trip Report: tulips and windmills

[micked10@earthlink.net]

We arrived back home yesterday afternoon from our awesome cruise. Left home on april 13th and flew to Amsterdam,where we spent 3 days before boarding Uniworld's ship the River Queen.

We stayed at the Marriott Hotel in Amsterdam which was within walking distance or tram ride to all sights. since we had been there before our main purpose was to attend the Keukonhoff Gardens on our own since I knoew the excursion from the ship would only be a few hours. That was a wise decision since we spent 6 hours walking around the AWESOME Gardens. Almost 80% of the tulips were in bloom ( according to the lady in the bulb house when we purchased some bulbs). I would have thought more than that since the flowers were in abundance everywhere--hyacinths, daffodils, tulips etc. It is a spectacular sight.

We went to the Resistance Museum, the Van Gogh Museum and Van Gogh's Home, The excursion from the ship included the Rikj. Museum. We had seen the Anne Frank home and taken a canal cruise on a previous visit. All of these are worth seeing, in my opinion.

We boarded the River Queen on Apr. 16th and I can't saw enough good things about it. the rooms were small--we were on the 3rd deck, but I looked into some other rooms, and other than the suites all rooms are the same size and configuration. Don't know if I would spend the extra money to upgrade if we went again. There is plenty of storage space and the beds were very comfortable.

Food was good ( not excellent) and the desserts were heavenly!! Breakfast and lunch were buffet but you could order eggs, omelets etc. off the menu. Plenty of choices at both breakfast and lunch. Dinner was sit down with 3 choices of entrees, two choices for starters, 2 for soup and 2 for dessert, plus ice cream.

People were very friendly and everyone mixed well. We made many good friends.

Our cruise director was Wouter, but he said to call him Walter. It was easier. He is originally from Brussells, now lives in Rome and has been in the tour business all his life. His parents also did tours. He was young and very knowledgeable. Always with a smile and very gracious. He went out of his way to make our tour enjoyable. For example-- the first night while we were docked in Amsterdam he announced that he would take a group of anyone that wanted to on a tour of the Red Light District. This was without charge and lasted about 2 hours. Very informative for a person from the conservative Midwest!!

All of our tours were well organized and started promptly. We were divided into 3 busses and then into 5 small groups when we arrived at our destinations. Vox boxes were used for all tours and were very helpful. You could walk away from your group to look at something and still hear them easily. All local guides were very good.

Nightly entertainment consisted of local singers, bands etc. They were all enjoyable and good.

It would be hard for me to pinpoint one highlight of the trip because it definitely exceeded our expectations. We loved the Netherlands and thought the K. Gardens were awesome. The Delta works is an engineering marvel, the windmills were a sight to behold and all of the little towns with their market squares were delightful.

We especially loved Brugge and had a full day there with plenty of free time. I thought the pace of the trip was just right--walking tours in the AM and then plenty of free time to walk, shop, stop for coffee etc.

If I had anything negative at all to say it would be that the organization of the buffets could have been better. The River Queen has a 2 level dining room and the buffet was set up on both levels. Soup, cheeses and bread on the lower level and then salads, entrees and dessert on the upper level. The flow of people was very awkward--some getting soup and going up and down the few steps and then some starting with entrees and trying to make their way down the steps to their table. personally, I think they should let a woman design the organization and we could get it fixed in no time!!

This is pretty long but I hope I have given you some idea of our cruise. It was so much better than I even hoped for. We docked in Brussels so spent 5 days there. It was the end of a great trip.

I did forget to mention that the age range was from around 50 ish to 80's. Most of the couples seemed to be in their 60's or 70's. There were several peple with canes and one with a walker. Our cruise director tried to accommadate everyone and walked at a reasonable pace.

micked10

[KarlS]

Thanks so much for your detailed review. We jump on River Queen in Amsterdam this coming Sunday for the Legendary Rhine & Moselle itinerary. We'd done your itinerary on Uniworld's River Duchess in 2006 as our first river cruise, and we really enjoyed it, too.

 

Did River Queen have any internet access? That was a real disappointment on both of our River Duchess cruises, since the one terminal in the library never worked for the duration of either cruise. (Not a necessity, but it's good to have for emergencies when we're not able to find a 'net cafe ashore).

 

...Karl

[fred111]

My wife and I are planning to take the same trip next year. What week would you recommend we travel to see the most flowers while having good weather? Thanks.

[KarlS]

My wife and I are planning to take the same trip next year. What week would you recommend we travel to see the most flowers while having good weather? Thanks.

 

Fred,

 

As I'm sure others can attest (from reviews I've read here), it all depends on mother nature.

 

We tried to guess the right departure date when we did this trip in Mid-April 2006. The Netherlands had a long winter that year, and the tulips hadn't bloomed yet. (We missed them by two weeks). We learned later, the tulips bloomed the first week in April the year before.

 

The good news, though, is there is always something blooming bigtime at Keukenhoff (sp?) Gardens. When we were there, the daffodils and hibiscus were glorious. They have several huge hot houses on the grounds, and they have large clusters of all of the tulip varieties in full bloom, so you don't miss much.

 

Cheers!

 

...Karl

[Steph27]

What a great review! I will be in Bruges for just one day later this month. We are staying overnight in the new Kempinski Dukes Palace. Anything you want to mention about Bruges besides just wandering around?

[micked10@earthlink.net]

Thanks to all of you for your positive comments on the trip report. To answer some of your questions-- When we were buying our tulip bulbs at the Gardens I ask the very friendly lady that was helping us what is the best time to see the most blooms. She said that the last week of April is usually the best. I know you can't always count on the weather and ours was pretty chilly and windy when we were in the gardens, which was once on April 15th and then with our cruise tour on Apr. 17th. As another poster stated--there is always something in bloom. I worried and worried about being there too early but was well satisfied with the about of flowers in bloom. I think if I were going again I would select the last week of Apr.

Brugge is a wonderful town and it was fun to just walk around. Be sure to take the canal cruise and go into the church and see the Michaelangelo Statue of the virgin and child. According to our guide it is the only Michaelangelo original outisde of Italy. One suggestion would be to not go on a weekend. We were there on a Friday and it was jammed packed with tourists and they said it was worse on Sat. and Sunday. There are delightful outdoor cafes and lots and lots of shops for lace, chocolates etc. Be sure to have a Belguim waffle--simply delicious and also Belguim chocolate. I am getting sooo hungry just writing this.

To also answer the question about the internet---we did not use it but heard several people saying it wasn't working. So, although they claim to have it I wouldn't count on it. you will truly love this cruise. Uniworld's River queen is elegant and I hope you get Walter/Wouter as your tour guide.

If you have anymore questions I will try to help.

micked10

[dlhamlten]

We just returned from Grand Circle's Holland & Belgium in the Springtime cruise on the R/S Rivel. We did Keukenhof on April 24th and it is hard to bellieve that it could have been any better ! I understand that the Today Show's Where in the World is Matt Lauer was broadcast live from Keukenhof this past Monday and he claimed they were at peak !

 

We were gone from April 19 -30th starting in Amsterdam and ending in Brussels. We had virtually no rain which is rare. The Gardens day was partly cloudy and 60'ish degrees which was perfect for strolling. The last Sunday in Brussels was unseasonably warm into the 70's and sunny and everyone in the city was out sunning.

 

Mother Nature decides the best blooming period, but there is a lot more than tulips at Keukenhof including indoor Pavillions which have controlled climates. Our Program Director said there were usually 3 very good weeks each year and that the last week in April was usually in there.

[tiggypooo]

Hi Micked:

I just returned last night from The River Duchess cruise. I missed seeing you when we were docked at the same port. (Antwerp I believe)

Unfortunately I arrived with puemonia and ended up in hospital there on the first day. What a way to start.

By the 4th day I was feeling much better. The Uniworld staff was incredible and treated me and my travelling companion wonderfully, making sure that we had everything that we needed. (she got sick after me)

We ended up missing Bruges. That was very upsetting, as it was going to be the highlight for me. The full day would have been much too much though.

The rest of the itinerary was wonderful and everything from the tours, to the guides, to the food, to "Queens Day" on April 30th in Amsterdam, made up for what we had missed.

Our 1/2 day at the gardens on April 30th was perfect. All the gardens were at their peak.

Some people have commented that the 3 hours given there is not enough, but for me and most of the others on our tour, it was plenty.

(For anyone planning for next year)

Well, it's time to plan for my next river cruise. Maybe the Christmas Markets this winter...

[micked10@earthlink.net]

So sorry you were sick TiggyPoo. Yes, it was a wonderful trip and Uniworld does a spectacular job. I am sure there are also many other lines that do the same but since we only have viking and Uniworld to compare too we loved everything about this cruise. Service was wonderful, food good and desserts were heavenly. Beds were very comfortable too. Loved all of the ports and had great guides.

I hated to hear that you were sikc. I also came home with a cold and a cough which I am still trying to get over.

Haven't planned our next River Cruise but thinking about Amsterdam to Basel. We are going to Monterrey, CA in July and the East Coast in Oct. for the changing leaves, so that will keep me occupied for awhile.

micked10