knoxclone

agree - AMA and Scenic both are great choices as well. All deliver a a comparable product, so it often comes down to your preferred itinerary and personal choices regarding decor and pax numbers.

AMA Waterways often waives single supplements and even has 5 & 7 top tables in the dining room to encourage solo travelers.

Sailed from Paris

We sailed w the WWII Museum last fall and the Joie de Vivre was fabulous - so wish we could have used it as our "base" for the entire tour!

I believe the offices in Atlanta are are private commercial services affiliated with the official Chinese consulate in Houston. You can request expedited services - but be warned they are very expensive.

Yes! that was him!

Agree - I was not really interested in visiting -but the guide (a young man dressed in tux tails, & top hat) was outstanding and the excursion ended up being a fascinating and enjoyable afternoon.

Wonderful photos - thank you for sharing!

We prearranged a taxi in Budapest - it was about 30 minutes from airport to our hotel - the Marriott. Driver was prompt and gave us a running commentary on what we were seeing as we drive. The tram system is quite easy to use and quick and efficient - the tracks were just along the river and visible from both the ship - and the hotel. We rode it several times, once down to the Parliament for our tour and once "just to experience it". We were able to buy the tickets from the hotel desk - although that was in 2018, so they may have upgraded the system by now.

Agree with @Roz Budapest is definitely worth more time. Passau is a lovely city in its own right, but there is so much to explore in Budapest.

While I love Viking, I would suggest you look at AMAwaterways as well, they cater to solo traveller, and actually have 5 and 7 top tables in the dining room to accommodate solo travelers to join a table.

That may be true..luckily, I have not had that experience. My suggestion is if there is a "must do" I would ask the guide prior to leaving on the excursion.

Viking has always offered the "Gentle Walkers" group on the past four cruises I have taken. You cover the same territory, just at a slower pace, and often avoiding inclines or stairs w/o handrails. Only difference is that sometimes your free or shopping time was shortened

Akershus Fortress also has a very interesting resistance museum.

AMA Lucia had a refrigerator in the stateroom as well as an ice machine near the reception desk and ice bucket in the room. or simply ask your room steward to make sure you have ice each afternoon.

The other surprising excursion was Sigfrieds Mechanical Music Museum in Ridesheim. Totally charming and unexpected - it was fascinating...

The provided hair dryer was very good - and not one of those mounted to the wall. There are a variety of "american" and European outlets in the room - as well as two usb ports on each side of the bed.

Several people raved about the Technology museum in Speyer, and remarked that they could have easily have spent an entire day there. My favorite excursion was probably either Riquewihr as it was a beautiful sunny day, very few people and some we enjoyed some great pastries... or the visit to Dusseldorf, which had some interesting history, outdoor art sculptures some beautiful churches. I had no idea what to expect and really enjoyed it.

Yes, AMA allows you to drop luggage and come back later as cabins are usually not ready until mid afternoon. They served a light lunch - soup.salad sandwiches on embarkation day.

Yes, the AMA & Uniworld elevators both stop at all the levels ( with the exception of the sun deck), while the Viking elevator only reaches the 2 middle decks where the restaurant and lounge are located.

Yes, I think so. I am originally from the upper Midwest, so I am much happier in the cold than the heat! I knew going in, there was not going be much in the way of scenic views while sailing & touring, other than architecturally and was ok with that as I have previously visited the Rhine area in summer and fall seasons. The weather actually cooperated nicely, once we left the rain in Amsterdam behind us, we had severally sunny days, and in fact toured Düsseldorf and Speyer with just a fleece jacket. The only downside might be for those who are avid shoppers ( of which I am not) is that because we were so early in the season, some of the shops and restaurants, especially in the smaller towns were not open yet - including the Kathe Wolfart Christmas shop in Rudesheim.

I just returned from a week aboard the AmaLucia, and thought I would offer my personal opinions, as I travelled on both Uniworld in November and have three Viking river cruises under my belt recently. I am happy to answer any questions as well. I knew going in, that the weather was going to be iffy, but as I firmly believe that "There is no bad weather, just bad clothing" the price point, and smaller crowds appealed to me. Spent three days in Amsterdam pre cruise (not through AMA) and was able to leisurely tour the Van Gogh museum, and other attractions with minimal waits or crowds. AMS public transport has adopted the tap & ride system, so you just tap your credit card as your ticket when you enter and exit the buses or trams - including the train from the airport. I did notice that many, many place, including restaurants and shops "cashless only" now. There were only 72 guests on board, which in turn, allowed the excursions numbers to be very small. In fact, as I opted for the "gentle" tours, three of my four excursions were either myself and the tour guide - only one or two additional guests. All four tour guides were very good. We did see quite few Ukrainian flags and posters in windows and city plazas, addition to makeshift memorials to Alexei Navalny in major cities including Amsterdam, Strasbourg and Zurich. I will say, that of the three ships, Amalucia, Joie de Vivre and Viking longships, I prefer the Viking layout - as on Ama Lucia, the elevator was in the middle of the lobby and the front of ship (resturant and lounge) were offset from the back where the staterooms were located. Which meant that you ALWAYS had at least one flight of stairs, no matter which way or where you were headed. And the Joie seems much darker, probably due to the darker woodwork paneling and smaller windows. The ship itself was beautifully appointed, and seemed much more open and light filled than the Joie de Vivre. The lounge has areas with long couches and stools which allow larger groups to gather together. Like the longships, they had a small eating area at the front of the lounge area which allowed views and opened up in better weather. I was in the lowest & smallest cabin as I was traveling solo, which was actually wonderful for a single traveller. AMA does target to the solo traveler demographic and often offered no supplement sailings. They also have specifically designed some of the dinning tables to seat 5 or 7 guests. Bathroom was smaller and not quite as nicely appointed as Viking or Uniworld, and the shower was the smallest of the three, but great water pressure! I did have the chance to view some larger cabins and really like their layout, especially as they have cabins that feature both a small balcony and a juliet balcony which really makes the room seem larger. The staff was equally as professional and helpful as on Viking and Uniworld, although there where a few small dining room service glitches, (which was not surprising as it was only the second sailing of the season). And given the small number of passengers, staff addressed passengers by name by the first day and were very interactive with the guests. There was a small, but well appointed gym and the wellness staff member was visible throughout the cruise, offering daily classes, leading hikes and bike excursions. They offer a small spa/salon and massages are available - cost was reasonable - 80 euro for an hour. While I enjoy food, and consider myself a "foodie", (albeit not necessarily a gourmet) and I believe the majority of all my meals on Uniworld and Viking were very, very good, the food on the Amalucia was a bit more... the only way to describe it is maybe more adventurous, inventive or maybe creative? One example is the "make your Pho bowl" cooking station at lunch. They also provided AMAZING soups,(lunch and dinner), a different one was offered each day, with no repeats. AMA does not offer a beverage package, but between the wine and beer at meals, and the sip & sail cocktail hour (which featured a cocktail of the day, as well as a selection of cocktails, beers, wine and mocktails), it was not really needed. Drinks were actually on par or cheaper than many of my local restaurants. I paid 6 euro for a Baileys after dinner, and it was a generous pour. Lounge entertainment similar to others, with a keyboardist, but there was local entertainment three nights - a classical trio who were VERY good, a jazz singer (also very good) and I cant remember the last one because I did not attend. Demographics seemed to be on the lower end from both my Viking and Uniworld cruises - I would estimate mid- late 40s- 60s, with only one couple seemingly older, but very active. A few including myself, not above using walking poles 🙂 - AMA provides both the canes w a fold out seat, as well as walking poles for guests to borrow. I am happy to answer any questions regarding the three ships, differences, similarities or other...

Are you actually wanting to visit Normandy, or simply enjoy a Seine cruise? Normandy is a big area and is if you are looking to do WW2 sites - know that for most cruise lines, there is a lot of bus travel involved, and a long day, and you must chose between the US or British/Canadian sites.

I've stayed in the cabins across from laundry 2x and would happily do so again. Very convenient and there was no noticeable noise.

We visited Keukenhof on a the Viking Tulip Time cruise in March of 2018. We arrived shortly after opening, and were provided two departure options. We started with a short guided tour, explaining the history, and layout or the site, and from there you could either stay with the guide or be turned loose with instructions on where to meet the guides to return to the buses.