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then there are those who complain about the food being terrible AND the portions being so small!

unless you are going on a Craft Beer cruise. Then they might shoot anyone who asks for a Bud. But in a nice way.

not to hijack this post but what about the toothpicks on board? Do they have both the flat ones that are less sharp at the ends as well as the round pointy ones that "you could take your eye out" with? And do the frou fru drinks have umbrellas on the ends of toothpicks? IF they have both kinds can anyone tell me in which ares of the ship I can find each. Also, if I pay an upcharge for a meal in say Bistro on 5 or a speciality restaurant can I take more that one toothpick at a time? Yes I know that I can bring my own toothpicks onboard but that doen't help anyone else who might want to have the info requested.

Uhm, did I miss the review amongst all the chatter?:confused:

Do they have items for someone who avoids gluten, dairy, and must avoid nuts (the edible kind)?

and check out the photos in the cruise line brochures. many times the rivers have steep hillsides on either side. Some lines are offering different levels (speeds) of their walking tours to accommodate guests with differing levels of mobility. On the cruises I've done passengers self select what they do: some stay on board the whole trip, others go on the included tours but stay on the bus, others do every tour with the guides, and others strike out to explore on their own. One young fellow even bicycled from one stop to the next on the riverside paths joining the ship for meals and overnights!

we will have 14 or 15 people in our group. we plan to use velcro and bungy cords!:D:eek:

It's too bad that when one books independently in a tender port, they have to wait sometimes quite long to get a tender. I would worry about only having an hour to get to your tour because tendering can take quite long. Those with Celebrity tours go first, priority tender tickets go next and then everyone else with a tender ticket. Our experience is that they generally call three to four numbers at a time for tenders, about every 10 to 15 minutes, sometimes shorter depending on how many tenders they're running and how long the tender ride is. You really need to be first in line to get your tender ticket as you don't want to get a high number.

Why is it "too bad that when one books independantly...."? Is it too bad that passengers that book Aqua class get to eat in Blue or those with certain Elite status get to use certain venues exclusively or for that matter those who pay extra for Specialty restaurants don't have to sit in the MDR for those meals? Why shouldn't the cruise line reward those who gave it extra money by booking the excursion thru Celebrity a perk for doing so?

Not sure what ISP is but this is one reason that I booked my excursions thru Celebrity: go to the head of the line for the tenders. You might consider this for your next cruise OR if you can get a refund for what you have already booked and reschedule thru the cruise line.

Gain only 1 pound per day? Doubt that for myself especially since I will have the alcohol package and I've read all about Cafe Bacio on CC!:D

I never found the portions small (nor did my husband, who is normally a big eater). I think they're "right sized" assuming you've already eaten an appetizer and soup before you get to the entree, and I always save room for dessert :)

I totally agree. Plus this is the third meal (even fourth if you indulge in the afternoon tea) of the day. Breakfast and lunch are buffets with lots of food ( make yourself a sandwich for later) available. IOW you will not go hungry.

Do you Vantage cruisers know if one of their river cruises has an excursion to Salzburg? That is one of the places I really want to visit but I don't see any excursion to that area, but I could have missed it.

I believe that is one company I don't have a brochure from at this time. Also, how much do you plan for the gratuities?

I've been getting lots of advertising from them in my email. Did you book early to get the best prices?

Thanks for all of your help!

ah, the birth place of Mozart!

No, she was a Dentist, complaining that she couldn't get the front seat on the bus for every tour. She had paid for a suite and thought that entitled her to special privileges.

Well if and when the river cruise lines follow the lead of the ocean cruise lines she will get her way.

Hi all

We love to go to Cellarmasters (on the S class)

After dinner where there is usually a good selection

and have a nice glass of Port.

Don't know what we will do when they become Gastro Pubs.

Prior to dinner there is always a nice selection in the Buffet,

Lovely to take back to the cabin and watch the waves from the balcony

Whilst having a nice glass of wine or port,

Several posters have mentioned this or something similar. Is there food available all daylong at the buffet or is it just open earlier for dinner than is the MDR?

I am thinking that this cheese plate would serve my husband well since he is a diabetic. He would enjoy that as an appetizer instead of bread.

Ask the waiter to hold the crackers and limit the fruit if he needs to be really strict with his diet. ( and yes I am an MD):)

So, are the donuts in Bacio the same as those in the buffet or is one location superior regarding choice or quality?

It's all good, after 25 years of cruising we are right there with ya! Tomorrow the wifester is taking me to get fitted for a new tux :eek: No suit this sailing!

I love your look in this photo: white dinner jacket with black shirt and matching pocket hanky. Very Goodfellas!

And on the third hand, we (my BW and myself) enjoy both the ports of call and the actual cruising. The scenery is beautiful and you are surrounded by it on a river. Plus you never know what surprises come around the next bend in the river like the couple doing the whoopie in their small open boat in a marina. :D

Just finished the book, which I got on your recommendation...thanks, it is a very interesting/funny book.

 

Regarding some of his fellow passengers being annoying, I can certainly emphasize. 98% of the people are great, and the other 2% make you realize how great it is to be with the 98% group. A Viking Slovak bartender shared that with me after we witnessed a tantrum from a lady who made life miserable for all who encountered her. She has just unloaded on the poor cruise director for 10 minutes. This lady was a highly trained professional, and she just couldn't understand why she wasn't in charge on the ship, as she was in her medical practice.

 

Relax and go with the flow...you're on vacation!

hopefully, for your example, she was not the ship's doctor whose medical work was interfered with by the "highly trained professional" tour director.:rolleyes:

The fast pace groups are far too often going at a snails pace.:( The slow group is for those needing all flat ground and at crawl!

 

I have advocated for a true "fast" group, a regular group, and a group needing extra considerations. The cruise lines have ignored those pleas from many of us for PC reasons. This is truly one of my biggest complaints with river tours. A walker that takes 10 minutes to walk 100 meters needs to not be in the "fast" group, imo, but I am, of course, out voted by the cruise lines. :mad:

In the military we called it "Hurry Up and Wait"! and wait and wait and wait!

sounds like you would do better exploring on your own after doing some research on the ports you will be visiting. i'm sure the ship's officers would be happy to give you suggestions on what to see. My BW and I ,who are in the mid 60's-early 70's age group, have enjoyed the pace, content, and tour guides on the numerous tours we have taken as part of the Uniworld cruises.

jazzbeau hit the nail on the head! I've done both ocean and river and love them both for different reasons...it depends on where you want to go. We like the different port every day of river cruising plus the nearness to the downtown areas in most ports. We like the fact that everyone eats dinner at the same time in the same place usually at tables for 4-8 people and you have no assigned seating. We were never hungry, but then we never eat at the all you can eat buffets on Celebrity either. There's no broadway show, no casino, very few ships with pools, and the entertainment is what you would expect at a local talent show. On the other hand, you'll never worry about rough seas or getting sea sick or falling out of the bathroom in the middle of the night, due to a rogue wave and there's no barbed wire fencing with armed guards surrounding the port area like some ports I've been to. AND you can always get a lounge chair on the sun deck!

I don't think your description of the evening onboard entertainment as "a local talent show" is quite fair. I thought the entertainment while certainly local to the locale was very good and professional quality for the most part.

When we took our grandchildren our lovely waiter told them to be adventurous and if they ordered anything that they really didn't like he would gladly get them something else, the frogs legs they loved them and snails not so much!!!

 

We are are taking our grandchildren again next May and as their fare is the same as ours they will order whatever they like from the main menu, they are far more adventurous than I am.

 

Enjoy and hope your kids do to.

 

Elizabeth

Agreed. Our grand kids our very adventurous in trying new foods and already eat things my BW and I never even heard of at their age. Two of our grand kids are bicultural and also eat lots of exotic foods. They will enjoy being treated as adults in the MDR or the buffet come to that.

The woes were mostly obnoxious fellow cruisers. If you've cruised, you'll relate.

 

FuelScience

Interesting. which cruise line? where were these obnoxious cruisers from? the only time i ran into such a situation was two couples who drank too much and one of whom talked loudly when snockered. Otherwise everyone we have met on board was no problem.

Is it usual for Uniworld to have empty cabins available for upgrade? I thought river cruises were booked out up to 12 months ahead.

I think it depends on the route. One cruise I took had 100 passengers on a ship with a max of approx. 150 passengers.

Aquarium class is a cabin beneath the water line. The issue we have is that if we receive a one level upgrade, we go from level 5 (aquarium) to a level 4 (also aquarium.

 

I have heard of passengers buying an upgrade on a discount when they arrive on board.

Well the window of the cabin is Not below the water line at least on the Uniworld ships I have cruised on.