Thinking of a cruising holiday? You’d be hard pushed to enjoy a more relaxing and inspiring time than sailing down the Rhine. And with RetireEasy’s new travel partner Cosmos, you can enjoy the special offer to RetireEasy subscribers announced in the last newsletter.
To me, a holiday is always better if it has water in it. And while being close to the sea or a lake is pretty wonderful, actually being ON the water has always felt like one stage better.
Some of my very favourite holidays have been spent afloat, and right up there amongst the best are the cruises I’ve been lucky enough to enjoy on the Rhine (it’s a tough job being a journalist sometimes). It’s not just that so many sections are incredibly beautiful, but also that typical cruise itineraries will allow you to drop anchor and sample some of Europe’s most scintillating cities along the way.
Each day on a Rhine cruise you wake up in a new location, recharged for the day ahead. You can take it precisely at your own pace – how much time you send ashore each day is up to you, and while many cruise operators offer you organised day trips, you can do your own research ahead of time and then do your own exploring.
Rhine cruises vary in length, but some will take you all the way from where it meets the sea (in the Netherlands) and through or past France, Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. So do (at the very least) take a French and German phrase book with you: the Dutch seem to speak better English than most Brits, so probably no need to master that!
The scenery changes constantly too as you move through the flat Rhine Delta then through the increasingly steep valley – complete with an endless supply of fairy-tale castles perched on vertiginous cliff faces and surrounded by forests.
Must see places along the way:
Amsterdam
Many cruises begin here, and Amsterdam has so much to offer if you have chance when you arrive or depart: picturesque canals punctuated by historic bridges to cross; street cafes in which to chill; unique architecture to admire; culture to soak up in places like the Museumplein (home to the Van Gogh Museum, Rijksmuseum and Stedelik Museum); and lashings of local cuisine to sample (raw herring anyone?).
You can also visit the unforgettable Anne Frank House, take in a windmill or two, and enjoy the astonishing array of flowers on sale in the local markets: Amsterdam’s Bloenmarkt will probably give you all your flowers in one fix!
Cologne
Cologne, like Amsterdam, is somewhere that you could spend a whole week and not get bored, so make the very most of your time if you drop into port here.
The city straddles the Rhine and it has retained enough of its historic architecture to delight anyone keen to absorb the High Gothic style that informs many of its best buildings.
The triumph, of course, is the twin-spired Cathedral, its interior adorned by a gilded medieval reliquary. No need to stray far to see another of its cultural jewels: next door is the Museum Ludwig which contains many great 20th century masterpieces, including some of Picasso’s best known works.
The city has over two millennia of history, and – if you want to dig right back – the Romano-Germanic Museum is home to many fascinating Roman antiquities. Cologne is regularly voted the country’s single most popular tourist attraction – and for a very good reason.
Koblenz
Koblenz sits on the confluence of the Rhine and the Moselle – and I can personally vouch for the fact that it’s a great place to sample local wines in one of the many vineyards on the south-facing banks of the river.
In common with many strategic cities, Koblenz lost some of its historic buildings in the War, but the Basilica of St Castor (which dates back 800 years) remains intact, as does the Electoral Palace (which contains an interesting museum). A more recent addition to the cityscape is the imposing statue of Kaiser Wilhelm I, erected in 1897 at the point where the two rivers meet. For the history bods amongst you, Wilhelm – together with Bismarck – achieved German unification.
Depending on your timings and your budget (it isn’t cheap), a spectacular cable car will take you up to the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress. Also recommended is the neo-Gothic Stolzenfels Castle, complete with some beautiful gardens.
Strasbourg
Here you’ll need your French phrasebook, but as Strasbourg hosts the European Parliament, expect to hear a multitude of languages as you move about the city or sit in one of its fine cafes or restaurants. The 15th century Cathedrale Notre Dame has an historic astronomical clock which puts on a fine show at 12.30pm every day.
Depending upon how much time you have, do try and slot in an hour or two exploring the delights of La Petite France, located on an island in the centre of the city. Interlaced with canals, it really is like a miniature Venice and has earned the status of UNESCO Wold Heritage Site.
Museum lovers amongst you, visit the Musee Alsacien where the rich tapestry of local arts, crafts and cultures are conveniently collected all in one place.
I could carry on talking about another dozen great places studding the journey. The joy of a cruise along the Rhine is that you’ll have the chance to visit a fabulous place each day. I defy anyone to be bored with an itinerary like this!
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