Danube on AMA -- Better than Uniworld??

[franski]

Hi Everyone -

Just back yesterday from the Blue Danube Discovery... We had an amazing time, and I promised to post when I got back --> with some (very) subjective comments re: AMA vs Uniworld as we traveled with them last year.

Our trip was a bit different from the "usual" itinerary. This is because GLP Worldwide (a Canadian company that represents AMA among other niche products) had chartered part of the boat and therefore our Budapest and Prague extensions were arranged through them. I'll start there...

In Budapest, we stayed in the Intercontinental... and it was amazing. It was right on the Danube, within a block of Gerbaud's, the Vaci Utca and the Chain Bridge. Our guide for the city tour was top notch. The Budapest marathon was being run on the Sunday morning of our city tour - and our guide (and the bus driver...) got on their cell phones to have up-to-the-minute updates, and switched up the itinerary so we wouldn't be impacted by the run. The bus parked on Hero's Square (usually not allowed) so we could get out for a photo op, and we were the last vehicle over the Chain bridge before it was closed. We had the entire afternoon free - so were able to do some sight seeing on our own. In speaking with someone from the main AMA group, the decision for their group was to wait until after the marathon, so their free time was impacted by this decision.

In Prague, we stayed at the Palace Hotel. This is a 100 year old hotel, about 1 block from Wencelas Square. We were less than a 10 minute walk from old town square, and 15 minutes from the Kolvovna restaurant (thanks for the recommendation, Mike... ). It was obviously an "old money" hotel, and the buffet breakfast was amazing - but the number of smokers in the hotel - and the freedom to smoke almost anywhere - detracted from the experience. My husband and I are quite tolerant non-smokers, and didn't ask to be moved when we were put on one of the smoking floors, but it was a bit of a turn off when you walk into the lobby and immediately notice the "blue haze". I think the main AMA group had a bit better location closer to the castle.

Now - for the cruise itself...

Let me start by saying that we enjoyed it immensely. We met some great people, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The ship is beautiful - and the staff take great pride in keeping it that way.

We found the food top-notch. There was lots of variety in the breakfast buffet - with the option to order from the menu if desired - and quite enjoyed the fact that you could also order from the menu for lunch. We laughed at the size of the hamburger patty in comparison to the bun - but it was quite good. We felt that there was good variety in the dinner menus - and the staff was very willing to make adjustments when requested (ie: order the meat entree - but asked for the starch from the fish entree). Something that was fun was that the restaurant manager made "rounds" at the end of the meal with "left overs" - so you could get "seconds", or try something from one of the other entrees. Now - here comes our biggest complaint...

The wait staff - although (for the most part) quite pleasant, were not nearly as polished as I expected. I understand that many left just before our cruise to return to University, but this left a new crew that were obviously struggling. We also felt that they did not have enough staff - as dinner was often long and dragged out - and we sometimes missed a course (ie: the sorbet to "cleanse the palate" was entirely omitted one meal, and the other time only 1/2 of our table were served). A couple of the waiters seemed to struggle with English - which is OK - except when you are trying to explain something on the menu. If you just pointed to the options you were OK - but this cruise is listed as having an entirely English speaking crew - so you shouldn't have to resort to pointing on the menu. Also - we would get a small bread basket - which was not replenished. We were often looking for more bread as we seemed to wait a long time for our meals. Also - although wine and beer are included with dinner, you had to wait for someone to go get the beer from the bar upstairs... and often you had to ask twice. Once or twice the waiters were actually rude.

The over-long dinners impacted on the evening entertainment. When the entertainers were scheduled to start at 9 pm, there was a push to get us up to the lounge - so it meant that we often did not get coffee after dinner. We weren't even offered it... Thank heavens for the coffee machine in the lounge.

Now, to be fair, service did improve over the week - but still not the level I expected - and no where near the level of service we experienced on Uniworld last year.

The cleaning staff was phenomenal... Absolutely at the top of their game. I did find it interesting, however, that there were more cleaning staff than wait staff.

Most tour guides were great. However - I don't think that they were *all* good. In discussing the tours after they were done, some people seemed surprised at the amount of information that our group always seemed to get. The option for "gentle walkers" and the "fast walkers" was a great idea - and well received by everyone. In past reviews, there were many comments made about the disappointment with the WWII tour in Nuremburg. My DH decided to do this anyway (I did the castle/medieval tour) - and he really enjoyed it. In fact, most comments were positive in relation to the WWII tour, but our guide wasn't one of the better ones on this trip. It seems as if AMA has listened to the previous comments and made changes...

It was a bit disappointing that you had to make your own way back from downtown Vienna if you wanted to stay on a bit longer in the downtown core. Granted, the metro is accessible - but it would have been nice if AMA could have arranged a bus pick-up later in the day. I think many people would have stayed longer if they felt that a bus would have come back for them. Uniworld did offer that to people if they wanted to stay longer in Honfleur - and it was great.

Our cruise manager was John Riley, and there have been many positive postings about John on the CC boards in the past. While John was good, I felt that our cruise manager with Uniworld (Christian Basel) was absolutely top-notch and was expecting the same here. When either my DH or I asked Christian any question - he knew the answer, or would find out and get back to us. We did ask John about a couple of things, and the answers were a bit vague at times. I re-asked one question to a very young guide in Melk - and received an answer there... On one occasion I asked about another boat we were tied up against, and John said he would have to look it up... (I thought he would know as he does do the Danube regularly...) I ended up Googling the boat, and gave *him* the information 2 days later.

Most announcements were not made into the cabins. It was explained that this is because people complained that they didn't want to hear all the "chatter"... I disagree with this decision (and did make that comment both in person and on the comment card) as you couldn't hear what was going on if you were in your room. Simple announcements such as a reminder about departure times for tours, or about meal times (as they varied daily) wouldn't be that disruptive, and certainly would have helped many of us.

The captain and crew did an a wonderful job in getting us up to Nuremburg despite the challenges with the low water. They also kept us informed about water levels, and what they would be doing to deal with this challenge (ie: sailed a bit earlier - as we sailed slower - so we could still make the next stop on time...). Unfortunately, announcements by the Captain in relation to intinerary adjustments were made in the lounge - and not broadcast into rooms or other common areas - so if you were a couple of minutes late getting to the lounge you missed it. These were important announcements, and should have been made to everyone.

I was a bit disappointed that the only movies were pay-per-view. AMA is quite proud of their "Infotainment" system, but there could be improvements there. I understand the challenges with the Internet (many people disapointed there...) - but there could have been a free relevant movie each day. For example, the Third Man could have been shown prior to the day in Vienna - as it showcases the ferris wheel. And - the latest Casino Royale shown just before disembarkation/trip to Karlovy Vary - as the Grand Hotel Pupp was used for the casino scenes.

My DH and I have talked a lot about the AMA vs Uniworld issue - and our thoughts are as follows:

• we would happily cruise with either company again
• the food on the Amalyra was top-notch - kudos to the chef and his staff... we liked the option of ordering off the menu for all meals, something that wasn't offered on our Uniworld cruise
• for our next cruise (and we definitely will be taking more...) we will look at dates, costs and itinerary very closely --> the issues with the service are not significant enough to make us rule out AMA for the future ... BUT if things are relatively equal, it is enough to make us choose Uniworld over AMA

Perhaps some of the "disappointments" were only attached to this one sailing, but experiences will often affect future decisions. Our experience with Uniworld was very positive - and we immediately started planning our next cruise after we finished with our 1st one. Perhaps my expectations this time were too high --> many of the people traveling with us this time had never been on a river cruise before, so had no expectations re: service, crew etc.

Sorry for the long post here... I did say it would be subjective!!!

I'll post again later re: some of the restaurants, souvenir shops etc. Of course, I am always willing to answer questions if there are any....

Fran

[Westaussie]

Thanks Fran for you interesting review. Pity there were things that were upsetting but I think you have it in a nutshell: Perhaps my expectations this time were too high --> We obviously both had a wonderful experience with Uniworld - yes, Christian was excellent but it is possible that even our next Uniworld cruise in June may not come up to our expectations. Will let you know in July!

Look forward to reading part two!

Vera

[MVPinBoynton]

Fran,
Thanks for providing the info. I am so glad you enjoyed the Kolkovna Restaurant. It is a winner. I am glad you enjoyed your river cruise. It does sound like most of it was good. It is a shame that you suffered from a shift change. That can make for a less than desireable experience on any cruise line. From your other post, it also sounds like your weather wasn't too good either. I look forward to seeing part 2 also.

[oneadam12]

Fran:

Thank you for the review. We sailed on the River Beatrice last Spring and are considering either AMA or Uniworld for the Rhine next Fall. Your report will help us with our decision.

Bill

[steamboats]

Fran,

Great review!! It sounds like there are actually no big differences between the two companies. Seems like the main difference are the people / crew. So service wasn´t up to your expectations but mainly because of the change of the crew and new people. Same can happen on another ship by another company. A good CD is also a big plus. But usually those are changing too and same company even same ship but different CD can get you a totally different impression.

I think it´s really hard to compare as the differences between all companies aren´t that big.

steamboats

[franski]

Hi Everyone -

Thank you so much to those who read the original post, and have commented back so kindly. Glad to know that the l-o-o-o-n-g post didn't deter everyone!!!

I do agree that the main difference was the crew - and that is totally an unknown when you book. I think that in the future, we will consider the service on the Amalyra as "the norm", and everything above that will be a bonus. After all, the service wasn't bad, just not up to what we were expecting. Most people did comment that they really enjoyed river cruising, and would go so again. So - the service wasn't an issue with them.

We did meet some great people on the boat, and had dinner with them most nights. Perhaps that crew felt that a larger table is more forgiving of slow service - as conversation continues whether there is food or not... We did find that we enjoyed our dinner when we were in the zone that was managed by Dennis - so we tried to eat there regularly.

The restaurant manager was *VERY* accommodating.... When all tables for 8 were full, and we wanted to add in 2 extras places on a table for 6 - they worked hard to accommodate our request. Now - this did result in a few challenges for the wait staff, but most were very good... (One was rude - but we just wrote it off as *his* problem... and tried not to sit in his zone again...)

Fran

[franski]

Hi again -

I said that I would post re: restaurants, souvenirs etc... So - here goes.

Budapest was such a delight. We had made reservations at Cafe Kor for Saturday night (thanks to Mike again for that!!!) - and enjoyed our dinner. We e-mailed the concierge at the Intercontinental - who made the reservations for us. On Sunday night, we ate on the patio at the Ambassador Hotel. If you are standing looking at the Danube in front of the Hotel Intercontinental, it is about 3 patios to your left. The food was very good - and the prices quite reasonable. The Duna-Corso is about 3 patios further on - and although it had good reviews, the prices seemed higher, and so we went with the Ambassador and were very pleased with our choice. Both are quite close to the Little Princess statue.

On Sunday, we had lunch at a bar/patio on Andrassy Utca - on our way to the House of Terror. We were walking by, and they had hamburgers on the menu, so we stopped. It seemed like more of a "younger" hang out (the menu board had 1 food item and 1 bar item as the specials) - and we were the only people on the patio. The hamburger was homemade, and delicious. On Monday, we ate lunch at Gerbaud. The food was OK - and I thought a bit overpriced - but we managed to find a table outside in the shade --> so we were able to sit and watch the world go by.

We walked all of the Vaci Utca - and the prices are definitely better on the "other" end - closer to the market. In fact, I had some forints to spend, and wanted to get my daughter a scarf - and so walked back to the other end as the prices were much lower (1000 forints compared to 1400 or 1500 for the same scarf...). We found the central market interesting, although the souvenirs on the top floor were fairly expensive, and the main floor was mostly food. They did have paprika for a good price, but I did get it for almost the same price in a small shop on a side street down from the Fisherman's Bastion. The market, however, has an amazing strudel stall --> 180 forints for a large, fresh piece of strudel - well worth the walk.

I asked about paprika - as there seems to be quite a variation in price. Our guide indicated that it is all the same, just marked up (or down) based on where they are selling it. Just look for the "best before" date - as it is good for 1 year, and needs to be kept in a cool dark place.

Budapest is quite walkable. We walked down to the Shoes on the Danube - and it is a very sobering memorial. We also walked the other direction to the Cave church - by the Hotel Gellert. Unfortunately, we were unable to get into the church - as it is a working church, and was closed for Mass. We didn't want to hang around for 45 minutes to get inside - but those who did get in said it was worth it.

We loved Budapest - and are hoping to get back someday. We felt we only scratched the surface there...

Just as an fyi - many of the shops along both ends of the Vaci Utca will take forints or Euros. And - bank machines (ATMs) are plentiful around the city. But - do check re: Visa - as there are many places that only take cash.

I see that I have (again...) rambled on quite a bit - so will end this post now, and post again about further finds.

Fran

[stired]

I have to comment that we were just on the Amalyra in September and had quite the opposite experience. The crew and the cruise director were the best we ever had. They all spoke English fluently and bent over backwards to be accommodating. One of the evenings we wanted to go back into town and so the staff rushed our dinner along. At other times, when we told them we were not in any hurry, they served at a more relaxed pace. The maitre 'd was unbelievably friendly and courteous and we spent many evenings just chatting with him after dinner.

So it seems as if, just like on an ocean cruise, the experience can vary with a change of staff. So please do not assume that your experience was indicative of all AMA staff on all ships.

[MVPinBoynton]

Fran,
I am so glad you got to go to Cafe Kor. We enjoyed it so much. Gerbaud was overpriced and the main attraction there was the desserts and of course the lovely building. During our research most people recommended going there for lunch and dessert. The sandwich we had was just OK, but the dessert was worth the visit. There are some wonderful towns on the Blue Danube Discovery trip.

[franski]

stired -

I think that this may be a situation where timing is everything.... According to the GLP rep that was with us on the Amalyra, the day that we arrived was also the 1st day on board for many of the dining room wait staff. And - not only was it their 1st day on the Amalyra, for many it was their 1st day on board a river boat. So - there were a limited number of experienced staff in the dining room helping to train the "newbies" - and the total number of wait staff seemed a bit low overall. Unless, it is usual on AMA boats to have the hotel manager working the omelet station in the mornings...

Not sure why or how this happened mid-season, but I am sure that this wasn't a situation that AMA wanted either.

[MVPinBoynton]

Fran,
On our cruise, the restaurant manager, Joszef, made the omelets; and did on other cruises also. If the hotel manager was making the, there must have been a staff shortage. The omelets probably weren't as good either.

[franski]

Hi there -

How can words describe the delights found along the Danube... Each new corner on the river, and each town we stopped at brought yet another bit of enjoyment...

Bratislava was fun - I am so glad that we made the decision to change our cruise plans so that we would stop here. Our guide - in her early 70's - had lived there so long that she remembered the man with the top hat (one of the statues in the old town...) when he was alive. She directed us to "the best ice cream in town" - and it was delicious!!! We walked a little outside the downtown tourist section, and found a "regular" street --> purchased Slovakia Hockey team shirts --> official merchandise!!! There was also a Bata shoe store here... Wished I had bought shoes there, as the Bata stores in Prague were more expensive.

My husband collects model cars (1:87, 1:43) - and was looking for Tatras and VWs. He managed to buy cars in Vienna, Regensburg and Prague. I can provide more info if anyone is interested...

I am hoping to return to Europe for a Christmas market cruise... But until I can return, I did manage to find some ornaments along the way. There were a few little shops in Durnstein, and there were lots of ornaments in Nuremburg. The gift shop on the Amalyra also had some wooden ornaments, and they were a better price than in many of the small towns that we visited.

The most unique ornaments that I found were in a Garnet shop in Prague. The Granat cooperative produces jewellery using Bohemian garnets. I did buy myself a beautiful brooch, but also bought many ornaments (angels, snowmen, pine cones etc) made of a silver metal with small garnet chips mounted in ?acrylic/?epoxy - for 60 cz crowns each... I went back 3 times for ornaments!!! I can provide directions/web site if anyone is interested...

And food.... Of course - we did visit the sausage stand in Regensburg. It was raining that afternoon, so we didn't really want to sit outside to get our "6 with kraut" - but didn't want to miss out. But - you can get sausages on a bun to go --> so we got one each and then walked back to the Amalyra and ate them in the lounge with a "beverage"... We also bought some of their mustard to bring home. We bought Lebkuchen in Nuremburg ....so good. As mentioned before, we did visit the Kalkovna in Prague - and the cabbage soup is amazing. We also found a great little Italian Restaurant called the Green Tomato close to our hotel in Prague. We ate there 2 nights, and then went to Cerveneho Pava (Red Peacock) on the last night. I think someone here on CC recommended it - and it was great. We also found the round pastries cooked over coals in the square by the Astronomical Clock....mmmmmmm.

We did manage to get to the Museum of Communism in Prague... It was a sobering experience - so glad we did find it.

All in all - a great trip... Each day brought yet another delight - hard to really identify what the "best" thing was about the trip. We really enjoyed the people that we met on the boat - and are hoping to keep in touch with 3 couples that we spent a lot of time with.

Again - a long post... but I think that this is the last one.... I am very happy to answer any questions, or elaborate further on anything that I have posted so far...

Fran

[Westaussie]

Fran, thanks for your detailed reports, I'm enjoying all you have written and look forward to Part IV and especially what you have to say about Vienna and thereon.

Vera

[franski]

Hi Vera -

Not much "out of the ordinary" as we went along, actually... The only optional we did was the Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna. I was interested to see it as we had been to Versailles last year - but it is hard to compare. Versailles is *VERY* grand --> quite over the top, actually. And, the gardens are breathtaking. The Schonbrunn, while it is a palace, has more evidence that a family lived there (ie: the breakfast room off the mistress' bedroom) - and there are still people living there in apartments on the grounds. The gardens are lovely, but do not compare with Versailles (just my opinion, of course...) The Austrians are quite proud of the palace, and our guide actually feels that it is "better" than Versailles (not sure if she has been to both, however...)

Durnstein & Melk were lovely little towns. If you do go to Durnstein, search out the cemetery. It is at the top of a set of stone steps --> quite lovely to see actually. (Seems odd to say that about a cemetery!!)

We chose not to do the Salzberg excursion - choosing to stay on the boat and cruise. I think that Salzberg is included with Uniworld however.... The people that went did enjoy it. We loved Passau - and would have happily spent more time there - but the boat moved up to Vilshofen as we were battling low water levels.

Can't remember if you get to Regensburg or Nuremberg on your cruise... We loved both towns and were glad that our change in plans took us there. We stopped in Karlovy Vary on the way to Prague... It was an interesting little town - but not much to see other than the hot springs. And given that the weather was cold and rainy that day, it meant that we needed to find somewhere inside to eat. However - discovered Czech wafers there... and they were amazing.

The best part of the stop in Karlovy Vary was the fact that it gave us a break on our way to Prague... It is a long bus ride, and our bus wasn't well managed from a temperature perspective... (Many people nauseated from the heat and movement of the bus.... not fun).

Do you know where you are staying in Prague?? Can share some thoughts and/or suggestions if I know where "home base" is...

Fran

[catkoe1]

Hi Fran,
As Ron and I will be taking off in just a few short weeks on another Christmas Market Trip I would love to find the directions to your shop for "Garnet Jewelry and other Metal Ornaments.

Thank you so much for helping me find the place.. my email address is: catkoe1@cox.net.

[franski]

Cathy -

I have sent the directions to your e-mail...

We did find one other fun souvenir in Prague. There is a shop that has sports related Babushka (nesting) dolls. My boss is a Manchester United fan, so I found dolls for Man U. Besides football (ie: soccer), he has hockey, rugby, NFL etc. Just a bit different.

Regards,

Fran

[Westaussie]

Hi Fran - thanks for the info. We're doing the Vienna/Amsterdam route this time (maybe Prague/Budapest year after!) Spending five days in Vienna, have been there before many years ago.

Yes, we do go to Regensburg, Nuremberg etc. I would like to spend some time on board during the day between stops, is there much opportunity for this? Sailing at night on the last cruise I felt I missed a lovely part of the travel experience.

Vera

[franski]

Hi Vera -

We actually did get to spend some time cruising during the day - and really enjoyed it. We chose not to go to Salzburg - so cruised during the morning until we arrived at Passau in the afternoon. (My DH said he wasn't going to Salzburg unless Julie Andrews would be there singing "The hills are alive....")

Also - the stops in Regensberg & Nuremberg are afternoon stops - after a morning of cruising (at least on our trip... guess you'd have to check the itinerary...)

We really enjoyed the cruising time - so are glad that we did get to do some in daylight hours.

Fran

[bonvoyagequeen]

Hi Franski,
Would love the info on the Garnet shop and the shop that has sports related Babushkas. My email is: adoula44@comcast.net.
Thank you so much.
April

[carolgrant]

I can't speak to Uniworld but we just got back from the Amsterdam to Budapest cruise on the Amadagio and didn't have the problems with the waitstaff that the original writer did. The food was excellent. I would simply say that the waiters didn't fall all over themselves to serve you like on a big cruise ship where there is extensive individual tipping. But it made little difference, it was just something noticeable. We had an outstanding cruise director, Cherie. I loved the Infotainment system, it was really amazing but I agree, why nick the passenger a few bucks for a movie? Almost everything was otherwise included, except for basic beverages except for iced tea at lunch (again, why do they do that?). Also for those reading, please note that the only taxi to use in Budapest is City Tax, 2-111-111, they come in 5 minutes if called and are half the cost of other metered taxis.