In many ways, a river cruise is like a group tour: Most
shore excursions are included in the fare, and coach tours of varying lengths
are part of the cruise experience.
We prefer independent travel to group travel, and we'd rather
walk 10 miles than ride for two hours in a tour bus.
Fortunately, our River
Baroness "Paris & Normandy" cruise itinerary struck a reasonable balance
between walking tours and bus trips, with several longer (and optional) coach
excursions for passengers who wanted to go farther afield.
During our cruise, the list of shore excursions included:
A
leisurely uphill walk from the riverside village of
Les Andelys to the
Château Gaillard, a ruined
castle that was built for Richard the Lionheart in just two years, from 1196 to
1198. (Passengers who weren't able or willing to walk could ride by bus to a
lookout point for a photogenic view of the fortress.)
A
day tour by coach to Normandy's
D-Day landing beaches and the
Normandy American
Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, with a choice of visits to either the
D-Day
Museum at Arromanches or the
Bayeux Tapestry in
Bayeux (the first French town liberated after the Allied invation of 1994).
A
walking tour of
Rouen's Old Town,
which was only a few minutes on foot from our ship's berth on the Seine. Rouen
is famous for its Cathedral, its Gros Horloge or astronomical clock,
its 2,000 half-timbered medieval houses, and the site where Joan of Arc was
burned at the stake in 1431.
A
morning bus excursion to Honfleur,
which has evolved from a fishing village to an artists' haunt to a tourist town
over the centuries. (Alternatively, passengers could choose an "Irresistible
Optional Excursion" to the Upper Normandy countryside, including the dramatic
Cliffs of Etretat, a visit to an apple- and cider-producing estate with a
lunch of Normande dishes, and an afternoon in Honfleur.)
A
morning tour by coach to Monet's house and gardens at
Giverny, with enough free time for shopping or a hurried visit to the
Museum of Impressionism
and its free gardens the adjacent village. (In the afternoon, guests could book
an optional tour to the palace and gardens of Versailles.)
A
choice of half-day excursions in Paris: "Montmartre Artists' Village" or
"Heart of Paris: Île de la Cité
and Latin Quarter walking tour." (Optional tours included "Secrets and
Masterpieces of the Louvre" in the afternoon and a pricey "Evening at Moulin
Rouge" that included dinner and a show.)
In addition to these shore excursions, guests who had
booked Uniworld's 10-day/seven-night "Cruise/Tour" package were treated to a
"Paris City Tour" on the day before the ship's departure from
Paris. (They could also
choose an optional "Illuminated Paris evening cruise with dinner" and--on the
day of sailing--a morning coach tour to the
Château de Chantilly.)
-
Note:
On most River Baroness shore excursions, passengers can listen to
tour guides with
Quietvox radio receivers, which have lightweight
plastic earpieces. We were skeptical about the system before trying it, but
after using it, we think it's a great idea: Guests no longer need to crowd
around the guide to hear the lecture, which is more convenient for members
of the tour group and less disruptive to other tourists.
