Gate 1 Cancellation

[azkitty]

We had a June 2007 Danube cruise booked on the MS Johann Strauss, a Gate 1 booking. My TA called a few days ago to say that Gate 1 had cancelled all their summer Danube cruises. We are getting refunded but meanwhile may have missed out on some good deals. I have to wonder how much Gate 1 made on all the interest on all these deposits.

It's the first and last time we would book anything with Gate 1, very unreliable.

 

It may have been a blessing in disguise although a more costly one. We are now booked on Avalon's MS Poetry through Brennan and it does offer more. I have heard good things about the MS Poetry. A friend took this same cruise a year ago and loved it. We start with 3 days in Prague around June 21st and end up in Budapest. I am going to try to do our own air as I like to pick the carrier, route and our seats and we want extra days in Budapest and may try a side trip after that on our own.

 

Anyone else going on the MS Poetry June 21?

[VAGuy]

We took this trip in the Fall of 2005 on the Avalon Artistry, sister ship of the Poetry. We found the entire experience to be so enjoyable that we booked with Avalon for a cruise on the Rhine in November, 2006. Prague is great and your idea of a few extra days in Budapest is a good one as the tour we were on did not provide enough time to fully explore that city. But everything else was fine.

 

A good website for doing research on plane flights is http://www.itasoftware.com. You cannot book directly from this site but it provides a wealth of information and is an excellent starting point for research on flights, schedules, prices, etc.

 

Should you have any questions, please e-mail me at pkutra@cox.net

[wbrumel]

FYI: one of the things I really liked about Avalon was that even if you book your air thru them, you can select the carriers and flights and seats. Check out their website... it will give you several flight options (depending on your city). We're off on the Danube in 3 weeks on the Artistry... I'll report back.

[azkitty]

WBrumel: Did you book directly with Avalon or through Brennan, Globus or other TA? Thanks for the info. on flights through Avalon.

[Coral]

I think in the long run, you will be better off but I agree, it is a disappointment.

[joek]

azkitty

 

I'm surprised that Gate 1 didn't switch you to the MS Bolero. They're still showing 07 Bolero cruises on the Danube on their web site.

 

They switched us from the Johann Strauss to the Bolero for a Holland in Bloom cruise in April. We're a little nervous about Gate 1 because I believe that river cruises are a new venture for them. They've had some in the past but not many.

[azkitty]

Gate 1 was offering other river cruises but nothing for June on the Danube, which is specifically what we wanted. I think you have to be careful about time of year with a river cruise. There can be heavy rains and high waters in the spring so that river ships can't pass under bridges. Mid and late summer can be very hot. Fall and early summer are best for weather.

[tasmin]

Azkitty, I'm very sorry to hear about your experience! I went through Gate1 for a Danube trip on the Poetry in November 2005 and had no problems. At one point, we were offered the "opportunity" to switch to the same itinerary on the Symphony, but they didn't give us any trouble when we declined (once on the trip, we discovered that our ship was only about half full, which was likely why they tried to move us...glad we didn't agree to switch to the Symphony though, because that ship was slightly bigger and ended up having to bus passengers part of the way because river levels were low). I was considering booking another trip through Gate1 in 2007 (on one of the Bolero itineraries), but your experience is giving me some second thoughts!

 

Have a great time on your "plan B" journey though - I can't say enough great things about the Poetry and that region of the Danube!

[letsgo39]

Check out Avalon and Amadeaus. They both get very good reviews.

[shipnc]

askitty,

I'm just back from ms Poetry and the Danube cruise you are going on. In fact, look for my review which will be posted shortly in this forum. As far as the air, I looked into booking independently but found the cost very similar to Avalon's when the transfers were included. The connection going over was very good but coming back could have been better, so that would be the case for booking your own arrangements. On the other side of the coin, it was certainly convenient having the transfers prearranged. If you stay over in Budapest - certainly a nice option - then the question is moot. Enjoy the trip!