Just back from Uniworld Enchanting Danube

[beesKate]

Although I plan to do a real review later, I'm posting a short recap.

We were blessed with splendid weather. Apparently a ship that left a day after us was in rain almost daily. We did have a few sprinkles, but one of our rains resulted in a beautiful rainbow! It was cold (for this Texan) and I was glad I packed my heavier coat. I used my gloves a bit and wore a casual hat. Several cruisers bought Tyrolean-style hats early on and wore them almost daily.

Don't stress about attire. Wear what you'll be comfortable in. We did a lot of walking and I'm glad I decided to bring my day-hikers. I just wish I had a few brought a few more pairs of smart-wool socks! I thought I'd wear my other, more work-casual shoes more, but with cobblestones and hikes up to scenic overlooks I decided to go with the day-hikers most days.

On the first "dress up" dinner I discovered I didn't pack the skirt I'd intended to bring, so I just worked with the other separates I brought, pairing them with my Land's End star-fish pants (in black) with my pumps. In all I honesty, there were only a handful of people who really dressed up. When I think back, I really don't remember what people wore.

The food is fantastic, the staff were outstanding. We ended up sitting at the same table every night and had the same server. There are advantages to creating a relationship with your server. Our learned we loved desserts and would bring what we ordered and then a few extra to share. He also would tell us what not to order and his nightly recommendations. I don't think there was anything I had that I didn't like.

I heard complaints about the wireless. I really only wanted to post a Facebook update daily and was easily able to do that. I checked email, but yahoo noted "unusual activity" and I couldn't unlock my account. I had no trouble with my Gmail account. There was apparently someone on the cruise who needed to check email for work and had a hard time. I think if you set the expectation that Wi-Fi will be limited, you won't be disappointed. Let people know you won't be able to contact them and they might not be able to contact you. 10 years ago, this wouldn't have been an issue.

Uniworld staff really took care of us. However, there were several Viking ships (and a few others) following similar itineraries. Everyone we spoke to from other ships were very happy with their cruises too (even with the Slovakian lock kerfuffle).