Grand Circle Travel

[Grandma Rambo]

Let me first say that we have taken many cruises on large cruise ships and prefer Celebrity Lines, especially their food and service. We just returned yesterday from a river cruise on the GCT MS Debussy. Before leaving we read all the negative threads here and I would like to give our thoughts on this company. If you are thinking of booking a river cruise with GCT, DO NOT HESITATE! From our greeting at the airport, our pre-trip in Heidelberg, our cruise on the Rhine and everything between, it was an A+ trip. The service was excellent, as was the food. The room had two large picture windows and more than enough storage space. The ages were from mid-30 to mid 80 and everyone got along just fine. No grumpy, pushy people. We do not have one negative thing to report. Oh, by the way. I also had to deal with customer service many times prior to the trip and was always treated with respect and the issue was quickly resolved. So, if the itinerary and price fit your plans, go for it! You won't be disappointed.

[johnql]

Thank you for the positive post. I have a river cruise booked thru GCT for August and it's good to hear this feedback. I've never used GCT before, but I have been on three Overseas Adventure Travel trips and enjoyed all of them immensely. OAT is basically the same company as GCT. The only real difference (that I know of) is the size of the groups. Based on my experience with OAT, I didn't hesitate at all to book the GCT cruise.

[Carhut]

You might be interested in my pictures that I posted of a couple of my river cruises, both on GCT. You can find them in a few threads down on this page. I've taken three GCT cruises so far and have another booked for this summer. I've no complaints and really enjoyed all the trips so far.

Carole

[tom317]

Hi..

We have traveled with GCT twice before and are booked with them on their June Russian cruise. We are also looking at 2008's Romance of the Rhine and Mosel on the Debussy. May i ask if you had the Alto or Soprano deck and if-other than the sliding door-could you comment on the rooms layout.

All our experiences with GCT have been very positive.

[The Golds]

Thank you for your post. We will be first timers on GCT this May. Paris to Nice on the Chardenay and a pre to Normandy. We have done the crossing on The Queen Mary and the Danube with the Peter D. Line, both great experiances and the infomation we learned from these boards even made it more enjoyable.

The Golds.

[Carhut]

Thank you for your post. We will be first timers on GCT this May. Paris to Nice on the Chardenay and a pre to Normandy. We have done the crossing on The Queen Mary and the Danube with the Peter D. Line, both great experiances and the infomation we learned from these boards even made it more enjoyable.

The Golds.

 

My friends and I are booked on the Chardonnay Aug. 22 from Nice to Paris. I'll be anxious to hear how your trip goes after you get home.

Carole

[Carhut]

Hi..

We have traveled with GCT twice before and are booked with them on their June Russian cruise. We are also looking at 2008's Romance of the Rhine and Mosel on the Debussy. May i ask if you had the Alto or Soprano deck and if-other than the sliding door-could you comment on the rooms layout.

All our experiences with GCT have been very positive.

 

We always book the cheaper rooms. Those balconies take space from the rooms and leave you with less storage space.

Carole

[Grandma Rambo]

Hi..

We have traveled with GCT twice before and are booked with them on their June Russian cruise. We are also looking at 2008's Romance of the Rhine and Mosel on the Debussy. May i ask if you had the Alto or Soprano deck and if-other than the sliding door-could you comment on the rooms layout.

All our experiences with GCT have been very positive.

 

We were on the Alto (bottom) deck. The windows are huge and you look right out at the water and swans and ducks floating by. It's great. Also, as stated, you get more room. We each had two extra drawers and three shelves that you would not get with a balcony. The balcony is very tiny but you can open the doors for fresh air. I would still choose the cheaper, larger room over the balcony room, even though on large cruise ships we always have a balcony. Hope this helps.

 

Jennie

[tom317]

Thanks Carole and Jennie. I did't think about it but as you stated the balcony only takes away from the overall size of the room.

Thanks

Tom

[pacmom]

On our first river cruise on the Seine, we never sailed at nite, so it didn't matter where your cabin was located. So we opted for a forward on our next cruise---wound up right near the bow thrusters. Sat bolt upright a few times when we were going thru locks during the nite. So if you are on the Danube-Rhine-Main, try to get closer to the middle of the boat. Travel safely and enjoy. Pat

[rogerdawhip]

:) :) I so happy to see these positive remarks about Grand Circle Travel. It seems that most people like to degrade GCT and thier trips. Since 2001 I have been on 6 GCT River Cruises and had a fantastic time on each. I hope to go on another cruise in the fall. Th latest brochures compare the price of GCT against other lines and GCT is unbeatable....especially the single supplements which I use. I have had both balcony and non-balcony cabins and prefer the balcony. It is nice to be able to open the window in the morning when I get up. The cabin size really is not that much different.

[land lover]

Hi..

We have traveled with GCT twice before and are booked with them on their June Russian cruise. We are also looking at 2008's Romance of the Rhine and Mosel on the Debussy. May i ask if you had the Alto or Soprano deck and if-other than the sliding door-could you comment on the rooms layout.

All our experiences with GCT have been very positive.

 

What date are you going to Russia? We have booked June 28.

[tom317]

What date are you going to Russia? We have booked June 28.

Hi..

June 7 2007 on the M/S Tikhi Don.

Tom

[joek]

Tom,

We had a great cruise on the Tikhi Don last September. Don't know if young Max, the bartender, is still on board...he was great. Only bad part was the morning and afternoon "commute" between the ship port and city centers, which you won't have. The hotels will probably not be in the centers either, but you'll be able to take cabs or metro easily. Have fun!

 

Joe

[tom317]

Tom,

We had a great cruise on the Tikhi Don last September. Don't know if young Max, the bartender, is still on board...he was great. Only bad part was the morning and afternoon "commute" between the ship port and city centers, which you won't have. The hotels will probably not be in the centers either, but you'll be able to take cabs or metro easily. Have fun!

 

Joe

Joe..

How did you find the trip overall?

Have you sailed with GCT on any European River trips-if so, how would you compare those ships to the Tikhi Don?

Tom

[p598738]

Budapest to the Black Sea in 05. 156 passengers. Very nice trip. Soane and Rhone in 06. 46 passengers. Not as inclusive as 05. They just canceled Amsterdam to Bruges which I had booked for Sept 07. Moved our trip to Gate1, Basel to Amsterdam Sept 07. Less expensive on an older ship.

[joek]

We thought that the trip was great, as I said except for the city traffic. We had no idea that there were so many cars in use. Both cities were extremely busy, lots of young people rushing from place to place, just like the cities in the US, and they were very friendly and interested in talking to us. Yes, many had a few words of English, some from school, most from TV, I guess. The ship's staff and guides were excellent, friendly and helpful. Entertainment in the evenings was musical... a pianist, a singer, a duo with instruments and songs....I would say good. We took almost all of the optional trips, skipped the ballet and a museum.

 

The 7 day cruise in Russia was in heavily wooded country, very few towns, few houses, few boats. Two stops were in large cities, three in small towns.

 

The only other river cruise was with GCT, the MS Provence, Paris to Nice, 3 nights Paris, 7 day cruise, 1 night Nice. Ship holds only 46 passengers so we really got to know each other. Very nice, much larger cabins, 220 SF. Much more to see while cruising on the river and canals.

[land lover]

Hi..

June 7 2007 on the M/S Tikhi Don.

Tom

 

Hope you'll write a short review, before we leave......We will be on the MS. Rossia.

[land lover]

We took almost all of the optional trips, skipped the ballet and a museum.

 

The 7 day cruise in Russia was in heavily wooded country, very few towns, few houses, few boats. Two stops were in large cities, three in small towns.

 

 

Joe...do you recall what optionals they offered last year?

 

I figured it would be forest, interesting about few ships.

[joek]

Moscow Ballet was canceled, Theater being renovated

 

Moscow Circus

Didn't go, it was on the last day, a late show and we had a very early flight in the morning.

 

Yusupov Palace Excellent

 

Catherine's Palace Don't miss it

 

Peterhov Another Don't miss

 

Kremlin and Armory

Kremlin good, Armory not so good except for WWII vets meeting each other

 

Russian Folklore Show in Moscow was canceled

 

St Petersburg Theater Performance

Pretty good but lengthy

 

Kiev Pirogovo Open Air Museum OK, nothing special

[cv sailor]

We did our Russian River cruise with Uniworld, but the stops and special events (company to company) differ little.

The journey provides excellent insights into Russian contemporary life. All the stops were worthwhile. We thought rate the following as "not to miss:

- Moscow circus (wonderful)

- Moscow subway (worth traveling on your own)

Shopping good but at times expensive (Uniworld carried a nice selection on board). We did not spend enough time in downtown Moscow, but could have had we paid more attention to the subway briefing.

[land lover]

Moscow Ballet was canceled, Theater being renovated

 

Moscow Circus

Didn't go, it was on the last day, a late show and we had a very early flight in the morning.

 

Yusupov Palace Excellent

 

Catherine's Palace Don't miss it

 

Peterhov Another Don't miss

 

Kremlin and Armory

Kremlin good, Armory not so good except for WWII vets meeting each other

 

Russian Folklore Show in Moscow was canceled

 

St Petersburg Theater Performance

Pretty good but lengthy Not offering this year

 

Kiev Pirogovo Open Air Museum OK, nothing special

 

Was the cancelation due to lack of interst?

 

Thanks for the info.

[land lover]

We did our RussianRiver cruise with Uniworld, but the stops and special events (company to company) differ little.

 

The journey provides excellent insights into Russian contemporary life. All the stops were worthwhile. We thought rate the following as "not to miss:

- Moscow circus (wonderful)

- Moscow subway (worth traveling on your own)

Shopping good but at times expensive (Uniworld carried a nice selection on board). We did not spend enough time in downtown Moscow, but could have had we paid more attention to the subway briefing.

 

I had heard the circus was unique, why?...subway, is it really that easy?

 

Any other tips would be appreciated.

[cv sailor]

Circus. Great staging of events, almost seamless action, great looking, beautifully costumed performers accompanied by superb musicians. The flawless execution and extraordinary lighting make the circus a not to miss event.

Subway. Had we taken the time to get specific direction from our guide, the return journey to the river port would have been easy. The downtown has a centrally located, pedestrian only market, which offers excellent last minute shopping.

[Capt. & Teach]

We are going on the Grand European River Cruise, on July 18, 2007 on the river boat Bizet. Is there any one else on this site going on this trip?

This is on Grand Circle Travel.

Capt. & Teach