River Cruise ships
 

Can you provide information on which river cruise lines provide the best service and customer satisfaction? We are thinking of a foreign river cruise for 2014.

We had a trip with Viking last spring and thought that it was great.

I was on AMA about a year ago. Their trip planning person left much to be desired.

We have done Viking,Vantage, and Grand Circle. They all seem to be pretty much the same. When you say best service and customer satisfaction it would depend on exactly what you are looking for. Everyone has a different bar for service and satisfaction. They all try hard to make their guests happy but there is always someone that is never happy I suppose. Most of the staff has worked for all 3 companies if you talk to them. They seem to make the rounds.

We took two Uniworld River Cruises and loved both of them.

We felt AmaWayerways offered a higher quality experience than Viking.

If you are looking for the best then I recommend Tauck. We cruised with Tauck in September 2011 Amsterdam to Budapest and we were so impressed we've booked them again for a cruise of the Rhone in France for August next year. They are truly all-inclusive and once you've paid for your cruise you won't have to put your hand in your pocket again. Gratuities, all your drinks all day and everything else you can imagine except Laundry costs are covered in the price.

We're from Australia and I've not found a better company to do business with. Check out their website but you'll have to hurry as they sell out well in advance of the sailing date.

Tauck is an excellent company. You will also pay dearly for their services. If money is not an issue than I agree that Tauck is excellent.

When it comes to Tauck southeastern I guess it boils down to where you live when it comes to costs. When I did my research for our 2014 cruise I priced all companies, comparing apples to apples, and found that not only was Tauck not the most expensive in Australia it was actually cheaper than both Scenic and APT/AMA. In fact being an Australian Tauck offered us a free night in a 5 star hotel as a part of our holiday. Now I think that's generous and when everything is included in the price(except laundry) it makes them great value for money. Before anyone just takes the upfront cost as what you'll actually pay then I suggest you add in all the extras like gratuities, transfers, optional tours and bar costs to name just a few. You'll then find that companies like Tauck are not as expensive as they're painted to be.

When it comes to Tauck southeastern I guess it boils down to where you live when it comes to costs. When I did my research for our 2014 cruise I priced all companies, comparing apples to apples, and found that not only was Tauck not the most expensive in Australia it was actually cheaper than both Scenic and APT/AMA. In fact being an Australian Tauck offered us a free night in a 5 star hotel as a part of our holiday. Now I think that's generous and when everything is included in the price(except laundry) it makes them great value for money. Before anyone just takes the upfront cost as what you'll actually pay then I suggest you add in all the extras like gratuities, transfers, optional tours and bar costs to name just a few. You'll then find that companies like Tauck are not as expensive as they're painted to be.

We used Uniworld for the Rhine and Mosel trip and loved every bit of it. Cabins, daily activities, staff, everything was top notch, and that area was amazing and delightful. We're considering, though, a Danube trip next year, and are disappointed that heir itinerary seems inferior.

You are right southeastern, the services of Tauck are very good.