Seabourn equivalent on european river

[salbags]

Hi

 

We are looking for a luxury all inclusive Danube river cruise probably September 2016. We have only ever done one cruise before on Seabourn which we loved. We are a very young and active late 50's early 60's who like good food wine etc. I have been looking at Scenic as a favourite so far, but would appreciate any insider knowledge of the European river boat scene.

 

Many thanks

[Ozjohnno]

Once again I'll probably be accused as being a Tauck tout but if you really want the best in luxury, food, wine and accommodation then you can't go past Tauck. Tauck is totally all-inclusive and that includes top shelf spirits at the bar.

 

Fancy an Australian singing the praises of an American company but we've cruised with them twice and although many will claim they're too expensive I can assure you that you get outstanding value for you dollar.

[caviargal]

Tauck, Scenic and Uniworld are all worth a look. They are all inclusive (Uniworld somewhat less than the others but still quite inclusive) and are highly rated.

 

Scenic has butler service for all cabins, though in varying levels of service.

 

Uniworld has the greatest choice of itineraries as they have the largest fleet among the three.

[salbags]

Do you get a better deal, booking direct or through a travel agent.

We are based in UK?

 

Thanks

[LoneStarCruisinCouple]

Well here is another switch then as an American recommending an Australian Company.

Scenic I would highly recommend and if you can try an get into one of the two Royal Panorama Suites. 475 Sq Feet of Luxury.

If you have a moment go to there Australian website. Scenic.com.au

Over on the left hand side where it says All Inclusive go down to where it says Our 5 Star Ships and open. On that page there is a lady standing in front of one of the new ships called the Jasper and is also titled All Inclusive Luxury. Is a 4 minute video and the cabin that they show is a Royal Panorama Suite.

We are booked into one of these and we are sailing September 2,2015 Jewels of Europe Amsterdam to Budapest. Can't wait.

Limo Transportation From Airport to Hotel and hotel to ship and Visa Versa.

Private Butler

Unlimited Beverages and your Bar is stocked daily with Top Shelf Alcohol

All Gratuities are Paid

Sun Lounger Balconies with Large sliding glass panel that you can open and or close depending on the weather

Heated Floors in Bathrooms Bath and a Half in The Panorama Suite

Wi Fi

Electric Assisted Bikes

Personal GPS units that you can push a button and tells you about this Castle and that and you can go on your own and shall get you back to your ship.

And On and On

Would highly recommend to any and all.

Lisa and Gary

LoneStarCruisinCouple

 

Oh Vi Spring Mattresses and Pillow menus and beds that you can adjust up and down..

[poss]

I've recently found a site that I hadn't known about and that I think is very, very good: River Boat Ratings.com

It's a quite comprehensive break-down of the various companies, including clear information on how the ratings are calculated. I found it persuasive. It was helpful to me in my own beginning stags of choosing. (We're long-time Regent cruisers.)

[caviargal]

I checked that site out and could find almost zero helpful information. No specific reviews just generic info. It seems to have not been updated since 2013. Am I missing something?

[poss]

Hi caviargal,

 

The site claims that it was updated at the end of March this year.

I found all those paragraphs in the first part of the article very informative for first-time cruisers, i.e. the kinds of things to expect and to not expect. I also found the comparisons among the various cruise lines useful. Clearly, one has to take all such rankings and comments with a grain of salt (as with the reporting on CC or any other "reviews"), but I liked the way the different aspects of each company were broken down: made sense to me. E.g. I found it not un-important to point out that if one cruises with Scenic, one is likely to encounter far fewer Americans than with most of the other luxury lines. That's neither a good thing nor a bad thing; but I think it's something worth reporting. (Not much on CC about that detail. For some it might not matter one iota, for others it might.)

 

Anyway, I was just trying to be helpful to OP, as so many others have been to me.

[CPT Trips]

poss,

 

Thanks for the reference. Looks really helpful to new/inexperienced prospective river cruisers.

[caviargal]

Hi caviargal,

 

The site claims that it was updated at the end of March this year.

I found all those paragraphs in the first part of the article very informative for first-time cruisers, i.e. the kinds of things to expect and to not expect. I also found the comparisons among the various cruise lines useful. Clearly, one has to take all such rankings and comments with a grain of salt (as with the reporting on CC or any other "reviews"), but I liked the way the different aspects of each company were broken down: made sense to me. E.g. I found it not un-important to point out that if one cruises with Scenic, one is likely to encounter far fewer Americans than with most of the other luxury lines. That's neither a good thing nor a bad thing; but I think it's something worth reporting. (Not much on CC about that detail. For some it might not matter one iota, for others it might.)

 

Anyway, I was just trying to be helpful to OP, as so many others have been to me.

 

I did not mean to sound critical as I was interested to explore a new resource for river cruising. I saw the Q&A and ranking (no detail there) but was looking for a detailed review on the lines strengths and weaknesses. What I read seem to be taken from their general information available on the internet.

 

When I read the AMA section it talked about two new boats coming on in 2013 so that I knew was not updated.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Well, to the OP, we chose Tauck for this itinerary, and we are in fact booked Septembrer 2016.

 

We chose it because our friends really preferred it, and it's apparently very high-end, everything included. We looked also at AMA (which is reportedly very nice) and Uniworld (which is known for its somewhat garish decor but otherwise great product), and they were all of a price, more or less. Tauck is an American company so you can perhaps expect more Americans onboard I guess. We are also booked on Uniworld this fall, but it's on the Nile, so that experience won't be similar to the European one, I'm sure.

 

We are past Regent cruisers, mostly, although we have tried Oceania and love the Paul Gauguin.