Currenty On Board Viking - Budapest to Nuremberg

[Carol From California]

We are currently on board the Viking Njord, Budapest to Nuremberg. We were originally supposed to be on the Hlin, but due to the broken lock a few months ago and water level problems, boats ended up in different places and our boat was switched. We started our trip with 3 nights in Budapest, booked on our own, not through Viking. We thoroughly enjoyed Budapest. Part of what made it so wonderful was that we booked a guided tour both days with a local guide and she was fabulous! We had arranged this in advance of our cruise. The first day we did a walking tour in the Jewish quarter. The second day it was a combination of a driving and walking tour, seeing all the general sites. We are currently docked in Vienna. We had a lovely day here. My husband and I have so far found the meals on board the ship to be excellent. The staff are all wonderful. Tonight we are going to a Mozart/Strauss concert on our own. We read good things about it on Trip Advisor so decided to go to this concert instead of the one through Viking. Tomorrow we will be going to Melk, then Passau, Regensburg and Nuremberg. When we disembark we pre-arranged for a driver to Prague, where we will stay 3 nights on our own.

[DrivesLikeMario]

Thanks for the report! Sounds like you've done your research and booked some excellent tours. Enjoy! :)

[purduemom1]

Sounds like a great start with more adventures ahead. Do you mind sharing the name of the guide in Budapest? I'm hoping you will report back on the concert in Vienna. One cruise is ahead and I'm gathering info and making plans.....all part of the experience....right?

[janecambridge]

Sounds like a great start with more adventures ahead. Do you mind sharing the name of the guide in Budapest? I'm hoping you will report back on the concert in Vienna. One cruise is ahead and I'm gathering info and making plans.....all part of the experience....right?

 

Yes please.would also like a recommendation...

[Bet & Peg]

Thanks for your review! We're thinking of this cruise next year!

 

One question - any reason you choose the direction west to east??

 

Thanks much!

[Carol From California]

Our guide in Budapest was booked with http://www.privateguidebudapest.com. The name of our guide was Susan, and she was excellent. I would recommend requesting her.

 

We had originally planned to go to the Vienna concert with Viking but we read some reviews on Trip Advisor and they were not very good. On the day we went to Vienna we found some people selling tickets to concerts in front of Saint Stephen's church. I checked the reviews on my phone and booked the tickets. We had 3rd row seats and the cost was much less than the Viking concert. We paid 49 Euro's per person vs 69 Euro's per person. They even had lower priced tickets but we wanted to sit up close. We took the metro to the concert (easy and fun) and took a taxi back to the ship afterwards. The concert was very good and we enjoyed it very much, but when we got back we asked some of the people who went to the concert with Viking and they also said they enjoyed that concert as well. So either one seems to be fine. The one we went to is called "Wiener Royal Orchestra Mozart & Strauss Concert" if you want to google it and read the reviews. The concerts all seem to have the same program. There is an orchestra, some opera, and some ballet.

 

We chose the itinerary going from Budapest to Prague for no particular reason. I think either direction is fine. As I previously mentioned we stayed 3 days in Budapest on our own before the trip and we will be staying 3 days in Prague on our own after the trip. We spoke to a lot of people who were sorry they did not have more time in Budapest.

 

Today we were in Melk and we were blown away by the Monastery. We were not expecting what we saw. It's quite spectacular. We are now heading towards our next stop, which is Passau. Currently as I write this we are going through one of the many locks we have gone through.

 

Viking is doing a great job. Food is better than expected. The staff have all been wonderful. The only criticism I have is the size of the cabins. We are used to ocean cruising and these cabins are quite small, but there is ample space to store everything and they sure figured out how to take best use of the space. We are now off to dinner. Tonight is an Austrian themed dinner.

[Talisker92]

The things we enjoyed in Passau were an organ concert in the cathedral and a visit to the Glass Museum

[Carol From California]

Unfortunately there is no organ concert tomorrow in Passau because it is Sunday. That is the only day they don't have them.

 

We had a fun time tonight at the dinner. It was "Austria" night with an Austrian themed dinner. The waiters were all wearing costumes, they had local entertainment, Schnapps, and great fun! The food was really good too. Normally the dinners are served but they had buffet stations tonight, with the main course being served inside the kitchen. We are enjoying the trip very much.

 

Feel free to email me if you have any specific questions.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Have a great time ..

[rcaruso]

On Sunday in Passau go to The Mass at the Cathedral and you will hear beautiful organ music. That's what we did.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[CCruiser1234]

Hi Carol,

 

Thank you for your post. It's perfect timing, too! We are at home going over logistics for our first ever Viking River cruise, exactly what you are doing, this December 5-12.

 

We have an extremely early flight out of NUE disembarkation day, and while we are moored there from the night before, are concerned about an airport transfer in the wee hours. Our flight is at 06.30.

 

If you have time while aboard, could you inquire from Viking staff their recommendation about hiring a taxi for an appx 03.30 pickup? Or, should we just go after dinner the night before? (Yuk).

 

Thank you in advance!

-Bob

San Diego, Calif

[janecambridge]

Our guide in Budapest was booked with http://www.privateguidebudapest.com. The name of our guide was Susan, and she was excellent. I would recommend requesting her.

 

We had originally planned to go to the Vienna concert with Viking but we read some reviews on Trip Advisor and they were not very good. On the day we went to Vienna we found some people selling tickets to concerts in front of Saint Stephen's church. I checked the reviews on my phone and booked the tickets. We had 3rd row seats and the cost was much less than the Viking concert. We paid 49 Euro's per person vs 69 Euro's per person. They even had lower priced tickets but we wanted to sit up close. We took the metro to the concert (easy and fun) and took a taxi back to the ship afterwards. The concert was very good and we enjoyed it very much, but when we got back we asked some of the people who went to the concert with Viking and they also said they enjoyed that concert as well. So either one seems to be fine. The one we went to is called "Wiener Royal Orchestra Mozart & Strauss Concert" if you want to google it and read the reviews. The concerts all seem to have the same program. There is an orchestra, some opera, and some ballet.

 

We chose the itinerary going from Budapest to Prague for no particular reason. I think either direction is fine. As I previously mentioned we stayed 3 days in Budapest on our own before the trip and we will be staying 3 days in Prague on our own after the trip. We spoke to a lot of people who were sorry they did not have more time in Budapest.

 

Today we were in Melk and we were blown away by the Monastery. We were not expecting what we saw. It's quite spectacular. We are now heading towards our next stop, which is Passau. Currently as I write this we are going through one of the many locks we have gone through.

 

Viking is doing a great job. Food is better than expected. The staff have all been wonderful. The only criticism I have is the size of the cabins. We are used to ocean cruising and these cabins are quite small, but there is ample space to store everything and they sure figured out how to take best use of the space. We are now off to dinner. Tonight is an Austrian themed dinner.

 

 

 

Thank you Carol.Keep them coming.:D

[RMLincoln]

Thank you for the updates as you travel along. We will be doing Amsterdam to Budapest in November so your info on Vienna and the alternative concert was very helpful. Have a grand time! m--

[joanne2]

Hi Carol,

 

Thank you for your post. It's perfect timing, too! We are at home going over logistics for our first ever Viking River cruise, exactly what you are doing, this December 5-12.

 

We have an extremely early flight out of NUE disembarkation day, and while we are moored there from the night before, are concerned about an airport transfer in the wee hours. Our flight is at 06.30.

 

If you have time while aboard, could you inquire from Viking staff their recommendation about hiring a taxi for an appx 03.30 pickup? Or, should we just go after dinner the night before? (Yuk).

 

Thank you in advance!

-Bob

San Diego, Calif

 

We are just back from Viking Budapest to Amsterdam. We had Viking transfers but for those on their own the staff made taxi arrangements. I know some were leaving at times like 3:30.