Oberammergau Passion Play

[MightyQuinn]

On 4/1/2020 at 10:05 PM, MightyQuinn said:

Crystal is working closely with the Oberammergau organization to arrange a comprehensive program aboard corresponding 2022 Crystal river voyages, and those details will be communicated to guests and their travel advisors directly as soon as they are finalized.

 

Have followed up with Crystal several times and still no updates.

[cruiselovin'girl]

Hello,

Hope you don't mind me tagging on here and asking a few questions (if it's a problem, I can start a new thread but thought those of you with experience could point me in the right direction)! 🙂

I only first heard about the Passion Play at Oberammergau last year and started researching it in January. I don't usually do tours so I was trying to research how to see it independently. Seems like it's really hard to get tickets without being part of a package deal! So, I thought about doing a river cruise in conjunction with the Passion Play and stumbled upon this thread. I have cruised in the past (Ocean not River) on RC, Princess and Carnival but have no experience with the River Cruise companies.

For those of you who have done this type of cruise, which company do you prefer and why?

Also wondering if you booked directly through the cruise line or used a TA. (Especially those who are adding the cruise after the play or vice versa).

Thanks so much for your help,

Pam

[Daisi]

Hi Pam,

Several lines offer special Oberammergau cruises for next year.  I suggest starting at the sticky posts at the top of the forum for info on the difference (and what to expect) between river cruising and ocean sailing.  I don't do ocean sailing, so couldn't recommend a line that would match up to the ones you sail on, but others who do both may be able to help.

 

I would start looking for which lines go (or have extensions to) the Passion Play, and then look at costs involved.  You can go top of the line to ones that don't include everything.  If you are travelling solo, some have special discounts waiving the single passenger charge.

 

Good luck, and if you have further questions about various lines etc, maybe a new thread would be best so it's easily found to help.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Hi Pam,

There is no River Cruise line that matches with Carnival [disclaimer: I have never sailed Carnival, but perceive it as aimed at the 'party hearty' crowd].  Princess is probably the closest of the three you mention.  BUT: river ships hold between 100-200 passengers, so there really isn't any comparison to ocean cruising except being on the water [and even then, rivers are fresh water not salt...]

 

Because of the small number of passengers, prices are necessarily high:  they can't spread the fixed costs among thousands of passengers!  And because all river ships must fit through the river locks, they are all about the same dimensions:  443 ft long (usually stated as 135m; some older ships only 110m) and 38 ft wide.  Generally the cabins are on three decks at the rear of the ship [all outside, most with French balconies, some newer ships have real balconies], while public spaces are on two decks at the front.  Public spaces are the restaurant (which seats all passengers in one sitting), the lounge (which also seats all passengers at one time, for excursion presentations and light entertainment).  Some ships also have alternative dining options like a Chef's Table or an informal bistro.  The top deck (full length of the ship) is the Sun Deck – but on some itineraries it may be closed a lot of the time as the ship goes through a series of locks and/or bridges with low clearance.

 

No: Las Vegas-type shows; casino; waterslides (maybe a very small pool).  BUT most people don't miss these things because: every day you are in port with 1–3 included excursions that start right after breakfast and often don't end until just before [or even after] dinner.  River cruises are NOT a relaxing week at the spa!

 

Back to ship sizes:  as I said, all modern river ships are 135m long but the passenger load varies from 100 to 200.  As you would imagine, that makes a big difference in the amount of space and especially the feeling of spaciousness.  That's an important thing to compare among river cruise lines.

 

The other thing that people look at is 'what's included.'  All lines marketing to North Americans include all meals, wine and beer with lunch and dinner, most excursions [but some lines offer more choices, and some even 'high-end' lines charge for some excursions while others include all the choices].  A big deal for some people is whether alcohol is included [this works both ways: some don't want to have a bill at the end; others don't want to pay for alcohol since they don't drink] – but I think it's overblown because bar prices are reasonable, wine and beer are already included and you are welcome to bring all the alcohol you want on board.  Gratuities may or may not be included: if not, just take the recommended amount and add it to your cost comparison.

 

As @Daisi said, there's lots more info about cruise lines in the Stickies at the top.  And even more in the Berlitz River Cruising in Europe guide, which is probably available at your local library.

[MightyQuinn]

7 hours ago, Daisi said:

Several lines offer special Oberammergau cruises for next year. 

 

The Oberammergau Passion Play has been rescheduled to 2022 so river cruise lines will not be offering any special itineraries until then.  But I expect these itineraries will be in demand and should be booked shortly after release.

[gnome12]

 
The Oberammergau Passion Play has been rescheduled to 2022 so river cruise lines will not be offering any special itineraries until then.  But I expect these itineraries will be in demand and should be booked shortly after release.

Particularly since some (many) of the people originally booked for 2020 were transferred to 2022.


Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Daisi]

Avalon has their Oberammergau Passion Play cruises already posted.  Not sure about the other lines, but I know Avalon was offering first choice to those who's cruise was cancelled, and that they had guaranteed the same price.  I didn't check to see who else has theirs posted, but they should be up soon, as they book out quick.

[scottjeanne]

We were booked to goto the Passion Play this month.  We booked it all independently.  We were to be in Brussels for a week, then a Scenic river cruise (we originally booked with Crystal, but switched) and then three days in Omeramagua and a few days in Munich.  We booked directly with the Passion Play company.  The package was two nights hotel, meals and transportation.  I found the river cruise and play packages very expensive, but it included all transportation so it was more seamless.  It depends on how much work you want to do and how independently you like to travel.

 

The play does sell out.  We booked two years in advance.  We plan on going in 2022.  I am waiting to see how the world opens up to book.  I do have to say, since I booked everything myself, I spent a lot of time on cancellations and obtaining refunds.  I had two one way international flights, two European flights, hotels in Basel, Brussels and Munich, the cruise and the play as well as museum tickets and private tours.  I have gotten all my refunds but one Lufthansa flight which they promise is coming. 

[cruiselovin'girl]

4 hours ago, scottjeanne said:

We were booked to goto the Passion Play this month.  We booked it all independently.  We were to be in Brussels for a week, then a Scenic river cruise (we originally booked with Crystal, but switched) and then three days in Omeramagua and a few days in Munich.  We booked directly with the Passion Play company.  The package was two nights hotel, meals and transportation.  I found the river cruise and play packages very expensive, but it included all transportation so it was more seamless.  It depends on how much work you want to do and how independently you like to travel.

 

The play does sell out.  We booked two years in advance.  We plan on going in 2022.  I am waiting to see how the world opens up to book.  I do have to say, since I booked everything myself, I spent a lot of time on cancellations and obtaining refunds.  I had two one way international flights, two European flights, hotels in Basel, Brussels and Munich, the cruise and the play as well as museum tickets and private tours.  I have gotten all my refunds but one Lufthansa flight which they promise is coming. 

Thanks for the info! I don't mind spending time booking everything myself. It's what I normally do, this just seems so complicated! So, you booked the Passion play independent of the cruise? Did that save you money or was that just the way it worked out?

Have you cruised with Scenic before?

This is all new to me so I appreciate any advice you can give.

Pam

[scottjeanne]

I did book the play and Oberammergau hotel independently from the cruise.  It was much cheaper.  And we could get the accommodations we wanted.  You can contact them at info@passionsspiele-oberammergau.de.

 

I have not cruised with Scenic.  As I said, I had originally booked with Crystal but last August ( a year before the scheduled cruise), I canceled and rebooked with Scenic.  Crystal refunded with the exception of $1000 admin fee which I think is outrageous, especially in light of all the cancelation schemes with COVID going on now.

 

Scenic did refund our full cruise fare, but only after much haggling.

[MightyQuinn]

10 hours ago, scottjeanne said:

I had originally booked with Crystal but last August ( a year before the scheduled cruise), I canceled and rebooked with Scenic.  Crystal refunded with the exception of $1000 admin fee which I think is outrageous, especially in light of all the cancelation schemes with COVID going on now.

 

I agree.  Charging $500 pp to cancel a Crystal river cruise is outrageous and out-of-step with industry practice.  However, if you plan to cruise with Crystal again, you can use that $1000 admin fee (issued as FCC) towards any future cruise booking made within 12 months of the date you cancelled your river cruise. 
 

[scottjeanne]

31 minutes ago, MightyQuinn said:

 

I agree.  Charging $500 pp to cancel a Crystal river cruise is outrageous and out-of-step with industry practice.  However, if you plan to cruise with Crystal again, you can use that $1000 admin fee (issued as FCC) towards any future cruise booking made within 12 months of the date you cancelled your river cruise. 
 

Twelve months is next month!  Unless they extend it, i will lose $1000.

[MightyQuinn]

16 minutes ago, scottjeanne said:

Twelve months is next month!  Unless they extend it, i will lose $1000.

 

The FCC should be on your client profile.  You can't "see" it but your TA or Crystal should be able to confirm it for you.  You may want to check on it asap and request an extension if you can't use it before it expires. 

 

Or you could consider using the FCC to book a cruise under a current Crystal promo called Easy Book.  Deposits are reduced to 15% (from 25%) and are fully refundable.  And the best part is that all admin fees are waived so you won't be stuck in this situation again.  Win, win, win.  The Easy Book promo is available on all Crystal voyages (river, ocean, expedition, yacht) for 2021, 2022 or 2023 that are made before Sept 2, 2020 so it lines up nicely with your FCC.  Good luck!

https://www.crystalcruises.com/special-offers/easy-book-program
 

[scottjeanne]

I already tried to use the FCC under easy book.  they won't take it.  It has to be a new deposit, not old FCC funds.  I will take your suggestion to contact them about the status.

[scottjeanne]

We have rebooked the trip this weekend for July 2022. I am cautiously optimistic about it being able to go with the vaccines.  We decided to book even with the uncertainty as cruise cabins and play tickets are going fast.  We still decided to book the play independently as the savings was $5000 to $7000.  We will be on Crystal and we were able to apply the $1000 admin fee we were charged when we cancelled the first time.

[bfamily9]

On 7/19/2020 at 2:30 PM, cruiselovin'girl said:

Hello,

Hope you don't mind me tagging on here and asking a few questions (if it's a problem, I can start a new thread but thought those of you with experience could point me in the right direction)! 🙂

I only first heard about the Passion Play at Oberammergau last year and started researching it in January. I don't usually do tours so I was trying to research how to see it independently. Seems like it's really hard to get tickets without being part of a package deal! So, I thought about doing a river cruise in conjunction with the Passion Play and stumbled upon this thread. I have cruised in the past (Ocean not River) on RC, Princess and Carnival but have no experience with the River Cruise companies.

For those of you who have done this type of cruise, which company do you prefer and why?

Also wondering if you booked directly through the cruise line or used a TA. (Especially those who are adding the cruise after the play or vice versa).

Thanks so much for your help,

Pam

I am booked on a Scenic Waterways Danube cruise plus Oberammergau for 2022. I was booked on a June 2020 Avalon cruise with a similar itinerary that was cancelled. At the time it was a double, but my needs have changed. I chose Scenic because I was able to score the one solo cabin with a balcony at a reasonable cost. I like Avalon mainly because of their cabin layout with floor to ceiling window openings to a French balcony and river facing beds. I haven't been on Scenic before, but they are an upscale cruise line. They have a good layout with disappearing power windows to an open French balcony. As you will see from my signature line I have also been on Ama Waterways. All are good choices. I chose based on the itinerary and pricing. I recommend that you check out River Cruise Advisor, where Ralph Grizzle periodically compares the various cruise lines.