River Cruises - Europe Cruise Reviews

We had a great week on the Rhine, and loved all the stops.  Tour guides were amazing!  Food was good and staff very attentive.  Would definitely recommend this cruise, and we are looking forward to another trip next year!  Also loved the smaller groups.

The excursions were great.  The guides were all very knowledgeable and fluent in English.  No one had any trouble understanding any of them.  The excursions were very well organized and the groups were never too large.  The ship was nice and well maintained.  The lounge was comfortably arranged as was the dining room.  The other guests on the ship were pleasant and fun to be with.  All of the crew made you feel special and appreciated.  The food was delicious, the menu varied, and the dishes always well presented.  I particularly liked that I was able to select my flights to and from the U.S.A. at the time of booking.

One of the best part of this cruise was the people we met on board.  This was an unexpected pleasure.  Also Program Director Mircea was fantastic.  Our tours and tour guides were exceptional though at times it was like drinking out of a fire hose.  So many facts, facts, facts...A few of the tour guides could shorten up their descriptions and add a few stories, particularly in Vienna.  A rich history I know but we are only going to remember a few things so give us the high points.  Mostly though the tour guides were fantastic.  As for improvements, mostly the food was great with a few exceptions.  The vegetarian food on the Aegir was really quite awful.  The chef is clearly talented but needs some remedial training on preparing edible vegetarian meals. 

Beautiful cruise. Excellent service. Saw too many churches and I like churches. The WW II tours were the most meaningful. The guides really knew their stuff and it's an experience we should all remember. 

Seeing the world through a new lens  - -  Sailing Eastbound on the Danube River with ports of call in Germany, Austria and Hungary is enchanting enough, right?  However, the real enchantment and excitement stems from the first class accommodations and services rendered on our Viking Cruise journey.  Vikings' choice of stops  -  particularly, Nuremburg, Vienna and Budapest allow for a unique experience in each historical place.  Amazing views from the river; topped by excursions and exploration of these beautifully rich, cultural cities of Europe. It's an understatement to say this was a 'once in a life time' experience.  Intending on continuing our Viking River Cruising, heading the other way on the Danube!!  Thank you Viking!!

River cruising is totally different than ocean cruising. We are going back in 2019!

The Osfrid is one of the smallest ships in the Viking fleet, but very well designed for this trip.  Many in the crew were Portuguese, quite engaged and very committed to serving their guests on a very unique itinerary.  Our only major disappointment was that the bed in our cabin had a notable and unfortunate peak in the center of the mattress which made a comfortable sleep more difficult than it should have been. 

One scallop as an entre'? Seriously? Food is NOT the highlight of this cruise. Great crew, great itinerary.  One of the best cruise ventures in Europe.  Air connections are tough at best. 

The River of Gold cruise and the excursions were both wonderful. The cuisine was so poor that we couldn't wait to dock so that we could eat something off the boat that we would enjoy. From uncooked rice to rare pork chops to uncooked Perch to something greesy that somewhat resembled bacon to cold dishes which should have been served warm and the opposite. We can go on and on! We and many others continued to voice our complaints to the Matre'd as well as to the waiters who were the innocent victims in the middle of this dilemma. We learned from someone that the head chef had been terminated at the end of our cruise. Slot of good that did for us. As I explained to the customer service rep over the phone, we take these and other cruises for the enjoyment of the scenery visiting wonderful places etc, the pleasures of relaxation and being catered to, and for good Cuisine.  Accordingly, we are prepared to spend a decent sum to obtain these services and expect nothing less!  Especially following Vikings long standing reputation in all aspects of a cruise vacation.  This was our first cruise with Viking and may have been our last. Viking has given my wife and I  two cruise vouchers for $750 each to be used for any cruise with them during the upcoming year.  When asked what we felt would be a fair compensation for our dissatisfaction with the food we advised that we would anticipate vouchers for a minimum of 50% or $4000 for the two of us. That would be fair and ensure our future booking. Viking didn't shock me when they declined and said that the $750 or slightly less than 10% would be their max. They proved to me that they are no better than others at what they do and have a long way to go to raise the bar.

Wonderful cruise. Great Crew, and Cruise Director - Victor! The Captains and Crew really adapted to the low waters on the River, and made sure we still had an immersive experience. The Captains worked over time to get us up the river and for the cruise to continue for the full 7 days.

We had to be bused to Strasbourg, which was an hour away. Due to this, Victor called ahead to a local restaurant and provided us lunch for the day...on their tab. 

Dress in layers, and be prepared for changing conditions. If you aren't adaptable, or have adversity to the cold, this may not be the cruise for you.

    This was both my first time in Europe and also on a River cruise and I was beyond blown away! Because it was the last sailing of the season we got to still experience some of the Christmas Markets while enjoying a festive atmosphere on board the ship. The staff was amazing and the cruise director, Viktor, worked tirelessly to ensure that we missed nothing due to having to change the itinerary a bit to accommodate the low river. 

     Best Advice I can give:

     Talk to the cruise director to find out the hidden spots for food and shopping, they are a fountain of knowledge! AmaWaterways was great at having a map of the area each day so you can find your way around after the tours, take the time to walk a bit and enjoy the sites, you can find some of the best souvenirs off the beaten path. In Heidelberg I found a great little store a short walk from the Cathedral that the tour ends in that sells amazing Schnapps and Whiskey, and they give free samples!

          Make sure that you have 1 night set aside for the Chef's table as it is included in the sailing and a wonderful meal!

     My one big Do Not is don't attempt to walk from the train station in Basel to the dock where the ship is at, it may "look" like a 5 minute hike but with luggage and a lot of little paths it turned into a 30 minute workout!

After arriving at Basel Airport , we made our own way to the pier to catch the Ama Certo on it's 7 night journey from Basel to Amsterdam . When arriving at Basel Airport make sure that you exit the Swiss side and not the French side . We had a BB Category cabin on the Middle Deck and despite being the cabin next to reception , there were no issues with noise .

The first night is the Captains Welcome Cocktail and Dinner , where you get to meet the Captain and most of the crew . There is also a short demonstration about putting on a lifejacket , should you happen to fall in the Rhine .

Each day there are a variety of included excursions and your pre-boarding packet of documents will tell you what they are . For instance on the first day , there is a choice of going to Riquewihr , Breisach or Colmar . We chose Colmar , and despite the cold weather it was a very pleasant market town in France .

Each night in your room there will be a " Daily Cruiser " leaflet which will tell you what you will be seeing and doing the following day , and this is also where you make your choices for the following days excursions .

At the moment , the water level in the Rhine is very low and if this continues then your itinerary can be changed so that the Captain can navigate safely thru the low water .

This did happen to us as we could not dock in Strasbourg because of the low water and had to go all the way to Mannheim , before being bussed back for our excursion to Strasbourg .

This situation was excellently handled by everyone at AMA , and the passengers were kept fully up to date with the situation and the alternative itinerary that resulted meant that a restaurant in Strasbourg had to accomodate all 120 of us at short notice .

Our cabin onboard was spacious enough for 2 people and there was enough storage space in the cabin for a week long cruise .

The food onboard was a very good standard , and the dining room is big enough to seat everybody at one time . There are several selections for each course , but if you have any allergies it would be wise to let them know ahead of time so that you can be accomodated . I would say that the wine selection could have been slightly better , but they tried to serve wines from the local region to enhance your cruising experience .

I would recommend the Chefs Table at least once , this is located at the other end of the ship and can seat up to 28 passengers and you get to see the chef prepare your dinner . The night we went it was full so book early .

There is entertainment after dinner in the Main Lounge , which ranged from a singer singing Tunes from the Musicals , an ABBA tribute band and a classical recital , so something for everyone .

The Main Lounge is big enough for everyone at once and they also serve ' Lite' breakfast and lunch for anyone who just wants a snack .

The Main Lounge has floor to ceiling windows which gives you a great panorama of the scenery when it is too cold to go outside .

If you are considering this itinerary for your first river cruise , you will not be disappointed . Wonderful scenery , great places to visit and a great crew made this a really memorable experience .

The true measure of a company's quality of service is determined not when things go right, but when they go terribly wrong. Viking River Cruises promises unconditional support when you join their trips, but offered none whatsoever when my mother in law fell inside the bus provided by Viking and broke her foot, ripped open her elbow, and painfully bruised most of her body. One can argue that she fell because she was not paying attention; others can make a stronger case that she fell because the step located on the longitudinal corridor inside the bus was not marked and was camouflaged by the black carpet. Putting aside blame for the fall, the only issue that prompted me to write this review relates to what Viking did (or better yet, didn't do) to help us after the fall; they did absolutely nothing. My mother in law and my wife joined me on a trip to Portugal 7 days ago for a Viking River Cruise in the Douro River. On day 1 of our trip, while touring Lisbon by bus, my mother in law fell inside the vehicle once it came to a full stop and it was time to exit for a short walk to Torre de Belém. It was quickly evident - by the bruising and the swelling - that she had broken something. Our local guides agreed, called a taxi, and told us about 2-3 nearby hospitals that we could use. And that was it: they called a taxi.

From that point on we were on our own. We had to navigate through the unfamiliar health care system in Portugal alone; we had to make multiple trips to the hospital and pharmacies without support; we had to deal with TAP Air Portugal and the required medical release forms without guidance. We spent 3 full days taking care of everything related to the accident without a single Viking representative being involved; without a single phone call from Viking; without a single offer from Viking to help us. We did not even get the Viking hotel rate for the additional night we had to stay at the Tivoli Hotel. In fact, while in the hospital waiting for my mother in law to be done with the medical care, we realized that we needed to call the local Viking staff to cancel the upcoming $300 dinner we had just joined the day before. We called Viking headquarters (the only number we had) and they could not find or provide a number for the Lisbon staff. A Viking representative took our number, and promised they would call back. Eventually, we gave up and managed to get the Viking local guide contact thanks to the wonderful Portuguese staff of the Tivoli Hotel.

We are now safely back in the US and still no one from Viking has called us, even if just to find out how my mother in law is doing. The level of indifference, disregard, and disrespect displayed by Viking is truly heartbroken in any circumstances, but especially vicious when you realized they promised unconditional support and had no problem taking tens of thousands of nonrefundable dollars from us. It’s even more disgusting when you realize that they cater these trips to seniors citizens, some well into their 80s.

For us, what was supposed to be a dream trip turned into a living nightmare. While Viking’s conduct was shameful and disgraceful, we managed to deal with the unfortunate accident in great part due to the incredible caring nature of the Portuguese People. The hospital staff at CUF Infante Santos was amazing and more professional than anything I’ve seen here in the US. Dr. Carolina went beyond her assigned duties to accommodate my requests related to the bureaucratic documents required for my mother in law’s transatlantic flight back to the USA; she did it without charging us anything. The staff at the Tivoli Hotel treated my mother in law with the love and respect she deserved. Felipe – one of the managers at Tivoli – offered me his personal contact for anything, and secured and provided a wheelchair for our entire stay with them at no additional cost. TAP Air Portugal upgraded my mother to Business class at a nominal cost, and took care of her as if she was their very own mother in law.

In all this, the only entity that failed was the very one that advertised (and made us pay for) the opposite: Viking River Cruises. By the way, to this day we are still waiting for the phone call Viking promised to provide us with the Lisbon staff contact number. So, while Viking seems to be able to deliver a great service when things go well, they magically disappear when something goes wrong. The true “Buyer beware” business model; shameful!

The sad news is that this was the Ama Dagio's last sailing.  We escorted 28 family and friends on this wonderful AMA adventure on the Rhone river.  It all started with a fabulous CAVA tasting with Tapas lunch at Pere Ventura winery in Barcelona.  A must do event.  The river cruise, with AMA's "This is your home" attitude could not have been better, even with the strike by the French Lock keepers.  Camille, our cruise director & her staff never missed a step in getting all of us through the crises.  The food, wine,  entertainment, and excursions were all first class and better.  We are planning our next 2017 cruise with AMA.  Can't wait.

Viking cruise line has it all!  This was our first and definitely not out last.  From the minute you step on the ship until you leave the red carpet was rolled out.  The staff were so friendly, helpful and special.  They made you feel like you were the on,y one on board.  The from Lee, the Program Director to Janka our housekeeper there was never anything anything but smiles and caring ways.  Royan with his knowledge of wines to Mariana making my special mixed drink to head chef and to Jo the concierge, professional all the way.

Thank you Viking Cruise.  We will be back

Hi, the cruise was very good.  The staff very friendly. Rhia was  extraordinary  trying to help me with the meals. There were not to many options for vegetarian people. Some times nothing veggie  in the menu . The excursions are good   

Great cruise. First Viking cruise. Crew was first class. Ship was very good. Food/ wines were excellent. Tours were good. Normandy was emotional and worth the entire trip.

Best cruise vacation we've been on and arguably our best vacation ever.   Viking is superb with cuisine and staff.  Shore excursions were stimulating and well prepared.   Very impressed with level of service.   Would recommend cruise line enthusiastically   Look forward to our next opportunity

This was one of my favorite cruises. It was expensive, but I thoroughly enjoyed every moment.

The best cruise ever! Food was excellent and staff very helpful. very nicely decorated Ship!

The internet was a little slow or impossible at times but glad to have it free.