Just back: Avalon Felicity "Romantic Rhine"

[bfred]

Thanks for your advice about meeting and enjoying new friends during meals.

Some of our group were wondering about hair dryers. You touched on it but I could use more information. I guess there are no in-room hairdryers provided by Avalon. Is this correct?

 

No, they do provide a hairdryer on Felicity. But oddly, the power outlet in the bathroom cannot handle it, so they ask you to use it only with one of the outlets out in your cabin.

[POTOMACRUISER]

bling: i'm sure bfred and the others will back me up on the concept of "sides" to this boat: It soooo doesn't matter -- except at dinner. we're talking about something forty feet wide, one need only walk to the other side. and that's when you decide to go up topside and look around. **see, the lateral views out of the boat are not spectacular because of your low profile in the water. similarly, the only time sun comes laterally INTO the boat is at dinner time when it can smack you in the face-- but only unitl the staff pulls some curtains to block glare. This is not like my special sunrises over the carribean that i adore when i cruise the big ships. it's just not that kind of thing.

[POTOMACRUISER]

Really, bfred nailed this cruise completely - so much was right on.

We worried from the time we made our cabin selection right up until after we got on board. We inquired about upgrading when we boarded, we were ready to move!

 

[some of the worry was buyers' remorse at selecting a water line cabin, some was manageability/navigability issues for my elderly cabin mate, some was worrying that we'd get trapped below the water line when rammed!}

 

The other couple in our group indeed did book on the 200 level. I spent time in their room, they in ours. we agreed that it didn't make one bit of difference: They, like us, would go on deck if desirous of watching the world float by; they were, in fact, disappointed with the number of times their view was obstructed, particularly mornings when they'd be facing a stone pier wall or somebody's cabin tied up outboard of our boat.

 

I was happy to spend every penny I did on this cruise, those Avalon folks did a quality, quality job. And our next cruise (family) will cost three times that much.

 

But I'm happy to not have dropped the extra grand on the other cabin.

 

GO UP ON DECK !!!!!

[POTOMACRUISER]

i know who bfred was/is (the before/after pics was the tip). he probably has figured out I was the guy who was always in the front deck chair every waking moment.

 

Hey, should we tell them about the "gentle walkers" or the clogging of the dinner staircase??

 

gosh, that was a nice trip.

[stretchcruz]

I do have to respectfully disagree on the French balcony versus water level cabin. Last year on the Tranquility we booked a water level, knowing we would be very happy with it and we saved money. Avalon upgraded us to a French balcony. Well, we got so spoiled with it....we LOVED it!! We slept at night with the balcony door a little open as it was hot in our cabin (heating problems on the ship), and we could enjoy the scenery going by during the day. The thing is, we were on our cruise in late Oct/Nov, and it was really too cold to be up on the Sun Deck. We managed to be out there once or twice, with our jackets and gloves, other than that it was nice to be in the cabin where it was a little climate controlled and the sliding glass doors could be opened and closed as needed. So I think it depends on the time of year you are cruising as to whether the extra money for the French balcony is worth it. We booked our next river cruise for the end of April/May in 2012, and my husband (the cheapskate) actually wanted to spend the extra money for the French balcony, so we did!!

[blingbling]

I appreciate your tips! We are with travelling friends who in total have now booked 11 of the 64 cabins: we are scattered on both sides of ship and on all 3 deck levels.

Karen

 

bling: i'm sure bfred and the others will back me up on the concept of "sides" to this boat: It soooo doesn't matter -- except at dinner. we're talking about something forty feet wide, one need only walk to the other side. and that's when you decide to go up topside and look around. **see, the lateral views out of the boat are not spectacular because of your low profile in the water. similarly, the only time sun comes laterally INTO the boat is at dinner time when it can smack you in the face-- but only unitl the staff pulls some curtains to block glare. This is not like my special sunrises over the carribean that i adore when i cruise the big ships. it's just not that kind of thing.

[blingbling]

I've felt guilty about booking the $ panoramic "french" balcony, so your comments are welcomed. We'll be cruising 7OCT next year, so who knows about the weather. You'll be going on your next river cruise before we depart on our first, so I will look forward to your comments.

Karen

 

I do have to respectfully disagree on the French balcony versus water level cabin. Last year on the Tranquility we booked a water level, knowing we would be very happy with it and we saved money. Avalon upgraded us to a French balcony. Well, we got so spoiled with it....we LOVED it!! We slept at night with the balcony door a little open as it was hot in our cabin (heating problems on the ship), and we could enjoy the scenery going by during the day. The thing is, we were on our cruise in late Oct/Nov, and it was really too cold to be up on the Sun Deck. We managed to be out there once or twice, with our jackets and gloves, other than that it was nice to be in the cabin where it was a little climate controlled and the sliding glass doors could be opened and closed as needed. So I think it depends on the time of year you are cruising as to whether the extra money for the French balcony is worth it. We booked our next river cruise for the end of April/May in 2012, and my husband (the cheapskate) actually wanted to spend the extra money for the French balcony, so we did!!

[BPCruiser]

I do have to respectfully disagree on the French balcony versus water level cabin. Last year on the Tranquility we booked a water level, knowing we would be very happy with it and we saved money. Avalon upgraded us to a French balcony. Well, we got so spoiled with it....we LOVED it!! We slept at night with the balcony door a little open as it was hot in our cabin (heating problems on the ship), and we could enjoy the scenery going by during the day. The thing is, we were on our cruise in late Oct/Nov, and it was really too cold to be up on the Sun Deck. We managed to be out there once or twice, with our jackets and gloves, other than that it was nice to be in the cabin where it was a little climate controlled and the sliding glass doors could be opened and closed as needed. So I think it depends on the time of year you are cruising as to whether the extra money for the French balcony is worth it. We booked our next river cruise for the end of April/May in 2012, and my husband (the cheapskate) actually wanted to spend the extra money for the French balcony, so we did!!

 

Stretchcruz, Ditto the same feelings about the French balcony. We did our 1st Avalon cruise last Oct. 2010 and so enjoyed the French balcony(it does spoil you) and the ability to open it and allow the fresh Fall air in. Sleeping at night with it partially opened is delightful! We frequently had the afternoon sun shining in which warmed the room but we could open the sliding balcony door for the cool air which was great. Would not hesitate to recommend the French balcony!! We did also using the back lounge room on Deck 3 for am coffee before breakfast while getting dressed in the morning and often in the late afternoon upon return to the boat there would be guests sitting and conversing over a cup of coffee/ tea, playing cards or reading.:)

[sailorblair]

This is an excellent, comprehensive review, Bfred; hard to add to. We are doing this cruise May 12, BAsel to Amsterdam. I'm hoping weather cooperates to visit the Kukenhoff gardens at the end of the trip. Moevenpik seems to be the consistent hotel of choice for both ends. Breakfast looks pricey, but there are other options close by. Also handy are train connections if you want to set out on your own. The hotel has a concierge to book an excursion for you. We're hoping for a full day trip to Lucerne, and have planned an extra day for this. On electronics, many devices these days have dual voltage (such as a CPAP machine and battery charger) so that all you will need is a plug converter. Too bad about your phone, especially if you purchased a roving data plan earlier. Be sure to setup your password so "free wi-fi" users can't hack into your phone. Identity theft is becoming more prevalent, so travellers have to be proactive.

So far I've seen no report on the quality of the commentary as you pass the castles on the middle Rhine. Perhaps there is a guide book, brochure, or on-board publication which explains this. Here's a tip for those who like to create a scrap book of your trip after the voyage: save all the brochures, maps, ticket stubs etc. for titles on your pages. If you are not into writing a travel diary, bring a voice recorder to help you recall which photos are which, and what you thought of that moment.

[DrivesLikeMario]

Stretchcruz, Ditto the same feelings about the French balcony. We did our 1st Avalon cruise last Oct. 2010 and so enjoyed the French balcony(it does spoil you) and the ability to open it and allow the fresh Fall air in. Sleeping at night with it partially opened is delightful! We frequently had the afternoon sun shining in which warmed the room but we could open the sliding balcony door for the cool air which was great. Would not hesitate to recommend the French balcony!! We did also using the back lounge room on Deck 3 for am coffee before breakfast while getting dressed in the morning and often in the late afternoon upon return to the boat there would be guests sitting and conversing over a cup of coffee/ tea, playing cards or reading.:)

 

That sounds like heaven! Looking forward to having the French balcony!

[DugboatLarry]

at Remagen. Just found the sample book and purchased the entire book for $7.95. Looks like a good read. Ibooks, but elsewhere as well.

[Avalon Waterways]

My wife and I just got back from the August 7 - 14 Avalon "Romantic Rhine" cruise, Amsterdam to Basel.

 

Executive summary:

 

We had a great time.

 

Overly-wordy, cathartic summary:

 

1. Day one in Amsterdam: If you have Avalon transport you from the airport, they bring you to a gathering area in a hotel near where the Felicity is docked. You can either stay there until boarding time (4 PM), or take an optional, extra-cost tour of some sights outside Amsterdam. Neither of those options appealed to us, and fortunately we had taken a chance and bought tickets on-line to the Anne Frank house before we departed the U.S. We knew that there was a risk that an airline delay or a poor choice of time slot might prevent us from using the tickets. However, our flight was on-time, and our guess at buying tickets for 2:15 worked out fine. We took a taxi (there are a few waiting outside the hotel) into the city for about 9 Euros since we didn't have a lot of time to walk there, and once we arrived, we happily bypassed the ticket queue which snaked around the block. We walked right up to the door for people with advance tickets, and the watchdog employee let us right in, even though we were 20 minutes early for our time slot. After doing the tour, we took a leisurely walk back to the boat, getting our first taste of the city. When we arrived at the dock, it was after 4:00 and we were able to walk right on and check in, without going back to that initial holding area in the hotel.

 

2. Open seating: After getting settled into our room, we went to dinner and checked out our first "open seating" meal. As you may have read elsewhere, there is a single seating, and you cannot reserve a table. This is very different from the big ocean cruises, and we loved it. If you're feeling socially passive, you can start a new table and see who joins you. If you're in more of a gregarious mood, you can choose a table that already has some people who you would like to meet. By the end of the week, we had shared a table at one meal or another with a large percentage of our fellow passengers. You really get to know many of the people you are travelling with, and it creates a camraderie that is a unique aspect of river cruising. Even if you are shy or retiring, it's a great way to get to know the other people on the boat.

 

3. Food: it is really, really good. The Avalon hand-outs almost apologize for not having the same volumes and selections as the big cruise ships, but to me this was a positive. Instead of constantly thinking "Oh, I shouldn't have eaten so much", I found myself thinking "That was really delicious" and leaving the table very satisfied. And Avalon gets high marks from me for truly delivering on the promise of free-flowing drink at dinner. They serve decent quality wines and beer, often reflecting the area you are cruising past, and the wait staff keeps an eye on your glass. You rarely have to ask for a refill -- they are typically there offering to pour before your glass is empty. (Remember, the free wine and beer applies only to dinner, not lunch. But don't overlook the champagne bottle at breakfast for making mimosas!).

 

4. CD and staff: The cruise director, Andrzej (pronounced "on-dray"), is terrific. If you are accustomed to a big cruise ship CD, who typically acts as half-cheerleader/half-clown, you might be surprised at first by his low-key personality. But he is very knowledgeable, and his humor is extremely dry -- if you don't listen carefully, you will miss some of his best lines. And the staff is hard-working, friendly, and efficient. Be prepared to see them break out of their quiet personas during the Crew Show on the fourth night,

 

5. Passengers: We were wondering whether we would fit into the typical river cruise crowd. We got the impression that it tends to be much older, and indeed, many of our fellow passengers were well past retirement age. But there was a cross-section of ages, ranging from young adults traveling with their families, through a newly-wed couple, through working couples in their 30s, 40s, and 50s, through early retirees, right up through the very senior set. The only age group not present was children. But regardless of age, almost all passengers were very congenial and interesting and fun to talk with. And the international make-up of the crowd was interesting. I'm not sure of the exact percentages, but there were several Australians (the cruises are very heavily advertised down-under, according to our Aussie friends), some New Zealanders and Canadians, a fair number of Welsh, Scots, and English, and even one or two Swiss, Egyptians, and Turks. Americans only made up about 20-30% of the passengers. So even though everybody spoke English, they came from around the world, and that made for some for fascinating dinner conversation. And at night, the lounge was lively with new-found friends.

 

6. Internet access: Most people I talked to seemed happy with the wireless service, but I was unable to connect reliably for most of the trip with my Droid smart-phone. And toward the end, I wasn't even able to check my Verizon e-mail on the two public systems in the lobby. I blame the latter on Verizon, which has a horrid Web mail interface, but there was something about Avalon's security or settings that prevented connectivity with a Droid. (When we were moored next to other boats, I could connect to their wireless systems no problem and bring up their log in pages. But Avalon just constantly gave me "Problem loading the page" errors.) When I asked about this at the desk, I received a somewhat dismissive "Well, nobody else has complained" response. So if you have a smart phone and find that it doesn't work with Felicity's wireless, please make sure to complain.

 

7. Tours and tour guides: The tours tended to be good, but the quality of individual tour guides varied wildy. Some were extremely knowledgeable, entertaining, and efficient, while others could be vague, distracted, and even annoying. (Note: Tour guides should NOT sing. Please.) My biggest disappointment was in Koblenz, where the guide spent way too much time going into excrutiating detail about stories and legends regarding a couple of statues, and left us too far away from Deutches Eck for most people to get to it before sail time. I mean, what's the point of stopping at Koblenz if you can't stand at the confluence of the Rhine and the Moselle and have your photo taken with the statue of Kaiser Willy? On the other hand, I give the Heidleberg tour high marks because Avalon gives you the option of touring a castle, or going with a second, non-castle tour that gives you extra free time to explore the town on your own. My wife and I are comfortable striking out on our own, and we appreciated the independent time.

 

We decided to take the optional wine-tasting tour in Alsace, and highly recommend it. The winery owner is personable and generous with his samples, and the bus ride was both scenic and enjoyably terrifying as the driver maneuvered through impossibly narrow and crowded streets. (Okay, Avalon Marketing is probably having a heart attack that I just used the term "terrifying" in a review about one of their tours. I assure you that I never felt at risk; it was just amazing and exhilarating to be on bus that seemed capable of navigating a lane that appeared to be 10% narrower than the bus itself.)

 

Finally, the Black Forest tour was much better than I expected it to be. Although it was touristy, the destination souvenir & cuckoo clock shop was actually much classier than I assumed it would be. The owner is a showman who personally greets every visitor and serves samples of cherry wine and liquer. He and his son even came to the boat the night before to give a carving demonstration. The bus ride to the shop takes an hour, but the scenery is beautiful, and our tour guide was top notch.

 

8. Formal dinner: The Captain's dinner is, as others have noted, perfectly fine for people who don't want to get super-dressed up. But our group seemed to tend towards a little more formal. I took a sports jacket, no tie, and I was glad I had the jacket. Not due to any outside peer pressure; I just enjoyed having the chance to dress little nicer than usual for one night.

 

9. Random notes:

 

 

• We brought a dozen or so lightweight wire hangers for the closets and used every one.
  
• You might want to get a room closer to the bow than the stern if you have the option. The engine noise gets a little louder towards the end of the corridor. Not bad, just a little bit more noticeable. And there is no stairway in the stern. So if you have a cabin at the end of the 200 ("Sapphire") deck and want to get a coffee from the stern lounge at the end of the 300 ("Royal") deck, you need to walk down to midships, go up a stairway, walk to the stern, and then back again. No big deal, but if you are at all disabled or find walking a chore, it might be a consideration.
  
• If you can, you really should get a room with a full-size sliding door rather than the small window found on the Indigo deck. That French balcony is nice. Really nice. We noticed some other boats on the river that didn't have any sliding doors and we were glad we weren't on them.
  
• On the other hand, I don't see any advantage to getting a room on the upper ("Royal") deck. The 200 ("Sapphire") deck was just fine.
  
• The deck chairs were nice, but they could really use some kind of cushion or padding for your head.
  
• There are more expensive, fancier boats out there, but Felicity was classy and comfortable. One of the advantages of mooring next to other boats at some ports is having the chance to go through their lobbies. There was one that felt like a bordello (not that I would know; I've just read about them :-). Statues and chandeliers are nice, I guess, but I rather have my cruise boat spend the money on good food and wine.
  
• Because of the long stretch of industrial facilities on the lower part of the Rhine, the stretch between Amsterdam and Cologne is very long. This means that if you start from Amsterdam, you begin with a long, leisurely stretch,and the pace rapidly speeds up after Cologne. But if you start at Basel, this means that your trip starts fast & busy, and then slows down as you near Amsterdam. I don't think one is better than the other, it's just an interesting quirk of the geography of the river.
  
• Water levels were no problem. I figured August might be a period of low water, requiring bus detours around shallow stretches of river. But we sailed the entire route.
  

That's it for my observations. This is a heck of a lot longer than I intended when I first sat down to capture my thoughts, but I hope it's useful to folks thinking about taking this cruise. I look forward to reading the thoughts of my fellow passengers.

 

bfred: Thank you very much for sharing your experience (and thank you for cruising with Avalon!!). We hope you will also share this information as part of a more formal "review" on Cruise Critic. Thanks again.

[NewCanuckCruiser]

Did you take the cruise? Was there a best side? Any other hints? We hope to go in 2014. Thanks for your help!

[bobandjo]

Andrzej is who our CD is going to be on our Jun 23 Amsterdam - Budapest trip on the Vista. Glad to hear good things about him.