Amawaterways Review Captivating Rhine (Amsterdam to Basel)

[knoxclone]

I just returned from a week aboard the AmaLucia, and thought I would offer my personal opinions, as I travelled on both Uniworld in November and have three Viking river cruises under my belt recently. I am happy to answer any questions as well. 

 

I knew going in, that the weather was going to be iffy, but as I firmly believe that "There is no bad weather, just bad clothing" the price point, and smaller crowds appealed to me.  Spent three days in Amsterdam pre cruise  (not through AMA) and was able to leisurely tour the Van Gogh museum, and other attractions with minimal waits or crowds. AMS public transport has adopted the tap & ride  system, so you just tap your credit card as your ticket when you enter and exit the buses or trams - including the train from the airport.   I did notice that many, many place, including restaurants and shops "cashless only" now. 

 

There were only 72 guests on board, which in turn, allowed the excursions numbers to be very small.  In fact, as I opted for the "gentle" tours, three of my four excursions were either myself and the tour guide - only one or two additional guests. All four tour guides were very good.  We did see quite few Ukrainian flags and posters in windows and city plazas, addition to makeshift memorials to Alexei Navalny in major cities including Amsterdam, Strasbourg and Zurich. 

 

I will say, that of the three ships, Amalucia, Joie de Vivre and Viking longships, I prefer the Viking layout - as on Ama Lucia, the elevator was in the middle of the lobby and the front of ship (resturant and lounge) were offset from the back where the staterooms were located.  Which meant that you ALWAYS had at least one flight of stairs, no matter which way or where you were headed.  And the Joie seems much darker, probably due to the darker woodwork paneling and smaller windows.

 

The ship itself was beautifully appointed, and seemed much more open and light filled than the Joie de Vivre. The lounge has areas with long couches and stools which allow larger groups to gather together.   Like the longships, they had a small eating area at the front of the lounge area which allowed views and opened up in better weather. 

 

I was in the lowest  & smallest cabin as I was traveling solo, which was actually wonderful for a single traveller.  AMA does target to the solo traveler demographic and often offered no supplement sailings.  They also have specifically designed some of the dinning tables to seat 5 or 7 guests.  Bathroom was smaller and not quite as nicely appointed as Viking or Uniworld, and the shower was the smallest of the three, but great water pressure!  I did have the chance to view some larger cabins and really like their layout, especially as they have cabins that feature both a small balcony and a juliet balcony which really makes the room seem larger. 

 

The staff was equally as professional and helpful as on Viking and Uniworld, although there where a few small dining room service glitches, (which was not surprising as it was only the second sailing of the season). And given the small number of passengers, staff addressed passengers by name by the first day and were very interactive with the guests. 

 

There was a small, but well appointed gym and the wellness staff member was visible throughout the cruise, offering daily classes, leading hikes and bike excursions. They offer a small spa/salon and massages are available - cost was reasonable - 80 euro for an hour. 

 

While I enjoy food, and consider myself a "foodie", (albeit not necessarily a gourmet) and I believe the majority of all my meals on Uniworld and Viking were very, very good, the food on the Amalucia was a bit more... the only way to describe  it is maybe more adventurous, inventive  or maybe creative?  One example is  the "make your Pho bowl" cooking station at lunch.  They also provided AMAZING soups,(lunch and dinner), a different one was offered each day, with no repeats.   

 

AMA does not offer a beverage package, but between the wine and beer at meals, and the sip & sail cocktail hour (which featured a cocktail of the day, as well as a selection of cocktails, beers, wine and mocktails), it was not really needed. Drinks were actually on par or cheaper than many of my local restaurants.  I paid 6 euro for a Baileys after dinner, and it was a generous pour.

 

Lounge entertainment similar to others, with a keyboardist, but there was local entertainment three nights - a classical trio who were VERY good, a jazz singer (also very good) and I cant remember the last one because I did not attend. 

 

Demographics seemed to be on the lower end from both my Viking and Uniworld cruises - I would estimate mid- late 40s- 60s, with only one couple seemingly older, but very active. A few including myself, not above using walking poles 🙂 - AMA provides both the canes w a fold out seat, as well as walking poles for guests to borrow.

 

I am happy to answer any questions regarding the three ships, differences,  similarities or other...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 9 by knoxclone

[Host Jazzbeau]

Thank you for this review.  We have sailed AMA and Scenic, but not the other lines you compare.  The split-deck design gives higher ceilings in the two-deck front part (obvious in the AmaLucia picture posted below – compare that to the very low dining room ceiling in the Viking video), which should help mitigate noise issues in the dining room and lounge.  I don't remember if the elevator stops at the 'half' decks, but it does go down to the lowest cabin deck (not all river ships do).

 

Your experience with small-group excursions mirrors ours and is an AMA feature.

 

And your experience with the food also mirrors ours.  I recall that when they introduced the kitchen crew, there was one chef who only made soup (and another who only made bread and pastry) – those specializations show in the high quality of the offerings!

 

 

 

[notamermaid]

Thank you for the review. As you sailed in (very) low season, how would say it this compares to spring and summer? My specific questions. Could the fewer crowds, which you have put as a plus, make up for the uncertainty of the weather in a relatively boring, grey landscape? Was there enough daylight for you to enjoy the sailing and excursions? Where there any ports that were different from standard spring and summer sailings?

 

notamermaid

 

[Roz]

@knoxclone, great review 👍.  I've found that if you can deal with the cold, wet, windy weather, and shortened daylight hours,  there are bargains to be had with both land tours and river cruises in Europe during the off season. 

[knoxclone]

5 hours ago, notamermaid said:

Thank you for the review. As you sailed in (very) low season, how would say it this compares to spring and summer? My specific questions. Could the fewer crowds, which you have put as a plus, make up for the uncertainty of the weather in a relatively boring, grey landscape? Was there enough daylight for you to enjoy the sailing and excursions? Where there any ports that were different from standard spring and summer sailings?

 

notamermaid

 

Yes, I think so.  I am originally from the upper Midwest, so I am much happier in the cold than the heat!

 

I knew going in, there was not going be much in the way of   scenic views while sailing & touring, other than architecturally and was ok with that as I have previously visited the Rhine area in summer and fall seasons. The weather actually cooperated nicely, once we left the rain in Amsterdam behind us, we had severally sunny days, and in fact toured Düsseldorf and Speyer with just a fleece jacket. 

 

The only downside might be for those who are avid shoppers ( of which I am not) is that because we were so early in the season, some of the shops and restaurants, especially in the smaller towns were not open yet - including the Kathe Wolfart Christmas shop in Rudesheim.

 

 

[knoxclone]

6 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I don't remember if the elevator stops at the 'half' decks, but it does go down to the lowest cabin deck (not all river ships do).

Yes, the AMA & Uniworld elevators both stop at all the levels ( with the exception of the sun deck), while the Viking elevator only reaches the 2 middle decks where the restaurant and lounge are located. 

[drg1223]

Thanks for this great review.  We will be sailing on AMA next summer going in the other direction, Basel to Amsterdam.  What was your favorite excursion along the way?  Did you discuss any of the excursions that you didn't select with others on your ship that sounded like we shouldn't miss? 

[Hobbes67]

Do you know if they have power adapters onboard or what I will need to bring for a curling iron?

[RobInMN]

4 hours ago, Hobbes67 said:

Do you know if they have power adapters onboard or what I will need to bring for a curling iron?

 

Technically, Ama does not want you to bring Curling Irons:

https://www.amawaterways.com/connections/top-faqs-for-first-time-river-cruisers

"Can I bring my curling iron or hair straightener on board? 

For safety reasons, the use of your personal curling iron or hair straightener is restricted on board the ship. A limited number of curling irons / hair straighteners are available for you to borrow at reception. However, you may leave your hair dryer at home as there is one in every stateroom."

 

This will be in your Cruise Documents under Travel Information & Tips:

"Curling Irons
For safety reasons, the use of your personal curling iron is restricted on board the ship. A limited number of curling irons are available at reception."

 

That said, the current is 220v, Type C or E/F (I have some of both and they both seem to work)

Make sure any device is dual voltage (110v/220v), then you just need something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0058EG0KC

 

 

I also have this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07YDF8GCT

 

 

[knoxclone]

On 3/12/2024 at 1:14 PM, drg1223 said:

Thanks for this great review.  We will be sailing on AMA next summer going in the other direction, Basel to Amsterdam.  What was your favorite excursion along the way?  Did you discuss any of the excursions that you didn't select with others on your ship that sounded like we shouldn't miss? 

Several people raved about the Technology museum in Speyer, and remarked that they could have easily have spent an entire day there.  My favorite excursion was probably either Riquewihr as it was a beautiful sunny day, very few people and some we enjoyed some great pastries... or the visit to Dusseldorf, which had some interesting history, outdoor art sculptures some beautiful churches.  I had no idea what to expect and really enjoyed it.

[knoxclone]

On 3/14/2024 at 9:48 AM, Hobbes67 said:

Do you know if they have power adapters onboard or what I will need to bring for a curling iron?

The provided hair dryer was very good - and not one of those mounted to the wall.  There are a variety of "american" and European outlets in the room - as well as two usb ports on each side of the bed. 

[Hobbes67]

On 3/14/2024 at 12:18 PM, RobInMN said:

Thank you for your response.

 

Technically, Ama does not want you to bring Curling Irons:

https://www.amawaterways.com/connections/top-faqs-for-first-time-river-cruisers

"Can I bring my curling iron or hair straightener on board? 

For safety reasons, the use of your personal curling iron or hair straightener is restricted on board the ship. A limited number of curling irons / hair straighteners are available for you to borrow at reception. However, you may leave your hair dryer at home as there is one in every stateroom."

 

This will be in your Cruise Documents under Travel Information & Tips:

"Curling Irons
For safety reasons, the use of your personal curling iron is restricted on board the ship. A limited number of curling irons are available at reception."

 

That said, the current is 220v, Type C or E/F (I have some of both and they both seem to work)

Make sure any device is dual voltage (110v/220v), then you just need something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0058EG0KC

 

 

I also have this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07YDF8GCT

 

 

 

[knoxclone]

On 3/15/2024 at 9:16 PM, knoxclone said:

Several people raved about the Technology museum in Speyer, and remarked that they could have easily have spent an entire day there.  My favorite excursion was probably either Riquewihr as it was a beautiful sunny day, very few people and some we enjoyed some great pastries... or the visit to Dusseldorf, which had some interesting history, outdoor art sculptures some beautiful churches.  I had no idea what to expect and really enjoyed it.

The other surprising excursion was Sigfrieds Mechanical Music Museum in Ridesheim.  Totally charming and unexpected - it was fascinating...

[CastleCritic]

Siegfrieds is really neat yeah

 

I see some conflicting info above and Im just going to add to it.

 

OTHER than AMAMagna (the Danube wide body ship) Ive never seen an open US style plug on an AMA ship, I always bring a converter (oddly they do have one where they have plugged in the MAC all in one in room computers for some reason usually).

 

As for the elevator, usually it goes to the rooms or the restaurant (usually the restaurant) on the first floor, not both. these are on opposite sides of a wall and you have to go up and down stairs to get between them.

Edited March 18 by CastleCritic

[Canal archive]

7 hours ago, knoxclone said:

The other surprising excursion was Sigfrieds Mechanical Music Museum in Ridesheim.  Totally charming and unexpected - it was fascinating...

Those singing birds are beautiful but becoming extremely sought after and costly.