Considering a 1st river cruise - is it right for us?

[Coral]

You maybe better off doing a cruise ship that has port stops that go to Venice, Rome and Florence. At least there is some more activity on cruise ships when in port.

[3rdCoastFan]

I was on Viking's Rhine itinerary last spring. It was my first cruise (on any type of water). The soon-to-be-DW and I both found it very relaxing. Very different than our usual trips where we pick 2-3 cities in Europe, find airbnb's and then travel by train between them all. We really liked it when we could sit on the Aquavit Terrace while the ship was sailing and just read and watch the world go by. The wifi was pretty bad so it made it easy to unplug. We got into the habit pretty quickly of waking up early, doing the morning tour and then getting back to the ship for lunch. Our afternoons were usually onboard - having a drink or two and just relaxing. I felt that we still saw a great deal and would absolutely do another river cruise but maybe not on Viking. We would rather find a line with more flexible dining options - maybe a ship with onboard spa facilities, too. To Viking's credit, they were willing to arrange spa trips for us. While in Cologne, for example, they were ready to arrange a horse-driven carriage to bring us to a posh hotel for spa treatments - if there's anything they can do to make the trip better, they will. 

 

One area where the advertising definitely got us was the idea of sailing into the middle of every town we would see. That was not the case and I think @sharkster77 phrased it very nicely. We spent more times on buses than I thought we would and while the buses are nice and the rides generally don't run more than 30ish minutes, it's not exactly what we had in mind. Granted, I could have checked a map myself to see that Strasbourg is not on a river that can accommodate cruise ships but now I know for next time! 

[notamermaid]

3rdCoastFan,

so it is still true that Viking has no gym or spa treatment room (?) available on their ships.

About Viking marketing, those adverts give a good impression of what river cruising looks like and what it definitely does not look like all the time. You will never see a cruise ship on a photo docked in Nuremberg or Erlangen as both are on the Canal. In any company's advertising. From what I have gathered from past cruisers Nuremberg is the worst port to be stuck in as regards scenery anywhere between Amsterdam and Budapest. From a past cruiser it has recently come to my attention that Viking has used the industrial harbour in Cologne for docking. Not sure if that was a one-off (for about a week) due to low water and/or many Viking ships gathering in the city at the same time, if not, then the company will see quite a few disgruntled passengers this year. Which reminds me that a balcony suite may sound great to book, but rafting (double-docking) in port could ruin your view.

 

1 hour ago, 3rdCoastFan said:

to see that Strasbourg is not on a river that can accommodate cruise ships

 

Indeed, this is Strasbourg and the river Ill (capital I as in "I like", double ll as in "all"):

I copied this from marinetraffic. The blue dots are river cruise ships. In the harbour area you find the CroisiEurope ships of 110m size, not sure if those are the blue dots exactly. When passing and staying for a half day or day many ships are far outside in Kehl in Germany. @samrothstein This is the reality of some cities. But I have mentioned Koblenz as being quite the opposite, i.e. perfect in over 90% of cruises. Even Amawaterways moving out to Lahnstein near Koblenz is not a big deal as that town is pleasant.

 

It has been mentioned before that the sundeck could be closed. That is a big feature on the Main and the Canal, therefore I do not recommend such a cruise for those who love to be up there relaxing while cruising or even in port. I think a cruise from Frankfurt to Nuremberg or vice versa would be detrimental to your - your wife's enjoyment - of a river cruise.

 

It sounds to me that you are an early and a late riser travelling together. I still think you could both enjoy river cruising as early riser breakfasts are available and if you head out after (normal) breakfast your wife could always stay onboard. For ideas how mornings are structured I happily refer you to past cruisers and the roll calls where people sometimes post dailies (sheets handed out with more details than you receive with your documents).

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

I don’t usually recommend the Douro for a first river cruise, but it might work for you. By law all cruising is done during the day, so DW would have lots of lovely scenery to watch (and you would be with her). Shore excursions usually require a bus ride (the riverbanks are very steep), but that would only be part of each day. Choice of itineraries that start & end in Porto/Lisbon, or some that sail one direction only (making basically the same stops) and start or end in Madrid. 

[cruisewmn]

I highly recommend a Crystal river cruise on the Rhine.  We took our first river cruise on the Bach last summer and loved it.  

 

Unfortunately, I tripped on a cobblestone on day 2 and landed hard on my knee.  While I still did most excursions, one day I stayed back while my husband and adult son went off to Heidelberg.  I was disappointed to miss the sights, but knew I needed to rest and elevate my knee if I was going to enjoy the rest of the cruise and our following week in the Alps.  Turns out I had a wonderful day sleeping in, eating breakfast in bed, and then reading a book on the top deck.  Crystal has an amazing sun deck with sofas, comfy chairs, and sun loungers.  I was not alone up there -- I spent a few hours getting to know some of the other guests over mojitos.  It was a fabulous day.  The waiters were on duty and the pop up bar was open.  Crystal also offers massages and has a nice indoor pool.  The coffee bar is open all day for drinks and snacks, and of course, a full lunch is offered in the dining room. 

 

The cruise was so good that we booked another one on the Danube for this summer.  We picked a 10 day cruise so that we could spend more time just relaxing on the boat a few days to better balance out the sightseeing. 

[3rdCoastFan]

If it's any value to the OP, I posted dailies for my Rhine Getaway last April. While itineraries are always subject to change, this may give you a good idea of what to expect while on board a Viking ship. 

 

[atlasali]

I have problems with my knees, especially climbing stairs.  I have been on 2 river cruises and over 30 ocean cruises.  The river cruises were wonderful!  First of all, there is always something to see.  I enjoyed watching the castles, villages, nesting swans and other boats on the river go by.  I would follow our location on my tablet.  Other passengers would ask me what we were seeing.  Frankly, it was difficult to finally close the drapes and close my eyes at night.  Several times my husband took off on the provided tour and I stayed onboard.  They offered 3 different activity levels of tours.  So the ones I went on were fine.  I sometimes passed on part of tour with lots of stairs.  For instance, we took a minibus up to a castle, I sat outside overlooking the Moselle River and listened to the guide on my headphones.  Our Vantage riverboat did not have a pool.  It did have bicycles.  I think you both would love it. 

[4774Papa]

We have taken four river cruises that included a land tour as well.

Russia

China

Rhone/Saone River in France

Douro River Valley in Portugal

 

The last two in Europe were great river cruises, very scenic.  The one in France visited many historic places.  In both, we enjoyed the wine or port.

 

We liked AMA and Vantage World Travel.

[jeb_bud]

On 1/20/2020 at 2:25 AM, samrothstein said:

This is much more in line with what I meant. She can sleep in late and just *do nothing* a morning or two while I go out early and explore. 

It's easy to have a laid back morning on a river cruise.  While most of the passengers are off on their excursions the lounge and sundeck are available to sit and relax.  We cruise on Scenic, so we also have our balcony to relax and see the sights on our side of the ship.  You also have the bartender and butler's undivided attention if you want it.  Depending on the ship there might be a hot tub on the sundeck.

 

As others have said, the excursions are mostly in the morning so unless you skip them your exploring time will be in the afternoon.