river cruise

You should also check out Scenic Tours. Have had friends who have done several cruises with this group.

Denis, I've never taken a River Cruise, as they're a bit "posh" for my budget, and as a solo traveller I'm not sure they would be a good "fit" for my travel style. I just received a Brochure from Viking River Cruises (no doubt courtesy of my Travel Agent) and they look incredible! If I ever win the Lottery, I may give it a try. Happy travels!

You are aware that you won't be able to do the river cruise all the way to Prague, right? Ship goes to Germany and then you have to go by bus.

I have taken the Viking cruises from Amsterdam to Basel in 2009 and Nuremburg to Budapest in 2010. I was happy with both cruises - the accomodations, meals, day tours, entertainment - all met or exceeded my expectations. Viking offers some amazing 2 for 1 deals. I'm assuming you've checked the website, maybe ordered the brochure and DVD?

Uniworld is a great company to travel with. My only experience with them was a combo land/river cruise in China, but it was excellent. And all excursions were included in the price, not charged additionally as with other cruises.

Good to hear that Uniworld got a tick. We are travelling with this company from Amsterdam to Basel next April. First time we have done an 'organised' tour. Have always travelled independently. Must say I am looking forward to not have to pack and unpack for 8 days!! Having said that still 'doing or own thing' in Amsterdam and Switzerland.

Last July we took the Blue Danube tour on Uniworld. It was fabulous. We don't care for large ship cruises. This was our first riverboat cruise. I cannot say enough good things about Uniworld. Virtually everything is included in the price so it does represent a good value. The boat was gorgeous, the staff was excellent, and the shore excursions were the perfect combination of structured tours and free time. We were on the Beatrice which was the second year for this boat. I would suggest you check the ages of any boat you are considering. When we were docked by other riverboats there was a good deal of difference in how "nice" they looked.
It will be a wonderful trip!

Viking and Uniworld are both excellent. Food, staff, entertainment, activities similar on both lines. All excursions are included so you have no surprise costs. Very convenient as your boat will stop right at your village in most cases. If transport was necessary, busses were lined up to meet us each morning. Guides were excellent. All staff are English speaking. We enjoy river cruising and will be doing it again. Have fun!!!

You might want to check out Grand Circle Travel - I've done their Vienna-Amsterdam cruise and Budapest to the Black Sea with a pre-trip excursion to Prague and found both to be excellent. We were actually on the same ship both times; it was fun to see the same captain and a few of the same staff, a year later. They do have some optional excursions at extra cost, and as on most cruises tips are not included in the cost. We enjoyed both cruises very much: a good variety of stops, great local guides and program directors, delicious food on the ship. Enjoy your cruise!

As Ilja mentioned, the Danube does not go anywhere near Prague, it goes over a hundred miles south of Prague through Passau, Germany, and and Linz, Austria.

We took an Avalon cruise from Nuremburg to Budapest two yrs ago. It was very nice if you are a semi-sedentary conservative person with an interest in shopping. The food was very good as was the wine. Not for the adventurous or the politically liberal.

Not for the adventurous or the politically liberal. How does politics enter into it?

So if I'm not particularly conservative, and prefer tours with very little shopping, a river cruise is not for me?

Of the many off-the-wall remarks I've seen on this board, Cathy's is probably the most ludicrous I've seen. This remark also goes to illustrate the WHY NOT ANSWER THE QUESTION thread. I don't believe the OP asked about the political affiliation requirements for river crusing. The statement IMHO was kind of insulting to those of us who have taken a cruise down the Rhine and don't require walkers and who don't live to shop, but just want a nice vacation.

I knew I always wanted to take an Avalon cruise ;-)

Maybe it is just the Avalon cruise. I am always amazed when someone can take one experience and expand it to the world., My experience with our seven European cruises it is what we make of the cruise not what someone else makes for us.

I think Cathy did try to answer the question about cruises, albeit in general. She probably thinks it is a less adventurous option for a holiday, which it is to some extent, although it will be what you make of it, and if she is conservative she maybe doesn't know many socialists and she can only imagine that they must like different things, a bit like aliens. True to form however, my Conservative parents loved cruising, Health Spas, shopping etc and hated picnicks by rivers, (dirt and sand in your sandwiches), being seen in our old Ford transit (what will the neighbours think) and visiting the slums in Delhi, (why do we need to reminded of poverty on holiday) so Cathy has a point to some extent, (unless of course she herself is a 'liberal' and is looking down her nose at folk who like to shop) Actually on re-reading the OP she didn't even answer the question as a cruise would appear to have already been decided upon.

My parents love Viking Cruises (they are active in their late 60's early 70's). I normally cannot afford the single supplement or I would try them out. Our family did go on a Uniworld cruise to the Christmas markets along the Danube. We had a blast. We were in our 40s, we were the youngest tour members on the boat. We had local guides for most places our group size for each local guide was between 10 and 15 people (smaller than Rick Steves). The guides were top quality (similar to Rick Steves local guides). I loved unpacking once. I hated the stupid "lollipops" the local guides carried. The food was terrific and the chefs and wine stewards embraced the local foods, wines and beers. I loved being able to wash my clothes in a washer and dryer while we were underway. There was free time that was nice - you could do as you wished. Tips are not included. Most shore visits were included in the cost of the cruise except one optional trip to Schoenbrunn Palace in Vienna. They had local entertainers board the boat in the evenings. The crew did a good job of explaining to those travelers who were less mobile, the requirements of local excursions. My parents had a great time as well but they rated Viking as higher than Uniworld - they said the staff was higher quality as well as the food. I had nothing to compare Uniworld with - it was a fun time - only 115 passengers - and I'd take another Uniworld cruise or Viking if the chance presented itself. Have a great trip!

We did a Viking cruise this spring in the Netherlands. The ship, crew, meals, service were all outstanding and if we were to take another river cruise we would not hesitate to take Viking. That being said, it is still a tour and we found out that, sadly, we are not really tour travelers we prefer to be individual travelers.