Viking Grand European: River Cruise Trip Report

My wife and I had a marvelous time on this Viking River Cruise. We stayed for three days (pre-cruise) at the Budapest Hilton in Budapest, Hungary. This is a very convenient location near Fisherman’s Bastion and St Mathias Church. The hotel sits on a hill on the Pest side overlooking the Danube River and the Hungarian Parliament building.

Essentials to bring: this is highly weather dependent. We had heavier clothes and lighter clothes, as well as swimsuits.

The ship: during the river portion of the trip, we had a Veranda cabin on the upper deck. Convenient to everything on the ship. There are no casinos or people under the age of 18 on Viking River or Ocean vessels.

Entertainment and activities: the river portion brought in local people to sing traditional songs from the region we toured. Our favorite was the glass blower, he had great stories and we visited his shop in the village. There is usually one (sometimes more) free excursion in each port of call. Most of these are walking tours of the local landmarks. They are fascinating and very educational.

Ports of call: insights into what to do and see at each stop.

• Budapest: we took a tour of the Parliament Building, which is beautiful inside and out (especially lit up at night). The Parliament Building sits on the banks of the Danube River and is visible from almost anywhere in the city. Also, don’t miss the Main Market near the boat docks. This is an amazing market. It’s about a 5-minute walk and features produce and meats on the first floor and souvenirs and local foods on the upper floor. Budapest is also known for its mineral hot springs. There are a number of baths in the city where you can swim in these waters (Szecheny is the largest and best known). We found another one close to the hotel and had a great time just looking at the environment. The baths also have outdoor pools, but it was a bit chilly for that when we were there. Note: locker rooms here are unisex!

• Vienna, Austria: this was an overnight stop. We had dinner in the city at Café Landtmann. This has been around for over 100 years and served the biggest Wienerschnitzel I have ever seen! It was delicious. Check out the dessert case on your way out. Remarkable! The next day, we toured the city and then went to the Spanish Riding Academy to see the Lippizaner Stallions. They are beautiful horses. We got lucky in that they were having a special event later that day and had plywood laid out on the floor of the riding ring. This allowed us to walk on the floor of the ring and get a “Riders Eye View” of the stadium and view the royal box from below (A rare treat!) Next, we sailed the beautiful Wachau Valley grape-growing region. This is where the Austrian wines are produced. Hillsides covered with grape vines as far as the eye could see.

Nuremburg: after going through 16 locks of the Main-Danube Canal (mostly at night), we came to Nuremburg, famous for the Nazi trials after World War II. This was also where the Nazis hid a large amount of their stolen artwork in caves under the city.

Bamberg, Germany: A quaint little city in the heart of Germany. It is famous for what is called Rauschbier or smoked beer. We had to try it. It’s an odd taste, much like having a ham sandwich on rye while drinking a dark beer, but interesting once you get used to it.

At this point, we had to transfer boats from the Modi to the Skinir because the river level was too high for the boats to pass under the bridges. Eventually, we got to the Middle Rhein where all the castles are located. We spent a very sunny, but chilly and windy day admiring all the castles on the hillsides.

Koblenz and Cologne (Koln) were next up and were wonderful to just walk around. In Cologne, be aware of where the ship docks. On one side of the river, you have a trek across a very scenic bridge seen in many of the photos. This bridge has thousands of “Love Locks” attached. Legend has it that the key to these locks are then thrown into the Rhine to symbolize everlasting devotion to each other. There is also a story of one person who had second thoughts and dove into the river to retrieve his keys. No word on the outcome of that.

Kinderdijk, Netherlands: this is where you can tour working windmills and see the latest in flood control technology, a huge Archimedes Screw. This six-foot diameter machine is designed to move water from the lowlands to higher ground. There are three screws in a building not far from the windmills.

Amsterdam: this is where we transferred from the river boat Skinir to the Ocean Vessel Saturn. We had a terrific seven-day cruise from Amsterdam to Bergen Norway, but that’s for another report.

Additional Costs: One of the nice things about Viking is most things are included. Wine and beer with meals, for instance. There is also one of the more affordable drinks packages. Excursions other than the included tours in all the ports are of course extra, but not extravagantly so.

Best times to do this river cruise are in the spring, summer and when the Christmas Markets are open (usually late November and December). The climate is mild then, but be aware of changing river levels. If they are too high or too low, the ships cannot pass certain areas of the river. This necessitates a short bus trip around the affected area. Viking handles this very professionally. It is almost seamless as your belongings are transferred to the new vessel and you are in the same accommodation as before. All Viking ships have the same deck plans, so there is no need to reacquaint yourself with a new and different vessel. Everything is right where it was!

There could be occasions where you miss an excursion because of the transfer. It is important to understand that the ships are entities unto themselves. Meaning that one ship cannot reimburse for a missed excursion on another ship.

This trip report is part of our ongoing series on travel to Europe. In need of further inspiration? Check out Anne Bisgaard’s guide, European River Cruise.