How quiet are river boat cabins in Europe?

We did a Danube cruise and our room was noisy. We could hear people in the hall. I don’t remember about the doors. We sailed AMA Waterways.
Go to cruisecritic.com and ask your questions there. You’ll be glad you did!

I did a Danube cruise (Budapest to Bucharest) with Viking a couple years ago, and don't recall noise being an issue at all.

Couple things working in our favor:

• Stateroom was on the upper deck, so no one in a stateroom above us. The cooler weather at the time I went on the cruise (late October to early November) also meant the sundeck above wasn't particularly busy. On a Viking ship, there is a walking track on the sundeck that many guests did use. This isn't something that bothered me because I was never really in the room during the times of day anyone might be using the walking track. There were a few times I found myself doing something in the room while folks were walking the track above, though, and I could sometimes hear their footsteps. Again, not an issue at night when trying to sleep but if you choose Viking and feel that might bother you I'd suggest avoiding the upper deck - you're less likely to have noisy upstairs neighbors while on the middle deck than you are to have people exercising above you while on the upper deck.

• The stateroom I had was fairly central - not too close to the back of the ship where the engines are, and not too close to the common areas towards the front of the ship. While I made it a point to avoid the first couple rooms once you enter the hallway that leads to the staterooms (worried they'd be too close to the atrium, lounge, etc and be too heavily trafficked since everyone coming down the hallway to/from their own stateroom would have to go by yours), friends who were in the very first, most forward room didn't have any complaints at all (and they'd cruised with Viking before and made it a point to choose that first room, in fact).

• Unlike ocean cruises, the river cruise crowd wasn't all that rowdy. I suppose there's always a chance one group, couple, or family causes a ruckus but on my cruise the socializing stayed up front where the lounge, terrace and restaurant are and the rooms were quiet and peaceful.

• Occasionally I might notice the sound of someone walking by when I myself was right inside my own stateroom door (while, say, brushing my teeth at the sink with the bathroom door open, since the bathroom is right next to the door). Once actually in bed, though, noises never bothered me.

• Engine (located aft) noise or vibration on the ship as a whole was not an issue, and something I never even noticed; kitchen and common areas are forward; rooms midship going aft. Lower deck (below water line) aft rooms might get some engine noise, but I'm only speculating.

I found the daily schedules also helped make noise a non issue - during the day when folks might be most active, I was off the ship either on an excursion or exploring on my own. Later afternoons, when back on the ship and when others were also up and about, I spent my time socializing in the lounge. At night, when peace and quiet mattered, most everyone else on the ship was also peaceful and quiet and going to bed at a decent hour.

YMMV depending on which line you choose and the particular crowd that particular sailing gets! Either way, hope ya have a blast if you go forward with a trip!

Just adding this:

re: Viking in particular. I never noticed any door slamming, but there was a distinctive latch sound to their closing. I found someone's video review on YouTube that kinda demonstrates it well:

https://youtu.be/tLT2KwmqGIs?t=180

Video should take you right to the 3:00 mark, just before they let the door close on its own. You can gauge the sound it makes well from there, and get a good look at the door itself. At around the 3:55 mark you can see them opening and closing the door again, and get a feel for the noise it makes and how the door/frame is built. Worth pointing out closet doors and drawers in the stateroom itself are soft close - no real way to slam those unintentionally.

https://youtu.be/6RqamKWNmbY?t=15 also lets you hear a door close (link should take ya to 15 second mark, just before they seem to let the door just close on its own).

Some of these video reviews can be useful for things like that - letting you actually see and hear someone closing a door while filming a review of a ship's stateroom.

Those door closings sound just like a ocean cruise ship door to me (the above YouTube videos). I have not been on a river cruise, but it has a goal. I have been on several ocean cruises and I am a light sleeper who hates noises and I do OK on those. I do bring a white noise machine with me everywhere I go or at the very least use the white noise app on my phone.

We did a Danube cruise, Bucharest to Budapest, two yrs ago with Grand Circle, good trip. No door slams, but on another cruise we had the farthest aft starboard cabin, & the diesel fumes often made our balcony unusable. Noise wasn't an issue.

You might want to check out the website River Cruise Advisor - he answers questions and has written a book about river cruising.

On ocean cruises, we choose cabins on decks with cabins above and below us (not public areas). We also select locations away from launderette room doors, elevator and stair foyers, and utility rooms where the room stewards are assembling their service carts. I hear what you're saying about very selfish 'amateur traveler' neighbors in hotels slamming doors, yelling in hallways - - this can happen on cruises as well, but on ships that appeal to more mature adults, we've found it to be less of an issue.

I always travel with custom-made ear plugs!

I have been on 7 river cruises with Grand Circle and Uniworld. The only time I felt there was a noise issue was when our cabin was below the kitchen. I would hear breakfast getting started every morning right after 6. I had cabins somewhat near the engine room, but I remember it as a vibration more than a noise.

I don't think you should worry about this at all. I was on a river cruise in 2014 on Avalon and the last thing that would have occurred to me as an annoyance would have been noise. The passengers on these cruises skew older and welathier. The doors on any cruise ship are not like big heavy hotel doors. You should worry more about water levels.

Thanks very much for the clear feedback.

"...slamming doors, yelling in hallways" at midnight too and more noise making and disturbances....this all sounds like experiences I have had in the private, independent hostels in the last 10 years. How does one deal with it? I don't, just go back to sleep.