines that were quite well done.

Windstar, Seabourn, AMA Waterways and Uniworld also do a nice job by and large.  Just not as cutting edge as Oceania when we sailed on O.

Just saw this in the NYTimes.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/11/world/europe/budapest-danube-crash

We started out on some smaller ships (Windstar in particular -150 passenger ship) but took an inside passage cruise on Holland America (2,000 passenger ship,) after my brother recommended it. The difference in passenger load very noticeably affected the quality of experience. Windstar line offered much more attentive and individualized service, had an intimate atmosphere, and you were not treated like another in the "herd." Still our favorite ocean cruise line overall. The dining in Holland's main dining room was OK, but the "Lido" buffet was awful--too many people milling about aimlessly, no tables, food out in various stations. Similar experiences all over the Holland ship, just a big cattle call.

Since that cruise, we have stuck to smaller ship cruise lines. Oceania Insignia carried 700, and even that had the "too big" feeling at times, hence we have not used any of their newer larger ships. Seabourn was an ocean of calm on board with lovely, large suites. We rarely saw anyone in the hallways, like having the ship to yourself. AMA Waterways (river cruise) really stepped up their game on our recent Christmas Markets cruise, which was delightful. From now on, my spouse will not consider any cruise ship with more than the Seabourn Sojourn passenger count of about 400.

Have taken two river cruises on AMA, Tulip Time and Christmas Markets. Dress was casual including evenings (but does not mean shorts/ flip flops or sweats at dinner. ) No "formal" nights. The men wore collared shirts/sweaters and ladies seem to dress up a bit in the evening (dressy top/slacks.) Coat/tie definitely not required or widely used by the men. The closets on a river cruiser are smaller than on a ocean cruise line, so take only what you think you'll use and need. During the day, much more casual.

As a rule, over our past cruises, most lines seem to be getting away from the "formal night" where people wore tuxedos and formal dresses. Modern travelers are not into dragging all that with them, and the airline weight/luggage restrictions pretty much limit how much clothing you can take with you. Comfort takes precedence.

In the course of many trips all over Europe, we have found:

1.) Europeans are well versed in politics and are very interested in US political scene. They do discuss everything politely and with curiosity, and we've never been put on the spot. On the other hand, we are very interested in the European view of things, which is most often well informed and thoughtful. If you don't want to discuss politics, just demur: "I'm taking a vacation from all that..." or "I'm sorry, I'm Canadian..."

2.) Clothing: we try to dress in "business casual-continental style." Sleek styles, including footwear, neck scarves, wrinkle free garments so we always look "neat and pressed." Nothing flashy, nothing draws attention. Leave the big jewelry home. Blend in. Can go anywhere in our travel clothes.

3.) Language: spouse speaks "very good unaccented French,"(according to native speakers,) after only a semester in college. We've both taken years of Spanish and a German class. So we know basic words/phrases such as "Excuse moi-parlais vous Anglais?:(Excuse me, do you speak English?) Bon jour, bon soir, oui la ???? Merci...

Similar phrases in German and Spanish... takes us pretty much where ever without any problems. The further north you go in Europe, the better the locals speak English, impeccable English in many cases. Be polite and patient...and dismiss any perceived rudeness since everyone has their own issues and bad days...it's probably not you!

I purchased about $ 35,000 worth of travel arrangements including a Unworld river cruise for 5 family members and airline tickets on American Airlines and Air France to accomodate the "open jaw" cruise (start Paris, end Bordeaux.)

I also purchased travel insurance via Squaremouth portal from itravelinsured.com, carrier is US Fire Insurance Company. It is a pretty comprehensive policy and for all 5 of us, cost over $ 2,000.

Uniworld just informed my TA that the cruise we booked was cancelled: they plan to take the boat out of service for "renovations." Uniworld booked us on another cruise (without asking us first,) and now we have to change all our airline arrangements. The tickets were from American Airlines and Air France (open jaw tickets.) Uniworld offered to pay up to $ 350 per ticket airline change fees or refund the cruise payments.

American will change the ticket for $ 300 each, plus any price increase. New prices plus change fee amounts to additional $ 2281. The Air France tickets are a total loss, so I'll have to repurchase for another $478. So after Uniworld reimburses me, I'd still be out $ 1200+ for higher airline costs.

After reviewing my travel insurance policy, I see no provision for reimbursement for cancelled cruise due to cruise line decision (not default or bankruptcy.) Many other covered situations but none specifically noting "your cruise was cancelled due to cruise line decision."

Has anyone run into this and if so, did insurance reimburse you for the additional costs to rebook new airline tickets? Any suggestions on what tack to take with the cruise line? This is the second time Uniworld has changed our arrangements for this cruise, the first after they sold the cruise we were booked on to a group.

"Deals"

I've seen deals offered by cruise lines (both river and ocean) when they are trying to sell the remaining cabins at the last minute. I've even had offers from the cruise line of thousands of dollars back if we switched to a less expensive cabin (which we did not do, since the cabin we chose was the one we wanted.)

The longer you wait, the more likely you might see a price break. However, you must be willing to travel on a moment's notice, and booking last minute airfare at higher prices might offset your "deal." For example, I needed one way air from Bordeaux to Paris early in the AM for 5 of us. I found a great price on a major airline, for about $100 per person. I bought all those seats and the next time I checked, only seats available were well over $ 400 per person.

There are lots of "deals" on European travel in August since that's a "down" time in Europe-Europeans by the millions vacation for the full month of August and a lot of businesses, such as restaurants and shops, close that month. There are also "deals" on lower priced tour or cruise operators. I've seen cruises for several hundred dollars per head, but I know I would not be happy on such a cruise: we value quality, great food, service and a small group experience over price any day.

So, in my opinion, buy travel at a price point you think is fair (and don't keep second guessing your choice) to assure your trip--or if you can go at the last minute and are not concerned if your trip doesn't work out, then you can afford to wait.

Trip Insurance-worth it?

Here is my take on trip insurance, after taking many European cruises and land tours which were prepaid--

We've always purchased trip/travel insurance through either Insure My Trip or Squaremouth. Used to find a good price on the ATA website but I think those days are over.

I'm 68 and insured under Medicare Advantage. Medicare does not cover hospital or MD bills outside the US. My plan does, I believe, cover emergency care, which I suppose amounts to basic stabilization of the patient for transport back home (transport not covered.) Foreign hospitals and practitioners would not bill your insurance, you'd have to pay out of pocket and work out reimbursement to yourself from your carrier.

On a recent 2 week tour of Scotland/Ireland, the following occurred:

One of the group, a woman who I believe was in her 40's, fell to the floor in the hotel lobby and was transported to an Irish hospital. She was diagnosed with a stroke and had to spend multiple days in that hospital before being stable enough to travel home. Her sister, also in her 40's, while visiting that same hospital, tripped over a curb on the street and broke her arm. So the sister also needed to be admitted for surgery to fix the arm. They were hospitalized about 4 days or so, as I recall.

When we spoke with them, the final bill for the hospital, for both of them, was quite reasonable, several thousand dollars. Their travel insurance covered that bill. Given the stroke and the need for a surgery, even for younger "healthy" people, you can never tell what your financial liability will be until all costs are incurred. If your medical insurance does not cover outside the US, you'd be paying the bills yourself. I personally would not want that potential liability hanging over my head (of course, the bills for this in the US would have easily topped $ 100K.) In addition, if you need to be medically evacuated by private plane with attendants, that is another stratosphere of costs.

So for our upcoming Uniworld cruise, I paid about $ 2,000 to buy comprehensive, primary medical insurance with $100K medical and evac included, for 5 people--4 were over 60 years old. Primary coverage means the travel insurance policy pays first and I think it's worth the peace of mind to cover 5 of us on at trip that is costing about $ 40,000 all in.

Took a barge cruise through Burgundy via Abercrombie and Kent in 2001 (right after 9/11.) Spouse says this is his favorite trip of all time--very peaceful, beautiful area and away from the horrible world events. Barging is a very different "cruise" experience from ocean or river cruisers. Barges are compact and do not have the amenities of a larger ship. But they are set up nicely and we had phenomenal dining (French chef on board.) It is a slow paced, intimate experience.

Our barge was set up for 22, but everyone but 8 of us cancelled after 9/11. Since then, the barge companies have stepped up the game and reconfigured many of the barges to offer much larger cabins and fewer cruisers per barge. Had a phenomenal tour guide, Patrice Bedert, who we'd love to engage again but cannot locate (worked for the company Continental Waterways, who ran the barge "L'Abercrombie.") We look forward to other barging experiences in the Loire, Champagne and Alsace Lorraine. I'd look at the "Barge Lady " website to compare multiple companies, multiple price points as well. A friend of mine used French Country Waterways and had high praise for that company as well so we'd definitely consider them in the future.

Visited Christmas markets and cathedral in Strasbourg last week, off the AMAcerto. We noted lots of security troops in the city center, with body armor and automatic weapons. Were not aware of any imminent threats but later found out some bad actors had been arrested before our visit. Christmas markets were in full swing but relatively uncrowded. We loved the city and this was the best Christmas market on our cruise IMO. Stayed late in the city for dinner and took a taxi to our ship docked in Kehl.

If you are concerned about security, you can always stay home but look what happened in New York, Columbine, and other US cities? Those people did not expect violence either. My spouse said best trip he'd ever taken was a barge cruise in Burgundy right after 9/11. We felt completely safe in France, more so than in the US. About 80% of our cruise group cancelled their trip, forfeited the cruise fare (this was before terrorism at home was added to trip insurance packages.) I suspect many of those people who cancelled never travelled again. I'd rather have an enriched life than hide out in my basement.

We are cruising the Rhine Christmas Markets on Amacerto. Sailed before on AMA but there was no "chef's table" experience. Apparently this is now a feature on the Amacerto. I am trying to find out: what is the Chef's Table? does it require a special reservation? how does one obtain such reservations?

From Chicago, we used SAS round trip, open jaw flying to Copenhagen and from Stockholm. Booked myself, which I always do. Means I have many choices as to airline, flight schedule, and time in the air.

SAS flew nonstop, which meant a relatively short flight of some 8 hours since they fly over the top of the globe.

Pricing? I pay more for the shortest flights and most convenient times. This means perhaps a couple hundred more for a better schedule.

Tips:

For cruise vacations, we always fly a day early or more. Never any excitement that way if flight delayed.

From Copenhagen, we took the train from the airport to central Copenhagen, which was quick, easy and inexpensive. From the central station, you can pick up a cab if you'd like.

From Stockholm, we stayed at the Radisson Blu which was next to the train/subway station. When leaving, we walked around the corner with our rolling luggage right on to the Arlanda Express high speed train to Stockholm's airport, which is about 25 miles from the center of town. This avoided the expensive cruise line transfers. Even if you take a taxi, you should be better off than buying cruise line transfers, which can run hundreds of dollars.