ural guy

I booked a Viking cruise last month on line, for a 'special' cruise/flight deal. Pretty easy. A week later, decided to bring daughter and her boyfriend. I told her the deal with the referrals, gave her our customer #, and told her that she could go on-line and book it herself. It was 3 days before the 'special' expired. She wound up calling, and got everything booked in 10 minutes. They instantly gave her the $100/person off. I had been holding off paying the balance of our cruise until I had her booking number. This was delayed until she completed the passenger info section. I think two chat sessions later, with her booking #, the referral $200 had come off my invoice. So our experience went pretty smooth, it might have been karma payback for our Vantage headaches? Funny/odd thing, this is a Christmas present, and I gave my daughter my credit card info. Viking wanted her balance paid immediately as she booked so close to 'special' ended. They took payment no problem, even with card not being in her name. Concombre- Glad to hear you could work out a fair enough swap. I hope you have a great time. We sailed with Viking in 2014, looking forward to bringing another young person into cruising.

Notamermaid- Yes, we did get to Quedlinburg, with it's many half timbered homes to ogle. And we did find all the people enjoying their 4 day Ascension Holiday. It was a nice atmosphere. Wernigerode was about 12kms west of us, and was another nice town to explore. No idea we'd get lucky with the line dancing competition. Nice to watch from the side with a bowl of Gulasch soup. And this is the view from 'my' balcony. $450 for 3 nights, 3 bedroom apartment, two of the bedrooms were 18' x 20'. It would have been double in one of the better known towns. We just didn't have as many bakeries, and the houses still had the duller paint colors. Just as neat architecturally. Daughters brought back loads of Haribo gummies and Ritter chocolate, all (kinda weirdo) flavors not available in states. They were in heaven, and luggage had to be reshuffled for weight. I was happy with the gulasch, so all good. Great trip. Hopefully Weimar and Erfurt next.

Hopefully fires don't start in Hartz region. A borer beetle has been devastating some of the pines, we saw dead forests throughout the region last month. A lot of the trees have been felled but remain on the hillsides. A very sad scene. The villages we stayed in and visited were nice, the coutryside looked rough. We stayed 3 nights in Blankenburg, which is 10kms from Quedlinburg. We had a 3 bedroom apartment, my room had a small balcony looking at the 16th century Rathaus. A quieter town, half timbered homes that hadn't been given the fancy coats of paint and had all the plaster repaired yet. We were above a Bulgarian restaurant (they owned the bldg, and had migrated in 2007), where we had an amazing meal. Very nice people, my girls gave me high praise for this lucky find.

First, I can't believe Vantage is still able to sell cruises. That is awful. I'm not sure what value they could offer a new owner, their name has minimal good will. Our November 2022 sailing had a large number of repeat customers saying never again, they were only on this cruise to use up a credit. We were the lucky ones, and had a great time. Kinda to your question, Yes, Vantage was ideal. You asked before why people choose Vantage over other lines, and speculated that maybe people stayed with the first line they sailed on. We sailed Viking once, then three times with Vantage. We liked Vantage in that their cruises were typically longer; 9 nights versus 7 for Tulip cruise, Basel-Ams was 14 nights, with 4 nights on the Mosele, Christmas cruise of 8 nights versus 7. The $ jump from aquarium to French Balcony was half of other lines. They had a second dining venue similar to the Aquavit lounge we liked so much on our first Viking cruise. About 18 fewer passengers than VIking on the same sized ship. E-bikes whenever you want to use them (Viking is charging $120 for a 3.5 hour optional bike tour on the Ams-Bud cruise). Lastly, the level of service we want, which is pretty basic. We're not fancy people. I think the tours are pretty similar, some lines are better for the number of options offered. We set out on our own sometimes, so included tours aren't a huge factor. I would cruise on a line that hit those marks, without Pullman beds. We're on a Viking cruise in December, and their admin team has responded to any question or change we've had right away. When my 25 year old daughter decided to come along, she called in, and had her reservation completed and linked to mine for referral credits in about 10 minutes. Vantage, yeah, that wouldn't have been nearly that smooth, even pre-covid. Down the road, maybe bike and barge for us (once spouse learned she can stay on board, knitting or reading, while others sweat).

We won't be so lonely now, youngest (25) daughter and her bf will now join us.

I'm booked to take this cruise over Christmas with spouse, boarding 23 December. It's 9 nights. Our adult kids are scattered to the winds, so this will be nice. Lived in Germany so aware weather will be blah...also I currently live 9 miles east of Lake Ontario, so chances are it will be worse at home. Yes, we are on Tialfi. Interested to see what they do with us Christmas day. We have a scenic cruising day scheduled for 'pretty part' of Rhine. Nice if they have some of the polar parkas and mulled wine on the Sun deck. The guy running the grill with some brats would put it over the top.

JP- Quite a few things to do in the region, hiking/biking leading the pack. You can take a 1890's tram up a small valley 8 kms from Bad Schandau, with various stops for hiking trails and hotels along the way. There is a small waterfall at the tram end point to check out. Here are a few pics from my daughters from both the Castle: And Brucke: Today, the girls rented canoes and went downstream from Decin, Czech Republic to Bad Schandau. It was 52f, cloudy and windy. They were happy with their adventure, and even got to ride the ferry across the river at one point. After dropping them off, I went backcountry roads through the Czech mountains to find a restaurant that had wood carvings and old tanks, according to Atlas Obscura. What an amazing spot, the restaurant had license plates from all over, and various knick knacks hanging...along with anti tank rocket launchers from four different armies, it looked like. Along with all the sculptures and good food, I was happy with my choice. The width of the roads.

We are in Bad Schandau now, and this morning we see the Viking Astrild docked. Viking's included tour is to the Bastei Brucke, which we also visited this afternoon, and we again saw Viking as she was sailing away. Saxon Switzerland, as this area on the Czech/German border is called, has huge rock 'outgrowths', along with the steep Elbe valley, make for a picturesque scene. We had a cloudy day, but you get the idea. Here is the Brucke: Rocks: This part of the river is from morning visit to Konigstein Castle, which was well worth it's 4.7 on google, after 20,000 reviews. And the elevator in Bad Schandau, along with a view of the town itself. Very pretty part of the world.

Jazz- this is exactly on topic in this thread....thanks for making it!

Thanks for writing this up, a very enjoyable read. We cruised this route in 2016 and took the train up to Brasov post cruise, so you brought back some fond memories. We were docked a few ships down from the Magna in November in Passau. They were getting ready for Christmas, the ship looked very festive.

Wurzburg: Also where The Three Musketeers was filmed, including scenes in the Residence. We were told this by our proud friend, whose son Karsten was an extra in one of the scenes, although not with Orlando Bloom, to mom's disappointment. "The Three Musketeers is a Constantin Film AG feature film directed by Paul WS Anderson and starring a star cast. It was shot in Würzburg between September 13 and 23, 2010 . The filming took place at the fortress , the Old Main Bridge and in the area of the residence . Würzburg is intended to represent the metropolis of Paris. The film is said to have cost 80 million euros, was shot in 3D and was released in cinemas in 2011 . In addition to many Würzburg extras, the main roles are Orlando Bloom, Christoph Waltz and Milla Jovovich. Since extras were needed for the Würzburg film locations, a casting took place in August 2010 in the Odeon Lounge . A total of up to 2000 extras were said to be needed in Würzburg, which led to long lines forming in front of the Odeon. Male extras over the age of 18 were particularly in demand. Striking faces were sought; Tattoos, piercings or dyed hair were not allowed to be seen."

Last November we went to Gellert baths, and as we were leaving a small tour was following the Viking Lolipop. They were checking out the fancy entryway, it didn't look like they were entering. Maybe a special walking tour. As far as Gellert goes, it was convenient, but crowded and noisy, with teenagers taking selfies in the pools. In no way relaxing. We're on a November Viking Grand European ending in Budapest and it does list Szechenyi baths as an optional tour, for a hefty price. It is pretty easy to get to using public transportation if you want to go it alone. The zoo is nearby and a nice way to spend time if you are castle/cathedraled out.

Keukenhof is very special, and its good that you have a chance to stay longer. The gardens are large, but still fill up quickly. If you have the chance to either stay, or return later in the afternoon, the crowds seem to clear up a bit. OR, no idea if you could swing it (taxi with your new friends), Leiden is 10 minutes from Keukenhof, and their Botanical garden was founded in mid 1550's, and they were huge in cultivating and popularizing tulips. I went from the crowds of Keukenhof one day, to the tranquil Botanical gardens the next, chilling on a bench w/ a book, surrounded by nature in their sunken fern garden, when a cat decided to sit on my lap and visit. Well worth a visit, as is the town of Leiden itself.

Jazz- Mother Nature does seem to be making up for the milder winter. My motorcycles are not happy. This '04 German Beauty was brought back from being mostly dead at 99,000 miles and wants to run. Notamermaid- Thanks for the clip, pretty remarkable all around. Some more info on where U17 is going. Constructed in 1935, she was used as a training ship after 1942. I visited a US WW2 era sub in Buffalo. The hot summer sun brought out the diesel and grease/sweat stank, enough to get me quezzy with the boat docked. No way in anything I could go underwater. Even in peace, just nope. Submariners, even my buddy Scotty, are a different breed. https://www.technik-museum.de/en/u17

YoungDubFan- I hope your trip is smooth, and flowers in bloom are plentiful. Sounds like you're off to a good start.

We stayed in Prague prior to our November sailing, as part of the Vantage pre-cruise package. The hotel asked for a credit card for incidentals, we didn't eat there except the included breakfast, so no charges. The hotel had the orange juice squeezing machine and the rest was pretty great also. Made up for the ship food kinda being meh. Very good news for those who are sailing.

The were sending out 25% discount deals for e-transfers.

Negative, I was just in Berlin on a 5 day 'Orientation Tour'...they would send guys over from the Federal Republic/West Germany to show us the reality of what was 'over there'. I was selected for winning a board (against one other soldier), and the 1SG knew I liked history and had picked up a book. That fact that he was my old Platoon SGT, and he and his family would cat sit for us on Spouse and my many adventures through Europe, I'm sure played a big part, as this is the way of life. I had to look this medal up, it is for people stationed 30 days or more in Berlin when the wall was up. We were the speed bump 30 ish KM's from border. That's why my trip is so fascinating to me, just like Czech last November...all places on the other side, where we could not go. Cool fact: all have turned out to be very nice/neat people,

Shmoo- I think we would have been on that tulip cruise together, boarding 28 March I think? We were flying into Ireland on 20 March, air corridors shut down the 13th and the dark times happened. Very fortunate that we were able to use credits for a Passau-Budapest cruise with them last November. We really enjoyed our 3 cruises with them, I liked the longer stays in ports, and having more nights on board. Taking 14 nights to go from Basel to Amsterdam and take in so much of the Mosell was great, and a trip we wanted to redo. Having said that, you could definitely see cost cutting with the food on board. Keeping their oldest river ship and selling the newer, version 2 model River Voyager with it's improvements, hinted at cash flow issues. I hope that people are still able to get some value for their money, and they somehow figure this out. We had our own stress with low water issues, but these stories are horrific. We got told small lies about boats being able to float on mud (2018 Fall low water, the call agents sticking to their everything is OK script, when anyone with the internet and the ability to type can see that it is not OK...if you can't ship needed supplies/materials/gas through a river system, how can a cruise ship sail?), ya'll got told whoppers.

Thanks all, the boat ride on the Spree, that does look nice. Negative on being there for the wall coming down, we left in October of 1989 and just missed it. Daughters, no worries, we made it a year alone when Mom was in Korea. Ice cream and bad hearing get you through quite a bit. Last overseas trip together:

Back from Portugal last Tuesday, off to Germany in two weeks. Going to try out a new airline out of Newburgh, NY (Stewart, where Norweigan flew out of), this is about an hour? out of the big scary city (my name for NYC). We live 4 hours north of Newburgh, 300 miles from NYC...yet still in NY state. Super easy drive for us. Trip grew from me finding cheap airfare, to a big last minute plan. I'm going with 3 adult daughters, 33/30/24...haven't been overseas with just my girls since Ireland in 2015, so huge for my old self. Oldest didn't get Germany for her next duty station, but San Antonio TX. She now gets 11 nights there. And spouse gets to play grandma with all her quilting buds. 3N Berlin, pick up rental car and head to Saxon Switzwerland on the Czech border for 3N, 1N in Halle, 3N on north edge of Harz Mountains, 1N Potsdam prior to return flight. Wanted to stay in the former East Germany, and the mountain areas are good for the girls to go wander and climb and tucker themselves out. In Bad Schandau, rented a house on Elbe river, with bike trail in front. Girls have been to Germany previously. The middle has been in Berlin before, me too, but I got to visit East Berlin, and take the duty train in from Frankfurt, at night, during another lifetime. I'm thinking it's changed a bit in the past 37 years? I hear they are on the Euro now. Cool, cool, cool. Green dots show overnight stays. Thanks for reading, again not a river cruise, but kayaks and canoes will be involved at some point.

Notamermaid, yes, these appear to be the 'runt of the litter'. The locks on the Douro are 85 meters long. Second thing, river cruise ships don't go that fast, especially upstream. The roads that follow the river are so curvy, filled with hairpin turns and narrow, that the Viking ship actually passed us in a twenty minute span. It had been behind us, both traveling upstream, and I figured I wouldn't get a picture...and then there it is again. If you want to drive this region and a passenger tends to get motion sickness, dramamine and maybe a different route. Here is the second ship we saw, the Douro Serenity. The lighting isn't doing her any favors, but not real attractive, IMHO. Vantage charters her, maybe others do as well. The Quinta we are now staying at is from 1722, and has its own chapel attached. Nice they've been able to save so many of these old buildings, and that you can stay in them. Beautiful wood and stonework throughout, we're told the dark altar wood is from Brazil. My knee, thanks for the sympathy, the braces help a lot, it's just the uneven steps that get me. My wife already sets a....slower....pace, so good there. 🥰 Just keep ole' girl off too many hills, caffeinated and with some bench breaks, and she can go forever. A herd of turtles does not go fast, but they do get there.

Thanks Canal Archive and JP. To bring it back to cruising, the Viking Hilgrim was chugging upstream this morning.

Happy belated Easter to all, from Ponte de Lima, Portugal. My February bike camino ended 2 weeks before it started with a knee issue. Luckily able to cancel without penalty. My spouse and my Easter trip is proceeding according to plan. Last year we came over, and stayed 3 nights at a Quinta de Agra, a vineyard you can stay at, from the 1600's, and in same family for 300 years. Beautiful gardens with fountains that run through the property and terraces. We were invited to attend the local priests home visit, where he blesses the household. Which turned into a long lesson on wine and good conversation. My wife and I decided then to return this year for Easter if we could. Entrance to the Quinta: Flowers everywhere: The Priests visit, fireplace is huge. This was at 1030, Monday. They split up the visits to two days as there are so many houses. We saw the procession a few kilometers down the road at 2030 in evening! I have no idea how he and entourage kept going, snacking at each house to be proper. Crossing the Lima, The General is calling out to his soldiers on the other side, by name. They thought that this was the river that caused you to lose all memory, and had refused to cross. His legion on the south banks: On the north side of the bridge, there was a statue for welcoming Pilgrims walking the camino. I was going to take a picture of my bike leaning against it for my kids (two who have been to Ponte De Lima with me previously), to show them dad was finally doing the Camino. Instead, I'm waiting for an MRI, wearing knee braces, and a dog is napping where my bike should be. The Bom Jesus gardens. And the view from our current resting spot along the Douro, Quinta De Agra. Great time, great weather (lots of rain last year), and super people. And my theory is holding true: drop a pin for where you are staying on GPS, pick a direction and go. We find some of the neatest stuff that way.

I had thought that is was just bike/barge sailings. The Swiss Crown is 110m, 135 passengers. This interests me as my wife would probably only want to be on a bike every other, or 2 out of 3 days. She'd be happy knitting her socks and watching the world go by, and wandering whatever small town they dock in. Having the larger ship, with more vantage points, would be great. Here is a great video about the Merlijn, one of the bike/barge options. A British lady doing the video loved the experience and the food. She hadn't been on a bike in years. Barge looks sweet. Not the Danube, but you get the idea.