gnome12

5 minutes ago, Grumpella said:

Has anyone done this tour amd would you recommend it?

 

It is only 4.5 hrs but I figured it would be a good tour to do before noon, since most shops don’t open until noon because it is a Sunday. We arrive early, 7 am.

You might want to also post this in the NCL forum, since the tour might be specific to them.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/64-norwegian-cruise-line/

44 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Train would be a pretty simple way. 

Ferry and train takes over 16 hours according to Rome2Rio.com and is more expensive than flying.

5 minutes ago, StanleyandGus said:

Wheat fields are lovely! 😁

But only in moderation!

5 hours ago, EdjaCruiser said:

Eidjford

Stravange

Aselund

Olden

All of these ports have been covered here. Search for each port individually. If you are going to search for information on them it is helpful if you spell the names correctly. It is Stavanger and Alesund.

4 hours ago, edinburgher said:

Host Kat changed the title to Royal Botanic Garden

 

Well done for spotting that the Botanic Garden had the wrong title and correcting it.

I reported the incorrect title, although I'm not sure whether the Royal was in the title before. I was correcting the spelling of Garden. Thanks @Host Kat for correcting it.

4 hours ago, Islander500 said:

I have not yet been able to find how gratuities (for stateroom and restaurant staff) are handled on Avalon.  Are they added to your onboard account, or prepaid in the fare?  If someone can advise, I'd be very appreciative.

When I cruised with Avalon (SE Asia so might differ in Europe) I was offered the opportunity to prepay gratuities. At the end of the cruise, you could add gratuities to your onboard account or look after it with cash, or do nothing if you had prepaid. I chose to add a nice gratuity because I had a bad knee on this trip, and the crew were incredible; there was always someone there to provide an elbow to help me get up or down a river bank.

3 hours ago, FirstTimeRiver said:

We would like to take a cruise through Canada and New England after a train trip that ends in Vancouver. Can’t find anything so wondering if my friends here can offer any advice?

A train trip that ENDS in Vancouver? Canada and New England cruises are east coast. Vancouver is west coast. There is a LOT of Canada between the two.

3 hours ago, notamermaid said:

Update 2: river cruise ships will be locked as well - the passengers just leave the ship during the process.

I thought that was more likely than not allowing the ships through the lock.

7 hours ago, ColeThornton said:

 

 

You only get about 20 minutes from when you first post to edit it.  If it's something important in the subject line that you want to change you can "report" it and ask the mods to change it for you.

@TEMPE5T And to add something to a post you can quote your own post and add to or correct something in it.

9 hours ago, Volcano Rose said:

Uploaded the PDF a second time. Hopefully NewCruiserMJ can open the file. 

Viking Daily-May 11 to 18, 2025.pdfUnavailable

I think you are trying to upload directly. I think the pdf needs to be on your own device in order to post it here.

Option A has one deep water fjord (Olden) and 2 nice coastal cities Alesund and Bergen.

Option B looks much less interesting.

49 minutes ago, indigosails said:

Thanks! I thought about this but I assume the hotels will have hair dryers. If not, I’ll go as Wild Woman. Scare everybody. 

If a hair dryer is why you were asking about adapters and converters note that you are not allowed to bring your own hair dryer on board. The ship will have hair dryers in each cabin. Here is an edited version of the Viking prohibited items list

Prohibited Items

• Extension cords (USB and laptop charging cables are exempt)
• Any electrical device with a surge protector
• Any electrical device that produces heat, such as:
  • Clothes irons, including steam irons
  • Hot plates or heating kettles
  • Electrical air humidifiers & refreshers
  • Heating pads

@Mkripke You still haven't said what port you are talking about.

9 hours ago, Dancing Shoes said:

We are booked on our first river cruise with AMA Rhine River Oct 2026.  Curious if others have bought a guide for more information on the ports?

You don't say where you are going, as it might make a difference. However, I have always used guide books (plural; I look at everything I can find) from the library to research the ports, to see what I might like to see in my free time. Not every port will show up. I will then use the internet to confirm the opening hours.

11 minutes ago, notamermaid said:

This may go into another thread at some point but here is something a bit more unusual. I have mentioned elsewhere before that you can go on a river cruise on the Seine upstream of Paris. Here are two boat and bike itineraries, one is offered on the German market, one on the English market. Or at least one appears in German the other in English. 1. https://www.boatbiketours.de/reisen/paris-montargis/

2. https://www.boatbiketours.com/tours/paris-epernay-champagne/

 

notamermaid

 

 

Paris-Montargis is also available on an English sailing through Tripsite.

https://www.tripsite.com/bike-boat/tours/montargis-to-paris/

They also have the same Paris-Epernay on the same barge as well as another one, but likely different dates

https://www.tripsite.com/bike-boat/tours/champagne-tour/

Neither of these are on luxury barges, both are considered to be comfort class, which is the second lowest classification.

3 hours ago, notamermaid said:

The Iris is a converted barge (which stretches the definition of river cruise ship a bit) and only 45m long.

I don't know exactly what the Iris is doing on this trip, but I know that she does bike and barge trips either some of the time or all of the time.

4 hours ago, Canal archive said:

I may seem just a tad thick here but please what is ‘ADA’.

The Americans with Disabilities Act. 

1 hour ago, Langoustine said:

I don't know where you found that number; it is not on the official website, and I paid 10 pounds for my ETA in March,

I believe that the current cost is 16 pounds, but nowhere near 179 pounds!

3 hours ago, U4icmusic said:

I think I the Lyca card from Denmark will work in the UK. I'll buy it when I land in Copenhagen. Thanks.

One advantage of getting it from Amazon before is that you will know the phone number in advance. The other advantage is that you can see a choice of options as to the amount of data and make sure that it will cover you for the places you want to go.. You can't be sure what will be available at the airport.

19 hours ago, U4icmusic said:

Is there a SIM card that works in Denmark and the UK, post-Brexit?

Despite Brexit the last time I looked, which was quite recently, UK and European sims (like 3 and Orange) continue to offer European roaming that includes UK and Scandinavia. Check what is available to you (European travel SIM) on Amazon and look at the details.

8 hours ago, ChristopherB said:

My only lament, and not about crowdedness, is that there was no option to travel with a single supplement. It took quite some work and cajoling and ultimately a family disaster a year ago, to line up my sister as roommate before committing to the trip.
The cruise experience was so enjoyable, I would love to go again, but I will certainly consider exploring lines that offer single supplements, for the next trip.

I'd just like to correct your wording. Viking has a single supplement of 100%. You are looking for lines that WAIVE single supplement, or at least have a minimal one. (Not a line with single supplement.)

1 hour ago, ihopfar said:

 

Disappointed to hear there was no Avalon/Globus rep at your hotel...  how did you know where to meet for any pre-cruise excursions or for transportation to the cruise?

There is a difference between a pre-night and an extension. For the official extension there will be a Rep of some sort. You are on your own for any extra nights beyond that.

11 hours ago, Shihtzulover said:

We are booked on the River Harmony departing Basel on 8/31.  I looked on website (not Grand Circle);and it said normally it departs from Dreilander Port which is 40 minutes from the city.  It further stated to verify with Grand Circle.  

Dreilandereck is not 40 minutes from the city. It is actually across the Rhine river and when I did it by tram I'm pretty sure that it didn't take me 40 minutes to get back to town. That said, there has been a lot of discussion that companies are no longer docking in Switzerland, but rather in Huningue France, which is about the same distance from central Basel but on the same side of the river. However, because it entails crossing a border I'm not sure about public transportation options, because I'm not sure about the docking location. As reported, you will need to get that from Grand Circle.

44 minutes ago, LatterDayDuranie said:

I wonder if the banks’ systems are smart enough to know where the card is from (US vs Canada vs Europe) and won’t ask for a PIN when the card’s origin is the US? 
 

Just a thought… since it appears that having a PIN associated with a CC is more common outside of the US. Probably just as likely that it’s related to the size of the purchase or the way the card interfaces to the machine (tap vs swipe). 

They certainly know where the card is from, which is what allows dynamic currency conversion to show you the cost in your own currency. NEVER choose that option; always choose to pay in the local currency. However, over their tap limit (and it is a local amount) you will need a PIN or they will have to figure out how to get you to sign for it, something that they are not very familiar with.

29 minutes ago, LatterDayDuranie said:

I mean, it certainly wouldn’t be my favorite way to travel… but on cruise lines that have significant “penalties” for solo travelers, I’m not gonna tell my one of my sisters to “suck it, it’s too inconvenient to have 3 of us share a bathroom for 7-10 days.” Nor do I think my sisters would say it to any of the rest of us. 

So don't do it. Choose a line that will waive single supplements, and so all of you can have your own cabins.