7 Night Cruise sailing from Cologne to Basel aboard Rhein Melodie.

Highlights of this cruise:

Cologne
Cologne is situated on the river Rhein in North Rhine-Westphalia and is the fourth largest city in Germany. It is one of the nation's media, tourism and business hotspots.

Cologne Cathedral (German: Kolner Dom) is the city's most famous monument and the Cologne residents' most respected landmark. It is a Gothic church, started in 1248, and completed in 1880. In 1996, it was designated a World Heritage site; it houses the Shrine of the Three Kings that supposedly contains the relics of the Three Magi. Also worth seeing are the city’s twelve Romanesque churches. These buildings are outstanding examples of medieval church architecture. The origins of some of the churches go back as far as Roman times.

Cologne has several museums. The famous Roman-Germanic Museum features art and architecture from the city's distant past; the Museum Ludwig houses one of the most important collections of modern art in Europe, including a Picasso collection matched only by the museums in Barcelona and Paris. The Schnutgen Museum of religious art is housed in St. Cecilia, one of Cologne's Twelve Romanesque churches.

Koblenz
Koblenz is a German city situated on both banks of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck (German Corner) and its monument (Emperor William I on horseback) are situated. It is a historical city with remains dating back to 1000BC.

Koblenz boasts extensive defensive works, including forts crowning the hills encircling the town to the west, and the citadel of Ehrenbreitstein on the opposite bank of the Rhine. Since 1890, the city has consisted of the Altstadt (old city) and the Neustadt (new city) or Klemenstadt. Of these, the Altstadt is closely built and has only a few fine streets and squares, while the Neustadt possesses numerous broad streets and a handsome frontage along the Rhine.

Rudesheim
Rudesheim is a town in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis, Hesse, Germany. It is located on the right (east) bank of the Rhine, at the southern entrance to the Loreley valley.

Rudesheim has been famous for its Drosselgasse since the end of the 19th century. Its wine bars and cafes offer non-stop music and dancing. The Castle Broemserburg houses the famous Wine Museum.

Other attractions include the Museum of Medieval Torture, and Siegfried Wendel's Mechanical Music Cabinet, which has an extensive variety of mechanical musical instruments, distributed throughout a 15th century castle.

Modern meets comfort on board our MS RHEIN MELODIE. This luxurious riverboat with the highest demands in design extends over a length of 132 metres. The highly generous cabins offer all convenience and a fantastic view of the banks of the Rhine. But not only the cabins: it does not matter where you are on this ship, the large panorama windows open a fantastic river cinema. The kitchen on-board is also magnificent. Culinary cuisine is offered each day that lets cruise passengers hearts beat faster.

At meal times, all guest will find a place in the generously arranged panorama restaurant. Let yourself be pampered by the friendly staff. International specialities can be found in the menu, as well as dishes from kitchens of the countries along the travelling route.

Theme evenings, quiz events, bingo (depending on the programme) as well as live music ensure that there is no time for boredom on-board. Books, board and card games are also available.

nicko cruises Schiffsreisen GmbH is one of the most dynamic cruise providers in Germany. In recent years, the company has evolved from a leading river cruise provider with more than 30 years of experience into a well-known provider of small ships with destination-oriented ocean routes. With its fleet, which is as modern as it is comfortable, nicko cruises travels the world’s oceans as well as all domestic waterways and coastal sections that are in demand for tourists. In 2023, the programme includes not only 22 river ships, but also the classic ocean-going vessel VASCO DA GAMA.

With its "time to discover" philosophy, nicko cruises focuses on cruise schedules that are rich in discovery and on intensive travel experiences in the product fields river and ocean. The product features of so-called “slow cruising”, such as small ships and long anchorage times, are combined with emotional moments at nicko cruises. During the cruises, guests always have plenty of time for exploring. Thanks to the large variety of products, everyone will find just the right trip at nicko cruises, individually tailored to their needs. The ships in the fleet are all in the 4 to 5-star category according to German land hotel trade standards. Attractive inland excursions and the varied culinary offers on board round off the travel experience. nicko cruises Schiffsreisen GmbH has its company headquarters in Stuttgart, where it employs roughly 110 highly motivated members of staff.