Avalon Affinity Review
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This was our first river cruise. We've been all over the Caribbean & have sailed transatlantic, but this was on our bucket list & we were fortunate to find a deal! We flew in 5 days early to enjoy Amsterdam. We stayed at the IBIS next to the central train station, and it was a great location. The hotel wasn't fancy, but it was comfortable, affordable & safe. We were within a few blocks of everything. Amsterdam was incredible & I will definitely go back.
We checked in with Avalon on the 22nd, the day before departure, and everything ran smoothly. I can't remember the name of the hotel meeting point, but it was by the Movenpik hotel. They took our bags and then transported us to the Affinity. We had a balcony cabin on the 3rd level, and it was terrific. There was plenty of storage space in the room and the restroom. I loved the shower stall and bath/body products offered. We had 2 twin beds and each had a nightstand. The floor to ceiling window opened up so that our room was basically the balcony. The only down-side was there was nowhere to sit & enjoy the view. My bed ran along the windows, so I could sit on my bed and look out. It would be better to be on 1 of the new refurbished boats, where it's all suites, and the beds face the windows for a terrific view, or if there was a sitting area in front of the windows. But it was still lovely, and there are plenty of sitting areas around the boat to enjoy the stunning views.
The staff greeted us and made us feel welcome. They assigned us a steward to take us to our room, and our luggage showed up pretty much immediately.
Cabin Review
Deluxe Stateroom with French Balcony
Plenty of storage. I wish we had 1 of the updated rooms where the beds face the windows, because my bed was in front of the windows & there wasn't anywhere to sit and enjoy the view besides sitting on my bed. Good sized bathroom with shower stall and terrific bath/body products by L'Occitane, which I love!
Port Reviews
Amsterdam
Included with our cruise. Very nice covered boats, English speaking guide. Loved it!
Dusseldorf
Gorgeous castle and grounds. Included with our cruise price. Guided tour with English speaking tour guide.
Koblenz
I'm sure this is a great town, but our boat arrived at night and left first thing in the morning, so all we could do was walk along the river in the dark until we got kind of scared. We wished the Affinity would have stayed in Ruddesheim longer instead of parking overnight in Koblenz.
Paris
Je T'aime Paris! We didn't take an excursion. Our cruise ended there with 2 nights at the Hotel du Collectionneur Arc de Triomphe. The hotel was nice but seems extremely overpriced. If it wasn't included in our cruise price, we would never stay there. It was centrally located though, 4-5 blocks from the Arc de Triomphe, and it was close to the train, restaurants, cafes, grocery stores. Paris is always wonderful, even if I don't do much of anything. I've done the Eiffel tower, Arc de Triomphe, Montmartre, the Louvre, Notre Dam, etc. on previous trips, so we relaxed, ate, drank & shopped this time. Loved it!