Welcome to Tauck's Christmas Markets Along the Rhine Forum

TauckAdmin

Welcome to Tauck’s Christmas Markets Along the Rhine Forum - Find the answers to your trip questions, answer questions posted by fellow travelers, plus share your Tauck experiences and stories. Stop by often and join in on the discussions.

quiniff421

We have never taken a winter vacation to a winter environment, so we are a little concerned about what clothing to bring on the trip. Should we bring winter boots? I have a full length fur coat which is the warmest coat I own. Does it make sense to bring it or is that a little over the edge? We are really looking forward to the Christmas Markets. We both love Christmas and look forward to the whole European experience. This will be our 2nd Tauck trip. Our first trip was spectacular and this one looks like another spectacular trip.

Peggy and Mark

Paulmj

Eight of us are booked on the Dec. 11th departure from Basel. Folks from AZ, CA and TX are all connecting there the day prior.

Regarding the weather, do some searches on Google Images and also on Flickr. You'll see lots of pictures of folks going through the German Christmas Markets in snow, slush and rain. Northern Europe in mid-December can be very cold indeed.

This will be our fifth Tauck tour, the most recent in April to New Orleans. It will be our first riverboat cruise and we're looking forward to it.

Paul and Georgia

quiniff421

Thanks for the advice to look at pictures. We live in the Chicago suburbs so we are used to cold which is why we normally go somewhere warm in winter but we couldn't resist the opportunity to see the Christmas Markets. We look forward to meeting you on the riverboat.

Peggy and Mark

Brian and Kay

This will be our third Christmas Market tour, a first with Tauck. We have encountered weather very similar to what we have in Iowa at that time. Usually a little warmer with some rain. We tend to dress in layers because at times you are in and out of shops, buses and cathedrals. There is always a place at the markets to get away from the cold & wet. We are using the Rhine Southbound tour as a fam tour to see how Tauck compares to the other cruises we have taken. Have a travel group we need to report to. We just love Rudesheim,the smaller markets have a more homey feel. Anybody else from the midwest going Southbound on the Rhine?

Brian and Kay

Paulmj

I understand Tauck has some kind of service on the Christmas Market cruises whereby you assist passengers in packaging and/or shipping of any purchases made ashore. can you please expand on this a little bit and advise exactly what you do?

gmax3

We are traveling on the Rhine Southbound - we live in South Carolina but I grew up in Chicago and went to college in Indiana so I really am a Midwesterner. Has anyone toured these markets before? I'm curious as to whether it is strictly Christmas decorations or if there are handmade items to give as gifts - especially to grandkids!

We have taken one Tauck tour before and it was the best tour we have ever taken - many of our neighbors have used Tauck and everyone highly recommends them. I can hardly wait.

two paws up

I am solo on the Northbound Rhine Christmas Markets Cruise Dec 11 with a pre & post Night, please introduce yourself so that I feel comfortable. Traveling on LH from MD I am sooooooooo very excited.

Paulmj

Eight of us are booked on the Dec. 11th departure from Basel. Folks from AZ, CA and TX are all connecting there the day prior.

two paws up

Paulmj wrote:

Eight of us are booked on the Dec. 11th departure from Basel. Folks from AZ, CA and TX are all connecting there the day prior.

Thetriguy

Gmax3,
My wife Kathy and I have been on three Christmas market riverboat trips on another line. This too is our first trip on Tauck and we are looking forward to the experience. We are heading southbound on the Rhine. As for the markets, you will find many different stalls some with clothing and such but many more with homemade type goods and lots of decorations for the holidays. As far as I am concerned it is a magical experience especially when you combine the sights, the sounds and the wonderful aromas. Have fun. Perhaps we will see you on board.
Bill Clayton

Linsia

Tauck_Admin wrote:

Welcome to Tauck’s Christmas Markets Along the Rhine Forum - Find the answers to your trip questions, answer questions posted by fellow travelers, plus share your Tauck experiences and stories. Stop by often and join in on the discussions.

How about a forum on Tauck's Christmas Markets Along the Danube? Who is going? I also have question about whether to bring my fur coat or not? & the best place to exchange Euro?

from HHI

Brian and Kay wrote:

This will be our third Christmas Market tour, a first with Tauck. We have encountered weather very similar to what we have in Iowa at that time. Usually a little warmer with some rain. We tend to dress in layers because at times you are in and out of shops, buses and cathedrals. There is always a place at the markets to get away from the cold & wet. We are using the Rhine Southbound tour as a fam tour to see how Tauck compares to the other cruises we have taken. Have a travel group we need to report to. We just love Rudesheim,the smaller markets have a more homey feel. Anybody else from the midwest going Southbound on the Rhine?

Brian and Kay

We are travelling Rhine SB on Dec. 12. We did Christmas markets on our own a few years back and loved it. It was cold. We are originally from Peoria IL, now residing on Hilton Head Island, SC, moving to SW Florida early next year. First time on a river cruise and with Tauck. Anyone else going on this particular date?

from HHI

gmax3 wrote:

We are traveling on the Rhine Southbound - we live in South Carolina but I grew up in Chicago and went to college in Indiana so I really am a Midwesterner. Has anyone toured these markets before? I'm curious as to whether it is strictly Christmas decorations or if there are handmade items to give as gifts - especially to grandkids!

We have taken one Tauck tour before and it was the best tour we have ever taken - many of our neighbors have used Tauck and everyone highly recommends them. I can hardly wait.

We did Christmas markets on our own a few years back. You will find several very nice local craft items to bring back to family. We purchase some crochet ornaments that were beautiful, flat, and packed well. Also bought some tiny ornaments in a local shop. We have been to most of the cities on the tour and you will find plenty of gifting items in local stores.

from HHI

from HHI wrote:

We did Christmas markets on our own a few years back. You will find several very nice local craft items to bring back to family. We purchase some crochet ornaments that were beautiful, flat, and packed well. Also bought some tiny ornaments in a local shop. We have been to most of the cities on the tour and you will find plenty of gifting items in local stores.

What date are you going. We are from SC too, originally from Peoria IL

60613

Is there any reason to choose Northbound over Southbound or vice versa? Is it just preference?

jdurkin

One of the things you might consider are the logistics. Which European city gives you the best local European connections to the departure point? Which city to do you wish to spend extra time in acclimatising after a long haul, international flight ... before your trip begins? Which city would make a nice extra stop afterwards?

For the Rhine Christmas markets trip, my choice is Basel to Cologne. For my 21 hour or so long haul flight to Europe, I'll choose Munich as my first European port. From there I can make a good connection on to Basel. Flying into Zurich is a little more problematic for a solo traveller. There is an excellent rain connection from Zurich to Basel, but personally, I find negotiating trains with full size luggage is sometimes a literal pain. (Two people travelling together make their own team!) Similarly on the return journey, with a rail connection from Cologne to Frankfurt (to connect to my return long haul flight) appears to have the same difficulties. I could be wrong ... because I think you can check your luggage at Cologne station for an ex Frankfurt flight, but I haven't actually verified that yet. So far I am trending for a domestic flight from Bonn/Cologne back to Munich, to connect with my international flight home.

It all boils down to what works best for you. I love Basel and am more than delighted to spend extra days there before the trip, so I'm choosing south to north. Whichever way you choose, it will be a stunning, cold weather Christmas adventure with lashings of gluhwein! That's the polar opposite of the Christmases I'm used to. (Pun intended!)

Cheers,

Jan