sjde Posted December 2, 2018 #1751 Share Posted December 2, 2018 Someone had asked about feedback on Teeming. All the other travelers we have talked to are very happy with this cruise line . Most have not been on another river cruise ( makes me think many start with one line and then stick with it), and can’t believe how low the prices are . Really - it is a fantastic deal . It’s about 1/3 or 1/4 the cost of Viking and most other major lines. Some of the guests have described this as first class . One who had been on Vantage before and didn’t like it. The alcohol prices are great -about five dollars for a glass of wine. 20% off during happy hour. Most say they don’t want to have the tours and like not having the cost of them included in what we pay. They don’t want / need their hand held and don’t want to be tied to a tour.I do like not having to be ready to go at eight in the morning , that’s true . And I like doing things on my own. And doing research ahead. The tour director gives a talk each night to tell us about the town we’re seeing , and what to see and do there and we have maps .The other 2 lines I’ve been on did have more and better entertainment . But then you are kept so busy and I kind of like reading after dinner. The husband and wife owner are on this cruise and it sounds like they are on most of them. They are very personable and responsive. I don’t see how the included alcohol and excursions and entertainment can be worth another $2000 pp a week on most other cruise lines. The rooms are comparable it seems to other ones I’ve been on , though I think the lowest category room is smaller. Two members of the Nitty-Gritty Dirt Band are on here and have performed three nights. Other than that, and the resident piano player , we had a glass blower on board one afternoon . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peasmith Posted December 2, 2018 #1752 Share Posted December 2, 2018 14 hours ago, Jimmy_Buffett said: Our two days of deviation on Viking this week. Hi we are on this in reverse on the 14th December and supposed to be on the Mani - is it my understanding that it's going to be Heidelberg or Strasbourg but not both as originally planned? The excursion to Heidelberg is an awful long one and would rather get shuttle into Strasbourg and wander at our leisure. You never know by the time we join whatever boat the rain may have eased it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare notamermaid Posted December 2, 2018 Author #1753 Share Posted December 2, 2018 1st Sunday in Advent and I have had my first proper visit to a Christmas market. Got a couple of small presents for relatives. It has started raining as well, during the afternoon with us. Not too much but more than just drizzle. I hope it was a bit more in the Upper Rhine valley. The river levels this afternoon: Maxau 317cm, Kaub 38cm, Koblenz 41cm. 38cm at Kaub is certainly better than the 28cm we had a few days ago. And there is the "promise" of more. The forecast says 45cm by tomorrow evening and the prediction indicates that it is possible to reach 60cm during Tuesday. A further rise is indicated but all those figures I take with two pinches of salt. Will we see the 135cm ships sailing through the gorge on the day of St. Nikolaus (6 December)? As Nikolaus is not only the patron saint of seafarers but also of those sailing the inland waterways, what a fitting date that would be... But first, about the current situation an article from the "The Independent" in the UK. Yes, another cruisecritic forum user is cited: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/christmas-river-cruise-danube-rhine-water-levels-low-markets-europe-ship-swaps-a8658826.html notamermaid 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jo-b Posted December 2, 2018 #1754 Share Posted December 2, 2018 3 hours ago, sjde said: I missed that report of the captain’s drinking- was that Viking or Teeming? Teeming, the review from Sue (I think) on the link given above https://www.tourradar.com/teeming-river-cruises Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaydub99 Posted December 2, 2018 #1755 Share Posted December 2, 2018 On 11/30/2018 at 5:20 PM, notamermaid said: It does not look as if it will rain by the bucketload but an umbrella will come in very handy. Still hoping for a last minute change of cruise itinerary North of the gorge for you. Safe travels. notamermaid We left Zurich yesterday at the end of our impromptu train trip down the Rhine Valley after we opted out of our bus/river cruise. Some rain along the way (incl the last couple of days in Zurich) but was very light, off and on when it did rain. Instead of an umbrella I would recommend a hooded rain coat. I found trying to eat a sausage and drink gluhwein at the same time while wandering through the markets left me one hand short to hold an umbrella... All the markets are quite amazing. If you get the chance for a side trip to Colmar while in Strasbourg I highly recommend it. The Markets, architecture, history, wine tasting etc etc made it one of the highlights. Easy 25 min train ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare notamermaid Posted December 2, 2018 Author #1756 Share Posted December 2, 2018 3 hours ago, sjde said: Someone had asked about feedback on Teeming. All the other travelers we have talked to are very happy with this cruise line . Most have not been on another river cruise ( makes me think many start with one line and then stick with it), and can’t believe how low the prices are . Really - it is a fantastic deal . It’s about 1/3 or 1/4 the cost of Viking and most other major lines. Some of the guests have described this as first class . One who had been on Vantage before and didn’t like it. The alcohol prices are great -about five dollars for a glass of wine. 20% off during happy hour. Most say they don’t want to have the tours and like not having the cost of them included in what we pay. They don’t want / need their hand held and don’t want to be tied to a tour.I do like not having to be ready to go at eight in the morning , that’s true . And I like doing things on my own. And doing research ahead. The tour director gives a talk each night to tell us about the town we’re seeing , and what to see and do there and we have maps .The other 2 lines I’ve been on did have more and better entertainment . But then you are kept so busy and I kind of like reading after dinner. The husband and wife owner are on this cruise and it sounds like they are on most of them. They are very personable and responsive. I don’t see how the included alcohol and excursions and entertainment can be worth another $2000 pp a week on most other cruise lines. The rooms are comparable it seems to other ones I’ve been on , though I think the lowest category room is smaller. Two members of the Nitty-Gritty Dirt Band are on here and have performed three nights. Other than that, and the resident piano player , we had a glass blower on board one afternoon . Thank you for your report. Just to give you (the community) an example how such additional things like wine and excursions can work on a German cruise line, here is an example of how nicko cruises does it. Onto the base price you can buy an excursion package and/or a drinks package. https://www.nicko-cruises.de/en/expose/four-countries-one-river-2/ On that particular cruise five excursions and drinks together are 343 euros, which at today's rate is 388.19 dollars. On my river cruise (Transocean) I bought the excursion pack and two or three additional ones on board, but did not get a drinks package. notamermaid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paia40 Posted December 2, 2018 #1757 Share Posted December 2, 2018 Jimmy_Buffett said: Our two days of deviation on Viking this week. Thank You for the info...Keep us posted & enjoy your journey.. I am a little confused. Did you dock in Cologne 9am to midnight as the original Itinerary or was this omitted? Also, is the sail of the middle of the Rhine and visit to the castle done on a day 2 of cologne and can you see both excursions on the same day? We planned a whole day and evening of activities in Cologne, I will be disappointed if our stay in cologne has been affected. Kathryn & Alan Leaving on the 15th Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hbr777 Posted December 2, 2018 #1758 Share Posted December 2, 2018 Greetings from a very rainy Lucern. I hope this rain, which was been significant in the Rhine Valley, runs straight into the river like a funnel lol. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjde Posted December 2, 2018 #1759 Share Posted December 2, 2018 And it drizzled all day in Nijmegen today. Teeming also has a drink package, about $115 for a week , but only good in the dining room, not the lounge. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philandher Posted December 2, 2018 #1760 Share Posted December 2, 2018 Just wondering if anybody has got an accurate position for the Scenic Opal, Marinetraffic has it in Frankfurt while Cruisemapper has it in Dettelbach on the Main? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbjornda Posted December 2, 2018 #1761 Share Posted December 2, 2018 53 minutes ago, Philandher said: Just wondering if anybody has got an accurate position for the Scenic Opal, Marinetraffic has it in Frankfurt while Cruisemapper has it in Dettelbach on the Main? Looks like it's been in Frankfurt all day today. http://www.anyoverip.de/scenic/index.php?ship=Opal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark_T Posted December 2, 2018 #1762 Share Posted December 2, 2018 8 minutes ago, sbjornda said: Looks like it's been in Frankfurt all day today. http://www.anyoverip.de/scenic/index.php?ship=Opal Marine Traffic also shows her in Frankfurt at the moment... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valley Girl of VA Posted December 2, 2018 #1763 Share Posted December 2, 2018 IS the AMAPrima really on the move? I see on both MarineTraffic and Cruise Mapper that she is south of Nijmegen. Am I seeing things? From what I can determine she is on her way downstream from Cologne. If Cologne is her final destination, then at least we would have one Christmas market and be in Germany on the Rhine. I'm hoping that she is positioning herself in case the river traffic increases and she is able to get to Basel for us. My cruise is Saturday - Basel to AMS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FuelScience Posted December 3, 2018 #1764 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Fleetmon also shows it near Dettelbach, but it says that the signal is 2 days old. marinetraffic says that its signal from Frankfurt is 2 minutes old, so I'd trust it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark_T Posted December 3, 2018 #1765 Share Posted December 3, 2018 2 hours ago, Valley Girl of VA said: IS the AMAPrima really on the move? Yes, indeed she is, due to reach Cologne by 5pm Monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valley Girl of VA Posted December 3, 2018 #1766 Share Posted December 3, 2018 WOO Hoo. That means we will either take the train to Cologne OR maybe she'l make it down to Basel by Saturday. Thanks for making me feel better about our altered itinerary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olivera Posted December 3, 2018 #1767 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Hi Has anyone had more specific update from Scenic regards the Rhine Christmas Cruise departing on the 12/12/2018. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hbr777 Posted December 3, 2018 #1768 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Can someone post the river levels at the gorge? Pegelonline is loading weirdly here in Switzerland! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjde Posted December 3, 2018 #1769 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Today we saw docked in Amsterdam: Nicko Rhein SymphonieAMA KristinaViking Resta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magpie22 Posted December 3, 2018 #1770 Share Posted December 3, 2018 (edited) Re Uniworld’s SS Antoinette, originally scheduled for embarkation on Dec 5 in Basel... Sailing now deferred until Thursday 6 Dec with first night in a hotel in Freiburg with intention to embark sometime later on 6 Dec at an as yet unknown location. While the radar for Mainz presents hope is it too little too late? Marine Traffic still showing the SS Antoinette in dock in Cologne. How long would it need to get to say Strasbourg? Hope this is not a case of Uniworld breaking the bad news gradually? Death by a thousand cuts? Edited December 3, 2018 by Magpie22 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickbevoz Posted December 3, 2018 #1771 Share Posted December 3, 2018 50 minutes ago, hbr777 said: Can someone post the river levels at the gorge? Pegelonline is loading weirdly here in Switzerland! What is the link? i can try and load here but I don’t know the site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickbevoz Posted December 3, 2018 #1772 Share Posted December 3, 2018 52 minutes ago, hbr777 said: Can someone post the river levels at the gorge? Pegelonline is loading weirdly here in Switzerland! Does this help? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hbr777 Posted December 3, 2018 #1773 Share Posted December 3, 2018 3 minutes ago, nstarrenburg said: Does this help? Nick, THANK YOU! The level at Kaubis promising! Koblenz also looks good, or at least better. Where did you find that info? Mine is always displayed as a map, but yours looks so much better. Thank you, again, this is very helpful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickbevoz Posted December 3, 2018 #1774 Share Posted December 3, 2018 5 minutes ago, hbr777 said: Nick, THANK YOU! The level at Kaubis promising! Koblenz also looks good, or at least better. Where did you find that info? Mine is always displayed as a map, but yours looks so much better. Thank you, again, this is very helpful! This was the link... https://www.pegelonline.wsv.de/gast/start#locations?w=RHEIN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare notamermaid Posted December 3, 2018 Author #1775 Share Posted December 3, 2018 nstarrenburg, Thank for the link. It is the list how it is also displayed on my smartphone. Looks promising indeed. I will have a closer look later. It rained overnight in the middle Rhine valley and the forecast for more rain is still standing. Not dramatic amounts but some very good longer showers spread over the next few days. And it is mild, we will see no snow in the valley. notamermaid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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