Rhine / Main / Danube River Cruise (Amsterdam to Rüdesheim)

The Rhine and the Danube once formed most of the northern frontier of the Roman Empire, and since those days the Rhine has been a vital navigable waterway, carrying trade and goods deep inland. The many castles and prehistoric fortifications along these rivers testify to its importance as a waterway.

Route of Rhine / Main / Danube River Cruise

Since the completion of the Main - Danube Canal in 1992, the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers combined to form a trans-European waterway from Amsterdam on the North Sea to Sulina on the Black Sea (approx. 3500 km).

Amsterdam Harbour at night

The Danube Delta near Sulina, Romania

Our cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest aboard the 443 feet Avalon Panorama takes us through five countries and 14 cities / towns over 15 days.

Avalon Panorama in Amsterdam

There is far too much to share about this epic voyage of discovery to condense into a single blog post so we've subdivided this trip into four sections:

1. Amsterdam to Rüdesheim - Amsterdam - Rhine Canal and the Rhine River
2. Rüdesheim to Bamberg - the Main River
3. Bamberg to Regensburg - the Main - Danube Canal and
4. Regensburg to Budapest - the Danube River

Adorning our Royal Deck suite

Before leaving Amsterdam Harbour and sailing to Cologne we took in the sights of the city's canals

then followed the Amsterdam - Rhine Canal the rest of the afternoon and evening through the farmland of North Holland, Utrecht and Gelderland. During World War II Gelderland was the scene of some of the heaviest fighting between the British and the Germans - known as the Battle of Arnhem. Movie buffs and Heath Ledger fans would recognise that in the 2001 film A Knight's Tale, Gelderland is the place of origin for William Thatcher's alias, Sir Ulrich von Liechtenstein.

We spotted a few of the remaining 145 windmills dating back to 1441 still remaining in Gelderland.

Gelderland Windmill

The 72 km long Amsterdam - Rhine Canal connecting the port of Amsterdam with the Rhine River has four locks and is the most heavily used canal in western Europe.

Entering the first lock on the Amsterdam - Rhine Canal

Cologne, our first port on the Rhine was practically destroyed by 262 WW2 Allied bombing air raids. By the end of the war, the population of Cologne had been reduced by 95% including the famous Twelve Romanesque churches . By 1959, the city's population reached pre-war numbers again and the reconstruction was completed by the 1990's.

Old city at dusk
from left to right: Deutz Bridge, Great St. Martin Church, Cologne Cathedral, Hohenzollern Bridge

A  Cologne Cathedral - the city's most famous monument is a Gothic church, started in 1248, and completed in 1880. Designated a World Heritage site, it houses the Shrine of the Three Kings that supposedly contains the relics of the Three Magi.

Cologne - view from Rhine south bank
left: Great Saint Martin Church, front: MS RheinEnergie and right: Cologne Cathedral

Continuing upstream we're treated with magnificent views of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley. 

Middle Rhine Valley

This 200 metre deep gorge contains magnificent castles traditional villages and terraced vineyards - its landscape has become the quintessential image of Germany. 

Castles above the Rhine River

Middle Rhine Valley

It's most famous feature - the Loreley is a 120 metre high rock face on the eastern bank of the Rhine near St. Goarshausen marks the narrowest part of the river between Switzerland and the North Sea. Very strong currents and rocks below the waterline have caused many boat accidents there.

River traffic passing the Loreley

The tanker barge Waldhof capsized near Lorelei Rock earlier this year blocking the river for a month  stranding nearly 250 ships.

Waldhof  being recovered

Shortly after passing the Loreley we called into the riverside village of Miltenberg. This town boasts a real gem - Siegfried's Mechanical Musical Instrument Museum.

Miltenberg

It's the first German museum exhibiting working data-storage musical instruments. From the gentle musical clock to the orchestrion, which weighs tons, we saw and heard a cross-section from four centuries. For us the highlight was a unique collection of machines with self-playing strings. Check out this video of the unique Hupfeld Violina Orchestra.

Hupfeld Violina Orchestra

The museum contains over 350 instruments from the distinctive 18th century music box to a massive fairground organ.

Bernhard Dufner’s band of 27 automatic dolls, each one playing a different instrument
(the largest Doll Automaton calliope ever built)

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As promised, the next post will take you along the Main River to Bamberg. In the meantime please keep sending in your comments and questions.

If you're unsure which stories you've missed - look for the Blog Archive near the bottom of the page - it's the best way to select the post you haven't read yet (or want to re-read).