It seems that Europe was hit with very hot temperatures this year. Heard that in some places it was actually 100°F, which created a Danube River waterway problem– low water for sailing. Viking River Cruises made the very best of the problem for its clients/guests. Yes, we were disappointed that the Viking 'Skirnir' was not docked in Nuremberg, but was instead docked in Vilshofen, a 3 hour coach drive away, but Vilshofen proved to be an enjoyable and delightful city to investigate. We took a neat excursion called- the Museumdorf Bayerisher Wald in Tittling, Germany, that was educational. Cities in this Bavarian area donated old buildings and people donated items used before the turn of the 19th century.
Our Ship's Director- Joey offered us great excursions on our cruise and we had great tour guides as well. The Glass Museum in Passau, Germany was a city secret, that we found amazing. My favorite excursion was in Vienna– The 'Belvedere Museum & Castle'. It was listed as the 'Viennese Art Nouveau and city tour'. We enjoyed going to a castle and seeing the art displayed by: Klimt, Franz Xaver Messerschmidt and others. It was fun and enriching to attend an operetta: The Marriage of Figaro, the night before. Budapest did not disappoint, even though they had a marathon on the day of our arrival, postponing the morning city tours. As to onboard life- our meals were scrumptious; the ship was always clean and fresh; I enjoyed the library on-board, especially with a special coffee or tea from the coffee/snack area. It was certainly a great river cruise that we would do again, hopefully soon.
Our 'housekeeper' kept our cabin in tip-top condition. It was well lit, roomy and more than we could want.
We took our own excursion… We walked through the old town, to the castle area and past Albrecht Dürer's home and back.
It was raining all day, which made the walking tour miserable. Our tour guide was very informative.
We took the walking tour of the city… Great tour guide / informative tour.
Went to the Glass Museum, which was close to where we were docked. Wow! 5 floors, 60 rooms, with over 30,000 glass pieces! Impressive!
Our tour was comprised of about 8 people, which made the tour very personable. The tour guide was informative and had time to answer questions due to our size.