Amadeus' Blue Danuble Discovery

In early August, my wife and I sailed on board the Amacello's Blue Danube Discovery Cruise from Budapest to Nuremberg before continuing to Prague. Although there have been an abundance of reviews on CC, we wanted to contribute to the threads on this subject.

This was our first river cruise after several ocean cruises and we found our time on the Danube to be absolutely delightful. Cruising on the river is idyllic and there is little sensation of movement. We would certainly consider another river cruise on AMA and would sail anywhere with Debbie Albrecht, our cruise director. As stated in a previous post, Debbie is personable, organized, knowlegable, and unflapable.

Kempinski Hotel (Budapest): A marvelous hotel, well situated; breakfasts are buffet style with an eclectic and abundant selection of food choices, which included hot dishes (e.g., omelets, oatmeal, etc.) The hotel has an unusual lighting system that makes it difficult to read in bed (e.g., key card has to be in the proc reader to turn on the lights, including the bathroom, which makes a night run a challenge.

Hilton: The room size at the Prague Hilton is generous; the design of the bathroom left something to be desired given the high step into the bathtub and partial glass enclosure. The heated floor was a nice touch. The Hilton is approximately 10 minutes from Old Town Square.

We enjoyed the Amacello, which is one of AMA's newest vessels. The ship is well maintained, the serve staff is friendly and attentive and the cabins' space is well configured (given the size and space limitations). Breakfast and lunch are good while dinners were excellent. If you order an alcohol beverage and/or soda at lunch, you will be charged for the drinks; Wine and soda are complimentary at dinner (and are unlimited). We do not know how liquor is handled at dinner.

The ship has open seating and there are tables for 2, 4, and 6 people, respectively. The wine is regional, excellent, and in abundance and the cuisine is linked to the port of call; as an option, hamburgers, grilled chicken, French fries, Caesar salad are available.

There is a variety of local entertainment which, for the most part, is quite enjoyable (especially the group called Aphrodites from Bratislava).

While the internet is gratis, it is slow (due to the uplink with the satellite) and does not work when the ship passes through the locks.

Tour guides use audio vox transmitters to speak and passengers have headsets which is great as you do not have to be on top of the guide to hear what is being said. This system also enables you to wander and still hear what is being said (All the better to take pictures).

Tours are divided into 4 groups and the receivers are color coded to the guides' colored lollipop. At the end of each tour, you turn in the audio vox unit (so that it can be recharged); you hold onto the headset; be careful not to lose either the headset or unit as AMA will bill the offender for the replacement.

For the most part, we enjoyed our tour guides. Katherine (an ex-Pat from Vermont) was an absolute delight (Dunrstein and Melk). If you can ascertain which color coded group Katherine is leading, then do your best to be in her group. We also enjoyed Alex (from Chosen Tours and Paul from Whitmann's Terezine tour. (The latter two are private tours).

We went to Szentende (St. Andrew), a charming arts and crafts town about 15 mile north of Budapest. We also attended a concert in Vienna, which was most enjoyable (Mozart and Strauss), and opted for Salzburg because Toni had not been there and the alternative was to spend the day sailing to Passau. En route to Salzburg the tour bus stops in Mondase, a lovely town, where the Sound of Music was filmed for a 2 hour visit. As scenic as Mondase is, we would have preferred to have traveled straight to Salzburg, but this course of action would never happen. Salzburg was very crowded on the day we were in town (because of a fair, youth jamboree, and the usual summer tourists). Despite the crowded conditions, we enjoyed Salzburg and after riding the tour bus back to the ship we had sufficient time to do a self-guided tour of Passau before the ship's departure. (The Amacello arrived in Passau at 4:30, about 90 minutes prior to our arrival from Salzburg.)

AMA recommended tipping: 12 Euros per person/per day for the crew; 3 Euros per person/per day for the Cruise Director

BUDAPEST

Must do’s: House of Terror, Chosen Tours; self-guided tour of Fisherman's Bastion and Palace (didn't actually have time to go inside the Palace - just took photos of the Vienna Gate); Parliament (to see the memorial dedicated to 1956 Revolution), Promenade along the Danube to see the Memorial of Shoes.

Statue Park (aka Memorial Park) is included in the Hammer & Sickle Tour. It is worth visiting because it covers the Soviet occupation and is not seen on any other tour.

Hop on/off bus: We found the hop on/off bus a good enough orientation and we spent far more time in Buda at the Fisherman's Bastion then the AMA allows. You should also get off at the Citadel. The AMA tour stops at Hero Square for picture taking so no need to get off the Hop On/Hop off bus.

Restaurants

Ruzzwurm (in Buda near Hilton Hotel) nice place to have pastry/coffee; Spinoza Cafe (in Jewish quarter and suggested by guide Alex, but nothing special, just convenient); Cyrano (in Pest off Vaco Utca), Cafe Miro (in Buda - busy spot and slow service), Cafe Kor (in Pest; concierge made reservations for us; we forgot about needing cash but an ATM was close by/ food was great); Dunacorso (in Pest near Inter-Continental Hotel and recommended by cruise director); and of course Gerbeaud Cafe (where the sandwiches were a work of art but the deserts were rave worthy)

VIENNA

We took the Amacello tour bus into town, so no need to look for taxis. At the end of our day, we took the metro back to the ship. It was about five stops from the St. Stephens Cathedral and then about a ten minute walk to the ship.

Go to the Sacher Hotel for their famous tort (and other pastry). We were on one of the pedestrian streets (Karntner Strasse?) when we saw a sign for Sky Cafe. We took the elevator up to the sixth floor and had to take another up to the seventh floor and walked outside for spectacular views of Vienna.

We decided against optional tour to Schonbrunn Castle because we wanted to see Hofberg Castle and more of Vienna.

Optional evening concert: An enjoyable evening, but VERY warm in the concert hall. The attire is business casual.

DURNSTEIN

Visit the cemetery which is a self-guided and is right where the guided tour ends. Durnstein is one street with the cemetery at the end. Try the apricot pastry at the bakery. If you have time and the inclination, hike up to the old fortress for a beautiful view of Passau and the Danube. The hike is moderate in nature and takes approximately 20 minutes to reach (at a brisk pace).

PRAGUE

Must do’s:

Take elevator atop of Town Hall Tower (where the Atomic Clock is located) for a majestic view of the Square and surrounding area;

Climb the tower by the Charles Bridge for another fantastic view; walk all the streets that branch off of the Old Town Square

Visit Terezin Concentration Camp (Our guide through a private tour company is a survivor of Terezin and other Camps and his experience made our experience that much more riveting.

Restaurants: We did not join the optional tour for the Czech Folk dinner because we preferred to use the time to walk around; ate dinner at the Sphinx because of the crowd - good prices but average food; ate dinner at the Zodiac (concierge recommended - unique setting in a belfry; food was very good and a beautiful presentation; we had the place to ourselves); and the first night we ate dinner at the hotel (claim to fame the chief is from the TV series Hells Kitchen --long story).

GENERAL

Throughout our trip we discovered that some restaurants included the gratuity in the bill; most restaurants will accept credit cards, but the tip needs to be in cash.

Austria and Germany use Euros; Hungry, Slovakia, and the CR have their own currency and you are better off using the local currency. The best place to obtain local currency is at ATMs.

Bruce and Toni

We leave in 2 days going in the opposite direction (Prague to Budapest). I have printed out your review and am putting it my triip folder for referral when we are enroute. Thanks.

Thank you for your review. My sister and I will leave Oct. 21 for the Prague to Budapest cruise on the same boat. I have printed your notes. Jinn

and the first night we ate dinner at the hotel (claim to fame the chief is from the TV series Hells Kitchen --long story).

What hotel did you stay at in Prague?

Eadien7:

We stayed at the Prague Hilton: The room size at the Prague Hilton is generous; the design of the bathroom left something to be desired given the high step into the bathtub and partial glass enclosure. The heated floor was a nice touch. The Hilton is approximately 10 minutes from Old Town Square.

Bruce

Thanks. I'm at the President in Prague. The BF thinks Gordon Ramsey is 'god'. Thought it might be fun to go to the restaurant.

Jinn and Lynne:

Have a great and safe trip. Incidentally, there is a rather large and rather modern shopping mall in Prague (The Palladium), which is in walking distance from Old Town and the Hilton. In many ways, the mall is surreal after spending so much timw in the Old Town. One other note, when in the squre, pariculaly if you are watching the atomic clock, bewarde the pickpocets. It's sad, but a fact of life.

Have a great trip.

Bruce

Thanks for an excellent review. We are seriously considering taking this trip with AMA in 2009. Prices are considerably higher for 2009 vs. 2008, which is ironic and fuel prices drop and the dollar gains strength against the euro.

Bruce and Toni,

Great review. Tried to find the Zodiac on internet. No Luck. Does it have another name, or do you know the location/address.

Thank You in advance.

We will be in Prague in December for 12 days,

your review is going to be very useful to us.

Letteanne

Letteanne:

The name of the restuarant is Zvonice (Belfry), which is located near Wenceslas Square. A link for the restaurant is:

http://www.mycompanion.cz/en/list/zvonice?detailmap=1

Bruce

Bruce,

Thank You.

DH loves good food in unique settings. He is

making reservations as I type this.

Letteanne

We're leaving on the Blue Danube Discovery tour next week and looking forward to it - many thanks for all the reviews and helpful information already provided.

I noticed an optional "Folklore Dinner Show" is offered while we are in Prague and wondered if anyone had taken this or heard any reviews. If so, can you let me know whether it's a good option? We are staying on in Prague for a couple of extra nights, so we will have other opportunities for eating out and exploring on our own.

Thanks so much for all the info

Another question

What were the prices like for the optional tours - along with the concert in Vienna

Thanks

thanks for being so generous by posting your review. we leave on the Avalon Tapestry 9/25 from BUD to PRG so this will come in handy! all the best!

Minor correction, Slovakia is on the Euro as of January 1, 2009. Hungary is Florints and Czech Republic uses Czech Crowns. Thanks for the great review, love to relive a marvelous cruise!

Thanks so much for all the info

Another question What were the prices like for the optional tours - along with the concert in Vienna Thanks

This is what they were this year:

AUSTRIA

Guided tour of Schönbrunn Palace € 40

Mozart & Strauss Concert in Vienna € 65

Full-day excursion to Salzburg € 72

CZECH REPUBLIC

Half-day excursion to Terezin € 45

Folklore Dinner Show € 58

HUNGARY

Half day excursion to Szentendre € 40

Puszta excursion with lunch € 72