Relaxing on the Rhone - a river cruise virgin's trip report.
May 31st, 2016, 05:45 PM
#81
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Annhig, thanks for a very informative and interesting TR! We have never considered a cruise, and were wondering if you would be interested in that type of travel with your DH.
We'll be visiting Burgundy and Provence in September, and found some of your experiences very helpful; for example, Pont du Gard. We appreciate your details!
We'll be visiting Burgundy and Provence in September, and found some of your experiences very helpful; for example, Pont du Gard. We appreciate your details!
Jun 1st, 2016, 01:32 AM
#82
Thanks for the kind words, tomarkot. in fact one of the reasons that I jumped at the opportunity so kindly offered by my friend was that I was pretty certain that DH would never consider going on this type of cruise, river or ocean, though he said that he might like to do a canal boat type cruise such as those offered on the canal du midi.
the trip you describe is exactly the sort of thing that we like doing so I'm glad to have helped - based on my cruising experiences we are thinking about a trip starting in Lyon [perhaps with a few days in Burgundy] then hiring a car and moving south, ending in Arles or Marseille [though i would want to have returned my car before I got there!] or even Nice, though that would have to be a longer trip.
places I would target in addition to the ones that I have talked about above would be Orange, Chateauneuf du Pape [both of which I remember with fondness from years ago though the last time I was in either of them was over 30 years ago so they may have changed!] Vienne, Nimes, & Uzes.
I'm sure that you'll have a lovely time.
the trip you describe is exactly the sort of thing that we like doing so I'm glad to have helped - based on my cruising experiences we are thinking about a trip starting in Lyon [perhaps with a few days in Burgundy] then hiring a car and moving south, ending in Arles or Marseille [though i would want to have returned my car before I got there!] or even Nice, though that would have to be a longer trip.
places I would target in addition to the ones that I have talked about above would be Orange, Chateauneuf du Pape [both of which I remember with fondness from years ago though the last time I was in either of them was over 30 years ago so they may have changed!] Vienne, Nimes, & Uzes.
I'm sure that you'll have a lovely time.
Jun 1st, 2016, 12:54 PM
#83
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Thanks, annhig.
We wanted to book with Riviera, because it was reasonably priced and the boat looked nice, but they were fully booked for the whole year (up to November) when we booked, last October.
We wanted to book with Riviera, because it was reasonably priced and the boat looked nice, but they were fully booked for the whole year (up to November) when we booked, last October.
Jun 2nd, 2016, 08:15 AM
#85
Sur le pont? Sous le pont? and does it matter???
You can't go to Avignon of course without seeing that famous bridge. Or rather that famous half bridge as due to floods and weather damage, less than half of it is left now leaving it jutting somewhat aimlessly out into the river, rather than crossing it as it did in 1190 when it was first built.
Then the idea of a bridge across the mighty Rhone was met with derision when Benezet, the little shepherd boy, first came up with it. But he persisted and when he "miraculously" lifted a huge stone upon which to build the first pillar, [shades of King Arthur and Excalibur here] he won people over or so says my trusty 1978 Michelin Guide to Provence. It also says that the song should run "Sous le pont d'Avignon" as the dancing took place on an island "under" the bridge, using one of the piers of the bridge as a sort of maypole, rather than "sur le pont". And you can certainly see that dancing on the bridge might have been difficult - it's not particularly wide for a start, and what would be the point?
So you will have guessed that our first port of call on our walking tour of Avignon was [pause for imaginary trumpet blast] the bridge of St Benezet. Unfortunately our guide was not particularly inspiring, so like naughty schoolchildren some of us surreptitiously tuned into one of the other guides - much better. [Which guide one gets is of course the luck of the draw but unfortunately the ones that we drew both in Arles and Avignon were unsatisfactory - neither of them introduced themselves to the group nor did they make it clear when they were addressing the group as a whole or when they were answering individual questions; worse still both were pretty boring, and a big contrast to the excellent guide that we had on the trip to the Ardeche - she was the best by far]. Isn't it strange how one person can make history fascinating, and another as dull as dishwater? Anyway as we walked about the top of the bridge we learnt, one way or another about its history, and after about 30 mins, we followed our guide, again like a file of schoolchildren, through the streets of Avignon to the Papal Palace, where we were due to have a guided tour.
Now you might ask why, if the guide was so unsatisfactory, we didn't just hive off and do it ourselves; a good question which is partly answered by money because if we didn't enter with the group we would have had to pay separately and partly by simple inertia - by then I certainly had got into the group spirit and the ease of being organised. And of course I could listen to the other guide if I wished.
The tour of the palace lasts about an hour [or it lasted that long for us] and I certainly emerged knowing more about the reason the popes came to Avignon and the Papal Schism of the C14 than I did before I went in. Hopefully that knowledge will prove useful in some pub quiz or other one day! The interior is impressive but not pretty - it is a massive building which is largely undecorated but the restoration of some of the rooms was moderately interesting.
Eventually school was out and we had the choice to go back to the boat for lunch, or [and no prizes for guessing which we did] eat in Avignon. Stupidly I had done no research on restaurants, and that being the case, we didn't really know where to start. There are a vast number of restaurants in the square near the Papal Palace but all of those seemed to be much of a muchness, so we retraced our steps to what looked like a somewhat nicer place that we'd seen on our walk and finding that the menu included oysters, snails and foie gras, decided that it was for us. Sadly it turned out that the main courses were not as appealing as the starters [how often does one say that?] but the oysters I had went a long way to make up for that, as did the very nice white wine I had to accompany them. Later on of course I found many more places that would probably have been better but, c'est la vie!
Comme d'habitude en France we took our time over our meal but eventually we had all eaten and drunk our fill and decided to go our separate ways for the afternoon. GF was looking for presents for her grandchildren and I wanted something for my rather older DD, as well as to see more of the town and perhaps a museum or two. Of course so far as shopping was concerned the plan was a wash-out - because of course it was Sunday afternoon when all the
"proper" shops are shut, but I enjoyed my exploration of the centre, spent a little time in St Pierre, found a whole load more restaurants, and eventually found myself outside the Musee Calvet on Rue Joseph Vernet, where I spend a very happy hour looking at art - including some modern works that were surprisingly good. I also came across, just opposite it, exactly the sort of restaurant I would like to have eaten in, but tant pis - perhaps in another life.
After some more rather aimless wanderings I made my way back to the boat and grabbed myself a cup of tea, before going to dress for the week's main social event - the Captain's Dinner - of which more anon.
You can't go to Avignon of course without seeing that famous bridge. Or rather that famous half bridge as due to floods and weather damage, less than half of it is left now leaving it jutting somewhat aimlessly out into the river, rather than crossing it as it did in 1190 when it was first built.
Then the idea of a bridge across the mighty Rhone was met with derision when Benezet, the little shepherd boy, first came up with it. But he persisted and when he "miraculously" lifted a huge stone upon which to build the first pillar, [shades of King Arthur and Excalibur here] he won people over or so says my trusty 1978 Michelin Guide to Provence. It also says that the song should run "Sous le pont d'Avignon" as the dancing took place on an island "under" the bridge, using one of the piers of the bridge as a sort of maypole, rather than "sur le pont". And you can certainly see that dancing on the bridge might have been difficult - it's not particularly wide for a start, and what would be the point?
So you will have guessed that our first port of call on our walking tour of Avignon was [pause for imaginary trumpet blast] the bridge of St Benezet. Unfortunately our guide was not particularly inspiring, so like naughty schoolchildren some of us surreptitiously tuned into one of the other guides - much better. [Which guide one gets is of course the luck of the draw but unfortunately the ones that we drew both in Arles and Avignon were unsatisfactory - neither of them introduced themselves to the group nor did they make it clear when they were addressing the group as a whole or when they were answering individual questions; worse still both were pretty boring, and a big contrast to the excellent guide that we had on the trip to the Ardeche - she was the best by far]. Isn't it strange how one person can make history fascinating, and another as dull as dishwater? Anyway as we walked about the top of the bridge we learnt, one way or another about its history, and after about 30 mins, we followed our guide, again like a file of schoolchildren, through the streets of Avignon to the Papal Palace, where we were due to have a guided tour.
Now you might ask why, if the guide was so unsatisfactory, we didn't just hive off and do it ourselves; a good question which is partly answered by money because if we didn't enter with the group we would have had to pay separately and partly by simple inertia - by then I certainly had got into the group spirit and the ease of being organised. And of course I could listen to the other guide if I wished.
The tour of the palace lasts about an hour [or it lasted that long for us] and I certainly emerged knowing more about the reason the popes came to Avignon and the Papal Schism of the C14 than I did before I went in. Hopefully that knowledge will prove useful in some pub quiz or other one day! The interior is impressive but not pretty - it is a massive building which is largely undecorated but the restoration of some of the rooms was moderately interesting.
Eventually school was out and we had the choice to go back to the boat for lunch, or [and no prizes for guessing which we did] eat in Avignon. Stupidly I had done no research on restaurants, and that being the case, we didn't really know where to start. There are a vast number of restaurants in the square near the Papal Palace but all of those seemed to be much of a muchness, so we retraced our steps to what looked like a somewhat nicer place that we'd seen on our walk and finding that the menu included oysters, snails and foie gras, decided that it was for us. Sadly it turned out that the main courses were not as appealing as the starters [how often does one say that?] but the oysters I had went a long way to make up for that, as did the very nice white wine I had to accompany them. Later on of course I found many more places that would probably have been better but, c'est la vie!
Comme d'habitude en France we took our time over our meal but eventually we had all eaten and drunk our fill and decided to go our separate ways for the afternoon. GF was looking for presents for her grandchildren and I wanted something for my rather older DD, as well as to see more of the town and perhaps a museum or two. Of course so far as shopping was concerned the plan was a wash-out - because of course it was Sunday afternoon when all the
"proper" shops are shut, but I enjoyed my exploration of the centre, spent a little time in St Pierre, found a whole load more restaurants, and eventually found myself outside the Musee Calvet on Rue Joseph Vernet, where I spend a very happy hour looking at art - including some modern works that were surprisingly good. I also came across, just opposite it, exactly the sort of restaurant I would like to have eaten in, but tant pis - perhaps in another life.
After some more rather aimless wanderings I made my way back to the boat and grabbed myself a cup of tea, before going to dress for the week's main social event - the Captain's Dinner - of which more anon.
Jun 2nd, 2016, 09:17 AM
#88
Do you think if you had been on your own travelling you would have researched restaurants and been more satisfied?>>
Possibly, jubi. one of the problems was that I was traveling with 3 other people, 2 of whom I didn't know at all at the beginning of the trip and probably knew only a little better by the end of it. IME In such situations there is the danger that you revert to the lowest common denominator; I think we avoided that but not by much. OTOH I may be being somewhat churlish as my main course was such a wash-out!
However in the great scheme of things it really doesn't matter a great deal, so I won't dwell on it. [well, not much!].
Possibly, jubi. one of the problems was that I was traveling with 3 other people, 2 of whom I didn't know at all at the beginning of the trip and probably knew only a little better by the end of it. IME In such situations there is the danger that you revert to the lowest common denominator; I think we avoided that but not by much. OTOH I may be being somewhat churlish as my main course was such a wash-out!
However in the great scheme of things it really doesn't matter a great deal, so I won't dwell on it. [well, not much!].
Jun 2nd, 2016, 09:38 AM
#89
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I also am enjoying reading this report. I took a river cruise (Avalon: Basel to Amsterdam) last year. My DH and I thought we were non-cruisers, but this trip came up through DH's work (as in "free") so off we went and we were pleased with the experience.
The passengers,probably ages 50-70s for the most part, took advantage of the tours (we were separated into groups and there was always one for slow walkers). We were free to go off on our own at any point and, happily, everyone was back on board in a timely fashion. The chef tried to reflect the food of the areas we passed though and meals were good, and we often ate lunch off the boat.
It was nice to yield planning responsibility and just relax. Would I do it again? It is a good option but our never ending destination wish list does not lend itself to cruising in the near future.
The passengers,probably ages 50-70s for the most part, took advantage of the tours (we were separated into groups and there was always one for slow walkers). We were free to go off on our own at any point and, happily, everyone was back on board in a timely fashion. The chef tried to reflect the food of the areas we passed though and meals were good, and we often ate lunch off the boat.
It was nice to yield planning responsibility and just relax. Would I do it again? It is a good option but our never ending destination wish list does not lend itself to cruising in the near future.
Jun 2nd, 2016, 10:05 AM
#90
thanks for your comments, mama-mia - like you I find it difficult to work out when we might fit something like this into our itinerary again, but who knows if the opportunity arose again?
Now, thanks to a different thread where this area is being discussed, I have realised that I entirely missed out a morning's excursion, which was to the lovely little city of Vienne. How did that happen? [no note taking as we went along is how it happened]. We set off from the boat at about 9.30 am being led by the cruise director and manager, and after a visit to the [to my mind] not very exciting cathedral of St Maurice, we were on our own. GF and I wandered around a bit, had a coffee in the Place du Charles de Gaulle overlooking the very impressive 2000 year old Temple of Augustus and Livia, and then climbed up through the town to the Roman theatre which is extremely well preserved.
We'd have liked to have seen more, particularly of the archeological area on the other side of the bridge but a) it started to rain, and b) we had to be back on the boat quite soon, so we started to make our way back to the mooring, only to get caught in a tremendous downpour, so we ducked into the nearest cafe and managed to persuade Madame to take pity on us and serve 2 drowned rats some coffee, even though it was nearly lunch time and all her tables were laid up for those who would eat and drink properly. Though it didn't look much, almost dead on the stroke of noon the lunchtime clientele began to arrive and very soon the place was humming - it was clearly very popular with local business people, ladies who lunch, and other locals.
By then the rain had abated and we'd finished our coffee so we said our goodbyes to the assembled company and made our way back to the boat, where of course we discovered that the boat's departure had been put back to 3pm! M..de! However we were really too wet to venture out again, so we had lunch and dried off, by which time we were ready to leave.
I'm not sure that I would return to Vienne but were I in the area at lunch time, I'd have a pretty good go at finding that restaurant!
Now, thanks to a different thread where this area is being discussed, I have realised that I entirely missed out a morning's excursion, which was to the lovely little city of Vienne. How did that happen? [no note taking as we went along is how it happened]. We set off from the boat at about 9.30 am being led by the cruise director and manager, and after a visit to the [to my mind] not very exciting cathedral of St Maurice, we were on our own. GF and I wandered around a bit, had a coffee in the Place du Charles de Gaulle overlooking the very impressive 2000 year old Temple of Augustus and Livia, and then climbed up through the town to the Roman theatre which is extremely well preserved.
We'd have liked to have seen more, particularly of the archeological area on the other side of the bridge but a) it started to rain, and b) we had to be back on the boat quite soon, so we started to make our way back to the mooring, only to get caught in a tremendous downpour, so we ducked into the nearest cafe and managed to persuade Madame to take pity on us and serve 2 drowned rats some coffee, even though it was nearly lunch time and all her tables were laid up for those who would eat and drink properly. Though it didn't look much, almost dead on the stroke of noon the lunchtime clientele began to arrive and very soon the place was humming - it was clearly very popular with local business people, ladies who lunch, and other locals.
By then the rain had abated and we'd finished our coffee so we said our goodbyes to the assembled company and made our way back to the boat, where of course we discovered that the boat's departure had been put back to 3pm! M..de! However we were really too wet to venture out again, so we had lunch and dried off, by which time we were ready to leave.
I'm not sure that I would return to Vienne but were I in the area at lunch time, I'd have a pretty good go at finding that restaurant!
Jun 4th, 2016, 03:20 AM
#91
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I have enjoyed this TR, annhig. My husband, who has been a proponent of trying similar cruises, was quite excited when I mentioned that one of my Fodors friends had just taken a river cruise along the Rhone.
Jun 4th, 2016, 05:01 AM
#92
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I too used to think that I "wasn't a cruise person" until 7 years ago when we took a 10-night Mediterranean cruise on Celebrity from Rome to Greece and Turkey -- we loved it. At the time our work schedules were all-consuming, and so the cruise gave us a wonderful getaway without much planning time. We continue to enjoy both cruising and land-based travels.
Jun 4th, 2016, 05:15 AM
#94
thanks, VT. I certainly enjoyed it more than I had expected to. I don't think that it's fair to compare it to what would be a normal holiday in France for us - touring round, taking our time, enjoying the local food and drink - because you can't view it in those terms, but IMO if you put it up against say a coach tour which it resembles more closely, it compares very well. Were those the two options I had, the cruise would definitely win out.
GinnyJo - having now been on a river cruise, I can see why it would appeal. Who knows, I may end up doing one again in the right circumstances.
GinnyJo - having now been on a river cruise, I can see why it would appeal. Who knows, I may end up doing one again in the right circumstances.
Jun 4th, 2016, 06:44 AM
#96
Thanks (again) for taking the time to write this report. We have only done one river cruise (Viking-Rhine-Basel to A-dam) and we ended up thoroughly enjoying it despite the fact that we had "done" more than a few of the stops <B>several</B> times in the past.
There was something very relaxing about simply gliding along.
I have finished with "explaining" to anybody what makes certain travel experiences worthwhile (but I applaud you for doing so).
There was something very relaxing about simply gliding along.
I have finished with "explaining" to anybody what makes certain travel experiences worthwhile (but I applaud you for doing so).
Jun 4th, 2016, 06:56 AM
#97
Thanks Dukey, your appreciation is ...well, appreciated. Travel is after all meant to broaden the mind which ought to mean being open to different ways of doing it I suppose [but then I would say that, wouldn't I ?]
I can say that despite the odd niggle, if someone had said that the trip had been extended by a few more days, I would not have grumbled.
I can say that despite the odd niggle, if someone had said that the trip had been extended by a few more days, I would not have grumbled.
Jun 4th, 2016, 07:52 AM
#98
Hi Annhig
I've just found this gem & thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks for all the info & insights. I'm not in the market for cruise, unless it's along a canal, perhaps.
One of the other Australians commented that river cruises are heavily marketed here & indeed they are, often at very good prices. A couple of my friends, who have very busy lives & businesses, do one for a week or 2 when they want a break & think they are ideal.
I wondered how many people were on your boat?
Thanks again.
I've just found this gem & thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks for all the info & insights. I'm not in the market for cruise, unless it's along a canal, perhaps.
One of the other Australians commented that river cruises are heavily marketed here & indeed they are, often at very good prices. A couple of my friends, who have very busy lives & businesses, do one for a week or 2 when they want a break & think they are ideal.
I wondered how many people were on your boat?
Thanks again.
Jun 4th, 2016, 07:58 AM
#99
Hi Bokhara,
thanks for coming on board, albeit towards the end of the trip!
river cruises are highly marketed here too, and to good effect judging by how popular they are.
there were approx. 140 guests and 40 staff in total.
thanks for coming on board, albeit towards the end of the trip!
river cruises are highly marketed here too, and to good effect judging by how popular they are.
there were approx. 140 guests and 40 staff in total.
Jun 4th, 2016, 08:10 AM
#100
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Annhig,
Your comparison of a river cruise to a coach tour is a good one. I would take another river cruise before a coach tour for a couple of reasons; we could unpack and settle in to our room once and the river cruise was much more relaxing.
Your comparison of a river cruise to a coach tour is a good one. I would take another river cruise before a coach tour for a couple of reasons; we could unpack and settle in to our room once and the river cruise was much more relaxing.
