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Hello! Yes, the Amsterdam walking tour is provided by Viking at 1:30 and 3:30 on embarkation day. If you have been to Amsterdam before, or are going in early and have other plans, my suggestion would be to stick with those other plans. One thing about the walking tour is it may differ based on exactly where your river ship is docked. We were in the closest dock to Centrall Station and so our tour was from the dock to the area around the station. At this time we are not on any of the optional tours, but I will mention other folks reports based on conversations. We did speak with folks who did the "Gardens and Hike" tour yesterday and they said it was VERY strenuous and also VERY enjoyable. The climbed on foot up a hill and then 440 steps to a castle overlooking Freudenberg. Their tour ended at the guide's home where they had a selection of home made treats and beverages. I should note that Amsterdam would be extremely busy if these days are on a weekend. We were there in early August before an ocean cruise and it was wall-to-wall people on a Saturday.

Tuesday, July 5, Cruising the Main River & Miltenberg Germany No reason to rush out early this morning! I did go to get coffee and tea at about 7:45 and there were few folks yet out and about. We went to breakfast at about 9:30 and finished just in time for the 10:00 Live Glass-Blowing Demonstration in the lounge. The glass-blowing demonstration was a lot of fun. Of course there was an opportunity to do some shopping and we did make a few purchases. Afterwards, we found a table in the Aquavit terrace and waited for lunch while taking in the scenery. Today the chef was grilling Norwegian Salmon, so DW added a slice of salmon to her salad. I enjoyed a pulled pork sandwich and it was very good. We were running a little behind schedule. The Eistla stopped in Freudenberg to disembark the guests for the tour of Miltenberg or one of the optional tours and we left the ship at about 3:20 PM. We had to take coaches back east a short distance to Miltenberg. We had an enjoyable enough tour showing the old buildings, some dating back to the 14th century, as well as some newer constructs. Our guide explained how all the buildings had their lower floor replaced with stone as due to previous floods the original wood beams would eventually rot. Our tour ended at about 5:00 and we were to rejoin the buses at 6:00. If we hadn't already been so well fed there were opportunities for Bavarian pretzels, ice cream shops, beer or wine. I tried to follow a sign to a supermarket but we never did find it. The historic tourist area was very clean and tidy. Once we ventured outside of that area however we found the town to be dirty with trash strewn about, like no one cared. We arrived at the bus meeting spot at 5:50 and two buses were waiting. We boarded the same bus we arrived on and found it to be nearly full. Leaving just after 6:00 we arrived at Wertheim about 30 minutes later to rejoin the ship but it had not yet arrived. At about 6:45 the Eistla arrived and by the time everyone boarded it was after 7:00. We were in our cabin when the program director said the dining room was open and the port talk would be held at 9:00. We then went to dinner and found our new friends and enjoyed a very nice dinner. DW and I both had the recommended Duck entree and it was very good. My dessert with the Apple Sacher Tart which was superb. The port talk about tomorrow was a bit disappointing. We are to arrive in Wurzburg at 1:00 with the tours leaving at 1:45. The main attraction is the Wurzburg Bishops Residence (Palace) and we were told that 1: they still require masks; and 2: No photography is allowed. We may just do our own thing in Wurzburg as Rick Steve's has a nice chapter on Wurzburg in our Germany tour-book. Afterwards we took a few photos off the front of the Eistla as every bend in the river has more interest and called it an evening. I have a few thoughts about some surprises we've encountered and I may have time to write them up and try posting a few photos tomorrow morning.

Here are my notes from the remainder of July 4. Today we have our fourth day in a row of incredible weather. 🙂 By the time we returned to the Aquavit the landscape had changed and we were leaving the mountains and castles behind. We did enjoy watching the parks, beaches, and marinas slide by while I updated this log. We stayed there until the cocktail party was over, and listened to the program director's talk on the next days schedule from our table. The cocktail party itself was nice with all the senior officers present and they circulated around the room. There were only about 20 at participants at the party. We met a couple from Pennsylvania on their third Viking cruise. Tomorrow afternoon we will again be dropped off for our walking tour and free time in Miltenburg and will rejoin the ship just in time for dinner. Dinner was a very nice affair with the food being a bit less than a “Ten” tonight. I went for the German specialty of the day but the beef was too dry. Edible but the rib eye would have been a better choice. DW had a huge portion of Ahi Tuna steak and that was very good but it was too much to finish. In addition to the menu desserts, the chefs paraded around the dining room with two “Fourth of July” cakes and everyone was offered a slice, a very nice touch. During dinner we went through the first of 67 additional locks the Eistla will pass through on our trip. We were approaching yet another lock as we called it a night a little after 10:00. After dinner the entertainment was a game show “And the top answer is” which was based on family feud. This was entertaining and it was made more entertaining to see how some folks took this entirely too seriously 😃!

If you have instructions I could give it a try. I use real cameras except for a handful of shots on my I-phone that I use for FB.

Here is the report for July 4 so far. Happy Independence day to all in the USA! Monday, July 4 – Koblenz, Marksburg Castle, and the middle Rhine What a difference a day makes! We enjoyed our usual morning routine to be ready for the 8:45 walk to the buses for the Koblenz dock. The parts of Koblenz that were actually seen appeared to be very clean and tidy. We didn't realize how close we were docked to the point where the rivers meet or we would have left the ship early to see it and take photos, like a few others did. As I was boarding our bus I noticed a large building nearby with a few statues on the front. So I left the bus with the camera and walked down to take a few photos. I was not able to find on Google maps what that building actually was. I also took a few photos of the boats docked on the Rhine and returned to the bus still long before the last folks were arriving. We had a quick 20 minute or so bus ride to Marksburg Castle. Named after St. Mark this is the only castle on the Rhine that claims to have never been captured or taken in battle. Rick Steve's informed me that technically wasn't true, as the Allies captured the castle in 1945, but they did so without a 'battle.' The castle is said to be original as it was in the middle ages inside. I was impressed and really enjoyed the visit. As I posted a few photos on FB, I dedicated this day to our late son Kevin, who loved all things medieval, knights, and weapons of the time. The castle included displays of many weapons and I know Kevin would have loved to see this. In a video game he helped develop, he said he was just a “Simple blacksmith” but really was a fierce warrior. .After touring the castle we had time for a cup of coffee before heading back down the hill to meet the Eistla at a dock in Braubach. Reaching the dock, much to our surprise there was a different Viking boat docked, waiting for their guests. Apparently their tours were running late. We stood about 30 minutes until the dock was clear and the Eistla could pick up nearly all it's guests. We were literally the first folks back on the ship and headed straight for the Aquavit terrace where we chose a mostly shaded table for lunch and to enjoy the river views. After ordering lunch the views kept getting better and better. For the 4th of July the chef was cooking burgers and hot dogs on the grill. The afternoon just flew by as we passed castle after castle and lovely riverside towns one after the other. We saw many bicyclists, trains, and vehicles on the trails, rails, and roads lining the Rhine. At 3:30 the ship offered a “German tea time.” The treats seemed to be very similar to those at the Dutch tea a few days before. We were offered a glass of local brandy in addition to tea or coffee. It was hard to break away at any time but we did take a few minutes to freshen up for the evening. Tonight we are invited, as repeat guests, to a Viking Explorer Society cocktail party at 6:15.

We have been incredibly blessed with the weather so far. Absolutely perfect for touring!

I've never quite figured out how to post photos on CC. 😞 We are 64 & 63 There are folks on board from 50's into 80's that we can determine. Perhaps one younger couple.

Guten Morgen alle! Following is my log for the remainder of our Sunday. A technician stopped by and showed us that the push-button light switch for the main lights is actually a dimmer. By holding it in, the lights get dimmer (or brighter). We were able to make the lights brighter than they were before the 'problem!' We enjoyed the lounge and Api's piano entertainment and then the brief talk on tomorrow's plans. Same schedule as today, basically, with an 8:45 departure for our tour (by bus) up to the hilltop Marksburg Castle. While we are out, the ship will sail on, and the bus will bring us back to the ship by about noon. The afternoon will be scenic sailing on the middle Rhine. After the talk the evening dinner & pub crawl tour departed. Dinner tonight in the dining room was not quite as excellent as prior meals. I had the rib eye steak which I ordered medium rare and it came out extremely rare, so I sent it back and the replacement was terrific. DW had the seared Cod but it was dry. With some added lemon it made it palatable. Not every meal can be a "10" and the staff is taking very good care of DW's special dietary needs. After dinner two local musicians, a pianist and clarinetist entertained in the lounge. This was very nice and they were terrific. While this was “Classical” nearly all the tunes I was familiar with and it was a very pleasant time. During the performance I did briefly leave to take a few photos of the sunset over Cologne, as sunset was 9:49 PM but we lost the sun to the cityscape perhaps 15 minutes earlier. We were sitting with new friends from Maine and stayed in the lounge after the performance as the skies slowly darkened. I was able to get a few terrific photos of the city lights, the Cathedral, and St. Mark's church which were all lit up as the Eistla slowly departed our berth. So we were actually out and about until 11:00, which is very late for us. With a 6:30 start tomorrow that means a quick night's rest. All in all, the relaxing afternoon and evening rather recovered my feelings about the day and we look forward to continued adventures!

This is the log so far today. No fault of Viking's but Cologne has been a disappointment for us. I just report things from our perspective and not everyone will agree and that is okay. Here is the log: Sunday, July 3: Cologne, Germany Correction to previous information. The Eistla stopped at Zons for the bus ride to Cologne. We woke before our alarm went off and got ready for the day. Enjoyed tea and coffee before breakfast. Breakfast was nice and I had time to sit in the lounge watching the riverside go by until we docked at Zons. We are in group “A” today. There was a bit of confusion as everyone's tour tickets said 9:30 while the actual meeting time was 8:30. 9:30 was to be the time to meet the guide in Cologne. This delayed our departure as some folks were not ready and had to rush to get out to the bus. It was a pleasant enough bus ride until we were in the city. The buses couldn't get to the tour guide meeting point where the Eistla would later be docked as the roads were blocked. Finally a motorcycle police escort arrived to lead the four buses into the dock area. We all off-loaded and met our guide. We began our walk along the river, then up a bunch of steps, and over the Holenzollern Bridge, which is said to be the busiest railway bridge in the world with an average around the clock of thirty trains per hour passing over. There are walkways on both sides of the bridge, and these walkways are literally lined with “Love locks.” We enjoyed great views of the Cologne Cathedral from the bridge and would later get much closer. Once over the bridge we walked down a bunch of stairs to the river level, which is now a huge pedestrian only area with lots of greenery and beer houses lining the eastern edge. At this point we began to run into many folks preparing for their participation in the “Pride parade.” Our guide led us around through the 'Fish market' although fish are no longer sold there, with a stop at Peters Brauhaus, a large beer hall (not yet open for the day) where Viking had arranged for us to have a rest room break. This was certainly much preferred to using the many port a-potties which we found all over for the days festivities. We walked through the 'Alter Markt' and saw the building where Eau de Cologne was 'invented' in the early 1700's beginning the perfume/cologne business. Now you know, anytime you use Cologne, that the phrase originated with the city of Cologne. We also saw the former “4711” headquarters, the slightly more economical competitor to Eau de Cologne. That caused me to recall that my Dutch Grandmother used to use “4711” as her fragrance of choice. All that said about Cologne, we found the city to be dirty and not very attractive. Near the Cathedral we saw street cleaners but smells of urine hit us a number of times during the morning. After passing by town hall, and seeing the mosaic through the windows of the Roman Museum, which is under renovation. Then we walked around the outside of the cathedral and heard the bells calling worshipers for the noon service. We could not go in to this UNESCO world heritage site due to the service times. The area around the cathedral was swarming with many participants of the days festivities. We had every intention of either staying in town until the cathedral was open for tourists or returning later in the day, but with the crush of pride celebrants, once the tour was concluded we decided to call it a day and head back across the bridge to the now docked Eistla. We were warmly welcomed back on board. After a through hand-washing and leaving our things in the cabin we went to lunch on the Aquavit terrace. While we were a little early for lunch we were immediately offered lunch beverages and enjoyed the wine and berry cider, as well as some great ice water! We sat near the grille and I asked the chef what he was grilling today? The answer was shrimp! So I had a terrific shrimp lunch and DW added a few shrimp to her pre-ordered salmon. Lunch was truly terrific. Since we were not returning to the city, we had a chance to relax during the afternoon. Much to our surprise, the main lights in the cabin decided to malfunction just as we were getting ready for the evening. I went to the front desk and they promised to send a technician to inspect them. It's very strange, the lights are extremely dim, like 2% of what they should be. The lights by the bed and in the bathroom are fine.

Following is the report on the remainder of our lovely day on Saturday, July 2: We returned to the lounge for the 3:30 “Dutch tea.” Quite a number of guests participated and this was a very enjoyable event. We met a couple from British Columbia and enjoyed conversation over a number of small delicacies and scones. At 5:00 the program manager gave a 'refresher' on German as we will be in German speaking countries until Hungary. Guten Morgan all! I took a year of German in high school. My German class name was “Wolfgang.” At the end of the year the teacher said he would pass me but told me not to take German 2! Sometime in the evening we crossed the border from the Netherlands into Germany. 6:30 was the Captain's and officers welcome. Nice beverages were served and everyone seems very happy to be on board. That was followed by a short overview of the next day. We will actually leave the ship at 8:45 at Köln for a bus ride to Cologne for our 9:30 walking tour. The ship won't arrive in Cologne until 12:30. There are optional tours in the afternoon and evening. A number of guests we spoke with are doing the 'pub dinner and crawl' in the evening. We hope to see the cathedral in the afternoon as being there on a Sunday of course the church has services in the morning. The program director also informed us that Cologne will be quite crowded as there is a “Pride” parade there on Sunday. Dinner was very enjoyable. In fact, so far the food on this trip has been excellent. While I suppose dinners are early for most in Europe, these feel late for us. Again after dinner we pretty much called it an evening. Sunday night there will be a guest music performance in the lounge and we will try to stay up for that.

Saturday, July 2, Kinderdijk and actual “River Cruising!” The alarm woke us from a very deep sleep at 6:00. About 6:20 I went upstairs to bring coffee & tea back to the cabin. I was surprised by the number of fellow passengers already up and about. Even on early port days I rarely saw many out & about before 7:30 on our recent ocean cruises. We went to the dining room at about 7:20. It was already quite busy. We sat with a couple from British Columbia who had nearly finished their breakfast. Breakfast can be ordered off a menu however nearly everything is available on the 'buffet' including an omelet station. I will admit to having some unease about the buffet as it is self serve, and the last two years has likely made me skittish about handling 'shared utensils.' I ordered an omelet and did handle the utensils to get a few breakfast sausages. We were already docked at Kinderdijk when we went to breakfast. The program director announced that tours would begin as scheduled at 8:15. We were ready for our group E tour and disembarked shortly after 8:15 (tour time 8:20). We had a terrific guide, a 65 year old local gentleman who volunteers a few days a week at the site. Kinderdijk is a UNESCO world heritage site and he was much more informative than our previous visit in 2013. We went inside the old pumping station, which is in the process of being restored and put back to use, hopefully in 2023. Part of the station is a small gift shop. We also went inside the caretakers workshop where our guide gave us a great education on Dutch heritage, windmills, trading ships, and pirates. It was informative and fun. Walking down to the operating windmill open for tours is very pretty and picturesque, especially on such a nice day. I was surprised to find water lilies growing, apparently very happy. It was also neat to see folks fishing in the canals among the windmills, making an iconic “Delft Blue” scene come to life. The windmill itself is so impressive, especially the main oak beam, over 300 years old, that turns in the center of the mill. Time was getting short (a disadvantage to being in group E!) so we walked ahead of our guide, listening to his commentary, to have a few extra minutes in the gift shop. We did make purchases in both gift shops, and were among the last group to return to the Eistla. We left our bags and jackets in the cabin and went upstairs for some coffee and tea. We also grabbed seats at an Aguavit patio table that was mostly shaded by the forward awning. We really enjoyed sitting there while the Eistla pulled away. Friends from last night's dinner joined us and stayed with us through lunch. We witnessed many 'different' things over the next few hours. At the confluence of the canal/rivers, there are 'road signs' on the point of the land telling boaters which waterway is what, just like highway signs. Speaking of highways, the rivers and canals truly are the regions 'highways,' the amount of boat traffic is incredible. Barges and transports of every type pass constantly. High-speed water buses went buzzing past the ship, and the passengers seem to really be enjoying the ride! One we were a bit into the countryside, we saw cows, horses, and people on the sandy shores of the Waal River. Cows literally just feet from sunbathers (this being a Saturday). Can't imagine anyone doing this back home! We passed an operating windmill in Dordrecht and I shot some video. The awning was pulled back (due to the wind?) so we moved into a shaded table further into the Aquavit terrace. 45 minutes later it was lunch time and the wine flowed. Cider is one of the 'beers' included during lunch and dinner and the German cider they serve (Somersby) is the best cider I have ever enjoyed from a bottle. I had the burger and some German sausage that was being cooked on the grille. Everything was very nice. DW enjoyed a shrimp salad. After lunch we returned to the cabin to store our purchases and hang up our jackets. We asked the hotel manager if we would have much actual 'daytime cruising' as the trip goes on and he told us yes, quite a lot, as we need to cover 1300 KM during the trip. So this will be a very different experience than our prior “Tulips & Windmills” adventure!

Continued notes from embarkation day follow and we are looking forward to a terrific and beautiful cool sunny day today at Kinderdijk! At check in (at about 9:45) we were told our cabin was not yet ready but “Housekeeping knows you are here and it won't be long.” That turned out to be less than accurate. Just before 11:00 I inquired and was told “Not just yet.” Lunch was being served beginning at 11:00 and we invited a couple sitting near us in the lounge to join us. A third couple joined us and we had a very nice lunch, including lamb chops, among other choices. The house wine was very acceptable and we enjoyed a few glasses, as well as a “Coke Light” for myself. We were very impressed with the maître de', When we were finishing lunch at 12:30, I checked again with guest services, and our cabin was still not ready. I nicely told them that we had been onboard since before 10:00 and were told then it would be a short time; this isn't a short time. They promised us it would be ready in 10 minutes. So back to the dining room for one more round of wine. Fifteen minutes later we found the cabin was ready, and one of the guest services folks showed us the cabin. That is a nice touch but we knew where it was... Our luggage was already inside so we set upon the chore of unpacking. There is a 1:30 walking tour that we wanted to join, so no time for showers, etc., before hand. While we were unpacking one of the crew opened the door and said they were “Here to check the cabin.” Well, we are already mostly unpacked... Just a observation... There were not many guests arriving when we did. Even at the airport we were told that they let the ship know we were on the way and they would get our cabin ready. It's not rocket science, do the cabins for early arrivals first. I didn't expect to get into the cabin before 10:00 but don't tell me it would be a short time and then make it three hours later, and then only because I kept asking. After traveling for a full 24 hours, we were ready for a chance to freshen up! The 1:30 walking tour didn't venture too far from the ship but it was nice. We were given the option to leave the tour across from Centrall Station and we took that chance. We had hoped to go to the flower market and grab a slice of real Dutch Apple Pie, but I guess that will have to wait. It began to rain again when we were the other side of Dam Square and we began back, traversing the Centrall Station on the way. Back on board, we got ourselves refreshed and made the very end of the 'cheese and wine tasting' event. Our waiter never got back to us with promised second wines for sampling and did not tell us of any offers on the beverage package. We spoke for a while with another guest who somehow lost his traveling buddy who may have gone on the 3:30 walking tour. There is a 'mandatory' briefing at 6:30, followed by a port of call talk, and then dinner at 7:30. That sounds late after our travel day but we attended. The briefing was well done although I will admit to having a hard time staying awake. We dock in the morning at Kinderdijk at 8:00 and the first tour leaves at 8:15. Those on the Windmills and Cheese making tour will leave the ship and rejoin early in the afternoon as our stay at Kinderdijk is only until 10:30. Dinner was very enjoyable. We sat with a couple from Maine and another couple from Eastern Washington. We both had the sea bass and it was nicely done. Two at our table had the always available steak and they said it was perfectly cooked and tender. The local dessert feature of Apple floppies (fried sliced apple) was small but perfect (and I didn't need more!) After dinner we called it a night and slept extremely well. Note: We found out that the Mimir had encountered some serious engine issues and was in for quite a repair! The Eistla had not yet returned to the fleet and was made ready and used on the cruise prior to ours as it's return to service. The Eistla will apparently be replacing the Mimir until it returns. As all the “Longships” are essentially identical this should have no impact on the cruise.

We made it and are onboard! Here is the latest: Our flight left on time. I may have gotten an hour or maybe two of restless sleep. Every time I dozed off someone would run into my arm or shoulder. My special ordered reduced lactose dinner was pretty decent. I finished the novel I was reading as the sound quality of the back of the seat entertainment system was too poor. Friday, July 1 – Amsterdam and embarkation: Our flight landed at 7:45. 17 minutes of taxiing brought us to the gate. We passed through passport control and they did not ask for our Covid vaccination cards or the declaration form Viking had us prepare. We were warned on the plane that there could be a wait for our luggage, but when we reached belt 15 one of our bags was already there. Perhaps 10 minutes later the largest bag appeared. We met other Viking cruisers at baggage claim. Once we went through the doors we found Viking reps in their red shirts. They led us to an area to sit for a few minutes and then they came and told us our car was ready. Five of us were transferred over to the Viking Eistla in a Mercedes van. We quickly checked in and were invited to relax in the Viking lounge until our cabin was ready. We enjoyed tea and coffee while we waited. Note we are on the Viking Eistla, but the crew is the crew of the Viking Mimir, and they made certain to let us know that when we checked in!

We made it to Philadelphia! Next stop, Amsterdam! Thursday, June 30: I ended up waking up five minutes before our 4:15 alarm. We left the house at 4:35 and arrived at PBI at 5:25 after a coffee/tea stop en route. We walked to the terminal from Economy parking and waited in line to talk to a rep from American and check our bags. She told us to stick with our confirmed flights as every flight had over twenty folks 'standing by.' Our bags were checked and we went through the 'no line' at the TSA pre-check side of security. A quick stop at Burger King for some breakfast and we boarded our flight to DFW. I will say it was a beautiful day to fly. Very smooth skies both to DFW and then onward to PHL. Everything was on time in fact both flights arrived a little early. Once at PHL we had lunch in the food court. I enjoyed Chick-Fil-A and DW found a nice Cobb Salad at Smash Burger. We tried to use my Priority Pass membership at the Minute Suites but they had no vacancies. We found a spot to sit and make a few calls and we made our way to gate A20 for our 6:45 flight to Amsterdam. There we found we could charge our phones and I updated this log. If all goes well, my next update will be from the Mimir!

Covid test results received. Negative as we expected. Packing essentially done. We will put everything in the car tonight. 4:45 AM departure tomorrow!

Yesterday I received an e-mail from American Airlines offering to change our flight, but the link would not work, and then it said to contact our travel advisor. I spent an hour on the phone with Viking Air and at the end of that, nothing changed as they said American was offering them no options without huge added costs. This morning we received texts and e-mails from American informing us that our PBI-PHL flight was canceled. I immediately went on line to rebook. They gave us 19 options for flights on Saturday, July 2. Well, that doesn't work as we wouldn't arrive in Amsterdam until Sunday, July 3, and our cruise leaves on Friday, July 1! I found ONE option for tomorrow, June 30. So now we leave PBI at 7:30 in the morning to fly to Dallas, where we have a 45 minute connection (same terminal thank goodness) to a flight to PHL. We will (assuming all goes well) now have a four hour layover at PHL, but I can deal with that. As soon as these flights were confirmed I received an offer to volunteer to change our flights. Of course, now we are in middle seats, and I even paid a small amount for DW's middle seat to be near the front as with a quick connection I did not want her to be in row 30! My row 19 is far enough back.

Yesterday's flight from PBI-PHL was delayed by 30 minutes. We would have still made the PHL-AMS flight but it would likely have already been mostly boarded by the time we would reach the gate. This delay occurred despite the plane arriving early in PBI and no weather issues on either end. Today's flight has been canceled. Sure isn't helping my stress level! Thursday's weather in PHL is showing as clear and sunny, and hotter than Florida. On the other hand, we are supposed to have thunderstorms. Checking seat maps it appears that every seat on both of our Thursday flights is now assigned, there are no open seats showing at all. This morning an e-mail came in from Viking with a "Travel emergency hotline" phone number. I printed a copy and will take it with us.

I do not find an excursion to Mespelbrunn on "Myviking." Of course, it may be 'sold out.' If I see this on the ship I will let you know! Very nice video and loved the story about the 'three strong boys.'

We are on the Mimir. Air reservation was ticketed immediately due to short time frame. I've tried numerous times until at this point there are no isle seats showing available in PE. We have isles now and on an eight hour flight I will likely need numerous trips to the lav so the isle is important. We will check with the agents in PBI if anything opens up. We were on the Summit. We cruised the Emerald Princess T/A in April and the stress involved in returning to the USA made us commit to "Never again" until the testing requirement was dropped by the USA. We have been to Amsterdam before. We would very much have liked a few extra days in Budapest though! We sailed Viking's "Tulips & Windmills" about eight years ago. That was very different from ocean cruising but it was a terrific way to see those sights. Notamermaid, I've been following your "River level" posts and thank you for those. Not really sure what everything means but overall I get the sense that water levels are mostly manageable (at least for now). Thank you all!

It doesn't seem like there are many "Live" threads on this board, but I will attempt to do one on our upcoming Grand European Tour. it has been challenging to get a lot of information since we've booked. As an example I bought the Rick Steve's Germany tour book and several of our 'ports' Rick has nothing to say about. I understand docking times can vary based on lock passage and such, but we don't even have a tentative schedule to work with. As a planner, that is a bit challenging. In any case, I will attempt to post reports when I am able. Here is our "Getting ready" posting. I will breathe a big sigh of relief if our first flight takes off on schedule on Thursday! "Pre-travel: We booked this river cruise very 'last minute.' We were on our last day of a Celebrity cruise on June 11 when an e-mail popped in from Viking with a “Flash sale.” Concurrently, the US finally dropped their covid test requirement to fly back into the USA, which allowed us to consider a European trip this summer. Once we were back on land we contacted Viking and our T/A, and completed the booking. Being booked only 17 days before embarkation, there were no options to do a pre or post cruise stay, and no option for air deviations. We are at Viking's mercy. Within a day we received notice that our air had been booked. On the positive side, we are flying from our preferred smaller airport, Palm Beach International. Parking there is very reasonable and it is the closest airport to our house. The flight to Amsterdam is almost something I may have chosen myself, in more 'normal' times. With the current challenges for air travel, I would like more time between flights in Philadelphia (oddly enough, our prior home airport). For the week+ before our June 30 flight I've been checking our PBI-PHL flight, and one time it was delayed to the point we would have missed our Amsterdam flight. Checking American Airline's website, should we miss that flight, there is no other direct flight to Amsterdam, and any potential connection would get us in very late in the day at best. The booked return flight from Budapest is not something I would have chosen, but we will live with it and roll with the punches should any delays occur. I'm sure we will be leaving the Mimir at 3:00 AM to make out 7-ish flight. I was able to update our seat assignments twice so that we do at this time have isle seats assigned on all five flights. American would not let me pay to move to Economy Plus. If they still have any such isle seats at check-in perhaps that will be an option? So for now there is little we can do except continue to monitor flights and keep our fingers crossed that all goes well. We put out most of our clothes on our guest bed today to get a head start on the packing. The next three days are very busy and we do have appointments for Wednesday mid-day for covid tests, even though Viking does not require them any longer."

Are you on the Silhouette? I posted this yesterday on the 10-20-22 roll call... Apologies in advance if this message is a "Wet blanket" for some..., but I feel a little head's up is only fair. Re: Bermuda: I realize October is a long way off (Five months, right?) however we are sailing on the Summit on June 2 and yesterday received official word from X that our itinerary has changed to go to Bermuda FIRST, followed by Charleston, SC (the two ports planned). Why this change? It is due to Bermuda's Covid restrictions which calls for the cruise line to test all passengers if Bermuda is not the first port of call. So X switched the sequence, putting us in Bermuda on the weekend where public transit is much less available, and needing to tender in on two of our three days there. If Bermuda does not change their covid testing requirement by October I would fully expect that X will change the itinerary and Bermuda will be dropped. It is apparent that X really does not want to test the entire passenger compliment. Would the ship stop somewhere else? Who knows. I wouldn't mind a day in Bimini or a visit to Labadee..

I am happy they are still doing the chocolates. That is one of those 'little things' that sets cruising apart. Princess stopped them all together and Holland America now only has them on "Gala" nights. Celebrity has become our first choice for cruising!