New to River Cruising - Questions About Christmas Markets Cruises

My DH and I are looking to take our first river cruise in December 2016. We want to do a Christmas markets cruise that includes Bamberg. I have found 3 lines that include Bamberg - Uniworld, Avalon and Viking. For our ocean cruises, I have always booked directly with the cruise line.

For those of you experienced river cruisers, is it better to book through a TA? I have gotten quotes from several on the 3 cruises, and in all cases they are priced better than directly through the cruise company. I am only getting prices on the cruise portion, as we plan to book our own air, pre-cruise hotel and transfers.

I am leaning toward the Viking cruise as it has the best itinerary for us, Frankfurt to Nuremburg. Email exchange with them directly has not been very good, and they never even replied to my last message. I hope that's not an indicator of service on the ship :(

Do any of you have advice for us regarding use of TA's, and would any of these 3 companies be better for first time river cruisers?

Thanks for any advice you may have!

I have only been on four river cruises and they were all with Viking.

I have booked with Viking and also with a travel agent. It doesn't make any difference so if you can get it cheaper with a travel agent you may as well do that.

Have a great river cruise. You will love it.

We did a Xmas cruise with Vantage and loved it. Years before I did one with my late wife with Dielman, who does not do them any more.

If you or your husband is a scotch drinker, look for the Rauchbier in Bamberg. It is beer where the barley is smoked like scotch.

My 3rd Uniworld cruise was in Dec, 2013--Nuremburg to Vienna. It was wonderful. I've used 2 different TA's to book River cruises-each had their +|-.

When comparing prices, remember Uniworld is all-inclusive (transfers, tips, drinks). FWIW, the service onboard any Uniworld ship I've been on has been stellar and the food quite good. You may want to check out the review section on this site for other opinions.

Happy planning!

I am leaning toward the Viking cruise as it has the best itinerary for us, Frankfurt to Nuremburg. Email exchange with them directly has not been very good, and they never even replied to my last message. I hope that's not an indicator of service on the ship :(!

We took the Viking cruise for our first ever experience cyndepet, and could not have more delighted. Here's a link to our trip blog with a lot of pictures if that's of any help. https://christmascruiser.wordpress.com/

The crew was outstanding in their focus on our comfort and satisfaction.

Have fun planning,

Frank

If you really want the Viking trip--do it!!! But get a TA, then they will be your buffer to the cruise line. We have done 3 Christmas market trips and loved each one--3 different lines. Pat

we just booked our second Viking,we booked directly with Viking,never did email but on the phone we have had excellent service.

and I read the blog it was great

We took the Viking cruise for our first ever experience cyndepet, and could not have more delighted. Here's a link to our trip blog with a lot of pictures if that's of any help. https://christmascruiser.wordpress.com/

The crew was outstanding in their focus on our comfort and satisfaction.

Have fun planning,

Frank

Frank what a wonderful blog about your trip! I believe it answered all those other types of questions I would have eventually thought to ask. I can't wait to share this with my DH to give him a better understanding of what this cruise is all about! Now I'm very excited to plan and book this trip.

Frank what a wonderful blog about your trip! I believe it answered all those other types of questions I would have eventually thought to ask. I can't wait to share this with my DH to give him a better understanding of what this cruise is all about! Now I'm very excited to plan and book this trip.

It's hard to go wrong with a Christmas market cruise. have a great time cyndepet.

frank

My DH and I are looking to take our first river cruise in December 2016. We want to do a Christmas markets cruise that includes Bamberg. I have found 3 lines that include Bamberg - Uniworld, Avalon and Viking. For our ocean cruises, I have always booked directly with the cruise line.

 

For those of you experienced river cruisers, is it better to book through a TA? I have gotten quotes from several on the 3 cruises, and in all cases they are priced better than directly through the cruise company. I am only getting prices on the cruise portion, as we plan to book our own air, pre-cruise hotel and transfers.

 

I am leaning toward the Viking cruise as it has the best itinerary for us, Frankfurt to Nuremburg. Email exchange with them directly has not been very good, and they never even replied to my last message. I hope that's not an indicator of service on the ship :(

 

Do any of you have advice for us regarding use of TA's, and would any of these 3 companies be better for first time river cruisers?

 

Thanks for any advice you may have!

Sue & Dennis From Charleston, SC

We have booked a 2016 Christmas Market Cruise on Avalon Imagery II (New in 2016) Starting in Amsterdam on 10-DEC-2016 and ending in Zurich on 17-DEC-2016.

We are traveling with our friends, Floyd & Kathy also from Charleston.

This is the first River Cruise for all of us, we are excited about the new adventure awaiting us. Sue & I have done a number of Ocean Cruises.

We started a Thread in the River Cruising Roll Calls area titled "All Christmas Market Cruises 2016" and here is the link

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2171756

Dennis & Sue

We've done two Christmas Market cruises on Viking. We were on the "Heart of Germany" cruise (which I believe is the one you are considering) in December 2014 and it was excellent. We went from Nuremberg to Frankfurt and took the Viking extension to Cologne (which in our opinion was well worth it as Cologne has 7 Christmas Markets and is a very walkable city). Here is the review I did post cruise:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1963868

We use an agent for all of our cruise bookings. In addition to having an "advocate", we often get prices below what the cruise line offers through an agent.

We've done two Christmas Market cruises on Viking. We were on the "Heart of Germany" cruise (which I believe is the one you are considering) in December 2014 and it was excellent. We went from Nuremberg to Frankfurt and took the Viking extension to Cologne (which in our opinion was well worth it as Cologne has 7 Christmas Markets and is a very walkable city). Here is the review I did post cruise:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1963868

 

We use an agent for all of our cruise bookings. In addition to having an "advocate", we often get prices below what the cruise line offers through an agent.

Another excellent review! Thanks for sharing this link.

I think I have made up my mind to do the Viking Heart of Germany cruise. Now to figure out the sailing date and book.

Thanks again to everyone for sharing great information. Keep sharing if you think of anything else!

Hello WarEagle76,

what a great review! I am sure it is very helpful for potential river cruisers to make up their mind. The post-cruise extension is a great idea IMO. I did not know that a Cologne extension after a Main cruise was available. Although it is a long bus ride I think it is well worth. As you did. :)

If someone is thinking of doing this on their own rather than through a river cruise company: there are frequent fast trains from Frankfurt (town and/or airport) to Cologne central station. You can also go for the scenic route along the Rhine which takes about three to three and a half hours. That gives you a view of the Rhine castle gorge. But it is not as fascinating as from the river! Possible stops for more markets inbetween: Rüdesheim, Koblenz, Bonn.

Nuremberg to Frankfurt I would definitely consider myself. I know Frankfurt but I have never been to Nuremberg. As a train enthusiast I would love to seen the German Railway Museum.

@cyndepet

Have fun planning.

notamermaid

We did an Avalon Christmas Market cruise this past December and it was marketed in several different segments. We opted for Nuremberg to Basel because my husband wanted to be in Germany to drink beer. I didn't want to go to Prague or Vienna (I've been and didn't want to do the Danube this time). I think the longest itinerary was Vienna to Basel, but there were passengers who embarked or disembarked at Nuremberg and Frankfurt as well. So you could have had a 12, 9 or 5 day cruise (I think, I'm traveling now so I'm doing this by memory on the exact length of the segments) My point is that there might be some varied options out there if you look more in depth.

We loved the Christmas markets (actually, they're the only reason my husband was able to get me on a river cruise:p) And yes, my husband, stepdad & I went to the rail museum in Nuremberg. It was really impressive!

Hi I have done 6 River Cruises with Uniworld and 3 of them Christmas Cruises. Cannot reccomend them enough. Each cruise was Amazing:) Cannot fault their service etc.

We have been to Europe ~ a dozen times for the Christmas season and have done 6 river cruises during the markets, with another booked for this year.

Our best experiences were with AMA. We really enjoy their staff and crew; their food and wine is consistently good to very good; the Chef's Table is lovely for a special dinner; their included excursions are varied in both level of effort and specific interests; and their attention to detail is excellent!

Their holiday cruises were very festive compared to the others we took before discovering AMA.

That being said, our favorite markets are in the towns and cities not reached by river cruise and we really enjoyed our DIY trips the most of all.