New to River Cruise - looking for recommendations

[gnome12]

10 hours ago, Roz said:

@dacf, you can sleep in if you don't want to take the included tour for that morning.

But you might not get breakfast.

[Canal archive]

One year it just happened that the tours most passengers wanted to participate in left the ship about 8.30 meaning an early start if you wanted breakfast and this on the first three mornings. No complaints but at the evenings port talk we’re told that the next days excursion was in the afternoon everyone cheered. It all worked out and supposedly had never happened before, something to do with venues and roadworks.

[dacf]

On 11/7/2022 at 4:02 PM, CPT Trips said:

Grand Circle Travel does longer river cruises, many of them with overnight stops. These stops are convenient, by foot or public transportation to the city centers. This company only does direct sales, they do not commission TAs. We are in a minority on this board that has cruised with GCT multiple times and have not cruised with any of the other companies frequently mentioned here.

 

Overnights in Antwerp and Strasbourg - https://www.gct.com/trips/river-cruises/europe/romance-of-the-rhine-and-mosel/2021/itineraries?anchor=itinerarylisting&icid=prnavsb_itinerary

 

Overnights in Amsterdam and Vienna - https://www.gct.com/trips/river-cruises/europe/the-great-rivers-of-europe/2021/itineraries?icid=global:itineraries:europe-by-river-cruise:river-cruises:sge

 

Overnights Budapest, Bratislava, Vienna, and Linz as well as Prague (in a hotel). https://www.gct.com/trips/river-cruises/europe/romantic-blue-danube-budapest-to-prague/2021/itineraries?icid=global:itineraries:europe-by-river-cruise:river-cruises:edr
 

Overnights Paris, Vernon, Rouen, and Honfleur. https://www.gct.com/trips/river-cruises/europe/the-seine-paris-to-normandy/2021/itineraries?icid=global:itineraries:europe-by-river-cruise:river-cruises:sen

 

We took each of these cruises as well as almost all the cruises listed on the website. They each are about 2 weeks duration. 

Thank you so much for this extra piece of advice!  But I don't see 7 days.  We can only take up to 2.5 wks for vacation and that also includes flight time, plus we'll be with the family and wedding party for 3 days, and then the touring around begins, so 14 - 16days will not be doable.   Although I love the idea of overnight stops.  

[dacf]

On 11/7/2022 at 11:05 AM, Roz said:

Starting in Vienna somewhat limits you as to cruise lines and itineraries.  Budapest or Passau (Munich) offer more jumping off points.  

Roz, the wedding will be in Vienna, and we'll be touring around Vienna for a few days while we are there for the wedding.   However, our cruise does not have to start in Vienna, it can start anywhere that has a route of interest to us.   We'll either take a train or fly depending on where the embarkation port is. Since we'll be in Vienna and my niece's finance's family (who are Austrians) will be showing us around - we may even bunk with them while in Vienna- not sure yet, but we'll want a river cruise that does not include Vienna - it could be a starting or ending port, but we would have already seen the highlights while there for the wedding.

[CPT Trips]

28 minutes ago, dacf said:

Thank you so much for this extra piece of advice!  But I don't see 7 days.  We can only take up to 2.5 wks for vacation and that also includes flight time, plus we'll be with the family and wedding party for 3 days, and then the touring around begins, so 14 - 16days will not be doable.   Although I love the idea of overnight stops.  

Oops, I was focused on 2.5 weeks and overnights forgetting the other, important aspects of your trip. 

[notamermaid]

21 minutes ago, dacf said:

However, our cruise does not have to start in Vienna, it can start anywhere that has a route of interest to us. 

So you would be willing to fly home from somewhere else as well, i.e. a completely separate experience? From Vienna it is easy to get to other big places. You could start from Regensburg or Nuremberg and sail West. A route from Nuremberg to Trier could be great. Or fly to a completely different place, like Paris and do a cruise along the Seine.

 

There are so many options. Fancy a different cuisine, want to see castles, have more hiking and biking options? Prefer a large ship, like the Amamagna or the Arosa Sena? Or spend an enormous amount of money for the MS Mozart? Stick to a North-American line or join the English or Germans? All things to consider.

 

notamermaid

 

[dacf]

1 hour ago, CPT Trips said:

Oops, I was focused on 2.5 weeks and overnights forgetting the other, important aspects of your trip. 

No worries 🙂

 

[dacf]

1 hour ago, notamermaid said:

So you would be willing to fly home from somewhere else as well, i.e. a completely separate experience? From Vienna it is easy to get to other big places. You could start from Regensburg or Nuremberg and sail West. A route from Nuremberg to Trier could be great. Or fly to a completely different place, like Paris and do a cruise along the Seine.

 

There are so many options. Fancy a different cuisine, want to see castles, have more hiking and biking options? Prefer a large ship, like the Amamagna or the Arosa Sena? Or spend an enormous amount of money for the MS Mozart? Stick to a North-American line or join the English or Germans? All things to consider.

 

notamermaid

 

Yes Notamermaid, so many things to consider.   We have no problem flying or taking a train to Paris, Budapest, etc.   Wherever the cruise starts at and making sure our departure flight is from the city where we end up.   I suppose if it finished in Vienna, that would be easier for a round trip ticket.  And definitely not MS Mozart, we want to look for the more budget friendly river cruises.  And who knows we just may end up on an ocean cruise if the river cruise is just too much money.   Some of the European cruises have a port every day except for one day.  That works for me too.  The only problem is they don't drop you off right in the city the way river cruises do - or at least that was my understanding.  Please correct me if I'm wrong.

[notamermaid]

2 minutes ago, dacf said:

The only problem is they don't drop you off right in the city the way river cruises do

Aaah, that is another thing to consider. While most docking is right in the centre of a place on a river cruise that is not always so. An extreme one is Nuremberg. You dock in an industrial harbour and you are not even on a river. It is a modern canal. At the other end of the scale is Koblenz for example. For me one of the best settings there can be. Probably topped by Budapest, though.

 

notamermaid

 

[dacf]

1 hour ago, notamermaid said:

Aaah, that is another thing to consider. While most docking is right in the centre of a place on a river cruise that is not always so. An extreme one is Nuremberg. You dock in an industrial harbour and you are not even on a river. It is a modern canal. At the other end of the scale is Koblenz for example. For me one of the best settings there can be. Probably topped by Budapest, though.

 

notamermaid

 

Ahhh thanks for that piece of info.   I just assumed that all ports were in the heart of the city.  Ok good to know!!  If we do decide on a river cruise, I'll have to ask where each port drops you off.  Gosh, I would definitely not like to be dropped off in an industrial area, although I'm sure they have buses that take you out of there and back to the boat.

[notamermaid]

27 minutes ago, dacf said:

I'm sure they have buses that take you out of there and back to the boat.

Yes, in such places a shuttle is standard really. But others can tell you more about that. I had the shuttle experience in Vienna as we were out in the suburb of Nussdorf.

 

notamermaid

 

[Gretchendz]

21 hours ago, dacf said:

Yes Notamermaid, so many things to consider.   We have no problem flying or taking a train to Paris, Budapest, etc.   Wherever the cruise starts at and making sure our departure flight is from the city where we end up.   I suppose if it finished in Vienna, that would be easier for a round trip ticket.  And definitely not MS Mozart, we want to look for the more budget friendly river cruises.  And who knows we just may end up on an ocean cruise if the river cruise is just too much money.   Some of the European cruises have a port every day except for one day.  That works for me too.  The only problem is they don't drop you off right in the city the way river cruises do - or at least that was my understanding.  Please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

For budget friendly, I there are several good options, such as Riviera. I suggest you speak to a travel agent who works a lot with European river cruises.

[CPT Trips]

If you opt for an ocean cruise, there are ports close to city center. Lisbon and Barcelona come to mind. 

[notamermaid]

3 hours ago, Gretchendz said:

 

For budget friendly, I there are several good options, such as Riviera. I suggest you speak to a travel agent who works a lot with European river cruises.

I tend to agree that Riviera Travel is a good alternative to a North American line. CroisiEurope fits into that range but there one needs to consider that the food is French-European and the overall experience will likely feel more different to a line on the Anglo-American market.

 

notamermaid

 

[dacf]

23 hours ago, CPT Trips said:

If you opt for an ocean cruise, there are ports close to city center. Lisbon and Barcelona come to mind. 

CPT, yes that is correct, but I was thinking of wanting to see Germany, Switzerland, France, etc.  But I do realize that there are no river cruises that stops at all these 3 countries on one route.

[dacf]

On 11/10/2022 at 8:40 AM, Gretchendz said:

 

For budget friendly, I there are several good options, such as Riviera. I suggest you speak to a travel agent who works a lot with European river cruises.

Thanks Gretchendz I'll take a look at Riviera.   I already spoke with 2 TA who specializes in river and ocean cruises and one of the two gave me the cheapest rate out of all lines they book for, quoting me the cheapest room for Aug. for a 7 day cruise was $3699CDN.   Does this sound about right?

Edited November 11, 2022 by dacf

[Host Jazzbeau]

4 hours ago, dacf said:

CPT, yes that is correct, but I was thinking of wanting to see Germany, Switzerland, France, etc.  But I do realize that there are no river cruises that stops at all these 3 countries on one route.

Actually most Rhine and/or Moselle cruises do stop in all three of those countries.

[dacf]

19 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Actually most Rhine and/or Moselle cruises do stop in all three of those countries.

Jazzbeau 

Oops my bad, when I said France I meant specifically Paris.

[OneSixtyToOne]

On 11/7/2022 at 8:54 AM, dacf said:

a river cruise drops you off right in the heart of the cities we would like to explore, and the ocean liners don't.  For example, NCL will have Paris on their itinerary, but the dock is in Le Havre and it's a 3yr journey to Paris - no thank you!!  This is why we're looking at river cruises.

 

This is one of the big reasons we prefer river cruising to ocean cruising. You have much more time in the heart of the city and much less time commuting from the port to where you want to go.

 

BTW since train travel was mentioned I highly recommend Viking's Paris to the Swiss Alp cruise. Their trip extension to Geneva & Zermatt includes a First Class train ride across Switzerland on the famous Glacier Express. Zermatt is absolutely gorgeous and the Matterhorn is breathtaking. This is by far the best cruise extension we have ever experienced. We traveled in reverse from Switzerland to Paris. I always want to do the more rigorous part of the trip in the beginning before we are completely exhausted from all the days traveling. River cruising will definitely allow you to sleep well at night. 

[notamermaid]

1 hour ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

We traveled in reverse from Switzerland to Paris.

I think Basel to Trier is a great itinerary and something the OP should consider. Flying from Vienna to Switzerland is an option and as the Paris extension is a typical one on this route, a day in Paris and flying home from there may work.

 

notamermaid

 

[Got2Cruise]

22 hours ago, dacf said:

Jazzbeau 

Oops my bad, when I said France I meant specifically Paris.

Take a Rhine cruise and then take the train from either Basel or Amsterdam to Paris. Take the Seine cruise from there. If you only want to see Paris, I’ve seen Paris add extensions from some of the cruiselines also. 

[Gretchendz]

Which line was that?  It sounds like a good price if it includes all tours, beer and wine, and meals. Generally, in August on one of the preferred lines (whatever that happens to mean to someone) you would be looking at $5,000 and up per person depending on cabin. So--yes it is a good price, all other things being equal.

 

Be careful of just going with the cheapest--most of the European river cruise lines are fine, but a few not so much.  Look carefully at the reviews for that cruise line and ship.

 

By the way do either of you happen to be employed as active medical professionals (doctors, nurses, pharmacists, hospital staff, lab technicians) and active first responders (Emergency Medical Services/paramedics) with valid ID. You can get$1,000 off any 2023 sailing with AMA. Although that may be US only, your TA could check.

[Gretchendz]

On 11/11/2022 at 11:58 AM, dacf said:

  I already spoke with 2 TA who specializes in river and ocean cruises and one of the two gave me the cheapest rate out of all lines they book for, quoting me the cheapest room for Aug. for a 7 day cruise was $3699CDN

 

By the way, if you are shopping between TAs, please be open with them about the fact.  Until you actually book with one they are actually working for you for free.  TAs understand that people price shop (we do too) but if you do 10 hours of research for someone and then they book elsewhere because they could save $50, it's very discouraging. It's actually exactly why more and more TAs are starting to charge an upfront planning fee.

 

I don't mean to insult you or anyone else who does this in anyway. However, I find most travelers do not realize what is happening to the TA in that situation.  Just please be open with them about the fact so they can choose how much time to invest.

[dacf]

On 11/13/2022 at 9:49 AM, Gretchendz said:

 

By the way, if you are shopping between TAs, please be open with them about the fact.  Until you actually book with one they are actually working for you for free.  TAs understand that people price shop (we do too) but if you do 10 hours of research for someone and then they book elsewhere because they could save $50, it's very discouraging. It's actually exactly why more and more TAs are starting to charge an upfront planning fee.

 

I don't mean to insult you or anyone else who does this in anyway. However, I find most travelers do not realize what is happening to the TA in that situation.  Just please be open with them about the fact so they can choose how much time to invest.

Gretchendz, I totally understand their position and yes I agree 100%, I would be upfront with them, however the two I spoke with both said prior to doing the research, there is a charge.   I think the charge is incorporated in the final cost if we go with them but if not then we lose the $200.  In response to your other post, I don't know what line that was, they never said.  

[dacf]

I would like to thank all of you who replied to the River Cruise post, but my husband and I have discussed it with our extended family members who will (of course) be in Austria for the wedding.   We're going to rent a car and tour around for appx. 10 days then take a Mediterranean cruise on an ocean line to the Greek islands.