Since I enjoyed my “Paris & Normandy” River Cruise so much 10 years ago, I figured why not head back there again but this time on Tauck’s “Rendezvous on the Seine” sailing! 🙂 As I talk about here, Tauck always does some exclusive shore excursions during their River Cruises… on this River one of them being a PRIVATE visit to Monet’s Gardens pre-opening… so I knew if I enjoyed this sailing last time it’d be even better this time, and sure enough, it was Awesome!! Below is my picture & video gallery of this sailing to give you an idea of what it was like and for more details on this trip you can visit my review of this amazing France River Cruise here.
FYI, when you do a “Seine” River Cruise… more often than not… you start & end in Paris. With that said, Tauck has an option to start in London a few days before this Cruise which is a Great option to add another Epic city to your Vacation! Even though Tauck spends a little time in Paris during this trip, make sure to fly in at least 1 day early to not only help get over the jet-lag, to alleviate any flight or bag delays, etc. but to enjoy more time in this popular City!
As you’ll learn here & here and in the video underneath the below pic, Tauck ALWAYS includes airport transfers (Or train transfers) whether you do a Tauck River Cruise, a Tauck Small Ship Ocean Cruise or a Tauck Land Tour which is a GREAT perk as not having to worry how to get to your hotel or to your ship or back to the airport, etc.!
And, as I talk about in the below video, Tauck’s transfers are VERY flexible whether you book airfare through them or not or hotels through them or not!!
There’s Tauck’s “Ms Esprit” River Cruise ship that was my “home” for 9 nights as I sailed the “Seine” River in France. FYI, this ship fits just 102 guests, we only had 87 onboard when I was on her so nice & small #s as all Tauck’s River Cruises are! 😃
Want to take a look “Inside” Tauck’s Esprit Ship? If so, watch the below video as I take you through her.
Further down this gallery I’ll show you what the rooms & food are like on a Tauck River Cruise, but first, let’s look a little closer at the destination I experienced during this sailing.
We explored so many Great places during this Tauck River Cruise from some of Paris’ most charming neighbourhoods to her Museums (Including the Louvre to see the Mona Lisa!), some of us went to Versailles whereas others like me who had been there went to “The Queen’s Hamlet”, we went to Rouen, Etretat & Honfleur, Normandy Beaches, Jumieges Abbey, Chateau De Taillis, Chateau Gaillard, a Cider Farm and to Monet’s Home & Gardens in Giverny… it was an amazing 9 days for sure!
As I talk about here, on Tauck’s River Cruises (And same thing on their Tauck Small Ship Ocean Cruises & Tauck Land Tours) they always end up doing some Exclusive tours that none of the other lines do… on this trip, some of those major highlights during our Cruise were…
As mentioned above, it was an amazing 9 days for sure!, and this video gives you an Excellant “taste” of what’s in store for you if you decide to make Tauck’s “Rendezvous on the Seine” River Cruise one of your next Vacations I setup for you! 😃
One last note about the “Touring/Shore Excursion” side of a Tauck River Cruise… because Tauck sails with fewer guests on their ships than all other lines, they also have smaller tour groups which is great for getting more time to ask your local guide questions, you move faster on/off coaches, in/out of venues, etc. which leaves more time for site seeing, etc. I counted the amount of people on each of my tours with Tauck and most of them averaged right around 20 people whereas some, like below, had only 14… overall though, our groups were MUCH happier with our sizes compared to when we’d walk past a group with a Viking, etc. sign where we counted 45-50 people🤦🏼♂️… way too many to properly enjoy the places you’re visiting & learning about!!
Alright, now that you’re seen the destination highlights, let’s get back to seeing what the ship I was on was like and what it’s like to sail on a Tauck River Cruise.
First off, let’s look at the room options you can stay in… as it’s VERY common for my River Cruise clients to not be sure what deck they want to stay on, check out this video first to help answer the question… “What’s the best deck for my room to be on?”
As I talked about in the above video, Tauck’s 300 square foot top deck “Category 7” Suites with 2 French Balconies are their most popular rooms and are the room type 90%+ of my clients stay in… IF they book early enough that is, which I didn’t this time! ☹️ FYI, on some of Tauck’s River ships (Including their new ship on this River starting in 2026) this exact same room is called a “Category 5” room… confusing I know but as I’m getting you booked on your Tauck River Cruise I’ll make it very clear which room I’m booking you so, no worries, I’ll make all the confusing parts easy for you! 😉 Here’s a video of that “Category 7” room on “Ms Esprit”.
As mentioned above, due to a close-in schedule change, I couldn’t get a top deck Category 7 room on this sailing as I stayed in on my last Tauck River Cruise so I ended up in a 225 square foot middle deck “Category 6″ French Balcony Stateroom like in the video below… a nice room for sure, bigger than other River lines non-Suite rooms, but the views weren’t as good on the middle deck and it was noisier being only a couple of feet above the water and I could feel some vibration from the engine, etc. so for sure I prefer top deck rooms when on a River Cruise!
Between the top 2 videos, that pretty much covers 100% of the rooms my clients stay in but now & then when those options are sold out, some of my clients will do a smaller room just to get onboard to join friends or because they can’t go on an alternate date, etc. Here’s a look at some of those smaller rooms on “Ms Esprit”.
183 square foot top deck “Category 5” French Balcony Stateroom… ooops, I said “Category 3” in the video by mistake but on this ship it’s a “Category 5” for sure.
170 square foot bottom deck “Category 1” under-the-water-level Fixed Window Stateroom
One last note about rooms… often when I book a client of mine on a River Cruise they ask “What’s the best side of the ship to be on?” Since my answer is always, “Who knows?” and “It’s a matter of luck”, below explains why I say that. This pic shows you 2 ships side by side where those on the “Portside” of both the Viking ship on the left and our Tauck ship on the right had no view at all at that time/their windows were blocked in. FYI, this is VERY common on Europe’s Rivers which are busy (Sometimes there are 3-4 ships side by side which means those in the middle have no view on either side of their ship!) and you don’t know which ship will be parked where/which direction they’ll be facing, etc. so if anyone ever tells you they know for sure the best side to be on I’d like to get their info to help me pick my stocks! 😉
Hmmm… after room options, what should we look at next? Food of course, always the next most important thing after figuring out what room you’re going to stay in!! 😉 If you’d like to check out some of the FABULOUS FOOD I enjoyed during my Tauck River Cruise, you won’t want to miss this video!!
Now that you’ve seen some of the food you’ll get to enjoy onboard a Tauck River Cruise, next you’re probably wondering what are the drinks like on a Tauck River Cruise? Yes, as I talk about here, Tauck River Cruises are an “All-Inclusive” line where they include drinks so every-time you enjoy a non-alcohol or alcohol drink you won’t need to sign it onto your “tab” as you do on many other River Cruises & Ocean Cruises. But many times when people first hear of this “All-Inclusive” River line they’re skeptical thinking what they’ll be served is “house” liquor/wine, etc. like at an “All-Inclusive” Resort in the Caribbean but that’s simply not true! Tauck serves lots of “top-shelf” liquors, some great wines, Champagne including “Veuve Clicquot”, etc. as you’ll see in some of the pics below. Overall, you won’t have any issues enjoying some great beverages during your well-deserved Vacation onboard a Tauck River Cruise!!
Speaking of drinks, often I get asked by my clients if they need to bring a water bottle on their Tauck River Cruise but… as you’ll see below… no need as Tauck provides brand new refillable water bottles for you which you can fill at their water station in the lobby before you head off on tour or up to the Sun Deck, etc. Perfect! 👍🏻😃
Ever wondered what the “Day in the life of a River Cruiser” looks like… this “peek” into one of my days during this sailing will give you a taste of what the “River Cruise Life” is like! 😉
Since a lot of my clients who sail on Tauck are often on 10-14 night sailings or longer, often I get asked “How does laundry work onboard?”
As per the pic below, like at a hotel, you can have your laundry done for you for a fee… note those prices are in Euros.
FYI, if you stay in a top deck Category 7 room as most of my clients do, Tauck gives you a 100 Euro room credit to use at the shop, towards a massage, etc. Or, you can even put it towards your laundry.
Or, if you’re like me & go to Europe for long spurts at a time like this, simply take double the underwear you normally would, wear all your outer items at least twice and bring the small laundry soap sheets you can buy for travel to use in the sink and you’ll be fine between all that! 😉
As I talk about in the above pictures & videos… Tauck’s River Cruises are 100% all inclusive, they have the fewest guests on their ships & on their shore excursions, they have at least 1 “Exclusive” Shore Excursion on their sailings (As I showed above, we had multiple ones on this itinerary!), they have 4 “Cruise/Tauck Directors” on their sailings rather than just 1 which simply makes everything better, etc. Between all those amazing benefits to you, along with everything else I talk about in the below video, should show that Tauck just might be the perfect option for you… for your first, or next, River Cruise!
Well, there you go… I truly hope you enjoyed my photo & video gallery of my “Rendezvous on the Seine” River Cruise with Tauck and I hope it helps you decide if this River Cruise is for you or not!
If this sounds like the kind of journey you’ve been dreaming about or you have additional questions, simply reach out to me.
And as you’ll learn about here, if we work together I’ll share insider tips, help you get those sought-after early booking perks and make sure you’re fully prepared by the time you leave home!
Your “Rendezvous on the Seine” Adventure might be closer than you think! 🤩
I Appreciate You!
Shawn Power
Your Trusted Cruise and Tauck Tour & Africa Safari Expert!
Bonus Videos!!
Still not convinced you want to take a River Cruise to explore this area… if that’s the case, check out this video which covers why a River Cruise could be the perfect way for you to check out this & other destinations!
As I talk about in the video below, this River Cruise was part of a big 5+ week trip I did in Europe where I also did 2 other Cruises… check it out to see why doing a “Multi-Trip Vacation” yourself could be perfect for your next get-away!
Ever wondered how much it costs to work with me & use my services which allows you to tap into my 20+ years of experience Cruising around the World and arranging similar trips for my clients? If your guess was anything above $0, make sure to check out this video right away… which also goes into how not using my services can literally be costing you money!!
Not sure when to book your Cruise that you’re planning on taking… as this video covers, NOW is pretty much the right time!! 😉