ON the Amadagio!

[Buckland]

Hi TataTom,

 

Great review, that's exactly how we found everything too. Although I think we got into our cabin early, but I could be wrong. I didn't know about the umbrella under the bed, but we didn't need it in any event. It took us about a week to un-jet-lag. You're right about the flushing! When I flushed first I though my wife slammed the door on me. After that I did it just to watch! You can actually feel the air get sucked out of the room. Quite fun.

 

Buck

[Texasgal2]

I have just booked the Amadagio for the Christmas Market cruise from Budapest to Prague. I do have the option of an extra day or 2 in Prague. Is this necessary? I was hoping to see the city on the first day we arrived, then book a layover flight to Paris. Any ideas?

[Buckland]

Hi Texasgal2,

I have not been to Prague, but my wife has and she says it's a place that you just can't see in a day. If you have the option to spend an extra day or two, I'd take it. It's supposed to be a very beautiful city. We will be planning a cruise that way sometime in the future.

 

Buck

[Diane&4girls]

Thanks, everyone!

 

AliceS,

 

I hope I have soemthing to add to this thread when I return. These guys are very information!

[TataTom]

I suppose each cruise is different, but here is what we had for evening entertainment on the late October Budapest to Amsterdam cruise: (Day 1 was travel day)

 

Day 2 Budapest: Gypsy musicians at dinner, moved from table to table, very good, lots of fun!

 

Day 4 Bratislavia: Five young ladies with string instruments playing selections from musical films. Very good and very pretty too!

 

Day 6: Durnstein and Melk: Game "Name That Tune" with on board musician (who was very talented). Good fun.

 

Day 7 Passau: Bavarian folk dancers. Interesting and very good.

 

Day 8: Regensburg: Male quartet of adult singers who were formerly in the Cardinals boys choir. They sang acappella, were always in perfect pitch and a great treat to listen to.

 

Day 11: Wurtzburg: Crew show. Great fun!

 

Day 12: Miltenberg: Trio La Scala, two violinists and one guitar. Violinists were from Russia and Moldova, guitarist from Belgium. This show probably received the greatest applause with standing ovations. The violinist, especially the young man from Moldova, was incredible!

 

Day 13: Rudeshiem: Bingo in the lounge. Cost 5 euro per card, all income returned as prizes. First prize was 100 euros. Good fun and the cruise director made it very entertaining.

 

Day 14: Cologne: "Nasty Quiz" with 20 trick questions. Cruise director made it hilarious, especially with some historical answers. More fun than we thought it would be!

 

Day 15: Amsterdam: Cruise director took those who wished to go (and had an open mind) on a walking tour of the red light district after dinner. This was fascinating! The young ladies in the windows wore bikinis (open public nudity in the windows not allowed) and were very attractive. The area was something to experience, with the polyglot of people (it was crowded, Saturday night), the lines waiting to buy tickets to the live sex shows, the sex toy shops, the places to buy and smoke marijuana and other drugs, really a strange area. Not sure I would want to be here by myself after dark!

[Buckland]

Hi TataTom,

Amsterdam is quite the place isn't it? We saw a sign in a window for a "stoner" cruise. You book in, then smoke a big joint, then go on a canal cruise. At least that's the premis anyway. You never know what you're looking at when you're stoned!! Ha ha. The guys call La Scala we thought were wonderful. We purchased their CDs and have really enjoyed listening to them since coming back. I'm going to use some of their music in the DVD I'm going to make of our trip - that is if I ever get through editing the pictures. I thought the crew show was really hilarious - great fun. Was your cruise director Nancy? If so, you got a good one, she is quite delightful. She wanted us to see Koblenz but were delayed and late getting in. Even though it was dark Nancy wanted us to see the little town, so we went on a "midnight housecoat tour". It was a blast!

 

Buck

[AliceS]

I am really enjoying reading all about your cruises. You never know when some little tidbit will be a big help for someone else. I loved reading the list of entertainment. So many people have said that there was NO entertainment. Tom rated the dinners 5 star and someone else on the board said they were hungary after the dinner. I believe Tom! It's so interesting to hear the different opinions. Buck has already stated that no one went hungary on a Amadeus cruise. If you do, shame on you.

 

Keep the stories coming.

[Buckland]

I must caution you when you get to Amsterdam, to watch out for the bicycles! There are litterally millions of them. In front of the train station there is a bike park where commuters park their bikes, then take the train to work or what ever. There are more than 10,000 bikes parked here!! They are all along the street, on every street. There is a special bike path that you MUST avoid - it's not a walking path - it's reserved for bikes only. It's very difficult when you are walking with a group to keep this area clear. One of the guys with us almost got run down by a bike because he was walking in their path. They have thier own paved area along the road to ride. They also have priority, and they think you know that, so you better not get in their way. They will think you know the rules, and if you don't you might get hit. I saw several close calls. It's usually the case in the beginng, but by the end of the day most of us will have learned the lesson and several people will have storys to tell about cyclists.

 

Buck

[Liz]

I've really enjoyed reading about your recent adventures! I'm thinking about a river cruise to "celebrate" my next birthday (it has a "0" in it, that's all I'm saying!). Were there any single people on board? For now I'm solo but that has not stopped me before - and it could change. I just don't want to be the fifth wheel for an entire week.

Thanks in advance - I can't wait to read more!

 

Liz

[Buckland]

Hi Liz,

We met two women who were travelling alone. We had them each join us for dinner when we noticed nobody was sitting with them in the early days of the cruise. We met one first and then the other so we introduced them together and they spent a fair bit of time talking and dining together. I don't know if they continued after the cruise, but we have continued communicating with some of the people we have met. I didn't notice any men travelling alone, but I'm sure they are out there too. I think there is a message board for singles, but I think the much younger crowd frequents those boards.

 

Buck

[Liz]

Usually I can find a few friendly faces,and I think with a ship/boat this size it is probably a pretty friendly environment. There are a few other spots I'll check on CC, it's such a super resource for just about everything that is cruise-related!

From what I can see, it looks like just about everything was covered, short of the souvenirs and such. Almost an all-inclusive vacation? Ya gotta love cruising - see different places, unpack one time!

I know what you mean about Amsterdam, I was there a few years ago before attending a speedskating event in Heerveen - I have never seen so many bikes in one place, especially in February!

Thanks again for your help - I'll keep researching and may pop back in to ask some more questions -

Take care!

 

Liz

[TataTom]

Hi Liz:

 

On our cruise on the Amadagio, we had one older gentleman from Australia who was traveling alone. He and his wife had always wanted to make the cruise, and she died last year after a long illness, so he made the trip alone. He always seemed to have company at dinner, and I think he had a good trip. It seemed as if lots of people would invite him to their tables so he would not be alone. We had several ladies traveling as couples also. At meals, there are always free single seats at tables, since one of a couple may be skipping a meal or whatever. I wouldn't worry about being single on the cruise, just be open and accessible and you will have all the company you want.

[TataTom]

Some things they don't tell you in the brochures:

 

Baggage allowance: We booked with Brendan, and their literature said one suitcase each, 50 pounds each. But the airlines (in our case United and Lufthansa) allowed two suitcases each, 50 pounds each. I contacted Brendan (very quick answers!) and they said if it was OK with the airline it was fine with them, and that the porters would handle the extra bags. So we took an extra suitcase and used it to bring home things we bought.

 

Transfers: When we arrived in Budapest, the Amadagio agent got us a taxi, paid our fare and sent us to the ship. In Amsterdam, the cruise director confirmed our flights for us the day before, had a bus to take us to the airport and a guide to show us which counters to go to. Very nice!

 

Cathedrals: After several cathedrals they all start to blend together in your mind and memory. Most of us after a few days agreed that we were "cathedraled out". The Cologne cathedral was a big disappointment, the building was very dirty outside, very dark and dim inside, and most of the stained glass windows were too dirty to see the colors properly. The square in front of the cathedral was crowded with many teenagers on skateboards creating somewhat of a hazard. We would have enjoyed walking around downtown more.

 

Tour guides: All of our tour guides spoke English well, some with more accent than others. As you would expect, some were great and some were just good. A few spent too much time on history and lost audience attention. A person can only absorb so much history at one time, especially when surrounded by fascinating things like narrow streets, sidewalk cafes, wonderful pastries and great beer. The tour guide in Budapest was very good, but also passionately against the current Budapest regime and we listened to a lot of politics in addition to local information. But she was good! The tour guide in Amsterdam spent almost a half hour driving us around the newly created islands and apartments, which she was very proud of but was of almost no interest to any of us. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate the average tour guide at least an 8.

 

Maps: Our cruise director usually had very good maps for us before leaving on a walking tour of a town. I had spent a lot of time on the internet before the cruise getting maps because no one would tell me if maps were given out. At least on the Amadagio, you will have all the maps you need.

 

Sundays: Especially in Germany, just about everything except the cafes shuts down on Sundays, so souvenir shopping and such are much harder. Also on Saturdays and Sundays the downtowns and squares are much more crowded than on weekdays, which is not necessarily bad but it does make it harder to get a good table at the cafe.

 

Smoked beer: One of the Bamberg specialties is the smoked beer. We were repeatedly told before we arrived that it was not very good tasting, that it was an acquired taste, and that it tasted like smoked bacon. Of course almost all of us had to try it. It was very good, a nice mellow dark beer, and you had to really search to find any bacon flavor. We liked it. Especially with the big salted soft pretzels that we bought from a man next door to the cafe. Don't believe everything you hear..!

 

Ice cream: The Germans and Austrians are very fond of ice cream and ice cream creations. We were surprised at the number of sidewalk cafes that specialized in ice cream sundaes, floats and what have you. Most of the items on the menus were quite elaborate. Interestingly, you could always get beer at these ice cream parlors as well.

 

Lorelei: We got up early and the captain slowed the ship so that we would have some daylight as we passed the Lorelei. When we got to it, all there was was a rocky cliff at a bend in the river, and big white letters spelling out Lorelei at the base. Next time we will stay in bed.

 

More to come as I decompress...

[BJS]

Some things they don't tell you in the brochures:

Lorelei: We got up early and the captain slowed the ship so that we would have some daylight as we passed the Lorelei. When we got to it, all there was was a rocky cliff at a bend in the river, and big white letters spelling out Lorelei at the base. Next time we will stay in bed.

More to come as I decompress...

I am curious as to where you were docked the night before this?

 

There were many castles between Rudesheim and Cologne, as well as the Lorelei, so we didn't leave Rudesheim until 7 am . This made it possible to see all the castles and photograph all except the first couple of them dispite a sunrise around 8:20 am.

[TataTom]

BJS:

We were docked at Rudesheim the night before and sailed for Koblenz at 6:00 AM. The estimated time for passing the Lorelei was at 7:30 AM but we were a bit ahead of schedule and the sunrise kept coming later.

 

We arrived in Koblenz at 9:30 AM and left at noon for Cologne. We were scheduled to arrive in Cologne at 4:30 PM and immediately tour the cathedral. We ended up walking further to the bus for the cathedral tour than it would have been just straight to the cathedral from the boat. The guides and the bus drivers had a disagreement and the drivers refused to pick us up close to the boat because of the traffic. As it turned out, we were only in the cathedral for about 1/2 hour before we were chased out because a mass was starting. Most of us were pretty disappointed with the cathedral and it was close to the end of our trip, so we did not feel much loss.

 

I think we were just chasing diminishing daylight hours. That is probably why we left Rudesheim at 6:00 instead of 7:00.

[BJS]

TataTom - Sorry to hear about your experience in Cologne. Our tour left from the ship and walked to the Cathedral among other places. By the way the cathedral exterior looked much cleaner than it did in 1993.

 

Imagine it was the stop at Koblenz that we did not have that caused you to have to travel along that very scenic section of the Rhine during darkness.

[Buckland]

We arrived in Koblenz at night, too late really for a proper tour, but our tour director thought it would be fun just to get out and see what we could see. She said "come in your housecoat if you want to" and much to her surprize, many of us did. It was short, but one of the most fun tours we had on the cruise.

I agree that you get to see a truck load of cathedrals and churches. I also agree that the one in Cologne is very dirty and dark, but oh so gothic! We too saw teenagers around, but we were not bothered by them.

 

The smokey beer and fat pretzles were AWSOME! What a great flavour. I would have had more than one, but we had to get back to the ship.

 

Our tour guide in Vienna was really the best we ever had. We found out he spoke more that just English and German when, during our tour of the Hofburg palace someone seemingly in our group took a photograph - and with a flash no less! Of course we all knew that taking pictures was forbidden so when I said "Hey no cameras" our guide lept in and wanted to know who did it right away. Several of us pointed out the perpetrator and he told her in no uncertain terms that she was not allowed to do so. She spoke back at him in French then he rattled off a paragraph or two in French and hussled her off to a couple guards and she was taken away. And we never saw or heard of her again!

 

Our concert in Vienna was spectacular. Our tour director said in all the years she had been doing this that the one we saw was the best she had seen and heard too. Just to think that we were in the same ballroom where Beethove and Pagannini played was absoluty thrilling. Oh, I could go on...

 

Buck

[Liz]

I would imagine with the "atmosphere" in general, that people are pretty friendly. Also, I am pretty outgoing and not afraid to travel alone - just did AOS in October and did Olympic Voyager (Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Cyprus)alone through Globus - the tour group gave me a "base", where there were always familiar faces. I will probably go through a tour operator if I do this trip, usually it's worth the few extra dollars in the long run.

Sorry you did not care for the cathedral in Cologne. I went to school there for a while in college, and climbed to the top of the spire my frst day there (ouch - sore legs for DAYS!) I think my biggest disappointment was the McDonald's across the square from the cathedral - it just didn't look quite right!

Keep the tips and ideas coming - I appreciate them!

 

Liz

[Buckland]

In Vienna there is a MacDonalds right across the street from where "The Bue Danube" was written. And in Budapest we were told that there is the most beautiful MacDonalds in the world - according to MacDonalds. It is a nice building, but there are "Golden Arches" all over it. What a shame. Outside of it there gathers the least favourable folk in the town. But when we over-look those things, there is a lot of beauty to behold.

 

Buck

[Liz]

And sometimes you just can't beat an order of Mickey D's fries!

 

Liz

[letsgo39]

Say what you will about MickeyD's but after 21 days of land touring with Globus I was really just dying for a Big Mac & fries and found one in Edinburgh Scotland!!!!! It sure tasted good!

[Buckland]

Sometimes you just can't beat the taste of home. I have to admit, I'm rather partial to their filet of fish.

 

Buck

[TataTom]

I was going to edit my post on page 3 about the evening activities on our cruise on the Amadagio, but I have discovered that the edit function is only available for a short time, twenty minutes I think. Anyway, I forgot to list two items:

 

Day 9: Captain's Dinner...five course meal, optional dress attire.

 

Day 10: Lecture by beer expert, explaining different kinds of beers, how they are made, etc. We also had samples (maybe 4 ounces) of four different beers. We all enjoyed it and the closing jokes were very funny.

[Buckland]

I liked the tip "The opposite wall is covered in flourescent lights." Solution - You have fallen over, please stand up.

 

The beers I tried on the cruise were indeed the tastiest I have ever had.

 

Buck

[AliceS]

One of you mentioned that beer was included with dinner, as well as wine. Is that true. If so, Hubby will be delighted. I love wine, he doesn't.