COLD temps in Danube ports..is river frozen ?

[Yggdrasil98]

Nana, after 5 days of Deggendorf, I would have been thrilled to be stranded at Regensburg, at least there would be somewhere to walk around each day that is interesting.

 

You read the person from Viking, she also has lost her spirit of adventure.

 

We have people here in tears, many sick people (as usual on any river cruise) people partying, people saying so what, others of us who have had excellent experiences on several River Cruises getting really cross with the way AMA/APT have handled this situation.

[remydiva]

Nana, after 5 days of Deggendorf, I would have been thrilled to be stranded at Regensburg, at least there would be somewhere to walk around each day that is interesting.

 

You read the person from Viking, she also has lost her spirit of adventure.

 

We have people here in tears, many sick people (as usual on any river cruise) people partying, people saying so what, others of us who have had excellent experiences on several River Cruises getting really cross with the way AMA/APT have handled this situation.

 

I write this from the viking njord in budapest..we sailed in last night with Budapest all illuminated ( i had no idea what a beautiful sight this was) after travelling on the Danube having left Passau on Dec 29.

 

At every town, guides said " last week this road, wall, etc was under water" so timing was every thing for our cruise. Weather has cooperated with some days of spitting rain and a couple days of sun but chilly ( at least it warmed up to -2C from the -15C it was a couple of weeks ago)

 

The head cold has hit this ship too with most everyone coughing, sneezing and searching for pharmacies. (HINT bring your cold meds from home with you as all the directions are in german, slovakia or hungarian!)

 

I feel so bad for those who are being bussed not cruising...cant imagine how upsetting that is....wonder if they will still hand out the customer service survies like we got last night?

[dwkucera]

Nana, after 5 days of Deggendorf, I would have been thrilled to be stranded at Regensburg, at least there would be somewhere to walk around each day that is interesting.

 

You read the person from Viking, she also has lost her spirit of adventure.

 

We have people here in tears, many sick people (as usual on any river cruise) people partying, people saying so what, others of us who have had excellent experiences on several River Cruises getting really cross with the way AMA/APT have handled this situation.

 

I don't mean this to be critical of your statement at all, but I would like to know what you think AMA/APT could have done to make the situation better. Also, I hope you have given them feedback on this so they might improve their procedures in the future.

[Talisker92]

Nana, after 5 days of Deggendorf, I would have been thrilled to be stranded at Regensburg, at least there would be somewhere to walk around each day that is interesting.

 

You read the person from Viking, she also has lost her spirit of adventure.

 

We have people here in tears, many sick people (as usual on any river cruise) people partying, people saying so what, others of us who have had excellent experiences on several River Cruises getting really cross with the way AMA/APT have handled this situation.

 

We were stuck in Deggendorf for 2 days, as there is one railway bridge that is low. Vantage took good care of us, taking us to an outdoor museum one and to a charming town of Straubing to see Durer's house and stained glass. The next day we were bused to Regensburg. Early (5 AM) the third day the level had dropped enough to clear the bridge.

People were laying down on the sun deck and cheering as we slipped under the bridge.

[buckeye82]

I write this from the viking njord in budapest..we sailed in last night with Budapest all illuminated ( i had no idea what a beautiful sight this was) after travelling on the Danube having left Passau on Dec 29.

 

At every town, guides said " last week this road, wall, etc was under water" so timing was every thing for our cruise. Weather has cooperated with some days of spitting rain and a couple days of sun but chilly ( at least it warmed up to -2C from the -15C it was a couple of weeks ago)

 

The head cold has hit this ship too with most everyone coughing, sneezing and searching for pharmacies. (HINT bring your cold meds from home with you as all the directions are in german, slovakia or hungarian!)

 

I feel so bad for those who are being bussed not cruising...cant imagine how upsetting that is....wonder if they will still hand out the customer service survies like we got last night?

 

 

My family was on the Njord the week before you, over Christmas, traveling Budapest to Passau. We had snow in Budapest and there was slush on the ground in Slovakia. The river was high and running swiftly, and we left Slovakia a couple of hours early due to high water. They wanted to make sure we made it under the bridges before the water got higher. Other than that, we had gray days for the most part but no rain or other high water concerns. One lady I met said her husband was up on the sun deck the night we left early and he watched them lower everything so we could pass under a bridge. They told him he could stay up there as long as he remembered to duck. Which he did! The head cold was just getting started on our trip. My husband got it toward the end of the trip, but my kids and I didn't! Great trip!

[steamboats]

Due to heavy rain the Danube is rising again and Passau is on flood stage (warning level 1, but forecast is for level 3). So expect problems there for the next few days.

 

Here´s a nice webcam of Passau showing the town hall square. Click on the image and it becomes larger. You can see that the river is pretty much filled up already. In the background you can see the Inn river merging with the Danube river at Passau.

 

The Rhine river is still falling slightly but there have been problems last week. With new water coming from the Alps it may rise again.

 

steamboats

[buckeye82]

Due to heavy rain the Danube is rising again and Passau is on flood stage (warning level 1, but forecast is for level 3). So expect problems there for the next few days.

 

Here´s a nice webcam of Passau showing the town hall square. Click on the image and it becomes larger. You can see that the river is pretty much filled up already. In the background you can see the Inn river merging with the Danube river at Passau.

 

The Rhine river is still falling slightly but there have been problems last week. With new water coming from the Alps it may rise again.

 

steamboats

 

 

Passau was lovely! We walked to the park at the convergence of the Inn and the Danube. I will have to check the webcam again when it is daylight. That was my one complaint. The days were so very short!

[nana541]

My apologies ... Totally different issue and if I would have thought a bit more about it I would have realized that "high water" was the issue...

 

Not a lot Viking can do about that.... The water and the bridges are not in their control.... And moving 3 boat loads of people must be a real tough prospect.

 

Hope everyone manages to retain the Spirit of adventure!

 

Not sure why I have been quoted repeatedly???? What happened to many many cruisers due to "high water" and being stuck or bused and sick to top it off is awful!!! I imagine passengers and the Rivercruise companies involved are not happy.... I know I would be "less than happy" to put it mildly.

 

By saying folks needed to keep their "Spirit of adventure" I certainly did not mean to make light of this awful situation. If any of my fellow posters and cruisers took it as such then I apologize from the bottom of my heart.

 

I for one will continue to try to not lose my "Spirit" or sense of "Adventure" hoping you are all home and safe and well.

 

Kathleen

[remydiva]

Due to heavy rain the Danube is rising again and Passau is on flood stage (warning level 1, but forecast is for level 3). So expect problems there for the next few days.

 

Here´s a nice webcam of Passau showing the town hall square. Click on the image and it becomes larger. You can see that the river is pretty much filled up already. In the background you can see the Inn river merging with the Danube river at Passau.

 

The Rhine river is still falling slightly but there have been problems last week. With new water coming from the Alps it may rise again.

 

steamboats

 

Great webcam shot and you can see how high the water is by the walkway.

 

But " good news" is that our cruise was the last of the season so no need to worry any more for the passau- budapest- passau route till march.

 

We are in transit enroute home...got the bus transfer via viking leaving at 3:45 am for our 6:30 am flight to frankfurt. Ungodly hour to be up when you are on holidays IMHO.

 

HINT check if your flight is leaving terminal A or b from budapest...viking staff unhelpful in directing to proper terminal. Luckily a short walk to get to correct one.

[Yggdrasil98]

re: dwkucera, what could they have done? Gosh, where do I begin.

 

They should have admitted 3 days sooner this was going to be a huge issue for them, and us, thus ruining our holiday, and perhaps gone back to moor at a location there was something to see. Been more frank in the assessment of the situation. Some of us were indeed tracking the floods online, about 6 of us. That is how we knew what the real situation was, but the "updates" were more than inadequate.

 

The food suddenly improved a little after 2 days in Deggendorf, so that was tried, a lecture on the EU, we had a half day trip to a Glass factory where 95% of the products were made in China, (yes we asked the workers there). We could have had choices, we were on a Platinum Freedom of Choice Cruise so the scheduled itinerary was excellent as it was a total repeat for us, and even without the flooding it would have been lucky to rate a 4-5. As I said i will be reviewing when I am less emotional, husband is less sick. We are are totally exhausted on every level. We had a great cruise director, but she could only do what she could do and we were grateful they allowed us to leave the group early. Others were told they could not.

 

Apologies, I feel goaded into commenting before I feel more "human" and promised I would not review before I could feel less emotional.

[marion10]

We have been sent an email telling us Viking is going to give us a $500 credit per person on a future cruise.

[remydiva]

We have been sent an email telling us Viking is going to give us a $500 credit per person on a future cruise.

 

Are you satisfied withnthis offer? I dont think i would as viking still has your full fare that you already paid for a full cruise ( which you did not receive).

 

A future cruise credit which, given the creative pricing viking does ie 2/1, " free air", will be hard to really know if you got it all all

 

. PLUS it means you have to go back, use more vacation time, air fare, etc in order to try it again. It could be like a gift certificate to a store you dont want to shop in.

[remydiva]

My family was on the Njord the week before you, over Christmas, traveling Budapest to Passau. We had snow in Budapest and there was slush on the ground in Slovakia. The river was high and running swiftly, and we left Slovakia a couple of hours early due to high water. They wanted to make sure we made it under the bridges before the water got higher. Other than that, we had gray days for the most part but no rain or other high water concerns. One lady I met said her husband was up on the sun deck the night we left early and he watched them lower everything so we could pass under a bridge. They told him he could stay up there as long as he remembered to duck. Which he did! The head cold was just getting started on our trip. My husband got it toward the end of the trip, but my kids and I didn't! Great trip!

 

Interesting that the head cold was on the ship the week before us and yet there were no extra health precautions taken. Just the hand sanitizer at entrance to dining room that you could or could not use. Bowls of peanuts nightly in lounge for many hands to share, no sneeze guards on food at lunch at the self serve counter, and i watched the room cleaner use the same cloth to wipe everything in the room as i was in there resting...no chlorox wipes, spray cleaners, disposable wipes etc..all which would have helped the spread. All 8 of our group got the chest/ head cold.

[beverlyjack]

On our last 2 cruises on Grand Circle, on the Aria and the Bizet, with no illness aboard that we knew of, the restaurant manager stood by the sanitizer, at the entrance to the dining room, and requested that everyone use it. I didn't see anyone not use it. On the Aria, a couple of days the sanitizer was not working, so the restaurant manager had a squirt bottle of sanitizer, which he squirted on everybody's hands. in the tight confines of a river cruise, and given the high average age of the cruisers, precautions should be taken.

[franski]

Are you satisfied withnthis offer? I dont think i would as viking still has your full fare that you already paid for a full cruise ( which you did not receive).

 

Actually, I think that this is very generous. There are lots of "caveats" in the booking fine print - and there is no guarantee that you will, in fact, cruise the entire itinerary as planned. Weather and water levels are the biggest issue - but there are other things (local strikes, closures of buildings) that can also impact.

 

Viking is one of the few companies that appears to give anything to customers who did not complete the cruise as planned. I think that it is quite generous that they do - but don't know that they should have to. I have not cruised yet with Viking (my first cruise with them is in April of this year) so I am not here as a Viking cheerleader.

 

For my last booking with Scenic, I had a form to sign that outlines some of the issues that could result in changes to our trip - and they would not complete my booking until I signed that I was aware that "situations" may occur - and that they would not be responsible for things outside of their control. This included weather, water levels, planned excursions - and even the food.

 

To my way of thinking, it is like asking an all-inclusive resort for money off your trip because there were too many days of rain, or they ran out of orange juice at breakfast.

 

Fran

[edinburgher]

IBeing UK based I also access a website here, primarily for the reviews of UK cruiselines. It is www.cruise.co.uk.

 

 

Most recent reviews which I read this morning, include two which could be of interest to you both as the pax were sailing at the same time, one on APT/AmaVerde, one with Uniworld, and both experienced the same frustrations as you two. The contrast in how each company coped with the high waters issue is astonishing and I recommend that you read both, although the APT story will be familiar!

 

I am totally impressed with the actions taken by Uniworld, but have no idea if that procedure is the norm or a one off due to the date and New Year commitments in Vienna.

 

 

They can be found on the above website. At the moment, (until new reviews are added) on Page 1, APT River cruises Budapest to Amsterdam with one star beside it. (person has submitted 3 in error) and currently on Page 2, "Uniworld say you shall go to the ball and we did", with 5 stars.

 

 

If that does not work, try searching by using the Reviews section where you can input for specific lines and/or boats/ships.

[buckeye82]

Interesting that the head cold was on the ship the week before us and yet there were no extra health precautions taken. Just the hand sanitizer at entrance to dining room that you could or could not use. Bowls of peanuts nightly in lounge for many hands to share, no sneeze guards on food at lunch at the self serve counter, and i watched the room cleaner use the same cloth to wipe everything in the room as i was in there resting...no chlorox wipes, spray cleaners, disposable wipes etc..all which would have helped the spread. All 8 of our group got the chest/ head cold.

 

 

You are so right! I first realized the cold was going around when I approached a staff member at the reception desk and she started coughing. I took a step back and said, "oh! I am sorry you're sick." To which she replied, "not too sick." Then it seemed on every tour we took there was the same young lady passenger hacking away. One of the reasons I always think twice about taking winter vacations!

[remydiva]

IBeing UK based I also access a website here, primarily for the reviews of UK cruiselines. It is www.cruise.co.uk.

 

 

Most recent reviews which I read this morning, include two which could be of interest to you both as the pax were sailing at the same time, one on APT/AmaVerde, one with Uniworld, and both experienced the same frustrations as you two. The contrast in how each company coped with the high waters issue is astonishing and I recommend that you read both, although the APT story will be familiar!

 

I am totally impressed with the actions taken by Uniworld, but have no idea if that procedure is the norm or a one off due to the date and New Year commitments in Vienna.

 

 

They can be found on the above website. At the moment, (until new reviews are added) on Page 1, APT River cruises Budapest to Amsterdam with one star beside it. (person has submitted 3 in error) and currently on Page 2, "Uniworld say you shall go to the ball and we did", with 5 stars.

 

 

If that does not work, try searching by using the Reviews section where you can input for specific lines and/or boats/ships.

 

It wasn't easy to find the post you were referring to so I am copying and pasting it here for others to read, including VIKING and AMA customer service.

 

Uniworld went above and beyond the call of duty to make the poster's cruise memorable and in a good way. Imagine, bringing a boat out of winter storage! I sailed Uniworld in 2009 and will go back to them in a heart beat after my Viking experience....very poor food, mediocre service, lousy wine 'bottled specially for Viking', head/chest cold not contained, no one to meet and greet us when we arrive, when we returned from excursions or when we left.

 

here is the review from the uk site:

 

 

Uniworld say “You shall go to the ball”….and we di

 

13 of 13 people found this review informative

 

Reviewed By: McKay, richmond on 5th Jan 2013

Cruise Line: Uniworld Times cruised before: 10+

Cruise Ship: River Duchess Sailed: December, 2012

Destination: River Danube Age: 56-65

Cabin: Suite

When we joined the impressive River Duchess at Nuremburg on 22nd December 2012 all were in festive mood and the reception given by staff as you enter the ship enhances the mood of all travel weary passengers. You are immediately immersed in the high but unobtrusive Uniworld standards of facilities and service – a standard that was maintained throughout the whole cruise.

As this was a period of celebration we had a suite, this was spacious, fittings impressive, beds plush and very comfortable. There was ample storage space for the many clothes we had brought having regard to the festive celebrations that lay ahead including the New Years Eve Ball in Vienna. The ship has a degree of opulence, is kept spotlessly clean and there was always a member of staff on hand to cater for any wish.

 

From the first meal to the last the food was of the highest quality and it was evident that fresh ingredients were being used and being expertly prepared by the army of chefs onboard led by Milos. The well trained, polite and disciplined waiters, marshaled by the more than competent Maitre D, Roberto, ensured an unforgettable dining experience. The complimentary wines and beer throughout all meal times was a bonus, quality wines as well!

The cruise started with 2 days in Nuremburg which is enough to savour the party atmosphere around the Xmas Market, (the largest in Germany) and to sample the quality shops that abound. In addition, for the culture vultures, there is much to see and the Uniworld tours provide a well informed, well organised and well paced and effortless way to sample the historical sites. One not to be missed are the famous courts where the Nuremburg trials took place after the Second World War.

When we set sail along the Danube from Nuremburg late on 23rd December, following the Captains Welcome Dinner, all were in great spirits and anticipation of even greater times to come. The anticipated highlight was clearly going to be the New Years Eve Ball at the Daun Kinsky Palace in the heart of Vienna. This was to be followed by attendance at the famous New Years Day Concert also in Vienna. Little did we know or suspect that Mother Nature was conspiring to make the attendance at these events as problematic as possible - a conspiracy that Uniworld faced head on and defeated with efficiency and expediency over the next few days.

Arriving in Regensberg on 24th we were aware that the river level was rising and we were kept fully informed of possible issues by the able and energetic cruise manager, Tamas Kocsis. Xmas Eve and Day were spent as planned in Regensberg and all was going exceptionally well. Midnight Mass on Xmas Eve and a Mass on Xmas Day morning at the Cathedral attracted a large number of passengers- a 10 minute walk from the ship.

On Xmas Day we were informed in a professional and tactful manner that due to the river level, the River Duchess, and indeed all the other cruise ships docked at Regensberg, were not able to pass under a nearby bridge and that we would have to remain in port for at least another day and hoping that the water levels may subside.

There were 6 other cruise ships in port and all were suffering the same fate. News arrived on the Duchess that other cruise ships were curtailing their cruises and passengers were given early flights home. The ball and concert planned over New Year in Vienna were becoming a far off dream. It was with great relief, and indeed surprise to many, that Uniworld were to continue their \"cruise\" to Vienna. There was clear determination from the crew and no doubt from the hierarchy and the behind the scene workers at Uniworld HQ that the cruise would continue in some form and importantly that the celebrations in Vienna would take place. The water levels did not subside over the next two days yet ample buses were on hand to take passengers to the scheduled ports of call and most of the planned tours.

This of course meant more travelling in buses but all tours were honoured. The vast majority of passengers were greatly impressed by the total commitment of all staff to make the problems have as little effect as possible. It was regrettable that there was a very small number of passengers who seemed hell bent on complaining at every opportunity but after a day, when all had time to reflect on the situation and course of action taken by Uniworld, all (except 1 passenger) had great admiration for the high quality of the alternative arrangement that had been made.

On the 29th December all passengers were taken by bus into Vienna and had 1 day in the fabulous (and most expensive) 5 star hotel in the centre of Vienna, the Inter Continental - if it was good enough for President Bush then it was good enough for me!. Cash was provided for the evening meal- this gave the opportunity to savour the local restaurants. We teamed up with fellow passengers and had a great Viennese evening.

Uniworld had called out numerous staff from all over Europe and they brought the ship, River Beatrice, out of winter storage, berthed her at Vienna and restocked and prepared her for us to continue our cruise. We boarded her on the 30th. The River Beatrice is fabulous and passengers thought her of a higher standard than the Duchess. Due to her larger size than the Duchess most passengers were ungraded to cabins of higher standards. Most of the staff were brought from the Duchess to the Beatrice but other staff that had been recalled to duty stayed with us and we continued our cruise.

The New Years Eve Concert at a palace in Vienna was something special and despite the quality of the food, wine and service not being of a Uniworld standard the ceremony of the occasion made it a memorable experience and one to recount and share with friends and family for many years to come. Back to the ship for midnight and then on the top deck to celebrate the New Year by sharing the massive firework displays that occur all around Vienna and its suburbs-a memorable evening and the perfect way to see in the New Year of 2013.

The New Years Day concert at 11am was a glitzy and extravagant affair and it was a privilege to actually attend one of these occasions after seeing them every New Years day on the TV. Setting sail for Budapest in the afternoon most passengers relaxed and recovering from the New Years activities and celebrations.

2 days in Budapest brought an end to a cruise of the highest of quality, one packed with incident and handled in the most professional of manner by Uniworld.

The action taken by Uniworld in relation to the high water problem clearly enhanced their already “top of the tree” status, the financial costs of the dramatic changes made to the itinerary must have been frightening and it was gratifying, in the economical climate, to see that passengers expectations and the Uniworld reputation was of far greater importance than the financial cost involved.

It is difficult to comprehend the extent of the efforts and expense that the preparing, restocking, and bringing new staff to the Beatrice would have cost. Some of the staff said they have been at home for less than 1 hour at the start of their 2 month break when they were informed to return- they came from all over Europe and all still with a great smile and not one complained to us- just the contrary, they were pleased to maintain the passenger reputation of Uniworld.. The \"new\" captain had to leave on the day of his daughter’s birthday just to accommodate us.

Uniworld could have taken the far easier option and cancelled the trip. The booking conditions clearly allow this- this course of action was taken by all other cruise operators with ships at Regensberg. In addition, and quite unnecessarily they also gave each passenger a $500 credit towards a future cruise!!

Would we go again? Well, 2 days after arriving back we have already re booked for December 2013!

P and C (UK)

 

NOTE: MARION10....THESE CRUISERS GOT THEIR DREAM TRIP AND A $500 CREDIT TOWARDS A FUTURE CRUISE. MAKES VIKING'S OFFER TO YOU PALE BY COMPARISON IMHO.

[Yggdrasil98]

I find those reviews very revealing, thank you. I did find the links, but it was a little difficult.

 

We had 20EUR one day for lunch, and we had an allowance as we left the group. No compensation is offered AFAIK but of course I am yet to write to Geoff Geary and put the case.

 

One of our fellow travellers indeed did suggest there should be a boat on the other side of that bridge, and when we found our boat sailed under the bridge and headed to Poland and dry dock as soon as they had us disembark certainly raised some of our ire even higher.

 

Our trip was $20K for both of us, I would be insulted at $500 refund for the awful food, what was missed, disruption, poor substitutes, poor quality information, and period of recovery required afterwards. I do believe our tour director did what she could, but I was glad it was her job and not mine.

 

Some kept making excuses, like fine print and muttering "no lives endangered and the Queensland floods" but our lives were not in danger, so that was totally irrelevant. Our long saved for and well planned holiday was. This rain was an act of nature, it is the handling of what we received instead of our planned trip that is our complaint. The water was the icing on the cake for many of us past APT/AMA travellers. It seemed to us newbies were the only ones who couldn't see how poor it ALL was.

[swamp1sg]

We have twice had river cruised turn into bus cruises because on high water--in 2010 on the Danube and this year on the Main. We have never asked for a refund nor has one been offered. We did receive a $200 credit from Avalon this year because we were disappointed that a Christmas cruise we had no Christmas activities. We sent them an e mail, but did not ask for the compensation. The majority of the cruise ended up on a bus and the last night not on the ship but in a hotel in Frankfurt. Avalon handled it pretty well and the hotel in Frankfurt was the Grand Weston which was pretty ritzy (a candy bar cost 5 euros!) On AMA there were tons of Christmas activities to keep a fun atmosphere on the ship. They had excellent food but seemed to take to an even higher level when they served prime rib for LUNCH!

[remydiva]

We have twice had river cruised turn into bus cruises because on high water--in 2010 on the Danube and this year on the Main. We have never asked for a refund nor has one been offered. We did receive a $200 credit from Avalon this year because we were disappointed that a Christmas cruise we had no Christmas activities. We sent them an e mail, but did not ask for the compensation. The majority of the cruise ended up on a bus and the last night not on the ship but in a hotel in Frankfurt. Avalon handled it pretty well and the hotel in Frankfurt was the Grand Weston which was pretty ritzy (a candy bar cost 5 euros!) On AMA there were tons of Christmas activities to keep a fun atmosphere on the ship. They had excellent food but seemed to take to an even higher level when they served prime rib for LUNCH!

 

Maybe third time will be the charm for you. I cant imagine how disappointed you must have been to have TWO cruises turn into bus tours. Seems like Avalon fell short in customer satisfaction when you compare your experience and compensation, asked for or not, to Uniworlds efforts as posted on the UK site. Even Viking customers got offers of $500/ pp when cruises went amok.

[Yggdrasil98]

any talk of compensation? Quote:

Originally Posted by Yggdrasil98

Sounds awful to me too! No change, and we now have another boat, AMA I think tied up next to us too. And I would much prefer the freezing dry weather we were expecting.

 

There seems to info regarding where to from here, 2 hours is my upper limit for each direction to go somewhere in pouring rain! We have no update this morning as yet.

 

Since you are being delayed and on the boat to 'nowhere' right now, and I am assuming you are missing ports of call and tours that you should be taking, is AMA giving you any idea of what or how to compensate the passengers for the inconvenience?

 

Meanwhile, no money makes up for a lost holiday and I am sorry you are going through this. We fly out to Munich in just over 12 hrs and have had no contact from Viking so I guess we will assume that it is full steam ahead.

 

I will update when I have first hand information.

 

Brief update regarding compensation, yes. It's about so much more than flooding. Still in corrrespondence regarding the offer and will post review and details when finalised.

 

remydiva, how was your trip?

[remydiva]

Brief update regarding compensation, yes. It's about so much more than flooding. Still in corrrespondence regarding the offer and will post review and details when finalised.

 

remydiva, how was your trip?

 

Overall, i would rate this river cruise at the bottom of the three i have taken. i am NOT considering the cold weather as a negative as duh...it was Dec so we knew that.

 

I am an experienced traveller and retired so i think am pretty easy going and flexible..I dont expect perfection. So having said that, here goes. LOVED Passau and wish we had gotten to the boat earlier in the day to enjoy it more when it was sunny...why didnt we you ask? We had to wait 2 HOURS at Munich airport for the bus transfer ( after i was assured numerous times by Viking it would be no more than a 30 min wait).

I fell the next day and badly sprained my ankle so missed Salzburg but the other couples in our group said it was the best day of the trip and they loved Salzburg.

 

Bratislava, Slovakia was a port I could have missed...the best part we did miss as I didnt know...IF you go there, walk downtown and look for wonderful bronze statues coming OUT of manhole covers, over head on wires, hiding around corners...I googled it later after someone mentioned it to me..we did the included bus tour and the guide never mentioned them to us ( boo,hiss).

 

Vienna was lovely and the highlight was the optional classical music concert. It felt magical to be sitting under chandeliers..in Vienna..listening to a 9 piece ensemble play Mozart and Strauss. I think the tours could have been organized better...in the morning we did the included city bus tour and walking tour. Athen they took us back to the ship for lunch. Then back on the bus for the 2pm optional tour to Schonbrunn Palace...driving the exact same route we had done in the morning. Back to ship for dinner then back on the bus at 7 pm to go to,the classical concert..on the same route. It would have been nice if they could have combined the first two tours somehow..ie one bus come back for lunch and one stay in town then do the Schonbrunn Palace.

 

Budapest was beautiful and again, I didnt know that a highlight was cruising in at night time as all the buildings and bridges are illuminated. Luckily we were still up at 10 pm so I could see it and video it from our cabin ( up but in jammies). Others in our group had gone to bed so missed it...it was beautiful.

Included 4 hr city tour was the BEST tour of the whole trip. Our guide was a young high school history teacher ( on xmas break i gather) and he was fabulous...knowledgeable, great speaker, easy to understand..

 

Now, the negative parts..the food IMHO was mediocre and way too salty. The desserts were AWFUL and the pastry chef should be fired. They all sounded good in the menu and some even looked good but they were all bland with no flavour. i stopped ordering from the main menu and stuck to the "always available" options as the chicken and sirloin steak options were ok...just ok.

 

The free " just bottled for Viking" wine options were awful ,again IMHO. I gave up and ordered and twice paid 8€ a glass from the wine list and they too were poor quality. I am NOT a wine snob ...I ordered the one and only California cab ( after being so disappointed in the German and Austrian wines they offered) and they brought me the bottle to pour me a glass. The bottle had maybe 4 oz left in it. At 9€ ...I don't think so!

 

So i said to the waiter," When was this bottle opened? " And he said " last nite". ( I never saw evidence of a vacu seal) I said that the dregs in that bottle wasnt enough ( to be fair, when they did pour a glass, they were generous..perhaps to a fault given the dregs left) so would he please open a new bottle. He said " but we only have one bottle left!" I guess meaning they wanted to " save it" for someone who might buy the whole bottle? Again, he tried to pour the dregs of the open bottle i to my glass. I said no thanks.

 

I like to travel for many reasons...obviously to see new places, and experience the art, culture and food and wine of new places. We did manage to enjoy the art and culture but were disappointed in the food and wine on board the ship.

 

And then there was the dreaded VIRUS that hit the ship which I mentioned here earlier. Another poster reported that it had been on the Njord the week before as well. All 8 in our group got it and we know there were staff on the ship with it.

 

Read on FOR UPDATE:

Viking did a bang up detective job and tracked me down from my post here about the shipwide virus and phoned me once I got home. I was too sick to respond for another few days ( note, three in our group were sick for one full month).

 

Apparently, if 4 cases of this sort of illness is REPORTED to the ship, they have policies about taking extra cleaning precautions etc. I said we didnt know that but surely given that we were all sick and coughing , and so were the staff, and some passengers confined to staterooms with it, the TRAINED STAFF should have made the proper reports and change in procedures. One day when I was in our room while it was being cleaned, i noted the steward using the same rag ( not chlorox wipe or a spray) to wipe down all the surfaces. ( i travel with my own chlorox wipes but moot point).

 

In any case, I felt Viking should have known about the virus on board and taken extra precautions ( hand sanitizer only out at dinner time, not during breakfast or lunch buffet where people serve themselves thus sharing serving utensils).

 

Without my asking, the Viking rep offered myself and the other 3 couples in our group a generous " coupon" discount towards a future cruise if taken within a year. I felt that was good customer service whether we use it or not.

 

I hope you are successful in your quest to get compensation for your cruise which was much more impacted than ours. Keep in touch with any updates. I wish CC had a way of email alerts for updates as I dont often come back here once the cruise is over!

[remydiva]

We have been sent an email telling us Viking is going to give us a $500 credit per person on a future cruise.

 

We were offered the same credit but the future cruise has a time limit...must be within a year.

[H2Otstr]

Per Remydiva: I wish CC had a way of email alerts for updates as I dint often come back here once the cruise is over!

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