Uniworld River Countess Review

[annenic]

I had meant to write up a review of our sensational river cruise on our return from Europe in November….but what with birthdays and Christmas plus New Year…..well it kind of got pushed aside until now.

 

This 28 day cruise was in essence 3 cruises (Bucharest to Vienna, Vienna to Nuremburg, Nuremburg to Basel) rolled into one which meant some changes in crew, as well as new passengers at Vienna and Nuremberg. It was quite amazing how the dynamics of the ship changed with each disembarkation and embarkation of guests and staff. There were nine Australians and two Texans for whom this was “home” for the whole trip.

 

And “home” it was…..guests were treated like family and at the end of each cruise section there was much hugging between staff and passengers saying “goodbye” – can’t say that I’ve ever experienced this before on any other cruise I’ve been on.

 

At Vienna the Captain (Captain Stefan), Hotel Manager (Zoltan) and Cruise Director (Tony) left the River Countess for another contract. They were obviously very good friends as well being brilliant in their roles and this made for a very relaxed and happy ship. We were so sad to see them leave!

 

However, the new Captain, his wife (Julie) who was the Hotel Manager and Walter, the new Cruise Director, were also excellent in their different positions and just as friendly and fun loving. For Halloween when we arrived back on board after our Bamberg walking tour we found the common areas of the ship decorated with spider webs complete with spiders, pumpkins etc and all the staff members dressed in Halloween outfits, the food and drinks all were themed to Halloween and the Captain was at the helm in a skeleton outfit wearing a purple mask and long flowing purple hair.

 

Our time on the River Countess was wonderful – nothing was too much trouble for any of the staff. They were all delightful. I had a couple of particular favourites – Romica, the Restaurant Manager, and Sonya (wine steward) were just the best!

 

Cabins very comfortable (quite small but plenty of storage) and as we were directly below the Library we were able to log-on to internet in our room which was a definite bonus. INTERNET WAS FREE!!! I think there was only one time when we couldn’t access internet otherwise it worked fine….maybe a little slowly at times and this was the reason that it was offered free of charge.

 

The Good: The ship, staff, crew, food, ports – the whole river cruise experience.

 

The Bad: The weather! Although this was an incredibly pretty time of the year with all the autumn colours, the whole trip from Bucharest to Vienna was raining – sometimes just drizzling, occasionally quite heavy. (It did not stop us from enjoying ourselves and exploring all the stops along the way). In Vienna we had one beautiful sunny day….and then it was back to rain for another four days before we finally enjoyed great weather for the completion of the trip.

 

The Ugly: A couple of passengers who were downright rude and complained about EVERYTHING. They were just very unpleasant. Luckily they disembarked at Vienna. We were all glad to see them go.

[genmasjoy]

I'm glad to hear you had such a good time. We are going on a Tulips and Windmills cruise on River Duchess in April. Can't wait! Thanks for your review.

[Bowie MeMe]

We too are on the River Duchess in April. Could you tell us about the disembarking days? I am trying to make a guess as the time to book a train for Antwerp to Paris. Easter Sunday April 24 so would like to get tickets when the booking opens Jan. 24.

[captgeo]

Thanks for your review. We're on the River Countess in April from Bucharest to Vienna. We're going over a few days early -- our usual habit -- and wonder what you thought of Bucharest; we've heard both good and bad. We note that Uniworld uses the Radisson Blu Hotel in Bucharest which gets very good reviews.

Thanks and best wishes...

captgeo

[gnome12]

We too are on the River Duchess in April. Could you tell us about the disembarking days? I am trying to make a guess as the time to book a train for Antwerp to Paris. Easter Sunday April 24 so would like to get tickets when the booking opens Jan. 24.

 

I was on Tulips and Windmills last April in the opposite direction, so disembarked in Amsterdam. They wanted us out of our cabins by 8, but you were welcome to stay on board for a while in the lounge. Breakfast is available at the usual time (7 AM). Make a morning booking that is comfortable for you. Even though the railway station in Antwerp is on the other side of the old town, it shouldn't take too long to get there by taxi; I don't know about public transit. (My problem in Antwerp was finding the ship, because it was behind a parking structure and river boats lie fairly low in the water.)

 

In terms of timing, Sundays the trains run at 9:30 and 11:30, you could make 9:30 but it might be a bit of a rush. Or you could take your time and catch the 11:30. The ship is in Antwerp for a couple of nights before debarkation, because the Brugges excursion and the tour of Antwerp are on the 2 previous days. (By the way, I emailed Uniworld and got information on the embarkation/debarkation times and locations for my cruise this year; they said

"Everyone is usually off the ship by 10am or earlier.

If you would like to stay later, the lounge will be available.")

 

If you've taken European trains before, you know that you don't need to get there particularly early, especially if you have seats reserved although if you have luggage you need some time to get that put away.

[my crow's nest]

Your wonderful review of the Countess is much appreciated. We are booked for two weeks from Vienna to Bucharest in the spring. If our trip is half as good as yours, it will still be outstanding. Thanks, Joe

[SoBaycruiser]

We will be on the River Countess from Bucharest to Vienna in June. Do you have any pictures posted anywhere? I'd love to see them.

[franski]

Bowie MeMe-

 

Have you asked Uniworld if they would be willing to take you to the train station when you disembark - instead of the airport?? When we were looking at transportation into Cologne, Uniworld said picking us up at the train station instead of the airport was not a problem. Might be worth asking...

[annenic]

Thanks for your review. We're on the River Countess in April from Bucharest to Vienna. We're going over a few days early -- our usual habit -- and wonder what you thought of Bucharest; we've heard both good and bad. We note that Uniworld uses the Radisson Blu Hotel in Bucharest which gets very good reviews.

Thanks and best wishes...

captgeo

 

We loved Bucharest! We'd spent 7 days pre-cruise in Switzerland which we absolutely adored but as you can imagine Bucharest was pretty much at the other end of the spectrum - so totally different from beautiful, pristine, orderly Switzerland. It was a fascinating place and we felt it to be very safe. We wandered the streets at night and the only difficulty was trying to cross the streets - the drivers are terrible!

 

The Radisson Blu Hotel is great. Very comfortable. Uniworld picked us up from the airport and simply looked after everything for us. I can't remember the name of the local cruise director we had here but she was terrific. She made herself very available for any questions etc. and she had handouts that she gave to everyone with all sorts of helpful information - banking and money, recommendations for restaurants and things to do for those not doing any of the optional tours.

 

There is a money exchange right across from the hotel that has hours from 8am-8pm. The cruise director will point it out to you if you need it.

 

We didn't do any of the optional tours as we had investigated through Trip Advisor other possibilities and from what we heard later from passengers who went to Bran Castle - they thought it was only "ok" and really wished they had spent the time in the city. The ones who went to Sinaia and Peles Castle enjoyed their tour.

 

This is what we did in the short time we had in Bucharest - was perfect!

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g294458-i3832-k3922124-Bucharest_for_just_1_and_a_half_days-Bucharest.html

 

Enjoy your cruise! I'm happy to answer any questions.....

[annenic]

We will be on the River Countess from Bucharest to Vienna in June. Do you have any pictures posted anywhere? I'd love to see them.

 

Sorry pvmeistrel I don't actually have any pics posted anywhere although I am happy to email you a few shots if you are interested. We took so many photos - between us we took about 4,000 - we had been away for about 6 weeks though!

[Mariners04]

Hi,

 

We are on the Tulips and Windmills river cruise on the River duchess leaving Antwerp on April 6. Are you on that cruise as well?

 

Mariners04

[Karen Lynn]

We are embarking on the River Countess on May 14th Basel-Nuremberg and really looking forward to it! Thanks for the review!:)

[annenic]

We are embarking on the River Countess on May 14th Basel-Nuremberg and really looking forward to it! Thanks for the review!:)

 

You'll enjoy I'm sure!

 

I don't know if you plan to fly into Basel and spend a day or two before the cruise starts but it is a really lovely city and very easy to explore as the public transport is free with hotel accommodation. We were lucky enough to be there on the last weekend of their month-long Autumn Fair and it was truly fascinating.

 

We did the optional tour to Flossenburg Concentration Camp from Nuremburg and thought this tour incredible. Heart wrenching.

[baobob]

Thank you, annenic, for the review. My wife and I, egyptian cancellation refugees, are sailing from Basel on May 14th. Yes, Karen Lynn - same cruise. We are flying in a week early and driving the Duetsche Alpenstrasse and most of the Austrian Alps also.

 

We have a few questions about the cruise from Basel to Vienna. Did you do any of the optional excursions, and if so, how were they and how much did they each cost? On a practical note, did you use the launderette on board? Was there a queue to use it? What was your cabin number, and what can you tell me about #203? We scheduled this cruise three hours before they cancelled our Egypt cruise, and took what was available.

 

We are still waiting to reschedule our Lufthansa - they have allowed free "Good Will" rescheduling for egyptian refugees in increments since the demonstrations began, first through 1/31, then through 2/15, and now through 2/21. We're scheduled to Cairo on 2/24 so we're hoping for at least three more days of good will.

[Baybear]

I'm a "foodie" and we are thinking of Uniworld next Summer on the Danube. What was the food like on board? Is it true they cook from "fresh local" ingredients that they pick up as they go? Can you give some examples of what you liked best in the food dept. for dinner? And how varied are the breakfasts?

 

TIA

[annenic]

Thank you, annenic, for the review. My wife and I, egyptian cancellation refugees, are sailing from Basel on May 14th. Yes, Karen Lynn - same cruise. We are flying in a week early and driving the Duetsche Alpenstrasse and most of the Austrian Alps also.

 

We have a few questions about the cruise from Basel to Vienna. Did you do any of the optional excursions, and if so, how were they and how much did they each cost? On a practical note, did you use the launderette on board? Was there a queue to use it? What was your cabin number, and what can you tell me about #203? We scheduled this cruise three hours before they cancelled our Egypt cruise, and took what was available.

 

We are still waiting to reschedule our Lufthansa - they have allowed free "Good Will" rescheduling for egyptian refugees in increments since the demonstrations began, first through 1/31, then through 2/15, and now through 2/21. We're scheduled to Cairo on 2/24 so we're hoping for at least three more days of good will.

 

Hi baobob,

 

One optional tour we did in this section of our trip was to Flossenburg Concentration Camp. I'm sorry I can't remember how much we paid for this tour but we thought it absolutely worth it. In fact all the optional tours seemed to be very well priced and good value for what you got. Most were probably around 50 Euros p/p....but that's really just a guess now.

 

We also did the Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna. This was indeed an awesome palace and we are glad we took this tour also.

 

We did book in for the "Cycling along the Inn River" tour at Passau but because of rain during the night, this tour was unfortunately cancelled.

 

A number of optional tours that were listed did not go ahead because of lack of interest. The optional tour in Rudesheim - the dinner and entertainment didn't have enough numbers to make it viable but the Cruise Director organised it so that the people who did want to do this could go to the restaurant as a group and pay for themselves. The restaurant cancelled the entertainment so it worked out a bit cheaper for the folks who did go - and they had a fabulous time!

 

Uniworld goes over and above to make the guests' holiday something to remember.

 

We were in cabins 206 Bucharest to Vienna and then 212 Vienna to Basel. We had to change cabins after Vienna as we'd been too late to book one cabin all the way through to Basel. The change over was easily done and the cabin crew did most of the move for us. Cabin 212 was slightly smaller than 206 as the gym was next to 212 and it had taken up some of the footprint. It was still very comfortable however and may have been a good move in that it was further away from the bow and the bow thrusters!

 

Apparently the closer you are to the pointy end and the more locks you go through at night it can get quite noisy. Sadly for you Cabin 203 will be close to those bow thrusters. If you are a good sleeper this may not bother you.

 

In answer to your question about the laundromat - we found it great. There was one occasion when there was a queue and we simply went back later...or the next day....or sometime. It really wasn't too much of a hassle. It was most likely to be when we were getting close to disembarkation.

 

The machines - two washers and two driers - were easy to use. Remember to take soap powder with you otherwise you will have to buy from the desk and the packet is reasonably pricey and much more than you will need for the trip.

[annenic]

I'm a "foodie" and we are thinking of Uniworld next Summer on the Danube. What was the food like on board? Is it true they cook from "fresh local" ingredients that they pick up as they go? Can you give some examples of what you liked best in the food dept. for dinner? And how varied are the breakfasts?

 

TIA

 

Hi Baybear,

 

We were very happy with the food on board as were all the other passengers we spoke with - that is with the exception of one couple who complained relentlessly about everything, food included.

 

I believe it is true they cook from "fresh local" although as we never saw any food being loaded on board (we would have been out on excursions when this would have taken place), I can't say for sure that this is the case. However, with storage space on these river ships quite limited I feel sure that they would pick up their food supplies in the different ports.

 

Here is a sample menu of our last night on board heading for Basel. It was a Captain's Farewell Dinner so that only two options were offered for each course which was wine matched:

 

Smoked salmon roses with toast melba, small salad bouquet and horseradish cream

"Coquilles St. Jacques Rockefeller" sauteed bay scallops served on leaf spinach, tosses with sauce Hollandaise

White wine - Domaine Chapoutier - Cote du Rhone, - France - Belleruch Blanch 2009

 

Homemade banana orange sorbet

 

Whole roast of Argentinean beef tenderloin with Perigourdine Sauce, served with fresh vegetables and Duchess potatoes

Over baked halibut with herb tapenade, served with tagliatelle and with fresh vegetables

Red wine - Domaine Chapoutier - Cote due Rhone, - France - Belleruch Rouge 2008

 

"Ice Parade River Countess" served with stewed berries

Presented by the galley and service crew

 

Selection of international cheeses

 

Petit fours

 

Coffee & tea

 

I used to be a bit of a "foodie" but unfortunately these days I have to keep my diet pretty simple due to some food intolerances so I am probably not the best person to ask about favourite meals. Quite a lot of the time I ordered one of the simple meals listed in the small print of the menus - lean chicken breast, fillet of Norwegian salmon or beef steak. These were delicious and always perfectly cooked to my liking. However, I did look with longing at some of the meals my husband ordered and enjoyed.

 

Breakfasts are pretty much the same as you'd get in any international five star hotel. Again, I pretty much kept it simple. It was always possible to order something different and I often ordered boiled or poached eggs - again always done to perfection and never any trouble for the wonderful staff.

[bree28]

You'll enjoy I'm sure!

 

I don't know if you plan to fly into Basel and spend a day or two before the cruise starts but it is a really lovely city and very easy to explore as the public transport is free with hotel accommodation. We were lucky enough to be there on the last weekend of their month-long Autumn Fair and it was truly fascinating.

 

We did the optional tour to Flossenburg Concentration Camp from Nuremburg and thought this tour incredible. Heart wrenching.

 

What hotel did you book in Basel?

[shoshona2]

We went earlier to Basel before our river cruise last summer and stayed at the Swissotel Le Plaza since we had a free pickup at the airport and transfer from hotel to ship with the company we used. I suggest you go to tripadvisor.com and check out the hotels. We also took the local electric transportation to get around the city. The hotels in Basel give out free tickets. We also found the Manor Dept. Store in the center of the city which has a lovely foodcourt in the basement. It looks like a mini Harrods food court. We had lunch there with the locals. Switzerland is very expensive and they only take the Swiss Franc. Since Basel was the only city in Switzerland we were going to, we used our credit cards for everything even Starbucks. They didn't want Euros. It is a lovely city.

 

Sheila

[annenic]

What hotel did you book in Basel?

 

Hi Bree28,

 

We stayed at the Ibis Basel Bahnhof and found it to be excellent for the price - 99 CHF per room.

 

We could catch the (free) trolley right into the city centre from across the street - so easy. The best thing for us too was that we were heading for Lucerne after Basel and the main train station was a very short walk up the road from the Ibis.

 

We were very glad we took time in Basel before heading to Lucerne - our original plan was to head straight to Lucerne but Basel was definitely worth the short stay.