The low approval rating of this cruise is understandable given the catastrophic floods that hit the area in early June and how passengers were adversely affected. I understand their need to post their grievances but this post is to reassure those who, like us, were first time cruisers of any description and were a little worried about whether we would enjoy the experience, especially in light of the expense involved. We had good weather; perfect in fact, and so that helped.

We are independent travellers by inclination, having organised many trips throughout Europe, the USA and Canada without the need to trouble any agencies. My concerns were mainly about the dining and the being 'over-organised' and I shall deal with those issues later.

Firstly the flights and embarkation. We were unlucky enough to be flying from Manchester airport (UK) which necessitated a 4.00 am departure from home for a flight at 6.25 am. This fact alone would have made us reconsider booking had we known in advance. We had more than 3 hours to 'kill' in Frankfurt airport before the connection to Budapest. The flights were with Lufthansa, who we use often, and were very good. We discovered that those flying from elsewhere within the UK had flights that left at civilised hours and those flying from Heathrow had a direct flight which meant they could enjoy more of their time in Budapest and the evening's entertainment laid on. I would say that the passenger make up was approximately 50% from the UK and 50% elsewhere, most mostly Americans with a few Australians for good measure. It was common for these folks to have made their own travel arrangements, and had I known that, I would have tried to do the same but I don't know if this is possible from the UK without taking Viking's own pre and post cruise extensions. By the time we had dined and settled in it was late and we were very, very tired. The entertainment was missed in favour of walking across the Chain Bridge (independently) and seeing Budapest by night. Read more