Christmas Markets - Rhine or Danube

[Miamia65]

Which itinerary is better for a christmas markets river cruise?  Rhine or Danube?  and why?  

 

Interested in all views and opinions and why you prefer one or the other or both.

 

We have been on many ocean cruises and are thinking of doing a river cruise in late Nov/Dec 2020.  Also would like to see many of the great castles and historical architecture down these river systems.   

[mozfoz]

Your question is very vague. Which river is better for you depends on many factors. First, look at the itinerary of each river. Decide which river offers you your first choice of places that interest you. Then check out the markets at each place. The Danube is said to offer a first timer the best introduction to river cruising. The Rhine is known for its castles. Both have Christmas Markets at almost each port. You need to check out each cruise line, just as you would an ocean cruise. You need to decide for yourself which river fits your interest best. Either is great. Good luck!

[Host Jazzbeau]

Welcome to the River Cruising forum!  I have created several Stickies at the top of the forum that provide lots of  basic information, but I hope that our devoted Christmas Market cruisers will address your questions with their own perspectives which will give you a more personal angle on what to expect.

[Coral]

I have only just gotten back from Crystal River cruise on Danube that included Christmas Markets (and had a great time) but can't compare Christmas Markets on the Danube to those on the Rhine.

 

My recommendation is to figure out which itinerary you want to visit and go with that. While Christmas Markets are fun and festive - you will be doing tours that also include the cities you are visiting. For example - we did a shore excursion and tour of Salzburg, Austria and then had a few hours of free time to do what we wanted and many of us did a combination of Christmas markets and seeing other sites around Salzburg. This was similar in many of the cities. In Vienna - they ran buses every hour to the most popular Christmas Market there (Rathausplatz) and from there, you could easily walk to a few others. You could combine a trip to Schönbrunn Palace and then visit their market afterwards.

 

You can google this years dates and times for Christmas Markets. Some markets didn't open until 10 or 11 am (or even later). After awhile, many of them look similar so plan on visiting the cities you are visiting and balancing tours with Christmas Markets.

 

I was on Crystal Mozart and highly recommend the ship/itinerary (10 days RT Vienna).

 

Edited December 15, 2018 by Coral

[kimshoes]

We are currently on Rhine Getaway. We have done Danube Christmas market cruise (both on Viking) and decided we like the Danube better. There was more time in the markets at night when the lights and decorations were lit and due to our itinerary some of the markets aren’t really up and running while we are there. 

[katz]

We just returned for a Rhine Christmas Market River cruise.  We loved it.  There were some  issues with water levels.  I think that we were the last cruise that had to be bussed and do a ship swap.  I can't speak to the Danube, except to say that I asked four-

experienced Christmas Market cruisers, who were on this cruise, which river they preferred for Christmas Markets and they all agreed that the Danube was the better one.  We booked the Danube for next year.

 

We enjoyed everything about the Rhine cruise. I would check itineraries and decide which cities you would like to visit.  There is plenty of time for the markets.  Each one has a different flavor, but after a while they all seem to be selling the same items. I would also suggest keeping an eye on river water levels.  With global warming, the rivers are not running as high as in the past and most river boats were having trouble making the complete trip--on the Rhine.  I was clueless about this and didn't realize what was going on until about a month before our sail date.  It caused some worry, but the cruise company was on top of things.

 

Be aware that the markets do not open until the last Sunday in November. 

[Coral]

2 hours ago, katz said:

Be aware that the markets do not open until the last Sunday in November. 

In Austria they start earlier. Germany appears to be later.

 

Here are the dates for this years' ones in Vienna: https://www.city-walks.info/Vienna/Christmas-Market.html  

 

Whichever area you are going - I would suggest googling the dates for the different cities.

 

Glad to hear I did the Danube first. Glad you enjoyed yours also! 🙂

Edited December 19, 2018 by Coral

[Valley Girl of VA]

I just returned from the Rhine Christmas market cruise this past weekend on AMA.  We all felt like our time at the markets were rushed.  We took the city tours because the markets do not open until 11: 00 AM and it would almost always seem that we had to report back to our meeting spot at 12:30-12:45 to get the bus back to our ship to leave.  I only got to see Strasbourg lit up because I chose not to do the 4 PM tour of Gengenbach.  Although those who took that tour enjoyed it, they also wished they could have seen the markets at night.  I enjoyed the cruise but was also disappointed by it.  Several visits within cities were cancelled because at the last minute we were able to go through the gorge - we never got the cathedral tour in Cologne, didn't do the Jordaan tour in Amsterdam and other smaller destinations were cancelled as well.  That is more a function of the lateness of change.

[Host Jazzbeau]

9 hours ago, Valley Girl of VA said:

I just returned from the Rhine Christmas market cruise this past weekend on AMA.  We all felt like our time at the markets were rushed.  We took the city tours because the markets do not open until 11: 00 AM and it would almost always seem that we had to report back to our meeting spot at 12:30-12:45 to get the bus back to our ship to leave.  I only got to see Strasbourg lit up because I chose not to do the 4 PM tour of Gengenbach.  Although those who took that tour enjoyed it, they also wished they could have seen the markets at night.  I enjoyed the cruise but was also disappointed by it.  Several visits within cities were cancelled because at the last minute we were able to go through the gorge - we never got the cathedral tour in Cologne, didn't do the Jordaan tour in Amsterdam and other smaller destinations were cancelled as well.  That is more a function of the lateness of change.

 

Sounds like the cruise line was damned if they did, damned if they didn't on this one.  Most people on this forum have been praying for rain so they could sail through the gorge.

[orchidj5]

On ‎12‎/‎21‎/‎2018 at 3:17 AM, Valley Girl of VA said:

I just returned from the Rhine Christmas market cruise this past weekend on AMA.  We all felt like our time at the markets were rushed.  We took the city tours because the markets do not open until 11: 00 AM and it would almost always seem that we had to report back to our meeting spot at 12:30-12:45 to get the bus back to our ship to leave.  I only got to see Strasbourg lit up because I chose not to do the 4 PM tour of Gengenbach.  Although those who took that tour enjoyed it, they also wished they could have seen the markets at night.  I enjoyed the cruise but was also disappointed by it.  Several visits within cities were cancelled because at the last minute we were able to go through the gorge - we never got the cathedral tour in Cologne, didn't do the Jordaan tour in Amsterdam and other smaller destinations were cancelled as well.  That is more a function of the lateness of change.

I find this very interesting since we were either on the same cruise or cruising at the same time from the other end of the itinerary and had a very very different experience.  I am guessing you started in Amsterdam since the cruise starting in Basel was docked at Strasbourg when the shooting occurred and the cruise line opted to have us go to Baden-Baden, which was lovely, instead due to risk and most everything in Strasbourg being closed while French anti-terror police pursued the shooter.. All of our other  tours went as scheduled, and you had the option to drop off if you wanted more time in the markets. The cruise through the gorge was not last minute-it went as planned and was awesome.  We were the first cruise in 12 weeks to not have a ship swap and follow the scheduled itinerary.  We were very satisfied and are considering taking the Danube itenarary in 2020.

[Valley Girl of VA]

1 hour ago, orchidj5 said:

I find this very interesting since we were either on the same cruise or cruising at the same time from the other end of the itinerary and had a very very different experience.  I am guessing you started in Amsterdam since the cruise starting in Basel was docked at Strasbourg when the shooting occurred and the cruise line opted to have us go to Baden-Baden, which was lovely, instead due to risk and most everything in Strasbourg being closed while French anti-terror police pursued the shooter.. All of our other  tours went as scheduled, and you had the option to drop off if you wanted more time in the markets. The cruise through the gorge was not last minute-it went as planned and was awesome.  We were the first cruise in 12 weeks to not have a ship swap and follow the scheduled itinerary.  We were very satisfied and are considering taking the Danube itenarary in 2020.

 

Sorry you are confused.  I was on the AMAPrima which began in Basel on the 8th.  We were in Strasbourg on Monday, the day prior to the shooting.  Monday night we set sail Heidelberg (from Strasbourg)  where we arrived on Tuesday.  I believe the shooting was on Tuesday night which saw us in Rudisheim.  Remember, there were three AMA boats on the Rhine - the AMAStella, AMAKristina and our ship, AMAPrima.  

 

Yes, we could have dropped out of the tour but the markets didn't open till 11:00 so there was no reason to drop out of the city tour.  I wished they had given us more time AFTER the city tour for the markets rather than leaving the city around 12:30-1:00ish to go back to the ship by bus, most times.

 

I don't think I said anything about the gorge being last minute but rather, AMA thought up until a few days before our cruise that we would be cruising in the Lowlands so our reservations for the cathedral tour in Cologne, our tour in Jordaan and a few others were  cancelled as they didn't think we would be there.  You see - we had no ship to swap with.  We were told that we also were the first ship to sail the gorge in full but it really doesn't matter - just what we were told.  We were alsos told this was the first time in 3 1/2 months that the Prima was in Basel, Strasbourg, etc since it had been trapped in the Amsterdam area.

 

This was my third AMA trip having done the Rhone and Danube previously.  We did enjoy this trip but it also was disappointing - I had done the cruise previously but on Avalon and felt that we had more time in the cities and saw more plus sufficient time on our own.  We had an inexperienced cruise director who had been to our ports of call and really had no personal point of view since he was so new.  Within eleven days we had been told we were going, we were then confirmed we weren't going and then we were told we were going - too many last minute changes.  Some of our tour guides told us how they lost a lot of money not being able to do tours because the ships were not sailing.  Again, although the cruise was fine, it definitely was lacking in certain aspects and for many of us, the sparkle, glow and excitement was tarnished at the beginning.

 

[garlictown]

My husband and I just returned from a Christmas Markets river cruise with Emerald Waterways beginning in Amsterdam and ending in Budapest. ( 2 weeks) We had a fantastic time enjoying touring with various guides and having free time at the Christmas Markets. 

 What a wonderful experience~~great itinerary for 6 countries! 

[Coral]

1 minute ago, garlictown said:

My husband and I just returned from a Christmas Markets river cruise with Emerald Waterways beginning in Amsterdam and ending in Budapest. ( 2 weeks) We had a fantastic time enjoying touring with various guides and having free time at the Christmas Markets. 

 What a wonderful experience~~great itinerary for 6 countries! 

Great! How did you enjoy Emerald Waterways? Hopefully you lucked out with timing and was able to sail to most ports.

 

Which cities had the best Christmas markets?

[garlictown]

We were able to visit all the cities on our itinerary and there were so many Christmas Markets...not just one or two in the cities! The cruise director would have a briefing the night before and had plenty of handouts/ maps on the various markets to enjoy. Emerald Waterways lived up to our expectations. During the day or evening, there would be different demonstrations or performances~~glass blowing, trivia night, jukebox jury night, cooking demo ( making Apple strudel), going through the locks, listening to a Bavarian band, Hungarian Folklore, etc.

It's hard to say which Christmas Markets were the best. The Colonge market by the cathedral in the evening was magical! Remember it gets dark by 5 pm in December. 

[Coral]

9 hours ago, garlictown said:

The Colonge market by the cathedral in the evening was magical! Remember it gets dark by 5 pm in December. 

Thank you. I just visited the markets in Salzburg (2 of them), Vienna (several), St. Wolfgang, St. Giligan and Bratislava. I was wondering if I hit the better markets or need to return to see some of the other ones.

 

Glad to hear about the Cologne market.

[zdcatc12]

Last week, my brother and I just booked the Rhine for 2019 NB. The cruise does Nuremburg-Amsterdam. This is on Gate1. It will be our first river trip and looking forward to the markets. My only experience before has been in Mainz after Christmas and they were over then. Not sure how Gate1 is, but it was too good a deal to pass up. $1199 with a French Balcony. I figured it is worth a try for a first timer. The ship was built in 2016. It is the Monarch Empress.

[BAYA]

I am considering booking a Christmas markets on the Rhine cruise for Dec. 2020 on the Viking Idi. My question: Is it so cold and/or dark early each day in that region that it's a waste of money to book a veranda cabin since I'll never go out on the balcony anyway? also, any opinions on Viking longship French balcony vs. veranda cabin?

Many thanks.

[Coral]

4 hours ago, BAYA said:

I am considering booking a Christmas markets on the Rhine cruise for Dec. 2020 on the Viking Idi. My question: Is it so cold and/or dark early each day in that region that it's a waste of money to book a veranda cabin since I'll never go out on the balcony anyway? also, any opinions on Viking longship French balcony vs. veranda cabin?

Many thanks.

In November on the Danube - it was probably dark around 6 or 6:30. Some days, it was 20 degrees for the high. We were gone most days so for me a balcony would not have made sense. Also, ships raft up next to each other so it is very possible when you are docked, you maybe looking directly at the balcony of a ship docked next to you.

[notamermaid]

BAYA,

In December it can be cold. Early morning you will often have frost, it can rain heavily or occasionally snow. But it can vary. Some afternoons you can encounter 10 degrees Celsius.

You can look up the daylight hours on timeanddate.com End of daylight in Cologne on 8 December is given to be at 16:26 for example. It will not be pitch dark due to all the street lights. That is what you would mainly see, artificial light and hardly any landscape. Not much sailing is done during the day. The Rhine gorge is sailed through in daylight but most people spend their time viewing it from the sun deck, or the lounge when it is too cold.

 

notamermaid

 

[G.M.T.]

13 hours ago, BAYA said:

I am considering booking a Christmas markets on the Rhine cruise for Dec. 2020 on the Viking Idi. My question: Is it so cold and/or dark early each day in that region that it's a waste of money to book a veranda cabin since I'll never go out on the balcony anyway? also, any opinions on Viking longship French balcony vs. veranda cabin?

Many thanks.

Check out this website for sunrise and sunset for all the towns you will be visiting:

 

https://www.sunrise-and-sunset.com

[Coral]

On a positive note, the Christmas Markets are prettier at night!

[Roz]

For castles, I would recommend the Rhine, but be aware that they're concentrated in one stretch of the river.

 

Roz

[BAYA]

Thank you notamermaid, Coral, and G.M.T. Very helpful. I will definitely look up the daylight hours for the ports we'll be visiting. Thanks for the links!

Edited March 4, 2019 by BAYA
fix typo

[WonderMan3]

On 12/29/2018 at 12:32 AM, garlictown said:

We were able to visit all the cities on our itinerary and there were so many Christmas Markets...not just one or two in the cities! The cruise director would have a briefing the night before and had plenty of handouts/ maps on the various markets to enjoy. Emerald Waterways lived up to our expectations. During the day or evening, there would be different demonstrations or performances~~glass blowing, trivia night, jukebox jury night, cooking demo ( making Apple strudel), going through the locks, listening to a Bavarian band, Hungarian Folklore, etc.

It's hard to say which Christmas Markets were the best. The Colonge market by the cathedral in the evening was magical! Remember it gets dark by 5 pm in December. 

 

I was interested in doing a similar itinerary with Emerald. Can you advise how late the ship stayed in port? Just wondering if you had any time in the evening visiting these ports? Some of these Christmas markets like Vienna really need to be seen at night. Also, were shuttles offered from the ship into the city centers where the Christmas markets are in places like Nuremburg or Vienna?

[garlictown]

On 3/19/2019 at 1:34 PM, WonderMan3 said:

 

I was interested in doing a similar itinerary with Emerald. Can you advise how late the ship stayed in port? Just wondering if you had any time in the evening visiting these ports? Some of these Christmas markets like Vienna really need to be seen at night. Also, were shuttles offered from the ship into the city centers where the Christmas markets are in places like Nuremburg or Vienna?

I remember being in Vienna all day with snow! We toured in the morning and had the rest of the afternoon and evening to do what we wished. There was a 'shuttle' running from a particular meeting point in the evening back to the ship so we did have a late night. Colonge was another town with a Christmas Market with a lively band in the evening. You'd have to check the schedule for the times. It was a very memorable experience!