COVER STORY
Tauck offers a ‘Christmas Markets Along the Rhine’ cruise aboard the new 118-guest MS Treasures. The eight-day sailing, departing December 4, visits markets in Germany and is one of the few to include France, as it travels south from Cologne to Basel (with a northbound departure doing a reverse itinerary on Dec 11). The ‘Christmas Markets Along the Danube’ on Swiss Jewel travels from Nuremberg to Vienna, with a reverse itin- erary departing Dec 10 (both cruises from £1,303-£2,490, plus flights). In addition, Tauck includes overland excursions to markets in Munich and Aachen, Germany; Colmar, France (with a path of lights guiding visitors to five differ- ent markets); and Salzburg, Austria.
O
ffering a wide selection of Christmas market cruises, includ- ing a unique one in France, is
Uniworld, whose boats feature Zagat-rated restaurants. If you think Paris is romantic, wait until
you see it at Christmas-time, with a special eight-day ‘Parisian Winter Holidays’ sailing on the 120-guest River Baroness. The itinerary includes Medieval Rouen, whose Christmas market is at Place de Cathedrale. Here, you will find hand- painted items as well as crafts and Norman specialities, including cheeses, cider and Calvados, an apple brandy from the Basse- Normandy region. Popular Christmas gifts are the “san-
tons,” traditional clay nativity figures from the Provençe region. Dates for these
Amsterdam to Basel featuring the wind- mills of Kinderdijk, Cologne’s monumental cathedral, the sandstone ruins of Heidelberg Castle, the Alsatian capital of Strasbourg and the picturesque Black Forest region, as well as all the Christmas markets and traditions (from £3,595-£4995). Another choice is ‘Christmas on the Dan-
CHRISTMAS MARKET CRUISE FACTFILE
MORE INFO (UK and US): AMAWATERWAYS, 0808 223 5009 and
www.AmaWaterways.co.uk, or 1800 626 0126 and
www.AmaWaterways.com; AVALON WATERWAYS, 0800 668 1802 and www.
avaloncruises.co.uk, or 1877 797 8791 and
www.avalonwaterways.com; SCENIC TOURS, 0800 690 6987 and
www.scenictours.co.uk, or 1866 689 8611 and www.
scenictours.com; TAUCK TOURS, 1800 788 7885 and
www.Tauck.com; UNIWORLD, 0845 678 8558 and
www.uniworldrivercruises.co.uk, or 1800 733 7820 and www.
uniworldrivercruises.com; VIKING RIVER CRUISES,
www.vikingrivercruises.co.uk and 0800 319 6660, or 1800 304 9616 and
www.vikingrivercruises.com.
ube,’ an 11-day journey from Nuremberg to Budapest. Christmas Eve is celebrated in Vi- enna and, on Christmas Day, passengers get to take a ride to the famous Vienna Woods, before going on to the Hungarian capital (from £4,295-£10,995). All of these river cruise lines will see to
it you are pampered and have the Christmas you have always hoped for, stress-free and with a relaxing festive atmosphere onboard. Even Santa may show up! The markets will bring you back to a sim- pler time, and history will come alive from one historic town to another. It could well be your favourite Christmas ever.
36 WORLD OF CRUISING I Autumn 2011
sailings are December 13, 20 and 27 (from £1,950-£3,425, including flights). ‘Classic Christmas Markets’ offers a
more traditional holiday itinerary on its eight-day Nuremberg to Frankfurt cruise on 132-passenger River Queen, which includes Bamberg and Würzburg (Rothenberg), home of Germany’s oldest Christmas markets, the Reiterlesmarkts, which date back to the 15th century (from £2,075-£3,425). Another choice is ‘Danube Holiday
Markets,’ an eight-day cruise from Budapest to Passau (or reverse) on the 162-guest River Beatrice, including Bratislava, Vienna, Krems (cruising the Wachau Valley) and Linz. Start- ing dates are Nov 28 and Dec 5, 12 and 19 (from £1,975-£3,425). Viking River Cruises offers a 10-day ‘Christmas on the Rhine’ cruise from
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