Guidebooks for a Rhine cruise

[gnome12]

20 minutes ago, need2travel1 said:

Thanks Everyone!  I'll check out the books recommended above & also try printing out some things online.  I love the "old fashioned" guidebooks though.  I usually rip out the pages for the places we'll be visiting so I don't have to carry the whole book & then use them in the photo album I put together when we get home.   Yup, "old fashioned" on that too-and I'm only 48:)

Now, on with the search...

I actually find that better than ripping out the pages is to copy them. Then I toss the copies (hopefully in a recycle bin) as I go. If there is something in particular you want in your album either bring it home or copy it again.

 

Then, I have a nice guidebook on my travel shelf at home. The only time I clear books from there is if I have a newer version of that book, or if I really run out of space. I'm kind of anal; they are filed by Country, and within country by region, and then by city (depending on what I have). For my upcoming Norwegian fjords cruise, I bought Lonely Planet pocket guides for Copenhagen and London, because I am spending 5 days in each, and supplemented that with information from Rick Steves guides and Lonely Planet guides. For cruise ports (because virtually all excursions are included; I call it a river cruise on the ocean) I just have a bit of extra information on the ports for when I will have free time.

[FuelScience]

For something on the river itself, I would suggest a couple of apps. First, Rick Steves's Audio app. It has free downloads from his web site. There's one, "The Best of the Rhine" that would be useful. It is indexed by km marker for the Rhine gorge. The other is the River Cruise App. It costs (~$4 per river section, for instance, we just used the Mainz to Koblenz section). It has commentary and uses GPS to automatically start the commentary. We just passed through the gorge (sailing for Mainz right now), and we found the app to be very good. You can also tap an icon and get the text for the commentary or call up a map. Search River Cruise App in Apple's app store or Google Play.

[notamermaid]

need2travel1,

 

this is the map I meant:

published by rahmelverlag.

I think the other publisher does not do it any more.

But an app that gives you the data with mention of the kilometres as you sail along, or GPS-controlled - see FuelScience's post above - sounds a great idea.

 

notamermaid

 

[gnome12]

38 minutes ago, notamermaid said:

need2travel1,

 

this is the map I meant:

published by rahmelverlag.

I think the other publisher does not do it any more.

But an app that gives you the data with mention of the kilometres as you sail along, or GPS-controlled - see FuelScience's post above - sounds a great idea.

 

notamermaid

 

I think the two of them (map and app) together are a great idea.

[need2travel1]

Thanks everyone for all the great suggestions. I think I'll go with a combo of several of the ideas/books/maps above.  CruiseCritic members really comes thru again!

[AnhaltER1960]

Baedecker is the standard in Germany for travel guides, for more than 100 years now. Bit old fashioned, but you find all relevant information on the cities, sights, castles, but not the hippest bar in town. Baedecker guides on the Rhine are also available in english, just look on Amazon or at your local bookseller.

 

Personally I love their older editions too, like 1906 or so. Same landscape, same castles, but often more detailed descriptions and accurate sketches than in todays guidebooks. Ok, forget their prices and probably opening hours...  :-).

 

And, of course, Mark Twain, A Tramp Abroad (though not only on the Rhine), and "Legends of the Rhine", https://archive.org/details/legendsofrhine01906rula

 

 

[Canal archive]

Oh sacrilege no messing with books pleaseeeeeeee. I have several from Scenic each updated from the previous one. I also keep a small, usually pink, notebook for extra bits including moon phases, nothing like cruising under a full moon! Also useful for noting those little tit bits of interest. These make interesting reading in future years. CA