Uniworld - River Beatrice, Comments?

[suspaul]

Hello. Thinking of doing a river cruise on the above ship and would like any input, comments, the good, bad and ugly, all responses are appreciated. Have a little bit of concern as we have booked the last Cat 4 cabin #203, how is it with only a partial window?:confused:

 

Again, thanks for taking the time to provide any guidance, help, etc.

Susan

[suspaul]

I did a forum search regarding my questions and found a wealth of information, after I posted my request. Feel much better, the reviews were glowing, not much addressed on the window situation but don't feel that is much of a problem. So again, thanks for reading and feel free to pass along any comments.

Susan

[cozzello]

When are you sailing? We are leaving on June 20, 2010.

[franski]

Hi there -

 

While we really enjoyed having a "half window" on the River Baroness (no french balconies on that boat) and the french balcony on AMA's Amalyra, we have happily booked the lowest category cabin for our upcoming Christmas market cruise with Uniworld.

 

There are many here who have posted that you spend so little time in your cabin (and I can attest to that!!) that the window space isn't a huge issue.

 

You always have the lounge, and the top deck if you want views.

[suspaul]

Franski you're right, you don't spend much time in your cabin so the half window shouldn't be a problem. We did Uniworld last August/Sept. on a cruise from Amstedam to Basel and tho we were on the lower floor we had a full window and a smaller window that you could open for fresh air. Thanks for your input. Which Christmas cruise are you doing? Have done a Christmas market cruise with another company, it was on the Danube, Vienna to Nürnberg, wonderful and also did a Christmas/New Years cruise in France, not so good as that time of year so many things were closed.

 

cozzello, we're looking at August as September is booked, except for the Owner's Suite, can't swing that one, too $$$. Would love to hear your review when you return. Have a great trip.

Susan

[boards]

We were on the River Beatrice in June 2009 and had cabin 307. We asked a passenger who had a cabin on the lower deck how his cabin compared and after looking at ours he said it was the same except of course for the french door. Everything about the River Beatrice was great. You cannot miss cruising on her.

[franski]

suspaul - we are booked for the Rhine Holiday Markets - Cologne to Basel. Quite excited - even though it is almost 10 month away!!! I think that the itinerary is quite similar to the Amsterdam/Basel cruise - but we get a full day in Cologne to start - and a full day in Basel at the end.

 

Which boat where you on?? We are on the River Queen - Room 102.

 

Fran

[cozzello]

Can you help me I was wondering how tipping worked on the River Beatrice?

[cozzello]

Can you help me I was wondering how tipping worked on the River Beatrice?

[boards]

There a suggested amount given to you by the cruise line and you were given two envelopes, one to place your tips for the staff and one for the cruise director. You got the envelopes on the day before the cruise ended. There was a box to place the envelopes in, no one knew who gave what, no name was had to given. I thought the recommended amounts were reasonable and you could of course give more. There was no pressure concerning tips.

[franski]

I am not sure if you can use a credit card on any of the Uniworld boats. We couldn't on the Baroness when we did Paris & Normandy. (We could with AMA - but chose to stay with cash...)

 

boards - you are in a better position to speak to this...

[boards]

In checking the information Uniworld gave out on board, it reads as follows: Quote: "Gratuities cannot be billed to onboard accounts or paid with a credit card, so please ensure you have cash and/or travellers' checks (sp) on hand for this expense" There was a Gratuity Box located at the Front Desk.

[cozzello]

Thanks so much for your help. You answered the question. Anything else I should know about the trip?

[suspaul]

suspaul - we are booked for the Rhine Holiday Markets - Cologne to Basel. Quite excited - even though it is almost 10 month away!!! I think that the itinerary is quite similar to the Amsterdam/Basel cruise - but we get a full day in Cologne to start - and a full day in Basel at the end.

 

Which boat where you on?? We are on the River Queen - Room 102.

 

Fran

Hi Fran, the holiday cruise I did was with Grand Circle, it was a "spur of the moment" whim as my husband was busy at work I decided to do it solo and booked only 2 weeks before departure. I met lots of nice people, many couples but also many gal groups enjoying the holiday markets along the Danube, we started our 7 night cruise in Vienna and ended in Nürnberg. You'll love Cologne, lots of different markets within the city

http://www.koelntourismus.de/en/events-highlights/highlights/sieben-weihnachtsmaerkte-sorgen-in-koeln-fuer-eine-festliche-stimmung.html

 

here is a web link to Cologne. We enjoyed the medieval market, totally different than the usual markets and fun to spend a little time in. My husband and I spent nearly 3 weeks in Germany and France 12.2008 doing the different Christmas markets by driving. Ahhh wunderbar!

 

Have a wonderful time, it'll be here sooner than you realize.

Susan