Is river cruising for me?

[Haqdeluxe]

5 minutes ago, pontac said:

 

How does this work if all 150 people want to go on the excursion? Do they have 15 groups with 15 guides?

15 or 5 groups, all touring the same site at roughly the same time... not really seeing a big difference. With multiple ships in port it has always been the hords of tour groups jockeying to visit the same quaint little town and the same sites at the same time that I've found takes away from and diminishes the experience. 

[Daisi]

Avalon has several groups for it's excursions as well, we started off with about 6 - 8 in ours, ended up with 10. They also have a choice of excursions, so you can do the "classic" tour, a "specialised' tour and an "active" tour, so that also helps to keep the group sizing down.  We were on a ship with 121 passengers, and I don't think we ever had a full bus when we had to take one for touring away from the river. Some times we had a large coach with about 15 people on it...we sat in the back and would have 1/2 of the bus for space!

[dawnvip]

39 minutes ago, pontac said:

 

How does this work if all 150 people want to go on the excursion? Do they have 15 groups with 15 guides?

Good question!! Other than a few of the Very Popular excursions (Monet's Garden for example) where all of the cruise passengers went to the same place, our experience was AMA reception had colored "tickets" available each morning for the various available tours. For each day there was always the option of 3 or so tours, and sometimes a bike tour on offer as well, going to different sites and with differing level of activity. The chance of everyone going to the same place was pretty small.

 

Once off the boat, people went to the bus with their ticket color (or to the bikes!) and boarded. Each tour we chose had at least 3 guides on board the bus and split the guests up between them. Once at the location, we paired our audio device to the lollipop of our guide and away we went! One day we had the whole bus, guide, driver and site to ourselves, which was amazing and one of our favorite tours of the cruise. We also did a bike tour one morning and once again we were the only ones! 

 

This process may have been unique as the cruise last year was in the "lull" of the pandemic. I'll report back at end of September when we're back from the next AMA cruise!

[skiladyldp]

I am a very picky eater and won't eat fish and a lot of other things.  What I found (on Viking) that I can eat breakfast because there is lots of variety and lunch usually is has lots of variety or you can eat off the ship.  Where I saw limitations for me was dinner but there was usually something I could I eat.  Maybe ask if the appetizer if you like it can be made dinner size.  They are very accommodating so don't be afraid to ask for substitutions.

[franski]

16 hours ago, Canal archive said:

Fran may I correct you it should be, is, not, can be!

No argument from me!!

 

Fran

[Canal archive]

I’m pretty sure that cruise companies are really helpful where dietary concerns are expressed apart from a pretty weird wine one I’m no problem but various cruisers I’ve met have had their challenges met successfully with Scenic so I’m sure if you talk to your restaurant/hotel manager your dietary concerns will be met.

[Got2Cruise]

River Cruising gives you an amazing amount of free time. If you don’t want to follow the guides when you get to the point of interest, just let them know. They’ll give you directions where to meet for the bus back. Or how to get back on your own. 
 

I’d recommend the Danube to try RC if you like to independently travel. Do a precruise in Budapest independently. Then a post cruise in Munich independently.  

[Host Jazzbeau]

On 8/28/2022 at 11:37 AM, Haqdeluxe said:

15 or 5 groups, all touring the same site at roughly the same time... not really seeing a big difference. With multiple ships in port it has always been the hords of tour groups jockeying to visit the same quaint little town and the same sites at the same time that I've found takes away from and diminishes the experience. 

Don't what experience you have, but my experience is that AMA and Scenic do a very good job of keeping their – small – tour groups out of each others' way.  The – large – Viking groups may be able to hear their guide (thanks to QuietVox) but few of them can see what is being described.  The personal touch is ... priceless.

[Canal archive]

When we first started river cruising with Scenic we joined the medium paced group, being fairly fit and it worked for us and as an avid photographer an ideal pace. Now especially not being as fit and having two wonderful new knees we go with the slower paced group, why, taking those photographs is so much easier. We were also one of the first groups to use the phone app way back in time and it works like a dream especially with so much extra information.

[ljandgb]

I love river cruising, and also land trips, which let you soak up more local culture and time.  A combo is a great way to "get it all."

 

We've used a French company twice now to arrange land portions of our trips, "France Just for You" and wouldn't hesitate to use them again.  They'll arrange lodging, tours, rental cars, trains, pretty much anything your want, and are reasonably priced and easy to work with if you're hesitant to do all the planning yourself.

[KathyK13]

On 8/29/2022 at 8:48 AM, Got2Cruise said:

River Cruising gives you an amazing amount of free time. If you don’t want to follow the guides when you get to the point of interest, just let them know. They’ll give you directions where to meet for the bus back. Or how to get back on your own. 
 

I’d recommend the Danube to try RC if you like to independently travel. Do a precruise in Budapest independently. Then a post cruise in Munich independently.  

Exactly what we are planning to do in December!  3 nights in Budapest before Vienna to Nuremberg cruise.  Then 3 nights in Munich.

[Got2Cruise]

2 hours ago, KathyK13 said:

Exactly what we are planning to do in December!  3 nights in Budapest before Vienna to Nuremberg cruise.  Then 3 nights in Munich.

Ohhh you’ll be there for the Christmas markets. Lucky you!

[KathyK13]

22 hours ago, Got2Cruise said:

Ohhh you’ll be there for the Christmas markets. Lucky you!

Yes!  Postponed from 2020, then 2021, hoping it happens this year!

[loge23]

On 8/26/2022 at 10:13 PM, LoriAB said:

I absolutely fell in love with that region, and I want to return with my significant other.

Not sure if you meant taking a river cruise from Paris to Normandy, but if so I would definitely recommend doing this trip on your own. The river cruises to Normandy really don't cruise much - it's a short distance and there's very little scenery from the boat, unlike the Rhine or Danube cruises.

If you fly into CDG, you can rent a car (get one with GPS). It's a pretty short drive from there to Giverny or Rouen, where you can regroup for a night or two. From there, it's an equally short trip to Bayeux, in the heart of the Normandy beaches area. Brittany and the lovely town of Honfleur are also easily reachable by car (albeit in opposite directions). You'll also have much more time to explore while you're on your own. There are excellent guided tours if you wish from Bayeux to the landing beaches - and plenty of yummy places to eat when you return to Bayeux. Don't forget to see the awesome Bayeux Tapestry exhibit in town - it's a highlight!  

[Host Jazzbeau]

I have done Normandy both as a fly-drive and more recently as a river cruise.  Both approaches have much to recommend them, but even with a GPS the driver will miss out on most of the scenery.  If you want a carefree introduction for your partner, my recommendation would be a leisurely river cruise – specifically the Scenic 11-day itinerary that overnights in Rouen and Honfleur:  Normandy & Gems of the Seine  

[texasstar]

I enjoyed the river cruise on Seine.  I thought the scenery on the Seine was beautiful, but I wish we had taken a private tour of the beaches while we were on our land tour of Brittany and Normandy prior to our cruise.  I felt the cruise trip to the beaches was rushed.  The tour guide rushed the group, especially those of us that do not move as fast as we used to.  

[Host Jazzbeau]

8 minutes ago, texasstar said:

I enjoyed the river cruise on Seine.  I thought the scenery on the Seine was beautiful, but I wish we had taken a private tour of the beaches while we were on our land tour of Brittany and Normandy prior to our cruise.  I felt the cruise trip to the beaches was rushed.  The tour guide rushed the group, especially those of us that do not move as fast as we used to.  

Understood.  We presumably had a different guide, and also our expectations for that day may have been different to yours.  We felt the Scenic tour to the American beaches was just the right length.  [But we had done Bayeux on our own on the previous trip, so we didn't have to choose between the two destinations.]  Bottom line:  you can't see everything in an area on any one trip.

[Coral]

17 minutes ago, texasstar said:

I enjoyed the river cruise on Seine.  I thought the scenery on the Seine was beautiful, but I wish we had taken a private tour of the beaches while we were on our land tour of Brittany and Normandy prior to our cruise.  I felt the cruise trip to the beaches was rushed.  The tour guide rushed the group, especially those of us that do not move as fast as we used to.  

I am going to the Beaches in November from Cherbourg cruise port. We do have a private tour. 

[CPT Trips]

We took a 13 day Grand Circle trip, The Seine: Paris to Normandy - 

https://www.gct.com/trips/river-cruises/europe/the-seine-paris-to-normandy/2021/itineraries?icid=global:itineraries:europe-by-river-cruise:sen2021

 

It goes one way, either Paris to Honfleur or the reverse, with overnights in Paris, Vernon, Rouen, and Honfleur. 

[Canal archive]

The museum at Arromanches is interesting I was brought up and lived in the Portsmouth area so it was just a little surreal to see the used Mulberry harbours having grown up with ones left behind. As we weren’t going to a Canadian cemetery Scenic arranged for couple to go by taxi to visit a member of their families resting place they met up with us at lunch.

[caripoo]

I love the river cruises......That being said, NOT to the Normandy and Paris region....that area is best seen by car, train, or private chauffeur. There are better regions for those...The Rhine, Danube......

[smtcan]

On 8/31/2022 at 3:00 PM, Host Jazzbeau said:

I have done Normandy both as a fly-drive and more recently as a river cruise.  Both approaches have much to recommend them, but even with a GPS the driver will miss out on most of the scenery.  If you want a carefree introduction for your partner, my recommendation would be a leisurely river cruise – specifically the Scenic 11-day itinerary that overnights in Rouen and Honfleur:  Normandy & Gems of the Seine  

On a cruise before COVID we had an overnight stop in Le Havre with two long days.  We rented a car at the port and explored the Normandy Beaches.  The ship excursions concentrated on the American sites, but we only spent a short time at Omaha Beach before visiting Juno and Gold, which held more relevance for us.  I had done a lot of reading before our trip, so knew exactly where we wanted to go.  Without that research we would not have understood the significance of what we saw. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

Both the Scenic cruise we took and the AMA one I had researched offered a choice of Normandy tours aimed respectively at Americans and Canadians.

[Daisi]

Avalon is another line that offers trips to either the American or UK & Cdn beaches.