We celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary aboard the AmaSonata and the whole cruise couldn't have been better! The room was small but well appointed. Breakfast and lunch buffets were excellent and at dinner there were many options off the menu. I had told them prior to the cruise that I had an allergy to cheese, and all the waiters were aware of this and they accommodated me. For our anniversary night, we ate at the elegant Chef's Table, a separate small restaurant apart from the main dining room. It was elegant and they feted us with a cake and song. The off-ship tours were very well arranged. There was something for all ability levels. Whenever we had the option, we took one of the guided bicycle tours offered. This was one of the reasons why we chose AmaWaterways over others. It was a fairly small group of bicyclists, no more than 20 persons. The entire staff went out of their way to make you feel welcome. We especially enjoyed our cruise director Raul. There was entertainment both on and off ship, usually very high quality, especially the classical music concert offered in the evening in Vienna. Read Less

We were so impressed with the quality of service, dining and cabin accommodations on this trip. We decided this was the best way for us to see the best of Europe so we chose Ama for their cuisine and overall service recommendation. We were not disappointed. We started in Budapest, Hungary then sailed through Slovakia, Austria, Germany, and ended in the Netherlands with the final destination Amsterdam. What is so nice about river cruising is you unpack once and just enjoy when all your food, entertainment and hotel goes with you through Europe. We did have a pretty huge issue when we were on this journey. Another barge hit one of the locks and we had to stay longer than anticipated on the river. Then the European Union had a summit meeting in Bratislava and they closed the river for an additional 8 hours. All in all we were delayed 51 hours on our trip. The Ama captain, cruise director and entire staff were incredible in making this horrific delay palatable to us. The true value of a company is when unexpected issues happen and how they treat their customers. We were so happy to be on Ama with this unfortunate issue because they treated us with "world class service". They went over and above to bus us to our destinations and even giving us extra Euro's when we were unable to come back to the ship for lunch. I don't believe any other cruise line would have extended themselves to the level that Ama did. We had a trip of a lifetime even with the unfortunate situation. Our room was a French balcony and regular balcony room on the upper deck. It was so nice to have a lovely room with a bigger than average bathroom. We also liked having in room free wi-fi for e-mail and in room movies. The cuisine on the ship was excellent. I would compare it to the quality of the specialty restaurants on the nicer cruise ships. Everything was prepared to our liking with free flowing wine or beer at lunch and dinner. The nice part about river cruising is the entertainment is about 1 hr to 1 1/2 hours after dinner. It usually gave a local flare to the entertainment and it was quite varied from an acappella group, Hungarian folk dancers and even a rocking duo who sang contemporary songs. The bar stayed open for those individuals that wanted to continue to party after the rest of us went back to our rooms. The excursions were also included in the price of the cruise and they had very active bicycle tours, active walking or slower to regular walking tours. Each tour had a local tour guide that made the history come alive for us. Overall we loved our trip even with all the issues that had to be overcome and we hope to journey again very soon on another Ama waterways cruise. Read Less

Great trip with many stops through Europe. Ship was in wonderful shape, almost new condition. Crew from the Captain on down were fantastic, all were excellent personnel. Made friends with several of them. Food and beverages were first rate with something different most any day. Other passengers seemed to also enjoy their experience. We made several friends on the voyage. Sleeping Cabin was a little tight, however comfortable. Housekeeping seemed to go out of their to maintain everything. During the trip the wife and I Celebrate our 43rd Anniversary. Both the Housekeeping and Dining Crew made it Special Occasion. The main topic of the Vacation was the sightseeing of the Danude River and it's associate water ways. This to include the many stops at cities and landmarks. Excursions at all included plus other at additional charge. The ones we took were really something special in both the viewing and the tour guide's shared knowledge and stories associated with the location site. Note a whole lot of fantastic churches, war artifacts and wine related items. Read Less

The cruise was all we expected it to be and more. All the crew were extremely friendly and helpful. The food was excellent. The scenery was fantastic. The tours were very organized and informative and all the tour guides were superior to most others we have encountered on other trips and you never missed anything because the guide has a microphone and you get a personal receiver with headphones. The two special highlights of the cruise for us were; The first evening's cruise, after a fabulous dinner, was up and down the Danube in the city of Budapest with all the major buildings, bridges and monuments fully lit up. It was a spectacular scene which we will remember forever. Secondly, the day time cruising through the Wachau Valley in Austria was breath taking. Our very favourite memories were produced by the dining staff and the two special people who looked after us, Carmen and Robert. Read Less

We chose this cruise as we had never traveled Europe outside of London and Paris. A river cruise allows one to not change rooms, but change venue everyday. We purchased the packaged tours at every stop and they were professionally run with top notch knowledge, plenty of free time and eating recommendations. We loved the on boat activities as well as just the leisure time. Budapest to Passau, we will be booking another one on the Rhine in the future. Favorite sites stops were Nuremburg trials, city shopping, and Salzburg. We also enjoyed a ballet and musical performance in Vienna with great talent in both dance and voice by the performers. It was also fascinating to just sit up on the deck and enjoy the breeze and see the homes and castles and town squares that passed by us as we made our way up the river to our destination. Read Less

The reason we chose this cruise was everything was included. We stayed 2 nights in Budapest prior to departure. We were lucky to have booked in to the hotel right opposite the wharf where the ship was moored. As we were so close we walked to the ship, halfway along our walk the hotel manager Miguel & a staff member came to greet us & take our bags. That was the start of impeccable service. When we disembarked our tour director booked a taxi for us. The disembarkation was very smooth. The staff were amazing, always happy, willing to help they made us all feel like one big happy family. Our tour director, Richard Grey, kept us all entertained & well organised for all our excursions. The service, organisation, food tours were all perfect!!! There was a range of ages including a honeymoon couple but no children as the cruise isn't suitable for them. We loved it so much we didn't want to leave. The main tip is to make sure you have a pocket to put you door card in or when you are on shore your boarding card. Read Less

I recently traveled with my husband and in-laws on a Scenic Ruby cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam just this past June and the trip exceeded our entire group's expectations. Some of the reviews posted below are absolutely ridiculous, as it seems that some people expect that the company can somehow control the weather as well as river water levels. Everything about our trip was excellent - the website makes it clear that if you have mobility issues, they'll do their best to accommodate you - and they definitely do. Yes, the gangways are narrow, but it's a small cruise ship with limited space, what do you expect? There is even a small elevator on board for passengers requiring wheelchairs. The food is excellent and there are always plenty of options for vegetarians, the excursions are well thought-out and the staff are amazing, particularly our butler Tamas, room manager Gerry, and the bar staff (Irina, Marko and Victor) - the cruise director Adrian was incredibly helpful and did his absolute best to make sure everyone was happy and everything ran smoothly. I was really impressed by the amount of storage space in the rooms, and the design of the balconies were fantastic. Some have noted that there is no fitness center on board - given that the Main is incredibly narrow, there is really no room for a fitness center as on some of the slightly larger Scenic ships. Also, I got plenty of exercise walking around all the cities we visited. Overall, I would absolutely recommend this cruise without hesitation. Read Less

We’ve taken eight or nine ocean cruises but because this would be our first river cruise I spent quite a bit of time researching cruise lines to find what I thought would be our best choice. I looked at six or seven companies and compared prices & inclusions and decided that while Scenic certainly wasn’t the least expensive it looked like it offered the best value. I checked on their ships as well and decided I liked their newer ships better so I targeted the Opel or the Jasper. In the end I kept asking myself will this trip really be worth the money we’re spending? Yes indeed! We spent two days in Budapest before boarding and enjoyed the services of a wonderful private guide. After that kind of pampering I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about sharing space and services with 160 other guests. Again my worries were unfounded. From the time we boarded the ship until we disembarked in Amsterdam, the entire staff went out of their way to pamper us and fulfill any request we had. I can’t say enough about the great people who took such good care of us. The cabin attendant, our butler, the wait staff, the bartenders, everyone was just wonderful. We had a standard balcony cabin on the middle deck. While not spacious it had more than enough space for us. Storage was ample and the bathroom was very modern and spotless. We knew we would enjoy the Sun Lounge balcony but we discovered many little touches that we hadn’t imagined. Our cabin attendant was never underfoot yet she had everything in order every time we returned. Food on board was very good. Breakfast and lunch buffets offered lots of variety and there were always a few different options from the galley if you wanted something extra. I came to look forward to the wonderful variety of salads on the lunch buffet and rarely ordered anything extra from the galley. In the evening there was a selection of appetizers, salads/soups, entrees and desserts to choose from. Of course there was always an assortment of nice wines at lunch and dinner as well. We especially enjoyed our night at Portobello’s. Be sure you don’t miss that. We were ‘regulars’ at the bar in the lounge and it only took a day or two for the staff to know what we were probably going to order. Scenic’s all included policy was greatly appreciated, especially on those beautiful sailing days when we perched on the top deck with a nice glass of wine in hand and a waiter checking on us. It didn’t take long to know that our decision to sail with Scenic was the right choice. The on-board entertainment was another nice surprise. I wasn’t so sure about a few of the entertainers but they proved me wrong. The dancers, the polka band, the sand artist and the string quartet were probably my favorites but all of the performers were very good. There were lots of entertainment options on the TV/Internet set-up in the cabin too but we never had time for any of that other than a quick look at the CNN each morning before breakfast. Having the Internet connection in the cabin made checking e-mail quick and easy. Shore excursions were another highlight. Prior to departure we selected the ‘Hospital in the Rock’ tour in Budapest. In Vienna we visited Schonbrunn Palace and in Cologne, the walking tour. All the other selections were made once on board after the cruise director explained the various options. We loved the big cities but I think the smaller towns and villages were better. Coming from the US we just don’t have the same sense of history that Europe enjoys. Those little medieval towns really spoke to us. Another fun outing was the bike ride between Durnstein and Melk. It’s about an 18 or 19 mile ride but if you’re not sure about your stamina, the electric assist bikes will do most of the work for you. Along the way here were a few stops including one halfway to Melk for a cold beer or an ice cream. We managed to pedal the entire way while many others reported they used the assist much of the time. Looking at the whole trip we felt there was a good mix of time spent on excursions and time spent on board sailing and sight-seeing on the rivers. Everything considered, we felt Scenic provided an excellent experience. The Jasper is a beautiful ship that feels very luxurious and spacious. The staff on board went out of their way at every turn to provide the best service possible and always with a smile. We could find nothing to complain about and every detail was handled to perfection. I feel you can expect the best if you plan a river cruise with Scenic aboard the Jasper. Read Less

I wanted to try a riverboat cruise. I love Europe and had never been to Germany, Austria or Hungary. I wanted to see the cities there, especially Vienna. I wanted a full guided experience. I did not want to have to worry about finding places to eat or to get transportation on our own. I really enjoyed the meals and the convenience of being in one room for the whole week. It was nice to be with a group that was large but not overwhelming. We were well taken care of. I think I would have liked a little more time in the cities, but realize that we had to be moving each day. The scenery was amazing and the towns very charming and different from home. The weather was fine and even though the river was too high for us to arrive by boat in Regensberg and Nuremburg, we got to see these wonderful cities. The many churches and abbeys that we visited were highlights that really put the icing on the cake for me. I have so many special memories now and I think about my trip every day. Read Less

We choose scenic because it was all inclusive, ie. tips, tours, alcoholic beverages. The food, service, staterooms and overall attentiveness was unparalleled. We had a balcony suite and it was perfect. Loved the glass windows that moved up and down. Variety of food was first class. Never boring. Absolutely anything you wanted at any time. I've never had a more pleasant and attentive staff wherever I've traveled. Only slightly negative aspect was that I would have preferred more 'cruise time' instead of some of the tours. All were good and interesting but some took too much time. Of course we had the option of just staying on the boat. All senior staff on boat were very accommodating and open with their time. Variety of menu choices was outstanding. Being invited to the two exclusive restaurants on board was a treat. Cleanliness of facilities and friendliness of staff was outstanding. I would definitely use Scenic again. Read Less

We went on Emerald's 1st cruise down the Danube last year from Budapest to the Black Sea. We enjoyed it all so much that as soon as we got home we booked to do the journey up the Danube and down the Rhine to Amsterdam. It was excellent in all respects. From arrival at Budapest to departing at Amsterdam Schiphol, everything went like clockwork. The staff are amazing - all of them. They are efficient, calm, friendly, helpful - they made both cruises wonderful experiences and we do hope that there will soon be an Emerald cruise including Russia and the Baltics. The meals were all we could have wished for and the restaurant is informal but slick, service is efficient and local specialties are offered at each stage. Shore tours are well organised, local tour guides were in most cases excellent and opportunites were offered for all levels of activity and involvement. The pool is a huge bonus for us, we do not know of another river cruise line offering pool facilities. Our cabin on the top deck was spacious, had a huge picture window with indoor balcony, was well serviced daily and was very comfortable. Entertainment was available including local artistes, folk groups etc and these were all of high standard. We particularly enjoyed the opportunity to meet a local family in a small group (12) and discuss traditions, education, jobs and prices of daily needs with them. We became more travellers than tourists. Read Less

We explored Budapest for a few days before boarding and would highly recommend as it is an amazing City. The ship was always spotlessly clean. The Junior Suite exceeded our expectations. The Dining was superb with varied styles and Menus with the added bonus of Portobello's and the Chef's dining experience. Entertainment, activities and Port and Shore excursions were well thought out and culturally informative and enriching. On board Service was 5 star all the way as promised. It was a cruise for more mature and active passengers which was what we were looking for. We will certainly be doing another Scenic Holiday. Some of the highlights included a Classical evening at the Palace of Liechtenstein and the guided tour of Bratislava was amazing and the side cruise to the Weltenburg Abbey which houses the Oldest Brewery in the World. Following the romantic road to Rothenburg and dinner at the Marksburg Castle for a Medieval Feast was breath taking. Read Less

We had heard wonderful things about Viking. My Aunt wanted to do a river cruise to finish out her bucket list for her 96th birthday so we researched and chose Viking. A family group jumped at the chance to join her for this trip. We chose the Romantic Danube. Had to drive from Cincinnati to Pittsburgh to take advantage of their fare offerings, which were actually very reasonable. We were on Air France (really Delta) and were able to upgrade to comfort plus for $198 round trip. We thought it worth the price. The embarkation was seamless - we were picked up from the airport in a very timely manner, loaded up on a very comfortable big tour bus and taken to the ship where check-in was a breeze. The service of all staff members was impeccable from the room maid Anita, to the bartenders and the dining room wait staff. Special thanks to Sarah and Victor who treated us like family. We mostly went on the included shore excursions which were very interesting with well trained guides. Evening entertainment was provided by the staff and while it was simple we did have fun. The ship layout encourages meeting and socializing with other guests, but you are not forced to if that's not your thing. All six of us pretty much agreed that the only stop we weren't crazy about was our last stop of Nuremberg. Budapest, Vienna, Krems, Passau and Regensburg were all delightful. Unfortunately, the only negative came when it was time to go to the Nuremberg airport. We were dropped off with all our luggage several blocks away from where we were to check in. The guide said she would bring baggage carts for us but after waiting quite a while we dragged our bags as best we could and found her inside chatting with guests. The airport was quite difficult to negotiate - which is not the fault of Viking, but it might be best for them to find a different final city as their final destination. When you have people in their 60s to 90s and a bunch of heavy luggage, it leaves a bad taste to not be able to get any assistance. If I could I would give it about a 4.5 but this doesn't allow that option. We would definitely use Viking again, on a different trip like the Rhine or Elbe or Douro. I would not recommend this cruise for children at all, and think many younger folks - twentysomethings - might find it lacking in social opportunities. The main age group seemed to be late 40's to early 70's with a scattering at either end of that spectrum. Read Less

We picked Uniworld because of their reputation. Talked with many on the river cruise and they told us we made a mistake booking uniworld as our first river cruise because it can only be downhill from here unless we do another Uniworld. Everything was perfect. The food was over the top and not to mention the service. Even those who were not attached to our room would greet us every time they saw us. The tour were the best. We have done many tours over the years and many in Spain on the years trip prior to the river cruise and these tours were the best. Everything is high tech. With a TV in the mirror and the lighting system was top notch. On the tours they had excellent voice box you put around your neck and could hear the tour guide on the tour. The tour guides were all exceptional and spoke excellent English so we could truly understand. The drinks and gratuities were all included. And the drinks were top shelf if you wanted a cocktail. The only two downers were the exercise room as it was small and with 4 people in there it got a little crowded but then these are small boats and I guess you need to expect things like this. Also we booked a full balcony and paid extra for it thinking we would get a larger room. But when talking with others on ship the rooms are no larger and same type of window as the French balcony. Next time I will go that route. I loved the coffee room, where I could get a cup of coffee at anytime and a light breakfast at 6:00am. I am an early riser and this means a lot to me. Also I enjoyed the daily newspaper that was throughout the ship. Went well with my coffee in the morning. I was impressed on well they had everything organized. The tours were perfect times to travel and gave us free time and that was very important to us as we wanted to try some of the local food and beverage as well as do some shopping. They had maps at the front counter every day of the new port and it was very helpful to see where we were going. Can't say enough about this cruise except it will be very difficult to top it. Read Less