Europe River Cruise

[kimberlyjo]

:cool:

I'm looking for a europe river cruise for a honeymoon in late June or early July of 2005... there's too many... I'm confused... any advise out there?

KimberlyJo

E-mail me if you like...

[tban]

hi Kimberljo,

as you correctly observed, there are quite some cruise lines sailing the European waterways and covering vitually every inch of them. I have not heard of any one in particular sticking out as being bad. I think it all comes down to which itinerary you like best. Should Paris be included ? Do you want to see Amsterdam, Prague or Budapest ? And so on. We went last summer on the Legendary Danube cruise from Prague to Budapest. The program is offered by Amadeus Waterways and we were aboard the Ms Symphony and everything just surpassed our expectations. Originally we wanted to go on the Europe's Heartland tour from Paris (my wife wanted Paris !) to Prague. Unfortunately our date was not available any more and we had to make changes in our plans. We still kind of regrett this, since the Heartland tour covers the most romantic and picturesque area of Germany along the Mosell, Rhine, Main and Danube rivers. Prague at the end is just a spectacular finale. We are thinking of taking this cruise next year. What you need to do is check out the different itineraries and when you found one you like, ask the folks on this board again for some feedback about it. We booked our tour through uet. They list around 17 different itineraries and their prices are very competitive. http://*****amade1.html

[bratsuzy]

I wanted to tell you that river cruises the aqge of people on baord is 50 & over. & since it your honeymoon MAybe you would be better off with a regular cruise ship

[geril]

I just booked our first riverboat cruise with Grand Circle. It is a holiday cruise leaving Amsterdam on New Years Eve and cruising to Frankfurt, Germany. I know the weather will be cold but the price was right. We also have a 3 night post stay in Heidelberg. The riverboat we will be on is the MS Ravel. If anyone has info regarding this cruise and especially the ship, I would greatly appreciate hearing about it. We have been on 39 ocean cruises and really look forward to this new experience.

[Suite 16]

We went on the Viking Spirit, from Vienna to Amsterdam last October, after spending time in Munich - fabulous city. We took the train from Munich to Vienna, and it was a trip we won't regret - beautifiul scenery. As for the Spirit, we loved it so much that we are now booked on a Russian river cruise in June. It's true, most of the passengers are middle aged or older, but there were some young couples. We met lovely people, and we're still in touch with many of them. One of the nicest cruise groups we have ever experienced. If you are interested in a quiet ship, good food and fabulous scenery, you couldn't beat cruising the Danube, the Rhine. Viking organized everything perfectly. The shore excursions were among the most interesting we have ever taken. Although we have been on many ocean cruises, and enjoyed them, being able to see scenery so close at hand every day was a treat. Whatever you decide, you will have a wonderful time!

[chrisrotlmacin]

I see this summer on the Danube Delta austrian 3 decks river cruise ships , looking verry modern if i compare with our "ancient " local passenger ships.

Cruising on Danube Delta looks to be growing , more ships are coming every year . As i been al my live on the river, now i preffer Carribean or Alaska . :p

Anyway , on bottom line a verry scennic area specially on Danube Delta channels , a unique area in Europe. Also the area betwen the entry of Danube in to Romania till port of Turnu Severin including the Iron Gates 1 are the most spectacular views from my point on all the upper romanian Danube .

[pokyd]

Thanks for the information. I am also thinking of booking a European river cruise (Viking probably) and am happy to hear that the scenery and accomodations are very much worth it. I hope to go in 2006.

 

And I wouldn't worry about the age of the people on board...I think this would be a very romantic honeymoon cruise with only a 150 or so people vs. 2-3000 on the megaships. Depends on whether you want to stroll and visit towns and countryside or snorkel and jetski your way around!

[geril]

while we are on the riverboat MS Ravel in January on the Rhine, it is suggested that we bring a little gift to our Host Family. What are some appropriate things we can bring?

[jgnova]

Geril:

You might consider something typical of where you live, limited, of course, by import requirements -- you can't take un-tinned foods, for example. We live in Virginia -- I've given folks sealed tins of Virginia peanuts. I do keep looking around for other local ideas at craft fairs where local people sell their own products. It's craft fair season just now, so you might try there. Let us know what you come up with! :D

S

 

[geril]

Hi S & J from Virginia, thank you for your input. You have given me a wonderful idea. Since we are from Florida, I think we will get a jar of Florida Orange Marmalade for a gift for our host family. Our time is getting close. Hope the weather won't be too cold. Don't think I have any other questions at this time. We plan to get all our euros from the ATM machines there. Is that a wise thing to do? Thanks again for your help.:)

[obriendan]

Geril,

We were on the ms Ravel for its maiden cruise in April, 2001, on a Rhone River cruise from Lyon to Arles. We thoroughly enjoyed the cruise. We have been on six GCT tours and believe they are the best value in land tours and river cruises. They were just voted as the 5th best small cruise line by Conde Naste Traveler just after Radisson! The cabins are relatively small, probably 150 sq. ft., but well designed and comfortable. We had cabin on the Soprano deck. It has a very small balcony. You can estimate the size by the fact that you couldn’t sit facing outboard on a folding chair! When we made the cruise in April it was quite cold so I’m not quite sure a balcony cabin was worth the extra expense.

We found the food was excellent, on a par with cruiseline food. However, understandably, the menus are not as extensive. The crew was very friendly and the cabin stewards did a good job taking care of our cabins. All in all, I would highly recommend GCT and the ms Ravel for a river cruise.