June 21st – July 2nd, 2023
Taking a trip with another couple that you have never traveled Internationally with before has the potential for being fabulous or a complete disaster. Fortunately for us, it fell into the wonderful category.
I must admit that I was slightly nervous and felt a lot of responsibility as I had recommended this cruise line and itinerary, selected the shore excursions, and the post cruise hotel. I also kind of played the unofficial tour guide in Zurich and to a smaller extent, in Nuremberg.
We wanted this to be a very special trip for two dear, dear friends. The pressure was on…
Thankfully everything went smoothly. We laughed and ate (and ate) our way through three countries, saw some incredible, beautiful and interesting historical sites, took a bazillion pictures, and brought home fantastic memories.
Here is a recap and what I consider some of the highlights of our trip:
Zurich, Switzerland
bridge above the Limmat River in Zurich
Zurich is a beautiful, modern, progressive city with its act together. From their solid architecture to their even more impressive transportation system (including boats, metro trains and funiculars), they make it easy to get around.
But what impressed me even more was their abundance of beautiful fountains found throughout the city with fresh, clean water.
Staying at the five-star Dolder Grand Hotel was icing on the cake. Normally I would not have booked a hotel in this price range, as I’m a bit more frugal, but it was included in our Uniworld package and I enjoyed every moment there. Plus the food was over-the-top delicious and the presentation unmatched.
To read more about our time in Zurich, click here. And if you want even MORE sightseeing tips and sites to see you can click here and here to read about our visit to Zurich in 2016.
ON BOARD THE RIVER PRINCESS
Several things stand out about our time on board. Obviously the food was a big part of our enjoyment and I dutifully shared a picture of our menu choices and a few selected meals every night. Freshly prepared and artfully presented, we felt pampered and well cared for at meal time.
Other special moments included going through the first few locks. Steve had been in the Navy and found how we navigated through the locks and were either lifted or lowered to another level (similar to using an elevator, but floating on water) quite interesting.
One of my favorite evenings was when the four of us were up on the top deck as we slowly cruised down the Rhine River, visiting and sharing our excitement that we were finally “here”.
And of course the 70’s night makes me smile when I think of all the costumes, laughter, disco dancing and our DJ playing our favorites from that era.
Strasbourg , France
This was the very first city to have its entire city center be listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
You can read all about our day in Strasbourg here. And a post from 2016 where we were able to go inside the cathedral can be seen here.
Frankfurt, Germany
We have now transitioned from the Rhine to the Main River and some cities Tim and I have not been to before.
How our first stop in Germany was described on my original post, “Frankfurt is known as the “Mainhattan” of Europe—“main” because the Main River flows through the city. A financial powerhouse with soaring skyscrapers as well as traditional Old Town architecture, Frankfurt is a city full of energy and culture”.
the outdoor Frankfort Christmas Market
An unexpected experience was finding out that the annual Green Sauce Festival was happening only a few blocks from where our tour ended. I had read an article about their famous green sauce before our trip and had been curious to try it.
For me, one of the true highlights, not just of the day, but the entire trip was the private performance by concert violinist, Marta Kovalova, that evening on board our ship.
For more about our day in Frankfurt, you can click here.
Miltenberg and Bürgstadt, Germany
Germany is not only well known for their beer, but their wine and half timbered homes as well. But Miltenberg had an additional treat in store for us, Pretzel Pizza!
A stop in Bürgstadt later in the day where we were warmly welcomed and entertained by the local mayor was another touching moment. He made us truly feel like honored guests, even accompanying us to the local chapel where we were invited to ring the bell.
Curious to learn more about Miltenberg and Pretzel Pizza? Click here for the rest of the story.
Würzburg, Germany
One of my favorite stops on this itinerary was visiting the breathtaking Würzburg Residence, another UNESCO World Heritage Site.
We took quite a few photos inside, plus the garden area and several other places we visited in Würzburg. You can see more, read my narrative, and learn what our afternoon treat was here.
Volkach, Germany
This was probably my least favorite stop on our trip. More about it here. But as luke warm as I was about Volkach, the afternoon optional tour to Rothenburg more than made up for it.
Rothenburg, Germany
From ancient walls, to a stork nest, half-timbered homes, Christmas Markets, a stunning church dating back to the 1300’s, and tower gates, this town has charm, history, and beauty written all over it. Please check out my full post here with pictures and commentary that I hope backs up my claim.
Bamberg, Germany
This was the final touring day on the official cruise itinerary and I think people were starting to wind down and think about their vacation coming to an end. You can check out more of our pictures from Bamberg here.
Back on board that afternoon we listened to a guest lecturer, Dr. Urban, discuss Germany, WWII and the Nuremberg Trial.
We shared a lovely final dinner on board with our new friend Christy.
Nuremberg, Germany
Our final day of our vacation. Having disembarked from our cruise ship, we were now on our own.
the Second World War, it was later restored.
It was really nice to have the day totally free without an agenda or a schedule. We could take our time, explore to our heart’s content, and stop when and where we wanted. As much as I love having a guide and learning the history and interesting facts about an area, there is a lot to be said about making your own plans (or no plans).
Some highlights for me included having a very authentic German meal at Trödelstuben, our impromptu picnic of hummus, bread and olives, and being able to snag last minute tickets for the concert in St Lorenz.
To find out where else our wandering took us, and share in our final day you can click here.
As I finish writing this, we are now all safely back home. Unpacking has been accomplished, some of the laundry done and put away. Research has begun on when and where we want to travel next.
And for those of you who so kindly inquired about our little pup, Maya, she is fully recovered, can be found in one of our laps or snuggled up against us and does not want either of us out of her sight.
GRATITUDE MOMENT: There are so many things that helped make this trip a success. The weather cooperated with warm sunny days. We found a great discount for this particular cruise on Vacationstogo.com which made this luxury cruise line more affordable. The itinerary allowed Tim and I to see several new places in Southern Germany. Uniworld’s commitment to culinary excellence, not only provided us with delicious offerings, but also kept Tim from having any allergic reactions. But the key element that brought the most joy was sharing all of this with Steve and Brenda. Thank you both so much for your positive attitudes, willingness to try new things, kindness to everyone around you and always having a smile on your face. You are loved and your friendship priceless.
And also a very sincere THANK YOU to all of you who have followed along with our “return to traveling abroad” vacation. It has been heartwarming seeing comments from some of you who have been joining us for years. Not only did we miss traveling the past 3.5 years, but also missed our interaction with many of you. Some of you we know personally, some we have never met, but feel like we know you through our online communication. You are APPRECIATED!
A Note From Abroad 
A fabulous trip! I enjoyed all the posts and this recap was perfect!!
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Thank you Darlene! We so appreciate that you follow along with us and for your sweet comments. ❤️
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Great recap! You really do such a wonderful job presenting everything in an interesting and aesthetically pleasing way. I loved seeing the violin video. Such a performer! When watching the video, I couldn’t help but notice the woman in the background. Reminded me how we need to put down our phones and enjoy the world around us! Thanks again…so enjoyed this.
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Paul, you are always so kind and encouraging and it is much appreciated ❤️. I truly wish I had recorded the entire violin performance as she was magical. The room was so supportive of her. When it was announced that she was a Ukrainian refugee, she got a thunderous standing ovation and then again at the end of her performance. I was so into watching her that I had not noticed the woman behind her on her phone. She missed a great performance🤨.
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Will look forward to seeing where your next adventure takes you.
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Glenn, we have Ethiopia booked for November and currently researching Egypt for early next year. Maybe even squeezing one more trip in yet this year 👍.
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That sounds fabulous. If you like cycling as well as river cruising we can highly recommend Bike and Boat trips along the Danube or Rhine Rivers. we’ve done a few over the years and they are a great way to combine the benfits of both types of travel.
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Glenn, I have been wanting to try out an e-bike and may rent one locally to see how I do. I still have some balance issues due to all the radiation I had to my brain for my tumor, so I’m a little hesitant to commit to a long bike trip, but it does sound fantastic! Is “Bike and Boat trips” what I would search for to find out more information?
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Yes Tim that would be what you’d search for. We used e-bikes for the first time last year on our trip and they were so much easier. However, they are heavier so best to try out locally first.
We have used this company for our three trips – https://en.radreisen.at/
Feel free to direct message me if you’d like more info.
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I enjoyed the trip day by day and then enjoyed it again through the recap. I haven’t been back to Europe since 2019 and can’t wait to get there again, although I’ll be much farther north, in Norway. If you only had one so-so day on the entire trip, that’s a blessing as is the way it turned out so well with your friends. What’s next? 😉
janet
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Janet, by any standard this was a hugely successful trip and we feel so fortunate to be back traveling again. The only trip we have actually booked so far is one to Ethiopia in November. We are in the researching stage of comparing a Gate1 tour/river cruise vs another Uniworld tour/cruise to Egypt for early 2024. I’m also hoping to squeeze one more trip abroad this year possibly in September.
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Great trip, great presentation, great stories!
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Much appreciated ❤️
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A nice recap, Joanne! I enjoyed following your latest cruise!
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Thank you so much. Sincerely appreciate you following along!
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Wow, what a trip! You guys did a great job of documenting the trip and your photos are fabulous. Thanks so much for sharing your adventures with us.
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I’m so glad you enjoyed seeing our write ups and pictures. ❤️
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Thank you so very much for your kind words.
I had such immense excitement and anticipation for this trip. Checking off two of Steve’s items on his bucket list—-a river cruise (and wow what a fabulous one this was!!!) and seeing locks, was a treasured gift for us.
I knew you and Tim would be such lovely traveling companions——relaxed, fun, kind, and ever so knowledgeable.
The river cruise and the excursions, the pre and post cruise days, the transportation getting us to and from everywhere including the airports…which you planned so thoughtfully, made this an exceptionally easygoing trip for us.
There are so many highlights for me (the boat ride, funicular, the violist from Ukraine (phenomenal), the gorgeous scenery…the UNESCO world heritage sites, the greeting from the Mayor, cathedrals, the elaborate front doors/planter boxes filled with flowers and the reason behind them… I could go on and on. All of the gorgeous architecture…
but the ones that make my heart soar, are the most casual times with you and Tim. The evening on the top deck of the ship, on the lounge chairs relaxing and laughing… the whole last day (post cruise) in Nuremberg, walking and stopping where we wanted, people watching, Tim’s super funny dry sense of humor, wandering through the Farmers Market, sharing snacks and meals together, checking out the locals (kids and fountains…) unexpectedly going to an evening concert—-this is what brought me immense joy.
Seeing you both each day for almost two weeks-knowing THIS is magical and how fortunate we are to be here, guided by you on this trip, knowing it was choreographed by you with an inordinate amount of care, love, time and effort.
Thank you for YOU.
For your friendship, your goodness, wisdom, patience, and your talents you so graciously share with all of us.
I love you!!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!
💖
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Brenda, your kind words and loving recap of our fabulous trip together was so heartwarming to read. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all you are as a person and for being an amazing friend. You and Steve were such a delight to travel with and I look forward to our next adventure. Love you back ❤️♥️❤️
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I love seeing the photo of Christy as well. Such a welcoming, fun, interesting and joyful addition to our sit down lunches and dinners on the ship.
It was fun meeting people from all over the world. Such a great group.
Thanks for capturing our first river cruise so well.
I’ll be coming back to your blog to remember the historical details about each place we went.
You take us on a full ride -from getting ready to leave to the airport, to the daily itinerary with photos and descriptions, with emotions felt (Maya going to the vet) to returning home and having luggage unpacked -thanks for so much time involved in bringing us along on this sojourn.
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Christy was indeed a lovely addition to our trip. I’m so glad that she joined us at mealtimes. It is so enjoyable to meet people on our trips, share a story, a laugh and/or a special experience. My blog posts become a memory tool for me as well. When so much gets squeezed into each location, it is impossible to keep it all straight. I can’t tell you how many times I have looked back on a post to remind myself of something or to answer a who/where/when or what question.
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Thanks Joanne for taking us along on your RiverCruise. I can’t wait to hear about your great adventures. I loved that you used Vacationstogo.com website. Now I know that they are a good website.
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Barbara, thank you for joining us! We have used vacationstogo.com several times over the past ten+ years and been pleased with both their pricing and service.
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What a wonderful trip. Thank you for sharing all the details and beautiful pictures. Do you have something like this on your trips to Italy and Rome?
Jackie
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Hi Jackie,
I have a write up on Venice and Murano, but not Rome. Our last trip to Rome was before I started blogging. Here is the bit on Venice if you are interested in seeing it:
And Murano: https://anotefromabroad.com/2014/05/11/murano-italy-an-island-devoted-to-blown-glass/
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