Viking Danube Waltz Cruise Review

[patrickmoran]

We just returned from Viking's Danube Waltz cruise on the Embla. We started in Budapest on December 19 for 2 days pre-cruise with the cruise starting on the 21st. This was our 1st river cruise and really enjoyed it. We had cabin 114 which is a cabin midship on the Main deck. It had a small window head high. The room was snug but had sufficient storage room for everything that we brought. The bathroom was good sized with a roomy shower stall. The room had 3 110 volt outlets and 2 220v outlets. The cabin stewardess took care of the room twice daily.

Food was good to very good. Soups were excellent; meat dishes were very good, especially the lamb and veal. Other appetizers and desserts were hit and miss. The choices were not as broad as on cruiseliner. But you won't starve. The standard wines were fine and served liberally. If you wanted beer or soda, that service was slow and inconsistent. Christmas dinner was feast and way too much food. the Captain's farewell dinner the next night was excellent and lots of food.

Internet service throughtout the ship including our cabin was good for Facebook and emails, etc. Downloads seemed a bit slow. I was susing my tablet and phone.

We booked our air through Viking (free!) and 2 days pre-cruise in Budapest. We stayed at the LeMeriden, excellent location. The flights went fine and Viking reps were there outside Customs to take care of us. We were checked in and had a room right away- about noon. Loved the hotel, great breakfast, nice room, robes and slippers. The main Christmas market was right behind the hotel. We had lunch at a small sandwich/pastry shop around the corner then napped. We tackled the Christmas market where we had dinner - Bluwein and sausage plus pastry log cooked over charcoal. Off to bed.

We got on a HOHO bus the next morning (all 4 companies stop directly across the street from the LeMeriden.) and rode around the city. We got off in the Castle district, walked round, and had Goulash soup for lunch. Back to the hotel.

Viking has a concierge at the hotel and he gave us a list of recommend restaurants. We pciked one and he made the reservation though not really needed. It was a great dinner and pretty reasonably priced. Next day (Saturday) hopped on the HOHO bus (tix good for 2 days) and rode to the stop for the included river cruise, took the 1 hr river cruise then walked up to the Christmas market for lunch. Back to the hotel for 4 pm transfer to the ship. We got our luggage fairly quickly and settled in.

With the cabin being small and nowhere to sit except on the bed, we spent alot of time in the lounge - after tours, after dinner, etc. We liked it and thought it gave you good views.

The next day we went on the included tour- bus ride around the city and waking tour in the Castle district with free time there. The ship sailed that night around 9 pm.

The cruise highlights were the Christmas markets. Vienna's was the best. We had free time there in the afternoon.

Christmas Eve day we were in Vienna. Everything was open until mid to late afternoon. The evening optional concert was offered and we enjoyed that though it was pricey. We stayed later than normal to allow passengers to attend midnight Mass. There is a local Catholic church very close to where the ship docks. The group from the ship arrived an hour early but that turned out not to be necessary. There were plenty of seats. But the church is COLD!!! There are pews that are heated but I did not know that. So your but is hot and the rest of you is cold. I froze all over. There really was not much of a concert before Mass so again going early is not worth it. Stayed up until 2 am so missed Christmas breakfast.

The abbey in Melk was the only thing open on Christmas Day and well worth the stop. The church is spectacular and only rivaled by the cathedral in Passau where we did hear the organ concert.

Salzburg was interesting and had lots of free time. Really enjoyed Passau.

Transfer to Munich was painless. Our flight was at 11:15 am so we did not have to be up at a ridiculous hour. Left the ship at 7:20 am. It was Saturday so traffic was light.

We enjoyed our 1st river cruise and look forward to future ones.

[orchestrapal]

Thanks for your very through review. Glad you enjoyed your river cruise despite the hit and miss food, small cabins and less than perfect weather.

You confirmed all the reasons we have avoided river cruises and will continue to do so. Ah for the large suites great food and suburb fellow cruisers on Oceania.

 

Keep cruising and enjoy whatever path you choose.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Thanks for sharing ..

[pacmom]

Many O cruisers enjoy river cruising. Those cabins (135 sq.ft.) are unique to the Viking longships--French balcony makes it seem even smaller. We will sail on our 20th for the Christmas markets in early Dec with AMA--225sq.ft. with a true balcony and a French balcony. There are lines on the rivers which have wonderful cabins, amenities and food. Pat

[orchestrapal]

Many O cruisers enjoy river cruising. Those cabins (135 sq.ft.) are unique to the Viking longships--French balcony makes it seem even smaller. We will sail on our 20th for the Christmas markets in early Dec with AMA--225sq.ft. with a true balcony and a French balcony. There are lines on the rivers which have wonderful cabins, amenities and food. Pat

 

Thanks but I think we'll stick to land trips and Ocean cruises.

[cormike1]

Thanks for a good review. Our first river cruise was on the Danube with Viking and it hooked us way before we Ocean cruised. We love both and you really cannot compare as they are really quite different. Glad you enjoyed it!

[WarEagle76]

Many O cruisers enjoy river cruising. Those cabins (135 sq.ft.) are unique to the Viking longships--French balcony makes it seem even smaller. We will sail on our 20th for the Christmas markets in early Dec with AMA--225sq.ft. with a true balcony and a French balcony. There are lines on the rivers which have wonderful cabins, amenities and food. Pat

 

We are also Ocean cruisers who have gotten hooked on river cruising. We like the laid back approach as well as being able to more easily delve into the history and culture of the places we visit.

 

We're just back from a trip on Viking Freya, our first on a Longship, and we were curious to see how the balcony cabin would be. In the end, it was fine. Viking put a lot of thought into designing these cabins. We didn't feel cramped, there was plenty of storage, the bathroom functioned well and we really liked the new TV options. Add to that we really didn't spend that much time in the cabin, it worked out great for us.

 

 

[patrickmoran]

Actually, we had good weather during our cruise. There were some cloudy or foggy days but no rain or snow. It was seasonably cold or slightly better. In vienna, we had a gorgeous sunny warm day. That lead me to shed a couple of layers when I went to Christmas Eve Mass. The stone had not warmed up and it was colder inside than outside. I offered up the discomfort to offset my sins of gluttony while on the cruise!

 

The cabin size was a personal choice. We get on a cruise as cheap as possible, usually an inside cabin. The ship has bigger cabins and cabins with balconies. It is a matter of one's wants and needs. The cabin worked fine for us. There was little daytime cruising so scenery was not there. With the lounge, which was usually empty, we had plenty of space and views when needed.

[tml1230]

we are doing our first river cruise in late March on viking on the danube….your info was very helpful …happy new year!