Viking Sun Rhine Getaway review August 2014

[banditoo]

Gorgeous pictures of the castles! You had excellent weather visibility. What camera and zoom strength did you have to use?

[mimmy52]

Gorgeous pictures of the castles! You had excellent weather visibility. What camera and zoom strength did you have to use?

 

I have a Sony Cyber-shot HD something. My son got a new camera and gave me this one. It has a 16x zoom but I have no idea what I used on the castles, just whatever looked good in the view finder.

[banditoo]

I have a Sony Cyber-shot HD something. My son got a new camera and gave me this one. It has a 16x zoom but I have no idea what I used on the castles, just whatever looked good in the view finder.

Great to know Mimmy. I have a point and shoot Panasonic Lumix with 16X zoom and wide angle lens so it sounds like I should be ok with that for our turn next August. Hopefully we have the perfect weather for viewing that you did.

[Mackenzie1]

Mimmy, if I may ask, where did you get that cute purple jacket with the hood? I love it! Lots of zippers, rainproof, and easy to pack.

[rothbury]

Great Job Mimmy!! Looking forward to the continuing voyage. Glad the "sickness" wasn't serious.

[Mackenzie1]

P.S. Mimmy, I was on the Viking Helvetia Rhine Getaway river cruise in 2010, not during your sailing. I've loved seeing your wonderful pictures! They make me feel like I'm going along with you on the cruise, and seeing the Rhine river all over again. As I remember, the castles will be just as spectacular for you from here.

[mimmy52]

Mimmy, if I may ask, where did you get that cute purple jacket with the hood? I love it! Lots of zippers, rainproof, and easy to pack.

 

I bought it at REI, a store that sells outdoor equipment and clothing. They also have an online presence. They're not cheap, but sometimes you can find a bargain.

[mimmy52]

Thanks, Rothbury.

[ural guy]

Great to know Mimmy. I have a point and shoot Panasonic Lumix with 16X zoom and wide angle lens so it sounds like I should be ok with that for our turn next August. Hopefully we have the perfect weather for viewing that you did.

 

Banditoo- I use to have that camera and for what it is, you can get some nice shots. Not sure if the 16 zoom is all optic zoom or part optic/part digital.

If it has the optical/digital, you will lose clarity as you go past 12x or so.

 

A mini tripod is about $10 and helps when you're up on the top deck, it can get windy. Even if you don't extend the legs, it makes it easy to get a steady hold on a small camera. Take plenty of video also, memory cards are cheap now. It's neat to watch the video I took early one morning when we were gliding along, I'm the only one on the bow, and the boat is so quiet.

 

Lastly, try and clean the lens when you think of it. I have a day or so worth of pics and videos that have a speck of dust or something in them.

 

Have a great trip.

[banditoo]

Banditoo- I use to have that camera and for what it is, you can get some nice shots. Not sure if the 16 zoom is all optic zoom or part optic/part digital.

If it has the optical/digital, you will lose clarity as you go past 12x or so.

 

A mini tripod is about $10 and helps when you're up on the top deck, it can get windy. Even if you don't extend the legs, it makes it easy to get a steady hold on a small camera. Take plenty of video also, memory cards are cheap now. It's neat to watch the video I took early one morning when we were gliding along, I'm the only one on the bow, and the boat is so quiet.

 

Lastly, try and clean the lens when you think of it. I have a day or so worth of pics and videos that have a speck of dust or something in them.

 

Have a great trip.

Thanks ural guy. It is 16 X optical. The downside of this amount of zoom on a pocket point and shoot is that it draws in dust as the lens zooms in and out. We have already had it serviced once to remove minuscule filaments of hair or dust particles that got sucked into the sensor and left little marks on every photo that had a light background such as blue sky, white walls etc. I thought it was perhaps just the Panasonic Lumix brand but the service centre said they see this with many brands with that degree of zoom on the point and shoots. I'm constantly checking the zoom extension now before I zoom it back in just in case there are any bits of anything waiting to get drawn inside. I will look into one of those mini tripods. I do also take our camcorder which has 80X zoom.

Edited September 12, 2014 by banditoo

[Mackenzie1]

Thanks so much for your reply, Mimmy. I'll be forever looking for a cute jacket like that if I can't find one at REI!

[mimmy52]

Immediately after lunch, the tour busses left for Marksburg Castle. As we walked off the boat, I took the picture of the cable cars that almost brush the ship overhead.

 

And on the ground are these which I presume are sewer lids, but maybe not. Is this a sign not to drink the water?

 

Ria led us up the ramp to the castle. Only one guy took the stairs. We assembled in an area where they served food and the groups were taken in one at a time. Ours was last in so we had time to visit the gift shop first.

 

Then it was our turn to enter. We went through a side door that was unlocked with a really big key. So large I wish I'd gotten a picture. It was rough going inside. Those castle people must have been really fit to walk on this all day.

[mimmy52]

An area of the castle's defense.

 

Looking down from the castle.

 

 

And up at the castle

[mimmy52]

We saw several rooms inside, traipsed up a spiral staircase, went through a door not much higher than I am. There were so many of us, I didn't get many good pictures, and I didn't wait behind until I could because I was afraid I'd get too far behind.

 

 

 

The bathroom, or garderobe. Waste went out a chute into the river. I guess it's roped off now so no one can use it which is a good thing because now the waste would end up on the heads of tourists.

 

[mimmy52]

There was a room with a history of military uniforms and armor.

 

We also saw a room with torture equipment and a blacksmith shop, then it was time to depart.

 

 

We went back to the bus via the stairs, a shorter route, and it wasn't bad going down.

[mimmy52]

I don't think I even mentioned that we were docked in Koblenz, having arrived while we were eating lunch. After the Marksburg Castle tour, we had free time and I decided to take the cable car ride to the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress.

 

On the cable car, flying over the Viking Sun and a newer Viking ship.

 

Looking in the other direction

 

I bought a combined ticket so I could see the Fortress, but even with a map, it was very confusing. A big place.

 

 

 

There was a museum and only one tour group, but without guidance, I pretty much wandered aimlessly for a while.

[mimmy52]

From the map, I saw there was a lookout point. There's a large park-like area in front of the fortress, a lovely place with a lot of flowers and walking paths. The lookout tower was at the other end of the park from the Fortress.

 

 

I had a bird's eye view of the Deutsches Eck (German Corner) from there, but it was a little obscured by trees.

[mimmy52]

And by then I needed to ride back down so I could get ready for dinner.

The cable car station

 

 

 

 

[Mackenzie1]

I love the pictures of the cable car! I wasn't able to do that in Koblenz, and so it's most fun seeing it from your camera. I would prefer the Sun Viking over the newer Viking long ship you were docked by because the Sun Viking is smaller and doesn't have as many passengers.

[Got2Cruise]

Love your photos. You have a very good eye. And I love your honest comments too! Your thoughts concerning the famous Lorelei rock were the same as mine.

 

Some trivia concerning the cable car in Koblenz. The fort is a world heritage site. They built the cable car for the sole purpose of transporting visitors up for a world garden show last year. The cable car has to come down. They received a few years reprieve. We left the guided walking tour of old town from our Avalon tour to take the ride up. Didn't do the fort. Just wanted the views.

[DrivesLikeMario]

...We left the guided walking tour of old town from our Avalon tour to take the ride up. Didn't do the fort. Just wanted the views.

 

That's helpful information! So, would you have not had enough time to do the Avalon old town walking tour AND the cable car? Seriously considering jumping the walking tour to take the cable car too but I'm going to want some time to walk around the fortress.

[mimmy52]

I love the pictures of the cable car! I wasn't able to do that in Koblenz, and so it's most fun seeing it from your camera. I would prefer the Sun Viking over the newer Viking long ship you were docked by because the Sun Viking is smaller and doesn't have as many passengers.

 

At one point we were given a comparison between the Sun and the newer Viking ships. I remember that they're lower. There's one picture I posted in the cable car group where you can actually see how it's lower than the Sun. I suppose inches might help during the times the water level is high.

[mimmy52]

Love your photos. You have a very good eye. And I love your honest comments too! Your thoughts concerning the famous Lorelei rock were the same as mine.

 

Some trivia concerning the cable car in Koblenz. The fort is a world heritage site. They built the cable car for the sole purpose of transporting visitors up for a world garden show last year. The cable car has to come down. They received a few years reprieve. We left the guided walking tour of old town from our Avalon tour to take the ride up. Didn't do the fort. Just wanted the views.

 

Thank you for that information about the cable car. I'm more glad than ever that I took the opportunity to ride it. Not only is the view from the top wonderful, but the ride itself gives you unique views. Do you know why it has to come down? It seems like a great tourist thing and certainly an easy way to get to the top.

[mimmy52]

After I took the cable car down from the Fortress, I walked around the Deutsches Eck area for a while. This is not a great picture of the Wilhelm I statue, but I love how kids are climbing on it and one is walking the edge on top. I probably wouldn't love it so much if those were my kids.

 

 

I saw the three pieces of the Berlin Wall. I was looking for them and realized I'd walked right past while I was looking at something else.

 

I missed the presentation on the European Union while I was walking around Koblenz. I would like to have heard it, but not enough to head back to the ship early.

 

I was looking forward to tonight's dinner, "A taste of Germany." We were told there would be stations set up in the lounge, the restaurant, and the kitchen. In the lounge for the daily briefing from our program director, we wondered why there were no stations set up yet. When we went into the restaurant, there were no stations set up there either, and we were handed a menu just like always. I don't understand why we couldn't have been told during the briefing that there would be no German dinner. I can understand why we couldn't see the kitchen since people were still getting sick, but I don't know why we couldn't have had other stations--we still had buffets at breakfast and lunch--or why we weren't given German foods as a choice.

 

At any rate, the food was good, just not the special dinner we were expecting. The amuse bouche that evening was a spring roll.

 

The appetizer I chose was Tomato mozzarella tart and tomato confit. It was not only delicious, it was also pretty.

[MinotLight]

Still loving your review and all your great photos! Love the photos from the cable car.

 

I would prefer the Sun Viking over the newer Viking long ship you were docked by because the Sun Viking is smaller and doesn't have as many passengers.

I think the newer ships actually have a few less passengers. There are rooms with verandas that take up more space on the newer, bigger ships.