A Rhine River Cruise With Your Dog
In Europe itself, one of the most popular cruising options is to take a river cruise. These cruises are available on many rivers, but a Rhine river cruise is the most iconic.
Given how dog-friendly most of the countries are that these river cruises pass through, and that a river cruise doesnt have the same logistical issues when it comes to doggie business as a cruise on the open ocean, its a surprise that dogs arent welcome on more of these cruises. I have only come across one option so far.
These dog-friendly European river cruises are run by 1AVista Reisen, a German company based in Cologne. They operate multiple cruises per year for dogs and their owners aboard the MS Poseidon, in both Germany and the Netherlands. From 2020, they will also offer cruises on the Danube. The cruises are majority German-language, but the crew can provide assistance in English.
Dogs on these cruises arent relegated to kennels, but are permitted to stay with you in your cabin, plus join you in the dining room. Just like the fares for humans are all-inclusive, dogs also have access to unlimited dog treats, plus dog beds and bowls are provided.
On the dog-friendly cruises, a section of the sun deck is converted to a poop deck. Its covered in grass and plants so that dogs can relieve themself any time of day.
For more information, check out the 1AVista Reisen website . Or read this review from Louie Vuitton the Frenchie .
Facilities In All Cabins
Even the cheapest QM2 cabin features comfortable beds, a private bathroom with shower, sink & toilet, a dressing table, flatscreen TV, a small coffee table & chair, 240v UK & 110v US style power sockets, pay-per-minute , soap, shower gel, shampoo & conditioner, bathrobes, hairdryer, plenty of wardrobe space, menu and a solid electronic safe for your valuables that’s large enough for a 14″ laptop. A bedtime chocolate is delivered to your stateroom when the steward turns down your bed.
Where cabins can be configured with either twin beds or a double, you can select your preference in advance using the online voyage personaliser at the same online system where you download and print your luggage labels and e-ticket. You log on with your Cunard booking reference and personal details.
How To Take A Boat From The Us To Europe
Sailing across the Atlantic gives you a new perspective.
You can travel from the United States to Europe without ever setting foot on an airplane. Crossing the Atlantic Ocean by boat offers a unique and economical option for those aspiring to reach Europe without having to deal with air travel. There are a few different options for transatlantic ocean travel: freighter cruises, repositioning cruises and luxury cruises.
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A Short Cruise To The Netherlands With Your Dog
If youre located in the UK, there are also dog-friendly mini-cruise options closer to home. Fancy a day or two in the Netherlands? Theres two ferry options available that can offer you a Dutch mini-cruise.
The more dog-friendly of the two options is the DFDS ferry from Newcastle to Amsterdam, thanks to their pet-friendly cabins. DFDS specifically markets a mini-cruise option, including a coach from the ferry terminal, with five hours spent in Amsterdam. If youd prefer to spend longer, theres also the option to add a hotel booking for a night or two.
If booking a mini-cruise, youll likely be travelling as a foot passenger, meaning that youll need to call the call centre to book a pet-friendly cabin. Be sure to book well in advance, as there are limited numbers available.
Your dog will be restricted to your cabin, as well as the nearby dog toilet area . Unfortunately, pet dogs are not allowed on the other outdoor decks or inside the public spaces, but it is fine to leave them unattended in your cabin, as long as you trust them.
There is a charge of £25 per pet in a cabin or £30 per pet in a kennel, for each journey. Dogs are also permitted on the coach into Amsterdam, as long as they dont sit on a seat.
Click here to find out more about the DFDS pet-friendly cabins or read this review by someone doing the mini-cruise with their dog.
Whats Going On With Alaskan Cruises
Little known quirks of maritime law have led some cruise lines that specialize in Alaskan expeditions to cancel all sailings from ports in the Lower 48 states through the end of 2021.
Understand Vaccine and Mask Mandates in the U.S.
Though they seem like American companies, many of the big cruise lines like Princess and Holland America, are, in fact, foreign-owned. According to United States law, foreign-flagged cruise ships are not permitted to cruise between U.S. ports without first visiting at least one foreign port. So cruises from Western cities like Seattle have typically stopped in Vancouver, Canada, on their way to Alaska.
But in February, Canadian authorities extended their ban on cruising through February 2022, effectively shutting down the Alaskan cruise business until then.
Earlier this month, senators introduced a bill that would waive the requirement that ships stop in a foreign port, but a vote could still be months off.
While Alaska cruises are on hold, cruise companies are pivoting to offer land tours of the state using their lodging and tour networks.
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What Is A Repositioning Cruise
Repositioning Cruise is a one-off sea/ocean voyage that cruise passenger ships make when transferring from one operational region to another. Usually, this is done in Spring and Fall, often each year. But there are some exceptions to these usual times. Your off-season vacations will be marked by discounted cheap rates, big cruise ships, lots of lazy leisure days to enjoy the tranquillity of the sea.
Ship relocation deals are the preferable option for highly addicted travellers to enjoy a truly special and most affordable sea cruising vacation. The special ship relocation voyages always feature a one-way itinerary since cruise ships relatively often change their sailing areas due to economic reasons.
Another most prominent feature of all these ship transition cruises deals is the bargain price they all are really really cheap in comparison to the ships regular cruise rates. Repositioning deals are rarely called that way by travel agents or in companies brochures. One of the most popular substitute names officially used by the industrys representatives is Discovery Voyage.
The list of synonyms for repositioning voyages includes: Relocation Cruises, Transit- or Transition Cruises, Crossings . Of course, the most traditional is One-Way, and also by destination Panama Canal, Suez Canal, Transpacific and Transatlantic.
Whens The Best Time To Cruise From Europe To The Usa
European cruise season starts in April and ends in November. Most transatlantic cruises set sail in the shoulder season months of April, October, and November.
Cruises to Europe from the USA usually set sail in April in order to get to Europe in time for the high summer tourist season, which kicks off in late May. After the high cruise season in the Mediterranean and Europe ends, ships need to relocate once again, therefore cruises from Europe to the USA usually depart in October and November. Some transatlantic cruises to Iceland and Greenland set sail in August.
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Featured United States Cruise Ports
Youll find ports of call along the coastline of California, Hawaii, Alaska, the Pacific Northwest, and New England as well as stops in Charleston, South Carolina and New Orleans, Louisiana.
Florida is also home to cruise ports, but these are generally used as embarkation homeports to the Caribbean and not a port of call destination. However, we do stop in the lovely Florida Keys during cruise itineraries that call in Key West, Florida.
Youll also find many Caribbean cruise itineraries that sail to and from Puerto Rico, which is an easy embarkation port for U.S. residents to fly into since Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States.
San Francisco, California
Qm2 Disembarkation In Southampton
A note explaining QM2 disembarkation procedures appears outside your stateroom a day or two before arrival, and each deck is allocated a disembarkation time. Disembarkation takes place between 08:00 & 11:00. The upper decks with the more expensive cabins disembark first , other decks such as 4, 5 or 6 later.
Labels for your bags appear outside your stateroom the day before arrival. You put a label on each of your bags and place them in the corridor outside your stateroom between 20:00 & midnight before arrival. Your bags will disappear and will be waiting for you in the terminal hall next morning, in an area marked with the same colour as your labels.
It’s then just a matter of going through the UK immigration check. They you walk out of the terminal.
Express disembarkation: If you want to get off sooner and are happy managing all your own bags, you can register for Express disembarkation at the purser’s desk on deck 2 the day before arrival. You are given an express disembarkation card. Express disembarkation passengers gather in the Queens Room from 06:45 onwards with all their luggage, and at around 07:00 when the gangway opens you simply walk off the ship with your bags, straight into the terminal.
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Afternoon Tea In The Queen’s Room
Every day at around 3.30pm, afternoon tea is served in the Queen’s Room, on 2 Deck aft. A choice of teas comes with daintily-cut sandwiches, scones and cakes, served by stewards in white gloves. Afternoon tea is included in the fare, but a glass of champagne is extra.
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The Queen’s Room is often used for dancing, as you can see from the wooden dance floor in the centre. |
Take The Train From London Waterloo
Fast air-conditioned trains run from London Waterloo to Southampton Central every 30 minutes taking around 1h17. No reservation is necessary, just turn up, buy a ticket and hop on the next train.
The fare is £46.10 adult one-way , children under 16 half price, children under 5 free. First class costs £78.30 .
Check train times & fares from London Waterloo or anywhere in Britain to Southampton atwww.raileurope.comorwww.nationalrail.co.uk. Direct trains run from Manchester, Birmingham, Oxford, Reading, Bristol & Cardiff to Southampton, so you won’t have to cross London. See a beginner’s guide to UK train travel.
For train connections from Paris or any other European city to London, see here. I’d recommend a night in London before taking the train to Southampton on sailing day.
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The Cunard Heritage Trail
The Queen Mary 2 is filled with paintings, information panels and even interactive screens telling the history of Cunard Line, its ships, and the famous people who crossed the Atlantic aboard them.
You won’t be the only family on the QM2, especially on a transatlantic run! You’ll find plenty of entertainment for children in the Play Zone at the aft end of 6 deck.
Qm2 Disembarkation In New York
A note explaining QM2 disembarkation procedures appears outside your stateroom a day or two before arrival, and each deck is allocated a disembarkation time. Disembarkation takes place between 08:00 & 11:00. The upper decks with the more expensive cabins disembark first , other decks such as 4, 5 or 6 later.
Labels for your bags appear outside your stateroom the day before arrival. You put a label on each of your bags and place them in the corridor outside your stateroom between 20:00 & midnight before arrival. Your bags will disappear and will be waiting for you in the terminal hall next morning, in an area marked with the same colour as your labels.
It’s then just a matter of going through the U.S. immigration check, a slowish process but no worse than any airport. They you walk out of the terminal.
Express disembarkation: If you want to get off sooner and are happy managing all your own bags, you can register for Express disembarkation at the purser’s desk on deck 2 the day before arrival. You are given an express disembarkation card. Express disembarkation passengers gather in the Queens Room from 06:45 onwards with all their luggage, and at around 07:00 when the gangway opens you simply walk off the ship with your bags, straight into the terminal. With a Deck 4 cabin we were allocated an 11:00 disembarkation time, which would have meant half a day in New York wasted, so I’d go for express disembarkation every time!
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Further Changes Are Possible
The situation worldwide is changing weekly, and cruise lines are working with the relevant authorities for a safe return. Its all very fluid, and the restart dates may change even further. The CDC has been making some adjustments recently with relaxing masks and social distancing rules for vaccinated guests.
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Norwegian Cruise Line still plans to restart in August from Florida but parent company Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings recently filed a lawsuit against Florida on the states vaccine passport ban. The result of this could have an impact on any protocols the line implements.
The ongoing saga between the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Florida has still not been resolved. In fact, just recently, the CDC successfully got a hold on Florida being allowed to overrule its Conditional Sailing Order. On July 19, the Florida Governor said it will come out on top and could take its lawsuit against the CDC as far as the supreme court.
Cruise Hive will continue to monitor any new developments, so keep checking this detailed page for when cruises resume, not just this year but in 2022.
How Much Is A Cruise From Europe To The Usa
One of the biggest draws of taking a transatlantic cruise is that you can experience a longer vacation on an award-winning cruise ship at an exceptional price. Transatlantic cruises are often more affordable than other cruise vacations because they sail during the shoulder seasons, dont stop in many ports of call, and include several days at sea.
If you love spending time on the open ocean , a transatlantic cruise is the perfect vacation.
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Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line
Original Update: The cruise line which is based out of West Palm Beach, Florida has remained silent through early 2021. Announced on April 9, the small cruise line will make a comeback with short cruises to the Bahamas starting on July 2, 2021.
Update 1: In a recent development from Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line, Grand Classica has been approved by the CDC to operated a simulated voyage. The ship will depart on June 25 on a 2-night test cruise to stress test health protocols as per the CDC Conditional Sailing Order requirements.
Update 2: In early July, the cruise line altered its return to service date and its planned simulated cruise. The test cruise finally departed out of West Palm Beach, Florida on July 13 with cruises officially restarting from July 16.
Cruises Resume:
What Are Typical Ports Of Call When You Cruise From Europe To The Usa
A cruise between Europe and the USA doesnt just consist of days at sea. Youll also discover several international ports of call along the way, with stops in Mediterranean hot spots like Mallorca and Lisbon, cities in the United States including New York and Boston, and islands such as Bermuda and the Azores.
Some of the ports of call you could visit on a cruise between Europe and the USA include:
- Agadir, Morocco
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What Can Cruise Travelers Do To Protect Themselves And Others
CDC recommends that travelers are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to traveling on a cruise ship.
People are considered fully vaccinated 2 weeks after a single dose in a one-dose series or 2 weeks after the second dose in a two-dose series.±
Travelers who are at an increased risk of severe illness from COVID-19 should avoid travel on cruise ships, including river cruises, worldwide, regardless of vaccination status.
If you are at increased risk for severe illness and considering cruise travel during the COVID-19 pandemic, discuss this type of travel with your healthcare professional. Older adults and people of any age with certain underlying medical conditions are more likely to get severely ill if they get COVID-19. People with weakened immune systems, including people who take medicines that suppress their immune systems, may not be protected even if fully vaccinated.
Do not board a cruise ship if you have symptoms of COVID-19, if you know you have COVID-19, if you were exposed to a person with COVID-19 in the past 14 days , or you are waiting for results of a COVID-19 viral test.
If you go on a cruise during the COVID-19 pandemic:
Before you board:
- Get fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
- People are considered fully vaccinated 2 weeks after a single dose in a one-dose series or 2 weeks after the second dose in a two-dose series.
While you’re on board:
Transfer By Taxi To Manhattan
The Tour Office on deck 2 offers private transfers by minivan from Brooklyn Cruise Terminal to any Manhattan hotel for a ridiculous $429, or they can sell you tickets for a transfer bus for $59 per person.
However, both options are crazy, because a normal yellow cab from the terminal taxi rank to anywhere in Manhattan costs only $40 for up to 4 people and all your bags, and you’ll find plenty of taxis waiting right outside the terminal building. Enjoy the drive across the famous Brooklyn Bridge in a New York Yellow Cab!
You’ll also find plenty of black private hire vehicles outside the terminal with a fixed price of around $55 to a Manhattan hotel, also a good relaxed option. The ride takes 20 minutes.
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