Floating away on a Rhine River Cruise

Tomorrow I’m off on another adventure, cruising on one of the major waterways of Europe on a Rhine River cruise with Lüftner Cruises. I used to think of cruises as something that my parent’s generation would enjoy, but as time moves on, the thought of exploring many different places in comfort, while only having to unpack once, has grown in appeal.

This will be our first river cruise, so I’m keeping an open mind on what to expect, but anticipating that we’ll really enjoy the comforts of the Amadeus Princess which is essentially a floating luxury hotel. I’m looking forward to the gourmet food, the wine tastings and exploring picturesque towns, cities and castles along the Rhine.

Our journey starts in Basel in Switzerland before we briefly pass by the French border to at Strasbourg, the capital of the Alsace region with vineyards lining the banks. Next stop is Speyer with its Romanesque cathedral where many German emperors were buried and Mannheim which had its heyday in the 18th century. Next we’ll stop at Rudesheim with cobbled streets lined with wine houses that I know my husband will enjoy, then we move through a stretch of the Rhine that is known for the castles that overlook the river where we’ll be listening out for the Loreley or siren whose singing might tempt the unwary sailor onto the rocks. Where the Rhine and the Moselle rivers meet we stop at Koblenz, before ending our journey in Cologne where we disembark, although the ship continues on to Amsterdam.

I’ll be posting photos on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram throughout the cruise using the hashtag #RhineCruiseHC and of course I’ll be writing all about the trip on my return. In the meantime, I tried to find out as much as I could about European cruises, especially on the Rhine and came across these articles that you may also enjoy from other travel bloggers;

The Castle-studded Rhine River video – I enjoyed hearing Rick Steves talking about the medieval castles that line the banks of the Rhine that were built by princes to tax the trade going up and down the river.

10 reasons a river cruise is great for solo travellers – Janice Waugh of the Solo Traveler – Although I prefer to travel with my husband or other family and friends, I think a river cruise is a great option for a woman travelling alone.

Strasbourg, the capital of Christmas – Donna Hull of My Itchy Travel Feet  took a Rhine cruise that followed the same route as ours and enjoyed the festive atmosphere and Christmas markets in Strasbourg.

Seizing the moments of my journey with Viking River Cruise – Jeff Titelius of EuroTravelogue takes a river cruise through the Netherlands, enjoying the windmills and cheesy edam moments.

Thanks to Lüftner Cruises who are hosting our Rhine River Cruise and are specialists in European river cruises on the Danube, Rhine, Rhone and other major rivers of Europe

All photos provided by Lüftner Cruises

This article by Heather Cowper is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com - Read more travel articles at Travel Blog Home

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

 Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

5 Free Things To Do In Berlin

Berlin is one of Europe’s top cities to visit and is still getting more and more popular every year. Some trips can be pricy, however, so here are five things to do in Berlin that won’t cost you a euro.

East Side Gallery

One of Berlin’s most popular sites, the East Side Gallery, is also free! The Berlin Wall is one of the most recognisable and iconic outdoor artworks in the whole world.  The 1.3 kilometres stretch has 105 paintings provided by artists from all over the world.

Hope and freedom is the intended theme, as there was a real sense of each in the city when the Berlin Wall came down in 1989. The fall of the Berlin Wall meant that East Germans could be united with their Western neighbours once again and the paintings really do capture the optimism of the times.

You can walk the whole length of it in a short time, but you’ll likely stop at every painting to admire the work, so be prepared to spend the best part of an afternoon there. Start at ‘Ostbahnhof’ train station and go all the way along until the Oberbaumbrücke Bridge. This is the best way to get the most out of the Wall.

The Holocaust Memorial

This memorial is a must in Berlin as it is both thought-provoking and educational, and as it is free, there is no excuse not to visit.

More formally called, The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, this memorial makes sure that the Jews who died in WWII will never be forgotten. You’ll find 2711 concrete blocks – all different shapes or sizes to represent the fact that each of the six million Jews that died were also individuals.

You’ll also find an exhibition indoors with more information, so this is a sight you can’t miss.

The Reichstag – a parliament with a view!

It’s not in every city that the parliament building is considered a main tourist attraction, but in Berlin that is certainly the case.

You can climb the building’s iconic glass dome for free by climbing up the spiral walkways for fantastic 360º views of the German capital. Even check out the roof terrace; though be prepared for some wind!

This visit is completely free, but you must register in advance. It’s also recommended to avoid the afternoon – the busiest time, with the longest queues. Going in the evening is a good idea, especially as the city looks even better when all lit up after dark.

The Tiergarten

Berlin’s largest park, the Tiergarten, is found right in the heart of the city. Choose to sit down in a nice spot and admire the greenery and the ponds, or even go for a walk around some of the park’s 23km of walkways.

The park is the perfect picnic spot in the summer, while a visit in winter can be like stepping into a winter wonderland with untouched snow covering the grassy fields.

Brandenburg Gate

Brandenburg Gate is perhaps the most famous and most recognisable sight in the entire city, so a visit there while in Berlin is a must. And it’s also free! The gate stood between East and West Germany and was then a symbol of the new Germany when the Wall eventually fell in 1989.

At the start of the 19^th century, Napoleon’s forces took the chariot sculpture back with them to Paris as a war trophy. Don’t worry though! It was reclaimed by the Prussians just a few years later when they defeated the French and that means it is back in its rightful place today, where you can go and see it.

My thanks for this article go to Euan McTear from Oh-Berlin, provider of quality holiday apartments and accommodation in Berlin.

Photo credits: East Side Gallery by PAVDW, other photos from Heatheronhertravels.com.

More things to enjoy in Berlin

Inspired by the Anne Frank Museum in Berlin
Eat on the street in Berlin
Children at the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin

This article is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com - Read more travel articles at Travel Blog Home

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

 Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

Where Heather will be travelling in Spring 2013?

With 2012 behind us it’s time to look forward to exciting travel plans for 2013 – doesn’t everyone like to have something to look forward to? I want to share with you where I’ll be heading this spring and if you’ve visited these destinations and have any tips for me I’d love to hear from you.

January – A charity visit to Andhra Pradesh, India

What’s it all about? Through my local church I have connections with a rural parish near Kurnool, India and am trustee of a charity to support the education of children and other community projects there. My last visit to India for this charity was a few years ago when I spent a few days in a rural Indian village, meeting sponsored children, visiting a school and orphanage and visiting the stone quarries where many of the local people work, and I’m expecting that this visit will be very similar. Read about my experience Meeting my Indian sponsor child on my last visit.

What my travel plans? I’ll be flying in and out of Hyderabad where my hotel at Mercure Abids has been kindly provided by AsiaRooms.com, before driving up to Kurnool where I’ll be based while visiting the local villages where different families, schools and community projects are being supported. I’ll be travelling with another couple who are involved with the charity and we’ll return from Kurnool to Hyderabad by train which I’m expecting will be an experience in itself.

What am I hoping for? A bit of shopping for fun jewellery (I love my dangly earings) and cool Indian clothes, maybe some textiles or gifts in Hyderabad; Meeting the young girl and her family that I personally sponsor; Staying a night in the village with an Indian family to feel what it’s like to live on £1 a day; Seeing how the goats, mango trees, wells and community centres that our charity has helped support are helping the community.

January – A Country House Hotel break on Dartmoor, Devon

What’s it all about? My husband absolutely loves Dartmoor and we were there in August with my teenage son and some of his friends. On our walks across Dartmoor we spotted the Prince Hall Hotel that is within the Dartmoor National Park and I’ll be spending a weekend there with my husband. Read about our last Wild and Wet adventure weekend on Dartmoor.

What are my travel plans? It’s an easy drive down from Bristol to Dartmoor for the weekend and we hope to meet up with some friends who live locally as well as enjoying some walking and other activities on Dartmoor.

What am I hoping for? Good local food, roaring log fires, time to relax with my husband, bracing walks on the moor and adding a few Tors to our collection. We’ve arranged to do a bit of Nordic walking on Dartmoor which I’m hoping will leave us both feeling fit and healthy after the Christmas season.

February – a long weekend in Budapest

What’s it all about? I visited Budapest with my family in 2010 as part of a week’s holiday and loved the city which has both wide 19th century boulevards and medieval cobbled streets. As my niece is currently working in Budapest it seemed a great opportunity to pay a return visit with my parents to explore a bit more of the city. Listen to our Hungary holiday podcast, covering Budapest and Laka Balaton.

What are my travel plans? I’ll be there for a long weekend, hosted by Avios (previously Airmiles) where you can use points collected when you shop to fund flights, hotels and other travel services. We’ll be flying British Airways from London Heathrow and staying at the Intercontinental Hotel Budapest, an elegant, 5 star hotel overlooking the Danube. We’ll be exploring some of the sights on both sides of the river and discovering any local haunts that my niece can lead us to.

What am I hoping for? An interesting dynamic from spending time with different generations of my family, a visit to one of the famous Hungarian baths which I didn’t have time for on my previous visit, to find the restaurants where the locals rather than the tourist go that my niece can recommend, perhaps to learn a bit of Hungarian dancing (I hear it’s a rather cool thing to do these days).

April – Pretending I’m a surf chick in Morocco

What’s it all about? As my children are now old enough to travel independently and would rather be with their friends than their parents, I have to be a little devious when it comes to family holidays. My oldest son has taken to surfing in a big way, since he went to university in Wales, so when I heard that Taghazout in Morocco is a mecca for surfers, I decided it would be the perfect place for us to go for a family break over Easter.

What are my travel plans? We fly to Agadir and pick up a hire car, then drive up the coast to Taghazout where we’ll be renting an apartment by the beach. I’m not optimistic that I’ll be any good at the surfing, so I may stick to the yoga, but I’ve heard that there are a few interesting things to see nearby such as Paradise Valley where there are waterfalls and pools to swim in.

What am I hoping for? A laid back Moroccan vibe and youthful atmosphere that my teenage kids will enjoy, to get up on a surf board at least once in the trip, to try out some yoga and flex out those muscles that are stiff from sitting over a computer, to enjoy some delicious local Moroccan food and eat out every night without spending a fortune.

May – A European River cruise with my husband on the Rhine

What’s it all about? My husband has been telling me he’d like to try a river cruise and as his wish is my command, I’ve arranged for us to join a cruise on the Rhine with Lüftner Cruises. A few years ago I’d have mentally marked this as the kind of trip that my parents would enjoy and that I’d find rather tame, but as time passes I’m finding the idea of  seeing a lot of interesting places in comfort rather attractive.

What are my travel plans? We fly to Basel in Switzerland where we join our ship, the Amadeus Princess and over the next few days will stop at Strasbourg with excursions to visit the Alsace wine region, Speyer, Mannheim, Ruedesheim, Koblenz, Cochem and will disembark in Cologne to fly back to the UK.

What am I hoping for? An introduction to the whole river cruising experience, beautiful views of the castles and towns along the banks of the Rhine, great food and wine both on board and as part of some of the excursions, interesting sightseeing in the towns and cities that we visit on the cruise, to see a lot of different places while only having to unpack once and the chance to relax with my husband.

I’m really excited about all of my travel plans and am expecting that each of them will bring a different kind of enjoyment and experience. I hope you’ll follow along with me as I share these travel experiences on the blog, through videos and podcasts to bring you the sights and sounds of my experience and on my Twitter, Facebook and other social media channels.

If you have visited any of the places I’ve mentioned, please do leave me any tips that you have in the comments, I’m waiting to hear from you …..

Photo credits: Prince Hall Hotel by PrinceHall.co.uk, Taghazout by Vincentraal, Rhine River cruise by Lüftner Cruises, other photos by Heatheronhertravels.com

Disclosure: Some but by no means all elements of the trips I have planned are being hosted by the companies mentioned in this article.

This article by Heather Cowper is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com - Read more travel articles at Travel Blog Home

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

 Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

Next Page »