Danube cruise review, Scenic Amber

[ScottVan]

Just returned from a wonderful week-long cruise on Scenic Amber from Budapest upstream to Nuremberg. (The ship spent time in Budapest, Vienna, Durnstein, Melk, and Regensburg, with brief stops at other places -- see below for more details.) Will try to share below what I think might be helpful (without repeating what can easily be found elsewhere online); feel free to ask anything and I'll do my best to respond.

 

This cruise was August 10-17, 2023, and my wife and I shared a "deluxe balcony" cabin. This was our first river cruise, but we've done ocean cruises with Carnival (twice), Princess, and Regent. Overall level of service, amenities, included stuff, etc. was very similar to Regent, but on Scenic all cabins have butler service. We were traveling with 4 others, and we all thought the food was just incredible and the cruise overall was a fantastic experience. The crew and staff were a delight. This may have been helped by the fact that the ship was less than half full -- we're not sure why that was, but we were told subsequent sailings were more full. The main language on board is English, and the passengers were from a variety of places (largest contingent was from USA, but good numbers from Australia, New Zealand, Britain, Canada, and a handful each from Spain and Belgium). The crew was mainly European and Asian, and were ready/willing/able to do whatever they could to make the voyage a good experience.

 

As a first river cruise, some things we noticed (apologies to experienced river cruisers, who will be saying "duh", but it may help other newbies): seasickness simply isn't an issue. Sometimes when docking you'll "raft" with other boats (docking side-by-side out into the river, so passengers from one boat will cross over or through another to get ashore). We did this a few times and it was interesting, but not a negative in any way. The ship went through several locks during the journey, which was fun to watch. And sometimes the bridge clearances were low enough that the ships would lower some masts and sometimes lower the bridge (and in our case sometimes close off parts of the upper deck, but not all of it).

 

Another distinction with ocean cruising: most ocean cruises seem to follow the "sail at night, dock in the day" model nearly every day. On this cruise (and maybe on many river cruises, I don't know) that wasn't the only way it worked. And the exact times in port weren't really published in advance (though they were available if I called). Some days we would stay in a city half a day then being sailing mid-afternoon to the next destination. This can be fun because on a river cruise sometimes it's the river itself, and what you see from it, that's of interest. (And part of Scenic's app is a river guide that will alert you when you're near something interesting and play a 1-2 minute audio describing it.)  Examples: on one day we docked early in Durnstein, Austria then left late morning -- some passengers stayed on the ship as it sailed to Melk, but some went on excursions that left from Durnstein then met the ship in Melk mid-afternoon, where other excursions were available. We then left Melk in the evening. In bigger cities (Budapest, Vienna) we stayed overnight. There were also a few stops that were called "technical stops" where the ship only stopped briefly, for example to let off passengers doing specific excursions who would then meet the ship at the next port. Example: we stopped briefly at Brandstatt just to let off passengers for excursions to Salzburg, Cesky Krumlov, and other places. Then those passengers met the ship at Vilshofen, where they got on board and the ship continued on.

 

We opted to arrive in Budapest a day before the cruise began (stayed at the Marriott, arranged by Scenic), as do many folks who cruise (river or ocean). In this case, this was less necessary, as the ship spent the first night of the cruise in Budapest, so missing the ship is less of a risk. But we're still glad we got the extra day in Budapest.

 

Each day there was a brief "port talk" about the next day's activities, with just enough info. to help us decide what to do, including details about how much walking, bus riding, etc. was involved. This was helpful. All excursions were included in the cruise fare. Unlike ocean cruises we've taken, only two of the excursions were able to be chosen in advance of the cruise -- our choices for Budapest and Vienna. For the other stops, we made our choices after the cruise began. I'm assuming that with these relatively small river ships, it's easier for them to adjust tour sizes at the last minute. For guided tours, there was an app that would allow your phone to be a receiver for the guide's voice, and that worked well for us -- we appreciated not having to bring along another device on the tours. 

 

Most nights there was some form of entertainment: Hungarian folk dancers, Austrian folk dancers, ballet dancers who performed as well as tried to teach some of us the Viennese Waltz, a "name that tune" contest one night, and trivia on the last night. In Vienna there was a concert just for us at Palais Lichtenstein (beautiful baroque venue), with a professional chamber orchestra, singers, and dancers. Many passengers found this to be very special. All of this was included -- the only thing we spent money on while onboard was my wife's massage (every passenger had 50 euros shipboard credit, and she used up both of ours on the massage).

 

There were set times for the 3 main meals each day, but there were always other ways to eat (room service or some really good snacks available all afternoon in the bar area). Breakfast included a buffet but also had a menu you could order from. Lunch was similar, though more emphasis on the menu than the buffet. Dinner was menu-ordering only. Wines were often local (as were many of the food options). Each passenger had at least one option to have a more "special" dinner at the Italian Portobello restaurant (which was really just a glassed-off area of the main lounge/bar, but the meal was outstanding). 

 

The ship has just over 20 e-bikes, which you can ask for anytime you like and the crew will have them on shore for you in a few minutes (locks and helmets provided, though we saw few other adults with helmets in Germany and Austria). We also went on a guided e-bike ride (using the ship's bikes) from Durnstein to Melk (both in Austria), which was a great way to see the Wachau Valley.

 

I initially had concerns about the Danube water levels, but there was some rain before our cruise and things were fine, until the last full day -- we stayed at Regensburg instead of leaving mid-afternoon for Nuremberg, where we were set to disembark the next morning. For our group of travelers, this actually ended up being an improvement, as we loved Regensburg and we weren't going to have any time to do anything in Nuremberg except go to the airport. The extra hour on the airport transfer was worth spending the rest of the day in Regensburg. We got an email just after the cruise saying that Scenic will refund each passenger $75 per person. I don't know whether the low water levels were on the Danube itself or in the Main-Danube canal.

 

Bottom line: I highly recommend a Danube cruise and a cruise on Scenic.

 

Please feel free to post any questions you may have -- I left out a lot to keep the post from being too long (which it probably already is, whoops).

 

 

[Roz]

Great review from a first timer.  Glad to hear you had a good experience. 

 

Where will you be sailing to on your next river cruise? 

[Pompein]

Thank you! Great review, makes me want to try Scenic!

[Kristelle]

Thank you so much for your review.

 

we are doing Amsterdam to Budapest  on Scenic Jade next month , also newbies to cruising - which covers same route as your trip as well as the additional week on the Rhine  - so reading your detailed review was really interesting and helpful.

[ScottVan]

1 hour ago, Roz said:

Great review from a first timer.  Glad to hear you had a good experience. 

 

Where will you be sailing to on your next river cruise? 

Good question. Any suggestions? Western Danube? Rhine from Amsterdam to Danube all the way to Black Sea? Somewhere in France? Open to ideas 🙂

[ScottVan]

40 minutes ago, Kristelle said:

Thank you so much for your review.

 

we are doing Amsterdam to Budapest  on Scenic Jade next month , also newbies to cruising - which covers same route as your trip as well as the additional week on the Rhine  - so reading your detailed review was really interesting and helpful.

That sounds fabulous. Jade and Amber are identical ships, I think we rafted with them in Vienna for a night. I'll follow this topic, so just post if you think of any questions. I wish we could have stayed on another week and gone on to Amsterdam. Next time, I guess.

[Roz]

Amsterdam is a great city to sail from.  Plan on going in a few days ahead of time.  Plenty to do and see. 

[Daisi]

Great review, we did our first cruise on the Rhine, Amsterdam to Basel. The only thing I regretted (and it was a time problem, as we were both working and couldn't get the extra time off) was we didn't do the Lucerne extension. As Roz says, Amsterdam is a great city to start, easy to do on your own with planning so you don't rush in to seeing "everything"

 

We will be doing Budapest to Nuremburg next month on Avalon, with a couple extra days added on to go to Prague. Basically the same route you took, so I appreciated your thoughts.

 

[JordanF]

On 8/18/2023 at 7:44 PM, ScottVan said:

Good question. Any suggestions? Western Danube? Rhine from Amsterdam to Danube all the way to Black Sea? Somewhere in France? Open to ideas 🙂

I think the two big river cruises in Europe are the Danube and the Rhine.  So--Castles on the Rhine would be my pick for your next one, from Amsterdam to Basel or the reverse.  If you do this, I recommend extra days in Amsterdam and also in Switzerland if you can.

 

 

[texasstar]

If you do the Rhine, try to find one that includes the Moselle.

[debcip]

Thanks so much for this review! We too are new to river cruising and will be doing the Danube in October; I’m feeling a little nervous about the new experience and appreciate your information!

 

Can I ask what you did in Vienna? We are doing an overview tour in the morning but I’m looking for something nice to do on our own in the afternoon

[notamermaid]

9 hours ago, texasstar said:

If you do the Rhine, try to find one that includes the Moselle.

Yes, the Moselle. On that idea:

On 8/19/2023 at 1:44 AM, ScottVan said:

Good question. Any suggestions? Western Danube? Rhine from Amsterdam to Danube all the way to Black Sea? Somewhere in France? Open to ideas 🙂

You stopped in Nuremberg. You could kind of continue on that route on an itinerary that takes you to Trier/Remich. Not sure what it is called anymore, but a couple of companies do this. Germany, in essence, but great scenery (okay, not necessarily the Canal but tons of locks). Main Danube Canal, Main, Rhine (Gorge), Moselle. Trier is fabulous for history. Remich is the standard port in Luxembourg country.

 

But if you want to skip to a different country and feel - the Rhone for taking you towards the Mediterranean or the Seine for taking you to the Atlantic. Two different oceans, two different atmospheres.

 

notamermaid

 

[ScottVan]

10 hours ago, debcip said:

Thanks so much for this review! We too are new to river cruising and will be doing the Danube in October; I’m feeling a little nervous about the new experience and appreciate your information!

 

Can I ask what you did in Vienna? We are doing an overview tour in the morning but I’m looking for something nice to do on our own in the afternoon

Don't be nervous! It's a bit more of a day-to-day experience, less advance planning, compared to an ocean cruise (if you're done one of those), but the crew will take care of you.

 

We loved Vienna. Note that the old city center is not right on the branch of the Danube where the cruise ships dock, it's about a 15 minute drive (or a longer walk). Our ship provided a free shuttle that looped around every half hour from dock to old town Vienna. Also, they have Uber in Vienna (but not in Budapest). Taxis in both places. To answer your question: My wife and I did a tour of Schonbrunn Palace in the morning (need to drive there from dock or city center) then were on our own in the afternoon. We wandered the streets of the old city a bit (that was fun) and went inside the cathedral (St. Stephens) and climbed one of the towers for the view - well worth it. (Have to pay to climb the towers; entry into a small part of the cathedral is free, but to wander around at will also has a charge.) Our daughter went off on her own and also visited the Hofburg palace (in the old part of the city) and took an Uber to Schonbrunn. All of those places are beautiful, and just wandering the streets is fun too.

 

One thing we wanted to do but couldn't is visit the Spanish Riding School (they take a lot of time off in August). You can see a performance, or see training, or just take a tour -- their web site has all the details. Some folks on our cruise said the Belvedere museum was excellent, and so was the Kunsthistoriches Museum. If you like museums.

 

I wish I'd eaten more wienerschnitzel.

 

Have fun, and let me know if you have more questions.

 

--Scott V.

[p032504]

My parents will be doing this same cruise in July of 2024. Any suggestions on whether to be port or starboard side?

Thanks!

[ScottVan]

Good question. I really don't think it matters (others are free to chime in with different answers). When sailing up (or down) the river, there didn't seem to be a prevalence of "sights" on one side or the other. When docking, sometimes we docked on the port side and sometimes on the starboard, and I think it's hard to predict in advance which side you'll dock on at specific cities. Even if you know, it's also hard to know which side you'd prefer -- would you like to see the town or the river? And in either case, you might a ship rafting next to you on either (or both) sides.

 

Hope this helps.

 

--Scott V.

[Kristelle]

1 hour ago, p032504 said:

My parents will be doing this same cruise in July of 2024. Any suggestions on whether to be port or starboard side?

Thanks!

 

 

Have just returned from 2 week Amsterdam to Budapest cruise

 

My answer would be same as Scott above - really doesnt matter.

Sometimes you dock on either side of river, sometimes you are docked side to side with other boats but that could happen either side of river and you could be inside or outside boat.

Sailing - either or both sides could be more interesting to see - and/or you can see from lounge or (most of the time) sundeck anyway.

 

I would not factor which side into my choice at all.

[Canal archive]

We’ve sailed on the two top decks on Scenic but never in the Swans view cabin, had enough of them peering through the Swans hatch on our narrowboat when you don’t realise they are there it can scare the life out of you. We’ve also sailed on both port and starboard side mainly starboard but I agree with ScottVan and Kristelle it’s swings and roundabouts. Wherever you are and want to know what your passing take your info system used to be tailormaid now on your phone the info you get from that is phenomenal albeit a slight surprise when it suddenly bursts into life about a passing point of interest, do you jump up and have a look, ignore and carry on with your conversation or sit back and finish your cocktail of the day, so many choices. Although most of all enjoy your cruise.

[rachiem]

Thank you for posting the review.

Like you, we are doing are first ever river cruise in Dec (same itinerary and ship) but adding some Christmas markets. We have also opted for the Marriott extension (this was cheaper booking with Scenic than doing it directly)

We've sailed with Celebrity, Viking, NCL etc....but all have been ocean cruises.

Glad you enjoyed yourselves.

[BlairsvilleCruiseGirl]

Great review - and timely as we're considering a Scenic "Danube in Depth" cruise for our first river cruise!  Regarding dinner, what time did the dining room open?  And did everyone have to go at that time, or just anytime after the doors opened?  And did you have to always share tables?  I'm sociable, but having experienced combined seating on ocean ships where our table mates were unpleasant (extremely loud or drunk or just plain obnoxious), I'm not in any rush to share tables again!  And since there are less people on a river ship then on an ocean ship, the chances of having that obnoxious party see us the following nights and think "Oh, we'll sit with them again tonight!" are pretty good.

[Canal archive]

Crystal dinning usually opens about 7p.m. Sit wherever you like you don’t have to get stuck with anyone you’re not keen on. If you’re not keen on your table mates just have a quiet word with your waiter or restaurant manager. The staff are there to ensure you have a fantastic holiday. You’ll really enjoy yourselves.

[AnhaltER1960]

On 9/25/2023 at 11:35 PM, p032504 said:

My parents will be doing this same cruise in July of 2024. Any suggestions on whether to be port or starboard side?

Thanks!

The Danube flows west to east most of the time. So, when cruising upriver from Budapest to Germany, the starboard cabins tend to be on the shadowy side (facing north). Port cabins are facing south and thus more exposed to the sun. Your choice, what you prefer.

 

As far as scenery is concerned, there is not much difference. Scenic parts like Wachau you might wish to see from the sundeck w/360degree-view anyway.  Docking is a lottery, if you dock port or starboard side, see river banks, open river or a cabin of another rafting ship. 

[ScottVan]

7 hours ago, BlairsvilleCruiseGirl said:

Great review - and timely as we're considering a Scenic "Danube in Depth" cruise for our first river cruise!  Regarding dinner, what time did the dining room open?  And did everyone have to go at that time, or just anytime after the doors opened?  And did you have to always share tables?  I'm sociable, but having experienced combined seating on ocean ships where our table mates were unpleasant (extremely loud or drunk or just plain obnoxious), I'm not in any rush to share tables again!  And since there are less people on a river ship then on an ocean ship, the chances of having that obnoxious party see us the following nights and think "Oh, we'll sit with them again tonight!" are pretty good.

The dining room opening time varied slightly from day to day on our cruise, between 6 and 7 most nights, once as early as 5:30. We did not have to go at exactly that time, any later time was also OK, just keep in mind when the meal ends and try not to show up just as the staff are cleaning everything up. On our cruise, we always simply found an open table. Sometimes we joined other groups or they joined us, but we were never required to share a table, nor was there any notion of forcing people into the same table or group each night. I think you'll have a great time, and you'll find a much smaller percentage of the passengers are of the "loud or drunk or just plain obnoxious" variety. 

 

Enjoy the voyage!

[hihandycap]

Thanks for the review.  We board the Amber in Budapest on 28Nov23 towards Nuremberg. Do you know if the Amber always docks in Buda or Pest or if it varies?

Scenic's Schönbrunn tour was full by the time we checked.  Is it worth do it on our own (using Rick Steve's commentary)?  What did your fellow passengers say if anything about the Belvedere Museum Scenic tour?

[hihandycap]

Never mind on docking location. (Received email of documents last evening which shows: 

1117 Budapest Henryk Slawik rakpart, approximately 250metres north from Rákoczi Bridge

[ScottVan]

On 11/16/2023 at 8:56 AM, hihandycap said:

Thanks for the review.  We board the Amber in Budapest on 28Nov23 towards Nuremberg. Do you know if the Amber always docks in Buda or Pest or if it varies?

Scenic's Schönbrunn tour was full by the time we checked.  Is it worth do it on our own (using Rick Steve's commentary)?  What did your fellow passengers say if anything about the Belvedere Museum Scenic tour?

We loved Schonbrunn, thought it was a very worthwhile visit. The building and grounds are vast, would take at least a full day to see everything. I'm guessing Rick Steves' narration would be a good guide to it -- didn't do that ourselves, but have used his audio guides elsewhere with great enjoyment.

 

I do recall a few guests saying they really enjoyed the Belvedere, for what that's worth.