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River Cruising

Blues

Blues

TUG Review Crew
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I know this would be better posted to a cruise board, but I don't belong to any. DW and I want to do one of the 15 day river cruises on the Danube and Rhine in Sept 2023. Viking just started a promotion for 2023; up till now, I only saw 2022. Danube and Rhine are not cast in stone. But we've never been on the Danube, and this itinerary looks good. I've also seen some itineraries that included more of Eastern Europe, to the Black Sea. Those look good, too.

I've priced what we (think) we want on the Viking web site, including a big suite and business class air. Whoo baby, pricey. My question is, are we better off going directly through them, or working with a cruise specialist? If so, which one. I've sent preliminary email to both vacationstogo.com and Mundy cruising.

Suggestions? Comments? Thanks.
 
My daughter and I booked a Viking cruise (ended up not going due to Covid). On the advice of a friend who had gone with Viking several times we booked directly through Viking. I don't think you get any better pricing working with a cruise specialist. The person we worked with at Viking was able to work with us to get us the best pricing available. If you know someone who has cruised Viking you can use them as a reference and get additional money off. I'm not sure if that person has to have a current reservation. But both you, and the person who referred you, get the money off.
 
I've done a couple, but not through Viking.

We did use a travel agent. My advice to you would be to ditch the big suite, which of course, makes your trip more expensive.

In my experience, the river cruises are much more port intensive and you are up early, off the ship for much of the day, and all meals are at a set time in the dining room. The room is used very little because the whole trip is active and social. Much down time is spent in the bar/lounge area of the cruise ship because that's where all the activity is and good views in all directions.

Most travelers were very friendly and lots of people preferred to spend their free time socializing in the lounge areas. Friends had a larger suite with an aft balcony and they said they only used for a few hours. Not worth it IMO unless you prefer to spend lots of time in your room lounging.
 
We did an AMAWaterways Bordeaux cruise last Aug/Sept. We extended at the beginning for the Basque Country and further extended it ourselves with time in Madrid. It was a wonderful experience. We have booked other AMA cruises but Covid and my emergency heart surgery in Germany got in the way.

I agree that springing for the suite is possibly more expense than necessary for enjoyment. River cruising is more social and much time is off the ship.

We Look at both vacationstogo and River Cruise Travel Specialist | River Cruise King | Berlin Dave was the leading booker of AMAWaterways cruises and does provide extra services to his clients (if needed). He's responsive but possible better geared to cruisers who want a bit more hand-holding. We really LIKE AMA. It's a little higher end. Less mass market. Every day there are (usually) 3 included activities- an 'active' group- hikers/bikers, a culture type activity, and the 'gentle walkers' that will have a guided stroll around the historical district. Bikes are aboard. There is always a nice lunch aboard, and beer and wine is included with meals.

In the future we will probably book direct, but 'windowshopping' cruises on vacationstogo is addictive.

Jim
 
River Cruises can be pretty expensive. I suggest reading the reviews and posts on cruise critic

I haven’t been on a River cruise yet but started looking at Viking reviews before Covid-19 hit.
I soon discovered that folks either loved or hated Viking. Based on the reviews, customer service and issue resolution is lacking. Those who encountered any sort of issue were greatly disappointed.

Here’s the link to individual reviews for Viking - https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/viking-river-cruises/cl/
Link to their River Cruise Forum - https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/115-river-cruising/

I like cruise critic. Similar to TUG you‘ll get very useful tips and a heads up on what to avoid ;)
Some examples:

BE Cautious of Viking River Cruise Payment Schedule

Be VERY careful when making a reservation with Viking online. It is not until the booking is made that you will learn that they want payment in full in 4-5 weeks which may be as much as 11-20 months before the cruise. I just made a reservation for July 2021. They wanted payment in full by the end...
boards.cruisecritic.com boards.cruisecritic.com
boards.cruisecritic.com

Beware of the Explorer suite on Viking

Just back from the Rhine River Cruise on Viking. We traveled in the Explorer suite on the Viking Baldur. My husband and I couldn’t sleep because of the extremely loud noise coming from the engine and the constant vibrating of the room. The room shook so bad, it could make some people sick. The no...
boards.cruisecritic.com boards.cruisecritic.com

Viking Gullveig Cruise Ship: Review, Photos & Departure Ports on Cruise Critic

Viking Gullveig Cruises: Read 169 Viking Gullveig cruise reviews. Find great deals, tips and tricks on Cruise Critic to help plan your cruise.
www.cruisecritic.com www.cruisecritic.com

Also, there’s lots of YouTube reviews as well.
I like Tips for Travellers YouTube channel. He has a whole series on River Cruises.
 
My issue with river cruising is that you tend to be at the lowest point in the terrain and everything up-above.

That said, a Danube cruise is on our bucket list -- a few years out.
.

.
 
I agree with the previous posters, we spent very little time in our cabin on our river cruise in France. I would save the money for other things, such as a pre or post cruise stay in the city where the cruise starts or ends.

We went on a Uniworld cruise, which I loved. All inclusive, tips, excursions, alcohol. Can’t recommend them enough. I booked directly with the cruise line myself.
 
Re: Viking
A huge issue with that line is that you need to pay-in-full at the time of booking, although I have read posters on Cruise Critic who say that timeframe can be negotiated but not to that of other river cruise lines that don't expect payment until 90 days from sailing!
We book with Avalon and don't have to complete payment for our 8/23 cruise until 5/23. Plus check out their cabins! Except for 2 Royal Suites and those cabins on the Aquarium/Swan deck(which we book), they all look like this:
Avalon Waterways Panorama Suite Tour - Bing video
Even better because this shows the comparison!

avalon panorama cabins - Search Videos

www.bing.com www.bing.com
 
Last edited:
I am too lazy to meander over to Cruise Critic since we haven't cruised in more than 2 years. Can someone recommend Avalon Waterways vs. Uniworld vs. AMA Waterways? When we were cruising alot, our travel agent recommended Uniworld and AMA Waterways for river cruising.
 
PigsDad said:
That is an "issue" with any cruise, right? (unless there is a place where water flows uphill... ;) )

Kurt
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same thing!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
VacationForever said:
I am too lazy to meander over to Cruise Critic since we haven't cruised in more than 2 years. Can someone recommend Avalon Waterways vs. Uniworld vs. AMA Waterways? When we were cruising alot, our travel agent recommended Uniworld and AMA Waterways for river cruising.
Click to expand...
I can't offer a comparison, but Dave (see post #4) can book any of them and would give you his recco. We were very satisfied with AMA. They commited to sail last Summer on our Ship, AMA Dolce- capacity 160 passengers, due to Covid restrictions, reduced to 120ish capacity, and after several groups cancelled, we cruised with 24 passengers! With 57 crew! And they ran the same daily excursions as they would with a full complement. Paula and I even had private car tours in some places and a whole little 'tour train' all to ourselves through Bordeaux vinyards.

On the AMA cruise in '18 when I had to go to a hospital for heart surgery, AMA called every day, and the owner and President of AMA sent me flowers at home when we were flown home. I can't imagine ANY other river cruise line going to that length for passengers.

Jim
 
Something else to consider-look at the pricing for a range of dates and river cruise companies.

Our next year's river cruise is with a group of friends. We knew we wanted a Rhine itinerary. Two girlfriends and I were gathered after playing mahjongg one afternoon last fall and began looking at options between AMA and Avalon. Eagle-eyed Audrey found an anomaly for August sailings on Avalon- one cruise was priced @$300 lower pp than others on either line. All of the cheapest cabins were open, and we only needed one other couple to commit for us to get the group discount! Our "Siblings" group now has 8 cabins reserved including one couple who booked the Royal Suite!

We use a local TA and each of us book individually with her as part of our group. Her perk is gratuities. At the end of our Danube Siblings group booking with her, the discount was divided equally among each cabin and remitted to us.
 
We've booked our 7th Viking cruise for next June. We're happy with Viking and get past-guest discounts. A friend is a travel agent and handles the details. We've never been disappointed and have had wonderful experiences.

Our first cruise was in 2008, down the Dneiper River from Kiev to Odesa, including the Crimean Peninsula. We visited a number of places in Ukraine that are in the news today.
 
We cruised with Viking twice prepandemic - once on the Danube from Nuremberg to Budapest and once on the Rhine from Amsterdam to Basel. We enjoyed both cruises very much and hope to cruise in Europe again. On our Danube cruise we had a French balcony cabin and found out that we didn't have much time to enjoy it - the best views were from the top deck, because of course the scenery is on both sides of the ship! So we booked an underwater cabin for the Rhine cruise and didn't mind it at all - woke up one morning to look out the window, and a swan was looking in! We booked Viking for our first cruise because it included a day in Regensburg, where I spent my senior year in college, whereas Ama, recommended by our Vacations To Go agent, didn't. The primary lesson we learned on our first river cruise is that we only enjoyed a "taste" of each port of call and would add to our list of places to revisit. We also did Viking's pre-cruise add-on in Amsterdam and found that extremely worthwhile.

We enjoyed our first American river cruise this past April - American Cruise Lines Northwest Pioneers cruise from Portland OR to Clarkston WA. More time in port, less time cruising!
 
PigsDad said:
That is an "issue" with any cruise, right? (unless there is a place where water flows uphill... ;) )

Kurt
Click to expand...
Except in New Orleans where the river is above the land in many places. I recall how weird it was to look up to see the boats when we were there. :) This reminds me, we really enjoyed a four day river cruise on the American Queen when it was still part of the Delta Queen Steamlines. We would love to do another riverboat cruise in the US, perhaps on the Columbia River. However, they have gotten a lot more expensive so it will have to be added to bucket list.
 
Viking is offering a $25 deposit & free airfare right now:

$25 DEPOSIT​
25th Anniversary River Sale
All-Inclusive from $2,199*

Plus, FREE Roundtrip Airfare
ASK FOR OFFER: VRC23​
Europe's iconic cities and old-world villages are home to countless cultural treasures—both well-known and off the beaten path. From Germany's medieval castles to Austria's intimate coffeehouses, let us take you behind the scenes and reveal their historic—and modern—significance, as only a local would know. We invite you to gain an insider's view of Europe and discover these beloved landmarks with a $25 deposit during our 25th Anniversary River Sale.
 
Thank you for all the responses. I got busy and just got back to them now. Thanks, Denise - that promo is what got me off my duff.

A lot to think about. It was already going to be a huge splurge, which I justified for my DW's (mumble)th birthday. But the comments about not needing a huge suite, negative reviews of Viking, about the noise in the Explorer Suite, and Viking's requirement to pay in full right after booking, have all made me rethink. I think I'll take a bit of time to look at the cruisecritic boards (thanks AlwaysOnVac). I may also look at Dave's board -- thanks Jim.

I guess I have more homework to do. Always a pleasure, when it's trip planning.
 
I was just saying in a PM @klpca that it would be nice to have a TUG river cruise sometime. I would love to meet some TUGgers. We already have a few things in common with most of you.
 
AMA we did a TUG River Cruise only 5 of us went. We had a great time. Would like to do it again. We are going on the Rhine in November, if any TUG members and friends want to go contact Sandy VHD.
 
silentg said:
AMA we did a TUG River Cruise only 5 of us went. We had a great time. Would like to do it again. We are going on the Rhine in November, if any TUG members and friends want to go contact Sandy VHD.
Click to expand...
Which cruise line are you going on? We are interested in France only (14 day itinerary), Danube and Rhine (15 days or so) but we have travel plans for this November already. We are currently looking at next year, either April or Sep/Oct. I just called Viking and asked about final / full payment and whether it is still due over the next 2 months or so after the $25 deposit, and the agent said it is. Back to looking at Ama, Uniworld and Avalon.
 
Geez - that $25 offer is kind of misleading, isn't it!
 
We are going on AMA Waterways, same company we did the Paris to Normandy River Cruise.
 
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