Magical main sail
It’s relaxation ahoy for Andrew Penman on board a German river cruise
Can there be any more serene way of travelling than on a river cruise? I can see why some holidaymakers are attracted to the open seas, but I don’t imagine there’s much to look at between ports, apart from water and more water.
If, on the other hand, you are meandering down a river then you can relax on the sun deck or in the bar and watch the countryside glide by. And what countryside, if you’re lucky enough to be in southern Germany.
The Rhine and Danube are famed for their boat cruises, and rightly so, but less well-known is the waterway that links them – the Rhine-Main-Danube canal.
It begins in the west where the River Main joins the Rhine and winds eastwards to the Main-Danube Canal, past beautiful fairy tale towns and hillsides covered in vines.
And when I say canal, we’re not talking the Grand Union. This is an astonishing man-made waterway that is as wide as the Thames in central London.
The trip I took with Riviera Travel was on board the five-star MS George Eliot, built in 2018 and consisting of three spotless passenger decks plus upper sun deck. Stretching 360ft, the 70 elegant suites and cabins accommodate up to 132 guests, with 36 staff, so it has all the personal service of a luxury hotel.
Our route was east to west, which meant a flight to Munich then coach transfer to the boat moored at Nuremberg.
It was not the most inspiring start, with a view of an industrial landscape and no bier keller within walking distance.
Then the next day we were bussed into the city centre and here I was in for a surprise.
I’d imagined there would be little mention of the Nazi regime, but the first stop was the venue for Hitler’s pre-war party rallies, enough of the stadium surviving to convey the scale of the events.
Fittingly, we later passed the Nuremberg Palace of Justice where the senior surviving Nazi acolytes were tried at the end of the war.
Much of the city centre was flattened by Allied bombing during the war but some fascinating historic remnants survived, most notably the hilltop Kaiserburg Castle, supposedly deliberately spared because its tallest turret made a useful landmark for the bomb-aimers.
If you do go, morning coffee is made very special with a local elisenlebkuchen, delicious cakes made from honey, ground hazelnuts and spices.
Day two found the George Eliot docked in Unescolisted Bamberg and now we were in a land of exquisite medieval timber-framed buildings down in the old town centre, while up in the Domplatz there was an architect-lover’s paradise with a Romanesque and Gothic cathedral, and Renaissance and Baroque palaces and gardens.
Despite having largely survived the Second World War there were more references to it, Bamberg being the home to aircraft designer Willy Messerschmitt. “Thankfully he didn’t build his factories here,” said our guide, “otherwise Bamberg wouldn’t exist.” The guide also provided useful insights into local tipples.
In early autumn there’s federweisser, the Bavarian equivalent of beaujolais nouveau. Made from this year’s grapes, it’s a tangy treat that looks and tastes a bit like cloudy lemonade and for that reason is notoriously dangerous because you can easily forget you’re drinking alcohol.
Then there’s rauchbier, or smoked beer, made when the barley is heated over beech wood.
“Some people hate it,” said the guide. “Other people, they hate it too.
“The best thing is to keep drinking, around the third glass you might like it.”
Despite that foreboding introduction the result proved a very drinkable cross between a strong bitter and a stout, a bit like one of those dark seasonal ales some breweries release at Christmas.
If there was one downside to Bamberg it was that it involved another coach ride from the boat to the town, but this was the last one.
From here on, every town was walking distance from the mooring.
This was river cruising as it should be, passengers coming and going as they pleased.
There were guided tours laid on at every stop, or you could strike out on your own, eating in town or coming back to the boat for meals.
These were always excellent, with a choice of meat, fish and vegetarian and some imaginative touches, particularly the pina colada white chocolate and mascarpone dessert with pineapple and mango jelly.
After dinner you can relax in the observation lounge, or head to the bar where a pianist entertains with a relaxing repertoire.
The beautifully-appointed ensuite cabins are set across upper, middle and lower decks, some with floor-toceiling windows and balconies to take in the sights as you glide by.
Favourite stop? Hard to choose when the range includes the compact and quaint Ochsenfurt, with its medieval fortification and Gothic town hall, and Wertheim, famous for its landmark riverside castle. Then there’s the magnificent Wurzburg with an enormous palace amusingly described by Napoleon as the “nicest parsonage in Europe”.
But if pushed I would have to nominate Miltenberg, which lies on a bend in the river backed by the Odenwald forest. With street after street of beautifully wonky historic buildings and one of the oldest inns in Germany, it was the perfect place to enjoy a stein before a gentle stroll back to the George Eliot for supper.
‘‘ The canal winds past fairy tale towns and vine-covered hillsides