RIVER CRUISING, Final Thoughts

Well our first river cruise is over, and we have decided that we liked the model. Mrs Bear is for anything that lets her unpack once. So the unknown for us was whether we’d like the basic format.

We had done a series of ocean cruises, and we didn’t expect river cruising to give us a similar experience. Differences include the number of cruisers .. our cruise had 190, as compared to 750 – 900 on our ocean cruises. River cruises had a port stop every day of the cruise … ocean cruises often have “ocean days.” River cruise cabins are significantly smaller than those on ocean cruises. There are no interior cabins on a river cruise. The food was great on both, but there are many more dining room options on ocean cruising.

On our river cruise, there were fewer buffets than on ocean voyages. It was more like dining in the main dining room on the ocean ship … menus with changing options nightly. The food was wonderful and the portions were small. And tables were set up to be shared … we probably ate less than one in three meals by ourselves. Very quickly, we adapted to this model and ate often with fellow cruisers who we got to know well. During the cruise, it was easy to feel that our fellow travelers were family for a week. We didn’t know all the names, but recognized each other both on and off the ship.

Our crew worked their asses off. While this was also true on our ocean voyages, I was amazed at how many crew members knew our names by the second or third day.

The entertainment on the river cruise is much less produced … No big production numbers, other than the option of going off-ship in the evening for a concert or taste of a city’s culture. I went on a beer tasting evening that visited five or six pubs with a German dinner. The ship had a pianist who played at cocktail hours and evenings. We had guest musicians who came onboard. We had occasional evenings for samples of local entertainment. Our ship had no pool, fitness center, casino, or guest lecturers. Some other river cruise lines may have some of these features.

I felt that the river cruise was a more intimate experience. The tours were usually in small groups, often with a guide for 10 or so people. The guides were excellent and resided in the cities they presented. I’ll give you an example of the intimacy … While touring the Cologne Cathedral, our guide talked about the WW II bombings of her city. She commented that much of the bombing was not because Cologne had military targets “It was bombed because Hitler had bombed London.” In other words, the bombings were very personal.

Another example … we have toured many of Europe’s fine churches and cathedrals, but I had never heard anyone say that a role of the church was to provide a brief escape from life by offering a small glimpse of Heaven. Which makes the stained glass of these buildings so impressive and important. Multiple guides told us that when the bombings of their cities were imminent, the glass was taken down and stored safely to protect it.

This is a photo I somehow forgot to include when writing about Bratislava … as you see, it is titled “Man At Work.” I don’t remember hearing any special significance other than it is funny !!

He doesn’t really look like he is working very hard at all !!

Finally, a river cruise will take you to cities, and perhaps countries that you would not visit on an ocean cruise. Ocean cruises are comfortable with trips to the Caribbean, Bahamas, Mediterranean, and Inner Passage, with lots of sun and fun. River cruises require more walking and touring of smaller cities often far from an ocean. Each has its place in a traveler’s calendar.