04.10.2017 Mittschiffs

Festive Cruises

New winter programmes in Mainz and Koblenz

KD has added several new doors to its Advent calendar this year. And hidden behind them are wonderful seasonal surprises: Advent cruises in Mainz that are as tasteful as they are atmospheric, and festive New Year’s Eve cruises in both Koblenz and Mainz. RheinZeit magazine decided to check things out beforehand.

Time for reflection and some respite from the pre-Christmas hustle and bustle – there are many that harbour this desire. And the MS Godesburg, one of the KD’s comfortable riverboats, is pretty much the ideal place to do so. She departs regularly from Mainz from the 1st of December, and is a bit like a floating Christmas island, because there’s everything on board that makes the Christmas season so wonderful: festive decorations, delicious waffles, hot punch and sumptuous winter buffets. And it’s all far from the commotion of the inner city, which you can observe from a comfortable distance while enjoying a relaxing boat trip.

“We’re all very excited and are looking forward to this new highlight during Advent.”

KD Managing Director Achim Schloemer

Triple the seasonal mood

For its pre-Christmas première in Mainz, KD has three different programmes on offer: Those in need of a short break or seeking a suitable warm-up before doing the rounds of the Christmas Markets need look no further than our Christmas afternoon cruises. The MS Godesburg sails along the Rhine each Saturday and Sunday between 15:00 and 17:00. Passengers can enjoy fresh Bergisch waffles with hot cherries while taking in the festive panorama of the Rhineland-Palatinate State capital.

Those who’ve booked the Advent Sunday brunch should come with a big appetite. The substantial buffet has everything you could wish for and is included in the ticket price along with coffee, tea – and naturally an extended cruise.

During Advent, the MS Godesburg sets sail on Friday and Saturday evenings too. She casts off at 20:00 for an all-inclusive evening cruise. This means you have over 3 hours to feast, chat with friends and soak up the festive atmosphere on board, and maybe even have a dance? A DJ is on hand to provide the appropriate background music while our guests enjoy the delicacies from the buffet.

Incidentally, this route is perfect for a Christmas party with friends, your club, family or company. And wine, beer and soft drinks are included in the price besides the buffet – so there’s no chance of breaking the bank.

Not just during the Christmas season

On New Year’s Eve, KD is offering Mainz resi-dents what must be one of the most wonderfully atmospheric parties in town: The tables in the MS Godesburg’s salon are decorated in an especially festive manner. The passengers make their way to their reserved seats with a welcome glass of sparkling wine in hand. A sumptuous buffet of hot and cold dishes provides the ideal basis for the long night of partying ahead. Drinks and a midnight snack are included in the price too. The spectacular view of the New Year’s Eve fireworks you get from the ship is near priceless, though. And when the time comes, you can welcome the new year from an exceptional vantage point: the open deck of the Godesburg.

Fireworks at the “Deutsches Eck”

It’s no secret that Koblenz has a lot to offer visitors too: The Kaiser Wilhelm Monument at the Deutsches Eck, Stolzenfels Castle (the epitome of Rhine romance), the spectacular cable car across the Rhine, and Ehrenbreitstein Fortress, which looks down on everything from on high. As the year comes to an end, the city is an attraction richer: an exhilarating New Year’s Eve cruise on the Rhine. For the first time ever, KD is setting sail on the final evening of the year from Koblenz too, and invites you to join them on board for a festive buffet, great drinks and dance music. And you can experience it all against the spectacular backdrop of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley. When 2018 starts like this, it can only be a good year.