Viking Grand European cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest

1st time cruiser this trip is 14 days September 8-22 from Amsterdam to Budapest would like some help with how much clothes to bring & what type for the weather. Also have checked some different excursion Viking offers for money & it's seems if you do it on your own if about half the price. Can someone help with these questions & maybe tell us which excursion are worth it. I appreciate any help

We took this trip last summer. Let me address the excursions.

I highly recommend the optional tour in Cologne of the BRÜHL UNESCO PALACES. See my comment in this post. It was one of the highlights of the trip.

The Würzburg’s Bishops’ Residenz is a must see as is Melk Abby. The library at the abbey is incredible and contains among other things, a copy of Copernicus' "On the Revolutions of Celestial Spheres." This BTW is how the word revolution entered the common lexicon.

If you're a history fan then the Nuremberg WWII tour is fascinating.

Take the Regensburg walking tour instead of the optional trip to Munich. Some people on our ship took the trip to Munich and were disappointed. You spend most of the time on a bus and are only in Munich a relatively short time. It's a long way to go and your time will be better spent in Regensburg.

There is so much to see in Vienna and so little time there. The ship docks near a metro stop so you can take that right into the heart of the city. On our own we visited the Imperial Treasury and saw Austrian Crown Jewels. We took the concert tour but should have did the city at night by ourselves. The Schonbrunn Palace tour was worth it. You could do it yourself but I enjoyed the narration by the tour guide, which BTW were all top notch during the entire trip. Most were student docents from a historical society.

The Budapest included tour was fantastic. You walk across the chain bridge, take a funicular railroad to the hills of Buda where you overlook the fantastic view of the city from the castle complex and the turreted Fisherman's Bastion, then it's a trip on a city bus downhill on narrow streets (Mr Toad's Wild Ride) to the metro where you head to Pest. At Heroes’ Square you'll the the parliament and the changing of the guard. There is a statue of Ronald Reagan near the Russian and US Embassy. From one angle, the dome of the parliament is visible behind him.

We opted for a post trip extension in Prague. Everyone should visit Prague at least once in their life. It's a magical city.

Thanks for all info & help if you could tell me what the weather was like I'm trying to figure out what to pack & how much to pack

I was a rookie also and did the Grand European in May/June.

We only did three paid excursions.

Salzburg: It is a long-ish bus ride (1-1.5 hours?) and while I am sure Salzburg is nice any other day, but we hit it on a bad day (father's day, a bank holiday, annnnd a car race). It was insanely loud and crowded.

My favorite was Rothenburg ob der Tauber which is an easily walkable medieval town -- very charming. We had an awesome guide and a lot of free time (which I like). I enjoyed the bus ride through the countryside (my ancestors are from Bavaria so I had fun imagining them).

We did the Bruehl Palace, too. I liked it -- a glimpse of conspicuous consumption back in the day.

In Vienna we did the "all in" walking tour -- we took the subway into the city with another awesome guide. It was very enjoyable; and we had free time afterwards though the time in Vienna felt too short. It's a beautiful city.

I have to admit, at first I chafed a bit at the walking tours. I'm very independent and walking in a group behind a guide with a "lollipop" made me restless; I tended to linger way behind or roam to the side or ahead. But, the guides were truly awesome and their insight into the history was truly fascinating so I settled in and enjoyed it.

Regarding dress, I was pleasantly surprised at how casual people dressed. In hindsight, I wish I had taken more casual clothing and not worried so much about what to wear at dinner.

Regarding "how much" to pack, there is a laundry service (the only price I remember was $6 for pants); and there is a retractable line in the shower if you want to handwash a bit. I would take something warm if you envision being on the sun deck in the evening (tho they have small blankies); I would take a jacket for rain. And comfy, fairly sturdy shoes.

I trotted out a long-ish black knit skirt for many dinners; wore it with a few tops. Maybe a few people thought "that black skirt again?!" But I doubt it. Ha!

We are traveling with another couple on the reverse of this itinerary, July 6 of 2018. There isn't a thread for this voyage as yet, so I'll just tag along with you on this one and see what happens.

This is our first river cruise and we are really excited to be doing this. I'm sure there is a lot of differences from our voyages on the ocean vessels and probably some similarities. Regardless, this will be fun and a fountain of opportunities for our photography portfolio.

The word of the day for dress code is casual, very casual.

This is nothing like ocean cruising. Wear what you would wear on a weekend at home. "Business casual" will have you overdressed most of the time.

Since it's a long trip and packing space is at a premium, we used a travel tip that we read that recommended alternating your outfits and getting three uses from a pair of slacks and two for a top. My wife also packed a spray bottle of some fabric relaxer to take the wrinkles out and to freshen up the clothes.

A light waterproof windbreaker is a must. My wife did a ton of research and bought Marmot brand jackets. They roll up, have a hidden hood, and are 100% waterproof. They worked great in the lowlands where it rained almost the whole time. Don't bring an umbrella, they are provided by Viking.

Germany was unseasonalbly hot last year. It hit the 90s a few times. I wish I had packed some shorts. Check the 10 day forecast right before you leave and plan accordingly.

A good pair of walking shoes is a must and I also brought a pair of lightweight deck shoes for use onboard.

Hey P,

> if you could tell me what the weather was like...

Go to http://www.underground.com. Enter "Budapest" in the search box. At the bottom left, click "June History". Change the date to September 2016. You will get the actual weather last year.

Enjoy your visit.

Ira

I was a rookie also and did the Grand European in May/June.

 

We only did three paid excursions.

 

Salzburg: It is a long-ish bus ride (1-1.5 hours?) and while I am sure Salzburg is nice any other day, but we hit it on a bad day (father's day, a bank holiday, annnnd a car race). It was insanely loud and crowded.

 

My favorite was Rothenburg ob der Tauber which is an easily walkable medieval town -- very charming. We had an awesome guide and a lot of free time (which I like). I enjoyed the bus ride through the countryside (my ancestors are from Bavaria so I had fun imagining them).

 

We did the Bruehl Palace, too. I liked it -- a glimpse of conspicuous consumption back in the day.

 

In Vienna we did the "all in" walking tour -- we took the subway into the city with another awesome guide. It was very enjoyable; and we had free time afterwards though the time in Vienna felt too short. It's a beautiful city.

 

I have to admit, at first I chafed a bit at the walking tours. I'm very independent and walking in a group behind a guide with a "lollipop" made me restless; I tended to linger way behind or roam to the side or ahead. But, the guides were truly awesome and their insight into the history was truly fascinating so I settled in and enjoyed it.

 

Regarding dress, I was pleasantly surprised at how casual people dressed. In hindsight, I wish I had taken more casual clothing and not worried so much about what to wear at dinner.

That is good to know. We are planning on taking country club style golf clothing/shorts and button shirts. My husband was worried about a suit jacket for the evenings. We will be there in the middle of July. I know Europe is experiencing a heatwave. He is not looking forward to long pants and a jacket

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We are just off Viking Ve from Budapest to Amsterdam. No men wore jackets to dinner and I mean NO. Forget that.

What works best is the usual "layers" and that means everything from short sleeve shirts to long sleeve ones. Bring things that can be rinsed out in the bathroom sink (including underwear). I bought some "Ex Officio" underwear and socks and rinsed them out each night (had 4 pairs in case). They dried out overnight each night.

If it's going to be hot, then maybe some kind of sandals but sturdy ones as you are going to be on cobblestones a lot on this trip.

I changed into nicer jeans and long sleeve shirts for dinner, but not everyone changed. Many just wore what they had from daytime.

If you have anything from the Travelsmith Catalog like shirts or pants, those can be washed and dried in the room on the cord that's in the shower. They also pack nicely.

We also enjoyed many of the tours that were mentioned above. I wouldn't do Munich or Salzburg from the ship as you spend half of the time going to and from on the bus and not a lot of time in those cities.

We had mixed feelings about the Bruhl trip. We had seen many of the palaces prior to that on our voyage, so they didn't stand out as much. Loved the Romantic Road trip though.

Norm

He is not looking forward to long pants and a jacket

I second the comment about the jacket -- I do not recall seeing one the entire trip. The men were a sea of knit polo shirts. :)

We took this trip last summer. Let me address the excursions.

 

I highly recommend the optional tour in Cologne of the BRÜHL UNESCO PALACES. See my comment in this post. It was one of the highlights of the trip.

 

The Würzburg’s Bishops’ Residenz is a must see as is Melk Abby. The library at the abbey is incredible and contains among other things, a copy of Copernicus' "On the Revolutions of Celestial Spheres." This BTW is how the word revolution entered the common lexicon.

 

If you're a history fan then the Nuremberg WWII tour is fascinating.

 

Take the Regensburg walking tour instead of the optional trip to Munich. Some people on our ship took the trip to Munich and were disappointed. You spend most of the time on a bus and are only in Munich a relatively short time. It's a long way to go and your time will be better spent in Regensburg.

 

There is so much to see in Vienna and so little time there. The ship docks near a metro stop so you can take that right into the heart of the city. On our own we visited the Imperial Treasury and saw Austrian Crown Jewels. We took the concert tour but should have did the city at night by ourselves. The Schonbrunn Palace tour was worth it. You could do it yourself but I enjoyed the narration by the tour guide, which BTW were all top notch during the entire trip. Most were student docents from a historical society.

 

The Budapest included tour was fantastic. You walk across the chain bridge, take a funicular railroad to the hills of Buda where you overlook the fantastic view of the city from the castle complex and the turreted Fisherman's Bastion, then it's a trip on a city bus downhill on narrow streets (Mr Toad's Wild Ride) to the metro where you head to Pest. At Heroes’ Square you'll the the parliament and the changing of the guard. There is a statue of Ronald Reagan near the Russian and US Embassy. From one angle, the dome of the parliament is visible behind him.

We opted for a post trip extension in Prague. Everyone should visit Prague at least once in their life. It's a magical city.

Great info! Thanks

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That is good to know. We are planning on taking country club style golf clothing/shorts and button shirts. My husband was worried about a suit jacket for the evenings. We will be there in the middle of July. I know Europe is experiencing a heatwave. He is not looking forward to long pants and a jacket

 

 

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My husband has a couple of the hybrid travel jackets from Travelsmith and brings one on each trip. This jacket can be thrown on in the evening to kick up a shirt a bit if needed, it also is a good all around jacket for having that extra layer outdoors when needed, and providing a bit of rain repelling.

We did the reverse of your tour and started in Budapest last July-August. It was much warmer than I expected and was much like home in ALabama. We flew in a day early to get our internal clocks reset and were very glad we did. Budapest is beautiful and the included tours were great. We did venture out in our own to one of the many pools/spas which was an adventure in itself! We were gone 18 days and took about 7-8 days worth of clothes. I took a small bottle of detergent and washed lightweight pants, shirts and undies and took 10-12 clothes pins!! I'm sure the neighbors got a kick of seeing our laundry drying in the chairs on the balcony, but it worked! Just don't do that when moving! I took a small handheld steamer (bought on Amazon for $25 and use it still) to get wrinkles out. We wore shorts, crop pants, and were hot in Budapest and Vienna but further north pulled out our jeans and North Face wind-rain jackets and sweaters at night. As others said, business casual at night ... I took 3 pairs of slacks and 6-7 nice tops and rotated them for evening with one sundress. Day time: crops or shorts, jeans maybe for Sept and t shirts or layers of tank tops and shirts would work. Take a hat! I wore Keen's Mary Jane style sandals or regular sneakers most days for touring because the keens worked for walking in airports and easy for security and are great in rain!! Our favorite tour was the extra to Salzburg for the sound of music tour. Vienna is beautiful but you need to venture out on your own some.. easy to take subway, a short walk from the ship. The crew is very helpful and can give you tips in every port for places to go. Our cruise director was excellent and lots of fun. It's a beautiful way to see the small towns of Germany with lots of history to see and learn! Last word, we paid full price for the Viking extra tours to Nuremberg and Salzburg and Munich and only the Munich tour was not worth the price. Have fun!!

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We're recently returned from this cruise. I'll second the remarks about casual clothes. I'd read on this forum that no one wore shorts for dinner. There were a LOT of men who wore shorts for dinner. One man wore a sport coat for dinner once and was noticeable for doing so. Never saw him wear it again! There were a few woman who wore lightweight casual dresses, but mostly it was pants/capris and tops. It was quite cool for the first few days, and pax were wearing layered tops or sweaters. Laundry service was very quick; we never waited more than 24 hrs. We were told that the

evening musical concert in Vienna was the most popular optional excursion. It was fully subscribed. IMO, the high point of the whole cruise. The walking tour guides were excellent, in fact, better than I'd expected. The optional tours are pricey. You'll want to think twice about purchasing them (except for the concert!) b/c the included are so good.

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We're recently returned from this cruise. I'll second the remarks about casual clothes. I'd read on this forum that no one wore shorts for dinner. There were a LOT of men who wore shorts for dinner. One man wore a sport coat for dinner once and was noticeable for doing so. Never saw him wear it again! There were a few woman who wore lightweight casual dresses, but mostly it was pants/capris and tops. It was quite cool for the first few days, and pax were wearing layered tops or sweaters. Laundry service was very quick; we never waited more than 24 hrs. We were told that the

evening musical concert in Vienna was the most popular optional excursion. It was fully subscribed. IMO, the high point of the whole cruise. The walking tour guides were excellent, in fact, better than I'd expected. The optional tours are pricey. You'll want to think twice about purchasing them (except for the concert!) b/c the included are so good.

 

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Thanks so much! Taking the sports jacket has been a BIG bone of contention...... collared shirts are my husband's standard.... but, he is balking at the jacket! I have several light sundresses that I can use for evening.... the weather reports indicate 90° many days. That's great info!

We're taking in a concert on our own in Prague, and may also use OBC for the one in Vienna. My husband has sooooo much he wants me to see their, and we don't have much time. Right now, we're leaving our options open.

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Thanks everyone for all helpful hints I have another question about Sunday at ports is everything opened and available we are in Cologne and Vienna on sundays and also a wine tour is already sold out for optional excursion do they add on if there is more interest and do many excursion even the free ones sell out. Should I wait tell onboard to decide or do it now our cruise is September 8

Sunday in Cologne the right next to the Cathedral Romano-Germanic Museum presents the archaeological heritage of the city and the surrounding area from the Palaeolithic period to the early Middle Ages. The museum stands on the foundations of an urban Roma villa with the world-famous Dionysius mosaic. OPEN Sunday. Closed Monday.

Usually when you arrive at your ship there is a excursion signup sheet in your room. If there are openings I suggest sign up by 9PM that first night.

Thanks so much! Taking the sports jacket has been a BIG bone of contention...... collared shirts are my husband's standard.... but, he is balking at the jacket! I have several light sundresses that I can use for evening.... the weather reports indicate 90° many days. That's great info!

 

We're taking in a concert on our own in Prague, and may also use OBC for the one in Vienna. My husband has sooooo much he wants me to see their, and we don't have much time. Right now, we're leaving our options open.

 

 

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We are also going to monitor the weather before deciding to take a sports coat or not. My preference is to not take one just to eliminate a packing item. There is about a year to figure it out.

Thanks for all info & help if you could tell me what the weather was like I'm trying to figure out what to pack & how much to pack

Really asking about the weather is pretty pointless as it is changeable and inconsistent. Bring clothes which allow you flexibility. We were on Amsterdam to Budapest last month. I brought tshirts to use as under layers for cold days, they became go to outers as the heat soared . We never saw rain with 1 small exception. Had to do a ship switch because of low water. Used shorts way more than expected. Most important of all are your shoes, both for comfort as well as grip on cobblestones and other walkways. Undies , socks etc can be rinsed or sent out to wash as needed. Packed a dozen nice casual shirts, think Polo or resort style and repeated a couple at end of 14 days. No one cared or noticed. Put in one long sleeve and wore it to the nighttime concert in Vienna. People upped the dress that night but nothing formal. I think we saw a sport coat once, a couple who got more dressed because it was their anniversary and they wanted to.

Just so you know it hit over 90 on the Melk abbey day

An early poster wrote

The Budapest included tour was fantastic. You walk across the chain bridge, take a funicular railroad to the hills of Buda where you overlook the fantastic view of the city from the castle complex and the turreted Fisherman's Bastion, then it's a trip on a city bus downhill on narrow streets (Mr Toad's Wild Ride) to the metro where you head to Pest. At Heroes’ Square you'll the the parliament and the changing of the guard. There is a statue of Ronald Reagan near the Russian and US Embassy. From one angle, the dome of the parliament is visible behind him.

Parliment is not close to Heroes' Square. It's about a two mile walk.

Question. On these various city walking tours that last 2-4 hours, are there breaks where you can stop and rest, or is it continuous walking the whole time. Asking for the sake of my stamina.

Question. On these various city walking tours that last 2-4 hours, are there breaks where you can stop and rest, or is it continuous walking the whole time. Asking for the sake of my stamina.

I don't know I have not taken the cruise yet I don't go till September but an answer for someone else would be nice

Question. On these various city walking tours that last 2-4 hours, are there breaks where you can stop and rest, or is it continuous walking the whole time. Asking for the sake of my stamina.

Lots of stopping and not necessarily resting, but looking at a particular site and hearing info about it. None of the town walks are strenuous. Even the Viking tour listed as the most difficult, Marksburg Castle, most of the elevation was done at the beginning and our PD stopped at every switchback for the slower walkers.

Question. On these various city walking tours that last 2-4 hours, are there breaks where you can stop and rest, or is it continuous walking the whole time. Asking for the sake of my stamina.

They tours are well paced but it really depends on the particular location and tour guide. The guides stop a lot to give you historical information about what you are viewing. In the small villages, they tend to end early and you'll have a fair amount of time to shop, rest, or grab some refreshments. They also offer a slow paced walking tour group for those with mobility or stamina issues.