This was our second Viking cruise. Our first was the Grand European which was 21 days including extra days in Amsterdam and Budapest. We really like the cruise portion of this trip. The changing hotels got old quickly but we understood up from that we would be moving around. We like not having to pack up our bags every day and get up early to have them out in the hotel hall.
The ship was ...
The Elbe River cruise was originally intended to use one boat for the entire trip. But, about two weeks from embarkation we were advised by Viking that the water level of the river was too low and we may have to do some of the trip via bus and use two different boats.
When we arrived at the hotel and had our first group meeting with Simon, the Cruise Director, he advised us that not only was ...
This was our first cruise ever and we chose a river cruise because of the smaller number of people on the cruise. Unfortunately, the water was too low for the cruise to occur. However the staff did their best to take us by bus to all of our destinations. Also added several additional experiences to make up for the loss of cruising. All in all, the experience was good but my average rating is based ...
I chose this cruise as my great grandparents came from Saxony and I wanted to view the lay of the land from the water by cruising down the Elbe. Unfortunately drought and the resulting low water levels did not allow for cruising and we were bused from site to site while overnighting on the riverboats. Naturally this was extremely disappointing to us, but when life gives you lemons then you make ...
we chose the cruise as we had not been on the Elbe River. We knew that there had been problems with low water in 2018 but we thought July would be okay, but it was not. A week before the cruise we were told that we would board another cruise boat & be bused to another one down river for the remainder of our tour. We could have cancelled the tour but decided to go with it anyway. There were ...
This was our tenth Viking trip and one of our best if not the best. We chose this trip because we had not been to central Germany, including Berlin, and it afforded us a post cruse extension to Poland.
The shore excursions were terrific. One of the guests opined that the trip was equal to a graduate history class and I agree. The on ship activities were great as well the dining and beverages. ...
My husband and I have been on one previous Viking cruise and loved it. This cruise on the Astrild did not disappoint us. We had a wonderful time. We traveled with friends and had many opportunities to visit with them, as well as meet fellow travelers. There were many activities in which to participate on board. Our shore excursions were very well organized and met the different ability levels ...
We chose this route because we are interested in Reformation history, medieval architecture, and we had been on Danube, Rhine, Rhone, and Main. Astrild is smaller (94 guests) than other Viking longboats but has all the same amenities in suites, dining room, lounge, etc. The balcony (rooms on the right side; rooms on the left have French doors and a rail but no place to sit) is actually useful on ...
The drought affected the Elbe river so the ship did not move. The crew was excellent, though. The food was very good, way above average. The tours including Worliz & Fredrich the Great, Wittenberg & Martin Luther’s history ( although guide Stephanie was poorly engaged and lacked enthusiasm), Meissen and the porcelain factory, and Dresden’s various museums and churches were outstanding. Prague was ...
We have taken many Viking river cruises. Unfortunately this was the non cruise cruise as the Elbe did not have enough water to allow the ships to navigate the river. Therefore we were bussed everywhere and there was zero cruising. If you take this route ask what months are best to give the chance of water in the river as apparently this happens quite a bit around the time we took the cruise. ...