Spring Tulips

[don_ken]

River cruises in Holland seem to start in late March. Is this too early to see tulips blooming?

[magnetman]

We are going on a GCT cruise in April starting in Brussels and ending up in Amsterdam. Part of the trip is to stop at the Keukenhof Flower Park. They only open from March to May. The best time for tulips is Mid April according to there web site.

This is our first river cruise and my wife's first trip to Europe. I would love to know if anyone else is going on this trip leaving on April 3rd.

[MARYVB]

Hi, Looks like we are on the same trip. We took the Bruges add-on pre-trip. I will look for you on board. My name is Mary, I am traveling with my Mom, Doris. see you soon.

[magnetman]

I guess we will see you on Monday night at the hotel. I keep hoping the weather will cooperate.

[magnetman]

Hi Mary

We got back from our trip on Thursday but we didn't see you on the ship. Apparently we were on different cruises. We enjoyed the trip but I wish the weather would have been better.

[MARYVB]

Hi, Yes I tried to find you too. Were you on the symphony trip that had the trouble getting to the ship? if so, I was in the red group. But It was actually a good deal harder to meet everyone then I thought. Next time I will know to set a time and place.

Mary

[magnetman]

We were on the River Concerto. It was also one that was stuck in Germany. We were suppose to meet it on Thursday for lunch in Antewerp but instead we got on it in Nijmegen for dinner. After that everything went on as

scheduled. We were very pleased with the trip. This was our first river cruise and my wifes first trip to Europe. She wants to go back again. I only wish the weather would have been better.

 

Bob

[MARYVB]

We had a few additional difficulties with our ship. Once the water went down, the Symphony was on its way to us, when she had a collision in the fog with a barge or something. It apparently punched a hole in the hull. So they had her patched up and we were supposed to go meet here in Cologne.

Then she had what was originally reported as an engine problem, but turned out to be a batch of tainted diesel fuel. So we had a full day's delay getting aboard. GTC took really good care of us. Gave us a couple of "optional" tours for free, and a credit towards a future trip. We were put up in a nice hotel and meals were provided. No complaints from us about GTC or the ship or our leaders. In fact these people performed so well under really difficult circumstances that I have to admire them for their efforts and high standards.

We did have a great time. Glad you did too. I had no idea their were going to be so many GTC ships running the same tour. Seemed like there were GTC badges everywhere, especially at the Keukenhof flower park. Kind of made me feel like I had friends everywhere I went. Well, those brochures are pouring in...Time to pick out the next GTC adventure.

[magnetman]

I am glad you had a good trip. You certainly had a few more problems than we did. Our ship one night got push by the wind into a pyling in a narrow section. This was while we were having dinner which was good since everybody was sitting down. Glasses and bottles broke and people had there drinks wind up in there laps. Our meals in the kitchen had to be redone since many of them wound up on the floor. They were very quick to clean up and offered free laundry service for the next two days. They also opened up the bar that night for FREE.

We also ran into people with GTC badges at airports and other sites.

Do you know what's really funny. After we signed up for the trip, we haven't got any more brochures.

 

Bob

[cmthomas]

 

Do you know what's really funny. After we signed up for the trip, we haven't got any more brochures.

 

Bob

 

And your letter carrier loves you for it!:)

[MARYVB]

You will get more brochures...and more and more and more. You will be getting 3-5 a week some weeks. Always look inside for the sweepstakes offer. The odds are better then the lottery. Once you fill one of those surveys out the stuff comes in...I just keep filling them out. I am just sure that someday I will win a free 16 day trip to somewhere. Have fun dreaming up the next trip.

Mary

[cruisintwinsmom]

Hate to intrude on your conversation, however, what does GTC stand for? My husband and I are thinking about a river cruise this summer (I know, its getting late).

 

 

Thanks for your help.

[cmthomas]

GTC is for Grand Circle Tours. We have traveled with them twice on river cruises on the Danube/Main/Rhine and the Rhine/Mosel and thoroughly enjoyed them.

 

The only drawback to using Grand Circle is that in most instances you must use their air arrangments. We prefer to go a day early and they can't seem to accommodate that.

 

Also, good luck on finding something this summer. They usually book up well in advance.

 

Clarence:)

[Kayelache]

We took Grand Circle's Great Rivers of Europe (Rhine, Main, Danube Canal and Danube) from Amsterdam to Vienna last summer. We booked our own air, at very near the GCT rate, but wanted to use Continental to get the frequent flyer miles. We also wanted to stay later. We could have done what Grand Circle calls a "breakaway" where we could have made our own arrangements just for coming home, but we preferred to do it entirely on our own. We got eurail passes and spent ten days getting from Vienna back to Brussels, with three days in London.

This July, we are booked on the Romance of the Rhine and Mosel, and are doing our own air again. We want to go a day early, and stay several days later.

This will be our ninth trip with GCT and recommend them very highly. They are one of the few companies that have river ships with balconies.

[cruisintwinsmom]

GCT sounds like it may be right up our alley. Do you recommend any certain level of room? They have either the top rate or the bottom rate. With four of us (and college coming up way too soon) I would like to be able to get the best rate possible, but don't want to cheap out it it would make a difference in the trip.

 

Thanks for all your help.

[cmthomas]

Keep in mind that the only cabins with the little balcony are the most expensive ones on the top deck (at least on most of the Grand Circle ships). When I say "little" it is the width of the cabin but only about 3' deep. That space is not additional as it comes from within the inside dimensions of the cabin as compared to those without a balcony. It has room for two deck chairs facing each other and is a fun place to be as you transit the locks. It is true that you spend very little time in the cabin except when sleeping or dressing. However, we have found that the ability to have fresh air for sleeping is worth the extra cost. In the non-balcony cabins the windows cannot be opened. As a side benefit, if you select a cabin on the starboard side you will be just forward of the galley and will awake each morning to the delightful aroma of bread baking and coffee brewing!

 

I did hear complaints from some passengers who had cabins on the very lowest deck that when docked all they could see was the underside of a pier which made their cabin quite dark even in the daytime. I guess the answer is that there is a reason why they charge more for the upper deck and if you find those advantages to be worth the additional cost then that is your choice to make.

 

A wise traveler told me many years ago that "you will remember the trip long after you forget what you paid for it" and that has proven to be sage advice!

 

Good luck! Clarence:)

[Carhut]

It all depends on what your priority is. Space, fresh air, or money. We chose a cabin just below the balcony cabins. Next trip, we are going down another category. It would be nice to have fresh air, but the ventilation & A/C worked well in our cabin. I looked at a balcony cabin and noticed that the closet space, desk and bathroom were smaller because the space was taken for the balcony. I don't think I'd like the lowest category as it's mostly below water with just some little high windows. I really enjoyed the large window. We really didn't spend much time in the cabin during the day. We were on tour, on the top deck, dining room or lounge. Only other suggestion is if you choose one of the cabins in the lower two decks, try to get a cabin away from the hot tub area. I heard people complain that they could hear that water running. I don't know, as I never ventured in that direction. Our cabin was right by the stairs (301) and the next cruise we are again right by the stairs (201). Hope this helps you.

[cruisintwinsmom]

Thanks Carol and Clarence and everyone else for all your help. I just love these boards!!! Will have to weigh the options, of course, we might not have too many cabins to choose from.

[MARYVB]

One more recommendation for cabin selection...If you do go with a balcony stay away from the hallway that extends to the dining room. People tend to congregate there in the morning and can be very annoying for those trying to "sleep-in". Everyone wants to be first to the dining room for the window views...

Mary

[cmthomas]

On the GC ships that we have sailed the ONLY balcony cabins are located along the corridor that leads to the dining room. After a total of 28 nights in cabin 409 (on two sailings) I cannot remember one occasion where noise from the hallway disturbed us. Nor did we hear any complaints from other passengers in neighboring cabins about hallway noise.

 

Clarence:)