I know it is a ways off, but I would like some feedback on planning a River and Castle Cruise of Germany. I have not done too much research as to what areas of Germany, but I have read that some of the best ways to see the Castles is on one of these cruises. We have only ever taken 1 cruise, to Alaska. We are more of the "hire a car and go from city to city" type travelers. So being tied down to a schedule is really not our favorite ... but, if that is the best way to experience the historical sites, then we would consider that as an option.

Any suggestions on how to begin researching this? We are mid 40's and in seemingly decent shape ... so mobility shouldn't be a problem.

Thanks .

My view on this may be controversial around here, but I shall stick to it:

A multi-day river cruise would bore me stiff.
They could not supply enough Gin & Tonics, dry Riesling and beers to even remotely mitigate the misery of being stuck on a boat with the pace of a snail and the main attraction of card games, another extensive buffet and another round of shuffleboard.

There are plenty of nice roads in Germany. I would opt for a car and see the castles on my own schedule. If you feel like a boat tour, you could still take one for a couple of hours during a day (and that may actually be a nice distraction).

I saw a TV program recently that was on a Rhine cruise. It looked really boring and much too restrictive for my taste.

Your idea of renting a car (or to a lesser degree, taking trains) allows you to see much more and to do it at your pace and geared to your taste. Plus I think you could do it at a much lower price.

Check out Bavaria Ben's website and read some trip reports - www.bensbauernhof.com

Even if you explore the castles by car/train, I would take a day boat trip in the most scenic section.

Well you could explore on your own by train / car or do a cruise. You would probably be one of the younger couples on the cruise but I think it can be a pleasant way to go - I like unpacking one time. But you don't have to do a long cruise to enjoy the Rhine - there are boats that go along the river in many parts of it where you can cruise for an half day or so. I'm a Rick Steve's fan - I'd sugesst getting one of his books from the library and do some more research.We did a nice trip one year, going into Amsterdam, then training down to Bacharach where we took one of the boats for half a day. The Mosel area is lovely too and I think best explored by car.

okay .. thanks .. I believe I will spend more time researching driving trips and skip the cruise idea .. except for maybe a day cruise ....we did a couple hour river cruise in London and that was okay .. got to see a different prespective of the city.

Thanks Suec1 - I was thinking that we might be some of the younger ones, and we don't mind packing and unpacking .. that is our standard method of travel.

Thanks for the website suggestions Bigtyke .. I'll check it out adn hsv .... If your views are accurate, then they may need to bring more Vodka on board.

Any other suggestions or driving suggestions, would be welcomed. Haven't decided if the kids (would be ages 6 and 8 at teh time) would come .. so that is to be considered .. but they are seasoned travellers and are very flexible and tolerant of new palces.

Me too, hsv! LOL

We are planning a trip in 2011 for my mom's 60th birthday and thought about a multi-day river cruise. We were thinking that it would be easier for my mom, who has an arthritic knee. Plus we all like being out on the water. But we watched a show about it - maybe the same one bigtyke watched, who knows - and it did look boring. We aren't mile-a-minute people or anything, and we do like to kick back, but this just looked too slow. And the people on the cruise didn't appear to really be our type - seemed to be the golf and country club type. We are more the hockey and pub type.

There are cruises and there are cruises. An Alaskan cruise is a multi-day or week endeavor. Much to the chagrin of the rest of my family, I find ALL cruises boring. I'd rather spend all my vacation time seeing something.

To see the castles of Germany all you need to do is to jump on a KD Line boat at someplace like Bingen or Rudesheim and take it North up to St Goar or Boppard and take a train back. Two hours up this section of the Rhine will allow you to see the best of the Rhine castles. Rent a car and drive on up to Koblenz then West toward Trier along the Mosel. Plenty of ruins and vineyards on both sides of that more scenic river. Plenty of spots to sample the local sweet wines. In the flat town of Trier you can see ancient Roman ruins and drink more delicious, cheap wine. You can give your Mom a pretty awesome vacation in that area of Germany and she won't have to do any climbing.

We travel by car throughout Europe with my 80 year old Mother-in-Law all the time. There's plenty to see, do and taste just sticking to the roads and backroads of Germany. Think about going on from the Rhine/Mosel region onto Rothenburg ob der Tauber and the Romantic Road. A trip to Neuschwanstein may be out of the question, but 95% of Germany is pretty flat and easy walking.

Otzi

Great info ....question .. are the Germans kid friendly, I know in Spain they are welcome everywhere .. but don't know about Germany, as we have never been.

Based on comments here .. I am thinking the day cruise would suffice.

I am in my mid 40's also. I have done Germany both ways: renting a car and doing my own thing and also in a river cruise. I have also taken many ocean cruises all over the world and some river cruises. River cruises are great in many ways. However, it sounds like you should opt for the car if you really want to stop and go inside and tour the castles. From the river cruise you see the castles but you don't go inside the castles, only one or two. The river cruise is phenomenal, you don't have to worry about roads, hotels, restaurants, anything but yes, you do have more freedom to stay longer in places and explore when you have the car. Whatever you decide to do, have fun, Germany is great.

alesislovesspain,

We found the Germans to be extremely kid friendly, both in the big city and in smaller villages. Our 3-year-old daughter was showered with lollipops and little toys everywhere we went. There were lots of children out and about in the playgrounds and on the sidewalks.

By the way, I have done a multi-night river cruise and nearly all passengers were well into enjoyment of their retirement. It might make sense if you are travelling with an older relative, but you would be fine either with a car or on a train. There are plenty of opportunities to take nice boat rides without partaking of a cruise.

A cruise would also drive me batty. I've looked at their schedules, and they allow insanely short amounts of time at many of their stops--plus the boredom in sitting on the boat and just watching mile after mile of river bank go by.

But that is just me--some people love that sort of thing, and that is just fine. Keeps them off the roads and trains and out of the towns most of the time--I'd love it if most people opted for river cruises.

Thank you all for your wonderful comments .. @ Paul ... I didn't event hink about the "miles and miles of river bank" @ Woyzeck .. thank you .. we are not the types to just sit around ... the median age of the "cruisers" is important
@ beame -- Sounds like if we really want to EXPLORE the castles, we should really rent the car.

If you all think of anything else .. please sent it my way.

.. alexis

hsv,

A river cruise is not an ocean cruise. You won't find card games and shuffleboard, although usually games like Scrabble are available. Most river boats dock for an entire day, allowing for considerable sightseeing. I think they're a great way to travel without the hassle of a car or the boredom of a bus.