Back from SCENIC CRUISE Nuremberg-Budapest Report

We got back from our 1st river cruise on SCENIC last Friday at 9:34 PM. We had a great time!!! Scenic was as advertised first class. As anything there were a few short comings but nothing to take away from what they advertised.

First let me talk about the cruise in general:

1. My wife and I were 2 of 6 Americans aboard the Ruby. The other four were a family from Florida. as luck would have it we ended sitting together the first night at dinner. There were several couples from England and the rest were from Australia. We met quite a few of the other passengers and had a great time with them all. a special thanks goes out to several that we spent the most time with for helping to make this trip so great. I don't know their last names in every cast but I do remember most of their surnames. Big thanks to Aussies Mick and Margaret, Phil ( We do have water skiing in the States)and Kathy, Mick and Helen, Will and his wife, John( who is growing QUINOA) and his wife, Colin and his wife( she told me her name 3-4 times and I still can't remember it). Another thank you to the ladies form England Nanette and June.(don't forget to research the pyramids in Bosnia- and yes we do get the sun setting in America) and the couple whose wife who has been to RUBY FALLS in Chattanooga TN. If I left anyone out whom we spent time with I apologize. You all helped make our tripe what it was

2. The Ruby was a great ship with an attentive staff. The cruise director was working all the time. she did a great job. My only complaint was with myself. We did not take advantage of all that was available to us during the cruise. Some of the things we did not know were available for us until midway in the cruise . We did not use our butler to the fullest extent that we could of. A lot of this was because things moved at a pretty fast pace.

3. I must say I thought the staff slacked off during the last couple of days as we neared the end of the cruise. Not a lot but enough to notice.

4. Due to low water levels we were not able to cruise from Nuremberg to Passau. This meant we had to take the bus to Regensburg for our day there and back to the ship. I would have preferred to have been on the ship cruising there but it was ok. We knew that something like this may happen due to the river levels.

Here is what we did and my impressions there of:

We started our cruise with 3 days in Prague on our own. All in all this was our favorite cit we visited. It had it all for us historic buildings, great vistas. great food, COLD BEER(and Cheap), and ease of getting around. We stayed in the Hilton Old Town which was an ideal location for doing what we wanted to do and see. The hotel's concierges were outstanding with their help. When we first got to the hotel I went up to their desk and introduced myself and told them I was going to bug them for the next 3 days. I did and they responded with great information and suggestions every time. Our stay would not have been that good without them. You all can research Prague and see what there is to do for yourselves. We did most of it and it was a wonderful 3 days. At this point it was warm but not too hot.

We then were going to Nuremberg to spend an extra day before we boarded

our ship. we decided to take the bus instead of the train because of the direct route and time factor. Everything would have been great, The concierge in Prague had gotten our ticket for us and had gotten us a seat on the bottom level of the bus with a table to be shared with 2 other passengers. However there were not 2 others to share it with. so we had a very comfortable situation all the way to Nuremberg. Well, not so fast. After about 45 minutes into our trip our bus broke down.

Lucky for us we were near an exit so the bus was able to pull off onto a side road and call for help. We had to wait for another bus to come pick us up and transport us the rest of the way. All in all it cost us about 2 hours.

Once in Nuremberg's train station we were wondering how to get to our hotel. As we were getting our bags my wife looked up and the Le Meridian Hotel was right across the street. How lucky for us. We spent the rest of the day in the old town part of Nuremberg. This is another great city with lots of things to see and do. Someone on this board had recommended we eat at the BARFUBER for a great meal. It was easy to find and the food along with the beer was very good. We wanted to go to the Zepplin Fields the next day but decided it would be cutting it too close with our transfer to the ship so we passed. If the bus had not broken down, we could have done that yesterday.

We then got on the Scenic Pearl had lunch and then got on a bus to be taken to the Scenic Ruby which was docked in Passau. Once there we were welcomed aboard to begin our long awaited river cruise. Well actually we didn't begin until 2 days later/ The next day was our scheduled trip to Salzburg again on a bus. While we were gone for the day the crew and a few passengers sailed the ship to Linz Austria. We got back from Salzburg too late do do anything in Linz but we were about to experience our first night cruising on the Danube. After supper we went top side to enjoy a new experience. It was all I had hoped for and thought it would be. I even asked if they had a hammock where I could sleep on deck. It was amazing!!

Everything could not have been better . we sailed to Melk and then to Durenstein the next day in preparatiion for going to Vienna and then Budapest.

Vienna is a beautiful city and has so much to see. we were here 2 days and the temperature rose each day we were there. In fact they set a record for a couple of days we were there. It hit 100 degrees F a couple of days.The concert they took us to was excellent and the setting was outstanding! A+

We were here for 2 days and left on the second night for Budapest.This part of the trip was the longest and the last 2-3 hours was very pretty as we approached Budapest. As one would expect as we entered the city the views were spectacular and almost beyond comparison. This is something one has to experience for themselves. Totally awesome! A+ again. That night the captain announced we were going to take an illumination cruise along the Danube to see the amazing sight of Budapest at night. It was that and more. Awesome, amazing, spectacular and beautiful. These are the only words I know that seem to touch on this experience. My wife said this one event made the whole trip worth while. She was right.

All in all this trip with Scenic was all I thought it was going to be and more. As I said this was our first river cruise so I have nothing to compare it to. I understand that Scenic is one of the top 2-3 cruise lines operating on European waters. I do know that we want to have the same experience if we ever do another river cruise. It's like the restaurant we ate at in Budapest 3 times while were were there( We stayed 2 days on our own after the cruise) Once we found some place where we liked the food the service and the location why try some place else? By the way it was TG Italiano . If you go there and get Kimi for a waitress, tell her her Tennessee friends sent you there

.We saw some of the other lines as we were docked in the different cities. You can't tell much by just looking at the boats but the Ruby stacked up pretty well from the outside.

Great time! Great Trip! Great Cruise Line! Highly recommend Scenic. Oh by the way. The food was very good. The wines were fine. I would have like a better selection of Italian wines though, the beers were also very good. The bartender was very good. We did have to teach him how to make a MUD SLIDE and a FUZZY NAVEL> But he learned fast and even added his own touch to the slide!

Hope this wasn't too long and answered some questions you may have had. If I can answer anything just ask.

Thanks again for all your alls help in our planning this trip.

We're going to the Dominican Republic next. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Good Afternoon Doreman,

Sounds to me as if you had a very enjoyable first time European River Cruise.

Lisa and I are set to fly out of Houston on the 29th of this month so getting very close now and we are scheduled to be boarding the Brand new Scenic Opal on September 2,2015.

We are doing the Jewels of Europe 15 day tour Amsterdam to Budapest and we have three days at each end of the cruise that we booked ourselves.

In Amsterdam we are staying at The Toren and in Budapest we are staying at The Four Seasons Gresham Palace Hotel and looking forward to our experience at both as they are rated by TravelAdvisor as number 1 in each city.

I have been doing a lot of planning as yes like you this is our first river cruise but we are also celebrating our 27th Wedding Anniversary while on the cruise and just trying my best as to get Brownie Points. At my age I need all the help that I can get. Lisa is 60 and I am 64.

First question as what would you say was the median age of the folks that cruised with you?

Second as what was the dress code like? Maybe what one would consider cruise casual. Like Slacks and a nice Polo. Did anyone wear jeans? What did the ladies wear.

You had made mention of not getting the full use of your Butler. What do you mean as we are all the way in the very back on the Diamond deck in what is called a Royal Panorama Suite. Do know that we have a Mini Van that is meeting us at the airport and taking us to our hotel and then picking us up at our hotel and taking us to the ship and the same in reverse when we get into Budapest. Do have a bottle of Bubbly waiting in our cabin when we board.

Have arranged already with the folks at Scenic as the day of our Anniversary we shall have the Butler not only bringing flowers but also serving breakfast out on the balcony and also bringing along a pitcher of Mimosas and that evening dinning at Portobellos.

Third how was the food? Did you have a good selection as to choose from on the menu? How was Table La Rive?

Seeing that you were from the USA how did you get all of your items like cameras and cell phones and razors all charged up??

Do they furnish Binoculars? Did you try the Electric Bicycles?

Sorry for so many questions but I guess seeing that you are the Pro now that maybe you might make some recommendations.

Oh in Budapest we are doing the Fisherman's Bastion with a Horse and Carriage taking us and bringing us back to our hotel. More Brownie Points..

Hoping that you can give us some much appreciated pointers.

Lisa and Gary

LoneStarCruisinCouple

As i recall you all are from Sugarland Texas Right> Home of the Sugarland Express. Great story about Ken Hall and his high school career and his trials with Bear Bryant at Texas A&M.

Sorry about slipping away from the point of this tread.

I'm 70 and I never feel that age until I see this old guy in my mirror. I'd say the avg age was mid to late 60's. Everyone on our ship was very active and got around very well. I never really thought much about it.

I did use our butler but not as much as I could have. He brought us breakfast coffee and rolls and I would tell him what we wanted in our mini fridge. We were on the middle deck and did not have the full service that you all will have. As I said things move pretty fast and we just forgot about him at times.

The food was very good at all 3 services. Breakfast was a buffet with pancakes, waffles and a steak dish on order. There was plenty of variety without these options. Lunch Buffet also had some side items that could be ordered but we never did. The dinner menu was also a choice of 2 items in each course with the chef's select highlighted. If these items didn't suit you, there were 3 staples to pick from every night. We always picked from the items offered and they were always very good.

We did not eat the table La Riv because that is only for the Diamond deck guests but I heard it too was good. As for Portobello it was a real treat and we were fortunate to eat here on our last night on board. It was a 6-7 course meal and was handled very nicely by the staff with 3 different wines served to compliment the course being served. Great treat for our last night.

We did not ride the bikes. I kept forgetting about them until we would come back on board later in the day. They had a 20 mile ride from Melk to Durinstein in 95+ degrees. I think there were 12-15 who took this challenge. Too hot for me plus it was going to be our first day sailing in the day time.

Charging items was no problem if you have plug adapters. Just make sure whatever you are charging is marked for 110/120-220/240. If it is just 110/120 you will also need a converter in addition to the adapter. All ours just need a plug adapter.I think the ship has adapters you can check out but I'm not sure about the availability of converters.

I took my own binoculars but never used them. The camera's zoom was enough.

Hope this helps. One more thing. We found that most places in Budapest priced everything in Euros as well as Forints.. I kept my conversion cheat sheet handy wherever we went so I could tell what is would be in dollars US

Good luck and have a great anniversary.

Steve

I remembered you asked about dress for eating. Breakfast and lunch was wear whatever you've got on except PJs. I'm not sure if some people wore their pjs anyway at times.

Dinner was another matter. Most men wore pants and a polo shirt or a dress shirt with no tie. Some wore blue jeans with a nice shirt some times. The ladies covered the whole range from a-z. some were dressy but most just wore a nice dress or slacks and a nice top.They stepped it up some for the concert and farewell dinners The night of the concert in Venice most men put a tie on and some had sport coats as well. But there still some just in pants and dress shirts. Every now and the some of the men would come to dinner in shorts but not very often.

If I forgot anything else just ask me.

Steve

Steve,

I am glad you had a great time! Thanks for reporting back.

Thanks, Doreman, for the great into. We're flying out tomorrow to Budapest to board Scenic Jasper on Monday.

Thanks for all the great info, Doreman. We're flying to Budapest tomorrow to board Scenic Jasper on Monday. Can't wait!

great review and loved all the details.

Glad you enjoyed Barfuber restaurant in Nuremburg. I'm sorry about your bus breaking down. If you lost two hours then it would have been the same amount of time if you had taken the train. I thought the bus was a great option and recommend it to others.

Great review. We are currently on Crystal ( soon to move to Jewel ) The levels are low between Regensberg & Nuremberg so today we are being bussed to Nuremberg where we will do our chosen excursion then board Jewel. We are thoroughly enjoying the cruise & Scenic is handling the hitch very well . The cruise director is moving with us so there will be some continuity. Of course some are moaning but most are just getting on with it. You can't mess with nature !

We live in Spain & quite a lot of Spanish holiday in Dominican Republic & seem to like it. Apart from that I don't know. Enjoy anyway

Enjoyed your review.

Keith

Dinner was another matter. Most men wore pants and a polo shirt or a dress shirt with no tie.

 

:D:D If most men wore pants...what did the rest of them wear ? :D:D

 

(sorry, just had to giggle)

Oh dear so levels are still an issue :( Well crap!

Just done the swap Crystal to Jewel.All went smoothly Nuremburg not that special anyway(our opinion) so best

Place for it to happen. Only an hour & a half on bus. Didn't do trip on Nuremburg but could have done. Don't worry it's bound to rain soon! Our night in Budapest they had a months rain in12 hours!

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Thanks for the great information Doreman. We are doing the same trip September 2016. Your information regarding Pragues was helpful as we are doing this on our own as well. Any other tips regarding that portion of your trip would be helpful.

Thank you!

Thanks, Doreman for all that great information. We are sailing Sept 5, 2016 Budapest to Amsterdam on the new Scenic Amber, Diamond deck, our first river cruise. We are just starting to look at postings here and were very pleased to find your review. It sounds like we are going to be the village elders on this cruise...being 83 and 84. We booked 2 nights in Budapest to explore a bit before the cruise and liked your report on the night cruise. I wonder if Scenic does that as part of every cruise or just at the whim of the captain. At any rate....your review was very helpful. Thanks.

I think the night cruise in Budapest is standard. We had it on the Opal last August. It was every bit as good as Doreman said.