Our Admin Manager, Brittany recently took part in an educational trip on the 7-day Rhine Getaway with Viking Cruises. The Rhine Getaway is one of Viking’s most popular river cruises with the option to travel from Basel to Amsterdam or in reverse! Read about Brittany’s experience below.
Day 1
Our journey began in Basel where we boarded Viking Einar and were treated to a three-course lunch from a menu that is consistent across all Viking ships and another with the specialties of the region. In the evening, we gathered on the deck to watch as we sailed out of the port and began our journey to Breisach in Germany.
Day 2
In Breisach, we started the day with a continental breakfast on the balcony, there was also the option to dine in the restaurant from 7:00 am with a buffet-style breakfast. We then ventured out on an included excursion to the Black Forest stopping in to see how cuckoo clocks are made and there was also the option to take a guided walking tour through the forest. We then watched a Black Forest cake decorating demonstration before the scenic bus trip back to the ship. We then spent the afternoon in Colmar visiting the WW2 Museum and Memorial before finishing the night with dinner and musical trivia while sailing the Rhine to Strasbourg, France.
Day 3
Today we chose to do the optional excursion, ‘Flavours of Alsace Tour’ which I would highly recommend to anyone doing this journey. When we first got to the city of Alsace, we walked through the markets and sampled pretzels, meats, cheeses, eclairs, macaroons, pizzas & gingerbread from small family-owned businesses. This tour went from 10:00 am-5:30 pm so it was a very long day but well worth it. Later, we saw the Strasbourg Notre-Dame and were given an hour of free time before finishing the tour with wine paired with local cheese & meat delicacies. It was informative and a good way to finish the tour. We then returned to the ship which departed for Speyer.
Day 4
We started the day with an included 3-hour walking tour of Speyer before having an hour of free time. We opted to climb the spiralled stairs of the Speyer Cathedral which took us around 20 minutes to reach the top. It was quite demanding however, the view from the top was well worth it. They also have another tour option there where you are strapped to a rail and can walk around the Cathedral, which was not as high up. We then took the bus back to the ship which had moved on from Speyer to Rudesheim whilst we were on the tour.
In the evening we did an extra tour called the ‘Dine in Rudesheim’, we were taken to an old restaurant, and all sat together for a traditional feast. There was garlic lard to put on the bread, a vegetable soup, roast pork and vegetables, and the traditional cheesecake from the region. This was a 3-hour tour, and the drinks were also included. They had a gentleman playing traditional music and even threw some classics for everyone to sing, like sweet Caroline. There were a lot of restaurants with beer gardens to stop on the way back & people watch.
Day 5
This morning we sailed from Rudesheim where everyone gathered on the deck to take in the breathtaking landscapes of the Rhine. Our tour director discussed different folk stories and explained the history of each of the castles that we passed by -there was a lot!
We arrived in Koblenz, Germany early in the afternoon where there were several different tours on offer. We elected to go on the free walking tour which was good to be able to get your bearings. We then jumped on the cable car which was a 2-minute walk from where the ship had docked and went up to explore the Fortress of Ehrenbreitstein.
Day 6
This morning, we woke up docked in Cologne, Germany where we started the day with an included walking tour. We walked through the city and heard a few different stories about the past. The main attraction was the Cologne Cathedral (black Cathedral). This was amazing, the highlight of the whole trip!! We walked through the Cathedral, sat down for a while, and just took it all in. We also went down to the treasury basement which has artifacts from the church dating back to the 11th century. There were some seriously amazing artifacts, and I would strongly suggest doing this. On our walk back to the ship in the afternoon, we walked through the shopping district before stopping in at a little corner store and having bratwurst for lunch. In the afternoon Viking had a German lecturer come aboard the ship to talk about “Germany Today”. We didn’t mean to be there for that, but we are glad we were, as it was really good.
The Cologne Beer Culture & Dinner optional excursion is what we chose to do tonight, it was a large group of 50 of us who chose to do this, this was a great night because by now we knew all the people on the ship and it just made for a great atmosphere & night. We started at a Brauhaus and had endless beers with a 5-course meal made up of meats, cheese bread, and salad as entrée. We then had beef with traditional potato dumplings, and a mini pork knuckle followed by a traditional sponge cake where the apple in the cake had been soaked in beer (this didn’t taste like beer at all and was quite nice). We then walked through another three traditional Brauhaus before making our way back to the ship.
Once back on board, the crew suggested that we take a drink up to the deck to watch our departure at 11:00 pm. Our ship did a turn in the river, and we were able to see the Cathedral among other spectacular buildings with the sun going down in the background, it was amazing to see and well worth the late night.
Day 7
Today, our ship docked in Kinderdijk, The Netherlands. We ventured out on the ‘Kinderdijk Windmills and Dutch Cheese Making tour’ which was a nice and informative walk thanks to our guide. The bus ride to the farm was around 20 minutes and we were able to observe the cheese-making process, afterward, we got to try a selection of aged cheeses. We also had the option to purchase cheese that is allowed to come back through Australian customs as it is vacuum-sealed. After that, we hopped back on the bus to Kinderdijk to see the windmills. This was amazing, it was a 30-minute walk to the windmill that you’re able to go into, you see all three floors and hear some interesting information.
Day 8
Today we arrived in Amsterdam and was our last day onboard Viking Einar. We visited the Van Gogh Museum and Anne Frank House which I would highly recommend to anyone visiting Amsterdam.
