Europe River Cruising - Viking vs. Uniworld

You might also want to take a look at AMA Waterways:

http://www.amawaterways.com/

We went on one of their Christmas Market cruises last December. We were extremely pleased with all facets of the cruise.

Thanks, I actually have checked out AMA Waterways, along with Avalon Waterways, Peter Deilmann and SeaCloud, along with Uniworld and Viking. We're looking for an array of shore excursions that are available, food that takes into consideration different diets, i.e., vegetarian etc., comfortable staterooms that make you "want" to stay in your room if you'd like and a decent sized bathroom, definately picture windows/sliders and/or a balcony. No frills entertainment is just fine, as the canal stops are the focal points.

Also, pleasant on-board staff relations is a plus too.

Tips and advice...please...THX

We have done Amsterdam-Budapest and the next year Bucharest-Budapest with Tauck and it was fantastic, start to finish. Viking and Uniworld are both superb also, can't go wrong with any of them.

ANy other thoughts?

I sailed w/ Uniworld, Amsterdam to Antwerp and was very very pleased!!! Wonderful food, nice cabins, and a great crew! I will use them again!

My husband,6 friends, and I have just returned from Uniworld's cruise of Provence and Burgundy. We couldn't be more pleased. A coffee station available 24 hours a day, free internet, free wine at dinner, free use of their bicycles-all added to our enjoyment. We can't wait to cruise again.

Thanks Janet - I might be travelling with my elderly dad and a sibling. which ship were you on? My dad is no longer allowed to drink would that be difficult on the cruise?

spidycat - I've not been on a Viking or Uniworld cruise so take this with a grain of salt. I've been reading on 'cruisecritic.com' a lot of complaints about Viking. Poor food quality, use of sun deck restricted, possible financial concerns and other issues seem to pop up regularly. Check out the web site on your own.

My DW and I will be going on an Avalon river cruise next year. With Avalon you don't have to pay the entire balance in order to get promotions and wine is gratis at dinner. I've read nothing but good things about avalon.

yeadonite-We sailed on Uniworld's River Royale. We enjoyed everything about it-the sun deck, the lounge, all the meals. Our cabin was approximately 151 sq. feet. All of the cabins are the same size except, of course, the suites. No one is forced to drink the wine. Two people in our group are diabetics. So they simply declined the offer of beer or wine. Soft drinks, coffee, and tea are available.

janetbourque - Thanks for that information. I need a vacation and really want to do the cruise he is unsure. What did people do at night.

yeadonite-The River Royale has a lovely lounge surrounded by windows. Most nights there was a piano player. Two nights singers performed. Sometimes we walked into the town or sat outside on the sun deck. Another night there was a trivia contest. Everything was rather low key- certainly no Las Vegas type shows, but that's the way we like it.

Our group of 12 friends went on Uniworld's River Beatrice from Passau to Budapest (with a 3-day Prague pre-cruise stay), and I could not find fault. The boat was always in pristine condition, they use an Asian staff, meaning impeccable service, and the food was just to die for. They really go out of their way to make you feel at home. Some in our party had medical issues and the managers were at their beck and call all day, buying meds, arranging doctors etc. Could not recommend them highly enough

We're also looking into booking a European river cruise on either Viking or Uniworld so I, too, would appreciate information about the pros and cons of each.

Yeadonite, you said that your dad is elderly, but you did not mention his health. Since the European itineraries include a lot of walking, he is probably in fine shape. Just in case that's not true and he has trouble with stairs, you might want to be aware that at least of the Uniworld ships do not have elevators.

that should have read "...at least SOME of the Uniworld ships do not have elevators." Sorry.

The River Beatrice has elevators. There is walking, but not extensive.

I've been on several Viking Cruises and I must say I have been please with every single one of them. All of the staff speak English very well and were extremely helpful, the excursions were all included (there were a few optional ones available as well), the ships are well maintained and the food was splendid. I have been on other river cruise lines before but I would say Viking has provided the most memorable experience for my wife and me.

Thanks MelodyeE and madalinahk and everyone else. I have 2 days to decide!!! I might just take art to PAris - dont know yet!

We've cruised with Uniworld and this year, with Avalon. We thought the boat was definitely better than Uniworld's. Great service from the crew, good food, 24 hour coffee/tea service, free wine or beer with dinner. The excursions, both included and optional, were good.
We paid extra to have a cabin with french balcony windows and were really pleased that we did so.

marg where did you go on uni and avalon?

I just got back and had an amazing time. The ship was going in for refurbishing so I am sure the newer ships are better. It was an amazing experience and want to plan our next vacation!

I am so new to even thinking about a river cruise, but need to know. Why doesn't anyone even consider looking at Vantage? That is the 1 we're looking at. Am I making a big mistake?

Whee does Vantage go? I heard from people on my cruise that Viking was also good

We're looking at an eastern europe river cruise, Budapest to Bucharest. This is tougher then cruise ships because I know and so does everyone else, each cruiselines reputation. Not so with river boat co.

conde naste traveller rates the ships.

Zwho...you have different categories..river boat companies like Viking, Uniiworld, AMA,next, tour companies who book a group on a river boat, and lastly, tour companies that own their own river boats but also offer escorted land based tours worldwide. I think Vantage is in the last category. We looked at their ships and didn't like their layout compared to Viking at that time..2005. We prefer to travel with a river cruise boat company.

HappyTrvlr, Can you tell me what you didn't like about the lay out and why a tour co. that offers river cruises is not as good as a river cruise co. Is it about boat ownership? Please help me. I like that Vantage's offer incudes airfare and what I read sounds very similar to what I have read on other river boat trip descriptions. Thank you.

My wife and I are shopping for a European river cruise, too. Last night we went to a Uniworld presentation at a local agency and it looked fabulous. The agency owner said (to me, out of hearing of the Uniworld rep) that on a recent AMA Waterways cruise they toured a Uniworld boat and it was much nicer, for about the same price. I'm also impressed by Viking as well, so maybe in the class we're looking at they're all good.

Just saw on http://www.cruisecompete.com that they're offering an extra $100 OBC on AMA in case you decide on that line. Good luck!

We took a Uniworld cruise of the Danube from Passau to Budapest and we LOVED it. Everything was perfect and we couldn't have been happier. We docked next to Viking cruises a couple times and as they went through our ship to get to shore we heard many of them say they thought our ship looked a lot nicer. We were on the River Beatrice and it was fabulous. I don't know the names of the Viking ships that docked by us.

I took my first river cruise at the end of October on the AMA AMACELLO and thought it was terrific. From what I have read, Uniworld and AMA are very similar, although I don't think Uniworld has computers in each cabin, which AMA does. I didn't drink on our cruise and had no problem obtaining complimentary diet soda at dinner and drinking iced tea at lunch... it was nice to have a zero bar balance at the end of the cruise! I just completed my review of the entire trip so you can read my trip report, which is about to be posted. It is very detailed and long. We sailed did three days in Prague and then sailed from Nuremburg to Budapest with extra days in Budapest on our own at the end.

The Uniworld ship we were on "The River Beatrice" did not have computers in each cabin, but we could use our own computers in our cabins. It worked great as we carried a small notebook computer with us. We had complimentary soft drinks with meals as well as wine with dinner and we had iced tea, lemonade and several kinds of coffees available free 24/7. We also spent 3 days in Prague at the start of our tour (part of the tour) and love it (stayed at the Imperial Hotel and it was wonderful. We were taken by coach to Passau Germany where we got on the ship. It was fabulous.

Could someone tell me about the Eastern European Explorer trip with Uniworld ... Vienna to Bucharest. I've heard it's better to start at Bucharest as the scenery gets better as you go to Vienna. True? Has anyone done this cruise in April?

beenaroundalot;

Are you planning to fly to Bucharest and do the trip in "reverse".

Percy - Yes, considering that as I read that is better option. Any thoughts? Also wondering if april will likely be very cool & rainy? Would be nice & green at least.

Hi beenaroundalot:

I have not been there but have looked at this cruise also.

What i can tell you is that Uniworld is as exploitational as it gets - I have several friends working there, and the underbelly is terrible. These are decent, college graduates from eastern Europe who cannot find a job in their own countries. They are being mobbed, bullied, shouted at, sleep deprived, generally treated like waste of space.

The captains are often drunk (source: night watch), and the managers are bringing the people under them to tears with their screaming at every single perceived misstep because the ships within the company are so competitive amongst one another.

People are forced to work up to 90 days in a row (safety breach?), 12 hours per shift with no breaks, and to still be smiley and wavy constantly - the part the passengers see.
This company looses over 60% of its crew every season. People go on vacation never to return, or they just flee the ship and the madness.

If you do decide to go on these ships, and yes, they are nice, and the people will make you feel welcome, ask yourselves who is standing behind them with a whip.

Thank you.