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@StartrainDD Thanks for you review. From your report did I get it correctly you had invited entertainment only 2 times during the cruise: 2 musicians and dancers the other day?

All other days only onboard piano player?

Well, don't forget sometimes folks just imitate cough to make other people move away from them. I used to do that, just don't want to stay in a crowd. 

Thanks, notamermaid. It looks like they don't require it. 

We are also looking at Emerald: I can't find on their website whether they require it or not.

Anyone knows which cruise line still allows unvaccinated passengers? We are trying to find something for this fall/Christmas. Thanks.

4 hours ago, Bookishcruiser said:

COVID-19 test at end of cruise is 132 euros. Ouch but really don’t know the cost elsewhere.....

Thanks for your response. It's really Ouch considering you'll need a simple rapid test to get back to US. PCR is not required. 

As for the entertainment I meant regular piano music other cruise lines have every night when there are no other evening activities.

Apparently Uniworld just tries to limit evening interactions between guests: less folks in the bar after dinner. 

Thanks for the useful information from your trip. Just a few questions:

1. How is evening entertainment? Do they have a piano player? Last time we did a Moselle river with them they didn't have anyone and evenings were pretty boring.

2. Is vaccination required?

Enjoy the cruise and Italy!

Just curious if face shields are allowed? I have some breathing difficulties and can't really wear mask.

How is evening entertainment? 

14 hours ago, Captain_Morgan said:

I am nothing but a troll

Totally agree!

I think it's the end of river cruising for us. ☹️ The whole idea was about socializing and meeting new people. Dining at the same time and with different people is a key component. Probably time to switch to a different type of vacation.

... $200 more or less is not going to make a difference when I decide what cruise to book.

$200 won't make a difference, but per cabin (2 people) it is already $400 and more important it shows if company cares about their loyal customers. It is seems like the past guest discount is eliminated from almost all offers this year. Here is standard S04 offer for this year cruises:

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Offer S04: Offer valid on bookings made from January 23, 2017 to January 31, 2017. Cruise from $1,849 per person based on November 2017 departures of Danube Waltz on Category E; other months may be higher, please call for details. Prices are in US dollars and for US residents only. Viking all-inclusive air with transfers available. Air does not have to be purchased to get cruise/tour offer. All fares reflect Viking Explorer Society credits and First-time travelers discounts. May not be combinable with any other offers except Referral Rewards. Additional restrictions may apply. Book and pay in full by January 31, 2017. Offer expires January 31, 2017.

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CJ-

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Premier Tier (After 3 trips)

*Complimentary Viking Air Plus services

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It seems like this one does not exist anymore. I've not seen it for a long time on Viking's website. And there was actually another one: "complimentary upgrade if available after 3 cruises with Viking". Also removed :eek:

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*Offer VLF:

Offer valid on bookings made from January 12, 2017 to January 15, 2017. Cruise from $2,699 per person based on May 2017 departures of Lyon & Provence on Category F; other months may be higher, please call for details. Prices are in US dollars and for US residents only. Viking all-inclusive air with transfers available. Air does not have to be purchased to get cruise/tour offer. Not combinable with Past Passenger discount and Referral Rewards Program. Additional restrictions may apply. Book and pay in full by January 15, 2017 or at time of booking if departure date is within 90 days. Offer expires January 15, 2017.

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It looks like Viking is trying to cut the cost by diminishing explorer society benefits...

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2186821

Considering current level of service IMO the time hasn't come yet for Mississippi river cruises.

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I've browsed the websites of Viking, Uniworld, AMA, and Avalon, ordered and read a guidebook on river cruising...and I really don't know what to do next.

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Just book it :)

In fact IMO itinerary is the most important in river cruising. The cruise lines you mentioned are pretty much the same with some differences that should not affect your first river cruise impression. Though everyone's here has a different opinion about the service, ship etc...

Try to compare the prices as well. Few years ago we selected Viking and never regretted.

... experience on one (refusing to identify) of the three AMA ships named in the original post, making assumptions that his opinion applies to all three. Also, declining to answer if the itinerary was a repeat of one sailed on Viking, if not, how can the port and tour experiences be 'compared" without having experience on both sides?...

I do not really see your point? Yes, there is a 0.1% chance shuttle buses to the Vienna city center are provided on let's say AMAReina and not on AMASonata. And unlike AMASonata tour stuff on AMAReina do wear jackets with AMA sigh. Or in Budapest AMAPrima is docked next to Viking while AMAReina - in the Budapest cruise port.

If you read my review you may notice I was trying to avoid specific differences as much as I could. Never posted something like: "We did not like the cruise director" or "the service in the dining room was awful/perfect" because it is very subjective and is not related to the comparison between different river lines.

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And this: "AMA does not offer bridge/engine/kitchen tours at all." This has been offered on our AMA cruises and we have participated. The CM announced the times for the tours and there was a sign up sheet at front desk. To say AMA does not offer them AT ALL is inaccurate.

Assuming you had this tour just means the lack of organisation on AMA. Maybe CM announced it somewhere. I've never heard it and nothing was published in AMA Dailies about it.

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How was you experience with Viking on the Elegant Elbe? ...

Wonderful. However Elbe river is very unpredictable: while we had a perfect weather and no low water issues in March this year, a year ago the same cruise was just cancelled due to the snow and docking locations closure.

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In July we sailed with Avalon and yes we were docked in an out of the way location in Budapest but were given a night time sail after dinner to see all of the lights of Budapest, what a great treat that was, something I NEVER saw viking do. Also the location of the Viking dock in Budapest was busy, guests were overlooked by everyone at night on the Chain Bridge. ...

About the location: it might be busy but it is very convenient. I could only found this "taxi" map but it is very self describing:

"A" is where Viking is usually docked.

"2", "4" - Ama.

Easy to see which one is closer to Parliament, Castle district, Opera etc... In fact "A" is in a walking distance from all major attractions. At the same time with Ama we had to take a tram/subway.

I am curious as well. Care to share?

No, if I do, it'll turn into a cruise/ship review which is not the purpose of my post. Ship name does matter either since all 3 AMA ships have the same design.

But do not get me wrong: I am not complaining. I am comparing: feel the difference :)

In fact we had a very good cruise and will cruise with AMA again if they offer competitive pricing. The problem is IMO they are highly overpriced comparing to Viking.

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Our AMA cruise did indeed have an orientation tour. You are making very broad statements about AMA based on one cruise, which doesn't seem to have been representative of other AMA cruises.

Viking does orientation strolls in many cities, not just one orientation tour you had sometime ago. Btw, we had none.

I forgot to ask one question; are you saying that the Viking Lounges can't hold all passengers? So the shows, talks, etc., that are such a plus, may be missed by some passengers because of lack of seating?????

I've never seen someone missed a show due to the lack of seating: they usually add additional seats. Also Viking manages it very smart: at the same time something else is being offered or you can even watch a show/next day port talk etc on a TV from your stateroom.

Just came to mind another thing totally absent on AMA: no so called "orientation stroll" which is usually done by Viking cruise director or some of the stuff familiar with the city the ship is docked in.

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Water was offered onboard and you were free to take as many as you wanted on tours. ...

I never said the water was not offered before the tour. However it was not available later or offered for a fee.

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Engine room tours were offered and were free....

Interesting. It was never mentioned in AMA Dailies and I have all of them in front of me. Or you have to ask specifically about such tour? Viking posts all information about such tours and even schedule in their daily paper.

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we loved about AMA was the wide variety - gentle walkers, late-risers, fast-paced, optional excursions, bike tours and limited edition tours.

Same with Viking. Although I have to admit Viking lacks bike tours and those are a big plus.

... We were always docked close to Viking. ...

There was never a hiccup with any tours. Alway extremely well arranged.... ... Had spare Quietvox for people who forgot theirs after numerous reminders to bring them. ... I have seen Vikings menus and they seem to only offer a three course meal, (or I may be misreading it. It seems to be starter or soup, main and dessert)....

We had a good selection of entertainers come on board. Very broad selection, plus resident piano player/singer, plus went to a castle for dinner, with entertainment, an opera recital with champagne during the Opera house visit, a concert in Vienna just for APT quests, with champagne.

...

Although this was an APT tour, all ship staff are Amawaterways, just the itinerary varying for us New Zealanders and Australians who want a one price holiday with no extras. Fully inclusive including spirits and cocktails from the bar.

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Good for you. I can only say it is very different from what we've seen and experienced. Although unlike you I can compare Viking vs AMA since we've sailed on both lines. And just for information: this is not a review of a particular cruise but rather a comparison.

Decided to post here a few notes about our AMA river cruise experience and how it compares to Viking. Hopefully it’ll help future river cruisers to choose the right option and not regret it later.

So let me start from the ship:

I am comparing new AMA ships (AMASonata, AMAPrima, AMAReina) vs Vikings Longships.

In my opinion AMA wins hands down:

1. Less passengers
   
2. AMA ships have fitness center and swimming pool
   
3. Lounge has enough space to accommodate all passengers
   
4. No noise issues on the first floor staterooms
   

Dining and food

Pretty much the same selection with only minor differences. However few things not to be missed:

1. AMA does not do barbecue lunch on deck even in the summer
   
2. Lunch on AMA is pretty much limited to the dining room. They do serve a few snacks in the Lounge but it is not comparable to Viking which has almost a full menu there
   
3. AMA does not offer any cheeses/sausages etc… tastings in the Lounge. They do let’s say German dinner in the dining room but Viking does it too
   

Entertainment:

Definitely a Viking win. AMA invites musicians onboard as well but very limited: 2-3 times per cruise. And unlike Viking they do not offer any entertainment during the lunch. No theme talks either: e.g. history and culture in every country, European Union etc. No demonstrations either. For example with Viking we had a very interesting clogs making demonstration in Amsterdam.

Excursions:

Again Viking wins hands down:

1. Tours are much better organized. Water and spare quietvox devices are provided even on a bus after tour starts. At AMA we were asked to pay 1 euro to the driver to buy a bottle of water.
   
2. Cruise director and all tour stuff at Viking wear the same easy identifiable jackets with Viking sign. No such thing at AMA: losing a few people on a tour is a common situation, happened few times with us.
   
3. AMA does not offer bridge/engine/kitchen tours at all. Viking offers and does them for free.
   
4. AMA does not offer shuttle bus service to the city center. Sometimes they do offer late pickup from the tour but only once and a specific time.
   

And on top of that very important note: I assume everyone knows Viking owns best dock locations on both Rhine and Danube. So if you are let’s say in Budapest on AMA ship – expect to be docked in the public river port which is kind of far from city attractions: e.g. parliament or St. Stefan’s cathedral. On the other hand Viking’s docking spot is much better and closer.

Another thing I still do not understand: why AMA or let's say Avalon are priced higher than Viking? :eek: They are offering the same product in the same category.

Hope it helps.

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Gate 1 is a travel agency. Your agents can't resell.

No, they can and do resell.

JFYI: the Gate1 pays 14%-16% commission depending on what and how you book.

Good news. Thanks to everyone.