river cruises

I'll let you know in April! We are taking a cruise on AMA Waterways called the Tulip Time cruise. The cruise is not cheap but it includes a lot. I have a friend who is a travel agent from Germany and she has taken cruises on all of the major lines in Europe. Her favorite is AMA by far. We booked the cruise through her and I used miles for the plane tickets. We are very excited about this trip! Based on my past trips to Europe (which I planned using Rick's ETBD philosophy), the cruise will cost significantly more, but I think the splurge will be well worth it.

we took our first river cruise about 2 years ago and Loved it. it would be a wonderful Honeymoon experience . Very relaxing and yet you get to sightsee along the way. Food is usually very good. we did the AMA castles on the Rhine.

Which river? Rhine? Danube? Rhine-Main-Danube? Volga? Maas? Rhôn?

If you travel the 'Rick Steves Way' you may not find them good value. I went on a Viking River Cruise about 18 months ago and found the level of accommodation and especially housekeeping service was more than I was used to and not necessarily a plus for me. I travel alone and didn't understand why I needed someone to come in to my room and pick up and clean twice a day. The cruise was expensive, but I did love the cruising part. The daily land excursions were a good overview and you usually had time to explore on your own for at least an hour or two. Food was pretty good-any food from the same kitchen for 14 days can get a little tiresome. The age demographic on Viking is older. I was 66 and there were only about 3 or 4 people younger than me-most were in 70's or early 80's (that is probably why Viking is putting elevators in all their new ships.) I had never cruised before and part of my reaction may have been things that someone who cruises would be used to. Just one example, being told at the end what the suggested tip per day was. The 'suggestion' was part of a power point on disembarking instructions, so it was pretty much an expectation, not a suggestion. I would recommend going to the cruise critic website for a good picture of both pros and cons for different river cruise lines, including passenger comments.

Hi,

You also have two other choices for a river cruise: the Elbe and the Oder. Sorry, I don't have such an experience...yet. But a river cruise on the Oder is on the short list.

My husband just returned from an AMA Waterways river cruise in November of 2013. We were on the Main-Danube Canal and the Rhine River through Germany. We were also scheduled to go on the Mosel River, but due to a lot of rain and the level of the river being high, we were not able to do that part of the itinerary.

Here are my thoughts on the river cruise:

Pros: 1. The service was EXCELLENT. Great food, nice cabin, excellent staff. Even with the itinerary change due to the weather, the staff handled it flawlessly. The river cruises are small, and the staff to guest ratio is much better than you would get on a large ocean cruise ship. 2. Wine and beer are included at lunch and dinner, and they are served liberally. Again, you won't find this on other cruises. 3. It's great to unpack once, but have the ability to see a number of different places. We've also done land-based trips across Europe, and having to pack and unpack and move to a new hotel every night gets old. 4. The price is pretty much all-inclusive - all of your food, the excursions, beer and wine at dinner, etc. We still had a bar bill for any after dinner drinks, but it was nice to not have to worry about what you were ordering for dinner every night because of the cost.

Cons: 1. It is expensive. You are paying for the convenience. You could definitely do it cheaper on your own. 2. I'm not sure of your age, but the river cruises definitely cater to a bit older crowd. My husband and I are in our early 40's, and we were the youngest people on the cruise. If you are younger and looking to meet people in your own age group, this may not be the trip for you. 3. You will be limited in your time and ability to explore each port. Because river cruises sail at a slower rate, you spend a lot of time sailing and a shorter time in each port. There were a few ports that we wished we could have had some time on our own. You will be limited in how much of each city you can "experience". You are typically eating all of your meals on the ship, so if you are looking to experience the local cuisine or nightlife, you may be disappointed.

All in all, we loved our trip and have already talked about doing it again. For us, we are willing to pay for the service and the convenience of the river cruise. We also look at a river cruise as a way of conveniently visiting a lot of places that we have never been, without the commitment of going to one place and not liking it. After this last cruise, we now know the places we visited that we'd like to spend more time in some day, and will plan our own trip back.

Hope this helps!

clementine,

I've thought of taking a river cruise and have checked into several of the cruise lines, but I'm not sure I consider them "good value". As some of the others have mentioned, you'd also have to allow for the "expected" gratuities for all the staff at the end of the cruise, as well as any optional excursions you wanted to take.

I've attended several presentations hosted by Viking, AMA and others and aside from the cost, the biggest problem for me was that fact there are few ships that accommodate solo travellers. I was told by one cruise line representative that if I wanted to sail on any of the ships that don't have single cabins, I'd have to pay two fares. I'm on a Pension so that's NOT going to happen (and I told her that)!

If your budget will allow I'm sure you'd enjoy a river cruise, but again as others have mentioned your fellow passengers will probably be considerably older.

Happy travels!

As mentioned by previous posters, a river cruise will definitely cost more than doing it yourself. We were seriously considering one a year or two ago but worked out we could spend three weeks in Europe for the cost of the one week cruise. We were also disappointed in the included excursions; they were fairly basic and run of the mill. We would have skipped them to do our own thing but of course that's more costly again.

That being said they do look wonderful and for a honeymoon the luxury and ease might just be the thing. I wouldn't be concerned about being the youngest; we at 42 were the youngest couple by far on our China tour and had an absolute ball with our fellow travelers.

clementine i've been looking at them too. Don't know when you are planning to go, but a lot of the 2014 cruises are booked up already, so don't wait too long if you are considering one for this year.

I have heard that on many river cruises (especially spring and fall) the water levels in the rivers affects the ability of the boats to complete the planned itinerary. As a result, the cruise companies load people on buses to get from place to place. i would find it upsetting to book a river cruise and end up with a bus tour.

Hello Clementine
My husband and I took a 13 day cruise down the Rhine and Moselle with Uniworld in October 2013. It was pricey but I think we got to see a great deal of Germany with a little Luxembourg and France thrown in. The service was great. The ship was adequate and the staff was great. The food was fine; not gourmet but it was good. Beer and wine are provided with dinner. There was entertainment when we were in port for the night and the lounge was nice. We would take another river cruise because we had a great time. There are fewer people on the small ships so you can make friends and meet a lot of people. Yes, we were bussed to some of areas and the "special tours". Special means you pay extra for these tours. However, guided walking tours of each city were provided and they had great guides. We learned a great deal and enjoyed learning without having to search frantically through a guide book or translate a lengthy sign about a particular site. We have also travelled on our own in Europe and enjoyed spending more time in a particular city or area. We are in our early sixties and were probably in the younger group on this cruise. There was a honeymooning couple on board and they had a great time but they did not stay with the group. They made their own itinerary for each stop and "did their own thing". I would recommend this for a young couple. Have a great time

“Value” there is a tough one. If you have a more rewarding experience and more fun on the cruise than you would with alternative plans then it is a great value. What lights your fire will be unique so you really have to do your own subjective analysis. As long as I can walk I will avoid the cruise. Some day when I don’t get around as well the cruise may be the best value. I highly value outstanding accommodations and outstanding service; but only as one of many events when we travel. Maybe one day luxury for every 3 days casual on a typical trip. Then at times we go super cheap as an experience. Changing it up is what keeps it interesting for us. So don’t feel pressured that there is a right and wrong and never be embarrassed about what you enjoy.