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Viking Rhine Getaway -- newbie questions

trish1c

By trish1c,
in River Cruising

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  • 2 months later...
robinlynn

robinlynn

Posted
Posted
This looks like a good & well priced introductory river cruise. So now I have some questions for all of you.

 

We're thinking about April 2014.

 

We can either sail from Amsterdam to Basel Switzerland or the reverse. Does it matter?

 

The ships are the Sun vs. the Helvetia. From what I've read, they seem similar. One was built in 2005; the other in 2006. Does anybody know if one is better than the other? I haven't read the CC reviews yet but will.

 

Does Viking do a good job booking air? They said they are running a special, $500 off from the NYC area. When traveling domestically, I usually DIY but I have never had luck booking air to / through Europe without a TA. I really don't want to deal with booking flights into one AP & flying home from another. I never seem to get that right. :o

 

Why is the price for these trips so much better? The lowest cabin catagory starts at $1800 pp v. $2800 / $3200 I'm seeing on other trips / dates. While I love a good bargain, I don't want to be miserable. I'm guessing this is the rainy season?

 

I'm sure I'll have a lot more questions as we continue to think about this.

We are going on the new Longship, the Gullveig in the beginning of May (think it may not be as cold as April) from Amsterdam to Basel, extending our vacation with 2 days first in Amsterdam and ending on Lake Geneva at Montreux for 4 days.

Booking the extensions on our own so we can get much. nicer rooms for the same money as the ship is charging.

This is also our first river cruise, so I wanted a shorter cruise, in case this type of travel is not for us. I am sure that will not be the case, however!

Very much looking forward to next May.

 

Have fun planning!

Robin

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Lori Dobson

Lori Dobson

Posted
Posted
We are going on the new Longship, the Gullveig in the beginning of May (think it may not be as cold as April) from Amsterdam to Basel, extending our vacation with 2 days first in Amsterdam and ending on Lake Geneva at Montreux for 4 days.

Booking the extensions on our own so we can get much. nicer rooms for the same money as the ship is charging.

This is also our first river cruise, so I wanted a shorter cruise, in case this type of travel is not for us. I am sure that will not be the case, however!

Very much looking forward to next May.

 

Have fun planning!

Robin

 

 

 

You will absolutely love it! Have a great time!

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robinlynn

robinlynn

Posted
Posted

We will be on the Amsterdam>Basel Viking Getaway in early May. About how many people should we expect in each excursion? Should we expect the groups to be larger because, from what I understand, the longships hold more people?

One of the things I disliked the most about the larger cruise ships were the large number of people in each excursion bus, and one of the reasons I opted for a river cruise.

Thanks!

Robin

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Lori Dobson

Lori Dobson

Posted
Posted
We will be on the Amsterdam>Basel Viking Getaway in early May. About how many people should we expect in each excursion? Should we expect the groups to be larger because, from what I understand, the longships hold more people?

One of the things I disliked the most about the larger cruise ships were the large number of people in each excursion bus, and one of the reasons I opted for a river cruise.

Thanks!

Robin

 

 

Robin,

 

Not sure how many people the longships hold, we were on the Emerald andthe Sun, which aren't longships. But there will be buses and they will be full - but they break you up into groups so you aren't all together. Also, getting on and off the ships is MUCH easier, no huge crows and long lines.

Enjoy your cruise!

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  • 2 weeks later...
loryc

loryc

Posted
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Lori,

Please add me to the list for your travel blog (lorycantwell@aoldotcom). We will be on Viking at the end of November, Amsterdam to Basel.

 

Many thanks in advance,

Lory

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SportsMom27

SportsMom27

Posted
Posted

Lori, I'd also love to see your travel journal: b.kelly27@verizon.net

 

Considering a Viking Rhine cruise next spring....does anyone have a preference for one European river cruise line over another. I've been trying to do some research, but can't really determine which is the best line. All suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

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Lori Dobson

Lori Dobson

Posted
Posted
Hate to do this to you, Lori, but can you send me your blog as well (agsander2000@yahoo.com)? My husdand and I will be taking the Amsterdam to Basel trip starting November 16th this year and are total newbies. Any insights would be most appreciated (Have you considered publishing this?! ;))

 

 

No problem at all! Happy to send it to you. You know, I have absolutely NO idea of how to go about publishing stuff. Maybe I can get some advice from YOU about that, lol!

 

Thanks for asking and hope you have a wonderful cruise!

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robinlynn

robinlynn

Posted
Posted

I was hoping I could get a copy of your blog as well, Lori. It would be most appreciated!! Have never been on a river cruise and booked the

May 9 Amsterdam to Basel Viking Rhine Getaway on a new longship, the Guillveig.

 

Am a bit apprehensive as I booked it rather impulsively and paid in full up front. My DH and I have traveled extensively, mostly independently, through Europe, and in the last few years have done 3 ships cruises in the Mediterranean, which we loved . Wanted to try something new.

 

I am hoping your blog will allay some of my concerns, as your comments so far seem so positive.

 

Thanks a million.

 

My e-mail is eiffeltrav@aol.com.

 

Robin

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Lori Dobson

Lori Dobson

Posted
Posted
I was hoping I could get a copy of your blog as well, Lori. It would be most appreciated!! Have never been on a river cruise and booked the

May 9 Amsterdam to Basel Viking Rhine Getaway on a new longship, the Guillveig.

 

Am a bit apprehensive as I booked it rather impulsively and paid in full up front. My DH and I have traveled extensively, mostly independently, through Europe, and in the last few years have done 3 ships cruises in the Mediterranean, which we loved . Wanted to try something new.

 

I am hoping your blog will allay some of my concerns, as your comments so far seem so positive.

 

Thanks a million.

 

My e-mail is eiffeltrav@aol.com.

 

Robin

 

 

Robin,

 

I'll send it right out. Please don't worry - my husband and I did several land tours ourselves through Europe also and also several ocean cruises. We absolutely LOVE the river cruise experience - we did the Rhine getaway and one through China with Viking also (That travel journal really long, lol). I'm sure you will enjoy it - very relaxing and Viking does make one feel very pampered.

 

The travel journal is on it's way to your inbox - thanks for asking!

 

Lori

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