Tauck riverboats

[Acrusa]

Just recieved the Tauck 2009 EUROPEAN RIVER CRUISING BROCHURE.Also looked at Uniworld brochure.The Tauck cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest 14 cruise days is more expensive then Uniworld by about $1500.00 pp for a simelar cruise, also 14 days.

Tauck includes all Gratuites and 90% of there new boats are floor to ceiling windows.

Has there been any feed back about Tauck and there new boats?

Leaning toward Tauck because of only 118 passinger max.Would really like some insite.

Mywife and I have cruised for the past 25 yrs but never a river cruise.

[klncpa]

Hello Acrusa,

 

My cruise experience has been limited to two ocean cruises on a small ship line (Windstar) and a riverboat cruise on Tauck's Swiss Sapphire from the Black Sea to Budapest. I haven't taken a Uniworld trip, so I can't compare the two, but I can speak to my experience with Tauck on a riverboat cruise.

 

It was an incredible experience. The itinerary was fabulous as were the stops, the tours, and the lectures onboard. The food was really good, too (and I am a very picky eater). On our tour, we had 99 people divided into three groups for the purposes of tours. The three groups saw the same things, only in a different order, so you didn't end up with all of us in the same place at the same time. The boat was pretty much brand new and it was beautiful. We were in the cabin category where our floor to ceiling windows (sliding glass doors) opened. The cabin wasn't huge, but it was comfortable and efficient. We're not people who like to spend a lot of time in the cabin, we'd rather be on deck taking in the scenery or in port running around.

 

I can't say enough about the quality of the Tauck experience. The Tour Directors were very affable and attentive to everyone's needs. Our trip included everything....all of the tours, almost every meal (with freely flowing wine at dinner), gratuities. We pretty much just wrote the checks for the trip and were done with pulling the wallet out, except for a lunch or two and souvenirs. An example of how the TDs handle things is: we missed most of the Welcome Dinner due to circumstances beyond our control. We showed up to get our "packet" and one of the TDs insisted on getting us dinner, even though the sit down dinner was long over. He had the hotel kitchen staff whip us up a dinner and personally kept our wine glasses full. With Tauck, if there's a problem that's not solved, it's simply not solveable.

 

Your post asked for some insight...that's mine. If you'd like for me to address some more specific items, please let me know. I'm grateful for the assistance I've received from other posters and more than happy to share whatever insight I have that might be able to help other folks.

 

Happy travels and happy sails,

Karen

[micked10@earthlink.net]

I have not been on a tauck River cruise but have been on 3 of their land tours. Tauck does everything to perfection!! I would think that you couldn't go wrong with Tauck. On the other hand--we have taken 2 river cruises with Uniworld and have just booked another to Egypt for 2009. One of the main reasons for booking Uniworld for Egypt is that they are coming out with a brand new ship this Apr. that is all suites.

Our previous experience with Uniworld has been great. The food has been very good--buffets for breakfast, but you could order off the menu. The same with lunch--plenty of choices. Dinner was an order off the menu with 3 or 4 choices. Wine poured freely. I believe the ships held around 150 people and we were always divided into 5 groups, with 5 individual guides and different buses. Never crowded and never being in the same place at the same time. Our tour Managers were superb.

My opinion is that you couldn't go wrong with either one.

Also, forgot to mention---there were very few optionals on the Uniworld Tour. I think there we 3 offered and we did 2 of the 3. Everything else is included! I think that is something to consider--some river cruises are initially less expensive, but then you read the itinerary and there are always many optional tours to pay for.

The itinerary you are considering is a great one! Enjoy

micked10

[Louise22]

I just returned from a riverboat cruise with Tauck and had a major problem. I had really expected the best from them being a first time customer. I wrote a letter requesting their response over three weeks ago and have yet to receive a response. My travel agent's head office also contacted them. When or if I do receive a response I will do an update here.

[ddschur]

What was your "Major Problem"?:rolleyes:

[Acrusa]

Thank you so much for that fabulouse insite into your river cruise.The wife and I have been on Windstar, silversea, Oceania also on some cruise ships going back to the eaerly 90's.So am used to good service and high quality. Thank you again.

[pjtraveler]

We've done four river cruises with Uniworld and have had wonderful experiences on all four! In Europe, the maximum number of passengers is about 120--so not much difference. On a river cruise, we find that we spend very little time in the cabin, so the cabin and windows are not very important to us. We enjoy very much, on the other hand, sailing along on the top deck where you have a 360 degree view at all times. I have pictures of our four cruises (Rhine, Danube, Egypt, and China) posted on Kodak Gallery. If you'd like to see any of them, email me at this address (pjppaula@comcast.net).

 

I'd also be glad to answer any specific questions you might have about Uniworld.

[katybird]

I just returned from a riverboat cruise with Tauck and had a major problem. I had really expected the best from them being a first time customer. I wrote a letter requesting their response over three weeks ago and have yet to receive a response. My travel agent's head office also contacted them. When or if I do receive a response I will do an update here.

 

I would be interested to know your problem. We are planning a river cruise as well and do not want to make a "major" mistake!

[Louise22]

Hi, Katybird - ddschur got really annoyed with me on the Fodors forum for not posting my problem so here is what happened:

 

It is rather lengthly so that is why I didn't want to post what happened. I have done a lot of small ship expedition cruising and really I am very easy going and have never had a complaint but being treated as what I perceive rudely is very disturbing.

 

When I selected my cabin last year I picked a Category 1 rather than a 2 as I thought they were smaller therefore the $500 cheaper cost. Being a single that was fine with me. There were 3 Category 1 cabins and the staff and crew were to the rear and the rest of the deck forward was Category 2. The first night on the river I was awake all night from the noise particularly going through the locks.

 

I approached the cruise director the next morning about the noise and the possibility of changing cabins. By the way all were the same size. She showed me a deck plan with the 1 cabins in blue and said I should have known that they were cheaper because they were noisy. I asked her how would I know that and I just thought they were smaller. As the ship was only two thirds full I could have a different cabin but it would cost me $500 more. I could not afford it so she told me with a smile to get ear plugs. And, she said if I would have known the cabins were noisy when I booked I would have paid the extra $500 for a 2.

 

What annoyed me also was that four Tauck trainees were in individual cabins which were a higher category and two joined the tour a few days later.

 

Because I had to go back to bed two mornings and miss tours I consider that a major problem - I was just too tired. And, being a single, the cost of the whole trip was $9,000. Although it was not ruined by any means I feel like at the very least I should receive an apology from Tauck for the conduct of their representative.

 

So that is my sad story. A problem that could have been very easily rectified by good customer relations.

[katybird]

Louise22 - Thanks for the explanation. I appreciate it. I'm sorry you had such a problem. I know on our Nile River cruise [GCT]some of the lower cabins had to deal with the fuel smell and it was horrible. The boat was full so they were stuck. I don't know if they received any compensation.

 

Please let us know if you ever get a response from Tauck. I have heard very good recommendations as well about the company so it will be interesting to see what happens.

Katy

[Louise22]

I will for sure post if I hear anything.

[klncpa]

Hi Louise22,

 

I'm totally confused about how Tauck caused or failed to handle this "major problem".

 

You got a cabin in the category you paid for. You encountered a noise problem in the locks and were offered the opportunity to upgrade your cabin if you paid the difference in the rate. You declined and the Cruise Director made the obvious suggestion to alleviate a noise problem...ear plugs. (I wouldn't dream of travelling without ear plugs. Between screaming babies on airplanes and rowdy hotel guests in hallways late at night, they are a very cheap, compact, and simple solution to many problems encountered while travelling.)

 

Just curious...

 

What does the location of the Tauck trainees' cabins have to do with any of this?

 

What did you expect Tauck to do to alleviate the problem at the time and what do you expect from them now?

[orchestrapal]

klncpa: I agree with you. You usually get what you pay for. We experienced noise from the front of an Oceania ship because it was over he lounge, which we could see from the deck plan. We bit the bullet and booked suites in the rear of the ship for more money but, no noise. I don't think Tauck owes anyone anything for bad cabin choices.:)

[Louise22]

Yesterday I received a phone call from Tauck and an apology for the rudeness of the cruise director. The gal said if they would have known at the head office I would have been given one of the empty cabins immediately.

[kerryblue]

Hi Kincpa,

 

I'm so happy to see your review. I've been obsessing over whether to go with Uniworld or Tauck. I've been leaning toward Tauck but still driving myself nuts...after reading about your wonderful experience I think I can stop and just look foward to the trip! I do have one question though. Did you spend enough time in your stateroom to make the level 4 worth the money? We had the bigger windows when we took Deilmann many years ago but they sailed quite a bit during daylight hours. Does Tauck do the same or is it mainly at night time? Is there much to see from the windows while docked or is the view obstructed by other boats? I really appeciate having help making this last decision. (We're planning on the Rhine & Moselle in October.)

[shoshona2]

To Kerryblue,

 

Please post back here about your Tauck Moselle-Rhine river cruise. Which direction have you booked. We are planning on taking it in 2010. I understand that they no longer use the ship they used in 2008 which some people have complained about on this board.

 

Sheila

[klncpa]

Hello kerryblue,

 

I don't recall exactly the difference between the different categories, but if memory serves, Category 1 and 2 have portholes, 3 has floor to ceiling windows that don't open and 4 has floor to ceiling windows that do open. I'm not real sure about that, so please check Tauck documentation or check with your travel agent.

 

On our trip (the Black Sea to Budapest), we had one full day of cruising and an afternoon of cruising. We participated in all of the tours, so that was about all of the long periods of down time that we had. It was June, and we're not much folks to sit in our cabin, so, during the down time, we headed up to chairs at the front of the boat in front of the wheelhouse or to the sundeck to read, write in the trip journal, take in the scenery, and otherwise relax. (They also had lectures by the TDs, galley tours, and wheelhouse tours which we attended.) The weather was great and we really enjoyed the nice areas in which to relax.

 

Is the floor to ceiling window that opens really worth the money? Probably not on the itinerary we selected. Floor to ceiling windows do provide more light than portholes, so the room (when you're in it during the day) is brighter. There's not a balcony, so all you really gain with a window that opens is a nice little breeze and some fresh air when you're in the cabin (since the HVAC works well, the breeze is pretty irrelevant). If you handwash some clothes, the window that opens is nice.

 

From looking at the Rhine and Moselle itinerary in the Tauck brochure, it looks like there aren't any full days of cruising and most days are in port. If I were you, I'd contact Tauck or my TA and find out how much day cruising there is on the trip and what the normal temperatures are. If there's a few afternoons/mornings of cruising, you may want the window instead of the portholes if you think you'll spend a good bit of time in the cabin. If it's chilly, window/door that opens may be irrelevant.

 

From what I remember, there wasn't really much fabulous scenery visible from our cabin at any of the docking points. There were a couple of times where we actually had to walk through another boat in order to reach the dock (they "parked" them next to each other).

 

Hope this helps you. If not or if other questions, klncpa@aol.com.

 

Happy Cruising...

Karen

 

PS...The Rhine and Moselle itinerary looks awesome! Hope you have a great time and post a review.

[kerryblue]

Hi Sheila and Kincpa

 

Kincpa, I really appreciate your response and giving me your email...I'm sure more questions will come up!

 

Sheila,

 

We haven't booked the trip yet. I'm waiting to see what discounts may be offered as places don't fill due to the economy. I've seen some impressive offers on other lines. We're also wanting to get closer to see what the dollar does. Right now it's great compared to 6 months ago (who would have ever thought the pound would lose 50 cents in 6 months!). But with everything in such flux, it's a concern.

 

We already have our air. British Air had a 5 day window when they offered tickets for 50% less FF miles...who could pass that up! If we did end up not going, it would only cost us $150 to have them recreditied to our account. But due to that short window, we had to make a fast decision and used Viking's itinerary which was Basel to Antwerp. We can change dates but not cities so we have to do it from Basel to Amsterdam and just take a train from Amsterdam to Brussels (I wanted to go to Brugge anyway). So the very long answer to your question is that we'll start from Basel and if we go, I'll definitely post!

[tiggypooo]

Louise: That is really horrible that Tauck treated you like that when you had a complaint. If they had other cabins available and it would have made their guest more comfortable, you should have been moved with no questions asked. I don't think that that was an unreasonable request.

To be told to "go and get some earplugs" is condesending and rude. A 5* company should never treat a guest like that.

On one of my Uniworld cruises, one of the cabins was having the same problem with the bow thruster noise. They were promptly moved into an empty cabin.

The quality of my Uniworld cruises was wonderful and I couldn't have gotten an extra $1500. worth of happiness booking with someone else.

Acrusa:

The Uniworld ships hold 130 people at capacity. For my first one there was 79 people and my 2nd 115.

Too many people is definately not a problem.

[kerryblue]

I am so upset...my travel agent just told me that catagory 4 cabins are sold out for October 5. I knew I was taking a risk in not booking earlier since there are only 2 cat 4's but as I said, I was waiting to see what discounts would come up and be more secure about what the dollar was doing. But I thought with the recession less people would be traveling and I'd be ok. I really don't want 3 since it's quite a bit smaller and yet costs almost as much, or 5 which is $1600 more for 2 people! I have no one to blame but myself and boy, am I doing that.

[klncpa]

Kerryblue, Please put a smile back on your face. You'll still have a great time, and you probably won't be spending all that much time in your cabin. The sights sound wonderful, the food will be great, and you'll probably have some very interesting fellow travellers.

 

Karen