We had cruised the Danube with Viking pre-Covid. We toured again to see the play, a once in a decade opportunity, and experience the Danube again, concluding with two additional nights in Budapest. The trip started with a delayed flight from Detroit to Washington DC to connect with the Munich flight. We called the Viking Emergency number and were connected in less than 30 seconds. The Viking representative re-routed us through Chicago to Munich in 15 minutes. Had we waited, as the airline suggested, we would have missed the flight to Munich and spent days catching up to the ship and perhaps missing the play.

The cruise was not without challenges. Due to low water the ship had sucked up dirt and rocks into he cooling system and as a result we were without AC for two days. We had a balcony room so it was not a big issue for us. The river was very low. The ship in front of us ran aground and we had to go in reverse for miles to avoid the same fate. The crew kept us informed of the situation with many updates. As a result we missed on of the stops, which we had visited on the earlier cruise.

The cruise was otherwise typical Viking. Typical as in the food was excellent. The staff was great. The daily and optional tours were hosted by knowledgable local guides.The cabin was comfortable and had everything we required. Due to Covid we had to cancel three other Viking Cruises, both River and Ocean. In each case Viking was wonderful to work with. We never lost a dime or any credit in our account. The extra days in Budapest were also great. Viking booked our hotel on the river with a river view, in a location the was an easy walk to the market and main attractions. Read more