New to River Cruising- questions

[skittl1321]

I've spent the past day reading about every post I could find on the river cruising board- now I really want to hop on a plane so that I can hop on a bus to cruise the Danube! But I'm booked on an ocean cruise in January 2008, and won't be able to swing another vacation until 2010- it's a long way off, but hey- I can start planning- right?

 

I have a few questions.

 

First, my husband and I are in our 20s- will we be shunned on a river cruise? I realize they tend to have an older crowd than an ocean cruise, but we aren't partiers, and really just want to sitesee and explore Europe- will other passengers think we are out of place, or be accepting since we have the same interests?

 

Second, right now I am really interested in Amadeus, but compared to Ocean cruises, the prices are very high- especially since we need an international flight. Are there any "budget" cruise lines? I'm not looking for Easy Cruise, as I do want a more traditional river cruise, but I'd be willing to give up some room space and a bit of the fancy food for a budget drop.

 

What are the hidden costs of river cruising? What "suprises" might come up during the cruise or booking process?

 

Also- what's the shortest cruise that is "worth it" to you. It seems like 14 days is the norm, but that's about all we have for our vacations, including travel. Can the trip be done in fewer days?

[Coral]

I am in my 30's and trying Amadeus this summer.

 

I had heard that Amadeus is trying to market to a younger group. I am not sure how successful they are with it. I will let you know this summer. Obviously if both of us are looking at Amadeus - they must be doing something.

 

I really hope there is a diverse group on my sailing.

[Bobblsc]

Skitti1321,

 

We are really old and find it really great when really young people are on board any ship, ocean or river. Especially if the youngsters will help carry our luggage. :D

 

Seven nights on a river would be fine. I would start now to look at some of the web travel agents to see which seem to have the best prices for the same cruises. We have only been on three river cruises, Two in the late 1990's in Germany and one in 2005 on the Danube. The 90's cruises were on the old KD line which has since been purchased by Viking. The Danube cruise was with Uniworld. We would often see other ships on the Danube which all looked more similar than different. The early KD ships had small cabins with bunk beds on the sides of the cabin. The cabins were small, but adequate. We did not mind at all. Some present day ships still have at least some small cabins.

 

The trend now, however, is to have cabins about the size of small cabins on ocean ships. This was what we had on the Danube. It was a little better, but a smaller cabin would have also been fine.

 

The river cruises seem to sell out fairly rapidly. If you buy very early you should be able to get a lower deck cabin at substantially less than the same size cabin on a higher deck. I would check the lowest deck, however, to find if it is only right at the water level. That may be alright, but it may be uncomfortable for some to see the water at the bottom of the window.

 

Our first cruise was Wurzburg on the Main to the Rhine, then up the Moselle to Trier. I think this was the best scenery. We were on the lower Danube, from Bucharest to Budapest. The cities are very nice, but the Danube in that stretch had only a few hours of great scenery. Our other Rhine trip was Amsterdam to Basel. That included the very best of the Rhine, but the southernmost part did not have much of interest.

 

Most river cruises are now packaged with before and/or after city stays. This puts the price up. Generally the stays are at top hotels, and this is fine for us now, but in earlier years we stayed in much less expensive hotels when we lived and traveled in Europe. They were fine and we did not have to pay an arm and a leg for a room. Now we want to spend more so we don't have to leave our money for our kids to squander.

 

A final thought. For air to Europe, check Aer Lingus, the Irish line. They price very low from Chicago or New York to Dublin, then to many European cities. You have to book each leg separately, but that is not a problem. If your Cruise starts from other than where you fly into, the trains in Europe are great. Also, many airports have stations in the passenger terminals, for example, Frankfort, Zürich, Brussels, and others.

 

I hope this helps you.

 

Bob :rolleyes:

[carlmm]

How comfortable would you be with a ship that is not dominated by Americans?

Among German river cruise ships are the best, most luxurious and most expensive ones, but on the other hand also some older and more budget orientated ships. These might not meet the average American requirements regarding cabin size and modern design but give you the full river experience for less money.

[lior]

hi

we dare and booked a swiss river boat-swiss tiara,hope it will nice-.

[cmthomas]

Looks like a good choice! If you would like to see a recent photo see http://www.shipspotting.com/modules/myalbum/photo.php?lid=387377 for one taken on the Danube earlier this month.

 

Clarence:)

[skandls]

When you book a river cruise make sure you look at what you are getting. Yes they are expensive but so much is included that you won't have the big 'sea pass' bill at the end of your cruise. Our biggest expense was the tips for the crew.

 

We did one while it was Amadeus/Avalon Poetry. It was a great trip. We only paid for one optional tour (there may have been 2 offered). All the other tours were included. Ours included wine with dinner - we still bought some local wines to try.

 

We did 14 night Budapest to Amsterdam but I have seen shorter cruises to different regions. I would think that the shorter (7 days) cruises would have a younger crowd - just like ocean cruises.

 

The Poetry was non-smoking. Many of the European lines still allow smoking on their ships. I don't know if thats important to you or not.

[skittl1321]

Thanks everyone for the excellent advise! I might look into some of the European lines, but think I would rather pay for an american line as non-smoking is important to me.

 

Now I just have to figure out how to get a raise so I can go sooner :)

[Buckland]

Hi skittl1321,

My wife and I cruised from Amsterdam to Budapest and loved every minute of it. We booked as many shore excursions as we could and were treated with many a surprise. Some of the things you will see will make you weak in the knees. Hoffburg palace in Wursburg and Shoenbrunn in Vienna come first to mind. The castles of the Rhine Gorge are really fascinating. We had the incredible pleasure to see them when it was really foggy and it gave everything a surreal look. It was one of my favorite moments. As far as being young, I don't think that will matter. All of the folks that were on our cruise were there for the scenery, the history and the friendship we felt from everywhere we went. As soon as we are settled in our up-coming relocation to another city, we will be planning many more such excursions.

Here's hoping you have a great trip when it comes.

 

Buck

[lior]

beautiful picture.

have you cruised with the swiss tiara.

can you give us more info?

thank you.

lior

[cmthomas]

No, lior, I have never even seen the ship. I just found the picture on the Internet for you.

 

I would think that most of the passengers will be Europeans and there is no guarantee that they will be able to talk with you in English. I would certainly recommend asking your travel agent to see if they can get an estimate of the nationality mix for you unless you speak and understand German.

 

It is probably fair to assume that the staff will speak fluent English.

 

Our expert in this area is Steamboats but she is away on an ocean cruise right now in the Caribbean. She is German and lives in Germany so I am sure that she can give you much more reliable guidance when she returns.

 

BTW, if you click on the links next to the picture it will give you more info about the ship and a diagram of the cabins.

 

Clarence:)

[Coral]

I personally would stick with a line that caters to those that speak English.

[cmthomas]

I would also recommend being very careful when comparing. If you are using a European line the fares are probably quoted in Euros so you would have to multiply that by 1.4 to get USD. Also, you should check to see if the fares you have seen for river cruises marketed to the US include the air cost which may make them look more expensive than the European ships.

 

Further, on the lines marketed in the US the shore excursions are usually included for the most part and are seldom included on the European ships.

 

Things are not always what they seem to be!

 

Clarence:)

[DON M.]

Last summer, we did the Prague to Budapest 7 day cruise. As far as the cost is concerned, it was about $2400 (p.p) and included a 3 night pre-stay in Prague at a very nice Renaissance. With so much to do and see in Prague, we added an additional 3 nights making the total vacation 12 days. This was on the Amadeaus.

As others have stated, all excursions, wine with dinner, all included, made the trip not a whole lot more than a summer ocean cruise ( of course the Europe airfare from Ca. is outrages in the summer).

The only "surpise" for us was after 10pm it was pretty much like a nursing home. I think a better job of some nite activities will need to be addressed as the popularity of River cruises begins attracting a younger crowd (and it will).

I would say, that of the 140 passengers on board, about 85% were over 50

If this is not a problem for you, a river cruise like we took is a great way to see some great European cities and unbelievable history that otherwise would take alot longer and could be more expensive.

[TataTom]

My wife and I did the Budapest to Amsterdam on the Amadeus Amadagio last fall. It was a 14 day cruise, and we loved every minute of it. Most of the folks on our ship were older, (we are 69 and 65) but we were all a lot of fun and we would have welcomed with open arms anyone of any age. (Of course, if you wanted to carry a boom box and play rap loud, we probably would not have liked it. :))

 

We older folks do not do much late night partying, so if that is what you want, a river cruise is not the best option. But if you like friendly people who will accept you for what you are, who have been to many fascinating places and have had a lifetime of interesting things happen to them, and if you enjoy quiet evenings with good local entertainment, you will love the cruise. And we would love to have you with us!

[steamboats]

lior,

 

The SWISS TIARA is a brand new ship which came out last fall. It´s owned by the Swiss company Scylla Tours (BTW a lot of river cruise ships are registered in Switzerland, it´s a flag of convenience mainly). I have a video of an older unit of the Scylla ships and they are truly very nice and no low budget. I know a couple of people who cruised on Scylla ships and they were truly impressed.

 

skittl1321,

 

I was on my first river cruise at the age of 28. If you don´t mind to travel with elder people I´m sure they won´t mind too. I´m also no partier and enjoy the quiet way of cruising on the rivers. I´ve just finished my first ocean cruise with RCI which was really nice and I´m sure I will do more. But river cruises are my first love.

 

The prices seem to be high. But you have to compare: all cruises on the US market (except the German company Deilmann) include the shore tours which you have to pay big bucks for on ocean cruises (if you book with the cruise company). Many of the cruises include a pre- or post-cruise stay. The cruise itself is usually 7 nights, the vacation can extend to 10 or 11 nights with the pre-/post-cruise hotel. A lot of companies also include wine for dinner. Most of the major cruise lines (Avalon, Amadeus, Globus, Uniworld, Grand Circle Travel, Vantage, Viking) are in the same price range. There are usually no big offers, maybe some 2-for-1 in the off season. Gate1Travel is quite new on the market and they have some good prices (at least at first glance, but compare what´s included). But they do not own any ships. They partially offer cruises with other companies, partially the have a full charter.

 

To prepare for a cruise in 2010: Sign up all online newsletters and you can see at which time of the year there are specials available. Order all brochures and compare the intineries and the included amenities (like shore tours, wine for dinner, WiFi, guest laundry...). Over the next two years you will gather a lot of information which makes it easier to choose the cruise you like.

 

River cruises do include much more than ocean cruises (where you have to pay extra). Actually on our cruise on the Grandeur the main part of our bill were the tips but we don´t drink alcohol (we had one beer and one non-alcoholic cocktail) and we organized our shore excursions on our own.

 

Besides the price of the cruise the flights are the main part of your expenses (and we got the same "problem" the other way round as we´re mainly doing river cruises in the US living in Germany). As we do have much more vacation time here in Germany we usually add 2 weeks in the US to a 7 night river cruise and get a rental car. So the costs of the flight can be "compensated".

 

steamboats

[lior]

Hi steamboat.

again thank you.

we will be in munich-so we will take the swiss tiara from

passau.

we do speak a some german'so we hope that we will be able to understand what is going on the ship.

lior

[cmthomas]

Welcome home, Steamboats! We missed you!

 

Clarence:)

[skittl1321]

Thanks everyone so much for all the advice- I've signed up for emails from all the major companies, and will see how the patterns go as I plan a cruise a few years from now.

 

River cruising seems like it will be my kind of thing. I want to see many places, and experience the places (I don't understand cruise line "private islands"- I want to go somewhere with PEOPLE) and I agree that the river cruises are probably less expensive then they look since they include shore excursions.

 

At home I'm an in bed by 9:00 kind of gal, so on a cruise I figured I'd stay up until 10:00, lack of nightlife is not a problem for me!

[DON M.]

Wecome back Steamboats, look forward to your Grandeaur comments as we will be on her June 29.

[steamboats]

Thanks to all for welcoming me back!

 

Lior,

 

If you´ve booked with a US TA/tour operator I´m sure they will have English announcements too. It might also be that the ship has been chartered to that US company.

 

DON M.,

 

The cruise was great! But I can´t tell you much as the ship is currently in dry dock. All I can tell you is how she looked during our cruise. As we were told new bedding and some "soft" renovations of the cabins will be done, facelift for the windjammer, carpets/marble works/wood works in the public areas will be redone/repolished. I don´t know if they are adding new TVs in the cabins so you can book shore tours or see your onboard account (which was not available during our cruise). Food was very good in the dining room. I read some not that good reviews about the food in the Windjammer. But I thought it was good there too (except for the biscuits which were disappointing). Just make sure you browse through the Windjammer first to see what´s available before you load your plate. You might find something at the very end which pleases you more :) .

 

steamboats

[BigTimeCruiser]

In September we will be traveling from Bucharest to Amsterdam. Does anyone know if you can access wireless Internet WiFi along the river or in the cities? Thanks!

Curt:)

[steamboats]

Curt,

 

Unfortunately free WiFi hotspots aren´t very common in Europe. There sure are a lot of internet cafés in the towns and cities. Some cafés also offer WiFi but you have to pay for it.

 

steamboats

[sk8teacher]

In September we will be traveling from Bucharest to Amsterdam. Does anyone know if you can access wireless Internet WiFi along the river or in the cities? Thanks!

 

Curt:)

 

Depends on what line you are cruising I would suspect. Viking River boats now have WiFi onboard (or at least the Spirit does). The cost was 20 Euros for 60 minutes. I don't know how good it is as I didn't have my laptop with me, but it was available.

 

Cheers,

[skertso]

DH and I have booked our first river cruise on Amadeus MS Amadagio from Amsterdam to Trier and then for a post-cruise stay in Paris via Luxembourg. Though it is a long way off we are still thrilled to finally be planning a river cruise experience. I've enjoyed reading through all of your threads. So many of you are experienced river cruisers.

:)