Your favorite European river cruise itinerary

[mzblizz]

We will be first-time river cruisers, after many ocean cruises, and are having a hard time deciding between the Rhine/Moselle and the Eastern Europe/Black Sea itineraries -- even after spending hours reading posts on this site. Both sound interesting. Any opinions? Or is there another itinerary we should be considering?

 

Thanks for any input you might have.

[susan33]

We have been on the Rhine and Main several times and just love it as most of the time the ship docks right in town and we could do things on our own. Most of the river boat companies run trips between Amsterdam and Vienna so you might check out those itineraries.

 

We have not done the Rhine and Mosel and it is on our list of trip to do. I think you can't go wrong on a river cruise.

[WIT]

We will be first-time river cruisers, after many ocean cruises, and are having a hard time deciding between the Rhine/Moselle and the Eastern Europe/Black Sea itineraries -- even after spending hours reading posts on this site. Both sound interesting. Any opinions? Or is there another itinerary we should be considering?

 

Thanks for any input you might have.

I've done the Danube both East and West from Budapest. The attractions and town centers are much further from the boat on the Eastern transit. Some require a bus ride of a few hours and the last two days from the Black Sea into Istanbul are all on the bus.

WIT

[basso]

Last year we cruised from Amsterdam to the Black Sea. Both of us preferred the western portion of the cruise.

 

Though I haven't cruised the Moselle, I was stationed near there in the 60s and have driven along many areas of the river. It is a beautiful area with castles and the steepest vineyards I have ever seen.

 

Bill

[mzblizz]

Thanks, Susan, WIT and Basso, for your input. For our first river cruise I think we'll go with the Western Europe rivers. It just took a little nudge to help us make up our minds -- thank you, thank you, thank you.

[Carhut]

I've done both. The Mosel river and the Rhine are the most scenic. The Danube from Budapest to the the Black Sea isn't very scenic. There are some interesting stops and some history there. Depends what you want.

[AWED23]

:D Any cruise with the Moselle (Mosel) included is by far the most scenic. The rhein and Main are great too but the Moselle is one continuous post card.:)

[Studebaker59]

We thoroughly enjoyed our Uniworld Paris & Normandy trip, including Monet's house, Giverny.

[GrannyLala]

DH & I recently returned from Viking Sky European Adventure (Vienna to Amsterdam). It was incredible! Some of the most beautiful was from Rudesheim - Km. 526.7(on the Rhine) to Koblenz - Km. 592.3 (mouth of the Moselle) this portion was for the castles; the other was on the Moselle where we went as far as Bernkastel-Kues - Km. 129.4 this portion was exceptional for the agriculture, specifically the wine vineyards. If you take a cruise as such, make sure you go to the Vinothek in Bernkastel-Kues for the wine tasting. They have 160 wines in their cellar for you to sample (try #113). Also, if you like beer make sure that in EVERY town you stop in ask for their Hefeweisen they are all quite good. My DH did a lot of research on trying to find a bad beer, but did NOT succeed (said he couldn't find one)!:)

[paul929207]

Our only river cruise was 21 nights from Constanta, Romania on the Black Sea to Amsterdam on the North Sea. It was wonderful.

[msmeltz]

We are interested in doing the Paris to Normandy cruise.

 

How was this cruise on Uniworld. The only River cruise we have done is the Danube with Avalon...loved it...but they don't seem to do this itinerary.

 

I see Viking does it also. Any input as to comparing Viking and Uniworld?

 

What is a good level of cabins on Uniworld?

 

Are the ships new? the food good? good mix of people?

[tiggypooo]

I can attest to the wonderful cruises that Uniworld offers. I was thrilled with the service, food, accomodations, included shore excursions and all the wonderful people both passengers and crew onboard.

I have not sailed with Viking, but after reading post after post from people that are unhappy with one thing or another, I don't think that I would sail with them.

Uniworld uses one of their older ships, The River Baroness, on the itinerary that you're looking at. It was refurbished in 2005, so it has been upgraded.

On that ship there are no suites, so the best cabins would be Category 1, I'd say somewhere nearer the stern.

Even though you're not getting one of their newer ships on that route, I think that the quality of the food and service would be the same as on any of their ships.

If you have any other Uniworld questions email me at tiggypooo@yahoo.ca

[Studebaker59]

We are interested in doing the Paris to Normandy cruise.

 

How was this cruise on Uniworld. The only River cruise we have done is the Danube with Avalon...loved it...but they don't seem to do this itinerary. I see Viking does it also. Any input as to comparing Viking and Uniworld?

When we planned the trip, Viking just did one way with a very early morning motorcoach ride back to Paris for the flight home. Uniworld did Paris roundtrip on the ship.

 

What is a good level of cabins on Uniworld? On the River Baroness, I think the cheapest cabin would be fine. We took Category 1, but I really think any would be OK.

 

Are the ships new? the food good? good mix of people?

The River Baroness was built in 1994, and refurbished in 2005. We did that sailing in 2007. This year, we went on Uniworld's River Royale to Provence. That ship was brand new in 2006. We were very happy with our

Category 2 cabin with a large window. The food was excellent. The passengers were from Britain, the U.S., Canada, Australia, & New Zealand. Most were in their 60s or older. All very nice.

[DonfromNC]

I have not sailed with Viking, but after reading post after post from people that are unhappy with one thing or another, I don't think that I would sail with them.

People (myself included) will always find "one thing or another" to complain about on any trip.

 

My wife and I haven't sailed with Uniworld, but our two Viking cruises have been our favorite cruises of all. Our next river cruise will be with Viking--we just haven't decided which itinerary.

[Dean]

I read with interest that the Eastern Danube was "not very scenic". We are planning on going with AMA Waterways next year, but may change our minds and go by car if the ride is not as good as we had hoped. Carhut ,do you have any more thoughts?

[Dean]

I read with interest that the Eastern Danube was "not very scenic". We ewere planning on going with AMA Waterways next year, but may change our minds and go by car if the ride is not as good as we had hoped. Carhut ,do you have any more thoughts?

[p598738]

Loved Budapest to the Black Sea. Very interesting to be in the former Communist East. Loved the people and the cities. Belgrade !! Home hosted lunch in Croatia !

 

France. The Rhone/Soane. Great food and wonderful stops. Avignon ! Arles ! Aix-en-Provance. Nice is nice !!!! France !!

 

Rhine and Mosel. Beautiful. Towns are OK. Loved Strasbourg and Cologne.

Great beer. Where the rivers join is breathtaking.

 

The Nile. Spiritual and wonderful. Drink from the Nile and you will return.

[Carhut]

I read with interest that the Eastern Danube was "not very scenic". We ewere planning on going with AMA Waterways next year, but may change our minds and go by car if the ride is not as good as we had hoped. Carhut ,do you have any more thoughts?

 

Dean, I didn't mean to discourage you from going on the Danube. It's just not as scenic as the Rhine and Mosel. The Rhine has a castle around every bend high up on the hill and many grape vineyards. The Mosel has non-stop vineyards on steep hillsides. The towns along those rivers are so picturesque. The Danube has a very distinctive scenic area called the "Iron Gates" but the rest of it is rather flat land with just foliage along the banks. There is nothing I like better than cruising along a river no matter which one. It's so peaceful and it's a great way to travel. You are literally taking your hotel room along with you. Can't beat that convenience. It's nice to have every meal provided, and the dining room service has been absolutely wonderful. If you want to go by car and drag your luggage along, look for good places to eat, that's your choice. Another plus of a river cruise are your tour guides. The ones that travel with you, taking care of all the arrangements and the local tour guides, both impart so much information that you wouldn't get if you traveled by car. You won't go wrong with a river cruise, no matter which river you choose. I'm glad I went on the Danube to the Black Sea. I loved the people we met, was horrified by some of the stories of the atrocities and hardships those people lived with for years. It made me appreciate my country even more. There is still alot of poor people there living in apartment buildings built by the communists. They are still using horses and wagons to farm some of the fields. Most of those Eastern European countries are decades behind the times. It's certainly worth seeing. But as I said before it isn't as scenic, but there's a lot of history there.

If you want you can access my pictures and you can see the different cruises.

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/home

[Carhut]

Sorry, that web address didn't open the way I thought it would.

Try these:

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/Carhut/EasternEurope

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/Carhut/GreatRiversOfEurope

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/Carhut/RomanceOfTheRhineAndMosel

[Shorex]

We will be first-time river cruisers, after many ocean cruises, and are having a hard time deciding between the Rhine/Moselle and the Eastern Europe/Black Sea itineraries --

 

From our research, there are no boring choices, only different choices. (I'm with p598738 -- except for that part about drinking from the Nile :eek: )

(Yes, I know he was speaking metaphorically. :))

 

We have done 40+ ocean cruises and we settled on the itinerary for our upcoming first river cruise (AMA, Istanbul to Budapest) for personal reasons -- a desire to visit eastern Europe, and a desire to spend several days in Istanbul.

 

I'm already planning our next river cruise -- it may be a barge in Scotland or the Douro River in Portugal. Or maybe southern France. Or maybe castles on the Rhine. All great choices.

[MrsDave]

Everyone...

Last year was our first..we did...The Rhone..Provence/Burgundy...with the extension in Paris..we were with Uniword..River Royale...their newest ship and it was fantastic..we met such nice people and we are still in touch....next year will be our 25th..and..I am torn...I was all set on the Rhine...but, people at work say...you just have to see Prague and now is the time to do it...I have been reading all the posts...I think this time we will do Avalon...and...I want to make a decision...get my deposit in and have something wonderful to look forward to...

there are sooooooooo many choices...

Tina

[slidergirl]

Well, if you want to do a river cruise AND see Prague, why not see if you can get one of the cruises on the Elbe River between Germany and Prague? Prague is a great city to visit for a couple of days. I had a day and a half there and wished I had more (but I had a conference in Germany to get to). Dresden is one of my favorite places. The only part of down that the Aliies didn't bomb the crap out of in WWII is being beautifully restored back to it's glory, after decades of ignorance by the East German government. Then, a short drive from there is Meissen, where some fantastic porcelain is made. I bought a small piece in the factory store - it sure wasn't cheap, but I knew it wouldn't be.

Or, do a pre-Rhine trip to Prague, then fly to your starting point. Flying within Europe is not that bad now.