[…] visited Europe so when the opportunity came to take a river cruise throughout Switzerland, Germany, France and the Netherlands I jumped at the opportunity! It was the ultimate relaxing vacation and if you […]

How to See the Best of Heidelberg Germany in 1 DayMay 15, 2018 - 11:51 am

[…] quaint European town and I’ve written about many of the stops already – artsy Basel, medieval Colmar, quaint Dutch windmills and pretty German castles on the […]

Linda MitchellJuly 4, 2018 - 8:15 am

Am about to go on a Viking Rhine cruise Basel to Amsterdam. Our small group was considering visiting Colmar on our own. Did you find the guided tour worthwhile? How much time were you given afterwards to explore before you needed to head back to the boat? Great blog of your trip, btw.

SherJuly 4, 2018 - 6:31 pm

Hi Linda! Thanks, glad you found it helpful!

For Colmar, I do recommend booking the Viking tour because Colmar is not on the Rhine River – if I remember correctly it was about 1 hour drive inland. So, you would have to figure out transportation on your own and make sure to get back on the ship in time (most cruises will not wait for you if you choose to do your own thing, and expect you to find your own way to the ship if it leaves for the next destination)

For Colmar, I didn’t particularly want to stay with the guided tour group, so we did maybe 30 minutes with the group then let the guide know and she told us when to meet the group for departure. we explored the town on our own, it’s really walkable and even without a map you won’t get lost. You could do that if you like!

I want to say in total, the group had roughly 3 hours in Colmar? For us it was enough time!