Jewels of the Rhine

8 days
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4.8/5 Excellent
24 reviews  
96%
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Cancellation Policy
River Cruise
Relax as you enjoy the natural beauty and spectacular cultural highlights of Europe’s most picturesque waterway. A river cruise along the Rhine introduces you to numerous historic castles that stand proud within the peaceful riverbank countryside; landmarks filled with legends; spectacular cities home to stunning European architecture that span countless cent...
From$2,545
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Overview

Trip type
River Cruise
Lodging level
Premium - 4 star
Physical level
Easy
Trip pace
Flexible schedule

Highlights

    • Explore 8 different cities, towns and villages with a guide during our included tours and shore excursions
    • Take an orientation walk through Amsterdam
    • Tour of Cologne’s Old Town
    • Visit the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress in Koblenz
    • Cruise the majestic Rhine Gorge
    • Explore the medieval town of Rudesheim
    • Visit Mannheim one of Germany's oldest cities
    • Spend a full day in the Black Forest region and visit the open air Vogtsbauerhof Museum and Germany’s largest Cuckoo Clock

What's this trip about?

    Relax as you enjoy the natural beauty and spectacular cultural highlights of Europe’s most picturesque waterway. A river cruise along the Rhine introduces you to numerous historic castles that stand proud within the peaceful riverbank countryside; landmarks filled with legends; spectacular cities home to stunning European architecture that span countless centuries; and enchanting storybooklike forests just waiting to be explored. Every stop on your eight day voyage presents the opportunity to gaze back in time to a period of European history, while also experiencing the modern day culture of fabulous cities like Amsterdam and Cologne.

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Details

Itinerary focusClassic Highlights
Group sizeStandard Group - 25 + people
Age range12 years and up
Flights and transportAll internal ground transport included
Start CityAmsterdam
End CityZurich

Travel Themes

  • 50 plus
  • Cultural
  • National Parks
  • Nature & Wildlife

Destinations

Attractions

  • Amsterdam
  • Basel
  • Heidelberg
  • Zurich

Activities

  • Culture
  • Historic sightseeing
  • Nature
  • Photography

Trip includes

    • Emerald Star Ships EXCLUSIVE to Emerald Waterways
    • The services of an Emerald Waterways Cruise Director
    • Port taxes and charges included
    • All tipping and gratuities included
    • Free airport transfers
    • 7 nights on a European river ship

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Itinerary

Travel Map

Day 1: Arrive Zurich – Basel

Meals: Dinner

Welcome to Zurich. You will be met and transferred from the airport to the dock in Basel. A warm welcome awaits you from your Captain and crew as you board your Emerald Waterways river cruise ship. After boarding, enjoy some time at your leisure t...

Day 2: Black Forest

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

The beautiful Black Forest region of Germany has long been a fairy tale destination. Commence your magical morning with the Vogtsbauernhof Museum, an open air exhibition of sixteenth century life, featuring a number of reconst...

Day 3: Mannheim

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Continue to the town of Mannheim, located at the confluence of the Rhine and Neckar rivers. The city was a pivotal place during the invasion of Germany by the Allies in WWII, and has long been associated with inventions in industry. Take an excursion to the medieval town of Heidelberg including a visit to the impressive castle which overlooks the town.

Day 4: Rüdesheim

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Today visit Rüdesheim, a medieval village on the banks of the Rhine. Take a gondola ride up to the Germania monument overlooking the Rhine Valley. The rest of the day is at leisure to enjoy the local shopping or relax on board in beautiful surroundings at the confluence of the Rhine and main rivers.

Day 5: Koblenz

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Sail through the spectacular Rhine Gorge, passing countless castles and vineyards as well as the infamous Lorelei statue and Pfalzgrafenstein Castle, which was built on an island in the middle of the river as a medieval toll s...

Day 6: Cologne

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Welcome to Cologne, founded by the Romans, the city is one of Germany's oldest and is famous for its magnificent World–Heritage listed Gothic Cathedral. Join your local guide for an included tour of the Old Town, with its beau...

Day 7: Amsterdam – Cruising

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

The ship sails along the Amsterdam Rijnkanaal and into Amsterdam. This afternoon join a glass top canal boat cruise and explore Amsterdam’s maze of canals or join Emerald Active for a guided walking tour around the famous land...

Day 8: Disembarkation Amsterdam

Meals: Breakfast

After breakfast, it’s time to farewell your fellow passengers and disembark your ship and transfer to Amsterdam airport for your onward or homebound flight (please book flights after 12 noon).

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Dates & Availability

Price From $2,545
Price per day$318
Last Updated: 8/2/2018

Check Current Availability, prices, specials with Emerald Waterways.

The total tour cost includes the tour price (regular or promotional) and the compulsory local payment. The promotional price is subject to change. Check directly with the operator for the latest price offer. The tour operator requires you to pay only the tour price to purchase your travel. The compulsory local payment will be paid when you join the trip. All prices are based on double, twin or triple share occupancy. Solo passengers will be accommodated in a double, twin or triple room according to availability with a passenger(s) of the same gender. Single supplement only needs to be paid if the passenger does not want to share and requests their own room. Discounts can only be applied at the time of booking and cannot be added at a later date, regardless of any changes made to the original booking.

Prices may vary due to local taxes and trip seasonality. Click "Request Info" to inquire directly with the tour operator for the final trip price.

Emerald Waterways Reviews & Ratings

4.8/5  Excellent
Excellent
22
Great
0
Average
1
Disappointing
0
Terrible
1
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Other Emerald Waterways Reviews

H

Horrible policy

Aug 2020

Awful customer service

We booked an Emerald Waterways river cruise a year ago and paid in full to get a discount. A river cruise was on our bucket list and our travel agent raved on and on...

B

Blake

Jun 2019

Excellent

All the staff were excellent, polite, helpful and cheerful.

J

Johnson

Jun 2019

It's such a great way

I loved going into the pool in the mornings - it's such a great way to start the day off!

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Travelers also viewed

Tour Operator

Emerald Waterways

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For the first time in six years, a new river cruise company is taking to Europe’s rivers. In 2014, Emerald Waterways made its debut and you’re invited to be among the very first guests to experience the next generation of European river cruising.

When it comes to exploring Europe, there’s nothing average about our itineraries. Our carefully crafted cruises range from 8 to 15 days, and take you to many of the most fantastic villages, towns and cities lining Europe’s Danube and Rhine rivers. And because we want you to fully appreciate the places you visit, we also include special experiences that uncover more than just the usual tourist attractions.

Launching a new fleet of custom-built Star Ships gave us a blank canvas to create a completely new design, and introduce an array of spectacular innovations you wouldn’t expect on a river cruise ship. To begin with, our ships boast an onboard heated swimming pool with retractable roof, which in the evening, transforms into a cinema.

And as an alternative to our main restaurant, Reflections, we offer alfresco dining on The Terrace at breakfast and lunch. Each of our ships offer a great range of cabins for you to choose from, including the Emerald Panorama Balcony Suite – a completely new type of cabin, designed by us. To replace the run-of-the-mill French Balcony that is commonplace on river cruise ships, we created a new kind of indoor balcony, complete with a decked area and our ingenious open-air system. With the touch of a button, the upper half of the cabin’s floor-to-ceiling window drops down to let in fresh air and provide full panoramic views of the landscape.

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Logistics

What's excluded

    • International Flights
    • Passport and Visa Charges
    • Personal Expenses

Accommodation

Ship & cabin information
Emerald Star-Ships
Emerald Dawn, Emerald Sky, Emerald Star, Emerald Sun.  On an Emerald Waterways river cruise, you can expect stylish and spacious ships, designed to ensure the most comfortable journey. What you wouldn’t have expected is a brand new fleet, custom-built to offer more space per guest than most other operators and to incorporate many spectacular ship innovations, unique to river cruising.
Built: 2014 Length: 135 metres Guests: 182 Staterooms Suites: 92 Crew: 47
Sun Deck Horizon Deck
Cancellation policy

Cancellation Notice. Cancellation notices must be issued to Emerald in writing during its regular office hours. Any changes to your tour departure date or name changes will be deemed a cancellation and the applicable cancellation fees will apply.

Cancellation Fees. In the event of cancellation, you will be liable to pay Emerald cancellation fees calculated in accordance with the following table. Please note that in the event of cancellation you may also be obligated to pay cancellation fees to third parties including, without limitation, airlines.

NO. OF DAYS’ NOTICE PRIOR CANCELLATION CHARGE

TO TOUR COMMENCEMENT (per person)

  • 90 days and greater Loss of Tour Deposit
  • 89-60 days 35% of Tour Price
  • 59-30 days 50% of Tour Price
  • Less than 30 days 100% of Tour Price
Travel Insurance
We strongly recommend purchasing travel insurance alongside your travel package to safeguard against unforeseen circumstances such as medical expenses, trip cancellations, and other contingencies. It offers you peace of mind and ensures you are prepared for unexpected events that may occur before or during your journey
Visa requirements
Visa requirements vary depending on your country of origin and your country of destination. It is your responsibility to familiarize yourself with the relevant requirements. For a handy tool that can help you quickly find the requirements, please visit this link .
Meals Included
  • 7 Breakfasts , 6 Lunches and 7 Dinners
Age Requirements
12 years and up
Additional Information

Superb Services

  • Emerald Star Ships EXCLUSIVE to Emerald Waterways
  • The services of an Emerald Waterways Cruise Director
  • Port taxes and charges included
  • All tipping and gratuities included
  • Free airport transfers
  • 7 nights on a luxury European river ship

Dining Highlights

20 superb meals including 7 Full Breakfasts (FB), 5 Lunches (L), 1 Highlight Lunch (HL), 7 Dinners (D)

Captain's Welcome Reception and Dinner

Captain's Gala Dinner

Complimentary wine, beer and soft drinks served with lunch and dinner whilst cruising

Trip ID
emeral-EWAB

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