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Danube River Cruise suggestions?

We are in our mid 50's looking for a Danube river cruise in June. Any suggestions? We would like to go from 6 - 9 days. We prefer casual attire, good food and nice accommodations.

Posted by
2 posts

Avalon Waterways has an 8 day "cruise only" starting in Budapest and ending in Nuremburg. Did this a couple of years ago and found it very relaxing. You basically cruise at night and awake to find yourself in a "river town" for a walking tour. Then it's back on the boat for lunch and a leisurely day of watching the world drift by. I highly recommend it!!

Posted by
15 posts

We did the Danube Cruise with Avalon Waterways a couple of years ago. We did the 12 day cruise starting in Budapest and ending in Prague. Avalon was great! You cruise mostly at night and wake to a different little river town each morning. One day we cruised most of the morning and really enjoyed sitting up on deck and watching/listening about the little villages and history of the area. Avalon offered some side trips by bus to other cities ( Salzburg, Chesky Krumlov, etc) besides the guided tours that were included in your cruise package. No "dressing" for dinner ( of course no shorts or flip flops), mostly men wore button down shirts, polo shirts, I didn't see anyone wearing jeans at meals. Women mostly wore nice slacks and blouses or skirts. There were a couple of men who wore a blazer but just worn mostly what you would wear to a nice dinner restaurant. The food was delicious and the wines and beer at dinner were always flowing! The "rooms" are small but you really aren't in them very much so I didn't mind. We aways chose the rooms on top sleeping area that had a balcony. A real plus is unpacking your suitcase once! I would recommend Avalon and have since been on another cruise we Avalon on the Rhone River last year. Enjoy!

Posted by
930 posts

We did a Christmas Market Danube River Cruise this past December on Tauck . . . it was simply amazing. Tauck is high-end, but totally ALL INCLUSIVE. This was our 3rd Tauck Tour. All excursions are included - (pay attn that lots of the other companies offer 'optional excursions' that you pay extra for . . . trust me, you won't want to miss the museums, abbeys, convents, cathedrals, palaces, concerts), tips are all pre-paid/included (most other companies, you tip at the end), all dock fees, all meals, unlimited wine/beer at meals (other companies, you pay for alcohol - we received the regional wines/beers with meals-unlimited), the guides in the towns are locals & they were SO informative. Very informative guides during the morning and then time on our own from lunch til dinner -- we loved the mix of guided info (we would have never learned so much on our own) and then time on our own in the afternoons. We saw gingerbread demonstrations, glass-blowing, ate lunch at the oldest restaurant in Europe (located in Salzburg), pipe organ concerts in the cathedrals, private Christmas Markets . . . . on and on!!

We did meet lots of people who had done numerous River Cruises & many people on ours were doing back-to-back cruises on different cruise lines thru the Danube, Rhine, & others. We were fortunate to ask lots of questions because we will do this again. The Christmas Market Cruises were MUCH cheaper than the spring & summer cruises.

We learned Viking is the most popular, but also much larger with more people, food and guides not quite as good according to the people we met. Avalon had great reviews from everyone we spoke with. In many of the ports, we had to dock side-by-side and go through other ships to get on the land . . . all the ships we walked thru were nice. Met people on Grand Circle . . . they liked the tour, but it wasn't all-inclusive . . . lots of extras they had to pay for. You are in Europe in December . . . it will be wonderful . . . just depends on what you are looking for.

When we book again, if we can afford Tauck, we will go with Tauck . . . but if Avalon is cheaper (but also comparable with the details, then we will go with Avalon). AAA recommended Tauck, Avalon, and Uniworld to us . . . while we didn't meet anyone on Uniworld, we have read good things about them & would consider them if things were comparable.

Another thing we really liked about Tauck is that we received lots of 'gifts' from them during the week . . . whatever the local product was . . . they gave us . . .ie: gingerbread in Nurmberg Germany, Salt in Salzburg Austria, Chocolate covered apricots and Apricot Liquor in Melk Austria. One night while we were cruising from Vienna to Melk, they surprised us with a onboard concert from Men who were in the Vienna Boys Choir when they were children - they put on a Christmas Concert for us I will never forget.

Cabins/bathrooms were very nice and comfortable. No one dressed-up for dinners. Breakfasts were amazing buffets with everything you can imagine, coffees/fresh juices/all types of pastries/bacon/sausage/local foods/omelet station and a menu too if you wanted to order. Dinners were menu - 4-5course with several 'regional' choices for each course (always a lamb/beef/chicken/fish/veggie option locally prepared) - or you could always get a steak or chicken if you wanted to stay 'American.'

Our pre and post hotels that we stayed in were so NICE!! We flew in 2 days early and spent time on our own in Vienna in the hotel Tauck uses and we stayed 3 nights in Nurmberg Germany post cruise in the Tauck recommended hotel and we couldn't have been happier . . . great central locations, amazing included breakfasts, and helpful/friendly staff.

So . . . I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Tauck (Travel & Leisure's Best River Cruise), Avalon, Uniworld to you . . . it truly was the trip of a lifetime for us.

Posted by
809 posts

I have done three river cruises with Grand Circle Travel and greatly enjoyed them all. We did Vienna - Amsterdam, Budapest - Black Sea, and Rhine - Mosel. Unfortunately, if you are limited to 6-9 days, this won't work; their trips tend to run 2 weeks or more, except for the Christmas Market cruises in December.

FYI, Grand Circle was just rated #1 Best River Cruise Line in Conde Nast Traveler's Readers Choice awards.

Posted by
186 posts

We just got back from our trip which included Viking's Danube Waltz river cruise from Budapest to Passau. Trip started and ended on a Sunday, and we took their Prague add-on tour at the end. Food was great, service impeccable -- would highly recommend it.