European River Cruises

[THE TRIMMER]

Has any one done a River cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest, If so could you please advise which are the better companies to travel with.Thanks.

 

[Daver6]

In laws have just commenced one. Unsure who they went with and probably a little early on in the piece for any useful feedback, but I can find out if you like?

 

[Blinky]

We had a close look at a couple of Tempo cruises, but they were beyond our budget. I'd love to do one in the future. Good luck.

 

[zig]

Haven't done it myself, although I have had a look at a couple of companies and they all look to be of a fairly high standard. Suggest you also head over to River Cruising - Cruise Critic Message Boards and browse some of the threads if you haven't done so already.

 

[THE TRIMMER]

Thanks so far, Cruise Critic helpful.

 

[MAX_1]

Did Egypt and Nile cruise with Scenic and could not fault them.

 

[Blinky]

Did Egypt and Nile cruise with Scenic and could not fault them.

Oh bloody hell, it was Scenic and not Tempo we looked at. They look fantastic.

 

[MadFairlane]

My boss just returned from this exact trip. They went with uniworld. Wasn't cheap ($8k each) but worth every cent they thought

Edit: the cruise was called European jewels

 

[Major]

My wife and I did this trip 2 years ago and went with APT - Europe River Cruising 2013, Europe Tour, Tours of Europe, Luxury Cruises, MS AmaBella, Rhine Rhone River Cruise

We had a great time and thought they were just great. We also took one of their Egyptian tours. I have no hesitation in recommending them.

 

[AaronBradford]

Around this time last year I accompanied my Grandmother on a river cruise. We went with APT, and they were excellent! We did the stretch between Remich and Nuremberg. I highly recommend them.

 

[Dalescott]

A few tips,
1. Make sure the cruise is a guaranteed departure, I know two couples that had cruise altered to another date. They had to alter airline bookings!
2. That it is an all in cruise, with all meals and drinks included, some have drinks (alcohol) as extras. Again friends had to pay.
3. Finally these cruises are a lot cheaper if booked in Europe. If you have a relative or good friend, see if you can get them to book it, and use there address as yours. It worked for us.

In fact all holidays are cheaper in UK/ Europe. Everything from ocean and river cruises, to battlefield tours.
I paid 1200 pounds for a 8 day Rhine cruise, I also paid 350 pounds for a 3 days/2 nights for a battlefield tour of France.
Cheaper in UK definitely

 

[crm911]

A colleague did the Scenic tour that the OP enquired and thoroughly enjoyed it. IIRC, it was all-inclusive except for one or two nights. It was in 2010.

He said that one of the gotchas is that the "free airfare" deals are for the steerage rooms that don't have a balcony, so be sure to ask. Some of the stops have more than one tour option. My wife and I are hoping to do one in 2014 but they haven't opened up yet. Thanks to Dalescott for the UK tip.

 

[crm911]

I just paid my second instalment deposit for the Evergreen Tours cruise from Paris > Amsterdam > Budapest in June 2014. We got the "2013 rates for 2014" deal and a free class upgrade, so we paid for the dearest small cabin and got the double one. There is a new boat being built and it has a further higher class, which is about 100 sq ft larger. We won't bother to pay the extra $400 pp. Without asking, we got the "Pay one airfare and partner flies free but you pay their taxes" deal. It's a cheap SQ non-upgradeable ticket that will give half points.

 

[BindiBratz]

Travelled with my mum on an APT Budapest to Amsterdam in 2009. Was professionally run, and an amazing time (not that I would have chosen to do it at this stage in my life, but perfect for my mum, and it was an ideal way for her to get a taste of Europe in an easy and memorable style).

I thought APT were great, and wouldn't hesitate to utilise them again.

By booking early, it enables you to take advantage of cheaper flights. One thing I learnt when researching the trip, is that during the months that may be effected by snow melt, you could end up doing part of your journey by bus as the rivers are so high, the vessels cannot travel under the bridges (I would have hated to have travelled by bus instead of river ship). We travelled in a dry year, commencing our journey in early October, had a slight issue with low river levels, but really was insignificant due to the forethought and skills of the company/skipper.

I would highly recommend spending extra days in both Budapest, a stunning city and one I wouldn't hesitate to return to, and also Amsterdam, just a lovely ambience and so interesting . . . will be back there later this year

 

[outbackowner]

We did a APT cruise on the Amabella last September and had a great time though after the first week half the boat had a bad cold and were intent on sharing it so we spent a lot of time on our balcony having a wine or 2 many.

Well run, great food and staff, spent 3 nights in Budapest at the Sofitel Chain Bridge and were upgraded to a suite with great views, what a wonderful city.

Only downfall was our package included J class fares with MH, not at all happy especially on the MEL to KUL sectors as the beds were awful.

A tip would be to buy the best cabin you can afford as the ones on the lower deck were tiny and the balcony cabins were great.