NewCruiser2016

FuelScience, So glad you are fully recovered and back on the forum. Thank you for your great report and excellent photos.

Does anyone know where the Ravel is now (August 21) and where it is headed? VesselFinder indicates Ravel is now going east from Linz as of August 21. But I thought Ravel was to be in Passau tomorrow. Very confused.

Can anyone report how Crystal is handling the low water situation on the Danube, especially between Passau and Nuremberg? Bussing? Using hotels? Remaining for a longer time at particular ports? Many thanks.

Does anyone know whether ships are moving from Passau to Nuremberg (and vice versa)? I checked Vesselfinder and it looks like ships are clustered at Passau and also Linz, but I don't know how accurate this is. If you know, which ships (other than, likely, Avalon) are getting through? Many thanks.

Did you enjoy the Aria Bauer Gallery tour? Do you recommend it?

I am enjoying your posts and especially your pictures. Thank you for taking the time to do this. I am curious what kind of camera you are using for your photos.

Thank you for this wonderful thread. I am particularly enjoying your pictures. What kind of camera are you using?

ACWMom - So glad you enjoyed the trip. I am considering this itinerary. A few questions for when you return. Is there enough to do/see in Etretat that a non-golfer would enjoy the Etretat excursion? How early in the am did the Mt. St. Michel excursion leave? Finally, what camera do you use? Your the pictures are wonderful! Safe travels home.

Your photos are terrific. I know it is against the rules to post names of travel agents here. But can you post the contact information of the professional photographer you used in Budapest? I think a professional photographer is more like car services/hotels/restaurants (which are ok to post) rather than travel agents (not ok to post).

Notamermaid, thank you for your excellent posts on the Moselle, Christmas Markets, Rhine and other subjects. A question for you - I am wondering whether you think the rain and bad weather in December and January is likely to result in difficult river cruising for the Rhine/Moselle in April. I know it is difficult to predict water levels months in advance but I thought I would raise the question. Thank you in advance for any insight you can share.

Robin, I can't comment on AMA's wine cruises (I haven't taken any), but I can offer some comments on the new versus older AMA ships. Bottom line -- I thought the older AMA ships were extremely comfortable and indeed the AMA Rivers and Castles cruise on the AMADante is high on my list for 2018. This is so notwithstanding that I have also cruised on the newer AMAPrima. More specifically, the two older AMA ships I have been on are the AMACello (Rhine) and the AMALegro (Seine). On the AMACello and AMALegro I found the rooms, bathrooms, dining areas, staff, really everything, to be first-rate. This April I did the AMA Tulip cruise on the newer AMA Prima. The AMAPrima bathroom was larger than I recall on the older AMA ships but I didn't find the bathroom on the older ships at all small or uncomfortable. As noted, I am hoping to cruise on the AMADante in 2018. (Truth be told, I preferred the older AMA ships' dining room to the AMAPrima dining room - the layout was different and the dining room on the older AMA ships seemed quieter.) You can see some interior pictures of the older AMA ships, as well as pictures of the Rivers and Castles ports, at this website: www.thepreismans.com. Tom and Carol Preisman do mainly ocean cruises, but they took two AMA river cruises, one of which was Rivers and Castles, and both of which were on the older AMA ships. Their website is arranged chronologically. Their AMA trips were in 2009 (Danube AMALyra) and 2011 (Rivers and Castles AMALegro). Sorry I can't offer more about the wine cruises but I hope this helps.

Thank you for your fascinating posts. I enjoyed your descriptions, and particularly your photos. Can you share the name of the camera you are using? PS. I also appreciated your review of last year's SB Norway cruise. I am taking that cruise later this year and your review was very helpful in planning.

Clicking on the word "More" worked for me on tablet and pc. Clicking on the http link, on the other hand, did not work on either tablet or pc.

Thank you for the camera information. Your photos are absolutely stunning. I particularly admire your composition. I will be eager to read your future posts. Have a wonderful trip!

Thank you for your report. I also am doing a similar trip in October and will follow your posts with great interest. Your photos are marvelous. Can you tell us what kind of camera and lens you are using.