Long before Steve’s cancer was confirmed in March, we had already booked our Viking River Cruise in Central Europe. We’d heard details about Viking River Cruises from Rocky and Marsha, whom we’d met during our train ride across the Canadian rockies on the Rocky Mountaineer last year. Although Steve’s treatments cut things a bit close, his doctor cleared us for this cruise and we were even hopeful that 14 days of “binge eating” might put some weight back on his bones.
Between the two of us, Steve has always been the cruise lover – me, not so much. We’ve been on several ocean cruises and I thought a river cruise would be just another expensive boat ride. Wow, was I wrong! Being aboard a Viking longship for 14 days turned me into a hardcore river cruise fan. We took their Grand European Tour aboard Viking Bragi, one of the ships specifically designed to navigate rivers with low bridges and narrow locks. We docked at 14 destinations along the Danube, Main (pronounced “mine”) and Rhine Rivers between Budapest and Amsterdam, visiting the countries of Hungary, Austria, Germany, and the Netherlands.
The Viking longboats are much smaller than ocean cruise ships, and with less than 200 guests and around 50 crew members they are not at all crowded. They lack the swimming pools, casinos and grand ballrooms of the ocean liners, but are plenty elegant. Dining is casual with no formal nights and only one seating for dinner. The setup really promotes meeting new people, as folks can sit wherever they wish for each meal. Our stateroom was slightly larger than the ones we’ve stayed in on large cruise lines, and it had several amenities we enjoyed – how about a heated bathroom floor? Nice!
Our cruise included a guided excursion in each port of call, and there were other optional excursions (for a fee) to choose from to further maximize time at each destination. We experienced organized and informative city tours with well-trained guides using high-tech wireless devices so we could hear their every word. The way they organized groups on the buses and tours made everything easy-peasy during our time off the ship.
We were impressed with the QuietVox receivers and earpieces that were used during our city tours. Before each tour began we activated our receivers by touching them to the paddle for our assigned group, which synched them to a unique frequency with our guide. The device enabled me and other “wanderers” to take pictures up to a block away without missing a word the guide said, even in loud and crowded places. These devices are the wave of the future for guided tours!
On cruise days Kane, the entertainment coordinator, conducted informative lectures related to historical and cultural topics specific to the current area of our travels. We learned about the history of the 68 locks that we traversed, the Rhine-Main-Danube canal that links the North Sea to the Black Sea and other information about the water and geography of the Netherlands. Each night before dinner he gave port talks with an overview of the next day’s port of call, as well as highlights of must-see landmarks and hidden food gems. The master chef also participated, giving us an insight into the preparation of the upcoming dinner and what to expect throughout the meal.
An exciting part of the cruise was that Steve discovered as time went on that his jaw and throat were feeling better and he was able to eat salads. His goal on this cruise was to gain weight, and he ate everything in sight! But because we also did miles of walking on our city tours, he gained only a couple of pounds. On the other hand, I gained several pounds and have a lot of work to do…
We met many interesting people and forged friendships on this trip. Among them was David, a cancer survivor who’s condition several years ago was very similar to Steve’s. He gave Steve much appreciated information and inspiration. Another person we came across was Ivan, who shared a cell with senator John McCain as a Vietnam POW. He had quite a story to tell about his life during and after the war.
This was our first time in Europe, and our first river cruise. The itinerary allowed us to get a glimpse of central Europe and a good sampling of its regions and cultures. The pace was comfortable and allowed us to relax and enjoy a part of the world we had never seen before.
There was never a dull moment as we cruised along, with lots to see and take pictures of on both sides of the river:
And that’s just for starters! There is more to come about our country stops!
Lowes Travels 
So glad you are out and about!!
Looks and sounds like a fabulous trip. I too am not a fan of big ocean cruises, but think I would enjoy this river cruise.
Looking forward to your upcoming posts, as we are considering the same route, but in reverse, in a couple of years. We have narrowed the choice down to Viking or Scenic
Now this is a cruise! We would never do a large cruise ship again. Those days at sea are deadly with nothing but ocean. But this river cruise looks wonderful. I love that you are so close to the water and have continuous scenery along the way. Sure makes sitting on the veranda a whole lot more fun. That is amazing how the higher parts collapse for the low bridges! Having the ear piece for tours is perfect. I love the men along the wall waiting for the women:) I’m looking forward to your port tours!
We will share with your more details when we meet in SD. I think John would like it, there is a lot of history to learn from each stop.
What a beautiful and wonderful post. So GLAD to see you both enjoying life. This makes us want to go….so as soon as Bill gets tired of driving our motor home around, we’ll do some international trips like this one!
We are sort of expanding the horizon. We are glad the timing was just right, anytime earlier than we did, Steve would not have made it.
Visited Budapest and other Euro areas this summer – beautiful city, especially at night. Glad to hear Steve is doing better
We agree Budapest is a beautiful walkable city. Thanks, I think the cruise was the pushed for further recovery. He has to eat to gain back weight and he had lots of choices there.
Sounds like a wonderful river cruise. I really want to do that some day. I’ve never been to Europe. My family are from Denmark and Ireland. Thanks for sharing! Big hug{}
I think it is time for a voyage across the pond and find your ancestors in Denmark and Ireland.
That looks like such a relaxing and luxurious way to travel! And much more interesting than the ocean cruises where you don’t see land for days. Seems like you were there at the perfect time for the beautiful fall colors. So happy to know that you both are doing so well!
We originally wanted an earlier cruise to celebrate our anniversary. On hindsight we were glad it was fully booked otherwise, Steve would not be able to make it.
This sounds like something we would like, MonaLiza!
I think you and Dianne would enjoy this easy going relaxing and informative cruise.
What a wonderful trip. I have looked at Viking river cruise pamphlets for years but have not been able to convince my hubby. Great photos and narrative. Seeing how the locks work really intrigues me…
The 68 locks that we passed through were fascinating especially when we learned about the eco locks and the history of it.
I’m with you 100%. Ocean cruises are not my thing. Too many people. Too much chaos. And they just keep making the boats bigger. Yuck. This type of cruise sounds awesome. Much, much more enjoyable.
Definitely the way to go especially as we age 🙂 The huge ones were cool when we were younger for we were more into active events.
I often look at the adverts that come in the mail for river boat cruises and wonder if I’d like it. Your explanations and photos give me a new perspective. I think what stops me from signing up is deciding on which route to choose. What helped you to decide? Another thing is the amount of time on shore. Was it sufficient to give you a flavor of what the town was like?
We know we want the Grand European Tour because it visits four countries. Included in the cruise price is a guided walking city tour in each stop which presents the highlights of the area. Then we are given plenty of time to continue on our own or go shopping.
Thanks for the info. I’ll have to look into these tours more.
What a perfect way to recuperate. So glad you had it reserved and were able to make it. It’s been my sad story for years that David eats and eats and gains no weight and I look at food and gain 2 pounds minimum. I sympathize with you. Your pictures are fantastic. So many beautiful sights right outside your bedroom window. I’ve never thought about a river cruise but I am now.
We were glad we did not cancel the cruise. It was his turning point in the swallowing department.
This is something we have been thinking about. It’s on the agenda for sometime in the next five to ten years. Ocean cruises are not our thing either, this style of cruising looks way more interesting. How wonderful that Steve’s health and care timeline worked out that you could cruise!
We can share more details about our trip when we see you in San Diego.
Viking is on our “bucket list” so thrilled to read your review from another fulltimer like us. Looks lovely, and a great time of year, would you share with us the dates you cruised in future reviews. So glad Steve is healing and you are both able to be out and about enjoying yourselves.
I think we just hit it right in terms of weather, it held up on us till we arrived in Amsterdam. Our cruise was from Oct 7 to 21 and the autumn foliage along the river banks was just perfect!
We have no interest in ocean cruises but the river cruises look very appealing, especially with such luxurious accommodations! Glad you were able to go, and that Steve was able to eat whatever he wanted. Look forward to the rest of your posts.
The river cruise is the way to do it, relaxing and less crowded.
We love the Viking River cruise. We leave on Thursday for a 10 dy cruise toouring Germany, Austria and Hungry. We love that we travel at night and evverything is included. I didnt feel any seasickness which i usually do on any boat.
I’d like to hear about that too. I hope it wont be that cold now.
We have never done a cruise and have not even considered anything other than a river cruise. Your introduction gives us reason to think this would be the way to go for us. We look forward to hearing more.
I think its really worth considering 🙂 LuAnn
Fantastic. We’ll be dipping our toes into river cruising next year … but ours will be in Asia.