River Cruising with 3?

[Escaper]

We are starting to look at the possibility of a river cruise in Europe for next summer, 2012. Like the intineraries that start in Paris and then you take the train to Trier and then go through Germany, etc.

 

We have 3 in our travelling party. Is there any way to make that work on any of the river cruise lines without booking 2 cabins? Anything equivalent to a "mini suite" like on an ocean cruise?

 

Also, do European hotels have rolloway beds to accomodate a 3rd person like many US hotels do?

 

Thanks for the help!

 

Escaper

[GiannaD]

We are starting to look at the possibility of a river cruise in Europe for next summer, 2012. Like the intineraries that start in Paris and then you take the train to Trier and then go through Germany, etc.

 

We have 3 in our travelling party. Is there any way to make that work on any of the river cruise lines without booking 2 cabins? Anything equivalent to a "mini suite" like on an ocean cruise?

 

Also, do European hotels have rolloway beds to accomodate a 3rd person like many US hotels do?

 

Thanks for the help!

 

Escaper

 

Most river cruises can only sleep 2 in a cabin. You might consider Vantages new ship Discovery II which has double and single rooms which are rare on river cruises. It would still be two cabins but avoid the single supplement.

 

Hotel rooms in Europe are generally smaller than in the US. You would have to check out hotels carefully to make sure that you would have three beds rather than 2 double beds in a room for three.

[newfirsttimer]

We are starting to look at the possibility of a river cruise in Europe for next summer, 2012. Like the intineraries that start in Paris and then you take the train to Trier and then go through Germany, etc.

 

We have 3 in our travelling party. Is there any way to make that work on any of the river cruise lines without booking 2 cabins? Anything equivalent to a "mini suite" like on an ocean cruise?

 

Also, do European hotels have rolloway beds to accomodate a 3rd person like many US hotels do?

 

Thanks for the help!

 

Escaper

 

Scenic Tours also has a 'single room with a balcony' on their ships but as far as I know regular cabins only sleep two people.

[shoshona2]

Take a look at Tauck's new river cruise in France. Their four ships have 14 suites of 300 sq. ft.

 

Sheila

[orchestrapal]

Try 3 of you in a "walk-in closet." That's a normal river cruise cabin.:(

[Paulinda]

Avalon has some new ships with 'royal' suites of 300 sq ft also. I don't know if they use roll away beds or not to get 3 people into a cabin. Perhaps if it's a young child they may have room, but I doubt you would want to take a young child on a river cruise.

 

Go to the avalon waterways . com site and click 'the avalon fleet' and check it out. You'd have to travel on one of the newer ships and use a suite as I doubt you would want to cram into a regular sized 172 sq ft cabin. Unless the 3rd is sleeping on floor next to the bed there is no room and I doubt they would allow it.

 

Good luck!

[genmasjoy]

Some river cruiselines waive the single supplement charge on certain dates and itineraries. Check with a TA. I don't think three could fit into a cabin, they are very small.

[newlondon]

All of Tauck's boats have 300 sq. ft. suites with some specifically designated for a third person. Even at that size it will be quite intimate.

[shoshona2]

Hi newlondon,

 

Our friends had one of the 300 sq. ft. suites on our Tauck riverboat cruise. There seemed to be plenty of room for three friends to sleep in there. This summer we took our 18 year old granddaughter on Tauck's London/Paris Tour. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency in London and the Intercontinental in Paris. Both hotels put rollaways in the larger rooms they gave us. They were very accommodating. In Paris, I asked for several duvets to soften the hardness of the rollaway's mattress since foam toppers aren't readily available in Europe. I even offered to sleep on the rollaway, but my darling granddaughter was so happy to be vacationing in Europe with us that she turned me down.

 

Sheila

[Escaper]

Thanks for all the help, folks. I will look at a couple of the specific boats mentioned up-thread to see if anything works out. I should have explained that our 3rd is our 16 year old son, who, unfortunately for accomadations, is growing like a weed.

 

Shoshono, which Tauck tour was that that included the nice hotels in London and Paris?

 

Thanks! If any one else has input, that would be great.

 

Escaper.

[aussietraveller58]

Hi- Having just got back from a wonderful two week cruise with AMA ( Amsterdam to Budapest) I agree the cabins would be hard to actually fit an extra mattress into: but as a mum of a similar aged son ( 17) who loves travelling in all its forms, I know my son would not have enjoyed the trip: just too many oldies on board! It makes the pace quite slow. The "fun" is appropriately geared to the average age of traveller. I was the youngest on our cruise.....at 53! The vast majority were in their 70's. Certainly you could do your own thing on the shore excursions, and I frequently did, plus I loved the bikes on board, but there are plenty of hours when you are in a reasonabely confined space with older people and quite regulated. You might like to give this some thought. I had some friends who chose a bigger ship that travelled around the mediterranean, and their teenagers enjoyed that immensly, and other friends who hired their own canal boat in France, again a great option for their children who were in their early 20's. Hope this helps.

 

I was travelling with my parents, and we found several good options for "mini suites" such as at the Intercontinental Budapest which had an extra bed in the living room area - it was actually cheaper to book that than two ordinary rooms.

[shoshona2]

Hi Escaper,

 

It was Tauck's Week in London/Paris. There were six teenagers on it and the kids had a great time. They have Bridge Tours, also -- grandparents/children/grandchildren. But, she didn't want to be with young children, so we picked this one. Go to their website and check them out.

 

Sheila

[newlondon]

Hi Sheila, I agree you could fit another mattress-roll out in the suite but that defeats the purpose of having the suite. DW and I loved our Rhine-Danube cruise because we had the extra room and did not feel cramped. Space is one of the reasons we have avoided Crystal in favor of SS and Regent; Crystal, however, came up with an Asian itinerary in'13 we just couldn't pass up.

[GiannaD]

Hi- Having just got back from a wonderful two week cruise with AMA ( Amsterdam to Budapest) I agree the cabins would be hard to actually fit an extra mattress into: but as a mum of a similar aged son ( 17) who loves travelling in all its forms, I know my son would not have enjoyed the trip: just too many oldies on board! It makes the pace quite slow. The "fun" is appropriately geared to the average age of traveller. I was the youngest on our cruise.....at 53! The vast majority were in their 70's. Certainly you could do your own thing on the shore excursions, and I frequently did, plus I loved the bikes on board, but there are plenty of hours when you are in a reasonabely confined space with older people and quite regulated. You might like to give this some thought. I had some friends who chose a bigger ship that travelled around the mediterranean, and their teenagers enjoyed that immensly, and other friends who hired their own canal boat in France, again a great option for their children who were in their early 20's. Hope this helps.

 

I was travelling with my parents, and we found several good options for "mini suites" such as at the Intercontinental Budapest which had an extra bed in the living room area - it was actually cheaper to book that than two ordinary rooms.

 

I agree with this poster about the age group on river cruises. We have been on two Vantage itineraries and will do a third cruise in September. We really love Vanatge but we are in our 70's and feel that a 16 year old would be bored on a Vantage cruise. Some other lines may be better for teens but in general river cruises cater to "mature" travelers.

[Hydrokitty]

I agree with this poster about the age group on river cruises. We have been on two Vantage itineraries and will do a third cruise in September. We really love Vanatge but we are in our 70's and feel that a 16 year old would be bored on a Vantage cruise. Some other lines may be better for teens but in general river cruises cater to "mature" travelers.

 

I agree with both previous posters as well. We've been on 4 Vantage cruises and have 2more booked, it's wonderful for people our age 60+, but every 16 year old I know would be bored out of their minds! The "night life" for one thing generally leans towards a music or choral group coming on board from one of the local towns and usually are done by 10 p.m. Vantage usually has a piano player in the lounge and the lounge stays open until the last passenger leaves....I don't know how late that is, because we were always in bed by 11:D Very few of the river ships have pools on board and those that do tend to have small pools that are used more for soaking than swimming or sports. River cruising really is geared toward the older generation and chances are very very good that he would be the only teen on board/bored.

[Escaper]

Thanks for all the help, everyone. Sounds like we either better look at a land tour or else wait a few years until our son is in college and doesn't want to hang out with his parents anymore!

 

Escaper