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Crowds are a little thinner, the wine-producing regions host harvest festivals and you will see fall foliage colors along the way. With cooler and shorter days, you also may not be able to enjoy the top deck of the ship as much as you would like. For other good connections - especially to our on-board staff - the included tip provides.
Danube Explorer & highlights of Budapest
Best of all, land programs offered by the cruise lines will be fully escorted by a cruise director who will look after your every need. The ancient origins of its name are lost in the mists of time – with contenders including a bringer of luck, a Vedic river goddess, and even words meaning swift, violent and undisciplined. Gliding peacefully between its famous and endlessly enchanting river banks, you’ll experience for yourself the calm delights that inspired “the beautiful blue Danube” of Johann Strauss’s immortal waltz and lullaby. Music is everywhere on the shores of the river Danube – from the wild genius of Mozart in Salzburg to Beethoven, Brahms, and an entire family of Strausses in classical Vienna.
Danube Serenade: Romantic Journey from Vienna to Bucharest (Turnu Magurele) , MS Fidelio
There's also the balmy Leisure Pool, the Indoor Medicinal Pool, plus plunge pools. Saunas, steam rooms and spa treatments, such as couples' massages, are also available. Take home a memento from your time here by picking out a handmade soap made from water from the Gellert Baths, also in Budapest, containing nourishing avocado oil. Your Danube River cruise will be filled with memorable experiences unique to the region.
Viking Danube River Cruise: Cultural Highlights For First-Time Cruisers
One of the mightiest castles peering over the Danube is Durnstein Castle, around a 15-minute drive from Krems. This infamous medieval fortress is where Richard the Lionheart was incarcerated by Austria's Leopold V in the 12th century. Legend has it that on his return from the Crusades, King Richard refused to share his spoils with Leopold and tore up the Austrian flag, leading to his imprisonment. On an included Panoramic tour of Budapest with Viking, you can take in fantastic views of Szechenyi Bridge from Buda Hill, in Buda's sublime Castle District. Viking offers a Privileged Access shore excursion to the Alma Deutscher Mozart & Strauss performance, which takes place at the exquisite Wiener Konzerthaus.
Linz on the Danube
With VIVA Cruises you enjoy the feeling of being in the best hands from the very beginning. That's why our service is not limited to life on board, but begins with the preparation of your trip. That's why we devise an equally diverse excursion program for each of our fascinating itineraries. Whether you are a gourmet, a nature lover or an art enthusiast, our selection of experiences will open up new perspectives for you on every voyage. For anyone that likes city breaks, the new 17-day Capitals of Eastern Europe itinerary is sure to please.
Cruise Critic's Ultimate Danube River Cruise Guide
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Savour a glass of sparkling apricot wine -- on of the region's delicious delicacies -- before enjoying a private viewing of the abbey. Explore vibrant capital cities such as Budapest, Bratislava, Bucharest, and Vienna, and witness treasured landmarks, from Gottweig Abbey to the Iron Gates Natural Park. Experience an eclectic mix of cultures and traditions on your luxury Danube river cruise. Passing through more countries than any other river in the world, you’ll enjoy an unparalleled tour of Europe on your cultural journey.
Summer, when the weather is hottest, is peak season and as a result Europe’s cities are particularly crowded. Because of that, we recommend taking a Danube river cruise in April, May, September and October. Good Housekeeping's seven-night itinerary sails in September, when the weather should still be balmy and dry, but the summer hordes have gone home. Its banks are lined with dramatic, unspoiled landscapes, postcard-perfect towns and villages, and grand, opulent cities. Take a river cruise down this majestic river and you’ll encounter some of the world’s most stunning countryside, including the UNESCO-protected Wachau Valley, along with an array of fascinating cultures.
Vienna, Austria
While most cruise lines offer seven-day sailings, a few do operate shorter, three to five-day sailings. When it comes to European river cruising, the Danube is unequivocally a popular choice, as it traverses through multiple countries, offering a variety of landscapes, cultures and a wealth of history. Due to its popularity amongst all cruisers, practically every river cruise line sails along the Danube, so there are fortunately lots of choices to choose from. With VIVA Cruises' Danube river cruises, you are spoiled for choice when it comes to routes and duration.
As with all rivers cruises in Europe, Danube cruises can be affected by water levels. Too high and ships can’t sail under the bridges; too low and ships can’t operate. Accelerated snow melt, heavy rain and drought are the chief interrupters of river itineraries, but cruise lines are adept at handling disruptions and have contingency plans in place. On a Viking European river cruise you will discover so much more than on a tiring land-based tour of the same length. Only packing and unpacking once, your longship is a relaxing floating home as you move seamlessly from place to place. Viking's itinerary starts in the grand Hungarian capital of Budapest, divided in half by the river.
Follow the pedestrian path to walk across the bridge or take one of the city's yellow taxis, with landmarks such as Buda Castle, home to the Hungarian National Gallery on one side, and Szechenyi Square on the other. Made popular in the late 18th century, the waltz swept across Europe from Vienna, reaching palatial ballrooms from Linz to London. You’d disembark your current vessel, get bussed past the trouble area, and then board a different ship to continue your journey. In extreme cases, your itinerary could continue by motor coach, or be canceled altogether with generous compensation. Iconic cities like Budapest, Vienna and Prague are just a few popular examples to tack onto your cruise.
The walk from the town center takes roughly 20 minutes, with the two connected by a stone wall. Vienna Staatsoper, or State Opera, is home to the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and Vienna State Ballet, with a jam-packed program of 350 annual performances. Listen to the magical sounds of Mozart, Beethoven, Strauss and Vivaldi played out by some of the world's top conductors and performers.
Celebrate Vienna and Salzburg’s musical legacy, and savor the culinary delights of Budapest and Bratislava’s brewing heritage. Enjoy scenic sailing through the Wachau Valley and admire sleepy villages along the Danube. With overnights in Vienna, Passau and Budapest, enjoy more time to fully explore.
If you love dazzling landscapes, magnificent architecture and fabulous food, a Danube river cruise is hard to beat. Exploring Europe by water requires no internal flights and train rides and eliminates schlepping around with your luggage in tow. Take a pew at the sublime St. Stephan's Cathedral, adorned with frescoes by Swiss-Italian Baroque painter Carpoforo Tencalla and home to Europe's largest organ, with a staggering 17,974 pipes. Enjoy magnificent views of Passau from Veste Oberhaus, a 13th-century fortress on a hill above the city, and browse Hollgasse, a narrow-cobbled walkway that's also known as Artists Alley for its many art galleries. Salzburg is one of Europe's truly magical cities and is easily reached from Passau on a Danube River cruise. Home of "The Sound of Music," the hills are also alive with the classical sounds of Mozart, one of history's greatest composers, who was born in Salzburg.
Traveling through four countries -- the Netherlands, Germany, Austria and Hungary -- the epic Grand European tour is a feast for all the senses. If it's your first time on the Danube take a look at Viking's eight day sailings. They cover many of the main highlights and provide the ideal excuse to come back for more. The Danube either flows through or delineates part of the border of Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine. Many cruises traverse the stretch between the capital cities of Vienna, Austria and Budapest, Hungary, starting or ending at either location. Cruising Europe’s waterways is a great way to see more of the region in a short period of time than you might do by land, and a river cruise can be the ideal introduction to cruise holidays for first-timers.
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