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We were on the Tauck Danube River cruise August 12-27 from Budapest to Prague.  The cruise itinerary started with a 2-day hotel stay in the center of everything and three blocks from the river.  Perfect location.  We could not cruise to Bratslava because of the low water, so we took the Tauck bus from Budapest to Vienna to our ship.  We did not find that to be a problem as we were able to see the Hungarian countryside, which was really a treat.  The only downfall was that day the Austrian government decided to put up a border patrol, so it took us much longer to get to Vienna.  Once in Vienna, we went to our scheduled tour of Bratslava.  It is only an hour's drive from Vienna.  From then on our itinerary did not change.  When traveling you always need to be flexible and enjoy whatever comes along.

I am currently on the Tauck Savor, Budapest to Prague. We were bused from Budapest to Vienna to our ship. We were bused from ship to Bratislava Slovakia for tour, then back to Vienna for 2 more days. Only an hour drive. We have not missed any ports and are right on schedule. The low water level on Danube prevented ship from going to Budapest. We r now in Passau and will be leaving ship tomorrow going to Regensburg, then to Prague for 2 days before departure for home, all included in Tauck itinerary. It has been a delightful trip. I understand that one of the cruises was completely cancelled.

My husband is on Bipap. Getting distilled water has been problematic. When went to stores in Amsterdam, Venice, and Barcelona, shopkeepers look at you with a blank look because they don’t know what it is. In Shanghai the store attached to hotel had a good supply. Even on princess cruise we had difficulty getting water as they didn’t know what it was. On Tauck river cruise we were able to get water. As far as plugs, we always take converters, adapters, and extension cords. On the Tauck river cruise last year there were very few American plugs and none by the bed so we needed converter and extension cords. We carry a 25 foot extension cord at all times.

We did the Rhine Amsterdam to Switzerland river cruise on Tauck last year. We have done about 7 ocean cruises, mostly on Princess in the past. We thoroughly enjoyed our river cruise and are now booked for the Danube on Tauck from Budapest to Prague. Some have asked about the bus rides and wished they could just walk off the boat for the excursion. There are places that we visited where that is not possible. Such as on the Rhine we went to Stuttgart, probably an hour's drive from the boat. But along the way we saw parts of Germany. Even if you are on a bus, you are still seeing the country that you are visiting. Tauck's buses are their own and are very new and very comfortable. At the end of our Rhine river cruise we stayed two nights in Bern, Switzerland on land where we traveled up the mountain to the top of Europe. It was a wonderful experience, and we got to see a beautiful part of Switzerland. As to ocean versus river cruising, I like both. With ocean cruising you can't get into the heart of a country, whereas with river cruising you are seeing the interior of the countries rather than just the outskirts that you can reach from the seaport. We also took a Viking China riverboat cruise. It was such a wonderful experience, and I would highly recommend it. A wonderful way to see China. As far as cabins on the Tauck boats, we had a Class 7 which was very spacious. Food was wonderful. The smaller boat gave us a chance to really get to know the other passengers onboard. We chose our river cruises based on itinerary. The Danube itinerary on Tauck is more preferable than the Viking for us. Each company, Tauck and Viking, do an excellent job.

That was Ritz Carlton, not rarity. Darn auto correct.

We were on the Shanghai to Beijing tour last September12. We did the Pekong duck dinner with Viking. The restaurant they now use was excellent. We stayed at the rarity Carlton. Some who did not opt for the Peking duck dinner ate at an Italian restaurant at the Ritz. There is a wonderful shopping mall attached to the Ritz and the Italian restaurant was located in that area.

We had a wonderful trip with Viking.

I'm presently on shanghai to Beijing. We have finished the cruising and are n Xian. Beijing tomorrow. You do not need fancy clothes or heels. I have one pair of Teva cushy sandals which I've worn most of the time. Two pair of jogging type shoes which came in handy when it rained. One pair of dressier flat sandals. Shirts, mid length pants and long pants, light weight knit in blue and black with coordinating shirts. That's it. Two sweaters and a rain jacket. Don't overpack and don't get over fancy. No one else will be. This is a great trip. Having a great time. 75 percent of passengers are from UK.

Thanks, Caribill, for seeking out this information from Viking. I appreciate your efforts.

Gunner, we are on the Sept. 12 Shanghai to Beijing. We are not coming in early so are reliant on the Viking itinerary. It is confusing if Viking told you the tour of the gardens is not included. One way or the other we are going to see the gardens, either if it's on Viking's tour or if we have to go on our own on the free afternoon. Hope you have a wonderful trip. We are really looking forward to seeing China.

Thanks. Good to know. Was language a problem when using cabs?

Interesting. Here is what our book says:

"Included Bund & Shanghai Museum Tour. Enjoy a drive along the Bund, the city's elegant riverside promenade. Then, enjoy a visit to the Shanghai Museum, filled with exhibits of ancient Chinese art. Return to your hotel and the rest of the day is at your leisure."

No mention of the gardens. So we will for sure go on our own if it is not included.

I wonder if the Shanghai to Beijing tour of Shanghai starts later on the morning. The difference between the two seems to be that the tour of the museum on the Shanghai to Beijing itinerary is after lunch, where the Beijing to Shanghai intinerary the museum tour is before lunch with the gardens after lunch. Would be a bummer not to see the gardens. Thanks for inquiring of Viking. I'll be interested to hear their reply.

Thanks for the reply. It is not mentioned in the itinerary although Viking has a lovely video of the gardens. Glad to know its part of the Bund tour.

Thank you. We are so looking forward to visiting the gardens.

We are taking the river cruise from Shaghai to Beijing on September 12. We have just viewed the YuYuan video from Viking and want to make sure we see it. Is it part of Viking's tour in Shanghai or is it something we would do on our own? If we do it on our own, what is the best way to get from the Ritz Carlton Portman to the gardens and back?

Anyone else on our cruise?

The always available was available. I agree the selection on international night was not very good. Had the lamb shank which was not good. DH had the always available strip steak, and it as not tender.

We were on this cruise. We were in Glacier Bay for quite a while, and the ship was turned around at least three times for a very good view. We were in Glacier Bay nine years ago. The glacier now is extremely small compared to nine years ago. The glacier that was at the very end of the bay is now nonexistent. Very sad.

In response to the cruiser on the Golden, we arrived in Victoria an hour late, after 7:00 pm. When we got there a Norwegian ship was in port. We had already paid for a Victoria Highlights excursion. Because of getting in so late due to the rough seas the night before from Ketchikan, our excursion didn't leave until 8:00. So we saw Victoria in the twilight and darkness. When we returned to the ship, the Golden had pulled in where Norwegian had been. This was not Golden's fault. Obviously ships' arrivals and departures are controlled by port authorities, not the cruise line, so don't be hard on the cruise line.

Just started this roll call.