Christmas Markets Danube 2017

[fmax]

River cruise has been on my to do list and my sister really wants to do the christmas markets. Just decided this is the time to plan so need to look at 2017 as it isn't feasible for this year.

 

Previously have done ocean cruises - carribean eastern, western and southern. Med, Greek Isles & Turkey and Alaska. Have sailed HAL, RCCL, and Carnival.

 

Have read through several of these threads and looked at 2016 pricing to get an idea of what we're looking at as far as cost. Given the substantial difference in prices in some case, some questions for those who have sailed several of the cruiselines

 

Cabins: For lowest end cabin, anything particular gives one line an edge over the other. I've done a 9 day cruise with carryon luggage so cupboard space isn't an issue.

 

Food: I now it's subjective and I'm not picky. I'm not a fan of buffet but assume that's pretty much a given for breakfast and lunch on each line? Would think quite often lunch is of the ship if doing tours?

 

Drink: I know some do all inclusive wine, or wine and alcohol. Can I assume they all at minimum include wine with dinner. And all allow you to bring wine onboard and as long as you have corkscrew and open in room there's no corkage fee.

 

Excursions: What would be the major difference in excursions offered between lines on a typical danube christmas market cruise

 

I'm sure there's questions/comparisons I'm missing but can't think of them at this time but sure I will be on here frequently.

 

thanks in advance for any help you can give.

[caviargal]

River cruise has been on my to do list and my sister really wants to do the christmas markets. Just decided this is the time to plan so need to look at 2017 as it isn't feasible for this year.

 

Previously have done ocean cruises - carribean eastern, western and southern. Med, Greek Isles & Turkey and Alaska. Have sailed HAL, RCCL, and Carnival.

 

Have read through several of these threads and looked at 2016 pricing to get an idea of what we're looking at as far as cost. Given the substantial difference in prices in some case, some questions for those who have sailed several of the cruiselines

 

Cabins: For lowest end cabin, anything particular gives one line an edge over the other. I've done a 9 day cruise with carryon luggage so cupboard space isn't an issue.

 

Food: I now it's subjective and I'm not picky. I'm not a fan of buffet but assume that's pretty much a given for breakfast and lunch on each line? Would think quite often lunch is of the ship if doing tours?

 

Drink: I know some do all inclusive wine, or wine and alcohol. Can I assume they all at minimum include wine with dinner. And all allow you to bring wine onboard and as long as you have corkscrew and open in room there's no corkage fee.

 

Excursions: What would be the major difference in excursions offered between lines on a typical danube christmas market cruise

 

I'm sure there's questions/comparisons I'm missing but can't think of them at this time but sure I will be on here frequently.

 

thanks in advance for any help you can give.

 

Pricing is out for 2017 Christmas market cruises with several lines (if not all).

 

AMA has fixed window cabins on all of their boats that are spacious at between 160-170 sq ft. and well appointed. They offer buffet at breakfast and lunch and also the option to order from a menu, which changes daily. I am not a buffet person and take advantage of that option. AMA includes wine, beer and soft drinks at lunch and dinner and there is Champagne available during breakfast.

 

Excursions are not much different during the markets, with the exception of some added options depending on itinerary. Also, there is allocated time to enjoy the markets.

 

Other lines like Uniworld and Scenic are all inclusive. The cabins on Uniworld vary significantly depending on vessel.

 

A good TA is your best bet, IMO.

[Hoyaheel]

I'd recommend reading the overview threads stuck at the top of this forum about what is river cruising & choosing a river cruise (and there's a recent thread sharing decision matrix/spreadsheets too, if you're that kind of decision maker) Generalities - foods, cabin size - are going to be the same no matter the time of year. Differences for Christmas Markets are probably just going to be the times of day you're in port to make a market (hopefully - not always the case on our Avalon cruise in Dec 2014- we left Bamberg right as the market was opening on Sunday at 11am, and another town we visited - Miltenberg maybe? - only had weekend markets and we visited during the week) There's only so much you can do when you need to move from Point A to Point B by a certain time, though;)

[fmax]

I read a lot of the threads and reviewed the table indicating comparision between lines and hotels/ocean cruisers which provides a big picture, but not really the details of the difference as to why one 8 day is worth $1300 more than another.

 

For example, on ocean cruises, when i do a precruise night stay I like 4 star accommodation at a substantial discount (bidding on priceline). Carnival, Royal and Holland America are all different standards yet I've sailed and enjoyed all of them.

 

Although Carnival is the cheap end, it gives me a cabin comparable to the others, good itineraries (normally why I choose them) and at a good price.

 

Many of my initial cruises were on Royal and they were the yardstick. Lovely ships, lots of amenities, good food and reasonable pricing. However, having gone on Allure and seen the nickel and diming, they just went down in my estimations. The food was also so, so. Probably would have thought food was really good if I hadn't cruised several times before when it was much better.

 

The HAL Cruise was a new year's cruise and chosen for it's southern carribean route when no other lines were really doing southern caribbean from Florida. Given it was new year's the demographics were more varied as more multi-generational families travelling. Not necessarily a line I would travel any other time, but would consider, with right itinerary and cost, as a holiday cruise.

 

One bonus is that it will be my first river cruise so nothing to compare it with and any vacation is a good vacation.

[Hoyaheel]

Re: lunches -there is a "key" in most itineraries on cruiseline websites - if you look at the daily itinerary there will be a code at the end of the description of the day's activities (B/L/D) - Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner - any or all of those letters might be present and will tell you if they expect you to be on board to eat at that time (it's also been reported in various threads that if they know you need/want to eat on board they can assist even if it's not a meal planned for everyone - I imagine that's something that will differ by line)

 

Though there's a yardstick of what ocean lines might correspond with which river lines, I think it's probably a better idea for you to state what you're looking for, what sort of budget, what sort of inclusions you're looking for to get advice.

[QueenofEverything]

You will probably have a hard time getting objective appraisals of multiple lines. Like ocean cruises, everyone has their favorite, and it tends to be the one they have been on. You may get some unfavorable opinions of some lines, but they may be from someone who has never taken a cruise on that particular line (so what do they really know about it?). We have been on an Avalon Rhine cruise (spring) and last year we did the Danube Christmas market cruise on Viking. Both were absolutely wonderful. A couple of things to keep in mind for a Christmas markets cruise that would not necessarily be true the rest of the year: It will get dark around 4:00 pm and the weather will probably not be the greatest. That said, most ships sell out their aquarium (lowest level) cabins first. While a balcony may be great in the summer, it is kind of a waste of money in December. I would look at the itinerary (including times) and decide where you want to go the most. For instance, some of the Danube cruises don't go all the way to Nuremberg (facinating city), or they end in Vienna, missing Budapest. The markets are great, lots of fun and pretty different from each other. Have fun planning, it is always fun to obsess over a great trip!

[Hoyaheel]

While a balcony may be great in the summer, it is kind of a waste of money in December. !

 

Eh, to each his/her own. On Avalon we had a french balcony and made use of it daily. We also were some of the only people up on the top deck many days. Just depends on the weather, your hardiness, and how prepared you are with your clothing. Our weather was actually much warmer than I had expected (mid-40sF most days) NUE-BSL. Just check the forecast before you leave and pack appropriately.

 

We know we are "watchers" - people, boats, scenery, whatever - so we book hotel rooms, apartment/villa rentals & boat cabins accordingly. If it's not important to you, spend the $ elsewhere.

[Pyroforyou]

I have only taken Viking Christmas market cruises, first on the Rhine and last year on the Danube so I can not say from experience how other lines operate but when I look for my next river cruise, I compare most to get what I feel is the best trip. For Christmas markets tours, just have extra layers that you can switch around each day to save space. True it gets dark earlier but thats the best time to see the awesome Christmas lights, just bring a small flashlight for cobblestone streets and have supportive shoes. I chose Viking for what I felt was the best overall deal. I wanted the included excursions which by the way during Christmas markets seem like double the value and gets you into the holiday spirit. One last thing, dont go during Christmas eve or day and expect to have everything open like some people do.

[caviargal]

Eh, to each his/her own.

 

We know we are "watchers" - people, boats, scenery, whatever - so we book hotel rooms, apartment/villa rentals & boat cabins accordingly. If it's not important to you, spend the $ elsewhere.

 

I agree! We use our balcony no matter what the time of year. It is our own private space and we appreciate having it.

 

<Like ocean cruises, everyone has their favorite, and it tends to be the one they have been on.>

 

We have been on four lines and would happily sail again with three: AMA, Uniworld and Scenic, in that order. We enjoyed each of them for different reasons.

[alexkrn46]

We have ocean cruised with many lines, RCCL is the one we are D+ with. We feel the service we get with Viking is a cut above the RCCL product. We left the cruise with a $12 bill due to a book I purchased.

 

We have done the post cruise excursions with Viking since I feel they give you the best value when you factor in the tours, the transfers, etc. We have not done any other river cruises other than Viking so I can not compare anything else.

[fmax]

Thanks everyone for the input.

 

We are leaning towards Viking, after reviewing and pricing out many of the others. those I personally know who have sailed Viking have only good things to say about it.

 

As it's canadians and americans travelling we need to ensue what we pick is a good deal for all of us and currently Viking is including air for both canadians and americans for $100 pp.

 

Air is going to be an issue I'm sure as I tend to do my own for the most direct option but that's a bridge I'll cross when I come to it. Will probably look at any pre or post cruise option independently so another $100 for flight deviation hopefully gets me a better flight of my choosing if I go with a deal that is including flights.

 

p.s. alexkrn46 - what book were you referring to when you said "We left the cruise with a $12 bill due to a book I purchased."

[patrickmoran]

We have done 2 Viking river cruises and have been pleased with them.

The key though is to sign up with the various cruiselines to get word of their specials. The pricing can vary quite abit from the published fare if they are trying to fill a ship.

We did the Danube Christmas markets 3 years ago and really enjoyed it. The pricing was very good. We got free air through Viking, as well as our 2nd cruise. The air booking worked out very well for us. We took advantage of Viking's precruise stay in Budapest. Loved Budapest! The more time you can spend there the better. We recently were in Amsterdam for a short day and really want to go back.

[KathyK13]

I suggest you also look at other cruise lines' websites for discounts on 2017 cruises. For example, AMA is offering $1000 per person off the Christmas Markets on the Danube cruise; the price for the lowest category cabin is $500 less than Viking's. I believe all optional excursions are included on AMA while Viking charges for them, but I'm not sure.

 

Vantage also has similar pricing on their 2017 Christmas cruises.

[bassfisherman]

I did the Danube Christmas Market cruise 5 years ago when there was a record snow storm the end of November for the entire cruise. It did add to the festive nature of the cruise. It does get dark early and in a couple of towns I just took a taxi back to the ship. I think the best itinerary is the one that includes Budapest, Vienna, and Nurmeburg (it has the biggest market by far). I am leaving Wednesday for the Grand European tour from Budapest to Amsterdam and am looking forward to seeing the Danube towns without 3 feet of snow. My only other piece of advice is check the weather very carefully before leaving. We did and we were prepared clothes wise for all of the snow.