Viking Jarl Review
Don't have very high expectations and you will not be disappointed.
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This is our third river cruise with Viking. The previous two were fabulous - Canals of the Tsars and the Danube/Main/Rhine cruise. We have also done more than a dozen sea cruises, including adventure cruises to Galapagos, Antarctica and Alaska.
This by far, except for a forgettable Yangtze cruise with another company, was the most disappointing of all our cruises. We departed from Budapest to sail down river to Bucharest. As it is our second visit to Budapest, and we have done all the major sights in the city during our first visit, we booked two optional excursions with Viking instead. These were tours to places outside Budapest. We were eager to checkout the surrounding countryside and had really looked forward to the two tours. Both turned out to be very disappointing. One was nothing more than a visit to a little old town full of over priced tourist shops. We stopped at a bakery/cafe for tea as part of the itinerary but it turned out to be a rather unhappy experience as the tour guide and the waitress were hopeless. It took forever for the orders to be filled and they ran out of items, then the serving was at a snail pace. Our guide did absolutely nothing to speed it along.
The second tour to the favourite castle of Elizabeth (fondly known as Cissy to Hungarians), was slightly more interesting but nothing to write home about. Please do not waste time and money on any optional tours. They are overpriced and a complete waste of time. Save the money for nice meals and gifts instead.
Cabin Review
The cabin was fairly decent in size. Definitely preferable to the French Balcony cabin. Here, there is space for a chair which is comfortable enough to sit in and read. When the weather permits we prefer the balcony.
Sufficient storage space for clothes and knick knacks in the drawers and wardrobe. We tucked all the suitcases under the bed. We have learned very early in our travels not to bring along oversize suitcases. I also always travel with cheap hangers that laundry shops use and I leave them behind at the end of each trip.These hangers are convenient for hand washed laundry, especially on board ships where laundry service comes at a hefty price.