Q re Excursion to Heidelberg

[I_r_a]

Hi All,

 

We shall be on the Avalon Rhine & Moselle tour this August.

 

The itinerary shows "Excursion to Heidelberg" on the day between Rudesheim and Strasbourg.

 

We are not sure we want to take a bus to Heidelburg.

 

Does anyone know if we can stay with the ship? If we do, does it continue upriver to pick up those who went to Heidelberg?

 

Thanks for the help.

 

Ira

[H2Otstr]

Ira.....yes, you can stay on the ship. You can enjoy a day of leisure and relax and enjoy the scenery. Lunch will be served as usual, but maybe in a certain area of the dining room only.

[HenrysAunt]

You may well find a lot of excursions include a bus ride. We went with the flow and did as many of the excursions as possible, after all the whole point of the trip for us was to see as much as possible both on and off the river. If you stay on board, you may well be tied up at a port on the outskirts of town, and miss seeing a whole lot of spectular scenery. Just my opinion.

[notamermaid]

Hello l_r_a,

 

I assume you are doing the southbound itinerary: "Day 10 Excursion to Heidelberg This morning, an excursion takes you to Heidelberg, home to the oldest university in Germany. With a local expert, visit the imposing ruins of HEIDELBERG CASTLE, towering magnificently over the city and among the most important Renaissance structures north of the Alps. ..."

 

It appears that you will not go to Heidelberg from Rüdesheim. Such a trip would be longer than just the morning. The wording suggests a drop-off point somewhere between Rüdesheim and further upstream, possibly Mannheim. Mannheim is often used for this. Or it could be Speyer. Or Mannheim and then the bus brings the excursion people to Speyer. Closer to the date I would enquire with Avalon and see how they do it. It sounds to me as if the people will return to the boat for lunch and you all together have a scenic sailing in the afternoon. But this is speculation and this itinerary is new, they might do that stretch like they did it in past years or might have changed something.

 

You can always stay on board, you might not be the only one staying and might have a leisurely morning with conversation and laughter!

 

The bus ride is probably around 70 minutes one way maximum, but do check with Avalon.

 

If you do not feel like hanging around on the boat and provided the boat is docked for a while, you could always arrange a short trip by taxi into the countryside. If not Avalon beforehand, then the cruise director onboard can advise you what can be done in the time frame for that morning.

 

Have a look at a map to familiarize yourself with the distances and you could even do a route on google maps Speyer to Heidelberg to give you an idea of how long you might have to be on the bus. And rest assured, the coaches they use will be comfortable!

 

notamermaid

[I_r_a]

Thank you all for your responses.

 

Ira

[beanpittsburgh]

Just my opinion but Heidelberg was my favorite stop on our cruise. We have been there twice and enjoyed great meals and wonderful pastries both times. Lots of scenic picture taking. If you stay on ship, you won't have many with you besides the crew. I'm guessing but I don't think you will be sailing on the most scenic part of the river either as the ship travels to meet up with those that went on the excursion.

[ikesyd]

Hi Ira

I have the same question as we have been to Heidleberg before and would prefer to do something else. I sent a message to Avalon/Globus and this is their reply:

 

We are unable to advise you the exact dock location the docking position is only known shortly prior to the arrival of the ship. Due to various departure times for these vessels, the ships are frequently moved and re-docked in new locations throughout the day. Everything depends on what other ships' movements are in that port at the time.

The ship is not scheduled to be moved while you are in Heidelberg for the day, you will sail in the evening.

Will be interested in your experience when you return.