Early August Amsterdam to Budapest questions

It is less than a week until we board Uniworld River Empress for an Amsterdam to Budapest river cruise, this will be our first European river cruise. I have been watching the weather and am now reassesing my packing. The temperatures seem to be lower than I was anticipating. We are in winter in Australia with daytime temperatures around 18 to 22 Celsius and I am wearing jumpers and cardigans. Some of the ports we are visiting don't seem to have daily highs any warmer than this. I thought it was Summer in Europe and was expecting much warmer temperatures. Is it likely to warm up? I'm wondering if I should pack more long sleeve tops especially for evening up on deck.

Also will I need insect repellent? For those who have sailed Uniworld can I ask if the laundry is sufficient for the number of passengers or will there be a line up? Are the cabins individually climate controlled? Is there body lotion supplied? For anyone who has done the go active bike riding excursions are they easy flat rides or are steep hills involved? Also if anyone would like to recommend an excursion they particularly enjoyed I would love to hear about it. Many thanks for reading my long list.

Weather is unpredictable. We took same itinerary in June July. Some days were unusually hot. Then we had very cool days and some passengers lamented their choice of summer only clothes. Some bought logo sweatshirts on board. Also our ship was quite cold. Ac was set on high

Pack for layering. That's the only way to be sure you will have what you need

We never saw a bug.

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We are leaving August 22 Uniworld Amsterdam to Basel.. August wouldn't be my first choice for a river cruise in Europe but we received an exceptional deal with Uniworld. This will be our third trip with Uniworld.I have been checking temps daily and I also noticed weather seems cooler and rainy...Bring a rain jacket and I am also bringing a few long sleeve jerseys for day time touring. light golf shiirts to protect my Irish skin from the sun. Also spf hat... I also purchased a nice pashmina scarf wrap if it gets chilly on the deck..No need to bring shampoo, body lotions etc. Uniworld uses l'Occotane. Really top of the line very nice.. We have been to Amsterdam and love it. Uniworld has two museums and canal trip included before we sail.. have a great trip..

Here in Düsseldorf, it has been unseasonably cool this week - the heater in my bathroom came on this morning! This is not standard end of July, early August weather. The high for next week should be in the low to mid 20s (70 to 76 degrees).

Last year, I was in the same area in mid August, and the temps were well over 30 (90+ degrees). That was miserable, since few areas have air conditioning.

Also will I need insect repellent? I think we brought it but never had reason to use it. For those who have sailed Uniworld can I ask if the laundry is sufficient for the number of passengers or will there be a line up? Passengers on subsequent Uniworld cruises get a free bag of laundry done weekly by ship's staff so that took some of the pressure off the couple of free washers and dryers. They were always busy but we managed to get our laundry done without much inconvenience. Are the cabins individually climate controlled? yes. Is there body lotion supplied? yes, L'Occitane. For anyone who has done the go active bike riding excursions are they easy flat rides or are steep hills involved? My brother and sister-in-law, avid bike riders, took a number of the excursions (where an outside vendor provided very nice bikes and guides) and 'borrowed' the boat's bikes for independent excursions at a number of stops. They enjoyed them all and didn't mention any steep hills. I do remember the cruise director mentioned that the guided excursions weren't really meant for folks who hadn't been on bikes since they were kids. :D Also if anyone would like to recommend an excursion they particularly enjoyed I would love to hear about it. We were so impressed with just about all of the excursions and especially liked the afternoon excursions where we visited a hops farm and another where we visited a vineyard. Many thanks for reading my long list.

We did this cruise in the opposite direction with Uniworld in August 2015 during the midst of an almost unbearable heat wave in Europe so my responses are based on that experience (plus 2 other Uniworld cruises in 2016 on the Seine and Rhone). I hope you you enjoy your cruise as much as we did!

Just did this route on Viking. Plan on layers. We hit quite warm days so some of the planned under layers became outers. Never needed my fleece. You will not need the bug spray.

Thank you to everyone who took time to reply, we fly out of Sydney tonight and have packed our bags, less dresses and more pants to layer tops and cardigans. I wish there was a "like" button so I could like all your threads individually.