Basel to Amsterdam Review

[bubbulz]

Just for general information, the way of serving the evening meal will be different with different lines. My only experience is with Tauck. We had open seating from 6 - 8:30 each evening. Each table was served individually as your party came in to eat or an open table filled up. For parties of over 7 a reservation was needed so that size table would be available. Breakfast and lunches were mostly buffet although breakfast was also made to order in the kitchen for certain items. All seatings were open seating.

 

This is how our cruise was on Uniworld. Since some of our tour groups weren't back by the time the lunch window opened, it would have been awkward (to say the least!) to expect everyone to be there by the time lunch started. For a made to order breakfast, a guest just needed to arrive before breakfast ended. (Oh, but then of course there always was the "late breakfast" option. :D )

[sunsetbeachgal]

Thanks for the clarification, Host Jazzbeau and others.

[anandaindonesia]

Thank you for sharing your nice review.

 

Sent from my SM-G7102 using Tapatalk

[AirGorilla]

I really hope Tauck's not like that.

 

It's not!

 

AG

[hugueys]

River Cruise Review – Scenic Pearl – Basel to Amsterdam, August 19-26

This was our first River Cruise so we had nothing to compare it to. So I will describe everything I can about this wonderful experience. We planned this trip with another couple that we hadn’t seen for several years and met them on the boat.

 

We started out our holiday by getting to Basel a day before we were scheduled to board the ship. I have gotten both Swiss Francs and Euros before I left the states. I think I would have only needed Euros, it seems in Basel, Euros would have been accepted wherever we were.

 

We flew into Zurich and got in around 9am. We already had tickets for the train to Basel and went to find it. It was somewhat confusing to determine what platform etc, but the lady at the lost and found was most helpful and we got on a train 1 hour earlier than I had planned. We had first class tickets and when we got on a car with first class written on the end I realized that first class was on an upper level of the car. Well we are Americans and do not travel lightly, so the train was not crowded and we parked our luggage in second class and parked ourselves next to our luggage. The conductor made sure to let us know we could go to first class but she also seemed to be used to seeing Americans with lots of luggage. It was a nice train ride and we got into Basel around 11:30. After getting off of the train we found a taxi and headed to Hotel Spalentor Basel.

 

We got to the Hotel around noon or so. We were able to get into our room. This was a really nice way to get started. The front desk clerk gave us Tram tickets for the time we would be there and a map and off we went walking around the area of the hotel, through one of the city gates. We had a nice meal of quiche at a small neighborhood restaurant within a couple blocks of the hotel. We walked through several more areas window shopping and taking in all the buildings before we called it a night (since we were still recovering from our flight) and headed back to the hotel. The room was very comfortable.

 

Wednesday morning after a nice breakfast at the hotel, we set out again, this time to find the river and walk along it. It was a nice morning and we got to see more of Basel. Around 1pm we headed back to the hotel and got a cab to be taken to our river boat, the Scenic Pearl. Crew from the ship came for our luggage as the cab driver took it out of his trunk and we saw our luggage next in our cabin when we were able to check in. But before we could check in we were given some sparkling wine and waited in the lounge area for about 30 minutes. We then were shown to our cabin and our luggage. We unpacked right away. The cabin was small, just enough storage space, none to spare but we managed. We left our suitcases on the floor and when we got back later that evening they had been stored under our bed. Our cabin attendant and butler came by to meet us and then we headed to the lounge to find friends we were traveling with and meet other passengers. That evening in addition to a buffet dinner we had a safety briefing. A couple more drinks and to bed. While there are late night snacks in the lounge, we only stayed up late enough one night to see them. I need to add that throughout the entire cruise we were always doing something or getting ready to do something. There was very little down time but everything was very interesting and we saw so much and learned so much that we could always rest when we got back home.

Thanks for all the information. Just curious, was your flight into Zurich from Paris and how long in advance did you book your train tickets?

 

First river cruise is Grand Circle Christmas Markets leaving Nov. 29 Basel to Amsterdam. I can't wait (but I guess I have to)!

[mj_holiday]

Our flight was Atlanta to Zurich.

 

As for train tickets - my TA offered to get them which I let her do since she was working everything else. I have bought them before on line and not a difficult thing to do. We got ours a couple months before our trip. The train we were on was not near full. We did not have reserved seats and that wasn't needed for that trip. There is one with no connections every hour between Zurich and Basel. it was very easy (after I got directions on which platform)

[bubbulz]

Our flight was Atlanta to Zurich.

 

As for train tickets - my TA offered to get them which I let her do since she was working everything else. I have bought them before on line and not a difficult thing to do. We got ours a couple months before our trip. The train we were on was not near full. We did not have reserved seats and that wasn't needed for that trip. There is one with no connections every hour between Zurich and Basel. it was very easy (after I got directions on which platform)

 

As another option, it's quite easy to purchase tickets at the time of traveling. Our TA actually advised against pre-purchasing in case our plans changed. As you note, the trains run frequently and we never saw them anywhere near full.

[hugueys]

Thanks so much for the information. My hubby is experienced with Euro train travel so we will plan on getting our tickets when we arrive.

[bubbulz]

Thanks so much for the information. My hubby is experienced with Euro train travel so we will plan on getting our tickets when we arrive.

 

I think that's a prudent option, especially given your husband's prior experience with train travel. I don't know the details of what occurred with 2 other couples we rode along with to the rail station, but I overheard them at the station's information booth, apparently very unhappy about having 'wasted' several hundred dollars for the tickets they had bought while back home. I'm not sure if they purchased tickets for the wrong date or something else ...

[dteastman]

We have booked a Scenic Zurich to Amsterdam cruise next September. We are having "sticker shock" at what Scenic charges for the precruise accommodation, so we are thinking we will book our own hotel and get ourselves to the ship. This review was so helpful to us. We have a couple questions for mj or anyone else.

 

How did you get from the airport to the train station in Zurich? Was that by tram? And the cost of your train ticket to Basel?

 

Which pier did you go to in Basel? How and when did you know where the ship would be? I understand there are three dock areas there.

 

Was food available when you got on at 1 o'clock or should one eat lunch before boarding since dinner is not until 7:00.

 

Thanks in advance for any help.

[caviargal]

 

How did you get from the airport to the train station in Zurich? Was that by tram? And the cost of your train ticket to Basel?

 

Which pier did you go to in Basel? How and when did you know where the ship would be? I understand there are three dock areas there.

 

Was food available when you got on at 1 o'clock or should one eat lunch before boarding since dinner is not until 7:00.

 

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

You can use public transport or take a taxi to get to the airport.

 

I recently purchased 2 tickets Zurich to Basel and the total for 2, one way, was $98 USD in first class.

 

Your cruise documents will give you the exact location of your boat. Last year we took a taxi and it was ~20E.

 

I have not cruised with Scenic but AMA always has a light snack available in the lounge for early arrivals. Uniworld also served a light lunch.

[mj_holiday]

We have booked a Scenic Zurich to Amsterdam cruise next September. We are having "sticker shock" at what Scenic charges for the precruise accommodation, so we are thinking we will book our own hotel and get ourselves to the ship. This review was so helpful to us. We have a couple questions for mj or anyone else.

 

How did you get from the airport to the train station in Zurich? Was that by tram? And the cost of your train ticket to Basel?

 

Which pier did you go to in Basel? How and when did you know where the ship would be? I understand there are three dock areas there.

 

Was food available when you got on at 1 o'clock or should one eat lunch before boarding since dinner is not until 7:00.

 

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

We flew into Zurich and the train station is at the airport. We just followed the signs (luggage on cart) like you would for a rental car.

 

Our tickets were first class and like $60 something each.

 

The day of embarkation we had the front desk at our hotel call Scenic to find out which dock our boat would be on. This seems to be the norm since many times the River Cruise company will not know what dock to use until they get to Basel and are given one.

 

We were told to arrive between 3-4 and we arrive around 2:30. We waited in the lounge and think there were snacks there (we had had a large breakfast). Something tells me dinner was served at 6:30 the first night.

[jpalbny]

We have booked a Scenic Zurich to Amsterdam cruise next September. We are having "sticker shock" at what Scenic charges for the precruise accommodation, so we are thinking we will book our own hotel and get ourselves to the ship. This review was so helpful to us. We have a couple questions for mj or anyone else.

 

How did you get from the airport to the train station in Zurich? Was that by tram? And the cost of your train ticket to Basel?

 

Which pier did you go to in Basel?

 

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

I can't answer all of your questions but can give you info for some.

 

There are two train stations in Zurich. One at the airport, physically connected to the terminal building, and easy to find by following signs. Another station is in the main city. Lots of transportation between them but I can't give you firsthand information because we didn't do this - we rented a car in Zurich at the airport, and drove to Basel the next day.

 

Depending on whether you're flying into Zurich and immediately taking a train to Basel, vs. staying in Zurich proper and going from there to Basel, the answer differs. To catch the train from the airport, just follow the signs as mj_holiday says, upon arrival. We passed the train station on our way to the rental car counter - it's quite visible.

 

If you're in the city, public transportation to the downtown train station (Hauptbahnhof) is easy. I doubt that it is necessary to go back to the airport to catch the train to Basel. Your hotel could easily help you get to the train station, I think.

 

Getting from the airport to the city is by tram or train. Here is a link to Zurich's public transport website where you can search for any connection you want. Looks like it's a 10 minute ride from airport to hauptbahnhof and trips leave every few minutes.

 

I would take a look at the Swiss Railways website, http://www.sbb.ch, and see what schedules and prices look like between Zurich and Basel. You should be able to buy tickets on the day of travel if you are not sure of your schedule. That's safest, if you are arriving by air on the same day. Basel has more than one train station but I don't think it matters which one you arrive at; I'd just pick whichever one makes for an easier trip from Zurich.

 

Our Uniworld boat docked at Dreilandereck which is on the northern edge of town, close to a tram stop but a little far if you're dragging luggage. If you're docked here, a cab might be the best option. Though if you're traveling light you could try the tram... We walked ship to tram and back a few times, unencumbered, and it was fine. I don't have any experience with the other two locations. We showed up at the Basel airport to drop off our rental car and joined Uniworld's free transfer, so we let them worry about whether they were taking us to the right pier! :)

 

Feel free to ask any other questions that might help you.

Edited October 19, 2015 by jpalbny