castle701

Could this be for my two night precruise? It is $242 pp which seems right but the Princess rep on the phone was literally clueless. All the Princess reservationists seem to be from another country and can't answer simple questions. 

Any help greatly appreciated. There are a bunch of us doing this itinerary next September. We are thinking about flying into Paris for 2 days precruise. Because we are 25 persons, we are thinking of renting a shuttle to take us from Paris to Lyon. When trip concludes in Avignon we are again thinking of taking a  shuttle to Barcelona post cruise. We don’t want to take the train and figured this might be the route to take. Coming from Philadelphia nonstop to Paris and nonstop from Barcelona is super easy. Anyone ever do this or can comment?

So 20 of us were lucky to sail on the AMA Magna and just loved it - it was a first rivercruise for all. We all want to do another but honestly don't see one that stack's up to the luxury we had on our previous trip. We are highly considering Uniworld's new SAO Gabriel to Portugal - while it seems lovely the cabins are very small and I'm wondering if the ship itself will be too small for us - new is nice so we are considering as of now. Looked at some of AMA's other new ships and the time frame we are looking at, there are no suites that remain so that crosses them off the list. Crystal is lovely but not too sure we want to cruise in Germany again since we did that previously. The only other is Scenic and their reviews lately do not seem too good and they have not had a new ship in awhile. Any suggestions on something I may have missed. Looking for September 2022.

many thanks

Will Diamond Plus be able to visit the Concierge Lounge on the Odyssey? I have previously on the Anthem but I know the rules seem to change all the time. I thought that if there was a Concierge Lounge versus a Suite Lounge, Diamond Plus’s were permitted???

Are cabins being refurbished on any of Royal's ships?

3 hours ago, Laurab23 said:

When are you cruising? I am hoping they fix the problem before I cruise in May.  

 

Laura

We are cruising in April - gosh sure hope they fix the problem too.

19 minutes ago, davekathy said:

Summit September 2019 cruise from another poster. Post revolution. See post #6. 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2698304-my-review-with-photos-of-our-corner-family-veranda-on-the-revolutionized-summit/

Thank you so much! All the info I needed was on that post. Guess I'll be purchasing a big mirror to take with me:(

I saw a video of the family ocean view staterooms and it appears that there is not a mirror above the desk to get ready. We happen to be booked in that exact stateroom (7199) and that would definitely be a problem for me as I do my hair and makeup while everyone else is showering. Do you have any first hand knowledge?

Hello experienced River Cruisers,

I am taking 12 people via mini bus from Munich to the port in Vilshofen to board the AmaMagna. It is noted that Embarkation is at 3pm - is that the real time they start? It will take approximately 2 hours to get from Munich to the port so I am trying to figure the best time to schedule our pick up. Is Vilshofen a nice town to walk around for lunch and such. I just would rather let folks relax longer or sleep in while in Munich than to just hang around waiting for embarkation in Vilshofen. Can anyone share their experience?

So glad to hear about the coffee - we unfortunately are coffee snobs. I read it on an Instagram post.

For all you AMA Riverboat experts could I ask a few questions:

1. For our electrical charging and other items such as a flat iron and a sleeping sound machine, do I just buy European converters? Anything else I would need.
2. I see no dry cleaning on board, do they press clothes for a fee?
3. I read AMA only has instant coffee which totally boggled my mind. Any input? Espresso and Cap's onboard?
4. We have a private service taking us from our Munich Hotel. What time would suggest we arrive? Do most arrive and check luggage and enjoy lunch near the port?
5. Phone service - upgrade to a European Plan?

11 minutes ago, MikeBR said:

No alternative excursion other than in brochure, included or paid extra.

They have an awful lot of bikes and I have never seen them all booked out, but I have seen guests being refused as they did not pass the proficiency test as being safe to cycle on roads or paths [They could not cycle in a straight line or were not fit enough]. The cycle excursions sometimes get canceled at short notice due to wind or rain so have a tour 'B' you want to take.

There is always a keyboard player/vocalist. and some nights other local entertainment.

Dinner is always 'Smart Casual' a few guests sometimes get dressed up, but is the exception.

Everyone gets the Chane Des Rotisseur dinner. But book 'Chef's table' as soon as you board to get the night you want and who you want to dine with to avoid disappointment. Last cruise we took in May half of the nights had already been booked up by those on the 'Pre-Cruise' stay, and it was fully booked up by breakfast  of second day.

Thanks for all the information. Glad to hear if our little group gathers in the bar there is at least a keyboard player. We are so used to ocean cruising so this is very different for us. My husband unfortunately is not too excited as he would have preferred another ocean cruise in Europe but since so many friends coming with us, I'm hoping he'll be fine since he is not a big sightseer. 

31 minutes ago, Needzavacation said:

There are two surcharged excursions: The first is the evening concert in Vienna. It's billed as a "classical concert," but it's really one of any number of tourist-focused concerts around the city every night - light classical, a little opera, and some comedy (believe it or not). If you search on Google, you'll find a number of reviews of these types of concerts. The other surcharged excursion is a visit to Schonbrunn Palace in the afternoon in Vienna. So in Vienna, there's an included morning excursion, then the two optional excursions. If you do all three, it makes for a long day.

 

It's not hard to get a bike excursion. There are a LOT of bikes on AmaMagna compared with the other ships. I can't recall any of the bike excursions turning anyone away.

 

Dress for the Captain's Gala is the same as for every other night, which I'd describe as smart casual or country-club casual. In reality, attire was across the board every night. No one ever got really dressed up. On men, you'd see a couple of sportcoats, but mostly anything that's a step above a t-shirt and jeans will do.

 

The Chaine des Rotisseurs dinner was very nice, but I wouldn't say it was remarkably all that different from dinner on most nights. The food on board is a step up from what you'd experience on a mass-market ocean cruise, but not quite up there with the food on Regent or Crystal or the like.

 

I do have a handful of schedules - most of the photos were taken of the excursions, not the ship. If you want to ping me with your email, I'll be glad to copy and send them.

Wow!! Thank you so much for taking the time - I really do appreciate it. My email is renee244@comcast.net

Wow - thank you!

We are on Ama - Vilshofen to Bedapest 9/8/2019. Specifically asking about our Sept 10 day in Linz as some of us would like a 6 hour tour - not getting back so late. There are two morning tours offered by AMA which leads me to believe we will be there early enough to do something on our own with a private company. Does anyone know what time the full day Salzburg tour gets back on this itinerary? It seems that the 1/2 day Salzburg tour gets back at 7pm which is the issue with some of the folks we are going with. Thank you for all your imput as ALL OF US have never been on a River Cruise before and since I am the one who coordinated this with our friends, I'm trying to gather as much info I can.

We are a group of 12 traveling on the new AMAMagna - we are all newbies. Can you still do your own privately booked excursions instead of the river boat excursions. While we know they are included we are thinking of doing a two for our group alone and paying for them. I also understand that there are specialty excursions with a surcharge that AMA does too - do you have to wait until you are onboard to book those. There is no actual time schedule so we really don't know when we arrive and depart and if we are overnight in any locations.Thanks for any assistance.

THANK YOU SO MUCH for posting. We are taking our first River Cruise on Magna with a dozen people in September. If I could ask a few questions:

Are there any other alternative surcharged excursions that are available?

How hard is it to get a bike excursion since they have to be done once onboard? - 

So basically after dinner, if there is no piano music and local entertainment, there is nothing to do at all?

For the Captain's Gala-what would be the dress code?

Did you have the Chane Des Rotisseur dinner?

Do you have any daily AMA schedules you could share?

Any pictures?

We were so hoping for the Pool. We were on the Edge this past December and they said that they were really trying to copy what they did on the Edge. I know that because the Summit and Milli were different class ships that probably wasn't going to happen but was sure hoping for the pool to be on the Equinox. It made such a big difference in our experience. We have cruised in suites on Royal and the sundeck is very disappointing which is why we haven't cruised with them in awhile. Have to rethink our Equinox Fall cruise now. Thanks for update.

We have an 8-6 am stop in Tortola on Dec. 19th. We are traveling on the Edge. From reading everything, I am wondering if the Bath's is something that must be done. My husband and I are not too athletic and normally love just going to a nice beach. I did get in touch with Patouche/Tortola Tours and they do a tour to the Baths, Snokeling at Cooper Island and lunch at the Cooper Island Beach Club - while this sounds super nice, and something my grown Son who is with us will love, I'm a bit unsure for Myself and my Husband.  Would a day at Cane Garden Bay be better? Seriously, any help would be great.  And by the way, any imput on Patouche tours ??

Oops, Yes it’s the 5 night

The cruise is already paid for - just getting ready to purchase 3 Dinner packages on the Edge and they are $200 each so was hoping to use the credits from the Card if at all possible. Already have $400 in obc so the $200 from the CC makes it perfect. 

I am converting some of my points from my Celebrity Credit card over for some OBC. I know that the OBC given as part of your reservation is already on our account to use prior to boarding but has anyone had experience on how Celebrity credit card OBCis are applied recently?

I think it sounds like a waiting game of sorts. Thanks for all the imput!

A couple of questions:

• On our 12/16 cruise there are no more 3 or 4 night Specialty Dining packages left which means we will have to book individual nights. We are all Elite and wondering how to get the 15% Elite dining discount?
• Can suite guests dine in Blu?
• Can suite guests make dinner reservations in advance with Concierge for Luminae? We are lowly Sky Suite guests so didnt know if writing in advance for a specific time or certain evenings is possible.

Am I missing something - is there only a 5, 6, and 7 night dining package on the Edge? No 3 or 4 night like on other Celebrity ships?

Does anyone know if the Retreat plans to have any umbrellas for those of us who love to lie out in the sun but need alot of blockage?