Viking River Cruise - Romantic Danube in Oct 2017, Excursions question

[SusieeCruisee]

Hi there -

 

We will be going on Viking's "Romantic Danube" river cruise in Oct 2017, from Nuremberg to Budapest with 2 other couples. I just got online to look at the excursions. Each day one is included in the cruise. There are also quite a few additional excursions offered at an extra charge.

 

For those of you that have recently traveled on a Viking River Cruise - how far in advance did you need to book the extra excursions you pay for? I remember on our ocean cruise last year, a lot of the excursions were booked up by the time we got on the ship, or even several weeks before sailing.

 

How did you like the included excursions and the extra ones you paid for?

 

Any insights and recommendations on excursions is welcome!

[HokiePoq]

We'd read to book ahead of time to be sure of getting one you really wanted. However, we were on Danube Waltz (along with the Eastern Europe starting in Bucharest) and all of the online excursions were also offered onboard. You get an order sheet the first night which is due very soon....maybe the next morning. We added additional optional tours onboard, but they were the same ones that had been listed in the documents we received from Viking.

All were well done. Some of the included tours were better than others but I think this was a function of what was available in each port. Our stops were not exactly the same as yours but I'd be glad to answer any question on specific tours if you have them.

[wheezedr]

Most of the extra tours were available when on the ship. That being said if there is one you really are sure you want I would book it in advance to protect yourself against missing it. We did that for the WWII tour on our stop in Nuremberg. The majority of fellow cruisers will be on the included tours. Often the optional comes after the included and you have to decide between it and doing your own thing.

[foser22]

We were on Romantic Danube in May. I would agree that some of the included tours were better than others. Basically They are a quick overview of the city to give you the lay of the land. Later, we would walk around on our own or do an extra tour. We did several extra tours that we really enjoyed and were glad that we did them. The one extra tour that we tried to get on, but couldn't, was the Danube Narrows. It was booked. We kept hemming and hawing and by the time we decided to do it, it was too late.

 

It was a fun cruise, you'll have a great time!

 

 

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[Solent Richard]

Hi there -

 

We will be going on Viking's "Romantic Danube" river cruise in Oct 2017, from Nuremberg to Budapest with 2 other couples. I just got online to look at the excursions. Each day one is included in the cruise. There are also quite a few additional excursions offered at an extra charge.

 

For those of you that have recently traveled on a Viking River Cruise - how far in advance did you need to book the extra excursions you pay for? I remember on our ocean cruise last year, a lot of the excursions were booked up by the time we got on the ship, or even several weeks before sailing.

 

How did you like the included excursions and the extra ones you paid for?

 

Any insights and recommendations on excursions is welcome!

 

Hi there Susie.

 

Perhaps these two links will assist you...

 

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2013/05/28/solent-richard-catches-a-viking-maiden/

 

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2013/07/11/one-way-to-do-nuremberg/

 

The Nuremberg extension tour was an additional tour to be paid for and was worth every penny (or cent if you prefer)

 

As regards your question on early booking of excursions I have done just that in the past then got onboard to find they are still offering places.

 

A catch 22 situation really but on each occasion I have pre-booked the advance price has always been cheaper than the onboard price.

 

Hope that helps.

 

Richard

[SusieeCruisee]

Thanks everyone for your insights!

[SusieeCruisee]

Great blog posts, Richard! Thanks so much for sending the links!!!

[ADrews]

Hi Susie, I will let you know about the add on excursions after our mid-August Romantic Danube (Nuremberg to Budapest) cruise and any other helpful tidbits!

 

 

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[fmax]

Following along with this thread as will be doing the budapest Nuremberg trip at the end of November to catch the christmas markets.

[pontac]

How did you like the included excursions and the extra ones you paid for?

 

We did Romantic Danube

 

The included excursions are a good introduction to the places you visit. A great deal depends on the local guide you have. As the passengers are split into smaller groups for walking tours there can be four guides. If you don't like your one, just go to another group, and tune in your QuietVox to their wavelength.

 

Optional Excursions:

Mrs P wanted to go to the Straus concert in Vienna. I didn't but she booked it anyway and I went under protest. But I loved it, it was the highlight of the trip for me, and last year when we did the Grand EuropeanTour (Budapest to Amsterdam) we booked the concert excursion again. And loved it just as much.

 

I didn't go, but everyone who went on the optional tour to the BMW factory at Regensburg was raving about how good it was. Our friends went on the Romantic Danube and they also went, came back raving about how excellent it was.

 

When we went on Romantic Danuble the only way to book optional tours was on board boat, but now you can prebook trips online. The BMW factory tour has limited numbers and it sells out very fast, if you're interested book ASAP..

[dolllover]

We did Romantic Danube

 

The included excursions are a good introduction to the places you visit. A great deal depends on the local guide you have. As the passengers are split into smaller groups for walking tours there can be four guides. If you don't like your one, just go to another group, and tune in your QuietVox to their wavelength.

 

Optional Excursions:

Mrs P wanted to go to the Straus concert in Vienna. I didn't but she booked it anyway and I went under protest. But I loved it, it was the highlight of the trip for me, and last year when we did the Grand EuropeanTour (Budapest to Amsterdam) we booked the concert excursion again. And loved it just as much.

 

I didn't go, but everyone who went on the optional tour to the BMW factory at Regensburg was raving about how good it was. Our friends went on the Romantic Danube and they also went, came back raving about how excellent it was.

 

When we went on Romantic Danuble the only way to book optional tours was on board boat, but now you can prebook trips online. The BMW factory tour has limited numbers and it sells out very fast, if you're interested book ASAP..

 

Did people dress up for the concert? I'm looking forward to booking that excursion when I get on the boat.

[pontac]

No, the audience wore their usual clothes. The artists - orchestra, singers and dancers - wore costume of the era.

[hawkeye65]

One caveat: if you have OBC, you can only use it for excursions booked on board. I also really wanted to go to the Vienna concert and didn't want to risk it's being sold out so booked in advance with my own funds,

 

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[Sun_lover08]

Great blog!!

 

Hi there Susie.

 

Perhaps these two links will assist you...

 

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2013/05/28/solent-richard-catches-a-viking-maiden/

 

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2013/07/11/one-way-to-do-nuremberg/

 

The Nuremberg extension tour was an additional tour to be paid for and was worth every penny (or cent if you prefer)

 

As regards your question on early booking of excursions I have done just that in the past then got onboard to find they are still offering places.

 

A catch 22 situation really but on each occasion I have pre-booked the advance price has always been cheaper than the onboard price.

 

Hope that helps.

 

Richard