New to River Cruising

[Tookie]

I have sailed a lot on Celebrity. Recently moved up to Oceania. Would I be better off on AMA, Avalon or Uniworld. We are going Paris to Normandy and would like to stay in Paris for a few days at the end.

[sippican]

I have sailed a lot on Celebrity. Recently moved up to Oceania. Would I be better off on AMA, Avalon or Uniworld. We are going Paris to Normandy and would like to stay in Paris for a few days at the end.

 

We have not sailed yet, but choose AMA out of the three you mentioned. Having stated that you moved "up" from Celebrity to Oceania, have you considered Tauck?

[beesKate]

I really don't think there's a wrong answer. We've only sailed Uniworld, and before our first cruise we had the same dilemma. We settled on Uniworld mainly because I learned my cousin had been on several Uniworld cruises, including one when the Icelandic volcano eruptions closed air traffic over Europe when their cruise was over.

I really like how Uniworld has become much more all-inclusive now. We've been extremely pleased with the food, wine and tours offered. I'm glad we don't need to mess with the "optional but recommended" tipping at the end for our next cruise. But we have nothing to compare it to.

I would recommend comparing the day-by-day activities and picking one that meets what you would like. For Uniworld, there is a more detailed "Cruise Companion" (under the "Before You Go" menu on the top of their webpage). There's one pdf for all the cruises in France, find the Paris-Normandy one and read the daily details. I think this gives you a much better idea of the day-to-day plans than the quick day-to-day where they explain the cruise on their website.

I know some people look at the décor on some of the ships and think it's a little over-the-top (I know I did too), but once you're on the ship and all the other passengers and staff are there, it really doesn't seem that bad.;)

[Host Jazzbeau]

AMA and Uniworld would both be excellent choices (I think Avalon is considered a step down). Compare the itineraries in detail to see which you prefer. Note issues like how much time in each port (this may be hard to figure out, since river cruise brochures don't state the hours like ocean cruises do) and whether the sailing will be at night or during the day [and try to figure out which of those you would prefer, which may vary by itinerary]. Sorry that I'm raising issues you probably can't answer, so let me end on a positive note: you will enjoy whichever one you choose!

[pacmom]

We are also "O" cruisers and find both AMA and Uniworld give an excellent river cruise experience. We try to find the smaller river cruisers160 and under. Tauck and Scenic both get rave reviews here--have not sailed on either. We have sailed on 6 with Uniworld and our 4th with AMA is in Dec.--that will be our 20th river cruise. Pat

[ea6b5]

AMA and Uniworld would both be excellent choices (I think Avalon is considered a step down). Compare the itineraries in detail to see which you prefer. Note issues like how much time in each port (this may be hard to figure out, since river cruise brochures don't state the hours like ocean cruises do) and whether the sailing will be at night or during the day [and try to figure out which of those you would prefer, which may vary by itinerary]. Sorry that I'm raising issues you probably can't answer, so let me end on a positive note: you will enjoy whichever one you choose!

 

I see where you sailed on the Coral this last January. We are sailing on the Coral this April can you give me any info on the ship and the excursions you took, either good or bad.

Thanks

Jim

[4774Papa]

We have done the AMA Rhone River cruise and it was great. Also, did Russia and China with Vantage, which was great.

 

AMA is a class river cruise line, and a little more expensive than Vantage.

 

Compare what you get for what dollars. AMA does charge a lot for its pre and post cruise land tour, but you are in five star hotels.

 

Here is my review.

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=103733

[Host Jazzbeau]

I see where you sailed on the Coral this last January. We are sailing on the Coral this April can you give me any info on the ship and the excursions you took, either good or bad.

Thanks

Jim

 

I am finishing up a lengthy review, which will be published in the Princess forum soon [hopefully today]. The bottom line is that it was an excellent cruise: ship, food, itinerary all good!

[ea6b5]

I am finishing up a lengthy review, which will be published in the Princess forum soon [hopefully today]. The bottom line is that it was an excellent cruise: ship, food, itinerary all good!

 

How are you going to label the thread in the Princess forum?

Thanks

[Host Jazzbeau]

How are you going to label the thread in the Princess forum?

Thanks

 

Coral Princess Panama Canal 1/19/2014 Review

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1987671

[caviargal]

We stay away from mass market cruising in general and our last was a Grand Princess cruise in December of 2012, after a 5 year ocean cruising hiatus. It was not at all enjoyable and reminded us why we gave up ocean cruising.

 

In October we took a cruise with O and very much enjoyed the onboard experience. We did not enjoy the overcrowded ports, even in the off season, but this is an issue with many ocean cruise itineraries. We are booked for another O cruise next year, simply because we can drive to the port and the itinerary allows us to really enjoy the ship itself.

 

We have taken 6 river cruises with two more booked. Our two best were with AMA and that is the line we have chosen for our next two.

 

The attention to detail; great staff; overall high quality of food, wine and entertainment; onboard ambiance and personal touches on AMA are a few of the reasons we will very likely continue to choose them for our future river cruises. We really do not look at the other lines anymore, the same as we no longer would consider a mass market line for an ocean cruise. We know what we enjoy and do not want to invest time and money on something we do not.

[Andromeda93]

Like Caviargal, we have also sailed with AMA (twice: AMS to Paris and BUD-Prague) and Oceania (ocean cruises - also twice). We chose AMA as we had the impression from reviews that it was the most upscale in food and accommodations of the river lines. The exception is Tauck, which is also apparently quite upscale but was over-inclusive compared to what we prefer.

 

We typically book our own air to arrive early and stay longer to do touring on our own. Ditto for the pre-and post-cruise hotels; we always do our own thing and do not need the Tauck door-to-door type service. Of course, it's super-easy to make your own arrangements in Paris, thanks to the Internet.

 

AMA was very, very nice - newer ships for the most part, well maintained and with wonderful staff. The meals were quite tasty and the included wine varied from 'meh' to pretty good. They do have a wine list so you can purchase other wines if what's on offer any given night doesn't work for you. Their Normandy cruises look lovely, and since it's a less-heavily-traveled route than the Rhine or Danube, hopefully less crowded.

 

FWIW both of our AMA trips were in the spring (April and May) and the weather was cool and somewhat rainy most days. It snowed in Vienna on Easter one year. We were lucky in that there was no river flooding on either trip. Also Paris was crazy crowded even in early May but I think that's pretty much the case all year long there (but totally worth it!).