AmaWaterways AmaMagna: Vilshofen to Budapest - Excursion Thoughts?

[CastleCritic]

29 minutes ago, RobInMN said:

While they do like you to sign up ahead of time, I am convinced it's just to get some sense of the number of guides they need for each excursion before hand. While I've only been on 3 cruises (sort of 2, as 2 of those were a single B2B on the same ship), the experience that we've had with picking up your colors, is that there is no accounting of who picks up what color. You could change you mind at the last minute, and in my limited experience, I am positive that people have done just that based on the current weather.

Interesting that you turned yours over to the guides. We have never handed our color tickets over to the guides. On all 3 cruises, we were asked to return them to the reception desk when we returned. There's a box with a slot in it for doing so. A couple times, I return my previous tickets when I picked up my new ones. Oops!

Yes, each tour has different colors. If there are multiple groups doing the same tour, they will also have different colors. If there is an "Active" version, that is usually Red, and if there is a "Gentle" option, that is usually Pink. The colors correspond to the Lollipops and coach signs, and which channel your Quietvox device should be set to.

I don't think anyone was prevented from doing an excursion that they wanted to.

I've absolutely called an audible and changed excursions based on the weather, and I know others did on my last cruise since the bike tour DOES have a list and people didn't show up (and it was threatening to rain and did drizzle a bit).

 

And I brought a color home with me once.

[Hanse4]

On 7/13/2023 at 1:50 PM, marieps said:

If you have the time and budget, I would certainly recommend a few days pre-cruise in Prague, then a car service to Vilshofen.  We ended in Vilshofen and found a great driver who took us to Prague at a reasonable price.

 

Ama Magna is wonderful, and the only Ama ship with a guest laundry.  Also, ice machines in the hall are so convenient.  I wish they were a staple on ocean-going vessels.  Have a wonderful time.

Agree about Prague. We spent a few days there on a different trip about years ago and totally enjoyed it. This time pre-cruise will be in Munich and post-cruise will be in Budapest. 

[mcomd508]

Hello, everyone.

 

Going a bit off topic here.I am a seasoned luxury cruiser in oceans (RSSC, Silversea, Ritz Carlton yacht,Crystal cruises…)  but I’m considering my first river cruise in the AmaMagna in the same itinerary.

 

Some basic questions I have (any input would be greatly appreciated):

 

1- I am finding hard to justify paying around 1000 usd a night pp in a river cruise. I understand that it’s a very limited number of passengers, but most of the advertised perks don’t seem to justify that price. Most of the shore excursions seem to be a walk in the city center or a bus ride to some monument that frankly I could do by myself for a fraction of the price. Am I missing something here?

2- Regarding meals on board, unlike ocean cruise lines, river cruise lines seem to limit the amount of food, times and options you have when onboard. Frankly, when I look at the videos, the quality doesn’t seem that great; Any thoughts?

3- Some friends have told me they feel like river cruisers are almost like a guided excursion experience and they came back more tired than before they left. Does anyone feel the same way?

4- My partner wants to take Amawaterways since it’s advertised as a more active line. However, I feel like Uniworld and Riverside ( former Crystal river cruises) seem to provide a more luxurious experience. Would you compare them?

5- I understand I would get more space in the AmaMagna, but does it justify that there’s a major premium to pay if sailing on her instead of the others? My partner feels like the other ships would be too cramped.

6- For the dates I was looking up, there are only fixed window rooms available( which look terrible to stay in a river cruise where you want to admire the scenery).Has anyone had any experience staying in those?

 

I don’t mean to be controversial or rub anyone off the wrong way. I’m just trying to decide whether a river cruise, AmaWaterways and the Magna would be appropriate for my next trip.

 

I appreciate everyone’s opinions in advance.

 

[RobInMN]

1 hour ago, mcomd508 said:

Hello, everyone.

 

Going a bit off topic here.I am a seasoned luxury cruiser in oceans (RSSC, Silversea, Ritz Carlton yacht,Crystal cruises…)  but I’m considering my first river cruise in the AmaMagna in the same itinerary.

 

Some basic questions I have (any input would be greatly appreciated):

 

1- I am finding hard to justify paying around 1000 usd a night pp in a river cruise. I understand that it’s a very limited number of passengers, but most of the advertised perks don’t seem to justify that price. Most of the shore excursions seem to be a walk in the city center or a bus ride to some monument that frankly I could do by myself for a fraction of the price. Am I missing something here?

2- Regarding meals on board, unlike ocean cruise lines, river cruise lines seem to limit the amount of food, times and options you have when onboard. Frankly, when I look at the videos, the quality doesn’t seem that great; Any thoughts?

3- Some friends have told me they feel like river cruisers are almost like a guided excursion experience and they came back more tired than before they left. Does anyone feel the same way?

4- My partner wants to take Amawaterways since it’s advertised as a more active line. However, I feel like Uniworld and Riverside ( former Crystal river cruises) seem to provide a more luxurious experience. Would you compare them?

5- I understand I would get more space in the AmaMagna, but does it justify that there’s a major premium to pay if sailing on her instead of the others? My partner feels like the other ships would be too cramped.

6- For the dates I was looking up, there are only fixed window rooms available( which look terrible to stay in a river cruise where you want to admire the scenery).Has anyone had any experience staying in those?

 

I don’t mean to be controversial or rub anyone off the wrong way. I’m just trying to decide whether a river cruise, AmaWaterways and the Magna would be appropriate for my next trip.

 

I appreciate everyone’s opinions in advance.

 

You should look at the reviews in post #6

 

1. If you just look at it as a walk, then yes, you could technically do those on your own, however, Ama always hires local guides that are very knowledgeable. In our opinion, they have (with 1 exception), been excellent. Even the one that pissed us off, it had nothing to do with his information, it was his time management. Anyway, There are almost always options to suite your interests, including a biking one if that suites you. Many of the walks have a gentle and an active option, and a number of the ports have hikes. Some of these will go to the same place the bus does, some to unique locations. You always have the option of doing your own thing.
2. Yes, more limited than ocean cruises, but you won't go hungry. AmaMagna has 2 options for breakfast & lunch, and 4 for dinner. there's some mod afternoon in 1 (never checked it out myself). Yes, there's times there isn't anything available (maybe room service??), but it's pretty limited. For our tastes, AmaMagna is a bit more upscale food-wise, but that's on us, not them. We will not ding them because they don't exactly cater to our more pedestrian tastes. That said, we were never disappointed in any of our meals, just more limited in what appealed to us. We ate a lot of the same things and liked them every time.
3. Skip excursions if you want, and again, you can always do your own thing. We do these to see these countries and places we'd never visit otherwise. But no, we don't feel that way. There's enough down time. We hung out in one of the lounges often.
4. We haven't done those others, so can't compare. But AmaMagna is amazing. 
5. We were upgraded to an SA(?). Unbelievable space. Storage for days, and probalby the nicest shower we've ever had on a vacation (river, ocean, or hotel). To be honest though, we dont' really hang out in our room. But the space is nice for getting ready in the morning and before bed.
6. Once on another line. Like I said in the previous answer, we don't really hang out in our room, so I am not sure if it would bother us that much, especially on AmaMagna.

 

[mcomd508]

Thank you so much for your prompt response and valuable information.

need to decide if it’s worth going for the first time in a fixed window room. We’re you upgraded from a fixed window to the SA cabin?

I would appreciate if anyone else has any feedback regarding Amazon x Uniworld . Thanks again

[CastleCritic]

I swear I think RobInMN and I took the same cruise and then cloned ourselves every time I see them post about it (we kind of did just 3 weeks apart).

 

Ive done 5 Cruises with AMA, 3 of them in the fixed window rooms.  If you dont spend any time in the room, theyre fine. You only really want a balcony if you are going to spend time sitting on it watching the river go by (and you can do that sitting on the top deck or in the loungue) For AMAMagna, much like RobInMN I was moved from a fixed window to an SA room but I suspect they are pretty similar to the other ships.  AMA is not an "inelegant" line.  I don't know that I would have use for more "high society" than that.

 

Food, I get where you are going with "limited" in that any river ship is going only to have about 2 places with different menus.  AMAMagna does have 4, but for dinner 2 of them serve the same thing (the second just brings them family style on platters rather than individual services, and the third is the "tasting menu" which is something you will do once, so realistically its 2 places to eat. ) But the menu is fairly diverse and the quality is REALLY good, better than Ive seen examples from other lines.  usually 2-3 options for each course, main will be a meat, fish, and veggie options  as well as the "bailout menu" of steak, chicken, salmon and..Im sure something veggie but I dont recall.   This is one place where the presentation is above what I really need, its pretty "fancy" and I almost always end up. ordering additional plates because of the small size.

 

Excursions, I think Rob covered it, the guide really helps, often the excursion wont be right at the dock so you need the bus to get you there.  In some place like Vienna can you do it on your own? you sure can and AMA will have a shuttle bus running every hour to the city center so you can do exactly that if you want.  The day is pretty structured.  But the excursions themselves are rarely taxing...unless you chose one to hike up a hill to a castle or something.

 

If you are doing a river cruise on the Danube, the AMAMagna is the best choice, but a normal AMA ship is good as well, and you will find recommendations for other lines as well on this forum.

Edited August 7, 2023 by CastleCritic

[mcomd508]

Thank you so much for your insight.

I wonder if you were both upgraded because you’re repeat cruisers with AMA. I’m not sure this would happen to a first timer like me.

The cruise I’m looking into is around 900 usd per person per day for a fixed window room ( I realize it’s kind of a last minute booking). However, it seems a lot to be in the entry level category. Maybe I’d have to book way in advance to get one of the better rooms with a better rate.

 

[CastleCritic]

6 minutes ago, mcomd508 said:

Thank you so much for your insight.

I wonder if you were both upgraded because you’re repeat cruisers with AMA. I’m not sure this would happen to a first timer like me.

The cruise I’m looking into is around 900 usd per person per day for a fixed window room ( I realize it’s kind of a last minute booking). However, it seems a lot to be in the entry level category. Maybe I’d have to book way in advance to get one of the better rooms with a better rate.

 

I suspected at the time that I got the suite because I was gold loyalty yes,  But I looked at the available rooms a few days after they sent the email and EVERYONE was moved off 1st deck for that cruise except one room (not sure the story there, but there were still SA rooms available though I think that mass upgrade filled all the balconies at that point.  I suspect a lot of the others were move to the normal balcony rooms (which would also be fine) This was on a cruise with about 145 people of the 180ish capacity of the AMAMagna.  Ive. been upgraded twice, they did NOT upgrade me (and my mother) last year on the AMADante when there were only 48 people on the cruise

[mcomd508]

Thanks again @CastleCritic. I appreciate your kindness and all of your valuable input.

[RobInMN]

Same. We did the 2 week Grand Danube, which is really just a B2B. The first week had a large group cancelation, and there were only about 60 some passengers. I think everyone was upgraded to consolidate onto same floors, for some it was their first Ama. Next week was something like 120ish. We weren't originally upgraded on the second week, but the cruise manager made a call, and we were allowed to stay in the same room. We checked before unpacking because as nice as the cabin was, our original cabin was plenty nice, and we would have preferred to keep that one rather than switch cabins half way. 

[jsn55]

Lots of excellent information and advice here.  I really do understand your position ... if it hadn't been for a fluke way back in 2002, we'd probably still not know about river cruises.  We always did Europe independently, but I ran across an ad with the kind of itinerary we'd do on our own.  I ran the numbers and booked the river cruise for far less money.  Once you do a river cruise, you'll understand it all  The differences between river and ocean cruising are almost uncountable.  Really difficult to categorize the subtle differences until you experience them.  Unless you have concrete 'must haves', I would advise you to just jump in and book one.  I'd do Avalon in a Royal Suite, and see what you think.  River ship cabins are really tight and we'd never last in a regular cabin.   Our first was Amsterdam to Vienna, we loved every minute.  No 'luxury', just everything done really, really well.  

[CastleCritic]

They are small, and one thing is that even if you have a balcony room, that doesn't always mean the room is larger in fact the balcony may have actually reduced the living space.

 

Thats one reason why AMAMagna is a great ship all the rooms are larger, even the class D and E rooms. for the higher categories they are much longer as well (sadly the middle of the ship where the 2 lower balcony and the fixed window rooms are has a large walled off space in the middle of the ship though this also means you *dont* have a door on the other side that is opening and closing when people enter like you do on a smalerl ship or even with the suites.

 

But this is why I dont really sweat the category, for the most part the room is a place to store stuff and sleep.  If I want to watch the river go by I'll go up on deck or sit in the lounge.  If I can get it cheap I would get a balcony, but every cruise I have booked has been Class E, the lowest (though I have enough loyalty to get auto-upgraded a few feet into a class D, sadly it doesn't work to book a Class D and then get a balcony for free...wish it did).

[mcomd508]

Thank you everyone for your wonderful inputs.

Would anyone have any experience regarding how AmaWaterways stacks against Uniworld or Crystal River cruises ( currently Riverside) ? 
Thanks again! 

[Host Jazzbeau]

4 minutes ago, mcomd508 said:

Thank you everyone for your wonderful inputs.

Would anyone have any experience regarding how AmaWaterways stacks against Uniworld or Crystal River cruises ( currently Riverside) ? 
Thanks again! 

No personal experience with Uniworld or Riverside, but I would put all three lines you mention in the top five (along with Scenic and Tauck, which you might also want to consider).  Riverside does have the ex-Crystal Mozart, which is the other double-wide ship on the Danube (like AmaMagna).  Scenic in particular has lots of larger cabin types and I would rank it's food and excursions a little above AMA (which is already very good).

 

Whichever line you are looking at, pay attention to the western end of the itinerary.  AMA is very smart to stop at Vilshofen because that avoids the notorious low-water choke point on the Danube.  Itineraries that plan to go further west (e.g. to Regensburg) may not be able to make it and end up as long bus rides.

[mcomd508]

18 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

No personal experience with Uniworld or Riverside, but I would put all three lines you mention in the top five (along with Scenic and Tauck, which you might also want to consider).  Riverside does have the ex-Crystal Mozart, which is the other double-wide ship on the Danube (like AmaMagna).  Scenic in particular has lots of larger cabin types and I would rank it's food and excursions a little above AMA (which is already very good).

 

Whichever line you are looking at, pay attention to the western end of the itinerary.  AMA is very smart to stop at Vilshofen because that avoids the notorious low-water choke point on the Danube.  Itineraries that plan to go further west (e.g. to Regensburg) may not be able to make it and end up as long bus rides.

Thank you very much! At the moment, I’m finding it hard to justify paying 900 usd a night pp for a fixed window room.

All your comments are much appreciated.

[CastleCritic]

$900/nt is a lot no doubt, even paying for solo supplement I didn't pay that much (Close it was $836/nt) for my past cruise on AmaMagna booked in a fixed window cabin.  But even not factoring in not getting the upgrade in room that happened,  I would have had no regrets (in the end it was $8732 after adding 4 more nights land extension and insurance to be completely clear).

 

If you are looking to save money AMAMagna is not the ship, its one of a kind and AMA knows it.  Especially right now. 

 

But the old saying "you get what you pay for" applies, the AMAMagna is an amazing ship.  Though again if you can convince your other cruiser to go on a normal AMA ship you'll be fine, and pay less.

Edited August 7, 2023 by CastleCritic

[RobInMN]

31 minutes ago, CastleCritic said:

$900/nt is a lot no doubt, even paying for solo supplement I didn't pay that much (Close it was $836/nt) for my past cruise on AmaMagna booked in a fixed window cabin.  But even not factoring in not getting the upgrade in room that happened,  I would have had no regrets (in the end it was $8732 after adding 4 more nights land extension and insurance to be completely clear).

 

If you are looking to save money AMAMagna is not the ship, its one of a kind and AMA knows it.  Especially right now. 

 

But the old saying "you get what you pay for" applies, the AMAMagna is an amazing ship.  Though again if you can convince your other cruiser to go on a normal AMA ship you'll be fine, and pay less.

We booked in Jun of '21 for Mar/Apr '23, almost 2 years out. That time of year, the weather was not as nice, and that was reflected in the price. For just the cruise itself, in an AB (what we actually booked) we paid $762.59 per person per night for the first week and $689.33 for the second. Both weeks had a early booking discount 5%, and the second week a 10% B2B discount. Also $100 per person discount on both for being a repeat Ama cruiser. The 3 night pre and 4 night post both came out to $300 per person per night, which brings the average for the full trip down a bit.

 

This was a bit of a splurge, but figured it was AmaMagna. If we had it to do over again, we'd still do it. It was amazing to experience.

 

 

Edited August 7, 2023 by RobInMN

[Got2Cruise]

2 hours ago, mcomd508 said:

Thank you everyone for your wonderful inputs.

Would anyone have any experience regarding how AmaWaterways stacks against Uniworld or Crystal River cruises ( currently Riverside) ? 
Thanks again! 

Hi. I’ve done both Uniworld and Amawaterways. I’ll try to help. 
 

First, is there a specific itinerary you are looking at?  Once you have it narrowed down look very closely at the INCLUDED excursions. They are not exactly the same. 
 

Next, understand that Uniworld is all inclusive. So, any alcoholic beverage you wish is included all day. Also almost all gratuities are included with Uniworld. Amawaterways is additional. So crunch the numbers. 
 

The food and wine in the restaurants similar. Amawaterways also includes a Chef’s Tasting Restaurant. 
 

We have found the service basically the same with both brands. 
 

Is there a reason you have not considered Tauck? They are considered top notch and the pricing reflects that. 
 

If one wants to save some money look for flash sales for the weeks that are not selling as quickly as other weeks. 

[mcomd508]

13 minutes ago, Got2Cruise said:

Hi. I’ve done both Uniworld and Amawaterways. I’ll try to help. 
 

First, is there a specific itinerary you are looking at?  Once you have it narrowed down look very closely at the INCLUDED excursions. They are not exactly the same. 
 

Next, understand that Uniworld is all inclusive. So, any alcoholic beverage you wish is included all day. Also almost all gratuities are included with Uniworld. Amawaterways is additional. So crunch the numbers. 
 

The food and wine in the restaurants similar. Amawaterways also includes a Chef’s Tasting Restaurant. 
 

We have found the service basically the same with both brands. 
 

Is there a reason you have not considered Tauck? They are considered top notch and the pricing reflects that. 
 

If one wants to save some money look for flash sales for the weeks that are not selling as quickly as other weeks. 

Thank you so much. Uniworld seems a little plushier to me and AMA has more of a basic look. I may be wrong .

right now I’m considering the Ada I’ve from Vilshofen to Budapest.

not really looking at a cheaper deal. I was just surprised that they would ask 900 nt pp for the cheapest cabin when that price on Regent would warrant you a nice suite with air travel in business class.

Riverside appeals to me, but I’m not sure how the derived is now that’s being managed by another company.

I’ll look at Tauck as well.

I’m very grateful for all the tips and input.

[Host Jazzbeau]

28 minutes ago, Got2Cruise said:

Next, understand that Uniworld is all inclusive.

Except that Uniworld charges extra for some excursions, while on AMA all excursions are included (and the choice is excellent).

[Got2Cruise]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Except that Uniworld charges extra for some excursions, while on AMA all excursions are included (and the choice is excellent).

That’s not true. Ama had extra excursions when I went— for example the concert in Vienna and Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna. That’s why checking the itinerary is so important. 

[CastleCritic]

52 minutes ago, Got2Cruise said:

That’s not true. Ama had extra excursions when I went— for example the concert in Vienna and Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna. That’s why checking the itinerary is so important. 

I don't know why that exists, of the 5 trips Ive taken thats been the only exception and Im not entirely sure its that way for all the shonbrunn excursions they do.

 

I know of one other, in Egypt when you have to fly there and back.

[Host Jazzbeau]

1 hour ago, CastleCritic said:

I know of one other, in Egypt when you have to fly there and back.

Abu Simbel, which is often an extra-cost option and usually highly recommended.  [Hot-air balloon rides and camel rides at the pyramids are also often extra-cost on Egypt cruises – and thank you very much, not going to do either!]

[gnome12]

13 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Abu Simbel, which is often an extra-cost option and usually highly recommended.  [Hot-air balloon rides and camel rides at the pyramids are also often extra-cost on Egypt cruises – and thank you very much, not going to do either!]

I did a balloon ride in the Masai Mara. I was so nervous before, but the ride itself was INCREDIBLE. I don't know what I was afraid of. It was smooth and the views were amazing. I highly recommend trying it at least once, somewhere.

[Host Jazzbeau]

21 minutes ago, gnome12 said:

I did a balloon ride in the Masai Mara. I was so nervous before, but the ride itself was INCREDIBLE. I don't know what I was afraid of. It was smooth and the views were amazing. I highly recommend trying it at least once, somewhere.

When we were at Château Chambord we saw a flotilla of balloons soaring over the Loire Valley – it was majestic.  But sorry, I don't even trust French engineering [and they invented the hot air balloon!], much less Egyptian or southern African.  I'm happy to watch an IMAX film of a flight, but not to risk my life on a crash landing...