Daisi

New reports from our Envision Chat. The passenger boarded in Vilshofen. Avalon has given them free excursions to make up for missing what they did. Hoping the rain is a good sign, at least enough to keep sailing.

Not saying they won't stow it if you have more than 1, but they can make you move it from your room to the bus. I have heard it depends on the driver. It's only the porterage that matters, so as long as AliceS is prepared, then she will be fine.

On Sunday, I was in contact with someone on the Envision. Their cruise was to end in Regensburg. They were stopped at Passau, and were taking busses to Regensburg for the tours on Monday. Those who were going to be leaving from Nuremburg were to be bussed there after the tours. The remaining passengers going on to Prague were to be bussed from Passau. They were given monies for lunch (and dinner for those going to Nuremburg) and also, to make up, everyone was given the tour to Saltzburg. Those who had paid for the tour were being re-imbursed. He didn't say, but I would assume that Avalon was also putting passengers up in a hotel in Nuremburg as they would be flying out probably on the Tuesday. He sounded very happy with how things were handled. Maybe now the waters have risen enough that they managed to get the ship to Nuremburg for picking up the next tour. Glad to hear that Avalon is still stepping up to the ball when things go wrong, especially since I have my tour with them on the Danube in Sept!

The only real restrictions they have is that if you are getting transfers they will move 1 suitcase, you are responsible for the rest. You can store your luggage under the bed (and if you have 2 cases each, just store the smaller one inside the larger one). You can do a preview of your cabin by going to the site and doing a virtual tour of the ship. There really isn't much room in the cabin (closet isn't *that* big) other than under the bed for storage.

Not saying this is what you will see on your Philosopher's Walk, but I got curious as it wasn't on offer when we went so googled it. Looks interesting. https://www.gpsmycity.com/tours/philosophers-way-4037.html

We started our cruise with a tour to Keukenhof before boarding the ship. When it was time to go, we went back to our bus, and the driver was watching the F1 on his phone. We stopped to watch, as we were going to miss it, and next thing we knew, there were about 10 of us crowded around him watching the race. Needless to say, I think we were a little late getting back to the ship. Never saw the end, but we managed to catch some of it. 🙂 @Canal archive, had to tape it today, just starting to watch now (mind you I know how it ends). Father's Day took priority. Happy for Alonso, nice to see him having fun still.

Funny, we had to drive up to the city for a special dinner the other night, and took a drive by the training grounds. We thought they were out on tour until we rounded the corner and saw all the horses. I thought of their "friends" in the UK, and wondered how they were doing as one was sick during the Coronation (I think Princess Anne's), and the one they brought over for I think Charles was to new to participate. Glad to hear he was able to ride it. Bribe the Captain to fix all TV's to show the bow cam. 🙂

We booked our Avalon cruise in 2019, to sail 2020...we all know what happened to that! Because of Covid, Avalon gave us a choice of full refund (just our deposit, but others probably had made full payment) or re-book for a later cruise. We re-booked, and when it came close to our booking date, we took the option to re-book again. So the cruise I just paid for (90 days out) was booked Aug 2021. No having to pay any more than the 90 days. I understand Viking's idea... if you can get away with it, why not? Everyone sees the advert on TV and thinks that "that looks nice", so without any research, calls them to book. As long as they can get away with it, why should they change? If you argue your date, it sounds as if repeat clients can get the 6 month payment, or you can "rush" book and go with whatever cabin they have available, but unless they have a major revolt, they won't change. Not good for clients, but then they are a business, and bottom line is more important for most businesses.

That's one of the nicest things about Avalon's site. You select the cruise you want, then go to available dates, and can see immediately what cabins are sold out. Since there are only 2 available on any ship in the category Rebel is looking for, it makes it very easy.

Great words. I had a friend who did their own, missed out on a simple error (Mr. instead of Mrs.) on a ticket and almost missed a flight for their sister's wedding. I know my agent caught a reversal of letters in one of our flight tickets booked through our cruise line, and had already taken care of it before I even noticed. I also value her experience as someone who flies frequently so she knows what airports aren't good for me (I have crowd issues) and also whether or not the transfer time is cutting it short. We deal well together, I'm a planner to the 9th degree - I'll have 6 back up plans on the go just in case - and she is more than happy to be there for me to toss ideas off of. We have been to places in our travels that are not normally visited, so she always asks me to report back so she knows if she should recommend other travelers to. As you say, the time I didn't have to sit on hold for however long while Covid hit and everyone was scrambling to re-organise made me realise just how valuable it is to go through a TA. A simple e-mail early in the morning so it's there for when she starts working, and she can get back to me when she can...and no panicking on my side because I'm not getting through.

The guy on my chat group says that the Captain said the water was dropping about 1" a day, but dropped 12" in one day the day before. Maybe it has something to do with your funny readings on the gauge notamermaid, and the Captain is being over cautious? I guess he's the one who has to report to Head Office if there is any trouble, so maybe taking it on the easy side.

Just had a post in my message board... they are on an Avalon ship, boat can't go between Regensburg & Nuremburg. Trying to get more info.

@ljandgbexcellent post, I'll add something more to save a little space. Unless you are really fussy, leave the shampoo/conditioner/hairdryer at home. Hotels and the ship will supply them, Avalon has L'Occitane products which are great. While we've never lost our luggage (knocking on wood), and this year purchased air tags for tracking, we always bring a couple of changes just in case in our day packs. We also will go to a convenience store in the airport and buy something small - bottle of water, snack etc., to get coins in local currency. @TMLAalum I think Avalon does get one of the tourist boats to do the canal cruises, so it won't be anything like your nice barge tour. We had a light drizzle the day we went, so were glad for the large glass cover, but to me, it's been done, maybe in a couple of years we may do it again, but there is so much more to see... 🙂

Like others, I am a planner. Long before I met my TA, I knew what line, cruise, excursions (both pre, post & during) I would go for. I sat down across from her on our first meeting and told her I was going to be the client from H**l. 🙂 She laughed, and once she knew how much I had looked into the trip, she let me go and just gave advice on what I had planned. Like Jazz, we don't go to the "normal" things when visiting towns, unless it's something we really wish to see. We look for a lot of out of the way things to do. I also usually have about 6 back up plans to do if something comes up and we can't do what we wished. I had questions on everything though, as we had several firsts. We hadn't taken a plane in over 20 years, had never taken a train, used public transit, or even done a river cruise. Through she was great for helping there, and a 2nd set of eyes when airline reservations came in with 2 letters in our name reversed. I missed it, but she caught it and it was an easy fix. When Covid hit, an easy e-mail to her office to rebook our cruise (not once but 3x) was all it took. She could do it when she had time, and could spend the time on the phone for her more urgent clients that were travelling sooner. How did I find her? Avalon has a section on their website with recommend TA's. I chose the one closest to me in case I had to get to her quickly. Worked great and very happy with her.

We pack in everything we can get, but then we do that on our regular holidays as well. We come home tired, but in a good way, and so far (knock on wood) we've always came home healthy. We are also very early risers, so the quiet evenings after dinner are our "down time" to catch up on what's going on at home. Our favourite spot on the bus when we take them is the back seat, views from both sides because no one else is around (except for the crew when they hitch a ride) and we know what to look for because the guide has already talked about it!

I know that feeling, we were like that for our first cruise...ok, not a "girls" cruise, but first time on a train, tram, river cruise, Avalon and also for me, going overseas. We will be doing that cruise in Sept, and can't wait. Pack light (Canadian airlines are now measuring & weighing carry on luggage because of all the passengers insisting on carry on. Put what you expect to need in your suitcase, then pull out 1/2 🙂. Laundry is available onboard, but we also pack laundry sheets (use them at home anyway) and wash out in the bathroom. Bring good walking shoes, you will need them. You won't need shampoo/conditioner as they are supplied by hotels & onboard so unless you are really fussy, one less thing. You will need EU adaptors, just make sure anything you wish to plug in is dual voltage - it will say on it. I bring a handful just in case we forget one somewhere. Our chargers handle all toys (USB-C and USB_A in one unit), so I'll bring a couple of them just in case one dies. Same with cords. The main thing to pack is a good attitude. Relax and enjoy your cruise, but if you are doing morning and afternoon (the optional ones that you just may not want to miss out on), I'll warn you....you'll probably need a holiday when you get home.

@TMLAalum, if your ship is docked at one of the further locations, your hotel will be able to call a cab for you. We stayed a bit out of town ( up near Rembrandtpark) and it was a short ride into town. We took the tram into town each day, but figured with out luggage we would go by cab in case the tram was busy.

They can be fun to play with when interactive...good time waster when sitting on the phone on hold. 🙂

@notamermaid, I hope your fires die out soon, the one closest to us is now under control, but it was a small one. Yes, we are getting firefighters from all over - Australia, NZ, Portugal, Spain, South Africa(and probably other areas in the EU) and the US. We have sent our guys and water bombers to other countries as well. The ones from South Africa are getting pretty well known here, because they like to dance.

@JoyMBee I'm sure you'll love Avalon, we are eagerly awaiting our Danube cruise with them in Sept. Our first cruise was the Romantic Rhine, but we went from Amsterdam to Basel, and missed the extension to Zurich, which I'd love to get to sometime. Since we had family in the Netherlands, we wanted to spend time there. Another from Ont. here by the way but I'm the other end, between Kingston & Ottawa. Hope you are getting some cleaner air there now.

We are finally into clear air and also got some rain. So nice to actually see the sun, if only for a little while as there are lots of rain clouds around. Blue sky looks sooooooo good! We've also cooled down to a pleasant 18C, so can have all the windows open again to get the smell of smoke out of the house. When you go outside, you still smell a bit, but at least you don't feel the need to cough as soon as you take a breath.

Would love to go to Goodwoods some day as well, we have traveled a lot for classic cars. @Host Jazzbeau, have you ever gone to Hershey for their show? Not a concours, but you can get there early enough to actually see the cars driving in. We had a friend who had a Stanley, and he would drive it around the neighbourhood where he lived and would let the kids enjoy a ride.

I am in contact right now with someone on the Envision...asking lots of questions for my cruise in Sept. They are sailing and she is loving her cruise. 🙂

No, Avalon's Romantic Rhine is only on the Rhine. We did the Romantic Rhine in 2018 with Avalon, and they have changed things a bit. I agree with Jaz, do the 2 days in Lucerne instead of Zurich. That was one thing we missed, because of needing to get back to work, but will do it on another cruise or trip. Amsterdam is a very easy city, so if you can squeeze in another day there, you won't need to book any tours, just wander around...well worth it. Let us know what you decide...then get prepared for all kinds of suggestions of what not to miss!

@notamermaid lol, I froze my husband's, and we will be eating the final bits of mine tonight. Heatwave on here (30 and over, feeling like 40), so it goes well with a salad! Enjoy your weekend.