Sue81

Thank you Palen, I did not know that. Would be nice to see a bit of Basel if we can. Sue

PalenQ

I was surprised too - had some time to kill before a night train and strolled downtown - to the Rhine and was surprised at how nice - really neat it was.

Would have never thought of visiting Basel before. To me one of the nicest cities in Switzerland.

travelchat

Well, I'm all set for my next Tauck adventure - 13 day River cruise Basel to Amsterdam early July. I had wanted the April 2017 departure but when I called a few days ago after having had to wait for medical clearance I learned the few single cabins had been reserved. So, for a few hundred dollars more I'm going in early July.

Flights will be Chicago/Zurich/Basel on the way there, with the return direct Amsterdam/Chicago. So, no train will be necessary after all.

I plan to go in two days prior, first night I pay for the hotel, the night before embarkation Tauck picks up the tab as their "Gift of Time" for returning travelers, a nice perk to be sure.

My free day I plan to hop on the train to Lucerne for a walking/day tour, and maybe a Lake Lucerne jaunt if I can fit both in, stamina and time wise. Tauck offers a walking tour of Basel in the itinerary so I'll get to see that as well. Happily this will allow me to squeeze in and enjoy a little train trip after all.

Thanks everyone for your much valued input. . Roll on July!

Sue81

Hi Travelchat, we are going the exact Tauck tour but the opposite way starting in Amsterdam and going early to Amsterdam and staying a week later in Switzerland. Should be a very nice trip. Did you know that there are a few, maybe 4 or 5 single rooms on the lower level of the ship that there is NO single supplement? Save a lot of $. My son and I both have single rooms, and they are pretty nice as I had one before. Sue

PalenQ...we leave our river cruise in Basel and pick up the Swiss train to Zurich. I wonder if there is some way to get something like a one hour tour of the city of Basel? I guess I need to check on the Internet.

PalenQ

One hour seems too short for any tour except private guide but I'd just amble around-if walking to station it's about a 20-minute walk from Basel Centrum.

Sue81

Palen, Actually, we will have some large suitcases, so can't amble. I just thought a quick little car tour might be nice as we have to get the train to Zurich and want to get to Zurich pretty quickly to have some time there that day too. Cruise line will drop us at bahnhof. Sue (I meant a private guide/car/tour).

travelchat

Sue81:
To clarify - I will have a single cabin on the lower level of the ship in July. That is why I'm taking the later cruise as opposed to April when those cabins proved to be fully booked. The first Tauck River cruise I went on - Paris/Provence was also on that level and it was perfectly fine as so little time was spent in the room. Whatever leisure time there is can be spent in the lounge or up on the sun deck during day time cruising.

Once the single supplement was dropped on the two other River cruises I have taken I upgraded to the mid ship level for the view, the cost being just a bit more than the Tauck single charge. I chose the two non Tauck cruises because the itineraries worked better for me. But, it's a trade off as to quality of the tour opposed to the cabin location and Tauck wins for content and personal touch. The Tauck 40% upgrade charge from the single cabin to the mid ship level is not worth it, IMO.

The itinerary on this upcoming cruise is looking to fit my needs perfectly. Lunch in a castle? Hello! It all sounds marvelous. We are going to have such a good time.

Sue81

Hi travelchat, I agree with you about the lower level without a single supplement being a very good deal and that is why I book almost a year ahead. I had that room before on Tauck on the London/Normandy/Paris trip and it was fine and quiet. No way I could afford to have a single room for my son if I did not do it this way. It takes me this long to get it all figured out as I like to extend trips on both ends, such as Amsterdam and Zurich to go down into Switzerland via the trains and see more of this gorgeous country. Also I like to plan it all year. i'll wave as we go by. Sue

travelchat

Sue81 - first River cruise (Tauck) took me by surprise with the number of singles. That was true again of both the others I went on. It was remarkably easy for we singles to mingle with couples and families who were kindred souls and proved most welcoming.

I plan to go in two days early to the Swissotel. Day of arrival is for relaxing and an early night to fight the jet lag, the full free day I'll do a tour of Lucerne, the following a half day of leisure until boarding.

Bon voyage to us. I'll wave too