Artistry II Embarkation Basel

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Embarkation Process

If you've been on ocean cruises before, and not on a river cruise, you'd notice several differences upon arrival at the embarkation port.

You'll probably first notice it's a much smaller ship with not as many people.  Perhaps one of the most dramatic, and welcome differences, was how easy the embarkation process is. 

As our motor coach approached, we got our first glance at the ship.   Within minutes, we were onboard the ship, with just our hand luggage.  There were no porters greeting us, since our checked bags would be handled by the crew.   We walked up the gangway and were directed to the lounge.

Checking In

Once everyone was in the lounge, one of the crew members directed each family to the reception desk.  We turned in our passports and were given our cabin "keys" (plastic cards with a magnetic strip keyed for your cabin).   One of the crew members then escorted us to our cabin.  That was the entire embarkation process.   We'd pick up our passports the next day and could provide our credit card information, for the onboard account, at any time during the cruise - no hassle.

Embarkation Day Information

Once we were inside our cabin, we found welcome aboard information about the schedule for the rest of the evening.  We had some time before the mandatory safety drill, so we went up on the sky deck to start checking out the ship.

It's time to freshen up a bit before the evening program, so we'll take a break and continue with the rest of the story in our next post.

^{Additional photos can be found on our Rhine & Moselle Shutterfly page}

 
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Beautiful Lucerne

Mount Pilatus Excursion Continued
 
Before driving to Basel for embarkation we visited the beautiful lakeside city of Lucerne.

Located in the area of four big Swiss lakes, Lucerne has been praised by Marc Twain as well as millions of visitors who cannot imagine Switzerland without Thorvaldsen's impressive Lion Monument, the wooden "Chapel Bridge" or the finest stores.

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Free Time in Lucerne

When we arrived in Lucerne, our guide pointed us in the direction of the Lion Monument, shown above, and told us to take a few photos and come back to the meeting point.  From there, she walked us  to the Chapel Bridge and told us we could explore for about an hour before the bus would return to pick us up.

We spent most of our time exploring the bridge, taking pictures of the surrounding area from every angle imaginable.   It is quite a photogenic city.
After completing our quick photo journal, we headed for the shops to get some ice cream and chocolates.

Transfer to Basel

With our sightseeing completed, it was now time for our bus driver to complete his mission of delivering us on time to our awaiting ship in Basel, Switzerland.  We still had about an hour's drive before we'd get there, especially in the heavy traffic near the city.

We were glad that we'd pre-booked this excursion for embarkation day.  The other option was a Zurich City Tour, and since we'd already toured that on our own, this tour was the perfect compliment to our cruise package.

^{Additional photos can be found on our Rhine & Moselle Shutterfly page:} 

Lucerne

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Excursion to Mount Pilatus

Our First Avalon Excursion

We'd had a wonderful day in Zurich on our own, but now it was time to let Avalon take over with the excursions.  We pre-booked the Excursion to Mount Pilatus and had been looking forward to this tour.

We boarded a bus headed at the Movenpick Hotel  with several of our fellow passengers.  Our checked baggage was in the storage compartments and our hand luggage (mainly cameras & computers) were with us above our seats.  This is the reason why the cruise line had requested carry on bags without wheels.

Gondola Ride

Mount Pilatus (2132m / 7000 ft) presents its visitors with a thrilling ascent by cable car, spectacular summit views of the 10.000 ft. Bernese Alps (Eiger, Monk and Jungfrau) to the south and Lake Lucerne to the north, followed by the steepest cog-wheel descent in the world.
In 1868 Queen Victoria made the excursion riding on the back of a mule.

When we arrived at Mount Pilatus, we were given a card which we'd need to insert in several turnstiles  during the tour.   To make it easy to identify the group, we were also given Globus Mount Pilatus baseball caps.

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The view from the gondola was spectacular.  There had been some cloud cover, but the visibility was improving as time went on during our visit.   Once to the top, we had free time to explore from the observation deck and the caves (which we highly recommend).   There was also a restaurant and shops, all of which we visited.   You are actually inside the hotel lobby when you get off the gondola.

Mount Pilatus Caves

In medieval times, it was believed that dragons with healing powers lived in the rugged clefts and crevices of Mount Pilatus.  Read more

We spent about 30 minutes exploring the caverns taking pictures framed by the openings.  If you get chilled, you might want to bring a light jacket or sweater as it is cooler inside the passages.

Don't miss this part of the excursion.   It is also possible to climb stairways to get even a higher vantage point if you are so inclined.

 Enjoying a Snack

Our guide said that the barley soup and apple strudel were very good.  She also suggested having a cup of Swiss hot chocolate.  We took here advice and tried all three of them.  They were very good indeed.

After our snack, we had just enough time to check out the gift shop before it was time to meet for the descent via cogwheel railway.


Cogwheel Railway

The descent from Mount Pilatus isn't by gondola.  It is via the world's steepest cogwheel railway with the maximum grade of 48% and the average of 38%.  It takes approximately 40 minutes to complete the descent.

Tip:  If traveling with someone else, we'd suggest sitting across from each other so that you can take photographs in various directions, if so inclined.   The best view isn't always ahead of you, as you can see from our photos.

Next Stop - Lucerne

We boarded our bus for a short ride to the city of Lucerne for the second part of the excursion.  We'll discuss that in our next post.

This is day one of the cruise and I'm already smiling in a picture. I posed in front of the famous Lion Monument.  For those that know me, I'm not a big fan of being in pictures, so I rarely smile in them. When I do, that means I'm really enjoying the trip.

^{Additional photos can be found on our Rhine & Moselle Shutterfly page:} 

Pilatus - Gondola
Pilatus - View
Pilatus - Cave Tunnels
Pilatus - Cogwheel Railway

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Zurich Boat Tour

Round Trip Lake Zurich

Our final destination was Bürkliplatz, a dock and the starting spot for tours on Lake Zurich. Once again we were able to take advantage of the transportation benefit of the ZürichCARD for a 30 minute round tip boat ride on Lake Zurich.

We only had a short wait before the boat arrived. We decided to sit outside to get a good view of the lake and surroundings.

When the Weather is Hot ...

Head for the Water

Zurich is acity of water par excellence, where bathing is a cult. Everyone finds a place to cool down with a summer swim in the river or lake.   We saw many people enjoying the various outdoor pools during our boat trip.   

Some of those same water spots turn to nightclubs when the sun goes down.   (click on images to enlarge).


Back to the Hotel

After taking a few photos of  the statue of Ganymede and Zeus (represented as an eagle) at Bürkliplatz, on the shore of Zürichsee (Lake Zürich), we headed back to our hotel.  This time we decided to take the S-Bahn S7 train back to Movenpick Hotel.   Both the tram and train tracks are about two blocks from the hotel.   The train was much faster than the tram since there were fewer stops.   

Since it was after 7:30 PM, it was now time to call it a day.  We'd been on the go since landing around 7:15 AM.   When traveling overseas, it is a good idea to stay active and then go to bed in the evening so that you start to get accustomed to the time change.   

^{Additional photos can be found on our Rhine & Moselle Shutterfly page:} 

Zurich - Boat Trip

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Felsenegg Lookout

Zurich's Panoramic Restaurant

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After touring the National Museum, it was time for some lunch, so we inquired about getting to the Panoramic Restaurant.

The guide book that came with the ZürichCARD didn't provide details about how to get to the restaurant for some reason. Since we'd left all our printed information back at the hotel, we figured the main train station information booth was our best bet for obtaining directions. They could tell us about how to get there and they also directed us to the tourist information desk for more details about our other plans.

 
Getting There

This short trip takes you up to one of the nicest lookout points in the Zurich area: Felsenegg. Getting up there is fun, with the only aerial cable car operating in the canton of Zurich.

First, take the S4 train in direction Langnau-Gattikon and get off after 15 minutes in Adliswil. From there it's a well sign-posted 10-minute walk to the valley station of the aerial cable car, which leaves every 15 minutes for Felsenegg.

  Journey to the Top ...

Once you are up there, refresh yourself in the restaurant and of course take in the view of the city, the lake and the Alps.

 We had ham & Swiss cheese sandwiches with an apple strudel for dessert.   It was excellent (and the view was great too).   It was well worth the effort to get there.

^{Additional photos can be found on our Rhine & Moselle Shutterfly page:} 

 Zurich - Felsenegg

 
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National Museum Zurich

Landesmuseum Zürich

The National Museum Zurich is located across from the train station in the heart of Zurich. This popular museum of cultural history, with its extraordinary 19th century architecture, has been designated a historical monument of national importance.

This was our first stop using the ZürichCARD, which gave us free entry to the museum.  Note that you'll have to check any bags in lockers that are provided free of charge.  You are allowed to take photographs, but please don't use flash when viewing any of the antique art works.


With over 820,000 exhibits, the Swiss National Museum has the largest collection documenting the cultural history of Switzerland and Swiss arts and crafts.



Interiors & Building Elements

A great variety of period rooms and individual building elements from the 15th to the 17th century. Partially reconstructed in the museum.

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These stained glass windows were just a small part of this collection.


Sculptures & More

In addition to furnishings, the museum boasts an outstanding collection of medieval wood carvings and framed altarpieces from Switzerland during the Middle Ages.




Despite spending quite an amount of time at the museum, we only scratched the surface of all the collections.

We highly recommend visiting this museum if you have any interest in learning more about Switzerland's history.  

This visit to Zurich was part of our pre-cruise stay before our Rhine & Moselle river cruise on the beautiful Avalon Artistry II.   We are writing a complete diary of our trip, with much more to come, including photo albums.



 
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Continue with us as we head for some lunch next. Can you guess where we might be headed (hint:  there's a panoramic view from the location)?    Click the image to continue the visit other posts in the series. 


 

Save Time and Money in Zurich

ZürichCARD
Your City Travel Pass

Tip: With the ZürichCARD, you can enjoy Zurich in all its diversity – and save time and money too. 

We arrived in Zurich, Switzerland one day before our Avalon Waterways river cruise so that we could be accustomed to the time change and have some time to explore the area.

Since we planned to use public transportation, including trams, trains, and boat, plus we wanted to see at least one museum, it made sense to purchase the ZürichCARD.  We purchased it at the airport tourist information counter.  It can also be purchased at train stations and online on their website.

Validate Your Card

Prior to using your card for the first time, you must validate it at a machine in a train station. Since our hotel had a shuttle, we didn't need to use the card for transportation right away, but we decided to do the validation at the airport's train station. You can find an orange machine, like the one pictured, in the lower level of the train station across from the baggage claim (and tourist information counter).

 Purchasing at Train Station

We met another couple, who were also going on our cruise, when we checked in at the hotel.   We talked about sight-seeing together and we explained the benefits of purchasing the ZürichCARD.

They purchased the cards, using a credit card, from an automated touch-screen terminal by the train tracks.   The validation rule still applied - either insert in the orange validation machine (which might be on the opposite side of the tracks) or in the slot to the left of the screen.
(click on images above to enlarge)

Benefits of the ZürichCARD

• Unlimited 2nd class travel on all forms of public transportation in the city of Zurich and surrounding region
• Free or reduced admission to the majority of Zurich’s museums 
• 10 to 20% discount in various local stores 
• Culinary surprise in selected restaurants 
• 50% discount on public city tours organized by Zurich Tourism
• Many more discounts on a variety of cultural and leisure activities

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You can purchase the card for 24 hour or 72 hour periods.  As of this writing, the price for Adults was CHF 24 (EUR 24) and CHF 48 (EUR 48) respectively.  We only needed 24 hour period in our case.

We'll tell you more about how we used the card in additional posts. 

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Heading for Zurich

Avalon Waterways

The Rhine & Moselle Northbound

Pre-Cruise Travel 

Chicago - NY - Zurich

The requirement for the cruise was to be in Zurich, Switzerland by 3 PM on Monday, July 13th for transfer to the ship.   There were pre-cruise hotel stays and excursions also offered by Avalon Waterways.   

 

As usual, we prefer to arrive in our disembarkation city at least a day early, especially in the case of trans-Atlantic departures.  We opted for one night  hotel stay and the optional Excursion to Mt. Pilatus with transfer to ship.   The flights were booked independently using miles.  

Connecting Through New York

When using frequent flier mileage for your flights, there are limitations in the flights you can select, especially if you want to minimize the number of miles consumed.   In our case, we opted for connecting flights through New York.   This added a twist, since the connections included changing planes AND airports.

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LGA to JFK

Our flight from Chicago departed Saturday, July 11th at 10:10 AM and arrived in New York (LGA) shortly after 1 PM.   We claimed our luggage and headed for the NYCAirporter counter to purchase transfer tickets to New York's JFK airport.   

TIP: The cost is $13 per person for this approximately 30 minute ride.   You need to allow plenty of connection time for this transfer because New York traffic can be 
unpredictable, and check-in time at JFK will take quite some time as well.

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The LGA to JFK transfer leaves the American Airlines baggage claim area every 30 minutes.  We were able to catch the 1:30 PM shuttle which arrived around 2 PM.    We proceeded to TSA security check-in, which had very long lines and took awhile to complete.

After passing security, we noticed the sculpture pictured above which was quite appropriate: "From New York to the World".  Our next stop was the American Airlines Admirals Club lounge for some snacks before our 4:45 PM flight to Zurich which arrived at 7:55 AM local time.

We had an on-time departure for Zurich, Switzerland.  In our next posts we'll talk about our pre-cruise adventures and then continue with more information about this fabulous river cruise.

Diary of Avalon Rhine & Moselle River Cruise

Avalon Waterways

The Rhine & Moselle Northbound

MS AVALON ARTISTRY II^®

The Rhine flows through six countries (Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, France, Germany and The Netherlands).  We began our journey in Zurich, Switzerland and ultimately ended up in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

When 2015 began, we had not anticipated taking a river cruise this year, but several events put things in motion which ultimately ended up with our selecting this particular river cruise.

We'll share our story, including the highlights of the cruise.   It will take some time to tell the complete story, so we've created this "anchor" page.  It will later become an in-depth reference for anyone planning a similar adventure.
  

Bookmark this page, follow us on our various social media outlets, and  join us on our journey.  

	Port	Blog Posts	Photo Albums
	Planning, Travel, Tips & More	Heading for Zurich Save Time and Money in Zurich	Zurich - Movenpick Hotel
Pre	Zurich, Switzerland	National Museum Zurich Felsenegg Lookout Zurich Boat Tour	Zurich - National Museum Zurich - Stained Glass (National Museum)  Zurich - Felsenegg Zurich - Boat Trip
1	Zurich, Switzerland	Excursion to Mount Pilatus Beautiful Lucerne	Pilatus - Gondola Pilatus - View Pilatus - Cave Tunnels Pilatus - Cogwheel Railway Lucerne
	Avalon Artistry II	Artistry II Embarkation Evening Artistry II Embarkation Basel Artistry II Embarkation Dinner Welcome Aboard Avalon Artistry II How Suite It Is on Artistry II Avalon Panorama Bistro Dinner Avalon Artistry II Chef's Dinner Avalon Artistry II Galley Tour  Avalon Wheel House	Basel - Embarkation Artistry2 - Embarkation Evening Artistry 2 - Embarkation Dinner Avalon Artistry II   Avalon Artistry II - Panorama Bistro  Artistry II - Chef's Dinner Avalon Artistry II Galley Artistry II Wheel House
2	Breisach, Germany	Excursions in Breisach On-board Buffet Lunch Breisach Afternoon Excursion to Colmar Colmar Unterlinden Museum Breisach Welcome Dinner	Breisach - Black Forest Colmar - Walking Tour Colmar - Unterlinden Museum
3	Strasbourg, France	Strasbourg Complimentary Visit Avalon Grill Lunch History Lesson Near Strasbourg Strasbourg Shopping Strasbourg Evening Program Sail-Away from Strasbourg	Strasbourg - Canal Boat Tour Strasbourg - Walking Tour Strasbourg - Cathedral Strasbourg - Grill Lunch Strasbourg - Maginot Line Strasbourg - Evening Strasbourg - Sail-Away
4	Mannheim, Germany	Heidelberg Castle & Courtyard View from Heidelberg Castle  Helidelberg Walking Tour Playing Hide & Seek with Artistry II Late Afternoon Tour of Mainz Spending Evening in Mainz	Heidelberg - Castle Ruins Heidelberg - Castle Courtyard Heidelberg - Castle Barrel Building Heidelberg - View from Castle Heidelberg - Old Town Mainz - On Our Own Mainz - St. Stephan Mainz - Cathedral
5	Rudesheim, Germany	Self-Playing Musical Instrument Collection Rüdesheimer Coffee Tasting Cable Car in Rüdesheim Rüdesheim Shopping Castles Villages & Vineyards Oh My Middle Rhine River - Loreley Avalon Panorama Bistro Dinner	Rudesheim - Siegfried's Museum Rüdesheimer Coffee Tasting Rüdesheim - Cable Car Rüdesheim - Return Ship Romantic Rhine Cruising Avalon Artistry II - Panorama Bistro
6	Bernkastel, Germany	Good Morning Bernkastel Taste of Bernkastel  Visit to Landshut Castle Bernkastel Wine Tasting Avalon Artistry II Chef's Dinner	Bernkastel - Walking Tour Landshut Castle Bernkastel - Wine Tasting Artistry II - Chef's Dinner
7	Grevenmacher, Luxembourg	Grevenmacher to Trier Trier City Tour Sunday in Trier Luxembourg City Tour Notre-Dame Cathedral Luxembourg More Luxembourg Prominent Attractions Sailing from Luxembourg	Grevenmacher to Trier Porta Nigra Trier - Churches Trier - Market Square Trier - City Tour Drive to Luxembourg Luxembourg City Luxembourg Notre-Dame Sailing from Luxembourg
8	Cochem, Germany	Cochem Town Walk Reichsburg Castle Cochem St. Martin Chuch Cochem German Lunch Buffet Cochem to Koblenz Thanksgiving Dinner in Koblenz	Cochem Walking Tour Cochem - Reichsburg Castle Cochem - St Martin German Lunch Evening in Koblenz Koblenz Dinner
9	Koblenz, Germany	Sayn Butterfly Garden Sayn Palace St Castor Basilica Koblenz Rhine Moselle Confluence Cogwheel to Dragons Castle Avalon Dinner in Königswinter	Sayn Butterfly Garden Sayn Palace Koblenz - St Castor Basilica Koblenz - Confluence Konigswinter Konigswinter Dinner
10	Cologne, Germany	Walking Tour Cologne Cologne Cathedral Sailing From Cologne Avalon Wheel House	Cologne Walking Tour Cologne Cathedral (Interior) Cologne Cathedral (exterior) Cologne Sail-away Artistry II Wheel House
	Kinderdijk, Netherlands	Inside a Kinderdijk Windmill Kinderdijk - Old Meets New  Artistry II Farewell Dinner Overnight in Hoorn Netherlands	Inside Kinderdijk Mill Kinderdijk Artistry II Farewell Evening in Hoorn
12	Volendam, Netherlands
13	Amsterdam, Netherlands

Rhine & Moselle River Cruise Play all

Video Diary of Avalon Rhine & Moselle River Cruise on Artistry II. This was a 13 day river cruise that started in Zurich, Switzerland and concluded in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

We posted a few teaser images during our cruise on our Facebook page.  Now we are completing the story - come back often.

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