Royal Crown cont.

Like all the cities we visited along the Rhine, Basel is best explored by walking, especially along the medieval Old Town regarded as one of the best-preserved and most beautiful in Europe with its twisting, romantic lanes.
Little wonder that Europe is going through a river cruising revolution.

* For full details on Royal Crown’s 2014 cruises – which are inclusive of excursions and walking tours in 2014 - go to: www.ewaterways.com.au or call 1300 503 669 or visit your local licensed travel agent.

eWaterways, which operates the Royal Crown, claims to offer the largest selection of small ship cruises around the world, featuring an array of cruise destinations on vessels of all shapes and sizes - from restored rice junkets in Thailand to nuclear-powered ice breakers in the Antarctic; and from upmarket hotel barges in France to exquisitely appointed river cruisers on the Rhine.

The writer travelled on KLM Royal Dutch Airlines to Amsterdam on one of its daily flights from Singapore. The airline also has daily flights from Kuala Lumpur to Amsterdam. He also opted for Melbourne-based Rail Plus Australia to see a number of European cities after the Rhine cruise ended in Basel. These included the high-speed trains between Basel and Brussels; Brussels-Amsterdam; and Budapest-Prague.

A 10-day Flexi First Class Pass with seat reservation will put you on track to see Europe in style.

Go to: www.railplus.com.au

Here’s a typical Royal Crown dinner menu.

European dinner
Appetiser
ITALY - Tomato and mozzarella with basil pesto and balsamico
Soup
BULGARIA - Sweet corn with whisky
Main course
FRANCE - Grilled Barbarie duck breast with orange sauce
OR
SPAIN - Pan fried fillet of red mullet with lime sauce
OR
Vegetarian alternative
SWITZERLAND - Vegetable pancake with summer vegetables sour cream and chive
Dessert
FRANCE - Crepe ‘Suzette’ with caramelised orange sauce and vanilla ice cream
OR - Cheese buffet with grissini, nuts and grapes

* Choice of Italian, Austrian and German white, red and rose wines

Cologne Cathedral

Siegfrieds Museum

Koblenz