Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

The grape harvest might be happening at that time of year, and some of the small towns have festivals then. Enjoy. Lucky you. :thumbsup:

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

Viking are a wonderful company. The ONLY downside to them is they don't serve local wine with dinner. They serve Californian wine. This isn't a major deal for most people though.

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

We did that when we did the Amsterdam to Basel cruise; we booked our own round trip flight to Amsterdam, then simply took a train from Basel to Amsterdam at the end of the cruise. We spent four nights in Amsterdam at the beginning and one at the end. I'm glad we booked our own flights, there was one couple on the cruise who booked a flight with the cruise company and their luggage never made it to Amsterdam in time, so I think at least one extra day at the beginning is a good idea to increase the chances of both you and your luggage getting to the cruise.

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

WHAT????????????????? Now that is beyond belief. I don't like California wines. I want my Riesling.

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

Any places in particular that you would recommend for us to see/do over that 3 day landover in Amsterdam? I know I want to ride on the canal, see the Rembrant museum, not particularly interested in the Anne Frank attic rooms but will go if the rest of my group wants to.

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

http://www.vikingrivercruises.com/ab...p/tipping.aspx

Scary!

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

:lol: Sorry. You should have booked with me, I would have told you ;)

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

We absolutely loved Amsterdam. We'd never been there before. The year we were there, all the major museums (Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum and another one..) were closed long term for renovation. Also we decided we didn't want to see the Anne Frank house. By far the best thing we saw in Amsterdam was the old synagogue and the Jewish Museum. There is a complex of buildings with several synagogues, one of which is now the museum. All the treasures of the synagogue survived the war, because the Germans basically placed them all at the Rijksmuseum and the Rijksmuseum of course returned them all after the war. Anyway, the main synagogue there, the Portuguese Synagogue, is absolutely beautiful and still used by the community for services.

Mainly what we did there was walk, walk, walk .. and drink the occasional beer in pavement cafes overlooking canals. There were also a couple of very nice preserved town houses we visited, like National Trust, that were very worthwhile. I liked the place so much I started looking at the price of flats (quite reasonable, compared to London or Paris or Prague) but then I compulsively look at property options wherever we travel!!

You should enjoy Amsterdam; and the cruise of course!

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

That sounds crazy. Tip each person twelve euros a day?? The river cruise we went on, Avalon was the company, they recommended you just placed a certain amount in an envelope which was collected on the last night, very easy. And I'm fairly sure the amount was about a hundred and fifty euros total, you didn't have to figure out how many people deserved a tip..

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

Yeah the Avalon cruise, they served up unlimited local wines with dinner. Cheap wines, but very drinkable. Probably my prejudice, but I find California wines completely undrinkable ... and certainly not a good choice in Europe!

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

There is a folk museum called Zaans Schanz, spelling might not be right. It is near Zaandam I think. We got a train then walked. It is a collection of different buildings that had/have functions, dairy, clog maker, different types of windmills, homes. It was very interesting.

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

Don't miss the Rembrandts in the Rijksmuseum -- they have the Night Watch and the Artist as the Apostle Paul, both of which blew me away when I saw them many moons ago. In fact I bought a poster of the self-portrait and had it on my wall until I moved to the US, at which point it went missing!

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

I feel the same. I haven't cruised with Viking but I did sell a lot of them in my job.

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

That's what we are doing too - actually we are going to London for 3 days (OH has never been there), Switzerland for 2 then Amsterdam for 2.

Have a great time!

Re: River Cruise OR tour Europe by train
 

Wait, you're a TA??? I went through hell trying to find a good one. PM me your info - I can pass it on.

Regarding tips: I was told about 15 euro a day per person so about 210 euro's. Not bad actually.

I did a lot of research and most of the lines will have then included for 2014 - mine does not (ama). Fine though, got a better discount plus room when compared to the other lines.

I don't drink so the booze is wasted on me - OH will so he can make up for me.

Did you all pay for trip insurance? Ours is coming in at about $550.00 per person - that seems really high.