The storey started a few months back. We wanted to take a cruise down the Rhine, well I wanted to take the whole journey from Rotterdam, up the Rhine, then take the Main Canal and down the Danube ending up at the Black sea. But there were two problems, time and money. Because of the limits of the boat size most of the cruises are tending towards the luxury end of the market. And I am sure they are absolutely wonderful, I would just like to spread my currency around a bit further. I searched a bit and found that you can do a day trip on the most scenic part of the Rhine, the Rhine Gorge as it is often called – “a castle on every corner” So here we are doing the Budget Rhine Cruise.
We stood on the shore and watched our boat coming towards us – crabways as it tried to cross the fast flowing current and pick us up, ropes were thrown, and the Captain yelled NO – ropes were dropped and the boat had to re-try. Better the second time and we all trooped on. We of course went on the front deck and found easy to move chairs and a good view. The boat was not too full so we could get a railing side seat and off we set down stream.
- The views fall into two categories
- what is on shore
- what is on the river.
But first a bit about The River.
The Rhine is 1200km long, travels through 6 countries and has an average discharge if 2900 cubic metre per second. In comparison the Murray River is 750 cubic metres per second and the Orange River 365.
The river has been a major access route from when the first humans wished to travel, in those days Europe was a dense forest and the rivers the easiest access routes. Even after the advent of rail to move goods the river is still a major highway for freight.
We travelled from Kaub to Koblenz, probably about 40km. The boat picked up and dropped passengers at many small piers, although some stops could not be done because of the high water.
I remember listening to a workmate describing his Rhine River Cruise as ‘a castle around every corner’. Well he was right. There are about 40 castles in this area, built in the middle ages as territorial statements and to collect tax on river traffic.
In addition the area is intensely farmed for wine grapes. Interesting for us that the rows are up and down the slopes and every small area is used. The photographs don’t show well how steep the banks are, we did think how difficult it must be to prune and pick on such steep slopes. There are many small villages on the shore, some quite touristy and others more functional. We did not stop at any as we did not have enough time and the next boat was a few hours behind us
The murky day did not help our photography, but the sky was bright and the trees dark – difficult and frustrating high contrast situation. But here are a few pictures to show what we were watching. The trip was good value as there is something to see all the time
- The good and bad of a Budget Rhine Cruise
- Great value for money
- Would have liked to go for longer
- Good can link with the train
- Difficult to get from piers to the station
- Very budget ie very casual
- If you dont want any hassel and lots of freedom, this is good
- Too few boats when we went, we could not get off for an hour at a village and get the next one.
Next – Marksburg Castle