July 6 2014

Pat2Mike

Taking this cruise. Staying Budapest 2 extra days before start. Any one out there going on this trip ?? We are also looking for some information about Windmills in Amsterdam . Does not look like Tauck has these sites on itinerary.
Five more months before the bell rings

harr0007

MY wife and I will be on this cruise also. We too are coming in a few days earlier staying in an apartment in the downtown area. This will be our first river cruise. See you then....
Bill and Jana Harrison

Shana51

Hello fellow July 6, 2014 travelers . We are also doing this cruise. It will be our 4th and 5th time on the river. Doing a B2B..this cruise followed by Amsterdam to Basel. For the first timers you will love it. The Treasures is a lovely boat. The staff and crew are first class.
A few yrs ago we spent 5 days in Amsterdam with a private guide who took us all over and we saw everything. Was arranged by our TA, who is now retired so can't ask her name of guide. As a suggestion...in your hotel the concierge usually can help you out with making arrangements.
If anyone has any questions about the river cruise or the boat..just ask.
We are Canadians from the Toronto area..will also be staying in Budapest 2 nights pre-cruise.

jrmbarber

So happy to see posts from folks on the 7/6/14 Budapest to Amsterdam trip. Our first trip to Europe and we are very anxious to get started. We are staying on two days in Amsterdam post cruise before flying home to Reading, Pennsylvania. Looking forward to meeting new friends. I would love to gather lots of advice from you seasoned travelers...Paulette and John Moore

cantraveller

We did this tour in 2011 and went a few days early to Amsterdam and stayed extra time in Budapest. Both are great cities. In Amsterdam the hotel arranged for us to see the wind mills using Viator as the tour provider. It was a good tour for the money and we will use them in Paris this year when we do the Paris to Monte Carlo riverboat cruise. We are from Peterborough, Ontario and this will be our 6th Tauck tour. The riverboats are fantastic and everything is very well executed y their TD's.
Gary

Francesca King

We took this trip last year. Started in Amsterdam and ended in Bucharest. Our first stop after Amsterdam was a morning at a windmill site. Perhaps they have changed the itinerary or you will not stop there doing the trip in the reverse of what we did. You can look up Viator or another tour operator for day trips to the outskirts to see other cities, villages and of course windmills. If you plan to see the Anne Frank house you should get your tickets in advance. We did a bus tour (thru Viator) that ended at the house and we were walked right in by our guide. The line was about three blocks long for those not having purchased tickets in advance. I don't recommend the hop on hop off canal ride though. It was so noisy we could not hear the commentator. I think many were using it as a means of transportation and not sightseeing. Would suggest the 2 hour or so canal trip instead. You will see it all in a lot less time. We also enjoyed the red light district at night. It was very interesting. I was concerned it might be a bit nasty, but it was not.
Wonderful trip, have a great time.

Just love 2 cruise

Hello
I cannot believe that in 2 months and 23 days I will be on this trip. I booked it March 2013 when my niece confirmed her wedding date in Belgium. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to take a side trip after the wedding. I am also from Canada, just outside of Toronto, in the Burlington area - hello to my fellow Canadians. I have not been on a river cruise before but am an experienced big cruise ship sailor. I am looking forward to experiencing small ship sailing and this extraordinary itinerary.

With the big ships you have to plan your own shore Excursions and choose between a variety of options. It feels very strange to sit back and leave everything to the cruise director and his team to plan your day. For those that have done a river cruise before - how long (in general) are their tours? I gather it is usually a morning adventure and then either return to the ship for lunch or stay on shore. Do most of you return for lunch?

Looking forward to saying hello in person to all of you
Jan

Shana51

...to Just love 2 cruise....
I'm from Oakville..there are 4 of us on this trip. To answer your question about the excursions. The night before the boat arrives in the next town, we will all gather in the lounge just before dinner. The Tour Director will give us info on the town and explain the tours available, easy walking, duration, lunch in town or need to return to boat. Sometimes the boat will travel to next town while we have lunch onboard. So you have the evening to decide which tour you will join next morning. Sometimes it can be a full day tour...in a big city like Vienna for example. You are not obligated to join any tour..you can go and do your own thing anytime.

Remember all tours costs are included in your cruise fare...

One of the highlights of our trip will be the evening in Vienna at the Palace. A performance and elegant dinner, all included, just for us. I wear a dressy top and black slacks with heels. Men wear a jacket.

As I mentioned in my previous post above, this will be our 4th and 5th time on the river...it is that fabulous.! In my opinion.

Everything is very casual on board, no need to dress up for dinner..slacks and a top/ blouse..men wear polo shirts and slacks etc. Just the Vienna nite is a bit more dressy . Tauck asks that you just bring one suitcase each...that's all you really need. Leave your beach clothes at home..????

We are also big ship sailors..have more than 1,600 nites at sea...the riverboat cabins are small, yes..but you will spend most of you time ashore or on the sun deck..admiring the castles and vineyards and quaint towns along the way.

Hope this helps..

jdurkin

Shana51 wrote:

...to Just love 2 cruise....
Tauck asks that you just bring one suitcase each...that's all you really need. Leave your beach clothes at home..????

One small point to add, the above "restriction" only applies to checked, airline baggage, and that directive could vary depending on your chosen airline, individual ticket restrictions and class of travel. There is plenty of room in your cabin to stow cases under your bed. Generally speaking, the only time you and your baggage might be on a bus together is possibly the transfer process at the start and end of your river cruise. For that short time, carry-on luggage really isn't an issue. Depending on the length of your entire trip, including any side trips or other locations, it's quite possible you might be away from home for more than just the short 15 days of this trip. And you might be covering a variety of climates in that time. I can certainly understand you needing and preferring to pack more than tourist gear. If you go to the page here on the Tauck site for your trip, find the tab Before You Go, and follow the topics down to Luggage Handling and Restrictions, you will find everything you ever wanted to know and were too afraid to ask! Naturally, this does not give you permission to pack everything, including the kitchen sink!

Cheers,

Jan

Garyben

Hello all, my husband and I are going to be on the Treasures for that date also. I am getting quite excited for our first cruise ever. We live in Washington State. I'm looking forward to getting to know everyone. Just a few weeks away. Nancy and Gary

Pat2Mike

welcome aboard. If you have not traveled with Tauck before you will be delighted and impressed by the attention to details. We have not been on a Tauck river cruise but have done small boat cruise with them .
We have no concern that this trip will be ( like all the others we took ) a great experience that not even an artist could paint.. Pat and Mike