Any negatives?

[karen sharpe]

While all seem very positive re European river cruises I have heard some negative aspects from friends...I am not sure if they are just isolated opinions or if others may also feel the same. Firstly, I have been told that while each stop is quite beautiful it can also be very monotonous i.e. every lovely village is the same..same churches , same cafes,same shops etc... Secondly, the onboard experience can be somewhat clautrophobic....cabins are small and common areas are few and are also very confining. Food was just okay. I have been told if booking to only chose a one week cruise.

Any comments would be appreciated.

[rogerdawhip]

I have been on a total of 10 river cruises with 3 different companies(and plan on many more). From the first sentence you can guess I do not have many negatives about river cruising. I'll try an give you my opinion on some of your comments.

 

My trips have not been monotonous. I have been on the same route (Vienna to Amsterdam of vice versa 4 times). Each stop is always a delight and quite diffterent and each bend in the river brings new sights.

 

The public rooms (usually just one lounge) and restaurant are large and very bright due to the many windows. I have never felt claustophobic anywhre on the ship. The cabins are small but I'm never in the cabin much other than to sleep and change clothes.

 

Sometimes the food does not meet everyone tastes but I have had only a few meals that I've disliked.

 

My biggest negative has always been the entertainment(or lack thereof) offered in the evening. On all my trips at least 50% of passangers went right to their caibns after dinnner and we never saw them again until beakfast.

 

My guess is that your friends might be comparing the river cruise to large ship cruises. This is like comparing apples and oranges.

[tiggypooo]

Hi Karen............Where in Eastern Ontario are you from.

I'm in Oshawa.

I would highly disagree with whoever gave you that information.

First off, I find travel period, is a very personal thing and what appeals to one won't interest the next.

I do agree that you have to be prepared for the down time on a river cruise.

Sailing is part of the charm of it and if they did it during the night, people would complain that they didn't see the wonderful scenery.

Sailing down a river is not what I'd call exciting, but I didn't find it monotonous.

As far as the little towns go, I found each one of them special in their own way.

They each had their own highlights.

If your friend is saying same churches, same shops, etc. I think that could be said for many different areas of the world.

I will say that I've had 2 Uniworld cruises and my onboard experiences on each one of them, was wonderful.

Yes the rooms are small, but lots of rooms on the large cruise ships are small too.

They are quite big enough for 2 people to spend a comfortable week and if you want more room, there are always the suites.

I would recommend a cruise longer than a week. I found my 12 night cruise, a much more enjoyable experience.

The dynamics of the whole trip I found different on the longer one.

We made some fabulous friends on the longer one and on the shorter one people tended to stay more to themselves.

If you'd like to sk me some questions or see some pics please email me at

tiggypooo@yahoo.ca

[Hydrokitty]

My biggest negative has always been the entertainment(or lack thereof) offered in the evening. On all my trips at least 50% of passangers went right to their caibns after dinnner and we never saw them again until beakfast.

 

My guess is that your friends might be comparing the river cruise to large ship cruises. This is like comparing apples and oranges.

 

 

I agree with both posts in response to yours! We usually go with Vantage and I found the cabin (upgraded to A) very comfortable, quite spacious and with more storage space than i needed for 17 days.

 

River cruising is a much slower paced form of travel, and the reason for that is the scenary. If you need to be doing something all the time, then it's probably not for you, but if you enjoy looking at beautiful scenes go for it! Just keep in mind a river cruise ship is not like an ocean vessel.

 

There really is no entertainment, and we were in the 50% group mentioned above! Actually, river cruising appeals to an older crowd most of whom have been lots of places and now just want to enjoy the view. I found each town different and enchanting and I was never bored.:)

[kbella]

Karen,

Let me preface this reply by telling you that my husband and I travel a lot. We have visited all 7 continents and sailed on over 30 ocean cruises with some experiences less than stellar. Prior to my recent Budapest to Prague river cruise with AMA, I had the exact concerns you are espousing. I thought it would be "old people" sitting in deck chairs watching the world go by. Boy,was I wrong. I was never bored nor did I tire of the cities, villages and/or scenery.

I was also surprised at how active the port tours were. To be honest, I never missed having an array of evening activities because I was tired and ready for bed shortly after dinner.

The food issue is usually raised on all cruises because people have such varying taste. I never left the dining room hungry or disgusted.

We started with a 7 day cruise because we were tentative about river cruising. I can assure you that our next one will be longer.

[jacksonnh]

Hi Karen,

We've taken two cruises with Viking, one on the Elbe and the second on the Rhine. I've fond the towns and villages to be very beautiful and unique especially on the Elbe. Yes it's true that a castle is a castle is a castle but never seen two alike. Now if you don't like castles, well that's different. Perhaps taking a short cruise to get your feet wet may be the way to go.

[hcross888]

Negatives? With a french balcony to open, an open deck on the top to enjoy and a big bright lounge, I never felt claustrophobic.

I have taken cruises on both the Danube and Rhine and NEVER felt the towns were the same. I think you would have to be a pretty jaded person to say that.

I enjoyed the food on both cruises I took.

 

So that leaves me with two negatives....

 

First, it costs too much money for me to do every year... sigh....

 

Second, they make you get off the ship at the end of the cruise. They had to pry my fingers off of the door and boot me off. Now I have to cook and pick up after myself. Nobody plans tours for me.

 

Vicky

[Hydrokitty]

Negatives? With a french balcony to open, an open deck on the top to enjoy and a big bright lounge, I never felt claustrophobic.

I have taken cruises on both the Danube and Rhine and NEVER felt the towns were the same. I think you would have to be a pretty jaded person to say that.

I enjoyed the food on both cruises I took.

 

So that leaves me with two negatives....

 

First, it costs too much money for me to do every year... sigh....

 

Second, they make you get off the ship at the end of the cruise. They had to pry my fingers off of the door and boot me off. Now I have to cook and pick up after myself. Nobody plans tours for me.

 

Vicky

 

 

AMEN TO THAT!!!! Man I thought I was going to sink the ship with my tears....I so did not want it to end:D:D

 

we've just booked our third and I'm hoping they can come up with some new rivers, because I'm going to have to start repeating if they don't!

 

People may be primarily seniors, like me, but I have to say I've never met a busier, more fun and more laid back group anywhere. It's true by 9 p.m. most of the ship is dark, but that's because we're out all day doing stuff and having fun. I guess the biggest difference between seniors and juniors is we like to party during the day and sleep at night and they like to party at night and sleep all day!!!:D:D

[Bill S]

We've done two river cruises (Viking and Avalon) and loved each one. They are much different from ocean cruises.

If you really like having a show each night, large public rooms, lots of different activities onboard, specialty restaurants and 24-hour room service, you will be disappointed.

But, if you want up close and personal experiences in the towns and cities that you visit, a lot more interaction with fellow passengers, relaxing cruising with ever-changing scenery close by, decent food, and all in a casual environment, you will be pleased with river cruising.

One couple in our group in our last river cruise, thought it was too "busy", with no days to relax. True, a river cruise is port intensive, but much easier to deal with than on a cruise ship, IMO. At most towns, you are within walking distance of the town/city and it's attractions. Plus, the tour guides have been above very good to excellent. Also, most excursions are included in the cruise fare. And, we like having the extra time to wander about on our own after the guided portion of the excursion is over.

About the only negative issue about river cruising for us, is the long trip to and from Europe and it's attendant cost. But, we've had to travel as far or further for some of our ocean cruises.

[letsgo39]

The only negative for us is that it ends and they make you get off! Our first rivercruise was 16 days and it was not long enough. Everyone is different but it suits our travel style perfectly.

[karen sharpe]

Thanks to all for your helpful info. I am convinced that we want to take a river cruise.You are right our negative friends are high octane people that are most happy on the larger cruise ships. In contrast we are looking for something a little more mellow for a change.

[PCruzer]

My husband and I went on our first river cruise in Sept. 2008 with Grand Circle Travel. It was on the Seine in France. We have done many big ship cruises (30) of varying lengths. We were not sure exactly what to expect on our river cruise. Well, I have to say, it far exceeded our expectations! We never felt that there was not enough to do or that the pacing of tours was too slow. Yes, most everyone onboard was quite a bit older than us (we are mid-50's), but our fellow passengers were some of the most interesting people we have ever met. As far as the food onboard goes, we thought it was quite good. We did not have the same number of choices at dinner as we would have had on a big cruise ship, but we never had trouble finding something we would like. There is also complimentary wine served at dinner. It was very good, too! There was only one night I can remember that I didn't like what I chose as an entre. It happened to be pheasant, something I had never tried before. It had nothing to do with the river cruiser. I just didn't care for it and won't ever order it again. Breakfasts and lunches were great. At breakfast there was an omlette station and a wide variety of items on the buffet. At lunch there was a pasta station, and again, lots of items to choose from on the buffet. As far as feeling claustrophobic, I can't say I ever felt closed in. The cabin was small but very well laid out. And like someone else said, we didn't stay in our cabin during the day. One thing I have to mention that we thought was great was the ability of the Program Directors to "think out of the box." There were many "extras," little things done for us "on the fly" by the Program Directors that were not part of the itinerary in the Grand Circle brochure. For example, in Rouen, the 3 Program Directors told us that they had a surprise for us and we were to meet outside the beautiful cathedral at 4:30 pm. Once there, our Program Directors escorted the group into the cathedral to a section with rows of chairs. It was then that they told us that we were about to have a private concert. There was an organist and an opera quality singer who had the lovliest melodic voice. The concert lasted about 40 minutes. We both thought that it was great. We were told that the Program Directors frequently do things like that. It's easier with 120 people as opposed to 1500 on a large cruise ship. We felt there was a very good balance between tour time and free time. And since the river boat docked right in town, as soon as we disembarked we were seeing the sights. And as far as all the towns looking the same, I never thought that. Yes, every town had a large cathedral (some more than one!), but every town to us was different. We loved every minute of it!

[RiverQueen0000]

Oh my God, river cruising is so much better than those large liners. It's much more personal and intimate.

 

I didn't mind the lack of nightly entertainment anyway; our ship had a keyboardist who provided good enough music and people got up to dance. Plus, when you've spent all day trudging on cobblestones and struggling to keep up with a tour guide, you don't have the energy left for an all-nighter!

[usavvy2]

While all seem very positive re European river cruises I have heard some negative aspects from friends...I am not sure if they are just isolated opinions or if others may also feel the same. Firstly, I have been told that while each stop is quite beautiful it can also be very monotonous i.e. every lovely village is the same..same churches , same cafes,same shops etc... Secondly, the onboard experience can be somewhat clautrophobic....cabins are small and common areas are few and are also very confining. Food was just okay. I have been told if booking to only chose a one week cruise.

Any comments would be appreciated.

 

well, my pillow was "flat." But I'd say if that's all I can complain about, it must've been a FABULOUS EXPERIENCE!

 

Re monotonous, I didn't have that experience (7 days on the river). Perhaps a longer one and I would have, perhaps all in the same country and I would have but not on the Danube. Re clastrophobic, I would have preferred having enough room for the chair to sit in front of the balcony but honestly we weren't in the cabin long enough for it to make an impact on our experience overall. And we found the bathroom much larger than ocean cruises we've been on! Re Food - I have to say that it was pretty darn good! (Surprisingly so!) Our trip was 2 weeks but we were in Budapest for a few days prior to the cruise itself then in Prague after the cruise (all part of the package). hind sight being 20/20, I would have "preferred" to come home after the cruise and not unpack/pack once again for a stay in Prague. It seemed anti-climatic after the cruise. Recovered from that feeling the 2nd day we were in Prague... maybe it was the 3.5-4 hour bus ride from Nurnberg!