Itinerary: The Rhone and the Saone Rivers from Arles to Chalon-sur-Saone,
France
Pros: The boat was well planned and the food was consistently the
best I have ever been served on a cruise.
All members of the staff were friendly and did their jobs well.
Cons: The beds cannot be made into doubles. They are twins that
fold into opposite walls to reveal sofas beneath during the day.
The clientele is restricted to travelers where at least one member
of the party is over fifty. There was no gym and no exercise equipment
or hot tub.
TRIP DETAILS
We arrived in Nice on June 24 where we spent three days relaxing
on the French Riviera before taking a bus to board our riverboat
in Arles. The boat is designed for 120 passengers, but there were
only 80 on this sailing which meant no crowding anywhere at any
time.
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THE RIVERBOAT
The boat is designed to carry 120 passengers in 60 cabins. All
cabins are outside, and each has a large picture window or a balcony.
There is a lounge, a library, a large deck with lounge chairs topside,
24 hour passenger service desk, and a small gift shop. Our cabin
was of average size with a larger than average bathroom. There was
adequate storage space for two although the drawers were under the
bed when it was made up. They were easily accessible when the bed
was folded into the wall. There was a very convenient long shelf
above each bed and reading lights below the shelf to use when the
beds were down. Our cabin had a balcony through the sliding door/
window. The cabins without a balcony had another bank of drawers
and shelves for more storage, but I believe I got better use from
the balcony. We enjoyed time on it almost every day. Although we
seldom saw her, Fanny, the cabin attendant, kept the room spotless
and well supplied with linens at all times.
THE DINING EXPERIENCE
The first night we had a wonderful six course dinner which set
the standard for the rest of the meals. The starter was "symphony
of smoked salmon and jumbo shrimps with Keta caviar"; then
French onion soup followed by Scallops with a light Noilly Prat
Sauce served with vegetable strips and mashed potatoes with garlic
and olive oil flavor. The next treat was a small serving of sorbet
in a tall glass with sparkling wine. The main course was roasted
veal loin with Morel Sauce and accompaniments. Finally came the
Mousse of white and dark chocolate. Most of the time there was a
choice between a fish dish and another meat such as rack of lamb
or chicken breast. Portions were relatively small, but well prepared
and beautifully presented by a cheerful dining room staff who were
attentive to any request. Special dishes were prepared for those
on restricted diets. There was a single open seating for all meals.
Breakfast was served buffet style, and lunch varied between sit
down service and lavish buffets.
DAILY ACTIVITIES
There were two Program Directors who were responsible for all activities
both aboard the boat and ashore. When going ashore for walking tours
or other activities the passengers were usually broken into two
groups. One group was called "green" and had Claude as
their director; the other was "white", and traveled with
Elena. This made our numbers more manageable for walking tours with
local guides, wine tasting in a small town, included lunches served
in local restaurants, and bus tours. On board activities included
lectures about Wines and Cheeses of the area, French composers,
History and Geography of the area, French cooking, etc. In the evening
local musicians were brought aboard for entertainment or we participated
in other traditional cruise recreations such as horse racing or
dancing in the lounge. The library was comfortable and had a better
selection of reading material than the Radiance of the Seas that
serves over 2000 passengers.
After seven days we left the boat to spend three days in Paris
before heading home.
I found the cruise to one of the most enjoyable I have taken. I
would do it again in a flash, especially if I could travel with
the same passengers and the same program director. All contributed
to the overall vacation experience.
