TAUCK RIVER CRUISE BLOG DAY 3

So after another delicious breakfast onboard it was back to the TAUCK coaches for our 90 min journey to the Kröller-Müller Museum, which is located in The Hoge Veluwe national park. When we arrived we were greeted by an accordion player and had the chance for a quick coffee or tea. Our private tour then commenced and we viewed some great original paintings by Van Gogh and Mondrian amongst others, and sculptures by internationally renowned Belgian artist Jan Fabre. There were also a lot of sculptures outside in the wooded gardens, however as it was pouring with rain unfortunately we didn't get to see those.

Whilst we were at the museum, MS Treasures set sail and headed for Amsterdam. After our tour we boarded the bus and made our way to Amsterdam for a canal cruise and lunch on board a small canal boat. It was drizzling and grey so we didn't view Amsterdam at her best, but the selections of local meats, chesses, breads and Dutch apple pie went down very well. After our 2-hour canal tour we had the choice of taking a bike tour, a guided tour of the city, a Van Gogh museum tour, free time, or to return to the ship. As it had been a bit of a late one last night and an early start this morning, we decided to head back to the MS Treasures for a bit of a rest before tonight's private function at the Rijks Museum and farewell dinner.

MS Treasures

A bit more about the ship...MS Treasures accommodates just 118 guests on three passenger decks and a sun deck on top. She is 361 ft (110 metres) long and 37 ft (11 metres) wide with a draft of just 4 ft (1.2 metres). She carries 29 mostly European and Indonesian crew, and is fully air-conditioned with an elevator between decks. On the sun deck there is a Jacuzzi, 4-hole putting green, plenty of sun loungers, giant chess set and the bridge. The next deck down houses the Panorama Lounge and bar and to the aft the Lido bar area and alternative dining room. Below that is the dining room and kitchen and on the lower passenger deck is a small fitness room and massage area.

Features onboard:-

• In the cabins there is a complimentary mini-bar stocked with soft drinks and water, large wardrobes as previously mentioned and a large flat screen TV with on-demand movies and TV channels.
• There is open sitting dining with no assigned seats, wine with dinner, soft drinks and beer with lunch and dinner.
• Alternative Bistro dining available inside and outside
• Room service
• Complimentary snack basketsAn Internet corner and Nintendo Wii games
• Happy Hour with piano music nightly
• Fitness Centre
• On-board entertainment program including movie nights, cooking demos, local entertainment, themed game nights and more
• Laundry services

MS Treasures has three sister ships:-

• MS Swiss Emerald
• MS Swiss Sapphire
• MS Swiss Jewel

All operating exclusively for TAUCK, each river boat boasts four times more suites than most other European river boats - 14 lush 300-square foot suites, and seven junior suites.

Private Tour Event

After a rest we changed into cocktail wear, and boarded the TAUCK coaches to head for the Rijks Museum. The museum had closed for the day, however TAUCK had arranged for it to be opened just for us. On every cruise they have what they call a "sparkling moment" like this, including visiting the Vatican out of hours and opening the Hermitage up too in the evening. We were served welcome drinks and cocktails, and then they split us into smaller groups for our private tours. The Rijks Museum houses collections by Rembrandt, Degas, Vermeer and Dick Bruna, the graphic designer, illustrator and author of children's books and creator of Miffy.

The visit to the museum was incredible and a highlight for me of our 3-nights on board MS Treasures, and is a "money-cant-buy" experience.

After our 2-hour visit we returned to the ship for a delicious farewell dinner.

Summary

TAUCK really offer an excellent cruise, with well-organised land-tours (it's how they started after all) on a 5-star well-designed river ship, with their own coaches and tour directors to ensure quality. The staff onboard are a credit to the company, are personable and offer a wonderful service - this really is luxury river cruising at its best.

MS Treasures Naming Ceremony Photos

MS Treasures Video

Tauck River Cruise Blog Day 1

Tauck River Cruise Blog Day 2

Tauck River Cruise Blog Day 3