Riverside Luxury Cruises

Budapest

Vienna

Europe - All

Europe - River Cruise

Excellent

Riverside Mozart

six stars

The Riverside Cruise along the Danube is not just a five-star experience; it's a true six-star gem. I've never felt so pampered and well-taken care of by a venue and its staff. The level of hospitality here is unparalleled.  The cuisine is nothing short of exceptional.

Our group savored an impressive array of 30 different dishes daily, and not a single one left us disappointed. The Vintage Room is a must-visit culinary treat, where every bite is a delight. The chef was adored by all. The staff is a testament to perfection. 

From the gentlemanly assistant restaurant manager to the smiling butler, every member of the team goes above and beyond to make your experience unforgettable. 

For example, during a game party where we played a murder mystery costume game, the servers surprised us by joining in character costume masks! Their attention to detail and dedication to ensuring a memorable experience are unmatched.  The clever and charming bartender even offered a personal cocktail course for the guests.

The excursions planned by the cruise are so well-curated that the six-star treatment doesn't end when you step off the ship. The concierge anticipates your every need, even mapping out rooftop bars that would best suit our group. Their dedication shone through when they secured a difficult reservation for us, leaving us both impressed and grateful.  

The Mozart ship itself is a stunning vessel with all the modern conveniences you can imagine. From the new top line barbecue sets on deck to the high-end electric toilets, it's all there. The finishings are even more impressive in person, and the ship is kept absolutely immaculate throughout the journey.  

I cannot recommend the Riverside Danube Cruise enough. Our well-traveled group of 10 unanimously agreed that it was our most favorite holiday ever. If you're seeking a luxurious, unforgettable experience, look no further. It's a true six-star adventure.

I chose the Riverside Mozart for the boat itself, knowing it had been recently renovated by Crystal before it changed hands. I knew nothing about the new Riverside line and took a leap, hoping that the food and service would equal the boat. I can confidently say that I was not disappointed. I cannot find one complaint with any of my experiences on the boat, from the room to the public spaces to the staff, food, drinks and excursions. Everything was top of the line. 

The double wide Mozart is stunning. It has very high end finishes and fabrics, spacious public spaces, and four lovely dining venues (Waterside main dining, a bistro, a breezy venue at the back of the boat for specialty nights like an Asian inspired menu, and the top deck grille). There is a gorgeous spa with a resistance lap pool, and Jacuzzi. The top deck has table seating and cushioned bench and chaise lounge seating alongside a pop-up bar. The beautiful and quiet state rooms have large bathrooms and pillowy bedding (more description below).

The staff could not have been nicer or more helpful, and they made everyone on board feel special. They were great to my parents, who are in the 80/90 range (most cruisers were 30s to 70s) being quick to offer assistance but without hovering. They put on an excellent galley tour in mixology class. They were honest when we asked their opinions, remembered our names and preferences, and had definitely been trained that the Riverside experience is about service.

The chef is amazing. Perfectly portioned, gorgeous plating and creative flare describe the mouth watering dinners. Apart from the extravagant Asian night, and the Tapas night, there were typically four entrée choices and several starter and dessert options. We did not have a bad meal. Breakfast was a buffet with an egg station for omelettes, eggs Benedict, etc. Lunch varied between buffet and seated options, depending on the dining venue and time between excursions, and two grilled lunches up top as we were sailing. So fun! There was also a selection of pretty little light bites and ice creams available at the bistro between meals. And of course champagne on embarkation and as we cruised into Budapest. 

We took two 1/2 day excursions most days. And we took the full day, absolutely worthwhile excursion to fairytale Cesky Krumlov. Tours were informative and generally entertaining and well paced. Only one tour seemed rushed. The Audiovox boxes worked well and allowed people to stray off just a bit and still hear. The guides were wonderful at finding ways to get my parents through sites with lifts for the fewest stairs. Small groups on tour were appreciated, never more than 15. Riverside arranged for an after hours tour at the Belvedere, with two opera singers and a small orchestra, which was truly beautiful. We were treated to a special mini show at the Budapest Opera House and a night of opera on the boat. Otherwise, the evenings typically a piano player after dinner. He was excellent. 

I can’t say enough good things about the cruise. I am so glad that we decided to experiment with this new line. I am writing this review in hopes that the word spreads quickly because there were only 40 guests on board for a ship that should have 160. And while that was wonderful for us, I imagine they need to increase their numbers to remain viable in the long term. 

The only negatives that I have to offer were pre-cruise. The pricing tiers were a bit unusual for a luxury line. If you like to take excursions, I would suggest to include that upfront. I’m still not sure if the full board alcohol is worth the price or not as the “non-premium” selections were very good. The website also needs improvement for easier navigation. But these are so minor compared to the experience on board. Book now!

Over the top amazing

Fanning Island

Although Riverside Luxury cruises is rather new, having launched at the end of March of 2023, most of the crew are not new to the game as they were employed on the same fleet by the predecessor, Crystal River Cruises.  From the moment we boarded and were received with friendly staff and champagne until the moment we disembarked, we were absolutely spoiled with attention and service.  The ship and cabins are luxuriously appointed with marble and high end furniture and the double-wide build for this river ship made for some beautiful and tastefully decorated spaces.  

The food was absolutely superb and the dinners could be something from a Michelin Star rated restaurant.  A couple of times during the week, they have a barbecue on the top deck with 'Green Egg' grills and the sumptuous food being served was enjoyed with incredible views in that open air setting.  

The all inclusive package includes excursions at every port and these were not only extremely well organized but also fun and educational.  

Every cabin is assigned a butler and your in-suite mini bar is replenished twice a day.  The staff, it seemed, were prepared to take care of almost anything requested.  On our last night, we went to the Opera in Vienna and when the staff learned that we would miss the onboard dinner, they made arrangements to serve us the the dinner in our cabin when we returned.  

Although this cruise was "all inclusive" including gratuities, we could not leave the ship without acknowledging the above and beyond efforts of a number of the cruise staff.  

Whether you have always wanted to try a river cruise or you are a veteran of river cruising, I am sure you will be impressed with the entire experience on Riverside Luxury Cruises and I cannot recommend them highly enough.  We will definitely cruise with them again.

Absolute Luxury Firing on all Cylinders

This was our first river cruise.  Our average age is 55.  Cruising is not something we do often, having been on three big boats with our kids when they were young and several smaller luxury sea cruises over the years.  We do travel Europe often and decided to try out a river cruise, now I think we might be spoiled!  

First thing you will notice as you walk towards and board the Mozart is that the ship is much larger than all those around her.  Infact the ship is double the width of other river ships, which gives it the advantage of beautiful wide-open spaces.  Refined elegance would be the aesthetics of the interior, colors being muted greys and blues with pops of emerald green and royal blue. 

We were welcomed with champagne and shown to our cabin by our butler.  The cabin interior reflects the same color palette in relaxing greys with navy accents.  There is a pull-out fridge with water, sodas, juice, beer and wine that is replenished regularly and a Nespresso machine.  Plenty of storage space in the closets with lots of hangers, robes, slippers, shoehorn, shoe brush and safe. The bathroom is done in a light grey stone.  Full size shampoo, conditioner and body wash can be found on shelves in the shower and there is extra storage on those shelves for personal products. The lower shelf is great foot placement for leg shaving.  The sink area has a drawer, full size hand soap and small shelf area.  Towels are found on the heated towel holder, next to it is a wall mounted hairdryer.  The Toto toilet will open on its own when it senses movement and there are a couple of shelves above it with full size body lotion and additional storage space.  

Once settled in we went exploring.  Off one side of the reception area there is a den with a couple large couches and chairs.  On the other side is a sitting area with a large self-serve coffee/expresso machine along with teas.   Going up the stairs from reception there is a larger lounge area with has a flameless fireplace.  Next floor up is the sun deck and due to the extra width of the ship the sun deck is huge.  Plenty of loungers, chairs, bean bags and couch areas for seating.  One really neat thing on the sun deck is the herb gardens where many of the herbs for cooking and making cocktails are grown.  

The ship also has a spa (we didn't use it but heard wonderful things about it from others).  There is a pool with a lap setting, hot tub, relaxing loungers, saunas and steam rooms along with a gym.

Dining on the ship was amazing, plentiful and of different varieties.  It's obvious that the staff has been well-trained in traditional service etiquette.  Waterside is the main dining venue which serves breakfast and dinner.  The breakfast buffet is huge along with an egg station, if that's not enough there is still a menu to choose from.  Dinner choices change daily and reflect the location of the ship with regional items and wines to match.  Blue is in the back of the ship with a lunch menu that changes daily.  We also had dinner there one evening that was Asian inspired.  The Bistro is a great spot in the middle of the ship.  It serves breakfast after the main breakfast is over with a smaller buffet and the regular breakfast menu that can be ordered from.  It is a full-service coffee and ice cream cafe and during the day keeps a buffet of sweet and savory items.  There was also an evening that a tapas menu was served.  Sun deck BBQ was lots of fun.  There are two large Green Egg grills where steaks, fish, veggies, large prawns and more were grilled.  My understanding is that the BBQ is seasonal given the weather.  And if still hungry there is room service.  We didn't do room service, but the menu looked nice.   The Vitage Room looked like something we would do if we were with a larger group.  Given how wonderful the food was at the other venues I would imagine dinner there would be over the top.  

Lounges and bars can be found on the sun deck and upper level.  The sun deck has a bar that can be lowered when going under low bridges (which is pretty cool to watch).  Good German beer on tap and an assortment of cocktails can be ordered there.  One level down from the sun deck there is a cigar room with specialty spirits.  Cove bar is the main spot for an artisan cocktail.  Mixology is taken seriously onboard and if you are willing to try new cocktails something special will be whipped up for you.  There are two pianos onboard one located in the Cove bar area and the other in in the main lounge Palm court.

Excursions were varied from an easy walk to hiking and biking with some including local tastings.  We did a few of them and enjoyed them along with doing our own thing.  One thing we really enjoyed using were the e-bikes.  Biking along the river to find the next village and seeing the countryside was a highlight. There were also some interesting experiences such as a private evening in the modern art museum in Linz and an evening private concert at Belvedere palace in Vienna.  Galley tours, strudel class and a mixology class were also offered.  Mixology being our favorite with new recipes to bring home. 

The best part of the Mozart?  The crew.  The crew is hands down the most amazing group of people we have ever met in our travels.  As we got to know many of them, we realized how many had been on the ship for years under previous ownerships.  The captain has been with the ship for 20 years!  As much as I'd love to name everyone we came to know, I can't because there were people that took care of us that we never got to officially meet. No matter whom you saw or where you ran into them on or off the ship there was a good morning, good evening, etc.   It was because of this wonderful crew that we canceled our post cruise plans and extended our cruise for an additional week.  It's because of the most wonderful crew that we are already trying to figure out when we can cruise on the Mozart again.  

The only thing that could be improved on is the Wi-Fi.  The Wi-Fi was a bit spotty in some areas of the ship.

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