Fourmiler

Hello again notamermaid.  We’re just reminiscing about our wonderful Rhine cruise from Amsterdam to Basel with Emerald Waterways at this time last year.  So glad we did it as we certainly would not have been able to this year.  The weather was perfect, if perhaps a little too hot, and water levels were also good.  On this date last year we visited the Ehrenbreitstein fortress and the cable car broke down temporarily.  Fortunately we were not mid air at the time as the outside temperature was around 40C and would not have been fun surrounded by glass.  Our trip culminated in a visit with long-lost cousins now living in Switzerland.  A perfect trip all around and wonderful memories.  And, I’m still reading this thread and enjoying your information.  I’m probably addicted!

I too would be cautious about booking.  There is talk that the E.U. will not allow travellers from the U.S. due to so many Covid 19 cases.

Notamermaid, you always manage to find such interesting stories.  It would be nice to visit Guedelon but I don’t think I’d be offering to do work on the castle.  I noticed there was another article in the newspaper.  It was making bags from apples.  How do people manage to come up with such projects.  

Aha.  A new ship with a diving bell to be used to find old wreckage.  I wonder if they could use it to find the long lost locomotive.  I wondered how it ended up in the Rhine and it apparently fell off a barge!  Notamermaid, I am still hopeful that it will be found 😁

My cuckoo clock arrives tomorrow from the Black Forest.  A nice memento of our Rhine cruise.  (Yes, I got sucked into buying one!)

As you know, notamermaid, we just finished a close-to-perfect cruise to Basel from Amsterdam with Emerald Waterways.  We don’t hear much of Emerald but everything went smoothly for us, including the staff, excursions, food and more importantly water levels.  I still miss their coffee machine which gave me excellent latte macchiatos, plus the chocolate on my pillow each night.  Regarding the Rhine, which I should be writing about here, I have a few observations.  We expected to see far more barges than we did.  The edges (banks) of the river,  all the way from Amsterdam to Basel,  were beautifully landscaped.  I had expected to see rough, long grass, so I was very surprised.  The upkeep must cost a fortune.  Also we saw many swans on the river.  After the cruise we went farther north into Switzerland and saw many more, in one place 24 of them at the side of the river.  We also saw Lake Constance with my Swiss relatives and were very impressed with the scenery.  Such a pretty area which was enhanced by the hot sunny weather.  I have to say we enjoyed Koblenz and were intrigued by the story of the fountain with the spitting boy.  None of us got wet.  (I initially thought he was vomiting - lol).

Lovely photos of the castles.  Notamermaid, we loved Koblenz and how fortunate you are to live there (hope I remembered correctly).  We had great views from the cable car going up to the Ehrenbreitstein fortress as it was a hot sunny clear day.  Incidentally our guide had just finished giving us information on the cable car, explaining that it had only broken down once when it was inaugurated and filled with dignitaries, when you guessed it, it stopped working.  Thankfully we were not over the river at the time, but waiting at the top for the next car.  It was only stopped for about 20 minutes.  Was our guide correct?  In any event, it makes a great story!  I hope to post more about our Emerald Waterways Rhine cruise when I have more time.

I second your comments Mike R.  We are currently on the Emerald Sun on our way to Cologne, and everything is perfect.  Wonderful weather and last, but not least, lots of water in the Rhine.  Quite a relief since I spent the last year wondering if we would get a bus ride rather than a water ride.  On leaving Amsterdam we saw the Viking Kara, a Scenic ship (perhaps the Opal or Pearl) and also the Avalon Vista.

Relief!  Looks excellent for our August 24 departure from Amsterdam.  Many thanks again, notamermaid, for all your information.  What would we do without you?

Notamermaid, your post is music to my ears.  We arrive Amsterdam on Thursday to prepare for our Emerald cruise from August 24 to 31.  Ecstatic that we will have good water levels.  After booking the trip last year I have worried we would have low water levels this year too.  

Oh we will be about two weeks too late to see the fireworks.  Our trip includes a visit to the Ehrenbreitstein fortress and I imagine it would be a wonderful experience seeing the fireworks from a cruise ship.  Happy to hear about the rain coming to increase water levels.  But it can stop for the last week of August (please)!!

The water level news is music to my ears since we depart Amsterdam on August 24th.   Sad to hear the news regarding Britain, the land of my birth.  I have never once regretted leaving it for Canada.

I’ve been holding my breath regarding water levels for our August 24 departure on the Emerald Sun.  Breathing a little easier now though.  So grateful for all your input notamermaid.

Let us all sing La Marseillaise 😁

I’m feeling reasonably optimistic regarding water levels for an August 24 Amsterdam departure.  

Cautiously optimistic that river levels will be ok for an August 24 Rhine cruise.

Thanks for the quick response.  What’s the expression - “you pays your money and takes your chance”.  The one good thing is that after reading all the information here we won’t be surprised if the water in August is low.  In any event we will love the trip and will see an English cousin now living in Switzerland who I haven’t seen for 15 years!

Hello again Notamermaid.  How do this year’s water levels on the Rhine compare with the same period last year.  I’m hoping that if they are higher this year it augurs well for our August cruise!  

Many thanks for your comments OzNaiNai re Cochem or Koblenz.  Unfortunately we’re only there for the morning so won’t have time to do both.  I have a friend who is on a bus tour of parts of Germany right now and she will be going to both so I’ll ask her for her thoughts.

Notamermaid - interesting that you mentioned the WWII bomb detonated in the Main river and sent a link to the video.  I was most surprised that this information was actually mentioned in a radio news report in Toronto, Canada.  As far as I know this is the first time they have reported detonated bombs.  Now, if only we could get them to mention river levels...!!

We are with Emerald.  We do visit Cochem castle but that’s all I know at the moment but will ask my travel agent to find out more details.

I have a questions for you notamermaid and anyone else for that matter!  On our August cruise, when we dock in Koblenz, we have a choice of a tour of Koblenz and a visit to the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress or Moselle and Cochem visit.  We can’t do both.  Would like your views as to which tour we should choose.  And, we’re crossing our fingers for ok water levels in August!!

Racr please let us know how your Emerald cruise goes.  We are taking their Jewels of the Rhine cruise in August on Emerald Sun so Emerald information would be welcomed since we have never travelled with them before.

Wow.  That is unbelievable.  I wonder how common tornadoes are in Europe?  Glad you are safe notamermaid.

Since we’ll be travelling the Rhine, Amsterdam to Basel, in August i decided to borrow a copy of the book The Rhine by Ben Coates from our local library.  He starts at the mouth and travels by bike, boat and foot all the way to its source at Lake Toma.  He throws in a lot of history, quite a bit of cultural observations and a bit of light humour.  The cover of the book describes it this way.  “From rowing the canals of Amsterdam to riding a cow through the Alps, via Cold War nuclear bunkers, raucous Gay Pride parades, tranquil Lake Constance and snowy mountain climbs, The Rhine blends travelogue and offbeat history to tell the fascinating story of how a great river shaped a continent.”  Not a bad read.