markg57

Does anyone have T-mobile personal experience while cruising the Rhine river? Specifically, what kind of coverage (if any) do you have while actually on the Rhine river?

 

We've had T-mobile for years and it worked awesome when we were in Spain and Italy last fall (loved the free 4g data and texting). I'm pretty confident we'll have data coverage when we're in port, but curious about what kind of coverage will be available while actually on the boat - e.g. for texting back home primarily.

 

 

We head out in 10 days on Viking Kara from Amsterdam to Basel :D

We did Amsterdam to Basel in May, and our T-Mobile phones worked fine. Each country border we passed, we were greeted with the "Welcome to [Germany, France or Switzerland]" text message. FYI T-Mobile no longer is offering the promotional free LTE-speed service in Europe, so if you are on the regular T-Mobile One plan, you will get throttled to 3G speeds (my phone often said LTE, but I never really checked speeds). But that never really hindered us, except while trying to use Google maps while we were walking around Amsterdam. But most cafes there have free wifi, so not really that much of a hinderance. If I had to do it again, I would have pre-downloaded the Google maps for each stop to my phone, which would avoid some of that problem.

We're on Viking Rhine Getaway and wondering about extension cord. My husband uses a CPAP. We always travel with an extension cord because there is not always a electrical outlet located close enough to the bed. Any concerns with a standard cord without surge protector?

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We were on the Viking Kvasir back end of May for the Rhine Getaway, and there is are both a US and European power outlet on either side of the bed. I also have CPAP, and did not need it. Still bring an extension cord as you may need it for the hotel pre- or post-trip. My CPAP has a 2-prong 110-230V power brick, so a 2-prong, 3 outlet extension cord is what I pack. As long as it is a simple outlet extender with no electronics, I see no reason it should be ok.

Why do you need a power strip? If it is for your phone, tablet, camera or your other portable electronics, get a multi-port USB charger instead.

I also brought multiple SD cards and swapped them out every 2 days so a failed card would lose ALL the pictures.

Ugh did not catch this before I posted...I swapped in new SD cards every couple of days so that a failed card would NOT lose all the pictures from the trip.

Just got back from Europe. I had decided to leave my laptop behind because of the threat of a laptop ban on the return flight. So backup plan was use an Android tablet (LG G-Pad 2). I put the biggest micro-SD card it could take, and used a USB OTG cable to suck the day's photos off the camera. I then used OTG cable and a USB "Y-cable" to connect the tablet to a small 1TB USB hard drive (the other line from the Y goes to a USB power source - see https://petapixel.com/2013/03/26/how-to-back-up-your-pictures-using-an-android-tablet-and-external-hard-drives/ ). Could also backup instead to a large capacity USB thumb drive (or 2).

I also brought multiple SD cards and swapped them out every 2 days so a failed card would lose ALL the pictures. As a result I had photos stored in 3 places - original SD cards, SD card on tablet, and on external hard drive. If I had to check the tablet, I could pop the SD card out and bring it in my carry-on, along with the original SD cards and disk drive.

I have also see Apple Lightning-USB OTG cables, but don't know how well that works with iOS devices.

We just flew back from Basel on 31 May and that was exactly the procedure. Tablets (8" and 10") out and in a separate tray with the case covers open. They were already powered on, so not sure if they would have asked that. I asked about my camera - a small Canon Powershot - and they said that could stay in the bag, however if it was a bigger DSL, I suspect it probably would have had to come out too.

Mark thanks so much. My husband dislikes any confusion & always likes to plan ahead. Since it I still our first river cruise after numerous European bus tours we decided to give a cruise a go. Packing & unpacking once even tough we loved our Trafagar & Inisght tours but as we age we have become lazier!! With the SSP he feels it will be a smoother visit to the bar. We are not heavy drinkers but do enjoy a cocktail before dinner & may prefer a wine on the menu. Since we have an OBC this seems a good way to see if it will be worth it. I hope the water levels are agreeable & if we love this cruise I hope we are able to do others. Cheers!

Your husband sounds like me :-) Which is why we booked everything through Viking, as it made things SO much simpler for us (I WANTED to be lazy and let someone else deal with the details!). They took great care of us ex. my wife has some dietary restrictions, so the Maitre'D would meet her every day at breakfast to go over the lunch and dinner menus with her so they could prepare dishes per her needs.

If you go to the daily port talks before dinner each day, and read the Viking Daily they give you each night, you really should not have any confusion during the cruise. And if you have any questions, just ask. And the ship is small enough that they staff will get to know you by the second day.

I think we all get that, based on the threads you have created. ;)

 

It is clear that Viking suits you well. It is not a line we have ever tried, nor will we in the future.

 

Uniworld offers the level of quality and service we prefer on the river and is one of our favorites. Jackets and ties are much preferred over shorts and jeans. :halo:

I think weather would play a role in that. I brought a travel blazer last week for the Viking Rhine Getaway, thinking I might need it for the evening, but since the temperature was in the 80's and 90's last week (93 deg F in Strasbourg), the jacket stayed in the cabin closet the entire time. And I did not see anyone else wearing one either. Light-weight collared Columbia travel shirts were as dressy as I got :-)

The Viking Kvasir had a mix of round and oblong tables for 6 along the windows, and larger tables in the middle. We always stayed at a table by the window and got to know a number of people.

Thanks Mark, that was very helpful. I hope you had a great cruise.

Yes it was a great cruise. With the Silver Spirits package, when they came around to pour dinner wine, they would instead hand us a wine menu. My wife found a German Pinot Noir that she really liked, so usually would have a bottle of that at the dinner table each day. They wanted you to sign a tab each day, but you usually only did it once - though sometimes the tab you signed in the second-deck dining room didn't make it up to the bar, so you had to sign one there again.

For those trying to decide if it was worth it, it definitely was for us. Since dinner is not until 7pm, there is usually time for one or 2 cocktails while socializing and during the port talks before dinner. Then we would split the bottle of wine for dinner, and after dinner would have additional cocktails while socializing in the lounge. And no, we do NOT drink that much at home :-) We did tip the bartender and the server who usually waited on us separate from the crew gratuity at the end of the cruise, since they had treated us so well. Actually EVERYONE on the ship treated us well.

Just flew out of Basel on 31 May after Viking Rhine Getaway. They now want you to take pretty much all electronics bigger than a phone or compact camera out of you bag and place it separately in the tray with any case cover open (used to be only laptops had to come out). Our tablets (10" and 8" android) were already powered on, so not sure if they would have asked if they weren't. I asked about my camera, and he asked what size it was - compact or full size (DSLR). I was travelling with a small Canon Powershot, and he said no need. But if it had been a bigger camera, it probably would have also had to get scanned in a separate tray.

I originally was going to take my Dell XPS 13 on the trip (to sort and organize photos), but decided not to after hearing of the potential ban. My tablet was a lot less expensive, and not as big a deal if I lose it. And then I figured out that USB OTG (On-The-Go) would let me transfer photos to the tablet just as easily as to a laptop.

Keith 1010 suggested I post my question on this forum. We have a shipboard credit as a result of our early booking. Can we use our credit to purchase the SS beverage pkg & can we purchase this pkg as we board or through the Viking rep at the Budapest hotel before departure. Viking will not answer this question. If not can we use the credit for tips or in the gift shop. What Ypres of items are a ilable in the gift shop, I realize it may not be as extensive as one would find on a larger ship. We have already booked & paid for our optional tours. Thank you for any information.

We just got back from Viking Kvasir May 24-31 Rhine Getaway. We signed up when we checked in, but the drink servers will also ask if you are interested when you order your first round. It then goes onto your onboard tab, and your shipboard credits will be applied.

We just got back from the Viking Kvasir Amsterdam-Basel trip May 24-31. My wife has some mobility challeneges, mainly stairs, but did pretty well. We did not sign up originally, but they have a "Leisurely" group for people with mobility issues that tries to avoid stairs and other obstacles.

- Kinderdyjk is maybe a mile of flat out to the windmills and back. Biggest hazard was the traffic on the path (May 25 was a National Holiday). EDIT: If you want to do the optional cheesemaking tour, you HAVE to sign up for that before the trip. And make sure you do as soon as you can because they close the online optional sign-ups a couple weeks out from the cruise departure/

- In Cologne, the buses pick you up at a stop downstream, and drop you basically a block away from the Cathedral. You can get picked up again at the same location, or walk across the "Lover's Bridge" to the other side to pick up the ship. We did the latter, and my wife was NOT happy with me when she had to go down a bunch of stairs to get from the bridge to the river level. Make your way to the sun deck when the ship departs Cologne to see the cathedral lit up.

- If you are not physically up to Marksburg castle (and they warn the you need to be in GOOD physical condition for that tour), do not miss the optional tour to the Fortress Ehrenbreitstein. You take a cable gondola across the river and up to the Fortress grounds, and from there it is all flat. And you will be greatly entertained by the actor that leads the tour. We did not go on the evening optional into Rudesheim as my wife was starting to feel the walking.

- For Heidelberg, you pick up a bus that first takes you up for a tour of the old castle. This is the day we started the with the "Leisurely" group, and they kept it on the flats up in the castle area (option to walk down the ramp to see the gigantic wine barrel). Bus then takes you down to Old Town Heidleberg, where you can have some free time. But make sure you are back to the bus on time, as you have to take it to pick up the ship in Speyer (we had one couple that misinterpreted 2:00 for 2:30 and had to catch train to pick up ship in Speyer!!)

- They ship is only in Speyer for a few hours before sailing, but take advantage of walking into to see the Romanesque cathedral. Our cruise director Gavin did it as an optional "welcome walk", but said not all of the cruise directors do that.

- In Strasbourg, the ship docks across the river in Kehl. Depending on what docking location you get over, there can be a considerable hike to get to the buses that take you into the city. For the Leisurely group, they called taxi's to get us to the bus. After a bit of a bus ride around Strasbourg, they drop you off close to center of old town not too far away from the cathedral. There is option to stay in town and catch shuttles back, but we took the bus back as we were headed out for the Alsace Wine Tasting in the afternoon (about 45 min buss ride each way).

- We skipped the Black Forest Tour, as I was getting tired of banging my knees on the buses (I am 6'3"), and we knew we were going to be on the bus a lot in the afternoon for the Colmar WW2 excursion (the travel guide said it was "moderate", but really not that much walking).