Globus Avalon Tranquility
Small-Ship Cruising
Germany, Medieval Cities, & Ancient Roman Works
Cities, Villages, Rivers, & Water Locks
Sightseeing, Dining, & Music
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Front view of Ship Avalon Tranquility. |
Side view of Ship Avalon Tranquility. |
Tours
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Globus Avalon River-Cruise Tour
We were on a Globus Avalon small-ship river-cruise tour that started in Prague, where there were two nights on the tour. From Prague we were taken to Nuremberg, Germany to board The Avalon Tranquility for our seven-night cruise through Central Germany. For a summary of the daily excursions in each of the towns visited as well as some beautiful scenes viewed from the ship while cruising go to Central Germany Cruise. The tour ended in Paris where we spend two nights. Details of the ship, onboard activities, dining, and more are presented here.
Small-ship cruising
Globus Avalon offers small-ship cruising in China, Egypt, Europe, and the Galapagos Islands. Here we discuss cruising the rivers of Europe, and in particular a cruise through Central Germany on the Avalon Tranquility. By comparison with many ocean-going cruise ships the ships on the rivers are really small. Instead of maybe one thousand, several thousand, or more than five thousand cruisers now found on the big ships, fewer than two hundred cruisers were on our ship. The people came from English speaking countries including the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. It was a delight being able to make new friends and share ideas with people from the different corners of our planet.
The rivers in Europe connect the old cities which go back to medieval times and some even further back to Roman and Grecian times. The reasons for this are easy to understand because the rivers provided easy transportation and commerce between the old cities. It is quite fascinating and very interesting to tour the old cities as well as to shop for souvenirs. Unlike the open ocean, where often there is little to see, the rivers showcase beautiful natural scenery as well as charming villages and sometimes structures like Ancient Roman bridges or medieval castles. There is always something to see on the riverbanks.
A river cruise is similar to a motor coach tour with the important difference that your room, restaurant, and other facilities move with you.
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Buffet serving area for breakfast and lunch. |
Dining room on the Ship Avalon Tranquility. |
Avalon Tranquility
Our ship was the Avalon Tranquility, which was built in 2007. There are three decks and the ship is 443 feet (135 meters) long. Staterooms are all on the outside and with great views. There are eighty-one staterooms and four Jr. suites. In addition to staterooms on the ship you find the reception, foyer, restaurant, lobby, hairdresser, bar, lounge, outside viewing deck, fitness center, and the sky deck with deck chairs. The staterooms include a bed, toilet, sink, shower, closet, writing desk, and sliding glass doors (except the few on the lower deck). The Jr. suites also include a sofa.
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Passing under an Ancient Roman bridge. |
One of many nice scenes cruising the rivers. |
Dining
The food served is of high quality. There are both regional specialties and Western favorites offered. For breakfast and lunch there are tasty buffets with lots of choices. Dinner is served at tables with open seating. The meals include a selection of appetizers, soups, entrees (vegetarian choice offered), and deserts. Coffee, tea, and regional wines, both red and white, are complementary. When cruising the rivers many vineyards are seen.
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Bar on the Ship Avalon Tranquility. |
Lounge on the Ship Avalon Tranquility. |
Sightseeing
When sightseeing the sights that most people want to see are included as part of the cruise package. Often we were divided into small groups, each with its own guide. All of the guides are local to the cities, cathedrals, castles, or any other sights. The guides all spoke fluent English and headsets were worn so that there was never any difficulty in hearing what was said. It is a great way to both learn a lot and see fascinating sights.
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Musician entertaining in the lounge. |
Cruise director Barbara Bocz. |
Onboard the ship
Onboard the ship there were numerous lectures about what we were going to see as well as interesting remarks about the region and its history. Some of the talks were given by a speaker that joined the ship for a few hours. Most of the talks were given by our Cruise Director, Barbara Bocz. She was outstanding as a speaker, and would make a great college professor. In fact, all of the day-to-day organizing was done by Barbara, and she did a fantastic job. This is typical of a Globus guide or tour/cruise director. There was also nightly piano music and one night the crew put on a skit, which was enjoyed by all. It should be noted that Globus Avalon was awarded the prestigious Conde Nast Traveler Gold List 2009 award.
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Beautiful village scene on the Rhine River. |
Castle on the Rhine River. |
Water locks
When rivers flow on sloping terrain water locks are built at different places along the rivers so that for each stretch between the locks the water is level. This makes ship travel on the sloping rivers possible. When going down river, such as between Nuremberg and Trier in Germany, the locks are used to lower a ship to each new water level. Going the reverse direction upstream a ship is raised in water level at each lock.
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Crew members during the ship skit night. |
Entering a water lock. |
In the first of the sequence of three pictures of a water lock the ship waits for the green light before entering the lock. The second picture shows the ship being lowered in water depth. Finally, in the last lock picture the ship is ready to continue at the reduced water level of the river, and the gate is opened.
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Lowering in water depth to the water level |
Moving forward at the lower water level |
River cruise-tour pages
The cruise tour began with two nights in Prague. From there we were taken to Nuremberg, Germany to board the Avalon Tranquility. For details of the seven-night cruise see the Central Germany Cruise. After sightseeing in Trier, Germany we were taken across Luxemburg to board a high speed train for a quick trip to Paris. The tour ended with 2 nights in Paris.
Photos by Sunny Breeding. We sell images and prints.
