Back to Back Yuletide Spirit Cruises on Tauck's ms Grace

[Coral]

On 12/19/2023 at 11:52 AM, Roz said:

 

 

For any solo travelers reading this thread who aren't familiar with Tauck's solo river cruise pricing,  you can sail in the lowest category of cabin with no single supplement.  Some less inclusive lines charge you double,  so you pay more and don't get as much. 

I have one booked for October 2025. Seems forever from now.

[Second seating]

6 hours ago, Roz said:

After walking around Gouda for several hours on uneven cobblestones and bricks,  I decided to take the option that was offered to skip the tours  in The Hague, and go back to the ship that was now docked in Rotterdam.  @Second seating, the Christmas market was one of the places passengers could visit in The Hague.  I believe the CD said yesterday was the last day of the market. 

 

In Gouda we did a walking tour,  had lunch, and sampled stroopwafels, cheese (of course!) , and olieballen. 

 

This morning I opted for the trip to the Royal Delft Factory in Delft.  It was interesting and a lot of fun.  We toured the factory and then painted a tile that we took with us.  Afterwards we were treated to a lunch of tomato soup, quiche, assorted sandwiches, and fruit.  And of course shopping in the factory's gift shop. 

 

Tonight there will be a briefing about another change to our itinerary due to not being able to dock in Ghent and having to proceed on to Antwerp. Again,  if you're considering a river cruise,  you've got to remain flexible. The ship is at the mercy of the wind and water levels. 

 

Gouda and 'Delft are beautiful places!

[Roz]

Like most cruise lines, Tauck has switched to Starlink for their internet service.  For reasons no one can explain, the service is spotty every time the ship crosses from The Netherlands into Belgium.  I hope this post makes it.  

 

Because we docked in Antwerp instead of Ghent, we had to choose between Ghent and Bruges. Originally we were supposed to do both on Christmas Eve.  Having done Bruges last year, I opted for Ghent.  I liked it more than Bruges.  More history and some interesting buildings.  There was a Christmas market, and one of the assistant CDs arranged for us to get a complimentary Belgian waffle at one of the food stands. The highlight for me was finally getting to see the Ghent Altarpiece.  It exceeded my expectations.  Hard to believe it dates from 1432 and is in such great condition.  A true masterpiece. 

[Roz]

Christmas Day started with a bus and walking tour of the central area of Antwerp.  On-board we had a lecture on Christmas customs, a Belgian beer 🍺 tasting, a cooking demonstration, classical music concert, secret Santa gift exchange, a visit from Santa himself, and a wonderful 6 course Christmas dinner. 

 

We're now sailing towards Brussels. 

[Roz]

We're docked in an industrial area of Brussels.  There were several options today.  I took the bus tour of the city, but came back to the ship right after instead of staying for the walking tour.  Some people also went to a chocolate factory,  and at 7 pm a bus was here to take people back into town for the light show, and to check out the holiday markets. 

 

I'm not feeling 100% and ate lightly at dinner.  I'm sitting in the lounge sipping ginger ale and listening to music. 

 

Most of the other passengers are in their cabins packing or are out at the light show.  

[Roz]

Yesterday was turnaround day - passengers off and new passengers on. I was experiencing gastric distress, so I stayed on the ship in order to be close to les toilettes.  

 

I'm feeling better today,  and went to the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium.  This wasn't offered as an option on the first cruise.  We were only able to scratch the surface, as we only had less than 2 hours there. I was able to see paintings by Bruegel,  Bosch,  Reubens,  as well as David's famous Murder of Marat. 

 

Tonight we sail back to Antwerp. 

[Gourmet Gal]

Roz thanks for the updates.  Hope you’re feeling better.  If you don’t mind the inquiry, did other passengers also complain of a stomach ailment?  Do you think it’s something you consumed ashore or onboard or possibly more like a norovirus?  Seems unusual for a river cruise,

[Roz]

@Gourmet Gal, I'm really not sure.  I'm not aware of any other passengers experiencing stomach problems.  I'm sure it wasn't norovirus because it resolved itself so quickly.  It may have just been too much rich food, as I also experienced some heartburn. 

[Roz]

We're now docked back in Antwerp.  Tomorrow is going to be a sleep in day for me as I've already been to Ghent.  I'll just be doing my own thing in Antwerp. I'm hoping the Cathedral is open so I can see the Reubens paintings. 

[Roz]

I sent 5 pairs of socks and a fleece top out to the laundry and had them back that evening. Total cost was 19,50 euros.  The only clothing I brought with the that I haven't worn are 4 lightweight undershirts.  A fleece top or lightweight turtleneck with a wind resistant jacket have been enough.  Temperatures have been in the high 40s to low 50s. 

[Lois R]

Hi Roz, I am late to this thread. Hope you had a Merry Christmas and sounds like you are having a good cruise. Glad you are feeling better!😃 I have never taken a cruise with Tauck.  I keep looking at them.............thanks for sharing your experience with us😃

[Roz]

I was able to get into the Cathedral in Antwerp and the Reubens altarpieces were breathtaking. 

 

Yesterday was Bruges.  I'll post more about it later, but it was wall to wall people,  most of them European visitors and tourists. 

 

Today we're in Rotterdam, and I'm off to a city food tour 😋. 

[ural guy]

Have fun in Rotterdam, we visited the food hall and did a harbor boat tour.  It was an easy train ride from The Hague, our pre-cruise location.

 

Good to hear that you are having an enjoyable time, and getting to see some things that appeal to you.

[Roz]

The food tour was disappointing.  Last year there were 4-5 stops.  This year we did 2 - poffertjes and kibbeling.  The only surviving medieval structure,  a church,  was only mentioned in passing. 

 

Yesterday in Bruges I spent most of my time at the Groningen Museum,  which wasn't even mentioned by our cruise directors as an option.  It's a wonderful museum that features the Flemish primitives.  I had done my own research using Rick Steves' guidebooks.  Tauck's emphasis was on buying chocolate, eating mussels,  and shopping for Christmas ornaments.  I guess that's what the average American tourist is looking for.  

 

I skipped the torture museum.  😳

 

The tours don't seem to be run as tightly as last year's cruise.  As an example,  yesterday,  a lady in the group needing assistance got left behind at the bus parking lot in Bruges and had to take a taxi into the city.  No one is counting heads and/or taking down names and calling roll.  I and about 5-6 other people were abandoned in the Delft factory while the others were escorted to lunch. 

[Coral]

38 minutes ago, Roz said:

 

 

Yesterday in Bruges I spent most of my time at the Groningen Museum,  which wasn't even mentioned by our cruise directors as an option.  It's a wonderful museum that features the Flemish primitives.  I had done my own research using Rick Steves' guidebooks.  Tauck's emphasis was on buying chocolate, eating mussels,  and shopping for Christmas ornaments.  I guess that's what the average American tourist is looking for.  

 

When I did my Christmas Markets cruise - I focuses more on the side of Christmas things because I figured I can only do that when visiting in December and that when I returned in the future, I would hit a lot of the other sites. I obviously visited normal sites as well but did put an emphasis on Christmasy things.

[Gourmet Gal]

1 hour ago, Roz said:

The food tour was disappointing.  Last year there were 4-5 stops.  This year we did 2 - poffertjes and kibbeling.  The only surviving medieval structure,  a church,  was only mentioned in passing. 

 

Yesterday in Bruges I spent most of my time at the Groningen Museum,  which wasn't even mentioned by our cruise directors as an option.  It's a wonderful museum that features the Flemish primitives.  I had done my own research using Rick Steves' guidebooks.  Tauck's emphasis was on buying chocolate, eating mussels,  and shopping for Christmas ornaments.  I guess that's what the average American tourist is looking for.  

 

I skipped the torture museum.  😳

 

The tours don't seem to be run as tightly as last year's cruise.  As an example,  yesterday,  a lady in the group needing assistance got left behind at the bus parking lot in Bruges and had to take a taxi into the city.  No one is counting heads and/or taking down names and calling roll.  I and about 5-6 other people were abandoned in the Delft factory while the others were escorted to lunch. 

Well, the mussels and frites really are amazing in Belgium. Yum!

 

Interesting that people were left behind.  That happened on our Tauck Rhône cruise as well.  We were an hour outside of Roussillon when our guide realized they left someone.  Luckily because Tauck used 3 busses we were able to consolidate into 2 while 1 went back for the poor woman in Roussillon.  Both our Douro and Rhône cruises weren’t nearly as pulled together as our Danube-Main-Rhine cruise.

 

Roz, hope the rest of your cruise goes well.

[Roz]

@Gourmet Gal, I wish I had had enough time for some mussels.  The museum took up a lot of time and I was only able to grab a waffle and a coffee. 

[Roz]

NYE was a lot of fun - music, dancing, drinking, and crew shows. The fireworks over the Maas River were spectacular!  

 

This afternoon we sail back to Amsterdam. Tonight is a special New Year's Day dinner.

 

Happy 2024 to all CC River cruisers. 

[Roz]

My last night on the ship.  I'm in the lounge sipping a lemon 🍋 drop martini. 

 

I stayed onboard the ship yesterday.  It was quiet and kind of nice.  This morning I went to Zaanse Shanse (sp?) to see the windmills. We had perfect weather,  considering it's winter in The Netherlands.  This evening I did the canal cruise again and the local guide did an excellent job of narrating. 

 

When I get home I'll do a summary of the pluses and minuses of the cruise.  Thank you for following along with me. 

[Roz]

I still intend to do a summary follow up, but I had THE most miserable flying experience of my life.  😭

 

I was originally supposed to fly Amsterdam to London, London to Nashville.  AA changed it to Amsterdam to London, London to Philadelphia, Philadelphia to Nashville.  The first 2 flights were on British Airways, and both were really late getting off the ground.  The first one was 1.5 hrs. late, and the second one was 2 hrs. late.  

 

When we got to Philly Wednesday night, I had 40-45 min. to clear Customs & Immigration, grab my suitcase and take it to the transfer area, and walk to my gate.  My name and some others were called at the baggage claim, and we were told our bags didn't make it on the plane from London, and to proceed to the gate for our connecting flight.  Our bags would be delivered to our homes if that was our final destination.  

 

When I got to the American Eagle gate with my final boarding pass, I was told I couldn't board because BA had sold my ticket to another passenger.  What the heck???  I never heard of such a thing.  The gate agents couldn't tell me what my next move should be.  I spent the next 2 hrs. circling the drain between Terminals A and B, trying to find something from BA or AA who could help me. I just wanted to lie down in the terminal and cry.  

 

Finally I located a AA customer service agent, who informed me that BA had booked me on a flight to Nashville the following morning at 8:20 am.  I found an email titled "Travel Document" that was sent while I was in the air, notifying me of the change.  No offer of hotel accommodations or meals.  There were other passengers from my flight in the same predicament.  There was no announcement on the plane, nor in the baggage claim area, notifying us that there were passengers who had been rebooked.  

 

There's a Marriott in Terminal B of the Philly airport, so I got a room there and then flew home to Nashville Thursday morning.  I was mentally and physically exhausted.  When I got to Nashville, I went to the AA lost luggage desk to see if they had my suitcase.  They didn't, and I filed an official report with them because my bag was tagged for Nashville as the final destination, flying on American Eagle.

 

Last night (Friday) my phone rang close to midnight.  I was the delivery service with my prodigal suitcase.  I was so happy to see it, and I immediately unpacked it to make sure everything was there.  I stayed up until 4 am and got 2 loads of laundry done.  

 

Air travel has become so difficult.  That is the only thing that may keep me from cruising going forward.  

 

Thank you for listening. 🤪

Edited January 6 by Roz

[Ritabob]

I feel your frustration.  Make sure you follow up for compensation.  I believe if the flight originated in Europe they have laws that will help.

[Gourmet Gal]

Whew!  Sounds so exhausting.  Such a drag to end a nice trip on a low note.

[Second seating]

Roz,

 

Sorry about your flight problems on AA, we had problems with them is Sept. and now we avoid them if possible!

 

Second seating

[Canal archive]

Follow up on ATOL all British flights are supposed to be covered what an absolute ******** up I’m absolutely gobsmacked I hope it’s sorted to your satisfaction. Good luck.

[Got2Cruise]

Hi Roz thanks for your report. I’m waiting for your comparisons. Seems like you had a good trip up to the flight home. 
 

Sorry about the terrible flight home. Does the special EU regulations cover this since the flight originated in the EU?