Input wanted

[pkay414]

I'm seriously considering a river cruise. The reason they appeal to me are the fact that they're smaller boats and therefore are able to go into smaller spaces and get closer to the cities, et cetera.

 

Here's my question: What is your favorite river cruise line? What do you like/dislike about it? A lot of the ads advertise free airfare. Is it worth it?

 

We are in our mid-40s if you need that information.

 

Thanks in advance. please be brutally honest with your input.

[capriccio]

Have you taken a look at Host Jazzbeau's Sticky "New To River Cruising? Start Here" at the top of the forum page? If not, that really is a good place to start.

 

We only have one river cruise under our belt (last August Budapest to Amsterdam on Uniworld) but number two (Grand France also on Uniworld) starts in less than 3 months. Most people do lots of research to determine which line to sail, as would I normally. We went with Uniworld for a totally unscientific reason: my brother's 82 year old mother-in-law wanted to go on a river cruise with him and her daughter and Uniworld was recommended by a friend of hers. We decided to go along too. The first thing I did was come to this forum to ask impressions of Uniworld and to read any and all the threads I could find before we booked so I felt confident we would have a great cruise. It wasn't until we were on the cruise and I asked her to thank the friend for the recommendation that she said, "oh it was just someone at the gym - I don't even remember who!"

 

There are lots of posters here, each which their own favorite line and some with lots and lots of experience across lines, who will gladly answer specific questions.

Edited February 25, 2016 by capriccio

[Hoyaheel]

A lot of the ads advertise free airfare. Is it worth it? .

You can only tell if you look up airfare on your own and compare with the cruise only fare. Personally, I prefer to book my own airfare and never bundle it. I'm a control freak.

 

What do you like/dislike about it?

As one of the few who continues to read & occasionally post on this forum despite NOT enjoying river cruising, I feel I can give a few reasons why it's NOT for us (to balance all of the positive opinions you will receive:D) Some people will say "go, you'll have a great time" because they did. But no style of vacation will appeal to everyone and you need to consider your style, priorities & desires.

 

We sailed on Avalon Nov/Dec 2014, a Christmas Markets cruise Nuremberg to Basel. I would heartily recommend Avalon to anyone interested in river cruising - we chose based on the itinerary, price, and the cabins (I love the layout, and having a fridge for the German beer we collected each day was a requirement for us). I love Christmas Markets and my husband has always wanted to try river cruising - this was our compromise.

 

My husband and I (46 and 41 at the time) sailed with his parents and my mother & her husband. My in-laws have done several river cruises on Uniworld and love river cruising but had never gone in the cold weather (my FIL enjoyed the Markets- he had wanted to see them - but neither he nor my MIL enjoyed the cold - despite a YEAR of warning them how to pack properly, they didn't - and it wasn't even really that cold! I loaned my MIL a couple of my merino tee shirts and that seemed to help) Everyone but me came down with respiratory infections, which sucked for them. My husband was sick but not as badly, and we were able to tour every day, while the others had to skip quite a few tours and just stay in bed.

 

The main reason I do not like river cruising (at this stage in my life) is that I am a very independent traveler (my favorite vacation is renting an apartment in a city and exploring, esp food markets!) I find that river cruises are expensive because I am paying for things I do not want included.

 

River cruises are all they say they are - the price includes shore tours, good food and usually wine/beer (at least at dinner - many lines include more, but they cost more too) But since I don't want all those things included, the fare is too high for my needs.

 

The problem (to ME) of the value lines where everything is priced a la carte is that the cabins aren't nice or big enough, nor is the food to the same standard (from the reviews I've read; I've only been on Avalon).

 

Right now, there is no combination that would suit me - a luxury boat, small size, great staff - but many other items being optional/priced a la carte.

 

What most people seem to love about river cruising - "it's all-inclusive" - is exactly what bugs me:o

 

We were among the youngest on board - though for the holidays, there were some families and younger couples (50s) as well. Doesn't bother us. Our first cruise together was on Holland America when we were in our late 20s/early 30s. We don't cruise for entertainment or night life, we enjoy meeting people of all ages (and actually, would prefer to be with older people and not families with young children)

[truckmaker]

After many ocean cruises we took the plunge on a river cruise. We went on AMA through the South of France and very much enjoyed it. Our ocean cruises were on most of the mass market cruise lines and also a couple on some of the 'upscale' ships and the AMA product compared very favourably with the best of the best. So we would recommend AMA and talking with others onboard they felt that the Company tended towards the upper end of the market. Although while onboard we all like to think that don't we.

 

For sure we had a great time and plan to book additional trips. That being said our next river trip is on the American Queen from Memphis to New Orleans this fall.

[Bailey Swedishfish]

Obviously by my signature, we like Viking. We started travelling with them as a first foray to Europe and enjoyed it.

 

I will add we are in our early 50s. We are active and generally like to rent an apartment, stay put and explore on our own. Neither of us are ocean cruises and neither of us like planned itineraries or all-inclusives.

 

So--how did we end up on 5, soon to be 6 river cruises?

 

First, we had never been to Europe and had a hard time decided where we wanted to go. All of it! At once! I wanted to experience Christmas markets so after a LOT ( A LOT) of internet research, we opted for Viking. We liked the idea of being able to visit a few cities, smaller towns, historic sites and scenic areas on a relatively short amount of time on a "moving" hotel. They were priced affordably (to our budget) and we liked the clean Scandinavian ship designs and intimacy of the ship size. We were both incredibly surprised by how much we enjoyed the food, the crew, the itinerary, the companionship of other travelers and pretty much everything except...Viking's hard beds. :rolleyes:

 

 

So after taking our first cruise, they started sending us offers for other trips and the deals kept getting better and better to include free airfare, onboard credit and free upgrades.

 

I think after this upcoming cruise we are probably going to take a break (unless we get another too-good-to-pass-up trip). I'm trying to figure out how to get the family together in either Strasbourg or Budapest for Christmas.

 

River cruising requires an open mind like all other travelling. We don't stick to the prescribed itinerary because we've now visited some places multiple times. If you're new to the location, take advantage of the tour but feel free to strike out on your own. The ship's concierge and program director (and servers and everyone) want you to have the vacation of your dreams and are more than happy to help make arrangements for off-board activities.

 

Have fun planning!

[Hydrokitty]

We like Vantage and have sailed 8 times with them so far. I had a bad experience dealing with a travel agent and Vantage doesn't deal with them at all, so we're a good fit. As for the air, it depends...you really have to check out airfares and decide which is best for you. We fly business class and most of the time I cannot bet Vantage fares......but every once in a while....:D

There's more than airfare to think about as well....for example usually if you book your own air you don't get transfers to and from the airport to the ship or hotel. Vantage lets you purchase transfers separately, but I like having them take my luggage at baggage claim and bring it to my cabin. Another think I like about Vantage is that virtually all off ship excursions are included and the few that aren't are really special, usually including a charter bus, admissions to wherever we're going and often lunch in a restaurant. Like Hoyaheel I'm a control freak and like dealing directly with the provider as opposed to someone else.

[nancyevans]

There is a lot to consider: food, included tours, optional tours, beverages, cabin size and amenities, tipping, flights, how much independence you want, how much you want to interact with fellow passengers, how the company handles water level problems.

We chose Scenic and here's why:

1. Liked the route Budapest to Nuremberg

2. Choice of included tours in most ports. No paying more for optional tours offered by the ship. The tours appealed to us. Two of the tours we chose went to Cesky Krumlov and Bratislava.

3. Some free time to explore on our own.

4. Free mini bar with a choice of beverages and snacks. The butler kept it stocked every day with our favorite beverages.

5. I'm not big on alcohol but beer, wine and cocktails are all included. Order from the steward or walk up to the bar.

6. Very nice food. Buffet lunches but most dinners were served. There is also a café but we never ate there.

7. Included extras like a concert in Vienna and evening drinks at a castle overlooking the Danube.

8. No tipping of ship staff or tour guides.

9. Free bicycles and audio tour guide if you want to go off on your own.

10. Scenic only markets in English speaking countries. The passengers were from Australia, Canada, the U.K. and the U.S.

11. You pay a $500 deposit and the rest is due 90 days before sailing. No paying a year in advance.

We've booked another Scenic tour for 2017. We did not take the free airfare offer but got a $1000 discount on the tour. We prefer to book our own flights.

Only complaints: a few nights the service was a little slow at the served dinners and the pianist in the bar area could have been a lot better.

Some people love their travel agent but the one recommended to us was totally inept. We booked directly with Scenic for our second cruise and it was sooooooo easy!

Please be aware that there are high and low water issues at times so its a good idea to know how the company handles those issues. Some people don't even realize that this could be an issue and are very disappointed when they have to spend too much time on a bus.

[Host Jazzbeau]

There are some bad TAs out there, but also many good ones. And booking with a TA will get you two important benefits: (1) a discount off the cruise price or some OBC [we got enough on our last AMA cruise to pay the gratuities and all the laundry we wanted to do]; and (2) if something goes wrong at any point on your trip, there is somebody to go to bat for you -- from a telephone that doesn't cost wireless roaming rates!

[Lois R]

Hi:) I am taking my first River Cruise in April:) and am really looking

forward to it.

I have been on many, many ocean cruises and I know this will be way,

WAY different but I am excited:D

I am going on AMA Waterways.....they were highly recommended to me.

This cruise is called "TULIP TIME"...sailing out of Amsterdam....going all

around the Netherlands and Belgium......I am down to less than 60

days.......closer to the 30 day mark actually;)

[Hydrokitty]

There is a lot to consider: food, included tours, optional tours, beverages, cabin size and amenities, tipping, flights, how much independence you want, how much you want to interact with fellow passengers, how the company handles water level problems.

We chose Scenic and here's why:

1. Liked the route Budapest to Nuremberg

2. Choice of included tours in most ports. No paying more for optional tours offered by the ship. The tours appealed to us. Two of the tours we chose went to Cesky Krumlov and Bratislava.

3. Some free time to explore on our own.

4. Free mini bar with a choice of beverages and snacks. The butler kept it stocked every day with our favorite beverages.

5. I'm not big on alcohol but beer, wine and cocktails are all included. Order from the steward or walk up to the bar.

6. Very nice food. Buffet lunches but most dinners were served. There is also a café but we never ate there.

7. Included extras like a concert in Vienna and evening drinks at a castle overlooking the Danube.

8. No tipping of ship staff or tour guides.

9. Free bicycles and audio tour guide if you want to go off on your own.

10. Scenic only markets in English speaking countries. The passengers were from Australia, Canada, the U.K. and the U.S.

11. You pay a $500 deposit and the rest is due 90 days before sailing. No paying a year in advance.

We've booked another Scenic tour for 2017. We did not take the free airfare offer but got a $1000 discount on the tour. We prefer to book our own flights.

Only complaints: a few nights the service was a little slow at the served dinners and the pianist in the bar area could have been a lot better.

Some people love their travel agent but the one recommended to us was totally inept. We booked directly with Scenic for our second cruise and it was sooooooo easy!

Please be aware that there are high and low water issues at times so its a good idea to know how the company handles those issues. Some people don't even realize that this could be an issue and are very disappointed when they have to spend too much time on a bus.

 

Sounds like you have everything under control Nancy! Have a wonderful trip.

[CPT Trips]

We'll be heading out on our 6th trip with Grand Circle (GCT) in a month. We absolutely love their product. We did no research before our first river cruise. We talked about doing one after FIL and a friend enjoyed a GCT land tour. Then DW saw a post on CC about a last minute special, called GCT and eight days later we were in Vienna boarding.

 

Affordable, on a per diem basis have never beat their price.

Cabins well laid out. Although beds are fixed and twin style, they are comfortable for 6'2" heavy guy.

Many of their itineraries are a few days longer and at a lower price than other lines.

Discount for full payment in advance

$100 per person price reduction for first time GCT traveler with referral from a past cruiser.

Returning cruisers get credits based on cost of previous cruise and additional credit for multiple cruises in one calendar year.

Wine, beer or soda/pop with lunch and dinner

Meals are good and service personalized and attentive

Local tours at each port

Guides use "Whisperers" so it's easy to hear them without crowding around

Tips for local guides and drivers included

Program Director on board ship for each group. They accompany group on tours with local guides and also offer additional "learning and discovery" tours and activities. Depending on ship size, there are between two and four PDs. I can't stress enough how much the PDs add to the experience

Edited February 25, 2016 by CPT Trips

[patrickmoran]

We have done many ocean cruises and 2 river cruises, both on Viking. We enjoyed the river cruises. Our 1st was the Romantic Danube over Christmas. We really enjoyed the Christmas markets and Budapest, a great city and very affordable. Last fall we did the Seine River cruise from Paris and had a great trip.

We like seeing alot of different places on our vacation. So cruising works well since you generally unpack once and travel at night to a new city to explore.

For me, the free airfare was critical. The fares to Europe are ridiculous from southern Florida. We are retired and have flexibility in our schedule .We generally travel in the offseason to save $$s. Our next river cruise is Bordeaux and airfare through Viking was $100 pp. Great price, probably saves us 0ver $1000 pp plus transfers are included which would easily cost $100 pp if we did our own air. I have never used Viking's flex air but you can customize your travel for what seems a reasonable up charge. Some people have had great success with it while others complain bitterly. Me, I go with the flow and leave the scheduling to Viking. It has worked well for us. Your at the mercy of the airlines and, realistically, there is not much Viking can do once your on your way.

[Roz]

After 20 ocean cruises, I took my first river cruise last November on Uniworld's River Beatrice. Uniworld was recommended to me by my TA. I can't say enough about what a great time I had. Uniworld's "Do As The Locals Do" tours were wonderful - small groups on foot led by a local resident that really gave you a feel for the area you were visiting. The only negative I could come up with on my evaluation form was that I found the duvet on the bed to be too hot. :D

 

Even though I was warned over and over again on these forums not to let the cruise line book my air, Uniworld did an excellent job. I couldn't come up with anything under $1,300, but they got me flights for $851 on the same routings I would have booked myself.

 

I can't wait until I can go on another European river cruise, probably in 2017.

 

Roz

[Cyber Kat]

Ask me this question in September :D

 

We've done ocean cruises, but this will be our first river cruise. We do a lot of different things travel-wise and this is just another option - something we haven't done.

 

A Rhine river cruise has been on my bucket list for years. I had heard about such trips long before I saw my first Viking commercial on TV or had heard about any of the other lines.

 

I can't tell you about my experience, but I can tell you about my thought process. We knew we wanted to do the Rhine. I liked the look of the Viking ships from their ads on TV and the huge pile of brochures they send me every month :rolleyes:

 

These cruises cost a lot more than hopping on a Carnival cruise from my home port, so I did a LOT of research - here on Cruise Critic, reading blogs, watch YouTube videos. We ended up choosing Viking, because I do love the look of their ships, plus they are one of the few lines that stop at Kinderdijk and that's something we wanted to do. My husband's father was from Holland and it's a heritage thing.

 

I didn't so much consider price, because we're treating ourselves to a special just retired trip. Viking prices seemed in the middle of the pack. I'm sure there are cheaper, and less expensive. We did want September, but chose the last week in Aug because there is a big price jump from Aug to Sept.

 

I read all about water levels, and rafting, and excursions and really did a lot of research. I'm looking at this as an adventure, and we're really into the whole boat thing. If we weren't, I'd probably opt to fly over to Europe and do several cities using the trains - which we may do at some point in the future, but this is about the boat and the river.

 

I want to wake up in the morning and see swans swimming by. I want to see the castles from the deck of a long ship. I want to go through locks - even if it's the middle of the night - I'm getting up to watch.

 

I do want to see the places on the included tours, but that's icing for me - not cake! :)

 

We did pay up front. Not wild about the idea, but it's got to be paid anyway, so we did the e-check thing and saved a bit. We booked the air through Viking with the Air Plus, and they've been wonderful. I've changed the air booking a couple of times and it was so easy. We upgraded to business/first as a treat, but we ended up with a plane change in Paris on the way back. The window for doing this was kind of tight and I've heard stories about Charles DeGaulle airport, that had me concerned. I called them back and asked if we could switch to a direct, non-stop flight from Lucerne to JFK - instead of Newark, which is our preferred airport. Easy peasy - and we're done. I was able to go into Delta and see the flight, changed the seats because I didn't want to be in row 2 for the flight over.

 

So that's where we're at. We're doing the Lucerne extension through Viking because I had heard Switzerland is very expensive, and we've never been there except on a quick in and out in the lake region of Italy.

 

We're doing Amsterdam on our own because we've been there before, so we were more comfortable with that city, and because it was booked up with Viking for our trip.

 

I am sooooo looking forward to this adventure!

[TravelerThom]

We have done 7 Grand Circle river cruises, 2 Vantage, 2 Viking, 1 UniWorld plus a number of non-European rivers with outfits that don't operate in Europe. We enjoyed ALL of them. We travel quite a bit (much more than just rivers) and stretch our travel budget by being value conscious rather than top of the line, and my comments will reflect that. We choose where we want to go, and then see what is offered there (nobody operates everywhere) and choose what is the best value to us. Nobody has truly free airfare or even discounted air, it is merely a sales technique (often a way to discount slower moving product, while still pretending they haven't lowered the price). Price using the offered air,and what you can do yourself (including European transfers). Don't think companies that have never ending 2for1 sales are giving you anything but fluff in that regard.

 

Most of Grand Circle's boats are older but well maintained, and I second the comment about the added value of GCCL's Program Directors - every PD we have had was great and definitely added to our enjoyment. We had 3 river cruises in 2015, the last was GCCL's Bordeaux cruise picked up as a Last Minute Deal at a quite good price and we had perhaps our best PD ever.

 

Our next three river trips are with Vantage (Douro Portugal in April, and a combo Irrawaddy Myanmar in October and Mekong in November). Best value for us for places we wanted to go.

 

When you pick an itinerary (say a week starting or ending in Budapest) look at offerings from several companies. Consider companies' reputation for what they do if water levels are too high or too low. Consider what each would cost with comparable amenities (if tips, drinks etc are included on one but not another add in a rough estimate). If you really want a suite obviously that eliminates some companies. Consider Hoyaheel's comments of other ways to go (as much as I like river cruising, everything has shortcomings). Whatever you decide, Happy Travels!

 

Thom

[Cyber Kat]

Don't think companies that have never ending 2for1 sales are giving you anything but fluff in that regard.

 

This is a good point. I wasn't fooled by Viking's 2 for 1 pricing, but many are. All you have to do is get a few of their brochures to figure that out! :D

[Roz]

I'm amazed at the number of people who think that Viking is the only river cruise company in the world. Since I've not sailed them, I have no way of comparing them to the one river cruise I've taken with Uniworld. Last night I was having dinner with people I don't know and was telling them about my trip. They all assumed I'd gone on Viking, which speaks to the effectiveness of their advertising.

 

Roz

[Hoyaheel]

I'm amazed at the number of people who think that Viking is the only river cruise company in the world.

I'm amazed at the people who book vacations without doing any research at all.

 

But as I've mentioned, I LOVE to research for travel and am thankful the internet makes it so much easier to do :D

[patrickmoran]

The key for us was getting on Viking's mailing list for offers so that I would recognize a good deal when it came along. This year I have added my name to more river cruise lines based on comments on this board. For ocean cruise, I use a number of cruise lines because they don't all offer what I want or deals will vary from time to time.

[4774Papa]

Prior to picking the river cruise line, I review some to the prices from AMA, Viking and Vantage.

 

Vantage always has the lowest prices per day of the cruise/tour.

We have been on two cruises/torus with Vantage, Russia and China. These were two of our best trips ever. China was fantastic.

 

We did an AMA cruise of the Rhone/Saone rivers in Southern France that was excellent.

However when I price AMA against Vantage its prices have really gone up. We are booked on a Portugal/Douro river cruise with Vantage this May. AMA's prices for only the river cruise (7 days) was the same as Vantage's 10 day cruise and 3 days in Lisbon. Viking's price was slightly higher than Vantage, and its tour is 9 days.

 

Another thing that I don't like about Viking is having to pay in advance. We book over a year in advance and I will not give them our money for that long.

 

Vantage give even more discounts including one for early payment.

[TravelerThom]

My gift:) to this thread for today: Vantage Travel currently has Last Minute Deals on a FEW cabins for near term 7 night Rhine or 10 night Saone/Rhone cruises for $1999 INCLUDING International Airfare. Tips and probably other fees additional. If I wasn't already scheduled and paid on another river cruise, I'd be on one of the above.

 

Thom

[Hydrokitty]

that is a good deal. When is departure date? Not that I'm thinking of booking, I already have a trip booked for March, May and October this year.

[JPH814]

I cannot compare river cruise companies. I have only traveled with one- Uniworld. I know some are cheaper and some are more expensive. But my experience was so positive with them, I booked another and plan to book at least one more.

 

I loved the no tipping, all inclusive (drinks, wine, etc) policy. Staff was excellent. We were two of only 110 onboard and everyone was kind and professional. The excursions (also included) were great with a very small number of people in each group. Most groups were 15 or less guests for one tour guide. We saw much larger groups from other cruise lines in the ports we visited. When busses or other modes of transportation were required, it was incredibly efficient and seamless. The end of trip we went to Prague by bus and checked into a hotel for two nights. Flawless ease. The transfers to and from the airport were in private towncars, just the two of us...no buses or vans.

 

We recently booked an upcoming cruise in Belgium and Holland. I usually book my own airfare. But this time I booked through Uniworld. It was advertised as a $2000 discount. I requested specific flights - airlines, days and times - and that is what I received. And the price was identical to that which was quoted to me by the airline, minus $2000. It was a was a true savings.

 

As I said, there may be better or less expensive cruiselines out there, but until I am disappointed, I am sticking with Uniworld

[notamermaid]

Hello pkay414,

 

actually living on the river that people travel thousands of miles to see I somewhat have a different perspective on the Rhine. Here is my story in brief: I had considered taking a river cruise for a few years but had never got round to trying it. I was not sure if it would be for my having been a more independent traveller for many years. When the opportunity finally arose for a Danube cruise I took it. I had only two months time to plan everything about my trip which was no problem for me. I loved it and have been wanting to go on another one ever since, even on the Rhine. The company I went with is probably not for you. I am also in my 40's and to put it bluntly from the travellers I have seen in the towns on the Rhine I would not go with Viking if you are into fast skiing and hang gliding ;). I cannot say anything about the other companies on the North-American market, I seem to see mainly Viking ships on my excursions along the Rhine. I love the Uniworld interior design, but it might be overboard for some people (no pun intended).

 

If you like to be pampered and enjoy the slow pace in life then do consider all companies and go for it, book a river cruise. Choose carefully as the ships vary in their design and max. passenger size quite a bit.

 

For middle range value and lower luxury consider CroisiEurope and Arosa as well.

 

If you can choose a time of year, i.e. are not bound to summer holidays for example, think about what season you prefer.

 

Think about what you like in life at home and go from there: if you like mountain ranges a trip from Amsterdam to Basel is great with a post-cruise in the Alps in Switzerland for example. For wine lovers there are other places that are great (the Rhine is great for that as well). If you like the exotic go for Asia.

 

Have a look at the threads that raise issues of low water and flooding as - be warned - your trip can become adventurous in that you might end up on a bus trip or your cruise is cancelled at short notice.

 

It is a great way to travel and waking up to early morning sunshine on the Danube in Bratislava is highly recommended :):).

 

By the way, what is it with North Americans and seeing swans on the river? Is that special?

 

notamermaid

[TravelerThom]

...Uniworld...The excursions (also included) were great with a very small number of people in each group. Most groups were 15 or less guests for one tour guide...

A very good point; less expensive trips often have as many as 45 people on one tour. I can calculate in what tips and drinks might cost, if they are not included on cheaper offerings, but you are still in a larger herd of people. At least the relatively recent addition of audio boxes allows you to hear the tour guide, but asking questions in a large group is still problematic.

...what is it with North Americans and seeing swans on the river? Is that special?

We have lots of birds in North America - wild ducks and geese are over abundant in many places, but the only swans I see are semi-domesticated (not caged, but living in a park where they are feed and housed) and not really roaming. At least I do see swans in North America; I can't ever remember seeing a stork here.

 

Thom