nyfeds
June 13th, 2006, 11:29 PM
We just returned from our much anticipated Deilmann MS Cezanne River Cruise, Paris - Paris. This was our first time river cruising. We have cruised extensively over the last several years on Radisson, which is now Regent. Our experiences sailing with this cruise line have been superb.
When we were on our river cruise, I had taken a journal to jot down thoughts and impressions on river cruising.
We had spent several magnificent days in both London and Paris, pre-cruise, actively seeing the sights and wandering both cities. Accommodations at Le Grand were beyond words. All in all, a very tough act to follow. We were ready to embark on our much anticipated Deilmann river cruise. We went into this with pretty high expectations.
Saturday afternoon, June 3, at about 2:30, we took the taxi from Paris Le Grand InterContinental to embark the MS Cezanne, located at Port Javel Bas . The taxi driver had a difficult time locating the area that the Cezanne was docked in. A transfer that should have taken about 15 minutes took about a half hour. We then found our way. We were the only guests at port. We were warmly greeted by the Hotel Director, Vanessa, and two crew members, who quickly took our luggage from the taxi to the ship. Vanessa then led the way onto the vessel. No embarkation lines, no other eager passengers, no glass of champagne, as we’ve been accustom to on Regent.
The Reception/Front Desk area is quite small. It was quiet and pretty desolate. Vanessa then led us to our cabin, which was to be the most deluxe accommodations on the vessel, located at the front of the vessel – Cabin #1. The cabin was adequate; however, not to the standards of the suites on Regent. We expected smaller accommodations, so size came as little surprise. The cabin was not anything terribly upscale. Despite the fact that the Cezanne, built in 1993, received a renovation in 2004, the cabin décor seemed a tad tired, in my opinion. Certainly not awful, but not fresh and crisp. The room was large enough for us to move easily about. Accommodations included a queen bed, that looked less than queen size, two night stands, ample lighting, large window, two chairs, small table, desk and padded stool, small closet, which held our clothes with no problem, two small sets of drawers, which also accommodated our clothes, a decent sized bathroom, with ample shelf space, a stall shower, which was a bit snug for my husband's 6'2” frame, a safe for personal belongings, hair blower, and two large umbrellas, and T.V.
Molton Brown toiletries and sufficient towels were supplied. Linens were average in quality. Nothing special. Three bed pillows were on the bed. They were too mushy for my liking. I used two pillows. My husband chose to use one. The bed was just adequate in comfort.
Our room attendant, Erica, never came to introduce herself upon our arrival. This is something we’ve come to expect and appreciate on our Regent cruises. It didn’t happen on Deilmann.
No comp bar set up. No free bottles of water, sodas, beer, etc. as we've been used to receiving, and included in the fare, on our Regent sailings. However, a bowl of fresh fruit was on the table with serviceware.
After checking out our cabin, we then proceeded to see the Restaurant Manager, Thomas, to get our dining room seating assignments. Thomas was friendly. He asked if we would prefer to sit by ourselves or dine at a table large enough to accommodate either 4 or 6 people. We said we were not fussy and would prefer to sit with others. He placed us at table #25, which faced the window. We would be seated with four other people. Thomas then explained the dining schedules. He then told us to go to the lounge and have some refreshments.
We then proceeded to the lounge. A large, sunny room with comfortable seating and large windows on both sides of the vessel. Refreshment selections included tea, coffee, finger sandwiches and pastries.
Fellow passengers slowly made their way into the lounge for a meet and greet with ship crew. As embarkation concluded, it was obvious that we were the youngest passengers on board. Most passengers appeared to be in their late 60’s and considerably older. Approximately 85% were German speaking. We were told that there would be about 14 English speaking passengers on our sailing. It came as no surprise, once again, that this cruise line caters primarily to Europeans, mostly of German descent.
Embarkation day was tremendously anti-climactic. We were used to far better embarkation experiences on Regent. After our whirlwind and quite spoiled time spent in London and Paris, Cezanne initially appeared to be a letdown of fairly monumental proportions. We are active people and this all seemed at a snail’s pace to us. I was miserable and told my husband that I was ready to leap into the Seine! I would never make it through 7 nights on Cezanne. He tried to console me. We then reached an agreement to make the best of our time spent on Cezanne.
We settled in, continued to check out the ship and then went to dinner. We met our dining companions for the week – Joan, a retired RN and Tom, a Philosopher, who are from the Bay Area, and Joan’s sister, Mary, also a retired RN and her husband, Jim, a Radiologist, from Iowa. They were charming and engaging. We had a lovely first night’s dinner with them. OK, we have really lovely dining companions for our 7 day cruise. A relief!
Others then introduced themselves to us and we to them. Before we knew it we had so many people to mingle with and spend time talking to. People from the U.K., Germany and Austria, all warm and congenial. Many German speaking people spoke English fluently, while others attempted to converse with us in English. We were struggling to say a word or two in German. It was so funny, but immensely enjoyable. Misery was slowing dissolving.
Each day provided touring either in the morning, afternoon, or both. Anyone wishing to do their own thing was able to do so easily. Those touring through Deilmann, who spoke English, benefited in being a small group, as our tours were almost private. The German tours were far larger. The plus for their group was the consistency of a guide. English speaking guides changed frequently and were not consistent, ranging from excellent to just OK.
We began to fall into a really nice pace of breakfast, touring/wandering, lunching, touring/wandering and then dinner. Times relaxing on the sun deck, sailing the Seine, became special. The quiet hush of the Normandy countryside, the birds chirping, the water lapping against the Cezanne, the historically regal castles, abbeys, and timber homes “painted” into the landscape were captivating and something we will long hold in our memory. Misery? What misery?
Each day brought new sights to behold and experience. Our fellow passengers added to the joy of each day. Germans, Austrians, English, Irish, and Americans all sharing in the beauty of Normandy. Language was no barrier. We all made ourselves understood. We laughed and enjoyed.
The dining room on Cezanne is something very, very special. Staff aims to please in a very big way. Our servers, Gabor and Krasamir, were outstanding. Gabor is from Hungary. Being half Hungarian, I was easily won over by his charm and personality. He made each meal fantastically wonderful for all at our table. In fact, all servers appeared to be very responsive and adept. Each meal is painstakingly prepared and served. Food was outstanding. Very European. We loved it! Dinners consisted of nine course meals. Limited, but sumptuous, menu choices. It did not appear that you could special order, as you can on Regent. Wine was not included at dinnertime; however, could be purchased by the glass or bottle. Other alcoholic beverages were also available for purchase. Prices seemed moderate.
Entertainment was fine and very mellow. It suited the slow pace of river cruising. Entertainers consisted of a pianist, a magician, and a French singer.
Staff was friendly, congenial, efficient and helpful. All announcements, etc. were spoken in both German and English. We found this to be no problem whatsoever. In fact, it added to the European feel of the sailing.
The Captain’s Welcome and Farewell receptions were very low-key by comparison to Regent’s. A glass of champagne was offered with some hors d’oeuvres. Nothing terribly fancy. Ship’s officers were all friendly and interacted with passengers, with the exception of the ship’s Captain, who never uttered a word to anyone, as far as I could tell. I found this a real negative. It takes so little to meet and greet guests sailing on your vessel and make them feel welcome.
BEWARE OF CABIN #1 ON MS CEZANNE:
We did have an issue with our cabin, which I had brought to the attention of the Hotel Director and will also bring to the attention of Deilmann’s corporate offices in the U.S. Upon entering the locks, our cabin vibrated very substantially and the noise was loud and jarring. This was not a constant, but occurred enough evenings and early mornings to jolt us out of a sound sleep. When I initially booked this cruise, I specifically requested a quiet cabin. I felt the cabin on the upper deck would be very quiet, as there was nothing above us. I was assured that this location would be perfect. WRONG!
PROS OF DEILMANN RIVER CRUISING – MS CEZANNE:
Unpack once
Accommodations and meals included
Ease of getting from point A to point B
Package touring available at fairly moderate cost
Outstanding cuisine
Excellent service/European hospitality
Slower pace to relax and appreciate the landscape
No more than 100 passengers
More casual atmosphere
Formal attire not strictly enforced
Sailing with Europeans as well as Americans is a very enriching experience
Ease of access into small towns and villages
CONS OF DEILMANN RIVER CRUISING – MS CEZANNE:
Smaller cabins
Atmosphere is warm, but not as luxurious
No real nightlife, casinos, discos, show productions
Set meal times and seating
NO COMPUTER ACCESS
No real afternoon activities while sailing
Smoking in lounge and on deck is permitted (no smoking in the dining room or guestrooms is allowed)
Not all-inclusive as we've come to enjoy on our Regent sailings
No self-serve laundry facilities
No pool or spa
No tubs
Now, the burning question – Would we do this again? Yes, I believe we would, depending upon the itinerary. While the vessel (Cezanne) is not quite up to the luxury standards of Regent, we found our experience to be very fulfilling and enriching in many aspects. Crew (with the exception of the Capt.), make you feel a very welcome guest in their “home.” The beauty and tranquility of the landscape was breathtaking. I find it extremely hard to relax and love being on the go. Yet, I found myself enjoying the slower pace after touring. Alan and I loved sitting on the sun deck, slowly sailing along the charming and picturesque towns and villages. A very soothing and quiet, graceful living painting.
We’ve loved our sailings on Regent and will continue to book, plan and enjoy future ocean cruises. However, for those looking for a very different and quieter experience, river cruising does offer one that opportunity to enjoy sailing in a very unique and smaller scale manner. You do have to weigh what is important to you and choose accordingly. I’m happy to say that we have found pleasure in both ocean and river cruising. It was a very hard sell for me on the day we embarked. However, misery turned to enjoyment and pleasure very soon thereafter!
When we were on our river cruise, I had taken a journal to jot down thoughts and impressions on river cruising.
We had spent several magnificent days in both London and Paris, pre-cruise, actively seeing the sights and wandering both cities. Accommodations at Le Grand were beyond words. All in all, a very tough act to follow. We were ready to embark on our much anticipated Deilmann river cruise. We went into this with pretty high expectations.
Saturday afternoon, June 3, at about 2:30, we took the taxi from Paris Le Grand InterContinental to embark the MS Cezanne, located at Port Javel Bas . The taxi driver had a difficult time locating the area that the Cezanne was docked in. A transfer that should have taken about 15 minutes took about a half hour. We then found our way. We were the only guests at port. We were warmly greeted by the Hotel Director, Vanessa, and two crew members, who quickly took our luggage from the taxi to the ship. Vanessa then led the way onto the vessel. No embarkation lines, no other eager passengers, no glass of champagne, as we’ve been accustom to on Regent.
The Reception/Front Desk area is quite small. It was quiet and pretty desolate. Vanessa then led us to our cabin, which was to be the most deluxe accommodations on the vessel, located at the front of the vessel – Cabin #1. The cabin was adequate; however, not to the standards of the suites on Regent. We expected smaller accommodations, so size came as little surprise. The cabin was not anything terribly upscale. Despite the fact that the Cezanne, built in 1993, received a renovation in 2004, the cabin décor seemed a tad tired, in my opinion. Certainly not awful, but not fresh and crisp. The room was large enough for us to move easily about. Accommodations included a queen bed, that looked less than queen size, two night stands, ample lighting, large window, two chairs, small table, desk and padded stool, small closet, which held our clothes with no problem, two small sets of drawers, which also accommodated our clothes, a decent sized bathroom, with ample shelf space, a stall shower, which was a bit snug for my husband's 6'2” frame, a safe for personal belongings, hair blower, and two large umbrellas, and T.V.
Molton Brown toiletries and sufficient towels were supplied. Linens were average in quality. Nothing special. Three bed pillows were on the bed. They were too mushy for my liking. I used two pillows. My husband chose to use one. The bed was just adequate in comfort.
Our room attendant, Erica, never came to introduce herself upon our arrival. This is something we’ve come to expect and appreciate on our Regent cruises. It didn’t happen on Deilmann.
No comp bar set up. No free bottles of water, sodas, beer, etc. as we've been used to receiving, and included in the fare, on our Regent sailings. However, a bowl of fresh fruit was on the table with serviceware.
After checking out our cabin, we then proceeded to see the Restaurant Manager, Thomas, to get our dining room seating assignments. Thomas was friendly. He asked if we would prefer to sit by ourselves or dine at a table large enough to accommodate either 4 or 6 people. We said we were not fussy and would prefer to sit with others. He placed us at table #25, which faced the window. We would be seated with four other people. Thomas then explained the dining schedules. He then told us to go to the lounge and have some refreshments.
We then proceeded to the lounge. A large, sunny room with comfortable seating and large windows on both sides of the vessel. Refreshment selections included tea, coffee, finger sandwiches and pastries.
Fellow passengers slowly made their way into the lounge for a meet and greet with ship crew. As embarkation concluded, it was obvious that we were the youngest passengers on board. Most passengers appeared to be in their late 60’s and considerably older. Approximately 85% were German speaking. We were told that there would be about 14 English speaking passengers on our sailing. It came as no surprise, once again, that this cruise line caters primarily to Europeans, mostly of German descent.
Embarkation day was tremendously anti-climactic. We were used to far better embarkation experiences on Regent. After our whirlwind and quite spoiled time spent in London and Paris, Cezanne initially appeared to be a letdown of fairly monumental proportions. We are active people and this all seemed at a snail’s pace to us. I was miserable and told my husband that I was ready to leap into the Seine! I would never make it through 7 nights on Cezanne. He tried to console me. We then reached an agreement to make the best of our time spent on Cezanne.
We settled in, continued to check out the ship and then went to dinner. We met our dining companions for the week – Joan, a retired RN and Tom, a Philosopher, who are from the Bay Area, and Joan’s sister, Mary, also a retired RN and her husband, Jim, a Radiologist, from Iowa. They were charming and engaging. We had a lovely first night’s dinner with them. OK, we have really lovely dining companions for our 7 day cruise. A relief!
Others then introduced themselves to us and we to them. Before we knew it we had so many people to mingle with and spend time talking to. People from the U.K., Germany and Austria, all warm and congenial. Many German speaking people spoke English fluently, while others attempted to converse with us in English. We were struggling to say a word or two in German. It was so funny, but immensely enjoyable. Misery was slowing dissolving.
Each day provided touring either in the morning, afternoon, or both. Anyone wishing to do their own thing was able to do so easily. Those touring through Deilmann, who spoke English, benefited in being a small group, as our tours were almost private. The German tours were far larger. The plus for their group was the consistency of a guide. English speaking guides changed frequently and were not consistent, ranging from excellent to just OK.
We began to fall into a really nice pace of breakfast, touring/wandering, lunching, touring/wandering and then dinner. Times relaxing on the sun deck, sailing the Seine, became special. The quiet hush of the Normandy countryside, the birds chirping, the water lapping against the Cezanne, the historically regal castles, abbeys, and timber homes “painted” into the landscape were captivating and something we will long hold in our memory. Misery? What misery?
Each day brought new sights to behold and experience. Our fellow passengers added to the joy of each day. Germans, Austrians, English, Irish, and Americans all sharing in the beauty of Normandy. Language was no barrier. We all made ourselves understood. We laughed and enjoyed.
The dining room on Cezanne is something very, very special. Staff aims to please in a very big way. Our servers, Gabor and Krasamir, were outstanding. Gabor is from Hungary. Being half Hungarian, I was easily won over by his charm and personality. He made each meal fantastically wonderful for all at our table. In fact, all servers appeared to be very responsive and adept. Each meal is painstakingly prepared and served. Food was outstanding. Very European. We loved it! Dinners consisted of nine course meals. Limited, but sumptuous, menu choices. It did not appear that you could special order, as you can on Regent. Wine was not included at dinnertime; however, could be purchased by the glass or bottle. Other alcoholic beverages were also available for purchase. Prices seemed moderate.
Entertainment was fine and very mellow. It suited the slow pace of river cruising. Entertainers consisted of a pianist, a magician, and a French singer.
Staff was friendly, congenial, efficient and helpful. All announcements, etc. were spoken in both German and English. We found this to be no problem whatsoever. In fact, it added to the European feel of the sailing.
The Captain’s Welcome and Farewell receptions were very low-key by comparison to Regent’s. A glass of champagne was offered with some hors d’oeuvres. Nothing terribly fancy. Ship’s officers were all friendly and interacted with passengers, with the exception of the ship’s Captain, who never uttered a word to anyone, as far as I could tell. I found this a real negative. It takes so little to meet and greet guests sailing on your vessel and make them feel welcome.
BEWARE OF CABIN #1 ON MS CEZANNE:
We did have an issue with our cabin, which I had brought to the attention of the Hotel Director and will also bring to the attention of Deilmann’s corporate offices in the U.S. Upon entering the locks, our cabin vibrated very substantially and the noise was loud and jarring. This was not a constant, but occurred enough evenings and early mornings to jolt us out of a sound sleep. When I initially booked this cruise, I specifically requested a quiet cabin. I felt the cabin on the upper deck would be very quiet, as there was nothing above us. I was assured that this location would be perfect. WRONG!
PROS OF DEILMANN RIVER CRUISING – MS CEZANNE:
Unpack once
Accommodations and meals included
Ease of getting from point A to point B
Package touring available at fairly moderate cost
Outstanding cuisine
Excellent service/European hospitality
Slower pace to relax and appreciate the landscape
No more than 100 passengers
More casual atmosphere
Formal attire not strictly enforced
Sailing with Europeans as well as Americans is a very enriching experience
Ease of access into small towns and villages
CONS OF DEILMANN RIVER CRUISING – MS CEZANNE:
Smaller cabins
Atmosphere is warm, but not as luxurious
No real nightlife, casinos, discos, show productions
Set meal times and seating
NO COMPUTER ACCESS
No real afternoon activities while sailing
Smoking in lounge and on deck is permitted (no smoking in the dining room or guestrooms is allowed)
Not all-inclusive as we've come to enjoy on our Regent sailings
No self-serve laundry facilities
No pool or spa
No tubs
Now, the burning question – Would we do this again? Yes, I believe we would, depending upon the itinerary. While the vessel (Cezanne) is not quite up to the luxury standards of Regent, we found our experience to be very fulfilling and enriching in many aspects. Crew (with the exception of the Capt.), make you feel a very welcome guest in their “home.” The beauty and tranquility of the landscape was breathtaking. I find it extremely hard to relax and love being on the go. Yet, I found myself enjoying the slower pace after touring. Alan and I loved sitting on the sun deck, slowly sailing along the charming and picturesque towns and villages. A very soothing and quiet, graceful living painting.
We’ve loved our sailings on Regent and will continue to book, plan and enjoy future ocean cruises. However, for those looking for a very different and quieter experience, river cruising does offer one that opportunity to enjoy sailing in a very unique and smaller scale manner. You do have to weigh what is important to you and choose accordingly. I’m happy to say that we have found pleasure in both ocean and river cruising. It was a very hard sell for me on the day we embarked. However, misery turned to enjoyment and pleasure very soon thereafter!