{"id":25577,"date":"2016-10-23T04:24:26","date_gmt":"2016-10-23T10:24:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/?p=25577"},"modified":"2017-03-17T19:17:13","modified_gmt":"2017-03-18T01:17:13","slug":"learning-more-about-croisieurope-on-a-trip-to-bordeaux","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/2016\/10\/learning-more-about-croisieurope-on-a-trip-to-bordeaux\/","title":{"rendered":"Bordeaux On A Budget: CroisiEurope’s Cyrano de Bergerac"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"CroisiEurope's

CroisiEurope’s Cyrano de Bergerac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

Perhaps the most surprising thing that I learned about CroisiEurope on last week’s trip to Bordeaux was the price of its cruises. I’d known that CroisiEurope was\u00a0the price-leader in Europe, but what I did not know was that it undercuts its competitors by almost 50 percent.<\/p>\n

With all-inclusive bar (not just wine and beer during lunch and dinner), complimentary shore excursions and free WiFi, CroisiEurope’s\u00a0Bordeaux cruises begin\u00a0at less than\u00a0$250 per person per day compared to per diems of $450 and up on the other players operating in Bordeaux.\u00a0Those other players\u00a0include AmaWaterways (AmaDolce), Scenic (Diamond), Uniworld (River Royale) and Viking (Forseti).<\/p>\n

\"CroisiEurope's

CroisiEurope’s Cyrano de Bergerac and AmaWaterways AmaDolce in Libourne, France. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

I’m not saying that CroisiEurope’s cruises are for everyone, and I’ll elaborate on that in a post next week, but for those on a budget, CroisiEurope certainly is worth a look.<\/p>\n

Virtually unknown in North America, CroisiEurope is French, family-owned and operated \u2014 and the company has a lot of ships, 50 or more at last count. CroisiEurope’s all-inclusive ships\u00a0impresses us with their\u00a0French flair,\u00a0and the company scores points for its\u00a0innovative hardware\u00a0and pioneering itineraries. CroisiEurope\u00a0is the only river cruise company, for example,\u00a0that can cruise the Loire or the Elbe into the heart of Prague\u00a0as well as many other rivers. I’ll cover some of the company’s pioneering itineraries in next week’s post.<\/p>\n

But, you’re asking, how are the staterooms and food? A picture speaks 1,000 words.<\/p>\n

\"My

My stateroom on Cyrano de Bergerac, docked in Bordeaux. Note the large sliding glass windows, which function as well as a balcony for fresh air and poking your head out to take photos. Also note the flat-panel television. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Bathroom

Bathroom on Cyrano de Bergerac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"The

The Restaurant. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Yum!

Yum! \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Fine

Fine regional wines. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Sweet.

Sweet. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Good

Good service. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Beautiful

Beautiful French-inspired entrees. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Captain's

Captain’s Table on Cyrano de Bergerac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

CroisiEurope operates two ships in Bordeaux,\u00a0Cyrano de Bergerac\u00a0and\u00a0Princesse d’Aquitaine,<\/em>\u00a0on 5-, 6-, 7- and 8-day cruises. The range of itineraries make for an interesting variety of cruises, depending on how much, or how little, time you want to spend cruising in Bordeaux.<\/p>\n

\"Welcome

Welcome aboard Cyrano de Bergerac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

Our four-night\/five-day sampler cruise provided only a taste of Bordeaux \u2014 and of Cyrano de Bergerac. The duration is too short of a cruise for a trip across the Atlantic unless it is coupled with an extended stay in France. In fact, this would be a good cruise to pair with overnights. My recommendation? Book a night or two at\u00a0the Intercontinental Bordeaux – Le Grand H\u00f4tel, a five-star hotel in the heart of Bordeaux, and also a night or two (post-cruise) at\u00a0Les Sources De Caudalie, a five-star hotel surrounded by the vineyards of Ch\u00e2teau Smith Haut Lafitte, about 8 miles from Bordeaux. The hotel also features a spa with treatments and therapies using products from grapes and grape seeds.<\/p>\n

Cruising Bordeaux<\/h2>\n

Bordeaux is a beautiful cruising region and unusual for European river cruises in several ways. First, the city of Bordeaux serves as a hub, with the destinations spoked out along (also unusual) three waterways, the Dordogne and Garonne rivers, and the Gironde estuary.<\/p>\n

Second, tidal fluctuations impose strict timetables on ships, and the region is subject to an unusual natural phenomenon, the\u00a0Mascaret<\/em>, a strong tidal “bore” that causes waves sometimes large enough for surfing.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday of this week,\u00a0Cyrano de Bergerac\u2019s\u00a0captain told us to be out on deck at 7:45 a.m. if we wanted to experience the\u00a0Mascaret. Our ship, which was docked in Libourne, repositioned to the middle of the river for safety reasons. I watched from the oversized sliding glass window in my stateroom. Suddenly I felt a gust of wind, followed by rushing water and white caps that caused the boat to gently rock.<\/p>\n

River cruises begin in the city of Bordeaux, where\u00a0ships dock along the waterfront, typically overnighting, and depart the following morning to visit a handful of ports of call during the next several days.<\/p>\n

\"We

We enjoyed a night tour in Bordeaux. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

After dinner, we enjoyed a night tour of Bordeaux via motorcoach and walking. We were off to a good start.<\/p>\n

The next morning,\u00a0Cyrano de Bergerac set a course north\u00a0of Bordeaux, to Pauillac, in the heart of the famous Medoc region, which is renowned for producing some of the world\u2019s finest Bordeaux wines. The highlight\u00a0of our day was\u00a0an included tour through the Medoc region, past beautiful chateaux, stopping for photographs, and visiting a few of the vineyards for wine-tastings.<\/p>\n

\"Learning

Learning about wine in the Medoc region. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"At

At Chateau Margaux. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Bacchus

Bacchus would be jealous.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Paulliac.

Pauillac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Sunset

Sunset as we sail from Pauillac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

Late that evening we docked in\u00a0Libourne, where the next morning we set out for\u00a0Saint-\u00c9milion, just a few miles away. Our\u00a0tour included\u00a0a visit to the Monolithic church, carved into limestone cliffs and mostly underground, and a wine tasting at one of the Saint-\u00c9milion\u00a0vineyards.<\/p>\n

After a late afternoon of scenic sailing, we made it back\u00a0to Bordeaux for the evening. The next morning we cruised to\u00a0Cadillac to visit the impressive Roquetaillade Castle, set on a stunning hilltop about 30 minutes away by motorcoach.\u00a0The castle excursion included guided tours\u00a0around the grounds and inside the castle. After lunch back on the ship, we visited a vineyard\u00a0producing Sauternes for tastings of the renowned sweet wine.<\/p>\n

\"France,

France, where else? Our tour guide’s shoes. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Castle.

At Roquetaillade Castle. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Roquetaillade

Roquetaillade Castle. \u00a9 2016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

As we were sipping Sauternes, the ship\u00a0returned to Bordeaux to overnight again before disembarkation. CroisiEurope’s program is comparable to what its competitors offer in the region. Again, this cruise is not for everyone, which I will cover in next week’s post, but others will find it to be just the right fit.<\/p>\n

Would I cruise CroisiEurope again? Most certainly. I found the stateroom to be adequate. It was not luxurious but it was attractive, with lots of storage and a comfortable bed. I found the service to be friendly and professional. Staff comes from all over Europe, so you won’t have to speak French to be understood. The food and wine? Well, I adore French food and wine, so CroisiEurope gets high marks in that category.<\/p>\n

I did miss bikes and hikes and the opportunity to be active, though I did one walk in Pauillac. Other than that, WiFi worked well (most times, as on most river cruisers), the complimentary bar was a plus and the excursions were well done with guides that won praise from those in our small group. For the price of admission, CroisiEurope is a steal.<\/p>\n

\"Lounge

Lounge on Cyrano de Bergerac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Reception

Reception on Cyrano de Bergerac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Piano

Piano Bar, situated aft Cyrano de Bergerac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Wine

Wine games and tastings during our scenic sailing. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Aft

Aft on Cyrano de Bergerac. \u00a9\u00a02016 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Perhaps the most surprising thing that I learned about CroisiEurope on last week’s trip to Bordeaux was the price of its cruises. I’d known that CroisiEurope was\u00a0the price-leader in Europe, but what I did not know was that it undercuts its competitors by almost 50 percent. With all-inclusive bar (not just wine and beer during […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25589,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[171,22,655],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25577"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25577"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25577\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25589"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25577"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25577"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25577"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}