Russian River Cruises

[JML123]

Hi all,

 

My wife and I have been thinking about doing one of the Russian River Cruises, and based on the great guidance from these boards, I have a feeling that no matter which cruise/line we select, we'll have a great time -- it all seems to come down to a matter of the dates/length of trip working into our schedule. Though Amadeus Tolstoy does appear to be a bit more luxurious than the Viking/Intrav/Vantage ships.....so I guess it comes down to money too (haha).

 

Anyway, we are wondering if anyone has any feedback on the general age range makeup of the typical cruise passengers on any of these ships -- we'd be curious to learn if any of these ships trend towards older or towards younger passengers.

 

Thank you.

[WarEagle76]

We used Viking River last August and our in our early 50's. We were amongst a group of the youngest on the cruise. There were also travelers from the UK and Australia. That being said, I think that the "trend" is to cater to those interested in learning about Russian history and culture and not so much to a particular age group. A few on the trip had problems with some of the walking required, but they were taken care of separately and did not slow down the group. We enjoyed interacting with all on board and thoroughly enjoyed the trip.

[Coral]

Hi,

 

I am in my mid-30's and trying Amadeus Tolstoy this summer. I expect to be one of the younger people onboard.

 

I choose Amadeus because the cost was not more for their 12 night cruise compared to Vikings 10 and 11 night cruise. There appeared to be more included with Amadeus compared to Viking but this could all be marketing info and with out sailing either, it was difficult to compare. I know this is silly but one thing that sold me on Amadeus was having a full shower in the bathroom. With Viking - there appears to be a shower wand and a drain near the toilet - more like a partial shower....

 

I did read an article about how Amadeus (and other lines) are trying to cater to younger passengers by upgrading their amenities on their cruises (unfortunately not targeting Russia on this). I did a search and can't find the specific article but here is a different one: http://travel.nytimes.com/2006/03/19/travel/19transriver.html

 

Good luck in your research!

 

Theresa

[WarEagle76]

With Viking - there appears to be a shower wand and a drain near the toilet - more like a partial shower....

 

On Viking Surkov in Russia this was true in the smaller cabins. Not true on Viking ships in China which are only a few years old and very modern. Regarding the shower in the smaller cabins, while at first a little unusual, adjusted quickly and just one more to add to our list of experiences while traveling.:)

[Coral]

On Viking Surkov in Russia this was true in the smaller cabins.

 

Correct. Since the OP is looking at Russian cruises, I felt safe making the statement I did.

 

Heck - I think Princess inside cabin shows are small. I am not sure how I could adjust to a partial shower :)