Avalon Tranquility II Rhine River Observations

[Catlover2017]

Thank you to everyone who posts on these message boards. I have used them countless times and appreciate all the great info. We completed the Avalon Waterways Rhine River Cruise a week ago on Tranquility IIand it was 5 star all the way. Just what we expected since we traveled with Avalon last year on the Danube River.

 

We stayed at Moevenpick Zurich and Amsterdam City Center hotels before and after our trip. Both hotels were outstanding and English is spoken by everyone. Would highly recommend. We spent an extra day in Amsterdam to visit the Anne Frank house. We used the tram day pass to get around. All worked out well just watch out for the bikes!

 

 

This cruise had 4 large groups (3 from US and 1 Philippines) on it which all preferred to stay with their own at meals and during walking tours. We did manage to find a few independent travels to dine with and enjoyed the company of Australians, Brits, Singapore and a few US travelers. I shared with my travel agent as I think I will have her ask about this next trip as we enjoy meeting new people and it was very limited on this cruise.

 

We participated in all the walking tours and found the guides engaging, knowledgeable and humorous. We did three paid excursions: Mt.Pilates and Lucerne – was one of the highlights, Keukenhof Gardens in Amsterdam(only open 8 weeks in the spring and not to be missed), and WWII Maginot Line bunkers (lots of stairs and underground) which my husband loved. Would highly recommend all three of these jaunts. They were outstanding.

 

The food was delicious! Chef prepared excellent meals and if you can’t find something to eat I’ll be surprised. One day they grilled chicken, fish, burgers and brats on the sundeck. It was scrumptious!

 

The Avalon riverboat stateroom has 5 electrical outlets –one in bathroom, one beside bed, one on coving on other side of bed, two above desk unit. There is one in the corner but TV is plugged into that outlet. All you need is several adaptors – one for each outlet. You do not need a converter unless you are traveling with items that are not 120/220V compliant. Your iphones and tablets are. I purchased a small curling iron that is dual voltage. Hair dryer is supplied. My husband’s electric shaver is also dual. We also brought a 4 inch power strip and extension cord. Both were used.

 

Avalon supplies L’Occitane shampoo, conditioner, shower gel and lotion. Two sets of towels including wash clothes, robes and slippers are also supplied. Plenty of bottled water is available in the room and handed out before each walking tour.

 

If you don’t have a daypack I recommend you get one. We got one from HikPro for $10 that folds into its own pocket. We also took a small auto collapsible umbrella which would fit in day pack. Avalon has large golf size umbrellas for guest but we liked our small one. We did not use our mini-binoculars even in the Rhine Gorge castles. This is a personal choice.

 

Ladies, this is unsolicited advice: please be smart about what clothes you pack. Some on the cruise didn’t bring a jacket let alone a rain slicker and some only brought sandals or flats not a good pair of walking shoes. Europe is covered in cobblestones which are uneven. Walking shoes are essential. Check out Land’s End for jackets that fold into a pocket making them easy to pack. We brought gloves and ear muffs and needed them for late April / May. Dress is very casual. Many men wore jeans and polo shirts to dinner all week except for the Captain’s dinner when they wore khakis and a shirt, no tie. A pair of black slacks and a few tops work well for women. As stated before layers of clothes work well. Leave all the jewelry at home.

 

We’re already investigating which river to cruise next year –any suggestions are welcome!

[Roz]

Catlover,

 

Welcome back. Thank you for your review. Lots of good insights and advice.

 

I'm amazed at the people (mostly women) who don't bring proper travel footwear. I've seen it all, including a lady who burned her foot on a steam vent because she was wearing flip flops to traverse a volcano field in Hawaii. Not to mention the baby boa constrictor that slithered across a lady's almost bare foot on a nature hike in the Bahamas.

 

There's a thread here in the river cruising forum where some people are only bring shorts with them for their European river cruises.

 

I've been on an ocean cruise where there were large groups of people who knew each other and were traveling together, and it definitely impacted the atmosphere onboard.

 

Roz

[Catlover2017]

Thanks Roz. It is amazing clothing continues to be a topic of conversation especially with all the good advice from previous cruisers.

[kiwixmas]

thanks for info on cruise we sail 27th june this year on vista.

question about power supply think it is 230 v but what is the plug layout?

[Daisi]

Kiwixmas, the plug outlet is European.

 

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[Jake40]

thanks for info on cruise we sail 27th june this year on vista.

question about power supply think it is 230 v but what is the plug layout?

 

 

The outlets accept plugs with 2 round prongs (European)

 

 

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[Marken]

Thanks so much for the info - we leave in 3 days for Budapest - Amsterdam trip on Avalon. Our first river cruise and your packing (clothing) info was perfect. Took out my husband's tie (he's thrilled!!) We have 2 waterproof jackets packed so we are good in that department. Thanks again.

[joy2travel]

Thank you so much for posting your thoughts.....very helpful! I'm doing Basel to Amasterdam June 3rd with Avalon and so looking forward to it. Travelling solo so hoping there are a few fellow passengers that are doing likewise....if not, I'm sure I'll still have a wonderful time. Good to hear comments re clothing. Was debating about whether to pack a dress but after reading your comments, will stick with my black dress pants and dressier tops along with a couple of nice scarves to dress things up a bit. Taking a fleece jacket along with my lightweight rain jacket to wear over it if rainy. Have a pair of sketchers for footwear along with my Naot sandals which I know are very good on cobblestones as they were on my feet most of the time when touring Italy a couple of years ago. Thanks again for posting!

[Catlover2017]

Thanks so much for the info - we leave in 3 days for Budapest - Amsterdam trip on Avalon. Our first river cruise and your packing (clothing) info was perfect. Took out my husband's tie (he's thrilled!!) We have 2 waterproof jackets packed so we are good in that department. Thanks again.

 

We loved Budapest! Enjoy and if you have any other questions let me know.

[bmj]

We have our first River Cruise booked for September 21st, Avalon, Tranquility II. Amsterdam to Basel and 3 post days in Zurich and Lake Como. I would like to pack just a carry on. Any suggestions on what kind of clothes to take for that time of year? Stressful for me as i usually have a full size and carry on, but then again have never been to Europe. Any suggestions would be appreciated. We have taken several ocean cruises and I know the wardrobe is quite different. Thank you in advance.