Questions from a potential "new river cruiser"

[SF]

Hope someone can help answer these questions as this would be our first river cruise. We're seasoned cruise travelers but on the mega liners and since we've heard such wonderful things about river cruising we'd like to give it a try.

 

 

1.Just wondering if it's better to take a cabin on the middle deck and have

cabins above and below you or one on the top deck and have the sun deck

above? Is it noisy in the top cabins since people would be walking around

above you early in the morning and maybe even late at night?

 

2. Are there any pro's or con's when picking a cabin on a river cruise?

 

3. Does anyone know the cost for the internet service on board? Is the

connect decent or very slow.

 

4. Is there usually a line to use the computers?

 

5. Can you bring a laptop and will it work in your room or around the ship?

[paul929207]

Hope someone can help answer these questions as this would be our first river cruise. We're seasoned cruise travelers but on the mega liners and since we've heard such wonderful things about river cruising we'd like to give it a try.

 

 

1.Just wondering if it's better to take a cabin on the middle deck and have

cabins above and below you or one on the top deck and have the sun deck

above? Is it noisy in the top cabins since people would be walking around

above you early in the morning and maybe even late at night?

 

2. Are there any pro's or con's when picking a cabin on a river cruise?

 

3. Does anyone know the cost for the internet service on board? Is the

connect decent or very slow.

 

4. Is there usually a line to use the computers?

 

5. Can you bring a laptop and will it work in your room or around the ship?

 

We were on a River Crusie with Uniworld 4 years ago.

1. People in cabins at the front of the ship complained about the noise from the bow thrusters when we sailed at 4 or 5 am most mornings.

2. see above

3, 4 & 5. Our ship only offered email & there was a fairly stiff charge for each one. Few peole used it, so there was no line. Laptop would not connect anywhere on the ship. We used internet cafes in ports.

[pjtraveler]

I would agree with the prior poster on internet service--no wifi, expensive email, slow connections. Hit the internet cafes in ports, which are usually very inexpensive, relative to on the ship.

 

A word about cabins--we find that on a river cruise there is usually little time that we spend in our cabins, other than at night or for a quick change of clothes. For that reason, we always try to get the least expensive cabin. Usually, there is little difference in size and amenities, but you can check the cruise line you're considering for photos of the different cabins.:)

[SF]

Thanks for answering my questions.

 

Are internet cafes in the ports near the ship? I assume they'd have some since you dock right in town.

 

What about cell phone service? Do you have any while sailing or only in port?

[steamboats]

Amadeus Waterways has WiFi and you can also access internet via the multi media terminal in your room. It´s free (at least it was in 2007). But anyway do not expect a fast connection.

 

To the aft you might hear engine noise, to the bow you might hear bow thrusters. The middle deck to the middle might be a good spot for a quiet cabin (but keep away from elevators/staircases). The top deck might be o.k. too. There´s usually no real jogging path on the Sun Deck and depending on your route the Sun Deck might be closed (mainly in the Main-Danube Canal).

 

steamboats

[SF]

Thanks for your help.

[Tennessee Traveler]

WE book the cabins on a lower deck as we spend little time in the cabin. Usually we're ashore, watching the scenery from the deck, or attending lectures or classes. The ships are much smaller and much more user friendly. Plus, you really get to meet many of your fellow cruisers.

I have found unless you go to the most expensive cabins, there's not a great deal of difference.

We've had mixed results on using the internet aboard. Sometimes it works well, but often not - especially in China & Russia. But there have been numerous opportunities to find internet cafes which are usually nearby the rivers and or universities. Don't know about wifi.

I've done both kinds of cruises. I've enjoyed both river and sea cruises. I think it's good to mix the types of cruises to get different cruise experiences. Good luck! TT

[WIT]

Internet was free on the Amadeus Amalegro Danube cruise last October. I used my laptop in both the fore and aft lounges with the speed adequate for email. It was convenient to move photos each day to the laptop rather than evaluating them on the camera.

 

Since every cabin had internet (keyboard and multi-screen) which was just as fast as WIFI on my laptop you might consider just bringing several memory cards for your camera instead.

 

We were in a midship cabin on the middle deck but friends more aft were able to use their laptop for internet in their room.

 

You can see photos and clips of our Amadeus Danube cruises at:

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/billwitowski

 

WIT

[MSEm]

For possiable Cell Phone Service you will need to check with your cell carrier and the type of phone, CDM or GSM. and the type of service in the country you will be traveling in. AT&T service will work in most European countries.

 

Our AT&T QUAD band phone (Razr) worked great in Germany and in China. We had a connection everywhere we were in China. AT&T system is not the same as Verizon or Spirit.

 

Emily

[WIT]

For possiable Cell Phone Service you will need to check with your cell carrier and the type of phone, CDM or GSM. and the type of service in the country you will be traveling in. AT&T service will work in most European countries.

 

Our AT&T QUAD band phone (Razr) worked great in Germany and in China. We had a connection everywhere we were in China. AT&T system is not the same as Verizon or Spirit.

 

Emily- My ATT quad-band (Treo) works better overseas! I hope more GSM towers will be built in the US in the near future.

 

SF: If you have a quad-band phone you'll still need to notify your carrier to activate international roaming. Other alternatives are a world phone from Mobal, an account from Telestial, or just buying a country specific SIM for your phone when you get there.

 

Tell your bank and credit card companies know you are going overseas so they don't cancel your card upon its first overseas use.

WIT

[SF]

Thanks everyone for all the great advise and suggestions.

 

We're with T-Mobile for our cell phone and yes, they already have them unlocked and available for international roaming since we've used them in other parts of Europe. I'm glad to hear that the connection from the area that we're thinking of cruising would probably give us good service also.

 

How does the Mobal world phones differ from our GSM phone?

 

How does Telestial work compared to our regular cell phone?

 

We are already aware about letting your credit card companies know you'll be traveling but you'd be surprised at how many people aren't and get a shock when their card is declined or won't work.

 

Now I'm not sure which itinerary would be best. Looking at MAGNIFICENT EUROPE (Amsterdam & return from Budapest), Jewels of Central Europe (Paris to Budapest), or The Rhine and Moselle (Amsterdam to Basel). We prefer to spend more time on the river cruise portion and less staying at a hotel. Such hard decisions........:D

 

I'm going to call Amadeus and see if their internet is still free. That may be the deciding factor if the itinerary and price are the same. Basically since we like the newer river ships we're thinking of going with either Avalon or Amadeus. They appear to be the two lines that have the newest ships.

 

WIT:

 

Thanks for the link to your pictures I'm going to check them out after this post.

[WIT]

SF - Mobal (mobal.com) sells a phone with a universal SIM that works everywhere except the US. Outgoing calls are inexpensive but incoming are pricey. With a Telestial account you call a # they give you, hang up & wait for a call back so you can input the # you want to reach. Calls in and out are reasonable but the folks back home have to learn a new number, just like with Mobal. Country SIMs are reasonable but your # changes with each.

 

Another option is VOIP using your laptop. Your phone # doesn't change and the price is your flat monthly fee, but it only works when internet is available.

 

WIT

[SF]

WIT:

 

Thanks for explaining the difference between the phones and various companies. After thinking it thru the best choice for us will probably be to use our own phone. By the time I'd purchase the mobal phone/sim card and with the charges for the service it would probably be just as much per min. to use our cell phone. Text messaging isn't that expensive to send and receive so we may opt to do that as well. Between all three (cell, email, texting) I'm sure we'll be able to keep in touch with the kids and family back home.

 

I checked out your photos and they look great. We are really excited about our potential river cruise. We've been on many cruise liners but this looks so much more personal and I like the idea of having tours included in most places.

 

Thanks again for your help.:)

[steamboats]

Now I'm not sure which itinerary would be best. Looking at MAGNIFICENT EUROPE (Amsterdam & return from Budapest), Jewels of Central Europe (Paris to Budapest), or The Rhine and Moselle (Amsterdam to Basel). We prefer to spend more time on the river cruise portion and less staying at a hotel. Such hard decisions........:D

 

Of the three itineraries there are only two river cruises where you are crusing all the time. The Paris-Budapest itinerary includes a pre cruise hotel stay in Paris and an app. 5 hour bus transfer to the cruise ship.

 

steamboats

[Carolfay]

We expect to leave home Christmas morning for Budapest and embark 12/30 on the Amadeus Amadagio. Husband and I are still discussing whether to bring his laptop along. He'd like the convenience of being able to use it to evaluate photos and send e-mails from the aft lounge, but he's somewhat concerned about the risk of theft (primarily from our Budapest and Prague hotels). Perhaps our hotels will have a safe or a secure place to store a computer during our stay. If the in-cabin Internet is as useful as WIT's posts suggest, we may just leave the laptop at home. Any thoughts on this subject?

[H2Otstr]

If I take mine on any trips I always lock it in my suitecase while I am out of the room. So far so good.

[WIT]

We expect to leave home Christmas morning for Budapest and embark 12/30 on the Amadeus Amadagio. Husband and I are still discussing whether to bring his laptop along. He'd like the convenience of being able to use it to evaluate photos and send e-mails from the aft lounge, but he's somewhat concerned about the risk of theft (primarily from our Budapest and Prague hotels). Perhaps our hotels will have a safe or a secure place to store a computer during our stay. If the in-cabin Internet is as useful as WIT's posts suggest, we may just leave the laptop at home. Any thoughts on this subject?

Carolfay - Every place we stayed with Amadeus had a room safe but some safes were smaller than the large laptops I saw some folks bringing. Mine was 10 x 7 and fit everywhere. Each room on the boat has a keyboard and multiscreen which has internet as an option (also TV, music, movies, messages, and bow camera), but no CD/DVD drive, no USB ports, and no card reader. Email worked fine on the Danube except for a few times when hilly surroundings blocked the signal, but I think uploading photos or large files would be slower than your home high speed connection.

 

WIT

[letsgo39]

Bring extra memory cards and delete from your camera when obvious.It is actually nice to get away from the net while on vacation. If you need to stay in touch internet cafes are in every town. You won't have any trouble finding them. Have a wonderful vacation.

[Tennessee Traveler]

letsgo39 is right on! I take many pictures on my trips, but I take lots of memories sticks. So, I can take all the pictures I want, but I don't need to download or edit until I get home. Then the real work begins! And using the ship's internet or an internet cafe in the ports works for us, too. This way we enjoy the cruising much more. What about your thoughts cruise critic folks?