Need advice on cruise options

[Franken]

Hello all,

We are taking our niece on a river cruise as a graduation gift - graduating this year, but postponing the trip to 2022. She’s interested in the Rhine and Main, but there are so many options.  We’ve cruised with Viking on the Danube once and really enjoyed it, but wanted to try something different.  I’ve narrowed it down to these:

 

Uniworld Classic Germany and Amsterdam - Amsterdam to Nuremberg 

Avalon Active Discovery on the Rhine - Amsterdam to Frankfurt

AMA Waterways - Treasures of the Main & Rhine - Nuremberg to Amsterdam

 

What thoughts, advice and/or recommendations on the itineraries and operators can you share?  I would like it to be a very memorable trip for her.

 

Thanks,

Michelle

 

 

 

[notamermaid]

Hello Franken,

what a lovely gift for graduation. I have not sailed with any of the three companies, so I will give you a short opinion on the three itineraries, just to start the evaluation off. The Avalon cruise is the odd one out of the three as it only sails on the Canal, Rhine and a little bit on the Main. It gives a great in-depth experience of the Rhine on a really nice itinerary, but your niece is interested in both rivers. The cruise ends in Frankfurt in the morning, so presumably you will be heading home soon after that. It does not give that city enough credit and time and shows you nothing of the life and feel of the Main further upstream. For that reason I would like to steer you towards either of the other two itineraries. They both cover the same ground, just going in opposite directions. They both have unique tours and things they share. For that reason I cannot say which may be preferable.

 

One thing you need to know about the Main river: due to the low bridges, the sundeck is mostly unusable. Depending on ship design you will have enough outside space to enjoy the scenery, but also bear in mind that you will do a lot of sailing at night to cover the long distance that you need to travel on the river. You can read a bit about the Main river here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2670259-the-river-main-infos-and-river-cruising-experiences/

 

Have fun planning.

 

notamermaid

 

[Ritabob]

Wow!  Wish I had aunts and uncles like you when I graduated !

All three  options are good, but I like the inclusion of the stops along the Main and Nuremberg .  Amsterdam as a starting or ending point makes it easy to extend your time there.

Have fun planning.

Rb

[texasstar]

I would suggest you think about the Rhine and Moselle.  We cruised this itinerary with AmaWaterways in 2019.  The part on the Moselle was our favorite part.

[Lois R]

WOW is right, what a beautiful gift🙂.....I have sailed both AMA and Uniworld and would

recommend both!😀

[Coral]

56 minutes ago, Lois R said:

WOW is right, what a beautiful gift🙂.....I have sailed both AMA and Uniworld and would

recommend both!😀

Which would you rank as better? I have not done Uniworld yet.

Edited February 14, 2021 by Coral

[Lois R]

Hi, they are a bit different from one another to be totally honest with you.  Uniworld is All Inclusive.

(If that matters to you).....all your booze included.  AMA offers Beer and Wine at your meals but if you want hard liquor that is extra.

 

The style of the riverboats are totally different too......I would sail either one though.  Some folks feel like the Uniworld decor is too much over the top.

  Check out their websites so you can see the different boats yourself---side by side. 

 

Both offer good itineraries though and I found the food and service on both are really good😀

[Coral]

1 hour ago, Lois R said:

Hi, they are a bit different from one another to be totally honest with you.  Uniworld is All Inclusive.

(If that matters to you).....all your booze included.  AMA offers Beer and Wine at your meals but if you want hard liquor that is extra.

 

The style of the riverboats are totally different too......I would sail either one though.  Some folks feel like the Uniworld decor is too much over the top.

  Check out their websites so you can see the different boats yourself---side by side. 

 

Both offer good itineraries though and I found the food and service on both are really good😀

I do not drink so that part doesn't play into a decision - though I do like other all inclusive parts. I do think the Uniworld decor is over the top but I don't think that would keep me from sailing an itinerary that I interests me. I had some issues with Amawaterways that I wasn't pleased with but it was awhile ago. I found my Crystal one perfect so hesitant to switch but they do have limited itineraries (not longer ones). Not sure if Crystal will survive COVID - maybe ocean ships will survive but not river or maybe the whole thing will be sold. Time will tell. Right now - I have nothing planned.

Edited February 14, 2021 by Coral

[Roz]

I find Uniworld's decor to be rich and opulent.  That said, I'm driven more by itinerary, price, and inclusions than a ship's decor.

[Franken]

Thanks everyone!  My niece chose the Avalon cruise mostly because of the itinerary and active excursions.  Hoping I will be able to keep up with her. 
 

Michelle

[Daisi]

We had a family on our Avalon cruise, the two girls were about 18 - 20.  They really enjoyed the trip, and spent a lot of time biking around the towns when the tours were over.  Hope your niece enjoys it as much.  My parents brought the 3 of us up going to forts, historic sights, etc., and fostered a love of touring them in us.  Good thing my husband has learned to enjoy them as well.

 

The best thing is, you can all go off on different tours, and meet up for dinner to compare what you saw.

 

 

Edited February 19, 2021 by Daisi