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Rhine River Cruise Question

Heartfelttraveler

By Heartfelttraveler,
in River Cruising

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gnome12 Excellent Advice! Rare

gnome12

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32 minutes ago, Heartfelttraveler said:

We are booking a Rhine River cruise in June 2020 traveling Amsterdam to Basel.

Traveling in that direction, is there a better side of the ship to be on for the best views?

 

The best views are from the sun deck. Your only daytime sailing is likely to be the castles on the Rhine section, which has castles on both sides.

 

As to a view when docked, you are quite likely to have another boat tied up next to you, and your only view might be into the next cabin.

 

Not on a Rhine cruise, but I spent 2 nights docked in Rotterdam with my aquarium class cabin right next to the wood along the side of a pier that was completely above my cabin.

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Mike R 2018

Mike R 2018

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No, there is no "best" side; both sides are very good- especially if one has balcony views 😊.  I agree with gnome 12.  One word of advice:  If you want a seat topside when cruising the middle Rhine, get to your chairs or loungers as soon as possible!  There will be at least one hundred others wanting to sit topside and enjoy the views.  And, yes, there were "chair hogs" on our Viking Rhine Getaway the afternoon we viewed the castles.

 

Enjoy your cruise!  We did!

 

Edited by Mike R 2018
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Daisi

Daisi

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10 hours ago, Mike R 2018 said:

No, there is no "best" side; both sides are very good- especially if one has balcony views 😊.  I agree with gnome 12.  One word of advice:  If you want a seat topside when cruising the middle Rhine, get to your chairs or loungers as soon as possible!  There will be at least one hundred others wanting to sit topside and enjoy the views.  And, yes, there were "chair hogs" on our Viking Rhine Getaway the afternoon we viewed the castles.

 

Enjoy your cruise!  We did!

 

 

When cruising the Rhine, there is one section that you cruise during the day - the castles!  As Mike says, the top deck is the best viewing area, however I have back problems and can't sit comfortably on the lounge type chairs that they have on the top deck   Avalon had a few straighter chairs, but they were taken quickly, and the day we cruised, it was very sunny, so I needed shade.  Best spot for us was the smaller area in the front - most people forgot about it, and for a while we had the whole area to ourselves...and nice and close to the bar for when we wanted more beer. 🙂  

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cruiseryyc

cruiseryyc

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We did this trip in September a few years ago, everyone is correct you will want to be sitting on the top deck most of the time.  However, unlike Mike R, we never had to fight for places to sit as most people found it too chilly.  Nothing that an Irish Coffee didn't fix and on Scenic the waiters were happy to keep bringing them to us!

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Mike R 2018

Mike R 2018

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Yes, I'll bet most middle Rhine cruises weren't like ours LOL.  ...Middle of June 2019.  Almost historic heat wave.  No clouds.  Seating under the canvas tent structures was highly-desired, otherwise you felt like you'd melt!  The Cruise Director had pity on us and provided free ice cream and sherbert to cool us off- which one had to eat quickly.  I believe temps were in the 90's F.   The scenery was beautiful but most of us were sweating.  Hope no one experiences an afternoon like we did😀.

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Heartfelttraveler

Heartfelttraveler

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We are booked.

Thanks for the advise about the docking situation.  That helped us decide between an AA and an ES.

Lots of pieces to the puzzle of this trip.  Now I just need ideas for a hotel in Basel post-cruise.

We are planning on a Vacation Rental for pre-cruise in Amsterdam with our daughter and grand daughter.

 

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Mike R 2018

Mike R 2018

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I'm enjoying the comments on this blog!  As a suggestion, if someone wants to learn quite a bit about the Rhine, water levels, weather forecasts and much more, I'd highly recommend the Cruise Critic blog:  Rhine Water Levels 2019 and Similar Topics started by Notamermaid.  I spent hours reading it from page one to the last and was far better prepared for our river cruise than if I had just been a typical tourist 🙂.  Oh, we were expecting temps in the 70's in mid-June..... add 20 degrees!  I wore sandals every day.  Shorts, Capris, knit shirts, ballcaps, sunglasses, etc.  were the norm on Viking.

 

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djh1959

djh1959

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10 hours ago, Heartfelttraveler said:

Now I just need ideas for a hotel in Basel post-cruise.

 

 

Heartfelttraveler, we are on our first Rhine Cruise next month and are spending some time in Basel post cruise too.

We have booked the Hotel Krafft, and have a river view room with a balcony for a very reasonable price.

Obviously I can't comment as we haven't stayed yet, but happy to let you know once we are back at the start of November.

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Heartfelttraveler

Heartfelttraveler

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On 9/11/2019 at 7:44 PM, Mike R 2018 said:

I'm enjoying the comments on this blog!  As a suggestion, if someone wants to learn quite a bit about the Rhine, water levels, weather forecasts and much more, I'd highly recommend the Cruise Critic blog:  Rhine Water Levels 2019 and Similar Topics started by Notamermaid.  I spent hours reading it from page one to the last and was far better prepared for our river cruise than if I had just been a typical tourist 🙂.  Oh, we were expecting temps in the 70's in mid-June..... add 20 degrees!  I wore sandals every day.  Shorts, Capris, knit shirts, ballcaps, sunglasses, etc.  were the norm on Viking.

 

How do I find this Blog?

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jpalbny "Live from...." Rare

jpalbny

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I think that most river boats dock at Dreilandereck, which is north of the main part of town. Doubt that you will find a car rental agency within walking distance of there. There are a couple of alternate piers in different locations though, so your final docking location may not be known until you actually arrive there.

 

You will certainly find auto rentals at the main train station (I see a Hertz there, for example). That is about a 20-minute tram ride from Kleinhuningen stop (which is about 10 minutes walking distance from the pier). Depending on how much luggage you have, that may not be an option for you, so you could always have the ship call a cab. Or tram to your car, then return to the ship and pick up your bags. Lots of options.

 

Where are you thinking of going? And where will you be returning the car? I ask because everything is expensive in Switzerland, and that's especially true if you plan to return the car in a different country. The one-way rental "drop fees" when you do that can be very high. Plus, trains are so convenient in Europe that often times you don't need to bother with a rental car.

 

So if you planned to go to Germany, for example, it may be cheaper to take the train, and rent a car in Germany. Or if you were going to Lucerne, the train may be an easier option. 

 

46 minutes ago, Heartfelttraveler said:

How do I find this Blog?

 

It's just a thread on these boards. Look at the River Cruising boards and find the huge thread that says "Rhine water levels 2019 and similar topics" then read away!

Edited by jpalbny
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Heartfelttraveler

Heartfelttraveler

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51 minutes ago, jpalbny said:

 

 

Where are you thinking of going? And where will you be returning the car? I ask because everything is expensive in Switzerland, and that's especially true if you plan to return the car in a different country. The one-way rental "drop fees" when you do that can be very high. Plus, trains are so convenient in Europe that often times you don't need to bother with a rental car.

 

 

I chose to stay in Bern for two nights.  After we rent the car we would like to go to hotel Pilatus Kulm (if open) for late lunch and then to the hotel to check in.  The second day we plan to go to Geneva.  I would love to stay in Geneva but the drive back to the Basel airport for a 2:00 flight is too long.

I have rented a car at the Basel Airport Switzerland side.  We can take a cab from the port to the Hertz car rental.

Unless anyone has a better idea☺️

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AF-1

AF-1

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I was going to suggest the HIlton downtown Basel;  but I now read you will be staying in Bern.  No problem.  I was the person asking about the temp in May.  We are sailing in May next year; doing Basel to AMS with AMA.  Have a great trip

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franski

franski

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On 9/11/2019 at 3:26 PM, Mike R 2018 said:

Yes, I'll bet most middle Rhine cruises weren't like ours LOL.  ...Middle of June 2019.  Almost historic heat wave.  No clouds.  Seating under the canvas tent structures was highly-desired, otherwise you felt like you'd melt!  The Cruise Director had pity on us and provided free ice cream and sherbert to cool us off- which one had to eat quickly.  I believe temps were in the 90's F.   The scenery was beautiful but most of us were sweating.  Hope no one experiences an afternoon like we did😀.

We had a completely opposite experience during our 1st cruise on the Rhine... Granted, we were there for a Christmas market cruise - but the day we cruised through the (supposedly) scenic part of the Rhine, it started to snow.  Within 15 minutes, the snow was so thick you couldn't see beyond the sides of the boat. 😕  The cruise director gave up on trying to explain what we were seeing as you couldn't see anything!!!    We re-did the Rhine about 3 years ago.  We cruised in September, and the weather was wonderful.  We sat in the area in front of the lounge... just perfect!!

 

Fran

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