AMA Waterways Christmas Market Cruise Review-Vrey Long

I thought I would post my review of our first river boat cruise. DH and I have been on many, many ocean cruises. An oppurtunity came up for us to try a river boat cruise. I will say that it was a most magical experience.

AMA Waterways is a wonderful river boat cruise line.We could not have chosen a better cruise line for our first river boat experience.

Our itinerary was Nuremburg to Budapest. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed reliving it as I wrote it.

Day 1 - Sunday, Nov 30th: Arrived at the Nuremberg airport, it was very quiet and not many people around. Sunday must be a slow travel day in Germany. We grabbed cab and rode off to see our lovely ship, the beautiful MS Amalegro! We were very early for embarkation, arrived at the ship at 11am and embarkation begins at 3pm. However, as the cabby unloaded our bags the sailor who met us at the ship grabbed our bags and said to get in and get warm. The weather was sunny but cold that day.

We were then we greeted by several people in the reception area. The hotel manager, Dodo, took one look at us and said go and sit in the lounge and I’ll have the kitchen prepare some soup and snacks for you. I’ll do something about getting you into your room so you can take a nap. We must have looked awful, lol.

Minutes later a few more people came in and we all decided it was a good time to take a few photos.

Before we knew it there was a mini buffet of soup, sandwiches and Christmas cookies for us to chow down. What a wonderful crew! After a much needed lunch and a few cups of tea, Dodo came in and informed us that our room was ready and that Gabor will show us to our cabin.

The cabin was a lot roomier than I thought it was going to be. The cabin was spotless, immaculate! There was a plate of Christmas cookies on the table along with complimentary bottled water. The bathroom was huge and the amenities were wonderful!

We settled in to our accommodations rather quickly. Took a little break and showered. The shower was incredible!! I have never had such an invigorating shower in a hotel or on a ship before. The shower alone was almost worth the cruise fare!!

After a quick inspection of the ship we headed to the lounge for the Captain’s reception. As we entered the lounge we were greeted by the Captain and he gave each of the ladies a beautiful long stemmed rose. We also we were introduced the staff and given a yummy Christmas cocktail. The hot snacks were wonderful!

After the reception we went to dinner. The dining room was decorated beautifully with poinsettias and gingerbread houses everywhere. It was open seating and every night we could either sit by ourselves or with other passengers. The tables were set up so you could actually sit alone and still have a conversation with your neighbor.

The wine and beer flowed every night. I have never seen such generous offering of beverages. Each night there was red and a white wine from the region we were sailing in. Not sure if the beer changed.

Dinner was wonderful, we ate well every night. The wait staff was excellent! But because there are only 6 or 7 of them you get to know them very well throughout the cruise. If you wanted anything or more of something they were very happy to make you happy.

The bar staff was fabulous, if you took one sip or two of your wine there they were filling up again. I remember one time as they came around again to fill up our glasses I had said ‘no thanks, I still have quite a full glass’ and his reply was ‘just let me top it off for you then’, and he did. It was that way all cruise long.

It was an early bedtime for us but we had a wonderful start to a wonderful trip.

Day 2- Monday, Dec. 1: We overnighted in Nuremberg and after an early breakfast we boarded the tour bus and visited the former **** parade grounds and congress hall ruins. We saw the rooms where the Nuremburg trials took place. The largest intact medieval city walls in Germany and the castle were really interesting. I had no idea how important Nuremburg is in our history.

BTW: the way AMA handles the tour buses and guides is very well organized. Before we leave for the touring bus we pick up a ‘boarding pass’, a laminated tag with your cabin number on it, it is always at the front desk. You have to remember to take it with you when you leave and you have to remember to replace it when you return. This is the only way to keep track of you.

Every day we also pick up a ‘vox box’, a radio device to use when we are off the bus touring or on a walking tour; we were given our own ear plugs which was already in our cabin. No matter where you are you can hear your guide. The boxes are colored coded so you can always find your bus, usually red, blue or yellow. Sometimes there was a pink group, which was for the gentle walkers, folks who have to go at a slower pace as not to hold up the faster paced walkers…brilliant!! When you return to the ship you return the vox box for re-charging.

On our way to the Christmas market we were told that AMA had arranged for us to get a complimentary mug of spiced cider (with or without rum) at a local seller’s booth at the market. We were also informed that we can keep the Christmas market mug we were served the in and once we were finished with our hot beverage we were able to trade in our dirty mug for a clean one. What a wonderful surprise from AMA.

The Christmas market visit was amazing. By far the best Christmas market was in Nuremburg. One item I knew I was going to shop for was the Nuremburg Prune Men. Several booths were selling them and we had to decide whether or not get them here or wait to see if there are more prune People to choose from. Well we decided to make our purchase here (I had to buy quite a lot of them so I’m sure I made this sellers day) and it was a good thing we bought them in Nuremburg, no other Christmas had the Prune People. The market was beautiful! It was raining but it didn’t stop us from perusing the booths. It was wonderful! So many hand crafted items and beautifully displayed. I also bought many wooden ornaments, very intricate and so pretty.

On the bus going back to the ship AMA passed out the most delicious gingerbread, wrapped in a bow. Another wonderful extra from AMA.

Back on the boat we gathered in the lounge for the cocktail party to toast the Continental Divide as we sailed through it. As we were going through the first lock it began to snow, it was lovely. We were either outside on deck or in forward lounge watching in awe as this very long boat glided smoothly through this very narrow lock.

Dinner was once again superb! The local wine that accompanied the meal was delicious and constantly flowing.

We once again went to bed early. All that shopping wore us out. LOL!! Or was it the wine???

Days 3-4

Regensburg, one of my favorite ports, it was magical! The walking tour was wonderful; our guide was very knowledgeable and friendly. We visited a historic sausage house, I bought some German mustard. We went in and it was very tiny. You enter into the kitchen right where they are grilling the sausages. We also visited a salt storage basement; the wooden beams in this place were amazing. The city is very quaint and there are many nice upscale shops too.

After the tour we had the choice of either going back to the ship with the guide or going off on our own. I found a wonderful market that had the best chocolates. I bought two smokers; smokers are wooden ‘incense’ burners. I will post a link. I bought a fisherman and a basket maker.

We headed up to the castle where for 5 Euros we gained entrance to Princess Gloria’s royal castle and the special Christmas medieval market being held on the grounds. The atmosphere was out of a storybook, lit torches were everywhere and fire pits to warm your hands and feet were alongside stalls of handmade crafts with woodsmen making animals with their lathe. A glass blower was at work next to a blacksmith’s booth. The Gluehwein (mulled wine) was hot and fruity. The Christmas market mug was beautiful, it has a motif of the castle on it (each market has their own mug and many people, like me, bought the mug with the wine, but I had no idea the mug at this market would be so pretty. I bought hand carved wooden cats for my pet sitters. Everything in this market has to be all hand made no machine made items is allowed. I could have spent two days in this market.

It was so nice having two days in Regensburg, I really enjoyed this port.

Day 5

This morning we arrived In Melk. It was very foggy this morning and it was the coldest day for this cruise, IMO.

The Melk Abbey was so amazing and just the fact that they chose to put such an impressive place in such a tiny village is a wonder in itself. Our guide was wonderful, and shared stories of going to school as a child at the Abbey. The frescoes, relics and high baroque style of the Abbey took just our breath away. The town itself was quaint. Lots of shops and cafes. The walk back to the ship seemed long since it was so bitter. Once on board, we were greeted with smiles and hot chocolate and hot tea.

We had an early evening arrival in Vienna (we arrived after dinner), where we all had the choice to head out to Christmas markets by subway or a Mozart concert! We chose to explore Vienna on our own. The subway system is fantastic! Clearly marked and very clean and safe. We had no trouble finding our way to the markets. The trip was so worth it. The market at night was spectacular. Although, it was rather jammed packed with the locals. The area around the food areas were impossible to pass. The booths were festively lit up and the people were more than friendly. Not many spoke English but we could still communicate. Here is an example of the extreme friendliness of the people in Vienna.

It was a very chilly night so the first thing we did when we got to the markets was get our mug of hot mulled Gluewine. As we were walking around the booths, I saw honey, beeswax candles. On board we were informed this is a tradition in the homes at Christmas. I walked up to the booth and I picked out my choices, the lady did not speak a word of English. (side note, to let people know we do not speak German, we would say “Hello” when we entered a store or booth, that way they know what language we spoke, it worked very well) As Tom was giving her the money, he handed me his mug, I had already finished mine and was holding my mug too. She gave him the change, the candles and another bag. We looked at each other and she pointed at my mug. She gave me a bag to carry my empty mug in. I was so astonished that she was so sweet and thoughtful. I said “Merry Christmas” to her and she said “Merry Christmas” back. What a lovely, lovely lady.

We shopped around for a while and went back to the ship via the subway…hoping to remember how to get back. Actually we made it back rather quickly and discovered that not many people went into Vienna. They missed a different atmosphere that you can only see at night. Not to mention how beautifully everything was lit up. Just to see the huge Christmas tree lit up was worth it.

Once again upon as we boarded the ship we were greeted hot mulled wine and hot tea. I grabbed my hot wine and went to my cabin and went straight to bed. We have an early morning excursion into Salzburg.

Day 6 - Full day in Salzburg today, a very modern and elegant city. We were all very fond of the crew and cruise director. This group is made up of mostly Romanian and Hungarian young people, they are so warm, fun and service oriented. Every wish is accommodated, from hot cappuccinos at the asking, to multiple adapters for our mass of electrical devices, a taxi waiting within moments outside the door of the ship, as well a non-stop barrage of questions about what we are seeing at every moment directed to Cheri — our fabulous cruise director who is full of funny stories and great tales of her travels intertwined with great commentary on each spot along the cruise route. We will miss her.

Our day in Salzburg was fabulous. Following a wonderful orientation bus and walking tour. We visited Mozart’s home. And we even saw several places were the Von Trapp family frequented. ‘The Sound of Music’ was filmed here so we got an education on the movie and the Von Trapp's,

After the tour we spent own free time on our own shopping on main street or at the Christmas market, where we continued to enjoy the gluhwines — all slightly different in each city — one with oranges and nuts, another with elderberry, or rum and raspberries.

Tom and I had lunch at a fast food seafood restaurant called NorSee. We were sort of hesitant after we got our food. It was not inexpensive so I guess I shouldn’t call fast food. But I have to say that even today we are both craving the creamy curried shrimp. The cheese pasta was delicious too.

We all met up with tour to continue our journey to the Alps. Personally I thought they were more mountainous but they were still very impressive. After a photo op we headed back to our ship for dinner.

In the evening the crew performed several Christmas carols. My favorite performance was when they all sang Silent Night in German, English and Hungarian. It was beautiful! We were also treated to special guest singing appearances by two talented passengers. Santa came to visit our ship - and not one guest missed a chance to sit on his lap (poor tired Santa) — and there were gifts for every single person…… if you sat on Santa’s lap that is That night we had to put our shoes outside our cabin for tomorrow is Saint Nicholas Day and arrival in Budapest.

Day 7

It was suggested we all have an early breakfast so that we may be on deck for the sail into Budapest; it was a sight not to be missed. That is a gross understatement! Cherie announced comments during our slow intro to Budapest and with each turn on the river the sight was more spectacular. I have been all over the world (except the Orient) and I have never seen such a moving sight into a city.

We were told the only way to get this view was by river boat. I am so thrilled my first sight of Budapest was on the Amalegro. Tears rolled my cheeks the closer we approached this Majestic city. I will live the rest of my life with this incredible vision in my head (and on my screensaver). I have never seen such regal buildings like this before. It was simply magnificent!

We were escorted to the main shopping street and shown where the Christmas markets were, we were on own to meet back at the ship by 1pm for bus tour of Budapest.

Walked quickly through the long shopping boulevard and made it to the Central Market. What an amazing place. Tons of vendors in an indoor shopping place. The second floor was merchants and eating areas. This place was huge!! I made my paprika purchase since I wasn’t sure if I would be back here even though we were staying an additional 3 days here but I knew had so much to see and I wanted that paprika! (don’t ask me how many bags of paprika I brought back)

We returned to the ship greeted with hot mulled wine and elderflower tea. A very light and floral tea, I was mulled out by now.

Our tour guide was so cute and very informative and had a great sense of humor. We visited the Fisherman’s Bastion, heroes Square, the regal Parliament building, the castle, and the Christmas market. What a wonderful market this was! WOW! Fantastic…I went there every day.

After the tour we returned to the ship for our last meal on board. It was the Captain’s farewell dinner. It was wonderful. We sat with a couple from Halifax that made good friends with during this cruise. After dinner we were treated to Hungarian music and Gypsy Dancers. They were fantastic.

It was very hard for us to go to our cabin and pack to leave this wonderful ship. But I was not overly upset since I was staying in Budapest for a few more days.

Debarkation was completely different from I knew from ocean cruising. The night before you are given luggage tags and you to be in the lobby at your appointment time. There is a list at the cruise director’s desk and you look for your name and you will see the time for you.

Well we were not your usual guests; we were picking up a car and going to a hotel…all on our own, not that many do this. Most passengers post stay is through the cruise line. The precious little cruise director called a cab for us and arranged for us to be off the ship at whatever time we wanted. She said we could stay for lunch if we wanted. We wanted to be on our way so we left at 10am and said our goodbyes and Cherie came over to us as we were leaving and gave us each a big hug and kiss. What cruise line does the cruise director give you hugs and kisses?

What an incredible experience this was. We enjoyed it so much that we booked another AMA river boat cruise for April. We are sailing on the ‘Tulip Time’ cruise to Holland and Belgium.

Thanks, ChefPeg, for the wonderful report. I was just putting away all of the ornaments from our tree and found one from the Christmas Markets in Nuremburg ... picked it up at a gift shop when we were there in May. With a number of other ornaments that I purchased in Rothenburg several years ago, my tree is very much adorned with German ornaments.

Happy 2009!

Thanks, ChefPeg, for the wonderful report. I was just putting away all of the ornaments from our tree and found one from the Christmas Markets in Nuremburg ... picked it up at a gift shop when we were there in May. With a number of other ornaments that I purchased in Rothenburg several years ago, my tree is very much adorned with German ornaments.

 

Happy 2009!

You are welcome, glad you enjoyed my most 'detailed':rolleyes: review.

I am glad we bought ornaments too. They are so intricate and detailed. I wished I bought more.

I would love to do the Christmas Market cruise again. If I can swing it I would do it again this year.

Great review! Have to say that your review makes me think maybe I should give AMA a try. Also think I need to do that Christmas market trip. Thanks for sharing and it's good to hear there is another river cruise convert now!

Great review! Have to say that your review makes me think maybe I should give AMA a try. Also think I need to do that Christmas market trip. Thanks for sharing and it's good to hear there is another river cruise convert now!

Thank you, I am glad you enjoyed my review.

I also want to Thank you for starting the 'Christmas Market' thread. There was so much valuable information there. I know it helped with my shopping excursions.:)

LOL!! Big Time convert here!! I love river boat cruising now!!

ChefPeg,

Thanks for the great review!

We are taking AMA Amadante in September from Budapest to Nuremburg.

Questions:

What are prune people?

What paprika would you recommend? Where is the best market place to buy?

Did you like Budapest over Prague? We've scheduled 3 days precruise in Budapest and 3 night post cruise in Prague.

Could you give me a best of in those 2 cities?

Where did you stay in Prague? We are at the Crowne Plaza Castle. We know it is away from city center, next to the Strohav Monestary and like it that way.

Thank you so much for your valuable input.

Joy

ChefPeg,

Thanks for the great review!

We are taking AMA Amadante in September from Budapest to Nuremburg.

 

Questions:

What are prune people?

What paprika would you recommend? Where is the best market place to buy?

Did you like Budapest over Prague? We've scheduled 3 days precruise in Budapest and 3 night post cruise in Prague.

Could you give me a best of in those 2 cities?

Where did you stay in Prague? We are at the Crowne Plaza Castle. We know it is away from city center, next to the Strohav Monestary and like it that way.

 

Thank you so much for your valuable input.

 

Joy

So glad you liked my review.

Here is a link to Nuremburg's Prune men. They are too cute. And everyone just loved getting them.

http://www.travelworldmagazine.com/contributors/detail.php?ArticleID=1090

There is paprika available everywhere. I mean everywhere. I bought some in the Central market place. We went to several grocers and I bought a lot there. There are quite a few shops in Budapest that sell it too. The prices are pretty much the same everywhere..maybe a HUF or 2 more or less. You will have no trouble finding paprika. It is availbable in different packaging and hotness strengths too. The little tins are precious and I also bought some in a paprika crock.

We stayed at the Intercontinental Hotel in Budapest, it was about 3 blocks from the Markets. We had no trouble with being in the city center. It is extremely safe even at night.

We did not do the pre-cruise in Prague. We stayed 3 days in Budapest on our own and not through the cruise line.

I truly fell in love with Hungary. I will go back one day.

You will have a wonderful and memorable experience too.

ChefPeg,

Thanks for the great review!

We are taking AMA Amadante in September from Budapest to Nuremburg.

 

Questions:

What are prune people?

What paprika would you recommend? Where is the best market place to buy?

Did you like Budapest over Prague? We've scheduled 3 days precruise in Budapest and 3 night post cruise in Prague.

Could you give me a best of in those 2 cities?

Where did you stay in Prague? We are at the Crowne Plaza Castle. We know it is away from city center, next to the Strohav Monestary and like it that way.

 

Thank you so much for your valuable input.

 

Joy

BTW...we are on the Amadante in April for our Tulip Time cruise. I will be sure to post a (lengthy:rolleyes:) review for that cruise too.

ChefPeg, what a great trip report, but it would have to be, with such experiences to share!

We are cruising with AMA in October from Amsterdam to Budapest and your report has eased my apprehensions about the food and the crew.

I'm printing it off now to share with DH who is really excited about our upcoming trip.

Thanks for sharing your adventure with us,

Jennifer

ChefPeg,

Thanks for the great review. I think that you may have a couple more cruise coverts coming up.:):)

Thanks for the great post. I took the same route this summer, and I felt the same way about AMA. The Christmas cruise sounds wonderful! My mother and I also felt the same way about Budapest; we fell in love with it also.

Ditto. Thanks so much for your wonderful review. We are on the AMA Heartland Cruise in September and really looking forward to it. Your report is so positive - I can't wait!

BTW...we are on the Amadante in April for our Tulip Time cruise. I will be sure to post a (lengthy:rolleyes:) review for that cruise too.

We did the Amadagio for the tulips last year and had a wonderful time. We are now planning on doing one of the AMA Christmas Market tours for this year. I just have to give them a call.

Great cruise line.

By the way, DW had me copy your review to save for our trip.

WOW! I am so happy that everyone is enjoying my review.

Thank you for all of the kind comments.

I wasn't sure if I should post my review. I'm not too thrilled with my writing skills. But I really wanted to share my wonderful river boat experience with you.

Thanks again!!

Peggy

"I wasn't sure if I should post my review. I'm not too thrilled with my writing skills. But I really wanted to share my wonderful river boat experience with you"

Are you kidding Peggy?? It was a great read and, even though I'm not travelling with AMA nor at Christmas time, you have really got me excited about my upcoming cruise with Scenic. Can't wait!! Thank you so much:D

Thanks so much ChefPeg for your great review. a Christmas Market tour was never on my "bucket list" but after reading your review I think you have convinced us that we should try one.

I think you are a great writer and loved all of your details. You made the cruise come alive for me.

You will love the tulip cruise. We did that last Spring on Uniworld and the Keukonhoff Gardens are awesome. You can't believe how beautiful they are!

thanks

micked10

"I wasn't sure if I should post my review. I'm not too thrilled with my writing skills. But I really wanted to share my wonderful river boat experience with you"

 

Are you kidding Peggy?? It was a great read and, even though I'm not travelling with AMA nor at Christmas time, you have really got me excited about my upcoming cruise with Scenic. Can't wait!! Thank you so much:D

Thank you for your kind comments. I appreciate it!

Have a great cruise. you will love Budapest.

Thanks so much ChefPeg for your great review. a Christmas Market tour was never on my "bucket list" but after reading your review I think you have convinced us that we should try one.

I think you are a great writer and loved all of your details. You made the cruise come alive for me.

You will love the tulip cruise. We did that last Spring on Uniworld and the Keukonhoff Gardens are awesome. You can't believe how beautiful they are!

thanks

micked10

Thank you!! I am so glad you enjoyed the review.

You will love the Christmas Markets. The atmosphere is wonderful! After we got home we were in such a great holiday spirit.

I am looking forward to seeing all of the beautiful tulips. I hope they are in full bloom when we get there.

ChefPeg,

Thanks for your reply, and for your review.

Did you note many boats on the river? If so, did you need to walk thru boats to get to yours? I have read where several boats will have to line up along the river and "share" the dockage. Is this so?

Could you explain the wines in a little more detail please?

Each night, was there only 1 red and 1 white, or did you get choices of dry or fruity wines etc?

Did you notice anyone bringing their own wines aboard?

Was there plenty of packing space in your cabin? Were you able to stow luggage under the bed? Where was your room, or room number?

I have read where people trying to wait in line for the dining area waited outside some peoples rooms. We will be in room 208.

Have lots of questions for you, but need to write them down when I am thinking about it!

Thank you again,

Joy

ChefPeg,

Thanks for your reply, and for your review.

 

Did you note many boats on the river? If so, did you need to walk thru boats to get to yours? I have read where several boats will have to line up along the river and "share" the dockage. Is this so?

 

Could you explain the wines in a little more detail please?

Each night, was there only 1 red and 1 white, or did you get choices of dry or fruity wines etc?

Did you notice anyone bringing their own wines aboard?

 

Was there plenty of packing space in your cabin? Were you able to stow luggage under the bed? Where was your room, or room number?

I have read where people trying to wait in line for the dining area waited outside some peoples rooms. We will be in room 208.

 

Have lots of questions for you, but need to write them down when I am thinking about it!

 

Thank you again,

Joy

Did you note many boats on the river? No, not often. The most at one time was 4 boats. But usually it was just us or one other boat.

If so, did you need to walk thru boats to get to yours? I have read where several boats will have to line up along the river and "share" the dockage. Is this so? Yes, once we had to walk trough another river boat. It was fun, we said 'Hello' to the other passengers and crew. Everyone was saying hello back.

Could you explain the wines in a little more detail please? Every night at dinner they offered a red and a wine from the region we were in at the time. And they always had a German beer.

Each night, was there only 1 red and 1 white, or did you get choices of dry or fruity wines etc? No choice, but the wine was different every night. All of the wines I had was very good to excellent.

Did you notice anyone bringing their own wines aboard? No, I hadn't seen or heard anyone bringing any on board.

Was there plenty of packing space in your cabin? Surprisingly the cabin was a lot larger than I expected. I read that the cabins were tiny and that was not so for us.

Were you able to stow luggage under the bed? Where was your room, or room number? - We stowed the luggage under the bed. One bag we had to put in the corner behind the chair. This bag is rather large. We were towards the aft of the ship.

I have read where people trying to wait in line for the dining area waited outside some peoples rooms. We will be in room 208 -We never once had to wait in line. We walked into the dining every night and sat where we wanted to. People strolled in around the same time but no one had to wait unless you got there before they opened the dining room door.