Rudy

Any recommendations about what company to contact concerning an approximate ten day cruise in Eastern or Western Europe? It must include Germany, but not France (OK, I have my prejudices.) The only general tour companies whose offerings we have looked at is Grand Circle Travel. Thanks in advance.

Dick

Look into Maupintour. They have one from Vienna to Amsterdam. Another possibility is Smithsonian Study Tours. I have never been on GC (though we get the catalogues) but did see one in operation in Greece last summer and thought it was so big it was unwieldy. If it were my choice, I would pick one that had a maximum of about 30 people - you'll get more individual attention.

Paul Therault

I agree with Dick that Maupintour is the best tour company and their river cruises are truly upscale.<BR><BR>Grand Circle is run-of-the-mill.<BR><BR>Look into Peter Deilmann. River Cruises are the best. Royal Viking 2nd and more reasonable.<BR><BR>Paul

roberta

We are interested in taking a river cruise in Russia. Can anyone rate, Uniworld. General Tours and any other companies.<BR><BR>Thanks.

Paul Thearult

Hi Roberta,<BR><BR>A general rule of thumb is the price you will be paying. The more expensive, the newer the ship, the extra dinners included, the first class or deluxe hotels and the itinerary.<BR><BR>There are quite a few excellent companies. I just mentioned three upscale.<BR><BR>Uniworld is good since it has many options and boats. General also is a nice choice. For Russia it is best to choose well known companies for comfort. You made two good choices.<BR><BR>Paul