Avalon "Magnificent Europe" Cruise Review

[Kenato]

Just completed a cruise with Avalon Waterways on the Panorama. Great time. Full review available here: http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=536622

[Host Jazzbeau]

Thanks Kenato. If you can, would you paste the review here? When people comment on it, it's helpful to have the full text handy.

[Kenato]

Thanks Kenato. If you can, would you paste the review here? When people comment on it, it's helpful to have the full text handy.

 

After reviewing many of the river cruise lines we selected Avalon Waterways as being able to provide what we wanted at an acceptable price. Avalon fully met our expectations and we were very pleased we had chosen the company.*

 

This is a brief review of our river cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest in late May/early June.*

 

Embarkation: Some people have complained about Avalon not allowing embarkation until late afternoon. We had no such problems. We checked out of our hotel and left our bags there. Had a great day of sightseeing in Amsterdam then picked up our bags and taxi to Avalon's meeting point. Fast registration and then bus came and took us to the boat. Champagne and introductions to crew and then off to our cabin. All very smooth.*

 

Cabin: Our cabin was what we had been led to believe and more. Good sized room and beautiful large bathroom with large shower. One wall is just windows of which 2/3 open and you can lie on the bed looking out the window as the*scenery goes by.(unless at the bottom of a lock or rafted to another boat that did not happen too often) Bed was comfortable and storage space was sufficient. Cases store under the bed.*

 

Ship: We were very impressed with the immaculate condition of the ship. We asked an officer about it after watching the deck hands always cleaning something. He said they have great pride in ensuring their boat is the best looking on the river. The vessel had all the usual amenities, top sun-deck (closed for first part of cruise due to low bridges) with ample chairs, dining room, lounge, coffee lounge, hairdresser, gym, etc. There was nothing else we could have wanted or used.*

 

Dining: Breakfast was buffet style with cold meats, cheeses, hot food (that varied), omelette station, boiled eggs, breads and sweet rolls, You could also order the breakfast of the day from the waiter. All very good and very satisfying. Lunch was also a buffet again with cold meat, cheese, fruit, a good different hot and cold soup every day and a carvery station again changing every day. A variety of meats, fish and vegetables as well as freshly cooked pasta. Great,choice with enough variations that you did not get bored. Dinner was a four course affair except for special night when it was 5 or 6. Appetizer, soup, main course (meat, fish or vegetarian) and dessert. Everyday was different with local food being served on occasion. Wine flowed throughout and your glass was never empty. Quality was very good. You could also select the bisto night by reservation. Here they featured 10 small courses (4 appetizer, 3 main and 3 dessert) that was served in the lounge. Food was very good but service although very attentive needed a bit of fine tuning. There was coffee, juice, donuts and cookies available at all times in the lounge at the stern and a late night service that we never managed to stay up for! Drinks in the lounge were on the expensive side.*

 

Entertainment: The resident pianist was accomplished and played a wide rage of music. Local entertainers were brought on several times at night getting on at a port or lock and leaving at a later one after their performance. A great string trio, a zither player, a guitar player and a few others. One of the highlights was the crew show that was very clever and very funny. We also had talks during the day on beer making, the European Union and making local liqueurs. Many nights after a busy day you were happy to finish dinner and vanish to your room to sleep before another early morning.*

 

Service: The service we received from all the staff was superb. They were friendly and attentive and always ready to help in anyway they could. Many knew your name and always said hello and welcomed you back. At times it was a bit too attentive with plates being whipped away before you had swallowed the last mouthful. Don't know how they could have been better.*

 

Ports & Shore Excursions: Our shore excursions were extremely well organized. Buses and/or guides were always there at the scheduled time and surprise, surprise, passengers always returned at the appointed time and we never had to wait. All the guides we had were very good and extremely knowledgeable. Some talked a bit too much and provided more history and information than my overloaded brain could take in. Ports were all interesting and had sights that were unique to each of them. I would have like to have had more information on them from the CD at his nightly meeting but little was said. Used to Ocean cruises where you get a good briefing on next stop and what to see. CD did give a good presentation as we went through Rhine Gorge and approaching Budapest. Just wish he had given better information at night rather than his nightly story. Also found him a bit brusque when responding to questions but no questioning his organizational skills with excursions and entertainment.*

 

All in all a very enjoyable cruise and if I ever win the lottery I will consider another cruise with Avalon.*Less**

 

 

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[Rebel54]

Very nice review. Thank you!

[Host Jazzbeau]

Thanks Kenato. Glad you had a great trip!

[I_r_a]

Hi K,

 

Thanks for sharing.

 

You said >Drinks in the lounge were on the expensive side. <

 

Can you give us some prices?

 

Ira

[Kenato]

I have added a few photos to the review that you can find in the Review section.

 

Just to add that we were very lucky and although we had a few wet days at the start we were far enough along to miss the torrential rains that caused problems for the boats behind us. I can understand how a bit of rain can create these problems, I am 6' 4" and had to duck going under a couple of bridges at normal water levels.

We ended our cruise with 28 deg weather in Budapest.

Willing to answer any questions you may have.

 

Cocktails and mix drinks were $9.95 and I think wine was over $6 for a small pour.

[uilleann]

Just completed a cruise with Avalon Waterways on the Panorama. Great time. Full review available here: http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=536622

 

We are doing the same cruise in September. Really glad you had a good time. I have two questions.

 

1. What is the little German village that they refer to that is a stop, I think right after the Rhein Gorge? They never mention it by name

 

2. When do you get more detailed info on the timing in each port. Right now in the activity packet that we have it only has vague references to times.

 

Thanks

[Kenato]

We are doing the same cruise in September. Really glad you had a good time. I have two questions.

 

1. What is the little German village that they refer to that is a stop, I think right after the Rhein Gorge? They never mention it by name

 

2. When do you get more detailed info on the timing in each port. Right now in the activity packet that we have it only has vague references to times.

 

Thanks

 

The town we stopped in after the Rhine Gorge was Rudesheim. Nice little town. Main attraction was a tour of Siegfreids mechanical musical instrument museum. We were shown working calliopes, musical boxes, gramophones and various other mechanical musical instruments. Sounds a bit corny but was very interesting. Number of stores and you can sample the famous Rudesheim coffee, very good. You can also take a cable car and hike to the ridge of the valley to see a statue marking the end of the Franco Prussian war and celebrating the German Unification.

 

Every evening just prior to dinner, everyone meets in the lounge and the CD provides information on the next day: when you dock, when the tours start, when the boat sails and any other items of interest. That is the earliest you know and is due to the uncertainty given traffic, locks etc of how long it will take to get from one point to another. Did not give us any problems, we just went with the flow!!

 

Hope you have as good or better time than we did

[uilleann]

Oops.... I did not ask that accurately. In the literature on day 5 they have a Main River Village stop with guided tour. its between Rudesheim and Wurzburg. Where do you guys stop and how long were you there?

[Kenato]

Oops.... I did not ask that accurately. In the literature on day 5 they have a Main River Village stop with guided tour. its between Rudesheim and Wurzburg. Where do you guys stop and how long were you there?

 

We stopped in Miltenberg. This quaint town has just one main street and it is lined with shops, cafes and pubs. This medieval town dating back to 1200AD has narrow cobblestone streets and many half-timbered houses themselves as old as 1583. The houses are wood framed because the forest is just behind the city. There is a very large castle overlooking the town - Schloss Miltenberg. The wine they produce here is sold in specially shaped bottles, with a wide, round base.

 

Early lunch and ship arrived about 12:45. Straight on tour and then ship left again about 2 hours later.

[I_r_a]

>Cocktails and mix drinks were $9.95 and I think wine was over $6 for a small pour.

 

Thanx, K

 

Ira

[Marken]

We are looking at Avalon for our first river cruise - what was the men's dress code for dinner? Do we need to pack a sportsjacket ( hubby hopes not) Thanks for the info

[pully8]

no jackets are not required. some wear them by choice but not many. we have done 8 river cruises in Europe, people generally dress/change for dinner. mainly smart casual. some evenings are more dressy but basically dress for comfort. it can get hot in the dining room and can be noisy as others have mentioned.

tables for 2 can be found near the entrance but as the tables are close together its not an intimate experience. prepare to be amongst others it can be positive usually.

[Daisi]

Thanks for the great review Kenato, sounds as if you really had a great time & enjoyed Avalon. Makes me glad, as we are hoping to be booking our cruise next year.

[mj_holiday]

Thanks for the great review.

 

For dinner, is there another option if you do not want (too tired, whatever) the 4 course meal?

[Kenato]

Thanks for the great review.

 

For dinner, is there another option if you do not want (too tired, whatever) the 4 course meal?

 

The only option we had was the Bistro Meal served in the lounge. This was about 10 small plates of appetizers, entrees and deserts that we enjoyed. Quite casual and not a whole pile of food. I believe that when weather and bridge conditions allow, they also will serve a meal on the top deck in a very casual atmosphere. You can still go to the main dining room and only order 1, 2,3 or 4 courses depending upon how you feel. Remember it is all pretty casual.