Christmas Market River Cruise Questions?

[Dreamin]

We will be leaving on 12/11 on the Amadeus Princess. We will be stopping at Wurzburg, Regensburg, Rothenburg, Nuremburg, Passau, and Vienna and were wondering if anyone is familiar with this route and would know how close the ship will dock to the markets?

Some other questions I have...

what is the dress code at dinner? And at the Captains Reception? (just trying to figure out what to pack or what not to pack!)

Any other special hints?

Any ideas for purchases? Like what specialty items at different ports?(besides the Glehwein Mugs - I've got them on my list)

What you could have done without or wish you would have brought?!?

Thanks so much!

[steamboats]

Dreamin,

 

At Passau and Regensburg you´re definitely docking within walking distance to the downtown area and the Christmas markets. I don´t know where the ships are docking in Würzburg. If you´re docking in Würzburg directly downtown is within walking distance. Rothenburg is not on the river and you have to bus. In Nuremberg you are docking at the Canal harbor which is quite a distance from the downtown area. You need some kind of transportation. I think there is a public bus but it´s hard to find. In Vienna it depends on where you are docking. Handelskai is close to the subway and you can take the subway downtown. Nussdorf is a more remote location. There is a tram (line D) at Nussdorf station which is going downtown but it´s at least 15 min walking and app. 30 min tram ride. As the Amadeus Princess is a Lueftner ship it´s quite likely that you are docking in Nussdorf.

 

steamboats

[Dreamin]

Steamboats:

Thanks so much for your help! I noticed from reading some of your other responses that you mentioned the great prices on Birkenstock shoes. My husband is addicted to these and I was hoping to pick up a few pairs while on our cruise. Could you suggest the best/cheapest place? And how much should I expect to pay? You have been such a great help to so many people on this board - Thanks so much!

Dreamin

[steamboats]

Dreamin,

 

I´d look in a larger department store like Kaufhof or Karstadt (in Germany). Birkenstock has some cheaper brands too (like Betula). They go for app. 25 EUR. The originals (with real leather) are a bit higher.

 

steamboats

[G.M.T.]

Dreamin,

 

Have you read the writeup about the Christmas Markets here in Cruiscritic: http://www.cruisecritic.com/virtual/virtual.cfm?ID=10

 

Anyway let me see if I can help you with your questions (I live near Passau and occassionaly act as a tour guide from Munich to Passau for the Amadeus Princess sailing).

 

The ship is one of the more modern and bigger ships on this route. Passengers are mainly 50+, varied nationalities (Americans, Canadians, British, Germans, Swiss), for the Captains reception it is formal dress (not necessarily DJ but mostly suit and tie for the men and elegant for the ladies).

 

What to buy: As you already know about Gluhwein mugs (also don't forget to try the Gluhwein various types red wine, white wine, berries wine (blue berries). Also try the half meter Thuringer Bratwurst (20 inch sausage) and Jaeger Tee (Hunter Tea) - tea with rum and spices after a couple of these you will not need a ship as you will be able to walk across the Danube. Other things, Christmas decorations, toys made out of wood. For your Birkenstock either try Nuremburg as the Christmas Market runs along one the main shopping streets or Passau in the small Pedestrain Zone where their are several shoes shops.

 

Christmas Markets: On board their is always a Cruise Director who will give you tips and hints about each Port of Call, at most stops there are either shuttle buses if necessary or even guided tours.

 

I would suggest that you do a Google search for each city e.g Vienne Christams Market (most have an English version) = http://www.christkindlmarkt.at/markt_en.html

 

or try

 

http://gogermany.about.com/od/thingstodo/p/xmasmarkets.htm

 

Here is what I know:

 

Wurzburg: Don't know anything.

Nuremburg: Probably the most famous market, some way from the dock. The market is situated along one of the main shopping streets, so it can get very crowded and it is strung out for quite a distance.

Rothenburg: Here you will travel by bus (about an hour from Nuremburg). Very romantic setting is this famous walled town. One of the main attractions is a shop that sells Christmas items the year round. Can get very crowded especially at weekends.

Regensburg: There are several markets, near the cathedral, in front of the Turn & Taxis Palace, beautiful setting. This is a very old well preserved city, has the oldest stones bridge in Germany over 850 years old. Within easy walking distance of the dock.

Passau: The market is situated in front of St.Stephens Cathedral, very romantic setting, small and not very crowded. Within easy walk of the dock. If you have time be sure to visit the Cathedral (has the larget church organ in the world).

Vienna: they are several markets, the main one is in front of the Town Hall (Ratshaus), large, lots to see and do always with a different theme each year. One of my favourites. Some way from the dock (too far to walk).

 

I think thatis enough otherwise you will not need to do the cruise.:)

 

Have a good one.

Ron

[Dreamin]

Thanks for all the great info!

[Carolfay]

We'll be on the Danube between December 30 and January 6. I'm curious about what happens with the markets after Christmas. Do the decorations and lights remain up until 12th Night? Is the gluhwein still flowing?

[G.M.T.]

Carolfay,

The Christmas Markets close mostly 23rd. December (they are open the four weeks of Advent).

 

Most lights and decorations will remain til 12th Night (6th. January), you may find some gluhwein stands especially New Years Eve and New Years Day.

 

A word of caution, 1st. January and 6th. January (Epiphany) are public holidays in Bavaria / Germany and in Austria so do your shopping in between (shops at the airports will be open).

 

Have a good cruise.

Ron

[gr'aunt]

Blu*Donau-

I love the fact that you live in Passau and you read/respond to these boards. You and steamboats are a treasure.

 

I have a question that I hope you can give an opinion about. In reading past posts, I've read that some people found the excursion to Salzburg dissapointing. They wished they would have spent more time in Passau instead of taking the bus trip to Salzburg. Just how long does it take to get to Salzburg by bus from the boat? What is there to see along the way?

 

We leave in 7 days for Prague, then a week on the Amalegro cruising the Danube from Nuremburg to Budapest. Does the "elegant" attire for the Captain's dinner apply to the Amalegro as well? Several people I've spoken with have told us NOT to take anything dressy. My husband wears a tie for work, and he says there is no way he's taking one on vacation.

 

Thanks for your imput.

Gr'aunt (aka Debra)

[steamboats]

Carolfay,

 

Don´t expect any of the Christmas markets to be open. Some cities (like Hamburg) have "lengthened" the markets to New Years Day. You´d be lucky if there´s one open along the Danube river (maybe in Vienna). But they mainly close by Dec 23rd/24th. Glühwein might be still available. Also look for "Maroni" (roasted chestnuts).

 

Debra,

 

A nice top and a dark skirt/pants will do it for the ladies. Jacket and tie for men for the Captain´s dinner (no dark suit needed). All other evenings are more casual, let´s say usually no jeans or shorts and T-shirts for dinner.

 

IMHO I´d go for Salzburg. I know that the tours are mainly focused on "Sound of Music" which is nearly unknown in Germany/Austria. Salzburg is much bigger than Passau. For a short city walk I´d say an hour is o.k.. Sure you can spent more time in Passau (I´ve been there several times). The bus ride out of Passau to Salzburg is about 1.5 - 2 hours depending on traffic. And if you want to see the Alps that´s the closest you can get.

 

Here´s a thread I´ve started some time ago about what to see and do and Christmas Markets along the Danube river:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=391735&highlight=Christmas+Markets+steamboats

 

steamboats

[letsgo39]

Hello Gr Aunt,

 

The dress on our Budapest to Amsterdam cruise on the Avalon Tranquility was very casual and although jeans were not usually worn in the dining room,unless they got back late from touring, there were very few suits or ties worn even at the Captains dinner by the men. Dh did not even bring a suit,tie or sportscoat and had no problems fitting in. Most of the men wore casual pants like dockers and a collared shirt for all the dinners.The guys who wore suits or ties definitely were in the minority.I think I saw only about 3 or 4 men who had on a suit at the Captains dinner. I am sure your DH will be just fine with slacks or Docker type pants and a nice sweater for any of the dinners. For the women slacks and a sweater or nice top are fine for dinner and jeans are good for touring during the day for men and women.These cruises are very casual!!!

 

Some of the passengers who attended the concert in Vienna dressed up a bit more for that one occassion.

 

On the Europeon lines like the German line,Deilmann, people do dress up more.

[Carolfay]

Thanks for the responses. Since shopping isn't a priority with us, I won't mind missing that part of the experience, but it would be nice to see the lights and decorations. And the roasted chestnuts sound delicious!

[G.M.T.]

Debra (I won't call you Gr'aunt as it sounds tomuch like Great Aunt :) ),

It's my pleasure to pass on my thoughts and knowledge to others.

 

When I cruise I try to find a balance between shore excursions and relaxing. So the BIG question Salzburg or Passau - here goes:

Salzburg: The bus from Passau to Salzburg will take about 2.5 hours, you will pass through some nice countyside but nothing spectacular. In Salzburg you will probably visit Mozart's and Sound of Music house (note the SoM house was setup strickly for American tourists, you would hardly meet a German there). Salzburg is a beautiful city (the old part that is) with the Alps as a background (but only if the weather is clear). The Christmas Markrt is nice, but is very popular and so get crowded - it has been known becuase it gets so crowded that the police actually restricts admission to it. The bus from Salzburg to Linz will take about 2 hours.

Passau: The ship docks right in the town, eveything is within easy walking distance. Passau is also a very old city dating back over 2000 years, it has a beautiful cathedral dedicated to St. Stephen, the Christmas Market (small and compact) is situated in frnt of the cathedral. People that take the Salzburg excursion miss the best part of teh River Danube and that is the Danube Valley between Passau and Linz. This is on a par or even better than the more famous Rhine Valley.

The choice is yours?;)

With regards to dress code, we always take something elegant for DW and I take at least a suit / jacket and tie, I always find dressing up "glamourous" rounds off a perfect cruising day. I quote from the Amalegro web page

"In the evening, be our honored guest for an elegant dinner or a traditional theme night with a feast of regional specialties"

http://www.amadeuswaterways.com/ship_details.asp?ship=amalegro&view=di

 

Have a good cruise.

Ron

[gr'aunt]

Ron aka Blu*Donau-ha ha ha...I am Cody and Taylor's "great" aunt, hence the nickname gr'aunt (sounds like Grant) which they actually call me! Now I'm torn again between Passau and Salzburg. I wish I didn't have to choose!

 

Steamboats-thanks for the warning about the Sound of Music house. I have actually never seen the movie, and have no intention of traveling thousands of miles to see some cheesy tourist-trap! I live 5 miles from Disneyland, so I'm pretty immune to that sort of thing. If we go to Salzburg, we'll skip that part of the tour. We'll go if the weather's nice and we can see the Alps, otherwise a relaxing cruise through the Danube Valley as Blu*Donau has described sounds perfect.

 

Hey, if we don't get to see the Alps, we can always drive down to Disneyland--they've got a fake Matterhorn!!!

 

Cheers...Debra aka gr'aunt

[Ladybentley]

We will be leaving on 12/11 on the Amadeus Princess. We will be stopping at Wurzburg, Regensburg, Rothenburg, Nuremburg, Passau, and Vienna and were wondering if anyone is familiar with this route and would know how close the ship will dock to the markets?

Some other questions I have...

what is the dress code at dinner? And at the Captains Reception? (just trying to figure out what to pack or what not to pack!)

Any other special hints?

Any ideas for purchases? Like what specialty items at different ports?(besides the Glehwein Mugs - I've got them on my list)

What you could have done without or wish you would have brought?!?

Thanks so much!

 

I'm quite new to Cruise Critic but I'm thinking of going on a Christmas Markets cruise next year on the Amadeus Princess from Vienna to Nuremburg. I would love to hear more about the cruise after you've been if you would be willing to give some details. I'd be particularly interested in knowing where in Vienna the boat docks as I'd be getting to Vienna a couple of days early and will have to find my own way to the boat. I'd also like to know more about disembarking at Nuremburg - the itinerary says the boat goes to Roth which I presume is quite a distance away and you go on a bus to Nuremburg. Does that mean you spend the night at Roth and disembark there on the last day?

 

I've really enjoyed reading all the comments on this site and have already learned a lot so shall go on reading and finding out more. Thanks :)

[steamboats]

Ladybentley,

 

Roth is a town outside of Nuremberg. You definitely need some kind of transfer to get downtown. I doubt that there is a public transportation nearby. The usualy landing is in the Nuremberg harbor section of the Canal which is also quite a distance away from downtown (cab or ship´s transportation needed too). So the main difference between Roth and Nuermberg is that you can´t take a cab to Nuremberg from Roth.

 

The Amadeus Princess is a Lueftner ship. Lueftner has it´s own docking area in Vienna-Nussdorf. This is also a quite remote location and it´s at least 15 min walking distance to the tram stop.

 

Anyway you will find the exact docking location on your documents and a cab driver will know where he has to go.

 

steamboats

[H2Otstr]

Ladybentley, We just returned from a trip from Vienna to Regensburg and the boat was docked in Nussdorf, as Steamboats indicated. It was a 15 to 20 minute cab ride from downtown Vienna and the cost was 17.50 Euros. There was a lady on our trip who missed the bus transport and had to take a cab back to the boat.

[Dreamin]

Ron, we will be in Passau on Sunday on our River Cruise next week and would like to try and attend Mass at St. Stevens. Would you happen to know what time masses are held? If we can't make it at one of those times, is there another Catholic Church near by and would you happen to know the times of those services?

 

Again, thanks for all your help - you have been wonderful!

[steamboats]

Dreamin,

 

Here´s the (German) website of the Passau cathedral:

 

http://www.bistum-passau.de/site.phtml?page=bstm_domgd

 

Main Mass on Sundays is at 9:30 am.

 

steamboats

[G.M.T.]

Ron, we will be in Passau on Sunday on our River Cruise next week and would like to try and attend Mass at St. Stevens. Would you happen to know what time masses are held? If we can't make it at one of those times, is there another Catholic Church near by and would you happen to know the times of those services?

 

Again, thanks for all your help - you have been wonderful!

Debra,

The time of the Mass are:

7.00 Uhr, 8.00 Uhr, 9.30 Uhr und 11.00 Uhr

also there is Christmas Music at 5:00 pm. :

http://www.bistum-passau.de/vera.phtml?action=2&ID=388

 

Passau is very Catholic (99%) so any church is bound to be catholic - don't foget we have a Bavarian Pope.

 

Have a really good cruise. Weather at present, 48F mild and raining. Due to get a bit colder over the next couple of days.

 

Have a very good cruise.

Ron

[Ladybentley]

Thanks very much for the replies. The taxi to Nussdorf sounds fine. And I emailed the tour company about the Nuremburg end (I live in New Zealand so phone calls to the States can be a bit expensive) and the answer was that the boat will disembark in Nuremburg itself. That will make it easier as I shall probably be meeting up with my husband there at the end of the cruise unless he can find some more holiday time and come on the cruise with me.

[WIT]

During our Amadeus Christmas Markets cruise last December I noticed that the market in the courtyard of the Thorin-Taxis mansion (Regensburg) had things I did not see elsewhere: wood-roasted juicy duck on a crusty dark bun, a blacksmith shop, wood-fueled warming fires. The Cruise Director walked us right up to the place & paid our admission.

 

PS: If you have occasion to visit Chicago between Thanksgiving & New Year's, the Windy City hosts an excellent Kristkindl market in Daley Plaza. I liked how Nurenberg had booths from many world cities & Chicago tries to emulate that.

WIT

[AZPam]

 

PS: If you have occasion to visit Chicago between Thanksgiving & New Year's, the Windy City hosts an excellent Kristkindl market in Daley Plaza. I liked how Nurenberg had booths from many world cities & Chicago tries to emulate that.

WIT

 

Is the one in Chicago down by the Marshall Fields (now Macy's) on State Street? I've been to that one and it was lots of fun.

[WIT]

Is the one in Chicago down by the Marshall Fields (now Macy's) on State Street? I've been to that one and it was lots of fun.

AZPam - Macy's has the Christmas-themed windows going around the block the store occupies on State Street. The Kristkindl Market at Daley Plaza is a short walk one block due West of Macy's on Dearborn. Glad you enjoyed it.

WIT