notamermaid

Thank you. Let us see. The margin of error for the 17th has decreased as we may expect. Overall there is not much change in the highest probability colour till then, so as I posted a few days ago in an assessment, the first half of November continues to look good. Now, looking further to the 20th of November, although attached with a high uncertainty yet as to what will be, we can nevertheless tell that the river is going to stay low and probably go down. The purple colour is still above 78cm but the margin of error is putting that figure into view and the probability of the level dropping below 100cm is relatively high. At Kaub, a level of 90cm is still okay, but it could lead to delays just because the navigation channel gets narrower and ships tend to slow down. If and how much your ship will be affected cannot be known. Right now, Kaub gauge is at 125cm. With things looking pleasant still, I will leave the river levels aside for a few days, after my comments on the monthly graph, and return to my day at Königswinter. notamermaid

It has not been a good day for the river in Bavaria. Pfelling gauge went right down, hitting 286cm at lunchtime. It is now back up to 289cm. In the absence of rain this does not bode well for tomorrow. Although the river has recovered during the day a little and is above the anticipated level for tonight, we may see the level go down further tomorrow than it did during today. Hopefully in this case the forecast continues to be a little wrong and Pfelling will be higher than the computer thinks which is 274cm at lunchtime tomorrow. notamermaid

The photos of the River Voyager look really nice, I like the jazz theme. I have had a look round the internet including exploring the interior for a specific reason: photos on "Binnenschifferforum" show that the River Voyager is in the ÖSWAG (shipyard) in Linz and the name is being painted over or redone. She is no longer mentioned on the Vantage website. So the River Voyager is now the Monarch Queen it seems: https://www.gate1travel.com/cruises/ships/monarch-queen-river-voyager notamermaid

For example. The train journey can be exciting, especially over the Alps. But as you say then that is a "tick" in the box for river cruising. We sailed overnight and in the morning I pulled the curtains to see the embankment of Bratislava with a nice brick building in early light. Loved it! notamermaid

Yes, that is a good idea. Especially when you have limited time as you say. I do wonder if river cruising will be for you. You may not miss evening activity that much if you are active all day. but you will certainly notice how quiet river cruising evenings can be. In some ports you stay until late, in one or two overnight, especially Vienna. My excursion was to a wine village evening for example. From about eight till ten in the evening. You will need to research which company offers what. The Danube in Bavaria can be a bit tricky as regards water levels in August.. Do you fancy train travel? There are some great options from Vienna and there are good connections to many European cities. notamermaid

Sounds great! Leaving from Southampton? Have a fantastic time. notamermaid

I agree. Only eat really fresh. A bit too heavy for my liking. Hope the cruise does your health a lot of good. Just sailing and wandering around places without feeling the need to join in with excursions sounds great. notamermaid

Good to read you are sailing. The S.S. Catherine is a splendid ship judging from photos. And she even looks good upside down. Not sure why CC software does the upside down trick occasionally. notamermaid

Oh dear, would be very annoying if you could not. The Rhine should be fine I think but Pfelling is more tricky. I thought we had got through the problems but with little to no rain falling I was proven wrong. Still, all ships may just be able to get through. We will find out tomorrow evening I guess. Weather forecast for Regensburg for the next four days: Have a great trip. Are you going to Rothenburg ob der Tauber? notamermaid

I guess it is not much different from building a house as regards the banks. I have seen the publicly available info on the Viking ships being built with a bank loan to be paid back per contract over a period of eight years. I do not remember which ships they were but I calculated at the time that they would be paid off by 2021. Of course, you can choose to pay back faster. It is standard to have a bank in the background and/or an investor (group) for financing. The individual contracts will differ. Crystal (Genting) were very enthusiastic about the share they could get in the river cruises market with their newbuilds (saw an interview), unfortunately, together with the idea that the Mozart would do well on the Chinese market, they got it wrong. Granted, very much connected with the pandemic, but not entirely. I agree with the interviewee that the Mozart can give the luxury the new venture wants to provide but the smaller, minimally scaled-down other ships, cannot - especially with the loan in the background causing financing worries. For now, I see the future of the remaining ships a bit bleak. notamermaid

Clearly, rain that had been forecast did not arrive in enough quantities in the Danube basin so the computer modelling got it wrong. I was a bit skeptical about the figures for today so yesterday only gave the low of 305cm, rather than the more positive high. Even the low was too high. The adjusted forecast now sees the river taking a turn for the worse. At Pfelling it is currently at 297cm and could well reach 290cm. Which is a little worrying for tomorrow. No rain of note in the Danube valley in Germany before Wednesday. notamermaid

It is the same along the Rhine really - and it tends to be that one or two degrees warmer on a lot of days. Snow in December is not a big deal. We may get an inch that stays on the ground for 24 hours. The Black Forest excursion may give you more snow if you are lucky. January tends to be colder with more snow than December. I do not even own snow boots. Waterproof with a thick sole, something you can get from outdoor activities shops or a quality local retailer, should do it on muddy paths and wet cobblestones. Nothing too heavy, not mountain hiking shoes. Perhaps someone from the US can share a brand or online retailer. notamermaid

Was a bit confused about this as I thought Karst and Schreiner are the bosses of Amawaterways and have been since founding the company. Just a short note as the article is behind a register-to-read wall: https://www.ttgmedia.com/news/ex-amawaterways-boss-stuart-perl-set-to-return-with-new-river-line-36911 Apparently Stuart Pearl was managing director for the UK and left in 2020 (as stated in another online article). notamermaid

Pfelling gauge is at 295cm, running a bit below the figures forecast. For tomorrow a slight uptick is anticipated, so 305cm could happen. notamermaid

It was a rocky, delayed start for the Travelmarvel Polaris and it could have been worse, had it not been for the German company 1AVista Reisen - and also Phoenix Reisen - stepping in. I wrote about it here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2811445-what-and-how-are-apt-and-travelmarvel-doing/#comment-62093504 This year the ship launched as the MS Polaris and sailed for the German market throughout Spring. I am not sure when Travelmarvel was able to operate a sailing for the first time this year of their ship but she is clearly now where she belongs. In September APT's boss gave an interview from onboard the Travelmarvel Polaris: https://www.ttgmedia.com/news/apt-boss-were-not-playing-for-the-short-term-but-the-next-100-years-36722 Now that we have our friends from Down Under travelling in Europe again, the companies are back operating ships in their own name. Question is how many Australians and New Zealanders will be on board yet? I have seen the MS Polaris on the Rhine where she sailed for Phoenix Reisen. A nice design, really like the hull and modern livery. I hope you have a great time on the Danube and fun conversations with hopefully a lovely mix of people having travelled from afar. notamermaid

My pleasure. Plenty of time to look around then. Düsseldorf is quite different from Cologne. No Roman remains and a bit more "sophistication" in my opinion. notamermaid

An unusual set of circumstances over the last two years may contribute to the offer. The ship has had "foster parents" this year... All good, it will get back to this with more info. notamermaid

A big occasion in some places. Does your Christmas tree have a special place of origin, like a twin town in Scandinavia or is it from the regional forest? Tons of fir trees not far from you of course. Ours are either plain regional - and not that big - or from Denmark perhaps. It was a bit too warm here along the Rhine but today it is a bit cooler and the wind has increased. We had a downpour last night. Düsseldorf is a good place for some luxurious shopping. Never been there in winter I wonder what the "Kö" (the famous street) looks like all decorated? Here is some info on Düsseldorf: https://www.duesseldorf-tourismus.de/en/experience/events/christmas-market Do you fly in from London or take the Eurostar? Erzgebirge is the region where they come from, that is correct. They may be manufactured elsewhere now in similar styles. Chinese ones are available, do check, they should be labelled or ask the vendor. The original handicraft from the Ore Mountains is really expensive. The pyramids are an investment and can become an heirloom. Here is some info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_pyramid The odd large shop in a touristy place may even ship overseas. There certainly are a few online shops, here is one: https://www.seiffener-weihnachtsland.de/weihnachtsdeko/weihnachtspyramiden.html I think this one is not international. International big shops are the Käthe Wohlfahrt ones. Here is the list of their stalls at Christmas markets: https://www.kaethe-wohlfahrt.com/en/openinghours/marketlist/ notamermaid

Welcome to Cruisecritic! And thank you for joining the conversation. The time frame should enable you to see many Christmas markets open. I hope you have a great time. A bit of info on the graph you posted. It is the info that I use when I look further into the future than the regular forecast, just like I did in the post above. For those who do not know it, it is updated every morning and is a probability computer calculation (what the German name implies). Naturally the margin of error becomes greater with every day. Would the 18th of November make me nervous? Not yet. But then I do not need to travel potentially thousands of miles to get to the river cruise. 100cm is still a good-ish level and in the absence of heat the river does not loose volume as quickly as it would in August. We could have a look again at that graph and see how it develops. Would you like to post the graph again, say on Sunday, for perspective? notamermaid

So far, the forecast is correct. Pfelling gauge really steady, currently at 301cm. notamermaid

Hello newcomers to river cruising - and both Basel to Amsterdam! Well, it is probably the most frequent route in Europe and very popular for a first river cruise. Weather and clothes, very important. Not much different from home then I would say. The Rhine has a mild climate so really cold days below freezing do not happen all the time, but it can be icy and wet. Yes, that should work really well. Scarf for the windy sundeck and gloves for early morning excursions are good to have. Overall, the temperature range is usually minus 5 Celsius in the hills, especially Switzerland, on cold days to plus 12 Celsius on a day when during a warm spell the sun brings the temperature up in the afternoon. Nights can sometimes be colder and days occasionally a little warmer in sheltered areas and towns close to the river. This year November has started with mild temperatures and it is currently 12 to 13 Celsius in the valley. One thing you may want to note, those that are leaving early in the season: Sunday of the Dead (this year on 20 November) is traditionally a "quiet day" and by law Christmas markets are restricted in their opening hours. If a Christmas market starts before that day it may be closed or open late on the Sunday. notamermaid

Will do, thanks. Saw the "HO"... Was a bit surprised that for me it was not a "no" as in the avatar name but part of my real name so I rushed to find a replacement photo. The new login pop-up still looks odd to me but is working fine. notamermaid

It is time to get ready, the gingerbread has been in the shops for weeks, it gets dark much earlier with the clocks back on normal time and the temperatures are very slowly going down. While I have no specific plans for this season I know many of you have booked a river cruise. I thought perhaps we could throw info and tips into this thread. Excitement guaranteed and fun shared is doubled! Where are you going? First time during winter? Have you been in the past, any favourite places? Tips for those who are thinking of a last minute (or for 2023) booking? I live in "Christmas market country" so here is some trivia surrounding our traditions: the first mention of a proper Christmas tree in historical data comes not from within the modern borders of Germany but from Alsace: https://www.christmas.alsace/symbols-and-traditions/the-christmas-tree-reigns-in-alsace/ Over to you. notamermaid

It is always good to see Rachel Stewart of Deutsche Welle doing another video of her adopted country. In September she started a road trip through Germany in four parts. The first leg took her to the North, a region you may not be so familiar with. Great fun and I have learnt some new things, too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-AbtBU3WzE notamermaid

Thank you for the link and cheers to Mr. Neumeier for the very informative interview. Very nice interior I must say. The last photo of the lounge/bar is leaning towards Art Deco. Really classy. notamermaid