First time River cruise- Optional tours

Hello-

DH and I will be taking our first river cruise on Viking in April 2017. We have been on several ocean cruises and 99% of the time we research and book tours/excursions independent of the cruise line as it saves us $$$ and we don't care for the "cattle car" feel. We are active and have no mobility issues.

My Questions:

1-On a river cruise, will we know what times we will be at each city when we receive our documents?

2- Do most passengers do the complimentary excursions?

3- Are the complimentary excursions just the basics?

4- Are there independent tour guides at each stop when you arrive?

Thank you in advance. Just trying to take advantage of our time in each stop on our trip.

Hello-

 

DH and I will be taking our first river cruise on Viking in April 2017. We have been on several ocean cruises and 99% of the time we research and book tours/excursions independent of the cruise line as it saves us $$$ and we don't care for the "cattle car" feel. We are active and have no mobility issues.

 

My Questions:

1-On a river cruise, will we know what times we will be at each city when we receive our documents?

 

2- Do most passengers do the complimentary excursions?

3- Are the complimentary excursions just the basics?

4- Are there independent tour guides at each stop when you arrive?

 

Thank you in advance. Just trying to take advantage of our time in each stop on our trip.

Haven't sailed with Viking but I have done 8 river cruises and can tell you they are more alike than different! So with that caveat, to answer your questions:

1. regarding your arrivals and departures: things are different on the river...you will know your itinerary of course, but times will usually not be available until the night before. We always got each days itinerary the night before while we were having dinner. Because there are so many variables like locks and the number of ships compared to the number of dock spaces, the captain often doesn't know exactly when he will arrive and the dock master is 100% in charge of where and when he will dock.

2 and 3: I think most passengers do the complimentary excursions if for no other reason than to find out where everything is in relation to where the ship is docked. Very often you're not as close to the heart of where you want to be as you would like and these "orientation" walks let you know where and what there is to see; good places to eat/shop and most importantly how to get back to the ship once you set out on your own. So I guess they are primarily the basics.

4. Usually not...with the ocean vessels when you dock there's usually a line of taxis, independent tour guides and individual tours are easily booked on line. Not so much with river cruises. You will rarely find taxis waiting for you when you dock....but you might be very close to public transportation and that's something you'll find out on your orientation walk. IME the optional excursions have always been worth the money....usually (again with Vantage) they involved a hired coach, admission to a castle or museum and often lunch in a local restaurant....but you will not be pressured to take them....although if there's something that would ruin your trip if you missed it (like the ballet in Russia) I would book it as soon as possible so as not to be shut out.

You don't say where you're going and without that information it's hard to be more specific, like recommending specific places to visit...hope this helps....prepare to be hooked!!! :D

Thank you HydroKitty for the information

we are traveling from Passau-Budapest. We will be extending our trip in Prague and Budapest.

Hello-

4- Are there independent tour guides at each stop when you arrive?

You're probably aware of this, but the tour guides used by the cruise lines are all locals who contract with the line. They may give a tour for Viking one day and Tauck the next. Most, if not all, are licensed by the city and have expertise in local history. The quality varies. Some can't resist incorporating their politics into their commentary, and others may be just plain boring.

On the whole, we've had very good guides with a few that didn't quite make it.

Focus your research on Prague and Budapest. There is a lot to see in and around each city. The cities on the cruise are small. The included tour will give you a good overview. Then if you have time in the city you can walk to what you want to see, say after lunch. It seems like you will end in Budapest. There will be an included overview tour. Research what else you might want to see. There may be an excursion outside of the city that interests you.

Passau is a wonderful walking city. If you have the opportunity to attend an organ concert at St Stephans(and you don't hate organ music)...it was amazing...the church itself is one of the most beautiful I've ever seen and the pipe organ is the largest in Europe. I could feel the vibration in my bones! Budapest is one of my favorite world cities...much to do and see...the Parliament tour is well worth it and last time I was there you had to buy tickets in advance....this can be done on their website. As for Prague...again much to see and do but if you have time a visit to Kutna Hora is very nice and from there you can take short ride to the Ossuary, which is amazing although not for everybody. Not to be missed IMHO it's the Jewish Quarter....

Hi W,

I suggest 3 nights in Prague and 2 nights in Budapest.

I can suggest the following day visit in Budapest:

Mine started at Fovam Ter;

BUDAPEST EXCURSION

Hotel, House of Hungarian Art Nouveau, Dohany Street Synagogue, Hotel

To House of Hungarian Art Nouveau @ Honvéd u.3 open 10:00 – 17:00 1500 HUF (5 eur) pp

12 min by #2 trolley from the Március 15. tér stop on the Jane Haining Pkwy

near the Elizabeth Bridge 4 stops to Kessuth Lajos tér Metro stop. Go EB on Kossuth Lajos Terr (becomes Bathory Utca)

past the Budapest Bank (on your right) to Honved Utca. Turn Right to No. 3.

Tram tickets are available at news kiosks (Hírek-kioszk) - about 400 (0.6 Eur) HUF/ticket

Before boarding the tram, validate the ticket at the yellow or red decomposter at the stop.

EXIT HHofAN headed SB and go CCW around the Soviet Memorial. Pick up the path that leads SB from the Memorial.

Exit the park going SB on October 6 U.

There is a park on your left just past Jozsef Attila U. Take the diagonal path going left through the park.

At the end Go Left. Go Right onto D. Ferenc Ter. Continue SB. (name changes to Karoly Krt)

Where the St branches bear Left. The Dohany Street Synagogue, in front of you, has two minarets.

Visit the synagogue.

Magyar Nemzeti (Hungarian National) Museum 10:00 – 18:00 1600 HUF (5+Eur)

Leave the Synagogue and return to Karolyn Krt. GO Left. The Museum is a large neo-classical bldg on Left.

Exit Museum and GO Left (pass the Metro stop) until you get to the Central Market. walk to Fővám tér M.

Enjoy your visit.

Ira

Winedogs, also keep in mind that the "cattle call" feel of ocean cruises you refer to is not the same in river cruising. If your ship is full, the most passengers you will experience is 190 total. Those will be divided up into groups, and go off with their guide. Factor into that, some folks won't get off the ship, some folks will get off and wander on their own, some folks will have gone off on optional tours, etc.

Winedogs, also keep in mind that the "cattle call" feel of ocean cruises you refer to is not the same in river cruising. If your ship is full, the most passengers you will experience is 190 total. Those will be divided up into groups, and go off with their guide. Factor into that, some folks won't get off the ship, some folks will get off and wander on their own, some folks will have gone off on optional tours, etc.

Good point....there's no panic involved on river cruises!!! :D Nor do you have to walk 1/2 mile to get to the theater to wait for your excursion to be called and then walk another 1/2 mile back to the elevator!! River cruising is much more "laid back" than ocean cruising....and Viva la difference!!! :D

My husband and I did most of the included and optional tours last year on our Avignon to Lyon trip (Viking). But one day in Lyon we decided to have lunch at Paul Bocuse's restaurant. I made the reservation a few months before, and we had a fabulous time. It was actually one of the best parts of the trip and I arranged it myself.

This time on our Romantic Danube trip, my husband made it clear that he doesn't want to do every optional activity. So we will skip some things so we can feel more relaxed and not so rushed. Viking is pretty well organized, but you do spend a decent amount of time in buses going from place to place. I think we will try to do more walking around and less time on buses.

observations from first Viking trip, Budapest to Nuremburg

- as mentioned, no cattle car feel. Even on the included tours where most did go, folks loaded to individual coaches (nice with SMALL but functional restroom) and each coach had a local guide. One coach was a tour group and the assorted busses did not try to stay together even tho they were going the same place. Each group was somewhat independent. It was also easy to ask the desk to keep a group together (same coach) as new friends were made.

- We arrived in Budapest 2 days early and explored on our owning using hop on / hop off bus tours and enjoyed it VERY much. The first nite of the cruise the 'ship' stayed in Budapest and the next day was the included bus tour which covered much of the same ground - a bit was new - but no hop on/off.

- Most folks did the included tour. Why not, ya paid for it. Most of the time the included tour was a bus ride to a location, a walking tour then finished at what would be the meeting place for a return ride after some free time of an hour or a couple. You could meet the bus for the return ride or DIY from there - but be aware of the boat's departure time. They don't wait for you! You could also ride the bus and set off on your own, just knowing where when to meet the bus for return of be back on the boat DIY. VERY unregimented.

- I'd say 50% of the time the dock was not walking distance to where you'd want to explore. In Passau, Budapest, Vienna and Melk we were "in town"; in Regensburg 'close enuf' for most. At the other extreme in Nuremburg you are not even really IN Nuremburg.

- Sometimes the optional tour was something that would leave AFTER the 'free' tour had returned to the boat - and after you had lunch. Then the optional tour did something while the boat proceeded on. The tour would meet the boat at the next stop, or sometimes the boat stopped along the way where the optional tour folks had been brought by their bus to rejoin. So you missed some 'sailing time'.

- At least one optional tour was at night (Vienna opera). While this extra cost event happened, free entertainment came on the boat .....

OPINION: as a first timer on the Danube, we enjoyed being on the ship while it moved over the optional tours .... the river scenery is what enticed us and we were not disappointed. While more time at some stops would have been nice, the ride and going thru locks etc was experience enough. As we plan river cruise #2 we are looking at itineraries that stay longer (overnight) in places we would have liked more time like Vienna.

Editorials

- Vienna was the one place we DID do an optional tour, and it was not 'in the book' but offered after we were on board. It was a walking tour to a fresh market with the chef ... we walked and took the subway. Was fun but a bit of a scam as he could not buy anything for use on the boat (not inspected) and we went to a wine and cheese shop of a friend for samples ..... and if you'd like to buy some . . . .

- if you get a nice chunk of on board credit, the optional tours can look very inviting because there really isn't all that much to spend OBC on! Wine and beer & Coke is included with lunch and dinner. The 'gift shop' is really the gift 'shelf.' Midway thru our trip every time I passed the desk they'd mention "you have a lot of credit left on your account, don't waste it"! So, why not take an extra excursion ....

Hello-

 

DH and I will be taking our first river cruise on Viking in April 2017. We have been on several ocean cruises and 99% of the time we research and book tours/excursions independent of the cruise line as it saves us $$$ and we don't care for the "cattle car" feel. We are active and have no mobility issues.

 

My Questions:

1-On a river cruise, will we know what times we will be at each city when we receive our documents?

 

2- Do most passengers do the complimentary excursions?

3- Are the complimentary excursions just the basics?

4- Are there independent tour guides at each stop when you arrive?

 

Thank you in advance. Just trying to take advantage of our time in each stop on our trip.

On ocean cruises, we generally DIY or arrange cheaper private tours rather than the ship's tours.

However, on river cruises, many of the ports were you stop are not like the major ports on an ocean cruise. On our last river cruise on the Douro River in Portugal, all the ports except Porto were small towns. There was no one on the dock selling tours or taxis to take you around. Not sure how easy it would be arrange private tours on a river cruise.

We have been very pleased with the tours we have taken on all our river cruises. The groups were generally from 27 when we did China on a small group tour up to perhaps 40 persons. However, each person was provided with a head set so they could hear the guide. The guides have always been excellent.

River cruises are expensive enough on their own and tours are included in the price, except for an occasional optional tour, that if you do your own and pay again for tours, you are going to significantly add to the cost of your trip.

If you are so set on this approach, perhaps you should just fly to Europe, rent a car and do it all on your own.

We did the Viking Budapest to Nuremburg Dec. 2015 and the Passau to Budapest Dec, 2011. Focus on your cities as Viking will have very good tours on the river. Budapest as it is a wonderful walking city and do tours that Viking will not take you on. We spent an extra 3 days in Budapest (stayed at Sofitel on the river for very cheap rate and right where Viking docked) and did a walking tour on day one to get oriented, saw the Nutcracker in the Opera House (if you can book a show as it is beautiful) then we booked an all day tour that started as an eating tour in the Central Food Market (not to be missed, basement is where they keep the live fish! and pickles) followed by a lunch in the country and a trip to a winery with tastings. It was nice to get out of the city and see the country side and talk to local people, really enjoyable. The castle area is a nice walk too. If you have time do a thermal bath, when we were there it was freezing and people were out in the swim suits enjoying a swim! Passau is a lovely city to walk around. We did a optional tour which included a boat ride and visit to a small city but not worth the $$ and should have stayed in Passau. Along the river Viking will take you on tours that are really good and you will have free time. Vienna has a good underground that is close to the boats for getting into the city center. The Schonbrunn Palace is very interesting.

Thank you all very much for the advice/ information. Really looking forward to our trip. Has anyone been to Terezin? Trying to decide between that and Kunta Hora.

Yes, been to Terezin. Viking hosts arranged the tour for us. There were 8 of us. It is somber but excellent. We went to a local restaurant for a beer sampling after. You kind on needed that after what you see in Terezin. Do go there .

Yes, been to Terezin. Viking hosts arranged the tour for us. There were 8 of us. It is somber but excellent. We went to a local restaurant for a beer sampling after. You kind on needed that after what you see in Terezin. Do go there .

Thank you. We are going to do this! Looking forward to it, though i know it will be heartbreaking. Guess we will go with Viking...could get a better deal on a private tour with another company, but since this is our first river cruise, I think we will stay with Viking trips.

Yes, been to Terezin. Viking hosts arranged the tour for us. There were 8 of us. It is somber but excellent. We went to a local restaurant for a beer sampling after. You kind on needed that after what you see in Terezin. Do go there .

Yes will do this. Guess we will stay with Viking, even though we could probably do it cheaper with another company. Thank you