France rivers

Hi

we are looking at river cruise from Normandy to cote d azur next year and would like a few questions answered .

are the rivers in france affected but flow rates like other european rivers ??

What i can see there isnt the same amount of locks ????

are the towns / city within walking distance of river ??

can someone give us some first hand info on what to expect ??

thanks in advance peter

Hi

we are looking at river cruise from Normandy to cote d azur next year and would like a few questions answered .

are the rivers in france affected but flow rates like other european rivers ??

What i can see there isnt the same amount of locks ????

are the towns / city within walking distance of river ??

can someone give us some first hand info on what to expect ??

thanks in advance peter

We did Paris and Normandy with Uniworld in April. No issues with water levels and we have experienced high and low conditions on the rivers a number of times over the years.

The Seine had very few locks and they were large.

Yes, we were in walking distance of town most every day, though some excursions were a long ride away. The day we did the beaches was a 12 hour day. Honfleur was an hour in each direction.

Uniworld docks right in Paris, which is convenient. We took a day trip by train on our own and Ubered to the station and back.

Peter,

As I understand it, water levels can be an issue on the Rhone since there are some low bridges. On our Avalon Rhone cruise this spring we went under a bridge in Lyon with only 2 inches of clearance! We haven't done the Seine, but on the Rhone going to the Cote d'Azur, you'll dock right in the towns.

Since you're looking at Normandy to the Cote d'Azur, you're talking two cruises with a land trip between Paris and either Dijon or Lyon to change ships. I would look for a line that does this via train rather than bus. It's faster and more comfortable in my opinion.

We enjoyed Avalon. We flew into Nice and had a night in Cannes before being bused to the ship in Arles. Then we were bused to Beaune and Dijon from the little village of St. Jean de Losne. After a high speed train trip to Paris we spent two nights there, but those on the ship who were going to on to the Normandy were taken from the train station in Paris to their ship.

Just about any river anywhere can be prone to high or low water levels.

In early June last year there were torrential rains in France and river cruising was impacted on the Seine (luckily we had been on it the week before and had no rain). For example the dock used by Uniworld was under many feet of water. I don't remember if cruises had changed itineraries or were cancelled. We were on the Rhone that week and had some minimal impact. The ship, after dropping us off in Macon for our Beune visit, had to return immediately to Lyon without passengers because the water on the Saone was rising so quickly they were afraid we would be stuck and not able to continue the cruise down the Rhone. That just added about 1 hour to a bus ride back to the ship in Lyon. I have read of more serious issues on the Rhone in past years.

We enjoyed both cruises immensely. In many cases we docked right in town with the exceptions that I can remember (this was on Uniworld) being Honfleur and the Normandy Beaches on the Seine cruise and Arles and Chateauneuf du Pape on the Rhone.

If you plan to go from the Seine to the Rhone, realize that you will need to take a train (or some other mode of transportation) from Paris to Lyon. Uniworld - and I am sure some other river cruise companies - offers back to back cruises with a roundtrip Seine trip beginning/ending in Paris followed by a 2 hour or so high speed train ride to Lyon and then a weeklong cruise on the Rhone to Arles.

We did Paris/Normandy with Uniworld a number of years ago - our 1st river cruise. Busing was minimal - except for the day spent at the Normandy Beaches - and the next day when we went to Honfleur. We are going back next month with Avalon - the options for the daily excursions are different, so... same river, but different tours.

We did the south of France with Avalon. We went to Nice a couple of days early - and then took the train to Monaco where our tour started. At the end of the river cruise, we took the train to Paris (included) where we spent 2 nights. The people that continued on with the Seine part of the trip (think it is called "Grand France") went right from the train to the boat for their next cruise. I believe they had 1 or 2 nights in Paris at the end of their tour. Many of the stops on the Rhone were within walking distance of the boat.

Not sure if any other companies offer a back-to-back - but Avalon definitely does. And, I do agree with FuelScience - look for a company that includes rail vs bus for transport.

Fran

I've done 6 river cruises in France, 2 Paris/Normandy on the Seine, 1 north to south, 1 Bordeaux and 2 Just Lyon to Arles.

I travel there in spring and I book the first or second cruise of the season, depending on the the line and dates. No issues in the north on the Seine, and none of my trips have been affected. However, I stay in Lyon either post or pre-cruise for a week, and I have seen the Soane rise dramatically, but nothing was cancelled. In the south you have the snow melting as well as rain sometimes. I have had a couple of bakingly hot trips (in the afternoon) in the South in early April!

So my experience is that compared to Germany less dramatic changes to affect the cruise, far less bridges and locks to go through.

Have a great trip :)

Viking does not dock in Paris. The length of the ship is too long. You will be bussed into Paris on Viking. AMA, Uniworld, Avalon all dock in Paris.

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Uniworld also offers back to back, Seine and Rhone, with high speed rail between Paris and Lyon. When we did this (wonderful) itinerary in April/May 2015, no problems on the Seine, but snow melt caused rising, swift water on the Rhone. Some ships had to stay in Lyon, but the SS Catherine was able to sail to each port without passengers, so we stayed on board each night and were bused to meet the ship, enjoying each port as well as extra excursions and lunches in luxurious restaurants. We couldn't sail the Soane portion either. We had an extra day in Lyon, which was not a bad thing, but missed one port at the end, Arles. Such is river cruising!

We have done the Rhone twice, once with AMA and once with Uniworld. There were high water issues with both sailings and Uniworld was impacted more, due to size and design of ship. High river levels forced us to return to Avignon for 4 nights of the cruise and overnight there. AMA handled the water level issues much better. There were some itinerary changes but we did not miss anything and our trip was wonderful!

The Rhone is our absolute favorite itinerary so far and I would happily do it again. For Normandy, we will return but it will be a DIY land trip. Bordeaux was all about the wine and we enjoyed this as well, but the ports lacked the charm of those on the Rhone. Bordeaux itself as a city was delightful and we would happily return for another stay. We spent 4 days and could have stayed longer.

We enjoy both Lyon and Bordeaux far more than Paris.

thank you everyone for the info you have provided ?

it answered all my questions

we did amsterdam to budapest in june and loved it so with so many glowing posts above it will be on the bucket list . .

will try and work in a ocean cruise this but the timing is not quite right so might have to say a few days like Barcelona or nice ? as we travel so far ( new zealand) 2 weeks is not worth the long flights!!

thanks again everyone !!!

peter

I've done 6 river cruises in France, 2 Paris/Normandy on the Seine, 1 north to south, 1 Bordeaux and 2 Just Lyon to Arles.

 

I travel there in spring and I book the first or second cruise of the season, depending on the the line and dates. No issues in the north on the Seine, and none of my trips have been affected. However, I stay in Lyon either post or pre-cruise for a week, and I have seen the Soane rise dramatically, but nothing was cancelled. In the south you have the snow melting as well as rain sometimes. I have had a couple of bakingly hot trips (in the afternoon) in the South in early April!

 

So my experience is that compared to Germany less dramatic changes to affect the cruise, far less bridges and locks to go through.

 

Have a great trip :)

So do you have a favorite river? And which cruiseline did you prefer?