Please sign in to post.

viking danube cruise

Taking a Viking Basel to Amsterdam river cruise in late October. Am I better off booking excursions through Viking or just get off the ship and find a local guide. Don't mind walking.....

Posted by
1075 posts

I thought river cruises already had the excursions included? If you’re talking about the optional excursions, I would personally book my own just because with river cruises you dock in the heart of town so there’s less worry about making it to the ship on time like there is with ocean cruises which often dock very far away from the city center.

Posted by
4536 posts

I've only taken a couple of cruises, but one advantage to the excursions booked through your cruise company - especially for the risk averse - is that it is their responsibility to get you back to the ship in time for departure.

Posted by
6384 posts

With Viking, a number of excursions (tours of the town you’re at) are already included, and they usually occur in the morning which leaves afternoons for any optional excursions (away from town). They are easy to sign up for, once onboard. On the Viking cruise we took, my wife and I used those afternoons, and frankly, some of the town tours we decided to leave early, to wander on our own. For tours outside of the town, take into consideration that if you’re on a Viking tour and it’s going to be late getting back to the boat, the boat will wait. If you’re on a non-Viking tour/excursion and it’s late, the boat won’t wait for you. Keep some change handy since the tour guides and bus drivers pretty much expect a tip. That was our biggest complaint with Viking; it seemed we were always tipping somebody. Also, more than one boat will be in port at the same time as yours (as many as 5), with each boat having 6 or 7 groups of passengers touring the town at the same time. So, during those tours the streets are filled with the boat tourists and you really don’t get a true feel for the towns you’re visiting. Wandering on your own later gives you a better feel for the places you visit.

Posted by
6429 posts

The only way you'd be "better off" using local guides might be financially, for things Viking doesn't provide as part of the cruise. Friends recently completed this cruise and told me it included a bus and/or walking tour of each city where it stopped, plus free time. The cruise line offered some paid tours during the free time, but other options might be more appealing to you and/or cheaper. Keep in mind the need to be back at the ship before departure and the assurance that you won't have a problem with that on a Viking-provided tour.

Posted by
4756 posts

Yeah, that's a Rhine cruise, not Danube. If none of the included excursions float your boat, then go ahead and book private ones or just DIY. It will be up to you to do your own research for each stop to see what you would like to do in each place, given the amount of time there. Im not sure that its as easy as finding a guide when you step off the boat, though, like you'd find in the Caribbean. The nice thing about river cruises- if you're late and miss the boat, it's usually not that hard to hop a train or bus, or even rent a car to catch up. (Provided you have your passports with you).

You might want to check out the River Cruise forum on Cruise Critic. Com

Posted by
888 posts

As a veteran of 4 River cruises (Tauck not Viking) I would not prebook a tour with someone else unless it was no money down. The docking locations aren't always in the heart of the towns - in fact on the Rhine i remember only a couple that were. And even if that's where they normally dock they might not for your cruise. All kinds of things can change the plan. The ships have to share the river, the locks, and the docks with lots of other river traffic which can have ripple affects. We just completed a Budapest to Amsterdam cruise where a Viking ship had a fatal collision with a local tour boat then a different Viking ship hit and damaged a lock bringing all ship traffic to a halt thru that section of the Main canal for weeks. Threw off the schedules for dozens of ships. That was a pretty major event but lots of smaller ones can still cause changes.

Fyi, we cruise with Tauck because they are completely all inclusive - no tipping, no extra excursion costs, all food and drink included. They always deliver more than promised. You get what you pay for.

Posted by
7595 posts

River cruises (we have done four) include most excursions, with some including an optional choices.
You won't need to book private tours.
I suggest that you do some research into the ports that you are visiting, it will help you to understand the history and culture.

Posted by
2165 posts

You can look up the included and extra tours and see what looks inviting. Part of your itinerary was included on our Viking cruise last summer. We stopped in Koblenz the night that Germany played in the World Cup and there was a beer garden located close to the ship. I’m not sure if that is always there or just for the special event. It was a Saturday and I don’t remember much being open near the ship, which was docked within walking distance of the confluence of the rivers. In Cologne, we were docked a hefty walking distance from the center/cathedral but there was a shuttle bus to the main area if you didn’t mind waiting. We didn’t mind walking and there’s was a market open along the river. In Kinderdijk, the ship moved from drop off to pick up, which would have made an optional tour with a local guide impossible.