We actually started in Prague, then overland to Budapest where we boarded the Emerald Destiny. However due to low water levels we had to leave the Destiny around Rudesheim, travel by bus and board and continue the cruise on the Emerald Sky to Amsterdam. The whole transfer was managed superbly without any hassles. In fact the ~200km bus trip gave us a different scenery . Patricia , the Tour Director, did an excellent job. Each day her briefing was interesting, witty and clear. She made everyone so welcome. She was clearly fully in control and nothing fazed her. Our wonderful experience was predominantly due to her being in charge. The Emerald Destiny, being a newer ship than the Sky had a better cabin layout. E.G. the fridge and safe in the Sky drastically reduced wardrobe space. As beverages are so freely available does anybody still need a fridge?? Waste of space! Instead of more drawers (Sky), the desk space (Destiny) was great for writing and ladies make up. Read Less

The ship is wonderfully built, very clean and functional. The rooms made the most of space and had great storage. We were on the top sleeping floor and found it very quiet, although some of our fellow passengers did not have the same experience on the lower floors. The daily excursions were run without a hitch and ran like clock work. The food was 5 star and abundant. The crew took care of our every need and the embarkation and disembarkation went without a hitch. We extended the River Cruise both prior and following the River Cruise and were well looked after, never needing to worry about anything. Our luggage and transfers were all taken care of seamlessly. The Cruise itself was a good mix of time on land and cruising the best part of the river scenery on the ship. All in all, it's been very well thought through and we would highly recommend the Rhine River Cruise with Evergreen Cruises. Read Less

Wanted to see the Rhine and Danube in comfort and good food with nice company and excellent service. This is what was achieved. Great bunch of Australians and New Zealand guests on board. The staff were superb, probably the best crew ever on any ship or hotel where we have stayed. The boat was roomy, very clean and all inclusive meant all inclusive without having to pay for any extras. The chef was most accommodating, defiantly went the extra mile with brilliant service. Could not have done more. Even had our anniversary covered with lighted cake with all the waiters in line singing our congratulations, when we hadn’t even told anybody except agent here in UK. Very pleased with the Emerald concept, good Managers, cruise director and events manager. Would be delighted to return, the Rhine Gorge in particular was stunning and worth getting up at 6.30 as we sailed through it. Read Less

We chose this cruise as it fitted in with our itinerary and we thought the River Elbe would be interesting. We spent 3 days in Prague prior to boarding. On embarkation we were informed by the purser that the boat would not be going down the Elbe as the water levels were too low and we would instead be going down the canals. We had received no communication from Croisi about this prior to boarding and from there everything went downhill. The canals were boring and there was not much to see. We did still visit the towns as shown on the itinerary but we only did the one tour at the end to Berlin which was quite good. The cabins were quite reasonable and the decor was nice but it is a very small boat. Entertainment was minimal or non-existent. There were no fitness or recreation areas. There was an open deck upstairs for viewing but there was not much to see. On day 5 on arrival in Dresden we had to pack up, disembark, stay overnight in Dresden and change to another boat which again we were not expecting. Due to an air conditioning failure at the hotel we wer meant to stay at we then had to transfer to another hotel. The food at the hotel was terrible. The food was very disappointing on the boat no choice at dinner. Breakfast was a buffet and pretty average. Disembarkation was in Warnsee in Berlin not Tegel as we were told and we had to Uber into the centre of Berlin. Service on both boats was average. All in all a very disappointing cruise and I would not recommend it. Read Less

Went on uniworld last year Avignon to Lyon. Great cruise. Great food, wine service. Not this year. What happened to the personal butlers? Gone! Food was at best average and some afternoons even worse. Cabins are smaller. Tours are shorter and not as interesting. I loved last year. Not this year. I would not recommend this tour. I do not think I will go uniworld again based on the price and value. Highly disappointing. I plan to let the company and ceo know. You have choices and think about which lines give you what you want. Cabin is comfortable for small folks but big people will not fit in the shower. Had to remove table and store luggage outside cabin. Tonight dinner was a buffet. Hotel in Prague was not 5 star. 4 at best and generous at that. Ride from Prague to boat 4 hours. They gave u a bottle of water and stopped at mac Donald’s. This is not what I expect from a 5 star cruise line. Do not book Read Less

Despite low water, itinerary changes and one ship change to Jade on the last night, Scenic handled it all seamlessly (at least to the passengers). We had to leave Budapest one day early due to low water, which caused us to miss one excursion. We could have gone, however would have required a 5-6 hour bus ride. The tour guides, particularly for the Art Gallery tour in Vienna and the Nuremberg tour were outstanding. The guide for the medieval town in Czech Republic (Dieter) was disappointing and we left the tour for our own walk around after about 10 mins. We had an outstanding tour director (Richard) along with incredible service staff on the Jasper (special kudos to Marko and Sonja). Would definitely travel with them again. Entertainment on board and the special concert in Vienna was simply outstanding! Only counterpoints, 1) the staff on the Jade, which we had for only one night, appeared overly tired and service was a step down from the Jasper. and 2) we were unable to complete the departure survey as we were unable to access on-line, and there was no way to access after the fact? Read Less

We enjoyed our Danube cruise experience very much. The quality of the cabin, service, food and excursions were excellent. My special food requirements were always met.The staff handled unexpected events, due to low river levels, very well. The tours were well planned with free time included. There was plenty of choice as well. Entertainment on the ship was very good and included a waltz display and lessons and a fun disco. Yvonne, our tour director was great, always helpful with a real sense of humour. The dining area was well laid out to meet our fellow passengers. We found Prague a fascinating place to explore with a great tour guide and help to plan our own free time exploring as well. Loved the Art deco Imperial hotel. Certainly an amazing place to have breakfast. Many other highlights but we enjoyed; the classical music concert in the Viennese palace, the abby and town at Melk, the music and wine in Durstein,cruising down the Danube near Budapest and Budapest at night from the boat. We are looking forward to another scenic cruise one day. Read Less

Often when you look forward too much to a trip it doesn't live you to your expectations. This cruise more than met my high bar - it was exceptional. I can't think of anything I would change other than the fact that we tried to pack too much into our trip and didn't let ourselves just ENJOY the experience. Take a little time, don't over schedule, let the beauty of this part of the world just soak in. The cruise staff was fantastic, our cabin well appointed, we especially enjoyed the dining area on the front deck - not always eating in the main dining room. Our guides on our excursions were extremely knowledgeable and open about the past these countries have had to endure. I have been to Germany many times and this is the first time I have heard them discuss their past openly. I can't recommend anything more highly than this river cruise. Read Less

If you want to cover a lot of ground with ease and not having to plan out every travel detail, then this is the vacation for you! Staff is extremely accommodating, polite, professional, friendly, and FUN! Schedule allows flexibility to everyone on what they choose to explore - guided tours, on your own, or a balance of both. Food is delicious, the riverboat is beautiful, and it's a wonderful "home away from home" on water. For feedback: would be nice to have an option for a cruise in which only covers breakfast and dinner, unless there are travel days in which you cannot leave the boat during lunch. With most days being docked and having excursions or time to explore, I didn't want to take the time to return to the ship to eat lunch. I would rather spend the time in the city to see how and where the locals eat and enjoy cuisine off ship. I chose to do this on my trip, but knew I was forfeiting my already paid for lunch. It would be nice to offer a slightly discounted plan to remove the lunch portion. (and if I would choose to eat on board then, like with any bar expenses, give my room number and be charged for my lunch) Other feedback would be better descriptions of the excursions - it was not always clear how long an excursion was and IF IT WAS ON A BUS. I do NOT like bus excursions, and while I understand that these are ideal for some, I would have not signed up for some had I known. I can't see and explore a city from a bus seat. Lastly, more bathroom breaks would be helpful on excursions... many are in the morning and many people on board I heard complaining about this due to us just filling up on morning coffee. Otherwise I highly recommend Avalon and would love to travel with Avalon again in the future. (And DO the extended trips - our 3 day stay in Prague was amazing! I only wish I had signed up to do the same for the end of the Danube trip and stayed longer in Budapest!) Read Less

We scheduled this cruise after a previously booked European land tour was cancelled. We really enjoyed this trip! Prague was my favorite of the stops. It was surprisingly and amazingly beautiful as were all the ports visited. EVERYTHING was done well. We were met in the airport in Prague and then escorted to buses and the Prague Hilton. We were given a walking orientation of Prague within an hour of arrival and then had the evening to spend how we wished. The guide pointed out restaurants worth trying along the way. All the guides were terrific and the cruise director, Stefanie worked constantly both on and off the ship accompanying groups on excursions and maintaining a festive atmosphere on board. She must be one tired lady and deserves the holiday she had coming up. On board, the ship is very clean and tidy....both public areas and our stateroom. Our stateroom had a French balcony which we really enjoyed. We could sit on our bed and watch the landscape go by. We saw beautiful glimpses of peoples lives...families by the river, quaint towns, and imposing castles. That was very enjoyable. Our cabin was large enough but I think it had a little less storage space and room than we have had on ocean cruises. The only time that was an issue was when trying to pass each other by the end of the bed where the drawers, mirror and door to outside were located. Only one person can fit in that space. We managed happily of course but had to wait for each other fairly frequently. LOVED the bathroom and the shower! I would say the food was very good but not especially exceptional, but I was never wanting for anything good to eat. I think they do an awesome job with the confines and number of people they are serving. I was afraid beverages would be an issue but it was not. You could have unlimited soda, wine, water, or beer with lunch and dinner. Coffee and tea as well. Juices were available at breakfast and I know I saw them accommodate a request for juice at dinner. Every time you left the ship, you were offered bottles of water and their was water in your stateroom. It was choose your own spot at the tables in the dining room....usually it worked out ok and sometimes it didn't. On the last couple of days people started saving seats and it made it a little difficult. We did meet some interesting people in the dining room. We usually were so tired by the time dinner was over that we would go to our stateroom shortly after for the evening. On one evening, we were in port so did stroll the city. One evening there was a glassblower on the ship who did a demonstration. He had some really nice things on display and we did make a purchase. Nothing was forced, it was just there for you to look at. Another evening we watched some German singers and musicians that were ok but I wasn't overly fond of. One thing I did not like was the piano music. I immediately told my husband that he wasn't really playing. I think it was like a player piano and he played with it sometimes but always had the action of playing if that makes sense. I think either pipe in music or play, one or the other. Each afternoon, Stefanie would do a briefing on what should happen the next day...that was helpful and you would also get a news brief in your stateroom. Every port we visited had something unique to offer, no disappointments there. We had rain every single day with the exception of our last day in Paris and temperatures only hit 70 once. That put a little damper on things. The flooding rivers caused some detour in our river cruising so we had to bus a little more and didn't always dock where originally planned. I'm not sure if that would have given us any more time to explore towns in the evening or not. All of the staff were exceptional in their service and being personable. We mostly sat in Valentina's section....she did an excellent job making sure everyone was taken care of. I wish she would have had the opportunity to chat with us. One evening, the hotel manager Armin sat at our table to eat and chat. That was really nice. Because we had some issues with our cruising, they provided an extra meal at the Paris Pullman Hotel which was also a nice hotel right next to the Eiffel Tower. Disembarkation was very smooth. We were grateful we had an escort through the Paris airport who even helped get our boarding passes and tell us what to expect when we got back to the US and customs. The airport in Paris is complex and a little intimidating. I will probably choose to do another river cruise in the future (this was my first). I would not trade this experience, I really enjoyed seeing the inside of Germany and all the quaint beautiful towns along the rivers but I also missed having concentrated time to more fully explore the bigger cities of Prague and Paris. Read Less

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While water levels on the Elbe River precluded sailing, it was Viking's unforgivable failure to notify its customers of the situation in a timely fashion that makes their reputation seem suspect if not undeserved. Many passengers received e-mails from Viking saying there were problems on the Elbe with only about 24 hours notice and in some cases only after they'd already arrived in Europe. Further it appeared that inaccurate or incomplete information was provided to the ship-board personnel who had to face irate customers asking about modified itineraries, etc. Initially no Viking representative could definitively answer whether passengers would sail at any point and it goes without saying that there was no one available to explain customer alternatives such as cancellation or postponement. Basically, you were "stuck". Viking's solution was to first motor coach passengers to one ship (Viking Astrild serving as a floating hotel) on which they were lodged for three days then to motor coach passenger farther down the river to another ship (Viking Beyla serving as floating hotel number two) for another three days. Tours to featured sites were done by bus using the ships as home base. At no time did any Viking customer sail on any Viking ship. The crews of both vessels were superlative and to be honest, the sites visited went a long way toward mitigating the inconvenience. But, WITH LITTLE OR NO PRIOR NOTICE, a bus tour was foisted on folks who had purchased and expected a river cruise. A negative feeling hung over the entire trip. Viking's gesture of good will was to offer one thousand dollar vouchers to be used against the cost of a future Viking cruise. I believe most people considered this as tantamount to an insult. While Viking's equipment and on board staffing continue to be exceptional, its administration and customer relations - which is distinctly unresponsive - are a dismal failure. Read Less