Avalon Felicity Romantic Rhine July 18

[perfcons]

This will be our first River Canal cruise, are there any other cruisers going on this trip?

We have been on many large ocean cruise ships and are excited about this cruise. Have been reading other posts and are getting mixed msgs about food quality, also concerned if we will have ample free time in the different ports.

[webfoot]

In most ports, you will have free time. You can always just tour on your own as the included city tour occurs .. several time we didn't take the included tour and went off on our own.

 

As for the food this is something that is personal preference. On each portion of the Grand France trip that we took there were folks who raved about the food and those who said it was OK ... and we were all eating the same thing. Do not let the comments of others cloud your impressions of the food. Except for the over-salting, we thought most of the meals were really good. We could always find something to eat that we liked. There is so much fresh fruit and veggies that we enjoyed very much.

[cloud99]

Cool Cruiser,

 

We will be cruising with you on July 18th. I'll be with my sister, niece and our 90 yr young Aunt. See you on board.

 

Arlene

[worries gone]

My wife and I were on the Felicity from May 23 to the 30th going from Basel to Amsterdam. We found the tours to be very good and to be just the proper length. There was plenty of free time to do what you wanted in the ports.

 

As to the food I am one of the people that found it to be hit or miss. That being said dinner was very good though some people complained about the number of selections. We did not starve nor did we get up hungry from any meal. My main complaint was that the breakfast meats and eggs were cold. There is an omelet station which my wife said was very good. I did not try it as to be honest I did not want to wait in line for an omelet. Too impatient and the insulin was already working. Plenty of selections for breakfast and lunch.

 

The service from the crew was great. You will enjoy yourself.

[Paulinda]

Perfcon, we just came back from the Rhine-Felicity cruise and we thought the food was pretty good overall. An 8 on a 10 scale. Our only complaint was we thought more local specialties would have been served. Not so, most evening meals were 5 course sittings and pretty good. Appetizer, soup, salad, main course and desert. Veal, beef, salmon and fish were the main courses served. Free flowing wine and beer if you asked.

 

For lunch they have a lite meal served in the lounge and a buffet serving in the dining room. We had a couple of very good (IMO) lunches in the dining room and a couple of lite lunches. Lite lunches consisted of salads and pasta. We sometimes ate lunch in some of the towns we were in just for fun.

 

As far as breakfasts - I've had better. They do a buffet of various breakfast selections including eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoe patties, pancakes, beans and an assortment of fruits, yogarts, cerals etc. I missed the local croissants, breads and pastries as they served what seemed like boxed varities of these.

 

They also had a 4 pm tea and 10:30 late snack. Deserts tasted boxed also.

 

We asked the maitre'd why more local German style meals weren't served and he seemed taken aback. Basically he said Germans do eat veal, fish, beef and salmon. He said they have to serve what ever the cruise line dictates. I would bet they use a service of some type that prepares the food and the onboard chef merely heats the items up. Just my speculation here.

 

Overall I think most passengers did come to dinner and I only heard one couple complain that it was 'cafeteria food'. They said they only ate on shore at local restaurants. But then again my impression of these people were they were snobs.

[perfcons]

Thanks to all your replies. Cloud99- hope to see you on board.

Have been reading all the posts and since this is our first river cruise after numerous ocean cruises, we are not sure what to expect. Trying to cut back on packing due to weight restrictions, but want to be prepared for any weather situation. Are shorts inappropriate for men to wear?

[taun712]

Hi We were on Avallon Felicity May 1 to May 9. The weather was awful. It was cloudy, rain and cold most days. We were glad we had warm clothes. You are going at a better time but be sure to check weather conditions before you go to be prepared. WE loved the Felicuty and thought the dinners were the best we had on any cruise including large ships. No one over dressed for dinner. Everyone looked nice but not too dressy. Be sure to check out the small lounge in the back. They have a drink machine and you can get great coffee drinks anytime. Hope you enjoy. :)

[CRUSINJUD]

My wife and I will be on The Luminary (Avalon Waterways) for a Rhine River cruise (8/15-8/22). Is there anyone from Cruise Critic on board for the same cruise?

 

Has anyone recently done this cruise that would care to share their experience on their river cruise?