Potential Cancellation of River Cruise

We sailed with Viking on their Rhine River cruise from Amsterdam to Basel. And, we ended our trip in Milan. Between Basel and Milan, we rode Swiss rail to Zurich, changed to a train to St. Moritz, changed to a train to Tirano. Caught the regional Italian train from Tirano and spent time in Varenna, Italy. After a few days in Varenna, we took the same regional train to Milan to catch our flight back to the US. We wanted to duplicate the Bernina Express route without riding the Bernina Express. Yes, it was a long day of trains but that was the whole point.

If you haven't already spent time in Amsterdam, absolutely do so at the start of the trip. Of course, the Anne Frank and the Resistance Museum, the architecture, the Rijksmuseum. if you haven't spent time in Milano, absolutely do so at the end of the trip. See the Duomo, the Last Supper, San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore, Navigli district, and more.

If I was looking for a way to spend 2 weeks in Europe the first part of November due to a postponement of a cruise for a year, I'd look at visiting places not on the cruise itinerary. Consider moving from Amsterdam to Prague, then to Vienna, to Salzburg, and returning from Munich. Or if you'd prefer to stay more westerly perhaps Brussels, Luxembourg, and Paris. Both of these routes are easy to do by train. Another option would be to fly to Vienna, and then do Prague, Nuremberg, and Frankfurt.

Just remember. this is the time of year when the rainy season is in full swing and the days are getting short. A lot of the smaller towns will be closed down and some of the major attractions will have reduced hours. Christmas decorations won't be a big thing until around our Thanksgiving weekend.

Following because I have a Danube River cruise in October of next year. River levels may be different then but this is good info.

Again, I would suggest picking something that would not be on any cruise. On a line roughly north to south maybe Cochem, Trier, Strasbourg, Basel, Lucerne, Lugano, Milan. Because of the time of year (possible bad weather and shorter days) maybe focus on larger towns with lots of things to do indoors, but with outdoor potential on good days.

Amsterdam to Basel

If you look at the main train lines from Amsterdam to Basel they tend to follow or parallel the Rhine valley once you get to Germany. If there are cities that you wanted to visit on the cruise you could plan a trip to visit them on your way to Basel via train. Certainly not as convenient as sleeping on the ship every night. On the other hand, time to see more of a city than the cruise allows and the ability to visit somewhere the cruise wasn't going.

Not sure which travel corollary this is, but the more time you spend preparing for Plan B, the greater the chance that Plan A will happen.

We are currently making a plan B for similar reasons. Our river cruise is late next month on Scenic, from Amsterdam to Budapest. We've already decided that if the cruise is turned into a bus trip, so be it; we will still take it. However if it is cancelled we will DIY by train. But we will edit our stops, eliminating a couple that we aren't that excited about and adding a detour to Belgium after Amsterdam. The end result, so far, is that we would have extra time in each stop and will likely be less expensive in the end.

I'm looking for a Plan B to fill those dates, which could include possibly changing the return flight. All of our hotel reservations in A & M can be cancelled 48 hours before arrival, and the train tickets from Basel to Milan are fully refundable.

I would absolutely stay close to the cruise route. Why not see the places you hoped to see? If it's a typical A'dam > Basel cruise, I think the destinations below are entirely doable in November. Transportation by rail all along this route is available and frequent. Here's an itinerary you can adjust to suit your preferences.

10/31 Amsterdam + a day outing (Zaanse Schans? Delft?)

11/4 Amsterdam > Koblenz by train; possible stopover for a few hours on the way to Koblenz in Cologne - probably a stop on your cruise itinerary. Cologne has bag storage while you sightsee there.

Koblenz - probably a stop on your cruise itinerary as well - is the gateway town to Germany's Upper Middle Rhine Valley, the most attractive part of the Rhine River and only a few miles from Marksburg Castle (intact medieval castle in nearby Braubach, open year-round.) It is a good base town for train outings to Trier and Cochem, as NickB has suggested.

11/8 Koblenz > Speyer (also a cruise stop?) by train.

Speyer's Jewish history, Technik Museum, cathedral, plus a daytrip (nearby Heidelberg?) make it a worthwhile destination.

11/11 Speyer > Strasbourg FR (cruise stop?) by train

11/13 Strasbourg FR > Freiburg by train (lovely underrated German city - also take a train outing to one of the Black Forest destinations?)

11/15 Freiburg > Milan by train. Freiburg > Basel is a cheap regional train trip - buy that leg just prior to leaving for Basel.

WOW, I didn't expect such quick and comprehensive responses. Many thanks for your thoughts and ideas. The flight to Amsterdam arrives early morning on 10/31 and the cruise boards at Noon on 11/3, which was designed to give us plenty of time to explore the area without rushing. A friend suggested getting a car in Amsterdam and driving along the river for a while, then breaking off and exploring Germany down to Munich. When I checked on a rental car I learned I would have to turn in the car before arriving in Germany or face a huge upcharge if I turned it in in Munich. Because someone mentioned the rainy season in that area, I checked with United and found for only $700 each I can change our outbound flight to Rome (better weather and less crowds) and explore Rome, Florence and Venice by train before finishing with the same number of days we planned in Milan. We want to do a day trip to Lake Como and have Last Supper reservations the final day in Milan. Assuming if the cruise is cancelled and I get a voucher for the total paid toward next year, the cost for that itinerary is actually less than the cruise for the same amount of time. While I'm hoping for the cruise to go as advertised (no buses), if the cruise is not cancelled, we'll take whatever they offer and do the ship/bus thing. Now I have to wait another month or so to see what happens, and hope those options are still available then.

This thread is right up our alley. Best wishes Jim for your river travel this Nov! We are hopeful and have scheduled a similar Viking cruise for Aug’ 27. We too have watched the current river situations. If rivers remain low and interruptions occur again next year….we are thinking we may just go with whatever is possible to continue on. We have also done numerous train travel trips and while different still enjoyable. We have loved a floating hotel also on our previous river cruises. These experiences are helping us all learn how to adapt and be flexible….still find ways to appreciate the joy of travel.