Viking Rhine Getaway -- Viking Tor, Fall 2014

Rudesheim

The daily briefing was early because we were due to arrive at 5pm. Shortly after we pulled up to the dock the Viking Var pulled in along side us and we were invaded by Var passengers eager to get to shore. Unfortunately everybody had to wait while the ship was securely tied up at the dock.

Shortly after that our concierge, Olga, led a group of us into town to the alley where all the tourist places were. It was not a tour, she just showed us where to go and left us.

There's a lot of restaurants, but it was early so most were empty. There were a fair number of gift shops selling the same junk, and one of those christmas stores everyone goes nuts over. There is also a sky chair up the mountain to a monument, which is probably pretty scenic during the day. By the time we found it, it was dusk.

We had decided to eat in town, hearing that there were a number of restaurants, and we chose one near the top of the street called Lindenwirt. They had a variety of regional foods, the menu was in German and English, which was nice because my command of German is limited to words like "bratwurst" and "strudel". We chose the local bratwurst with potatoes and sauerkraut, and were very happy with it. I normally don't like kraut, but this was nothing like what I've had stateside. I would recommend the place and it was not expensive. The had an accordionist playing while we ate.

Except for the restaurants the town closes up around 6pm. We window shopped on our way back to the ship. There are a lot of shops and a few restaurants along the waterfront, these seem to be the better quality gift shops and it's a pity most were closed. If I could do it again I would hit the shops right by the dock first, and then go get dinner.

Back on the ship we decided to go into the restaurant and just have dessert. It was clear that many passengers had chosen to take the optional excursion dinner, only about half the tables were set.

As you're probably heard already, Viking doesn't skimp on food quality or quantity and dinner can be an extensive affair. It starts at 7pm and runs until 9pm, we were usually in our room by 9:15. I don't remember the details of every menu, but the food was similar to what others have reported. You can order whatever you want in any combination. Some nights I tried all the appetizers, let me tell you that will fill you up fast. A few other things I remember, a mascarpone and potato crusted appetizer, the celery soup, goat cheese brulee (even if you don't like goat cheese you should try that), the sour cherry mascarpone cake (better than the black forest cake), the pumpkin soup, grapefruit sorbet (even people who don't like grapefruit raved over it) and on the last night the roast beef that was so much nicer than the steak the evening before. I had the cheese plate most evenings, because I like cheese and european cheeses are just so nice. It tastes different there, and not just because you're on a cruise.

Overall I recommend that people try the food and get outside their comfort zones. It costs you nothing to experiment and they are happy to replace any dish that didn't appeal to you.

After dinner I had a quick look at the Var. Aside from some differences in artwork she's identical to the Tor, both built in 2013.

What time does the ship leave Basel?

Enjoying traveling along with you. We too have done this cruise with Viking during December to visit the Christmas markets, unfortunately it was during one of the 'low water' seasons and our tour was altered with only 4 nights actually on the ship but it was fine. Instead of doing the Black Forest cuckoo trip, we met two other couples and the 6 of us took an early morning train from Basel to Colmar, spent the day there enjoying the markets and Colmar then trained to Strasbourg and met our tour group at the hotel that evening. There's always an option if you want to strike out on your own. However, if you do, please let the tour staff know your plans so they don't spend their time looking for you!

Can't wait to continue on with you. I too don't like the reserved tables you mentioned and felt it was extremely rude to be told you had to move. We've done 4 river cruises with Viking, another one coming up in 5 weeks and have not seen 'reserved' tables. We've usually met people and enjoyed sharing a table with them each night but always sat where available, never in a reserved table.

I wish Viking would address this as they DO monitor these boards and it seems quite a few people were/are taken aback after reading your posts as we're all under the impression dining is open seating. Maybe they will respond. Viking please address this issue.

Love your photos. Waiting...waiting...waiting 😆

Sorry for the interruption, I had technical problems and some RL to deal with.

Basel departure time was listed as 7pm on my schedule, just as dinner started. This was about half an hour after we boarded, the last passengers to arrive.

Day Five: Rhine Castles and Koblenz

Morning dawned chilly and misty. There were voiced concerns that we would not be able to see some of the castles, but the weather pattern had been misty in the mornings and clearing by noon, so I was hopeful.

Since there was no 8am tour this morning many people took the opportunity to sleep in or to linger at breakfast. After breakfast I took a book up to the lounge and watched the scenery for a while.

At some point that morning, maybe around 10am we entered the 'castles' part of the river valley and our program director got on the microphone and started narrating. This narration can only be heard in the lounge and the fore deck. So if you are in your cabin, like my husband was, you'll miss the show. I went and got him and the cameras.

A hardy group had already settled into the Aquavit Terrace area. It wasn't that cold out, but it was windy and a little damp being on the water. I went for a seat just inside the lounge, in the area where the continental breakfast is served, because it was out of the wind. I think most people were up on the top deck, where it was very windy, I did not venture up there.

The clouds started to break up a little, there were glimpses of sun and blue sky but the highest hills still had caps of fog, obscuring a couple of the ruins at the very top.

About 15 minutes into the program servers came out with cups of hot chocolate, which were eagerly taken up and appreciated. One of the servers even came around with some leftover Rudesheim brandy for those that wanted a little extra warmth.

The castle part of the river is pretty short, I think we had cruised through the entire area in 45 minutes or so, ending up just before noon. They served lunch early so people could get ready for the shore excursion to Marksburg Castle.

After lunch we got our tour group tags and walked in to Koblenz to the busses.

I'm really enjoying the narrative of your trip. It is very informative and helping with some scheduling decisions on our soon to be Christmas Market cruise. I'm going to follow you all the way to Amsterdam! Thanks for the great review.

Day Five (continued) Marksburg Castle

We had a short ride to the castle, perhaps 20 minutes through the suburbs and up the hillside. I am always amazed at how these tour bus drivers manage on such narrow twisty roads.

During the briefing the day before, and as the groups assemble, Viking staff continuously point out that this tour is for sturdy walkers. The walkway up to the castle is paved and even, but once you get inside the walls it becomes very rough and uneven, and there are multiple steep stairs to navigate.

At the entrance area is a small courtyard where we got our first views of the surrounding countryside. And of course, this is when the last of the fog cleared off, leaving us standing in our warm jackets in the sun as the day finally started to warm up.

There is a small cafe here that sells drinks and light food and has tables where you can sit. Also a small gift shop and toilets. Our Viking guide warned us that we had about 15 minutes to look around here before our tour and that we would be leaving immediately afterward.

If you rely on a walker or a cane or feel unsteady on your feet, claustrophobic, or can't handle stairs then this is the place to stop. The castle guide takes you inside and locks the gate. There is no turning back if you are tired or feel you can't continue on. The tour takes one route through the castle, with another group behind you by a few minutes, so once you start you have to go all the way around.

This area near the entrance is raw rock, with some rudimentary steps carved in places.

Day Five (continued) Marksburg Castle

The tour takes you around through some areas of the castle, while the guide talks about the castle and its history. There are some great views of the river and surrounding hills.

There are multiple sets of narrow stairs to navigate.

The tour also takes you through the keep in the center of the castle, which is where the reigning family lived. They have furnished it nicely, but the rooms are a little small, and at least one of our party was having issues with it.

After the tour we had about 5 minutes to use the toilets and then it was back on the bus and back to the ship in Koblenz. Viking Lif had docked with us but their passengers were nowhere to be seen, I have no idea what their itinerary was. I also saw the Atla out in the water, I don't think she stopped in Koblenz. I looked at the Lif briefly, it's built on the same model as the Tor, but a year newer (2014) and had slight decorative differences.

There was a 4:30 walk into Koblenz which I wanted to take, but we were so tired and footsore we opted for a nap in our cabin instead. A little before 5pm we got up to go to the lounge for the presentation on the European Union. They had a grad student in who seemed very knowledgeable on the issues both past and current, who spoke for about an hour and answered questions. It was not very well attended, but it was the sort of thing DH and were interested in, and we enjoyed it.

Right after that was the Viking sales presentation, so we got out of there.

Having rested a bit we decided to take a stroll on the waterfront, over to the monument we were docked near. We couldn't quite puzzle out the occasion, but it had Kaiser Willhelm's name on it. Probably if we had taken the tour into town we would have found out more about it.

There are also a number of souvenir booths along the waterfront, you'll see them when you walk to the buses for the castle tour. They all sell more or less the same things, but some of the prices vary, so it might be worth looking on the way to the castle, and shopping on the way back. Like a lot of places in Europe they'll close up around 5 or 6pm. There is also skylift right near where the ship docked which takes you across the river to a fort that I was told was very interesting, but we did not go.

There is a little park on the peninsula near the monument, we walked through it and watched the sun setting. Then it got chilly and we went back to the ship.

Day Five was also the Taste of Germany dinner. The dining room and kitchen were set up as a buffet and you had to serve yourself. They had a variety of german meats, sausages, cold cuts, with roast pork, beef and chicken in the kitchen, as well as all kinds of vegetables, potatoes, salads, breads and cheeses and condiments. Beer and wine was on the buffet too.

They had about half the servers helping people out of the kitchen, probably because small desserts and some drinks were available in there and it meant most people ended up with two or more plates. As a result, there weren't enough servers working the tables. This meant that those of us who weren't drinking alcohol couldn't get our water glasses refilled. We were in our usual corner by the entrance, as far from the kitchen as possible, and wait staff just never made it back to us before being grabbed by another table for something or other. After being catered to for several nights, it just got really chaotic with people trying to get something for their table and not enough staff on the floor. I had to get up and go find a server to bring us water.

That said, once the initial rush on the kitchen and buffet passed, it got a bit better, but I still wish they had just brought us a pitcher of water and left it for the table if they weren't going to be able to serve. And I did ask for one.

I went around the buffet and tried a little bit of everything that looked good. It was too easy to take too much food. Most things I only had a bite or two of. There were just so many choices. It was all good. I took a 2nd plate through the kitchen and tried a little of the roast meats and vegetables from there, but I was pretty full by then.

For entertainment they had in an organ grinder and an accordion player who also sang and made the evening very festive. They did not stay long, less than an hour, which was a shame because you could feel the mood in the room fall when they left.

We were still docked with the Lif, but I do not know what was going on over there. They had their dining room curtains drawn tight.

At the end of dinner the servers came around with shots of schnapps for everyone and we knocked 'em back and slammed our glasses on the table as instructed. It was not the kind of schnapps for sipping.

Crashed hard after that, it had been a very long day. Probably one of the longest of the cruise. I took a really long, really hot shower, and wished I had a tub to soak in, but was glad at least the ship seemed to have an endless supply of hot water. Lif slipped away sometime in the night, and around 4am we cast of for Cologne.

Fabulous review; we are going on this exact ship April 2016.

Quick question re. your cabin. If you are at reception area on main deck and want to go to the cabin you had; are the steps right there? We have been on one Viking ship and loved it; took French balcony but for the amount of savings, and how little you are in your cabin; think we will take 103 this time. Would you recommend this cabin? easy to get to from main reception area? Thanks

Your review and pctcures were awesome.

Yes, 103 would be very easy to get to, right at the bottom of the stairs, just down from reception. The 100 level cabins are identical to the upper cabins, with the exception of the window/balcony.

Thanks for taking the time to answer; really appreciate it. Did research the cabins and found out (which I didn't know the last time I was on Viking... cabins on bottom level with high window are 15 sq. feet larger.

I don't see how that is possible, unless you are counting the area where the window is, and that is 5ft off the floor. How did you calculate this number?

I didn't calculate it. Read it on their description. Cabins with high interior window on bottom level are 150 sq. feet. Cabins with French balcony on middle level are 135 square feet.

Yes, the Aquarium class are larger than the French Balcony.

My understanding is the hallway in the middle deck is offset, they make the French Balcony rooms smaller so that the suite rooms are bigger. On the lower deck it is centered so that rooms on both side are the same size.

Day Six: Cologne

The morning dawned cool and foggy again, but cleared up beautifully as the sun rose during breakfast. The ship arrived in Cologne around 9am and we had our first views of the Cathedral. I was a little sad to see Cologne because I knew it would be our last stop in Germany.

The ship docked and we walked along the waterfront to get to the tour buses that would take us into the city. Once again DH and I were with the "slow" group. Unfortunately our guide was a lively young woman who walked quickly and kept leaving people farther and farther behind.

We got a short tour of the old city, starting at the Cathedral. Our guide explained to us that they have services six times a day and that they close the church to visitors half an hour before hand. At the end of our walk we would have a short time to see the interior before the service.

The Cologne cathedral plaza is much like the one in Strausburg, crowds of people, vendors, and a few gypsies. I spotted a couple hustlers moving among the tourists, fast talking and with pockets full of trinkets to sell.

My husband's camera had died the day before, so I gave him mine at the start of the tour, and three minutes later it died. So we have no pictures of the old city. The walk is lovely, it goes down along the river, you see some new buildings and some very old, and the guide took us by the public restrooms where we sorted out all our pocket change so those who needed to could see them.

After the tour we went into the Cathedral to look around. There were a lot of beautiful windows and sculptures and things to look at but we were happy just to sit in one place for a while. At this point in the trip my feet were killing me. After about 15 minutes they made the announcement that they would be closing for services and people started to leave. They also said that tourists were welcome to remain for the service but that we must be quiet and respectful and not take photos. As we left I saw that they had erected a barricade just inside the door and it was manned by several clergy members who were turning people back outside.

I went looking for help with my camera, ran into our guide again and she pointed us toward the Hohestrasse --the main shopping street -- where we found a camera shop quite easily. Ten euro and a new memory card and the camera was back in business.

We window shopped for a while -- these were mostly very high end shops-- and then got a little hungry so we bought a bratwurst from a street vendor and shared it as we walked. Ended up at a patisserie on a side street where we ordered a chocolate pastry and a couple of milchcafes and just sat and watched people for an hour.

After that we walked back to the cathedral area and got tickets to the roman museum there. It's an interest of mine and we spent a couple of hours walking around looking at the collection of monuments, busts, gravestones and items from daily life. Cologne was founded in the first century AD and would go on to become the capital of lower Germany with a massive population. It's evident, looking at the collection there that the residents were wealthy, well supplied, and comfortable there on the frontier.

If you're not that interested, there's a collection of substantial pieces of roman carvings on display outside, and a beautiful, nearly intact mosaic floor can be seen from the side of the building, in fact the tour takes you right by it. Also, the museum has a free toilet that you can get to in the lobby.

At that point I'd had enough and we walked back to the bus. They had arrangements for those who wanted to stay later in the city, to do pickups at 2,3 and 4pm.

That evening on the ship dinner was mushroom themed. There was a mushroom and bacon salad, mushroom soup, various other dishes featuring mushrooms, but the popular choice seemed to be the beef short rib and filet combo. Strangely, at our table, some people only got either a short rib or a filet. As we were the last table served, I wonder if they had started to run out. Anyway, there was plenty of food and alcohol all around, as always.

Thank you so much for posting your review and photos. I loved seeing the different perspectives and remembering my own trip.

Thanks Mimmy, I enjoyed reading your review, too. It really helped me get a sense of what to expect on our trip. :)

Day Seven: Kinderdijk

At daybreak we were well underway and no longer on the Rhine. Some time in the night the ship had sailed into the Netherlands and their canal system. We had also been given our departing instructions, including orders to pack and have our bags ready by 7am the following morning.

It was a slow morning. We had breakfast, and lounged. Sometime during the week I picked up a head cold, along with a bunch of other people on board, so all I really wanted to do was sleep. At one point I went down for some hot tea and caught the middle of the presentation on the Dutch, followed by the cheese tasting. It was interesting, I wish I had heard all of it. And the cheese was very good. I would have liked to bring it all home in my suitcase.

Afterward we watched scenery. Sturdy Dutch horses:

Cows:

The occasional windmill or town in the distance:

Lots of ship traffic, large and small:

We had lunch from the terrace, as they were serving both chili dogs and cheese soup, some of my husband's favorites. With my head blocked up I was really in the mood for soup, I think I had about 3 bowls of it.

After lunch there was another presentation on water management in the Netherlands, which we also found interesting.

Kinderdjyk

We arrived in the village of Kinderdjyk late in the afternoon. It's a really tiny village. I would have liked to explore it a little, but was feeling fatigued from my cold.

The ship docks right at the windmill park. We were divided into our usual 4 groups, however unlike other stops each group went out one at a time instead of all at once. I learned that our group was not scheduled to leave for the tour for another 45 minutes and said 'screw it' and we just went down the ramp to see the sights on our own.

Once in port Viking does not restrict you from leaving the ship on your own, you aren't required to take the tours, you are pretty much free to do what you like as long as you are back before they sail. I even saw one couple who went overnight to visit German friends and met up with the ship at the next port the following day.

I was a little disappointed with the windmills, mostly with the 'museum'. I was hoping for some history or detailed information, but it was just one of the windmills set up like it was being lived in. I've seen the inside of a windmill and it's not that interesting, and it's cramped, too, especially with your whole tour group trying to get in at once. They charge 6 or 7 euro to get in the 'museum' if you're not with your tour group, so beware that if you go on your own.

Right off the ship there is a little cafe and gift shop, which everyone went into first, so it was crammed with people. Part of the way down the walk is another cafe and a smaller gift shop. The second one is cheaper, but carries less stuff. The first shop is where you can rent bicycles, I think it was 3 eu an hour, and several people seemed to be enjoying them.

We walked down to the end of the paved area, at the end of which is another windmill you can go into. Also from that point, if you look off into the nearby fields you'll note the water level around the farmed land is about 4ft lower than the water in the canals next to you.

There really is not a lot going on at Kinderdjyk. We took a leisurely walk, and by the time we turned around our tour group was just getting started and we had the gift shop to ourselves.

We took another nap before packing.

Dinner that night was the Captain's Dinner and farewell. I don't remember the entire menu, but it was an abbreviated one, and most people seemed to be ordering the pot roast. The pot roast was much better than the steak from the night before. Also, I'm not sure why, but dinner seemed to take an unusually long time. I think we were there 3 hours instead of the usual 2.

[i don't know what's going on, I can't get images to post, all of a sudden. ]

Day Eight: Departure and Amsterdam

Some time in the night we arrived in Amsterdam. My first look out was at the cruise ship parked next to us. Lights on, curtains open, everything in full view. Many of the passengers there were doing what we were doing, waking up, getting dressed and packing.

Would have liked to sleep in but we had to put bags out before 7am.

The day before we had all been given a schedule, which listed room numbers, departure times, and when to be out front for our 'transfers'. Fortunately we were not among those who had an early departure, but I was glad to see they started serving breakfast at 4am for those who had to be up really early.

We ate and removed to the lounge for a couple of hours until our bus came. Viking wants you out of your room by 9am, so they can start turning them over for arriving passengers.

We opted for the extra 2 days in Amsterdam. I wasn't sure what was involved there, and didn't really care, as I had my own plans, but from what I can tell we paid for the room, a walking tour, and the advice of the Viking concierge. Oh, and the limo ride to the airport. So, if you're staying on for Amsterdam, have some idea what you want to do there, because you have a lot of free time.

Arrival at the Moevenpick was chaos. Two or three different tour groups showed up around the same time, all were trying to get registered and find their guide. The lobby is fairly large, but the guides parked just inside the entrance, which blocked up the doors...

We were supposed to have been given papers that had our itinerary and transfers, but we did not have that, so DH went off to take care of that while I guarded our bags. Viking takes your suitcases to the hotel, but they suggest you carry all valuables with you. Plus you aren't going to be able to get into a room until after 3pm, so you want to have whatever you need with you during the day. And then we had been souvenir shopping and some of the extra was in my day bag. If I had it to do over, I would force more stuff into my luggage, just for the day, instead of schlepping it all over the city.

So DH got us straightened out and we found our guide and got our radios and escaped to the street out front for some air.

The walking tour of the old city lasts about an hour, it starts at the hotel, which is about ten minutes from the city center, and ends up at Dam square. Part of the walk from the hotel goes through a waterfront area that some of the older tourists described as "pretty dodgy", but really it's just an industrial area near the highway that you walk under. DH and I went through several times, including at night, and it is reasonably safe (as much as any city can be) and lots of locals walk and bike through, too. Besides, all the druggies, pickpockets and hookers are in another part of the city.

Our guide seemed very knowledgeable both about the history of the city and modern life there. She took us up and down several streets, pointing out canals, houseboats, historic buildings, markets etc. It was pretty quick paced, and I wish it had been a little slower. Some places we barely had time to snap a picture before being hustled along. Would have liked to spend some time in the flower market, for example. By the way, if you do become tempted by the bulbs for sale there, be aware that they need to have a special inspection sticker for import into the US or customs will seize them.

We did not go through the red light district but we had glimpses of it down the side streets. Our guide explained that marijuana was NOT legal in the Netherlands, but that they have a lenient policy towards it. As long as the police don't get called, and nobody gets hurt, and it's not interrupting normal business then they look the other way. Cops got more important things to do than arrest potheads.

The guide left us in Dam square, which is huge. There's a palace, and a church and a lot of tourist shops and people, and I was too tired and hungry to care. I had seen some signs for broodjies (sandwiches) along the way, so after we handed in our radios we went in search of them. Sadly, we got a little lost --all those canals start to look alike after a while-- but I did find a frites shop and we had a snack, followed by a couple of Singapore chicken curry broodjies and an Orangina a little while later.

Ein frites wit mayo:

Do try the frites. They're not your standard american french fries.

It was still only about noon, so we decided to wander and do a little window shopping. Sometime around 1pm I decided I needed a coffee, so we asked at one souvenir shop. You've probably heard that in Amsterdam "coffee house" is slang for "pot shop", so the clerk was careful to ask us what kind of "coffee" we were looking for, which we found hilarious because we do not fit the stereotype. We found a square with several cafes, but being mid afternoon and very pretty out, the tables were all full, so we wandered a little more until I just could not stand it anymore, then and then on our way back to the hotel we stumbled into Rembrandt Square and there was an empty table.

By the time we were done there it was close to 3pm so we went back to the hotel and got checked in and went up to our room. I still had a raging head cold and had been on my feet the better part of 4 hours, so I was ready for a long nap. Which we did.

I was very pleased with the Moevenpick. It's nice and the staff seems to care. They must deal with the tourist grind day in and day out there, it is a large hotel and they churn through thousands of Viking passengers. Every employee we dealt with was polite and helpful. I have been in tourist hotels where you knew you weren't really welcome and the front desk didn't care because they knew you'd be gone in the morning.

Our room was a standard American size, with a sofa, a desk, and two beds pushed together in the middle, done in Euro minimalist decor. It was clean, comfortable, spacious enough, and we had a nice view of the city.

After dark we asked downstairs about places to eat. We wanted some place with traditionally Dutch food, but the recommended ones were further into the city than we wanted to go, and also very expensive. So we walked over to a place called Vapiano, which is a cafeteria style Italian restaurant very near the hotel. Our guide had pointed it out earlier and said it was popular with younger people. And indeed it was. It was packed, but the food and prices looked good so we got in line. The way they operate is there is a line for each type of food, salads, soups, pizza, pasta, etc. You pick a line and wait your turn to order, then carry it back to a communal table. I got a chopped salad big enough for 4, and DH got in line for a pizza. Both were very good, the pizza especially if you like traditional thin crust style. My only complaint was drinks were hard to get, as you had to wait in line, and everything was bottled. There were no servers going around topping off water glasses like we are used to at home.

Awesome Thanks for writing. Lots of good advice.

Kathy