ewizabeff

You can find a lot of the Uniworld menus (a few years old now) on my blog. Scroll down to the Vietnam/Cambodia posts. http://grosstravelchronicles.blogspot.com/p/trip-index.html

I did a lot of blogging about our Uniworld Danube trip. It was a few years ago now, so not everything will be perfectly applicable. But if you're like me and appreciate research, you'll probably enjoy it. On our Trip Index (I know, we're behind) scroll down to the 2014 Danube River Cruise.

Here's my packing list for our 2-week trip. I was slightly over-packed and travel lighter now.

I fold, use packing cubes, and try to wear light fabrics that aren't bulky and don't wrinkle much.

Fantastic list and very handy format! Thank you [emoji120] ( I wish we were going on a river cruise) :)

 

Your list is quite comprehensive, how heavy was your carry on? ( I thought usual weight limit is 7-10 kg)

I'd guess it weighed about 20 pounds? I wear it as a backpack and no one has ever questioned what it weighed.

Here's what my husband and I brought for 12 days in France (River cruise + 4 nights on our own), including some fancy dinners off-ship. We both traveled with only a carry-on (Tom Bihn Aeronaut 45) and a personal item. We had a few thing laundered on-board during the first seven days using the "all you can fit in the bag" deal on Emerald.

France River Cruise Packing List

I've cruised on Emerald and Uniworld. Emerald is a solid mid-tier line.

I have no idea how our trip has been selling. I know a lot of them have been going out with 30-35 people, which is perfectly fine for us. That was our experience in Vietnam/Cambodia.

There are plenty of things listed there I would appreciate - paperless, WhatsApp connectivity, widely available (i hope) wifi, interesting excursions, sharing of the social media wall...and I'm cautiously optimistic about the dining concept.

Movies are only showed in the room on your TV.

That's another change from the boat they used when I traveled. We had a movie room in the basement, which was also used for the Heritage Club reception and an educational lecture.

Do you not have movies offered in the evenings?

whatnot - I'm so glad the restaurants treated you well!

Sounds like maybe they changed the cooking class excursion as well. Ours was in Phnom Penh, inside a restaurant, and all the utensils were great. I wonder what's going on on the ground own there....especially with the puppet show inconsistency.

I just read the Uniworld updates for 2019, and it looks like they're making drastic changes to this itinerary - making the entire Hanoi portion optional (along with Ha Long Bay). Maybe that's why they have been making those minor changes to the Hanoi part of the itinerary - they're nixing it all together.

It's a shame, as we really enjoyed our time in Hanoi in Ha Long Bay, and I can't imagine it being optional.

Interesting to see how this trip has changed over the years (we took it in Dec 2015). Our water puppet show was included (kind of sad that they'd add on a $15 charge for such an easy-to-do cultural experience) and we stayed at a different hotel in Siem Reap. I believe you're on a new ship as well, so I look forward to your report!

They advertised this (poorly) on Snapchat. Chances of me hitting up U by Uniworld decrease with each marketing campaign. I'll stick with the older folks :)

According to a statement from Amadeus, a celebrity influencer will be onboard each millennial-focused cruise to serve as host while documenting the experience for his or her social media followers.

He or she will also organize a special program for passengers, focusing on topics like healthy living, fitness and nutrition.

The line says it has a list of influencers in place but will not release their names until they begin promoting the sailings. Promotion is expected to start on social media this spring, during a preview cruise, which is being held so the influencers can generate buzz. The line has not yet revealed which ships will be millennial-focused.

This millennial says "ugh."

I did not get the all-ages email, although maybe that's because I fall into their current U by Uniworld demographic. Funny thing is, I've been turned off by how trendy they've been making it look, and how they executed their social media influencer program (I actually asked if they'd consider including me, since I have prior Uniworld experience, work in social media, and know for a fact some folks have booked cruises because of my not-for-profit blog—they said no, likely because I'm not a trendy influencer). I'd be more likely to book a U by Uniworld cruise on the all-ages dates if I thought I'd avoid the drunken 20 year olds :)

There is a Cruise Flights forum on this board that will likely provide more help to your question about flights.

My husband and I have done this. Assuming you're paying cash for your flights (as opposed to frequent flyer miles) you can use the Kayak Explore function (link) to figure out what European gateways are offering the cheapest flights from each of those airports during your timeframe.

I'd avoid booking a return flight from London unless that's where you really want to end your trip, as the UK adds a few hundred dollars in departure taxes to each ticket. And given the region of Europe you'll be in, I'd also consider Munich, Frankfurt, and Zurich as possible gateway cities.

Enjoying your blog so far! Just starting to book our return flights for our November Egypt trip!

Do you happen to know what the cost of the Alexandria excursion is?

jpalbany - while we haven't actually booked anything, my husband has started talking about India in terms of "when" rather than "if." :) I expect we'll book shortly after our Egypt trip, meaning we'll travel in 2019 or 2020.

Interested in the Nile cruise. What sold you to choose Uniworld??

We chose Uniworld for the Nile based on our experience with them in Cambodia/Vietnam. We enjoyed the itinerary, the accommodations, the food (both onboard and off) and most of our fellow cruisers. With the early booking discount and the high level of service offered, we felt the price was reasonable and I didn't even consider shopping around with the other lines. I have full confidence in the level of service we'll receive and the quality of the Egyptologist.

When we're happy with something, we don't try something else just to try it. We originally chose Uniworld back in 2014 after some extensive comparisons between AMA Waterways and Avalon based on the itinerary, excursions, and inclusions. We cruised with another line this summer because we got an excellent group deal, and I found myself thinking almost daily, "This wouldn't happen on Uniworld..."

So I will admit I'm a pretty unapologetic fan girl, but I expect them to keep exceeding my expectations. We'll likely do India with Uniworld in the next couple of years, and maybe Russia - I really like that they do more than the standard European cruises.

We have taken two trips with Uniworld and look forward to our third in 2018. If you're looking for detailed information about meals, excursions, cities, etc., you may be interested in the blog from our 2014 cruise on the River Ambassador from Vienna to Prague. While the ship is a very different style, I'd expect much of the food and tours to be the same. You can find all the posts on the trip index page of our blog: http://grosstravelchronicles.blogspot.com/p/trip-index.html

This is standard practices on Uniworld cruises, and on many other river lines. It was certainly our experience on Emerald this summer. No advance booking of optional excursions; only on-board.

Booked our outbound flights last night! :)

Re: U by Uniworld - I wouldn't worry about anything regarding facilities or operations. They're not new ships (just refurbished) and they know the river cruise business. But, as another younger river cruiser who falls into the U by Uniworld demographic (and was excited about it prior to their launch) I get the feeling that they're just trying too hard with their marketing to look young and hip. It's still a fairly expensive trip for a lot of young party types, so I would expect it wouldn't be a bad experience. You can always skip their nighttime entertainment and spend more time in port, since they're focusing on spending evenings in cities on most of their itineraries.

In my experience, the great deals for Europe (about $400-$500 pp in economy) are roundtrip fares. You're looking to book a multi-city itinerary. For that, $800 sounds like a good price to me.

I generally find deals by following The Flight Deal - it's a great resource if you live near one of the cities they routinely cover.