Rhine River Boat cruise
Apr 28th, 2016, 07:49 PM
#1
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Rhine River Boat cruise
My friends and I are taking a Rhine River cruise starting out in Amsterdam ending in Basil (Zurich). Our cruise line offers tours with many excursions however 5 of the stops offer multiple choices. This is where we are looking for a little help, we would love some feedback from people that have previously been on this tour. I will list the location and a brief description of the tours and would appreciate all and any info you may have.
Amsterdam - Holland
1) Tour of Amsterdam's canals
2) tour Volendam & village of Edam
Cologne - Germany
1) Medieval Schloss Burg castle
2) Stroll through Cologne and see twin towers of the famous cathedral
Koblenz - Germany
1) Guided City tour of Koblenz
2) Discover Cochem tour
3) Cycle the city of Koblenz
Mannheim - Germany
1) University town of Heidelburg with Renaissance Castle
2) the Technik Museum in Speyer
Strasbourg - France
1) Tour of cathedral & stroll through town
2) Mittelbergheim in Alsace and sample wine tour
3) Black Forest tour
4) Bicycle in Strasbourg, starting in Kehl going to Strasbourg's European District
Any info on these tours would be extremely helpful.
Thanks
Amsterdam - Holland
1) Tour of Amsterdam's canals
2) tour Volendam & village of Edam
Cologne - Germany
1) Medieval Schloss Burg castle
2) Stroll through Cologne and see twin towers of the famous cathedral
Koblenz - Germany
1) Guided City tour of Koblenz
2) Discover Cochem tour
3) Cycle the city of Koblenz
Mannheim - Germany
1) University town of Heidelburg with Renaissance Castle
2) the Technik Museum in Speyer
Strasbourg - France
1) Tour of cathedral & stroll through town
2) Mittelbergheim in Alsace and sample wine tour
3) Black Forest tour
4) Bicycle in Strasbourg, starting in Kehl going to Strasbourg's European District
Any info on these tours would be extremely helpful.
Thanks
Apr 29th, 2016, 04:59 AM
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Well, a lot depends on what type off excursions interest YOU. Also, how good or interesting an excursion is will depend on the cruise line (you didn't say which one) and the tour operator the cruise line uses.
If you go to cruisecritic.com and look up your particular cruise you'll find hundreds of reviews for each of the excursions your cruise line offers. Lots of great info which will tell you the pros & cons of each. Quite honestly everything that could possibly be written about those excursions can be found there.
If you go to cruisecritic.com and look up your particular cruise you'll find hundreds of reviews for each of the excursions your cruise line offers. Lots of great info which will tell you the pros & cons of each. Quite honestly everything that could possibly be written about those excursions can be found there.
Apr 29th, 2016, 05:38 AM
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I live near Cologne, so I know the area a bit.
In most of the ports, you do not need a tour because the ship docks right in the city centre and you can do lot by walking and exploring on your own.
In Amsterdam, a boat tour through the canals belongs to the best things that you can do. Zillions of independent boats which offer tours at half the price as the cruise ship company.
In Cologne, just walk to the Cathedral (you can't miss it), visit the gorgeous building, see the Shrine of the Three Magi and the Treasury. Be sure to go into the Romano-Germanic Museum right next to the Cathedral. Have lunch at Früh brewery. And do more exploring on foot according to your interests. Art museums? More churches? Ruins of the Roman palace in the cellar of the City Hall? Walking through a 2,000-year-old sewer? Everything easily doable on your own.
From Koblenz, the best thing that you can do is taking the train for a 12-minute ride to Braubach where you visit the Marksburg, one of the best medieval castles.
http://www.marksburg.de/en/
On the way back, you might stroll a bit through Koblenz.
Mannheim is neither pretty nor interesting. Here, you may take the excursion to Heidelberg.
In Strasbourg, the best thing to do is just to explore the city on foot. Take a taxi into the city centre. Or rent a car and explore a few villages of Alsace on your own and the city of Strasbourg in the afternoon.
In most of the ports, you do not need a tour because the ship docks right in the city centre and you can do lot by walking and exploring on your own.
In Amsterdam, a boat tour through the canals belongs to the best things that you can do. Zillions of independent boats which offer tours at half the price as the cruise ship company.
In Cologne, just walk to the Cathedral (you can't miss it), visit the gorgeous building, see the Shrine of the Three Magi and the Treasury. Be sure to go into the Romano-Germanic Museum right next to the Cathedral. Have lunch at Früh brewery. And do more exploring on foot according to your interests. Art museums? More churches? Ruins of the Roman palace in the cellar of the City Hall? Walking through a 2,000-year-old sewer? Everything easily doable on your own.
From Koblenz, the best thing that you can do is taking the train for a 12-minute ride to Braubach where you visit the Marksburg, one of the best medieval castles.
http://www.marksburg.de/en/
On the way back, you might stroll a bit through Koblenz.
Mannheim is neither pretty nor interesting. Here, you may take the excursion to Heidelberg.
In Strasbourg, the best thing to do is just to explore the city on foot. Take a taxi into the city centre. Or rent a car and explore a few villages of Alsace on your own and the city of Strasbourg in the afternoon.
Apr 30th, 2016, 07:24 PM
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Thank you both for your feedback on the excursions offered by our tour company. We will be sailing with Scenic tours and our ship will be the 'Scenic Jewel' , all excursions are included in our package price, however Scenic offers more than one (multiple) excursions at five of the ports we wil be stopping at and we have to choose only one of the offers at each port. I did go on to cruisecritic.com however the info found there was mostly talking about the ship itself the food and the crew not really any info on the actual sights and facts about the tours.we are very diverse people and we're looking for more info on each excursion that Scenic offers so we can make a very informative choice.
Apr 30th, 2016, 11:21 PM
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In Amsterdam you can easily hop on a canal boat tour by yourselves - no need to pay for the Scenic tour. It's also very interesting to walkaround there at your own pace; just pick up a map from the tourism centre or a hotel.
Strasbourg - you can easily wander around this beautiful little city independently. See the Cathedral, petit Paris and the other lovely old streets and shops.
I don't know much about the other stops you are having. When we cruised on the Mediterranean a few years back, I investigated what was available to do independently at all the ports. We only did ship-organised tours in those places that were difficult to navigate alone.
It also depends whether you are happy to tag along on a tour that turns out to not be as interesting as you expected; we prefer to do our own thing at our own pace. Sometimes we actually spent a few hours on shore, then went back on board for lunch and a short nanna nap before venturing out again. Di
Strasbourg - you can easily wander around this beautiful little city independently. See the Cathedral, petit Paris and the other lovely old streets and shops.
I don't know much about the other stops you are having. When we cruised on the Mediterranean a few years back, I investigated what was available to do independently at all the ports. We only did ship-organised tours in those places that were difficult to navigate alone.
It also depends whether you are happy to tag along on a tour that turns out to not be as interesting as you expected; we prefer to do our own thing at our own pace. Sometimes we actually spent a few hours on shore, then went back on board for lunch and a short nanna nap before venturing out again. Di
May 2nd, 2016, 06:43 AM
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If the tours are includes, this changes a lot. Here my advice:
Amsterdam - Holland
1) Tour of Amsterdam's canals - yes
2) tour Volendam & village of Edam - no
Cologne - Germany
1) Medieval Schloss Burg castle - no
2) Stroll through Cologne and see twin towers of the famous cathedral - yes, and leave the tour group when things start to get boring and go on your own, very easy
Koblenz - Germany
1) Guided City tour of Koblenz - no
2) Discover Cochem tour - the best option
3) Cycle the city of Koblenz - no
Mannheim - Germany
1) University town of Heidelburg with Renaissance Castle - yes, the best option
2) the Technik Museum in Speyer - no
Strasbourg - France
1) Tour of cathedral & stroll through town - would be the most obvious choice
2) Mittelbergheim in Alsace and sample wine tour - is probably pretty boring
3) Black Forest tour - depends on where the tour goes, but Strasbourg is the main attraction
4) Bicycle in Strasbourg, starting in Kehl going to Strasbourg's European District - no, unless you like modern concrete buildings
Amsterdam - Holland
1) Tour of Amsterdam's canals - yes
2) tour Volendam & village of Edam - no
Cologne - Germany
1) Medieval Schloss Burg castle - no
2) Stroll through Cologne and see twin towers of the famous cathedral - yes, and leave the tour group when things start to get boring and go on your own, very easy
Koblenz - Germany
1) Guided City tour of Koblenz - no
2) Discover Cochem tour - the best option
3) Cycle the city of Koblenz - no
Mannheim - Germany
1) University town of Heidelburg with Renaissance Castle - yes, the best option
2) the Technik Museum in Speyer - no
Strasbourg - France
1) Tour of cathedral & stroll through town - would be the most obvious choice
2) Mittelbergheim in Alsace and sample wine tour - is probably pretty boring
3) Black Forest tour - depends on where the tour goes, but Strasbourg is the main attraction
4) Bicycle in Strasbourg, starting in Kehl going to Strasbourg's European District - no, unless you like modern concrete buildings
