SS Antoinette - Castles Along the Rhine 2013

[Buck1949]

Just checking in..... have been busy with upcoming move....but still try to see what is happening here once in a while. Hopefully after the new year we will see a few more people interested in this cruise. One thing I have noticed is that I am getting inundated with mailings from Viking Cruises.... I received 2 brochures within days of each other, and have received no less than 5 or 6 since early summer. Competition must be getting stronger...

[Buck1949]

Well our plans have changed........:eek:......... since I waited too long to book, there were no Category 2 cabins for the September 15th 2013 sailing. :( SO... we have switched to the September 1st river cruise. :) All ports/excursions etc. remain the same...but just going 2 weeks earlier than we thought.

 

Good thing we did not schedule any other pieces of this vacation. So now that we are set on this date...we can start putting the rest of the trip together.

[Fairfield Nana]

Bill-- I'll wave as we pass on the gangplank. We disembark in Basel on the first and will be staying in town for a couple of nights we booked on our own.

[Buck1949]

Bill-- I'll wave as we pass on the gangplank. We disembark in Basel on the first and will be staying in town for a couple of nights we booked on our own.

 

Ah, well make sure you leave her spic and span for us!! ;).

 

Hopefully we will find someone on CC that will be on our cruise that posts here.

 

Hope you have a great cruise. We are super excited. Now to plan all the rest of the trip...... Airlines, some land travel etc.

[3carfan]

For those who will be on an upcoming (or have been on a past) S.S. Antoinette cruise, be sure to get the August 2012 issue of Conde Nast magazine! We just returned from the May 13th Basel to Amsterdam sailing during which photographers and models came aboard one day to shoot photos for an article on this incredibly beautiful ship! Some of the S.S. Antoinette's crew would give the models a run for their money! :)

 

Suffering jet lag, but will definitely post later and answer any questions for those on the upcoming Castles Along the Rhine itinerary. I would also suggest that any of you which are on Facebook and haved not "friended" Uniworld, do so. Lots of photos and comments which you might enjoy.

 

Those of you who have reservations on the S.S. Antoinette during 2012, CONGRATULATIONS! During the farewell dinner Saturday night the captain told us they are sold out for the entire year. For those who have reservations during 2013, you are the smart ones.

Islandgirl we are going on that crusie May 19 2013. what was the weather like the week you were on the cruise

[Buck1949]

Islandgirl we are going on that crusie May 19 2013. what was the weather like the week you were on the cruise

 

Would be interested in your thoughts about the cruise. We leave from Basel on September 1st, and am interested in anything good or bad you wouldn't mind sharing about your trip.

Thanks,

[Buck1949]

Am I reading the Train fares wrong? I have been looking at taking the train from Munich to Basel Switzerland on August 31st in order to make sure we are onboard our cruise on September 1st.

 

The fares quoted for each of us is over $250 per PERSON? This is a train trip of less thn 6 hours and less than 300 miles. Is there a better way to get from Munich to Basel, or a different type of train etc? I sent a message to Eurorail and received the canned answer with train fares and it was the amounts mentioned above. OUCH !!!!

[WallabyGal]

Hi Everyone,

 

Like Bill from AZ who I met on an Alaska cruise this summer, I am going on the Sept. 1 Castles on the Rhine (Bill actually persuaded me, yay!). I'm going with a friend from California who recently took a Viking river cruise in China. I've cruised a number of times on large ships, but my only previous river cruise was a 'you drive' one on the Moselle which turned out to be extremely stressful, so I'm looking forward to someone else throwing those ropes & tying us up!

 

I live in Massachusetts if anyone else is from the east on this trip. I plan to spend a little time before in Switzerland, probably Lake Lucerne, & a couple of days afterwards in Amsterdam as I've only ever been to the airport there.

 

Seems like a long way away, but it will be here before we know. Hoping to hear from others on the trip!

 

Cheers,

Carol

[Buck1949]

Hi Everyone,

 

Like Bill from AZ who I met on an Alaska cruise this summer, I am going on the Sept. 1 Castles on the Rhine (Bill actually persuaded me, yay!). I'm going with a friend from California who recently took a Viking river cruise in China. I've cruised a number of times on large ships, but my only previous river cruise was a 'you drive' one on the Moselle which turned out to be extremely stressful, so I'm looking forward to someone else throwing those ropes & tying us up!

 

I live in Massachusetts if anyone else is from the east on this trip. I plan to spend a little time before in Switzerland, probably Lake Lucerne, & a couple of days afterwards in Amsterdam as I've only ever been to the airport there.

 

Seems like a long way away, but it will be here before we know. Hoping to hear from others on the trip!

 

Cheers,

Carol

 

Carol, we are still trying to plan out our pre - post cruise travels...and now are leaning toward spending the bulk of pre cruise in the Munich area...and of course spending a couple of days post cruise in Amsterdam. We have been checking on flights...and most seem to be in the $1400 to $1700pp range...depending on whether you are willing to stop more than 2 times coming or going.

 

Hopefully there will be others that look in here, and will post about their trip (either planned or completed). I'm a firm believer that you can not over plan for an extended vacation.

 

September 1st is not far away.

[Mimi_56]

We are going to be taking the October 13th sailing out of Basel. Planning on staying in Basel a few days before sailing. Going with another couple...sister & hubby. This will be the first river cruise for both of us and needless to say, we are very excited. So happy to read the wonderful reviews of this ship.

[Buck1949]

We are going to be taking the October 13th sailing out of Basel. Planning on staying in Basel a few days before sailing. Going with another couple...sister & hubby. This will be the first river cruise for both of us and needless to say, we are very excited. So happy to read the wonderful reviews of this ship.

 

Glad to hear others are taking the 'Castles' River cruise. Are you flying into Basel? Have you found a hotel there yet?. We are undecided how much time to spend there pre-cruise. We have been looking at a couple of Hotels that don't seem too far from where the ship docks. Just haven't made those decisions yet.

[DuggerPDX]

My partner and I will be on the September 1, Basel to Amsterdam cruise. We fly into Zurich early and hop the train to Basel. I like the Hotel Euler from my research. On the other end we are staying a couple extra days in Amsterdam at the new Conservatorium hotel. Flying out of Dusseldorf, Delta has been having some great fares out of this airport, great alternative to Amsterdam if the fare is high.

[bree28]

Am I reading the Train fares wrong? I have been looking at taking the train from Munich to Basel Switzerland on August 31st in order to make sure we are onboard our cruise on September 1st.

 

The fares quoted for each of us is over $250 per PERSON? This is a train trip of less thn 6 hours and less than 300 miles. Is there a better way to get from Munich to Basel, or a different type of train etc? I sent a message to Eurorail and received the canned answer with train fares and it was the amounts mentioned above. OUCH !!!!

 

Buck, I would check the deutsche bahn website. You won't be able to purchase tickets this far out, but fares for Saturday travel in February range from 59 Euro to 98 Euro. Hope this helps :-)

[Buck1949]

My partner and I will be on the September 1, Basel to Amsterdam cruise. We fly into Zurich early and hop the train to Basel. I like the Hotel Euler from my research. On the other end we are staying a couple extra days in Amsterdam at the new Conservatorium hotel. Flying out of Dusseldorf, Delta has been having some great fares out of this airport, great alternative to Amsterdam if the fare is high.

 

Welcome aboard. Glad you checked in here. I will have to look at the Hotel Euler for Basel and the Conservatorium in Amsterdam. As I have mentioned on this thread before, we are kind of undecided about what we are doing pre-cruise.

More and more it's beginning to look like we are going to fly into Munich and spend our time in the general vicinity of Nuremberg, Regensburg, and Munich. We originally were planning on going to Berlin - taking a train down to Munich and after a few days there we were going to the cruise. But I think we are going to pass on Berlin (just too many things to do in the Munich area) for now.

 

BREE28 - I will check the website you suggest. Thanks. After my previous posting I realized that the Eurorail quote was for 2 people... Not one. WHEW!

[DuggerPDX]

Welcome aboard. Glad you checked in here. I will have to look at the Hotel Euler for Basel and the Conservatorium in Amsterdam. As I have mentioned on this thread before, we are kind of undecided about what we are doing pre-cruise.

More and more it's beginning to look like we are going to fly into Munich and spend our time in the general vicinity of Nuremberg, Regensburg, and Munich. We originally were planning on going to Berlin - taking a train down to Munich and after a few days there we were going to the cruise. But I think we are going to pass on Berlin (just too many things to do in the Munich area) for now.

 

BREE28 - I will check the website you suggest. Thanks. After my previous posting I realized that the Eurorail quote was for 2 people... Not one. WHEW!

 

I was in Munich last year, great city. Great airport, so much easier to navigate than Frankfurt. I stayed at the Le Meridian, which is directly across the street form the train depot and a very short walk to the historic city center. There is a train/tram service to the station from the airport that worked very well. Not sure about your budget but the Sofitel is right by the station too, tends to be expensive.

[Buck1949]

I was in Munich last year, great city. Great airport, so much easier to navigate than Frankfurt. I stayed at the Le Meridian, which is directly across the street form the train depot and a very short walk to the historic city center. There is a train/tram service to the station from the airport that worked very well. Not sure about your budget but the Sofitel is right by the station too, tends to be expensive.

 

 

DuggerPDX.....Thanks for the insight....

 

Luckily we are having some friends over this Saturday afternoon that have spent a lot of time in and around the Munich area. They are bringing some informational books/maps and also what they do when they go over there. We are hoping this will help us a bunch too.

 

We had been looking at a 'canned' tour guide type stay in the Munich area, but am leaning toward doing things on our own so that we can make the side trips that we think we may want to do. (we are virtually sure that side trips to Nuremberg, Regensberg, and maybe the Neuenswanstein (sp) castle will be part of our sightseeing while there)

 

After Saturday, we hope to have a better handle on what we can/might do while there.

[Fairfield Nana]

Hey Buck-- I did some checking as we are staying 2 nights in Basel after our SS Antoinette "Castles cruise" in August and found a good deal at the Hotel Basel--Münzgasse 12, CH-4001, Basel. POC--Sacha Christe

www.hotel-basel.ch. The price for a queen bed was about $200/night. It is right in the heart of the old town and university area as I understand. Hope this helps. Found it thru my favorite travel site--TripAdvisor.

 

Otis

[Mimi_56]

Glad to hear others are taking the 'Castles' River cruise. Are you flying into Basel? Have you found a hotel there yet?. We are undecided how much time to spend there pre-cruise. We have been looking at a couple of Hotels that don't seem too far from where the ship docks. Just haven't made those decisions yet.

We are just beginning...so the only "final" plans have been the booking of the cruise. We are looking at options...I want to get into Basel a few days early (want to make sure we are there when the ship sails!) and according to all these posts I have been reading, no matter what we decide to see or do it will be wonderful! Since you will be sailing a few weeks before us, I will be following your posts closely and make sure that when we make any new discoveries they will be posted. We are going to be travelling with my sister-in-law and her husband...its always good to have a friend with you!

[Buck1949]

Hey Buck-- I did some checking as we are staying 2 nights in Basel after our SS Antoinette "Castles cruise" in August and found a good deal at the Hotel Basel--Münzgasse 12, CH-4001, Basel. POC--Sacha Christe

www.hotel-basel.ch. The price for a queen bed was about $200/night. It is right in the heart of the old town and university area as I understand. Hope this helps. Found it thru my favorite travel site--TripAdvisor.

 

Otis

 

We are just beginning...so the only "final" plans have been the booking of the cruise. We are looking at options...I want to get into Basel a few days early (want to make sure we are there when the ship sails!) and according to all these posts I have been reading, no matter what we decide to see or do it will be wonderful! Since you will be sailing a few weeks before us, I will be following your posts closely and make sure that when we make any new discoveries they will be posted. We are going to be travelling with my sister-in-law and her husband...its always good to have a friend with you!

 

Thanks for the information/response(s). I will be sure to check out the Hotel Basel....and Mimi_56 if you find something interesting in your "looking at options" please feel free to share...:D

[Buck1949]

Kinda quiet here......

 

We have sort of finalized the Munich portion of our trip.... by booking the Flemings Hotel near the Hauptbahnhof It has gotten great reviews. It has a restaurant on site, and also provides free WiFi. I think it also provides a breakfast, but can't remember for sure. We think we should be able to get most everywhere via tram, train or bus from here. (Regensberg, Nuremberg, Marienplatz, etc)

 

Then on to Basel by train; we booked the Hotel Schweizerhof which is located right near the SBB train station. (this will make it easy to take the train from the Hauptbahnhof in Munich right to the SBB station). We then can either taxi it or take the tram which comes about a 1/4 mile from the docks after we leave the hotel. (may have to take a taxi from the end of the tram, as walking may be a pain with my knees and of course luggage).

 

From what I gather the SS Antoinette departs at around 11pm on the 1st so should have a little time to sightsee a bit in Basel before we leave.

 

Now the part that I am having a struggle with is our stay in Amsterdam. I am thinking of staying from the 8th until the 11th and want to see such places as the Dam Market, Anne Frank House, the Van Gogh & Rijksmuseums, as well as take a little peek at the Red Light District. That being said we have been looking at the Ibis Hotel near the Central Station, but also have been looking at the Hotel Fita. The Fita hotel is almost like a bed and breakfast, and is near the museums.... and has been given outstanding reviews by TripAdvisor, Bookings.com etc. In fact I think it was rated number 4 out of 344 or so hotels in Amsterdam. Interesting thing is that both Hotels are nearly compatible in costs...with the Fita providing breakfast, while the Ibis does not.

 

Well need to get back to doing my research........

 

If anyone has suggestions or ideas, would love to hear them.

 

Hopefully this thread will get a bit more activity / postings soon.

[Buck1949]

We are just beginning...so the only "final" plans have been the booking of the cruise. We are looking at options...I want to get into Basel a few days early (want to make sure we are there when the ship sails!) and according to all these posts I have been reading, no matter what we decide to see or do it will be wonderful! Since you will be sailing a few weeks before us, I will be following your posts closely and make sure that when we make any new discoveries they will be posted. We are going to be travelling with my sister-in-law and her husband...its always good to have a friend with you!

 

I noted you asked about hotels in Basel. We have booked the Hotel Schweizerhof which is near the SBB train station. Great reviews from a fellow traveler and from Trip Advisor. Price was reasonable and since we are there only one night pre-cruise the location suited us perfectly. In Amsterdam we have booked the Hotel Fita near the major museums..(a family run hotel). Also highly rated by a fellow traveler and trip advisor (rated # 4 out of 300 + hotels). The rate was awesome @ 149 euros per night including breakfast. I think there are only like 15 or so rooms..... Sounds very much like a bed and breakfast. The tram, airport express transportatin, museums, are all nearby. You can even buy museum tickets at the hotel desk.

 

Hope this helps a bit.

[Fairfield Nana]

Bill-- please don't take this the wrong way-- it is advice I also try to remember (not always successful)-- but Europe does life at "33 1/3" speed and we Americans are more at "78". Take time along your route to smell the roses (or tulips).It's not possible to see everything. Meanwhile, have a great cruise and enjoy Munich!!

 

Otis

[Buck1949]

Bill-- please don't take this the wrong way-- it is advice I also try to remember (not always successful)-- but Europe does life at "33 1/3" speed and we Americans are more at "78". Take time along your route to smell the roses (or tulips).It's not possible to see everything. Meanwhile, have a great cruise and enjoy Munich!!

 

Otis

 

Hi Otis,

 

I totally understand what you are saying. We intend to spend 8 days in Munich as it is one of those places we feel we need to have the extra time to see what is of interest.

 

Unfortunately, our time availability to spend on this vacation is limited to approximately 21 days. While we do not have actual site seeing set just yet, we hope to get to see as much as time allows.

 

We have already scratched Berlin off this trip due to time constraints, with the thought of a return trip in the future to that area.

 

In addition with two artificial knees I am already running at about 33 1/3 speed! :D

[Fairfield Nana]

Bill- you are my inspiration-- Go for it!! If you get some extra time while in Munich, I'd highly suggest goin up to Berchtesgaden as there are some really spectacular sights to see from the "Eagles Nest" to the Konigsee lake to explore. Have a "grosse pils" or two and enjoy yourselves. I just wish we were on the same trip as you seem to be a really cool dude!

 

otis

[vintagebabe]

Just booked Paris to Normandy October 2013, but thinking of switching over to the Castles on the Rhine River cruise to leave in late September instead if they have any rooms left. Hoping to stay in Paris for 4 nights then take the train over to Basel.

 

I believe any cruise line for October Europe sailings are sold out or only have category 4 rooms left. Would we be sorry if we had a category 4(or don't go at all)? It looks like a lovely cruise, but I am wondering if a cabin in that level would be a let down. But we are flexible.