I have always wanted to see the tulip fields of Holland in bloom so for our 40th anniversary we chose this cruise. It was even better that we had hoped. We loved the cabin and waking up each morning watching the sites go by even before we got out of bed! It was also nice having a choice if included excursions at each port. Everything was so well organized and the port talks during cocktail hour each evening were very helpful to get us prepared for our adventures the next day. We were amazed at how quickly and efficiently the meals were served to so many in the dining room. The service in every area of the ship was phenomenal as well because it was clear that each member of the staff really enjoyed their job and bent over backwards to make our journey exceptional. We will be back for more Avalon cruises in the future I am sure. Read Less

I chose this cruise because it was my first cruise ever and was offered on a singles 50+ website. It was a small river ship, and as I was born in Germany (U.S. Army), it as well as Switzerland was at the top of my bucket list. It felt manageable to me, traveling solo as a deaf person. The ship’s crew were wonderful and unforgettable! Madalin in the dining room was my favorite waiter, always taking care of me and making sure I ordered the best meal on the menu. He also never forgot that I hate red wine and always poured the white without me asking. My cabin steward was wonderful, and so were ALL of the crew members! They were all in a line to greet us as we arrived, and there were many hugs upon departure. The food was fantastic, but for some reason, other passengers didn’t agree; they were used to getting tons of food at the buffets any time they wanted on the big ships. With constant port stops, there was no time to be bored. My only regret is that it was winter, so we couldn’t open our sliding glass door and turn out cabin into a balcony. Read Less

This cruise was the best I have ever taken. The staff called you by name and was there for all your needs, The food and wine were gourmet and the waiters were awesome. Our room was big and the bathrooms were big. The woman who took care of our stateroom was great. The entertainment was small and cozy but the artists were very professional. We had a French singer with a guitar player one night and another night were 2 concert violinist with pianio. On the other nights we had a piano player and we would request songs. In the lounge you could go and get a cappuccino and pastry. We were late for our first excursion to the Black Forrest but they brought us back Black Forest cake from it, The excursions with the tour guides were small with electronic ear pieces so we did not miss any thing they said. We traveled in December and hit all of the Christmas markets. I would do another cruise with Avalon again. Read Less

Honestly, I chose this cruise because of the Viking commercials. I knew the Rhine River cruise appealed to me but when it came down to choosing the cruise line I selected Avalon because of their panorama suites and their ships are newer. I have no regrets in going with Avalon. We flew in to Zurich a day ahead of schedule so that we would have some time to see a bit of Zurich. We were brave and took the tram to the Aldstadt (Old Town). The next day we joined fellow travelers for the bus trip to Basel for embarkation. When we arrived at the ship our panorama suite was ready and our bags already in the room. The cabin was bigger than we anticipated and of course the panorama window was marvelous. The crew was most professional and friendly and went out of their way to help in any way that they could. We had some glitches on the way due to the low levels of the Rhine but they could not have been handled any better. We had to change ships from the Tranquility II to the Imagery II at one point due to the low water levels. We packed our bags and set them outside of our rooms on the morning of ship change and the crew seamlessly handled everything. When we got to the new ship (Imagery II) we were in the same suite that we were in on the Tranquility II. We even had some excitement - due to the low water levels of the Rhine an unexploded American bomb from WWII was found in the river. It had to be detonated before the ships could resume travel on the river. It did not keep us from reaching our destination on time. Our cruise director, Tony, was amazing! He was very flexible with all the challenges that nature and WWII threw at him and we never felt like we missed out on anything. The food throughout the cruise was excellent and the selections at every meal were plentiful. We enjoyed the local menus that the chef prepared and the local wines. Each night a pianist played in the lounge but we were too tired to stay up much past dinner. The excursions were enjoyable although some were a bit touristy. We did not feel that the departure times for the excursions were unreasonably early. The best part of the cruise was getting to meet so many wonderful fellow travelers. If you are looking to experience what you might see in a Viking Commercial (an aerial view of a glistening river with fairytale castles on each shore as you glide past) then you might be disappointed. But this was a wonderful experience and I would recommend it. Read Less

We chose Avalon because of the good recommendations from friends. We had never been on a river cruise, but had been on several Caribbean cruises. We chose this one because our German friends joined us for the trip and after we spent another week with them in Germany. Although we had been to some of the cities on the itinerary, we didn't mind going again. The guides for the tours were all excellent, well prepared, and spoke good English. The food on board was the best we have ever had. They served local cuisine when possible. The service was excellent also. Our only complaint was the day we spent at the Black Forest and then to Colmar. Doing both tours was too much in one day. The bus ride to the Black Forest open air museum was 1 1/2 hours one way with only 1 hour at the sight. We could have spent double that or more. I would recommend this kind of trip with the small ship, intimate atmosphere, and relaxing sailing. (No worries about wind and waves!) Read Less

This was our first river cruise. It was great! We had been to European cities several times in the past, always on our own (driving or taking trains, etc.) with few pre-planned tours, so we were a little anxious about a totally pre-planned, boat-based itinerary. We arrived 2 full days early to enjoy Amsterdam before cruise departure, and we recommend this to everyone, if just to adjust to the time zone. A single day in such a city is not enough. But even though before we boarded in Amsterdam we had to swap boats from the Tranquility II to the virtually identical Imagery II (due to low water on the river preventing our assigned craft to meet us in Amsterdam), this all turned out great. We pre-chose their smallest cabin, which though cozy was adequate in size and amenities for us with excellent storage and bathroom space. Since we were rarely in the room except at night to sleep, we did not need the luxury of the panorama windows of the upper decks at perhaps double the price. I'm sure they are a bonus for elbow room and amenities, but if we wanted a daytime or evening view of our passage, especially when going through one of the many locks, we just went up to the top deck or one of the two lounges with great views, which were always open. Our boat (the Imagery II) was like new (2 years old, I believe), pristine and beautifully maintained. Every crew member—apparently all from Eastern Europe with excellent English speaking skills—was clearly proud of their work and delightfully friendly, regardless of position and duties (and I mean from the Captain to the waitstaff and our room attendant—all really quite impressive). Dining on board was not a religious experience for us, but we must say every meal was an overall excellent experience with very, very good food and superb, personable service. Our only negative dining critique was for the fish courses, which regardless of declared type of fish, seemed to be prepared in the same way and thus had similar taste and were of average/good restaurant quality. All other dining options we chose, which varied delightfully every day including the wine selections, were really very fine to excellent quality. Our talented resident keyboard artist in the main lounge provided a soothing and professional variety of tunes, clearly targeted to our mostly "senior" age group, but that was really nice for easy listening. We had a couple evenings with added in-port guest artists that were wonderful, too. The "La Strada" trio was particularly delightful. This itinerary is packed with daily excursion options (some included, some for extra fees), and we took advantage of nearly all of them. Perhaps that was too many for us, as we never seemed to have day or afternoon to just chill out and read a book. Nevertheless, as we are easily mobile, no excursions were stressful and the logistics were smoothly arranged by the Tour Director. The local tour guides were always excellent and made the descriptions personal and entertaining. (Those passengers who were less mobile always had an option for shorter excursions, too.) We did realize that you can only get a "taste" of the place on a quick guided tour, and a couple times we abandoned the guide after a while to run off on our own for a bit and meet them later to get back to the boat. This was alway an option on the walking tours. But now we have some more cities for which we know a return visit at length is needed, and a couple not. After the cruise ended, we also added a couple days on our own in Switzerland. That was fun, too. Overall: Loved Avalon; their planning, the personnel, service, value and the boat. It was easy to meet other passengers daily and generate some new friends. When we disembarked, one could not help but notice that along with all the other staff and crew members helping unload the luggage to the waiting buses, the Captain was pitching in and carrying some luggage too! That's the kind of dedication to service that reflects so well on Avalon and perhaps the Imagery II boat crew in particular. We think we'll do another Avalon voyage soon, but a longer one to ensure we have some more time to just relax. Read Less

The excursion guides were excellent and provided a huge amount of historical information and fun tidbits about the places visited. Every guide provided explicit information for where to meet after we were on our own for free time. I would have liked a little more free time in each city in order to take in the sights and do a little more shopping. The other thing I will say is that it would be nice to have a larger gift shop on the ship. I think that if the ship promoted their gift shop and stocked it with some local nonperishable food products and local souvenir gifts it would be a nice amenity. Also, another suggestion would be for each guest to have the ability to fill out a card with their names and address to share with people they meet on the ship. Of course this would be voluntary - but we met some wonderful people and we kept saying to each other that we would keep in touch and we both forgot to exchange contact information. Read Less

We were traveling with 3 adult children (in their 20's) and selected Avalon because of the general itinerary and the fact there was not a single supplement add-on for single rooms (which each of our kids had). On this itinerary, there were 3 nights where we could be "in town" to explore for dinner and bars (Amsterdam, Cologne and Rudesheim)- which as great. The shore excursions were good - though I wish the walking tours were 45 minutes (instead of 1+ hours) and we that were given more free time. We would often peel off from the walking tour so that we could have more free time on our own. (You really don't feel like you have been someplace until you have wandered on your own - and 0-45 minutes of free time just is not enough). We did a few of the add-on excursions - biking, Maginot Line, Alsace Wine Tour, Colmar. We also did the add-on of Luzern, Zurich and Como - which was a wonderful way to enhance this trip. Monograms got us to the locations, then lots of free time to spend as we please. Our kids were certainly a curiosity on this trip (there was 1 couple in their 40's, then everyone was 60+) but they loved the flow of wine and beer at all meals, the underutilized fitness room, snoozing and reading on the sky deck, and all the cities and towns they got to see. This trip offered a wonderful, stress-free and fun-filled way to spend time as a family. Read Less

My husband chose the Romantic Rhine voyage. I had traveled to many of the stops efire but welcomed the chance to return. We actually have zero complaints about ay part of the trip from pick up at Amsterdam to farewell in Zurich. Well organized, efficient, super pleasant. And this is after a freak accident where a deck chair blew into my deck chair, bruising my left foot! Even that can’t diminish how pleased we were with the cruise, the crew( wow to the crew!), the tour guides! the bus drivers and our cruise director, Nico. One caveat or suggestion, though. We flew Icelandic Air booked thru the cruise site. Most uncomfortable flight both coming and returning. The airport in Iceland is poorly designed, too small and too crowded. I mean hardly any seats in the airport! I strongly suggest offering people a choice of fares. We would gladly have paid more for a trip that included food and more space. Read Less

We chose this particular cruise because it fit in with our travel time to Europe. We were in Basel, Switzerland for business and ended our trip with the river cruise. We had always wanted to try a river cruise, because I am prone to sea-sickness and never wanted to take an ocean cruise. We thought river cruising would be a great way to see this area of Europe and it was. We thoroughly enjoyed our time on the Avalon Tranquility II. From the time we boarded the ship, we had a wonderful time. Our stateroom was lovely - with plenty of room for unpacking our clothes and storing our luggage. What a great idea to have under-bed storage room for suitcases! The bathroom had a roomy shower, deluxe granite countertops and lovely toiletries. Our room and bathroom were cleaned a couple of times a day! The housekeeping staff was courteous and helpful. The meals were outstanding. We enjoyed the bountiful buffets for breakfast and lunch. Every night dinner was an occasion with wonderful choices for each course. The service was great. We enjoyed meeting and visiting with other passengers. It was nice to have the freedom to sit where and with whom we wanted. We enjoyed the tours at the various ports. The guides were all entertaining and knowledgeable. It was nice to be so close to the city centers in many of the ports. We appreciated the bikes being available for a short bike ride along the Rhine which has many bike paths along the shore. The daily "port talks" with the Tour Director, Nico, were a highlight of the afternoon and a great lead-in to dinner. His guided tour of the Rhine River Gorge and description of all the castles was enhanced by the lovely weather we had that day. It was sad to leave our beautiful floating home when we disembarked in Amsterdam. We were very pleased with our Avalon cruise and look forward to taking another some day. Read Less

We started our trip in Zurich, Switzerland and had the day we arrived and part of the next day to explore. We opted to visit Mt. Pilatus on our own which was a great adventure of taking trains, buses, and boats. The views were incredible and really worth seeing. We had a little time to explore Zurich before we left but probably would have enjoyed more. Our embarkation the next day was very smooth, our bus from the hotel in Zurich to the port in Basel was brand new and very comfortable. No time was wasted in leaving the port, as we were the last group to arrive, the ship embarked within about 10 minutes. Our room was fantastic, with a very comfortable bed, great views out of the sliding glass window/wall. The bathroom was larger than I expected and had all the amenities. I could have spent more time than I did in the room but there were too many things to do and see. The food on board was fantastic with many options for me ( gluten and dairy free) and my husband (gluten free). The wait staff and/or chef took the time to go over the menu every night and were glad to make any changes needed. Breakfast always had a lot of great choices, especially the fresh honeycomb and house made kefir. We never had a bad meal! Evenings on the ship were very pleasant, with most people winding down from a busy day of touring. There was always a piano player and one evening we had a trio of musicians from Belgium who were amazing. Most of the time we went up on the sky deck with some drinks and enjoyed the night breeze before bed. The outside spaces were never crowded at all. We had one afternoon where the ship was sailing to another port and spent it on the sky deck with maybe six other people. Every tour we went on was informative, the groups were very small and the headphones that allowed us to hear the tour leader worked great. I noticed that the Avalon groups were much smaller than the other cruise lines there. We saw some small villages and cottages along the canals in Amsterdam and grapes waiting to be harvested in Germany on our guided bike rides. We even took bikes out on our own in Strasbourg, France, got lost, and found a great restaurant. All of the included guided tours were informative and entertaining although I have to admit we skipped one to have a Rudesheim coffee instead! Because the Rhine had gotten so low, midway through the trip we had to make a switch to Avalon's ship coming from the other direction. We were all extremely happy that we didn't have to end the cruise early. The switch was seamless, and were in the same room from one ship to the other. The staff on both ships were amazingly efficient, friendly and made every effort to make sure no one was inconvenienced. Having never been on any kind of cruise before I was very pleasantly surprised at how spacious the ship was and how there was always room in the lounges and outdoor areas. Disembarkation was easily handled with an included transfer to the airport. We arrived in plenty of time for our flight. We loved this trip so much we are planning another river cruise on the Danube in May! Read Less

I'm a travel agent who's been on 30 ocean cruises and this is my first river cruise. I decided to give Avalon a try so I'm able to share my experience with my clients and my experience was wonderful. We flew from Atlanta to Zurich and were met at the airport for our transfer to Lucerne. It was wonderful being met by our driver at luggage claim and escorted to his car. We included a two night pre-cruise land package in Lucerne where we met our Cruise Director Akos as well as the other 13 passengers who arrived two nights early at our hotel. Our time in Lucerne included walking tours and a cruise around Lake Lucerne. I'm so glad we did this pre-cruise addition and I highly recommend it. Our transfer to Basel included a stop at Mount Pilatus, which was incredible, as well as the Lion sculpture. By the time we arrived in Basel, we were ready to embark the Tranquility II and the check-in process was incredible. There were only 107 passengers on this sailing with 38 crew. There was no wait to check-in. We were immediately escorted to our cabin, #322. The cabin is quite cozy compared to ocean cruise cabins but the views were amazing. I love that our bed faced the full wall of glass. We didn't keep the sliding glass wall open because there were too many bugs flying around outside and the weather was extremely hot. It got up to 100 degrees in Amsterdam. That's hot! Our excursions were wonderful. We were divided into four groups according to our chosen excursion and were given our own headphones as well as a receiver to hear our tour guide. It's great not having to try to hear a shouting tour guide. We participated every day in the included morning excursions after the buffet breakfast but were often too tired to attend the afternoon excursions. The morning excursion usually ended by the time our lunch buffet was ready to begin. We were able to sit wherever we chose in the dining room but we befriended 4 other couples and usually sat as a group. The waitstaff were very accommodated and would remember our likes and dislikes. I liked that. I especially liked the briefings we had for tomorrow's schedule. It was great knowing in advance what to expect for tomorrow before it was dinner time tonight. We didn't partake much of the included beverages because we didn't like most of the wine or beer that was being offered but that didn't necessarily mean it wasn't good, It just wasn't what we like. The food was good but the bread was great. I usually enjoyed too much bread and appetizers so I skipped dessert. I enjoyed the food more than my husband. He's happy with a steak and baked potato whereas I like to try new foods. No matter what was on the dinner menu, they always had the steak, chicken, fish or vegetarian alternatives. We also enjoyed the coffee and cookies offered in the rear lounge during the day just in case we might get hungry. We didn't need the cookies but we're glad they were there for us to enjoy. The entertainment was nice but there were times when we really missed the casino and the big shows you get on the bigger ships. Disembarkation went just as well as embarkation. It's really nice having such a small group of passengers during this procedure. I would highly recommend Avalon to my clients and without a doubt, I'll be back on another Avalon river cruise in the next year or two. This was by far our most expensive cruise experience in 31 cruises and I'm looking forward to sailing with Avalon again. Yes, it was well worth the high cost. Read Less

We explored Amsterdam for two days before embarking on our cruise. The check in process was seamless on the Avalon Tranquility II. Our ship was put into service in 2015, so fairly new. It was very clean and comfortable. The Crew was very nice and the kitchen was able to handle my restrictive diet with no problems. Our Cruise Director, Mauro, was amazing and we had a great time on all of the shore excursions. We loved learning about the history in each City we toured and were amazed at all of the restrictions involved with Wine growing / making in France. We enjoyed Happy Hour on the ship every evening and partook in some of the onboard Entertainment. We had a wonderful time. Not as relaxing as our usual vacations, due to all the excursion. Yet we wanted to see as much of the Countryside as possible. Can't wait to take our next river cruise! Read Less

My friend and I chose this cruise because of the ports visited as we traveled north on the Rhein river. We loved the small size of the boat and number of passengers which allowed us to get to know members of the crew and guests. Of all the many excursions, there was only one that we wished we had skipped (the Black Forest trip, aside from the cuckoo clock stop, was a bit disappointing). We loved all of the other excursions and felt they were well organized and interesting. We also loved the optional excursion to Mt. Pilatus prior to embarkation. The cabin itself was very spacious compared to other boats and ships we’d been on. And the space in the bathroom was great! Service on board was excellent as was the food. We especially appreciated seeing local cuisine offered in the various ports. We would definitely go on an Avalon tour again! Read Less

the quality of the rooms, service, and food on board completely shattered the preconception i had of such way of travelling before i joined our rhine river cruise with avalon waterways. pleasantly surprised all the way. i really enjoyed the service provided by the staff who is most helpful, attentive and careful to our needs. the stops were well balanced and allowed to visit a great diversity of places to understand and experience the culture along the river from basel to amsterdam. the guides at each stops were enteraintaing and knowledgeable which made for a pleasant introduction of each town. however, if i returno n board, i will not join such guided tours and will hope that avalon can provide more tips about each destinations (perhaps in the form of a detailed map with points of interest) so that i can go and wander around bymyself without the fear of "missing out". a wonderful way to travel europe without the hassles of driving or airport management. the only draw back was the fact that ships sometimes dock alongside each other completely removing the view and privacy of the room. even so, an absolutely wonderful experience to be repeated as soon as possible. well done! Read Less

The Avalon Tranquillity !! is a handsome, comfortable ship. Cabins were roomy and bright, with sliding doors that open wide for terrific views of the passing countryside. The number of passengers was small enough to allow us to get to know each other, and the staff to passenger ratio ensured that we were all well-served. Dining on the Tranquillity II was always a pleasure. We especially enjoyed the daily chilled soup at lunch as well as the selection of breads, cheeses, and wine. Breakfast from the buffet was hot and tasty and varied each day. Dinners were elegant and delicious. Service was quiet and efficient, provided by friendly, smiling servers. The daily excursions were always interesting. Our cruise director, Monica, was very organized and efficient. We did a great deal of walking, getting to know the cities and small towns we visited with our local guides. We especially enjoyed the optional excursion to Colmar, France, one of the loveliest towns in Europe, and the trip to Zaanser Schans in Amsterdam.. My only criticism would be that sometimes there was too much to see in the allotted time. We had very little time to tour the open air museum in the Black Forest. One of our favorite days was the day we cruised by the castles in Germany while relaxing on the sun deck of our ship. Entertainment on-board was low-key and interesting. We enjoyed the musical groups and especially the Black Forest woodcarver who demonstrated how he carves cuckoo clocks. All in all, we loved our cruise with Avalon, and we hope to sail with them again soon. Read Less

My wife and I booked this cruise to celebrate our 35th Wedding Anniversary. We were met at the airport and taken to a nearby hotel where we met fellow passengers before our first excursion. Each excursion was well thought out and we were led by knowledgeable personable tour guides. On-Board we were treated incredibly well by the entire crew from the porters to the Captain. We are both Gluten Free and the Head of the Wait Staff went out of his way to attend to us. We were quite surprised to be given gluten free breads and croissants and other treats and we did not feel like we were being singled out because of our food allergies. Because of the size of the ship it was easy to mingle and meet other passengers. The cruise director Monica was exceptional. She had the days planned out perfectly with excursions and downtime. Our favourite part of the cruise was the day we remained on-board and sat up on deck and sailed thorough the Rhine River Gorge with Monica narrating the history of the castles. To conclude, we very much appreciated the fact that Avalon took care of all the details including the excursions, meals and arrival and departure to the airport. Read Less

Reason we choose Avalon was the size and arrangements of the staterooms. The number of guests allowed for personal attention from the staff. The itinerary looked amazing and was! We could participate as we choose or relax on board. Our cruise director Chistina was eager to assist us with alternative plans for the afternoon such as taking a cab into town and making sure we were knowledgeable in how to make our way back safely. Dining at all meals excellent! Freeform seating at dinner helped us to meet many of the other guests, many were on their second or third Cruise with Avalon. We learned so much from them about cruising, destinations, and their home towns. Will sadly miss so many of the people, but never forget them. Accommodations were very comfortable and the staff was wonderful!!! We will be looking forward to booking our next cruise with Avalon Cruises. We would also recommend a precruise stay at the Radisson Blu, and precruise excursion to Lucerne and Mt. Pilatus. Read Less

Great price, great ship reviews, great location to sail for first riverboat cruise. Excellent care by staff, great food, very clean. The excursions were fun and informative. We were very busy each day. Would have enjoyed more corporate activity at night such as dancing, trivia games, karaoke. We are looking forward to traveling with Avalon again. I think it is important to select one of the newer ships based on a conversation with a couple who made the same trip we did the same week on another ship. Their experience was not as positive as ours. Some of our excursions were a little too "touristy" and expensive. I would have preferred a little more free time along with suggestions of things to see. We sometimes felt rushed. Our favorite excursions were Mt Pilates in Zurich and Heidelberg. Also the wine tasting excursion in Alsace. We really liked the canal boat tour in Amsterdam but not much else there. The windmill excursion was very touristy and expensive. However I would definitely recommend this cruise no matter what! Read Less

We chose Avalon for reputation and destinations We liked the fact that we had the option of going on our own at different stops A few standouts were Pesca fis retaurant in Amsterdam and papa Joe’s jazz club. Plan on hopefully another Avalon cruise in the future. Crew and food were exceptional, A few of the excursions were a disappointment - the mechanical music museum and the woman in the museum were terrible. She was mechanical and unappealing. The building actually smelled like musty mold. The wine trip in Alsace was a great disappointment. They only had a few wines to taste (which weren’t very good) and even if we had liked them they didn’t ship. And this was an additional excursion that we paid for. These incidents are reported for your future planning but fortunately and did not affect overall experience of your cruise The coach drivers were all terrific. PS loved the canal boat trips and loved Colmar. But as beautiful as it is was too crowded and might be less so first thing in the mornin. Read Less

We chose Avalon on the advice of our travel agent as she had previous travel with them. We were on the Tranquility II from Amsterdam to Basel. The ship itself was in excellent shape. We had 118 guests with a staff of about 40. All the staff were friendly knowledgeable and and made each of our days enjoyable. The food was varied and we prepared and we were so impressed by their attention to some dietary needs of passengers on the ship. We loved our cabin and our wall of windows. The captain was kind enough to show us his bridge and explain some of the workings of the ship, especially as we went through locks. The on board entertainment , both music and the presentation from the Herr family about the Cuckoo clocks. The organization of the shore excursions was excellent and the tour guides some of the best we have ever had. We traveled as 2 couples. They loved it as well. We would definitely use Avalon again. Read Less

I always wanted to do a Europe river cruise and I’m so happy we used Avalon. The whole experience was outstanding. From the moment we stepped onto the ship we were treated royally. The staff was very professional and friendly. Our cruise director was always available for questions. I loved that every evening before dinner, we all met in the lounge for drinks and an informational talk from the director on what to expect the next day, reminding us what tours were available and what to expect in the next country or region. The rooms were beautiful and spacious. The floor to ceiling windows/door let you see the breathtaking European countryside as we cruised the beautiful Rhine River. Every tour was exceptional as were the guides. Each excursion would have a knowledgeable tour guide who came from that region and explained so much of the region’s history. Oh yeah, the food was was in abundance and delicious! All the food, wine and beer was from the region we were visiting. The wine and beer was flowing throughout lunch and dinner. We had a phenomenal experience and can’t wait for the next Avalon Cruise! Read Less

We looked at Viking and Avalon. The reviews for Avalon were great and our travel agent gave it a great review. We had a wonderful time. Everything went great. We did have disembark at some ports through other ships but it went smoothly. The food was delish the menus had great selections every evening, and the breakfast and lunch buffets were always full of great selections. We did love the staff the waiters and waitresses and bartenders all were excellent. You couldn't have asked for better service, by the end of our trip we knew we would miss there happy smiles and wonderful attentive service. The cabins were beautiful and always made up and straightened up throughout the day. The Panoramic views from our rooms were spectacular. And not to forget the wonderful excursions. Everyday was filled with interesting venues. All our guides were fantastic. They were locals usually and had personal knowledge of the area. The young woman that coordinated all the excursions was wonderfully helpful with everything. And the welcome desk personnel we also a great help. We had so much fun! It was truly an amazing vacation! Read Less

Everything about our week on Ms. Tranquility ll was Amazing. The ship was incredible, clean, comfortable A++++. It felt like a hotel room, with a wonderful view of the landscape as we sailed along. We stayed in Suite 307 which was delightful. The staff made our experience the best ever, always smiling and willing to make ourstay feel like home. The cruise director did a wonderful job, keeping everyone informed and happy. He cared for everyone and made it a point to meet everyone's needs. The excursions were well planned out and organized. The city tours in Germany were very informative with kowledgeable guides that were local people that had a love for their homeland. The food was delightful, always fresh and so very tasty. The dinner menu changed dailywith a lot of variety. The chef did an amazing job! We made some new friends and enjoyed sharing our experience with them. I would highly recommend a river cruise with Avalon. Thank You !! Read Less

My first river cruise, and it was great from beginning to end, The staff was amazing, very friendly and yet very professional. Having the clock maker from the black forest and his son there was very interesting, and the trip to their business was wonderful I so enjoyed this excursion. The Christmas Fairs were out of this world travel to and from was very enjoyable The food was very good and the special dinner was so delish. The view room was one of my favorite places to sit and reflect on the day with a great cup of coffee and a little snack. It was all that I hoped it would be, Loved the staff they made our time on board very enjoyable So all in all it was wonderful. I went with a friend and now I want to take my husband on a river cruise. Yes Yes Yes I will use Avalon again. Read Less