larsh

The cruise was really quite good. The only unexpected "deficiency" was the inability to sit up on the sun deck for about a week. The Amsterdam to Budapest goes through 67 locks and under several low bridges. As a result, they lowered canopy and folded in all the handrails. We were told to expect this, but the implication was that they would only be down sporadically at bridges, not for about 6 days straight. It made it quite crowded on the Aquavit terrace when passing certain points. Also, in a few cases, some of the shore stops were quite short; either a guided tour and sail or tour, hour free time, then sail. Your personal thoughts would depend on your adventerousness and curiosity at those stops. The stops were great though; lots of history and great local guides at each. It was our first river cruise, so no other reference for comparison. I'm assuming you're familiar with the longboats and Viking policies having sailed with them before. If you have any more questions, ask away!

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I was just in Cologne with Viking a few days ago. The included (ie. free) excursion takes you to the Dom. It's about €4-5 to climb to the top. Quite a tight spiral staircase; luckily never encountered any opposing traffic! Great view though, so worth it. There was scaffolding up at the top of the opposite spire. Partially blocked some views, but not too bad. Not sure what an optional tour would cover, but personally, couldn't justify a big charge for it.

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I am currently on the Grand European Tour with Viking (Amsterdam to Budapest). There are 19 Canadians aboard including my wife and I. Several Brits and about 4 Aussies. Majority is, of course, Americans.