Magnificent Europe Reviews

Amsterdam to Budapest was an experience of a lifetime. The excursions were excellent and the food was to die for. Our cabin was very comfortable and cruise director was very entertaining and helpful. Thanks again Yvonne Brooks for your efficient and helpful advise in booking our trip of a life time.

A truly wonderful experience travelling from Amsterdam to Budapest. All arrangements were well managed and complete from the airport pickup in Amsterdam to the airport drop off in Budapest and everything in between. The ship was exceptional; clean and comfortable a true home from home, we looked forward to the comfort of our room and bed each night. ...read more The food, service and the wine was excellent and the crew so friendly and accommodating. The cruise and the sights and tours were amazing, we were never bored and often exhausted. Thank you Global Journeys for a great, care free and well organised holiday that surpassed our expectations. We will definitely be back.

Started our holiday flying premium economy with Cathy Pacific, no problem with this airline, great service, just make sure you ask for seats near windows or isle seats as it is easier to move around and is more comfortable. Costs a bit more but well worth it on a long flight. Flew into Amsterdam early morning was able to get into our room which was ...read more a great start to the day. Couple of days of sightseeing before cruise. Avalon cruise member were there to help us the next morning with baggage and embankment details for that afternoon. Hassle free. Great trip on the Danube and Rhine, wonderful villages exciting cities. Avalon Illumination fantastic.

This was a beautiful ship and luckily was able to pass through all the low river levels with the aid of a specially employed pilot. The food was of high quality and the staff absolutely outstanding in every way. We benefited from only 50% occupancy and it probably would not have been quite as pleasant with a full ship, so we would recommend travelling ...read more out of peak season. The cruise itself was superb and we were very lucky with the weather sunny skies throughout and no rain with temperatures between 16 and 21 all the way.

We loved the river cruise format as it was a simple matter of enjoying each days activities without having to drag all of the luggage around. The room was excellent and the service and food was first class.

This Avalon River Cruise was worth every penny, it was an experience of a lifetime. Beautiful ship, fantastic staff, so helpful and friendly, always had smiles on their faces. The excursions were excellent, and having a limited amount of people on the ship meant that you get to know just about everyone on the ship. I would recommend this cruise ship ...read more line to anyone who asks, you could not get better value and service.

The crew were very nice and service was excellent. Our cabin was very comfortable and the cruise director was very entertaining and helpful. We were very disappointed that the cruise ship Vista had engine problems and we missed out on the first 2 days and also the last two days of the cruise. Although we still completed the journey by coach, it was ...read more never the same. Avalon has promised compensation, but up to now, we are still patiently waiting for it to show up in our account. Yvonne, our booking consultant was very efficient and helpful in organising our trip.

Thank you Yvonne for all your patience and help with booking this magnificent experience. Linda, my daughter and I had a fabulous holiday. Every day was a WOW experience and in fact I don't think that I could have taken too many more overwhelming days. Everything was perfect from the beautiful room where we could lie in bed and watch the river and ...read more villages pass by; the exquisite room service with lovely touches like the open fire on the TV screen in the evening; the welcoming and beautiful personal interaction by all members of staff but particularly the waiting staff; the well organised and professional program provided by Mark the tour director; the intimacy and friendship for passengers because of the small numbers of passengers for the ship and the high level of competence of the captain and the crew. I could go on and on but in essence I would definitely highly recommend this cruise to all who are seeking a wonderful and hassle free tour of Central Europe. Just one part of our flights was a problem as timing was tight between Budapest and Frankfurt and the flight was a little late into Frankfurt where we were dropped off by a bus a great distance from our next flight and lifts weren't working. I would suggest at least a 2 hour turnaround for such a leg as this. Many, many thanks Yvonne.

The initial hotel room that we were taken to in Amsterdam was very small and became very crowded. On the other hand the hotel that we stayed in in Budapest was a pleasure to be in. The next cruise passengers doing the return journey back to Amsterdam were taken care of in a much better atmosphere than we were in Amsterdam. I really enjoyed the journey ...read more and except for the above comment found everything to be well done by everyone.

What an amazing holiday! We had a wonderful time, the cruise was a lovely way to travel, the food was delish and small portions which was great, lovely staff to do everything for us. Katy the cruise director was such a fun loving person and had us entertained and gave us all the info on the different places. Beautiful places when we got to the middle ...read more of the journey the scenery was truly beautiful, it was foggy and I thought oh this is going to be disappointing but all you could see through the fog was castles coming out of the mist and vineyards climbing up the hills. We got some great shots, then the fog cleared and we had a great day. Best beer and best wine! We got to Cologne and set off for our walking tour with rain coats on and had a amazing thunder storm, so we huddled under the bridge and then continued our walk. I did not take enough warm clothing and John said I was trying to show off as my case was lighter than his but he took some long sleeved tops which I didn't. Anyway I did manage OK. Amsterdam was very hot and then so was Singapore, hot and muggy. Thanks so much Yvonne for all you did for us to make it such a special holiday for us. A little tip - we stayed in Amsterdam at a lovely hotel in such a nice area near where the boat was leaving, Parkview Hotel, Korte van Eeghenstraat 8 Amsterdam. Really lovely hotel near Vodal park, we had a lovely couple of days there before we got onto the river cruise. A much better location then last year as we stayed at the Ibis and although it was clean and nice staff the location was not nice, in the red light and tourist area, not nice vibes at all. We could highly recommend the Parkview as an alternative to Avalon's hotel which was so expensive. Thanks again for your wonderful service.

We were most impressed with everything about our cruise, from our booking experience with Yvonne right through to the actual ship (Avalon Luminary), to the crew and the sights. The stateroom was very well designed with ample storage (and THE most comfortable bed ever!). The food was wonderful, and the staff were even better. All the local guides for ...read more the shore excursions included in the cruise were very good. We will not hesitate in booking another cruise through Global Journeys with Avalon. Many thanks!

Wonderful! If only you could control the weather. Would like to go on the Mississippi Cruise next year. It would be helpful if you advertised the excursions at the start and ending ports and the optional excursions. We paid a lot of extra money on alternative excursions we hadn't budgeted for.

We thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of the cruise. It was fantastic! The Avalon Vista is a lovely ship and its crew where all terrific. Our cruise director Nynke was excellent and very versatile in daily planning. We do not hesitate to recommend the trip when discussing our holiday with all friends and acquaintances. Many thanks also to our Tour Consultant ...read more Hannah Campbell for her great assistance in organizing the tour. Once again many thanks for such an enjoyable experience- one we will remember fondly for the rest of our days.

The Europeon river cruise has been the highlight of our number of trips over recent years. It was so easy and relaxing and just what we needed after a very stressful time. I had some health issues but the comfort and ease of travel made this the best way for us. The freedom when we came to various towns in the river meant we could make individual choices. ...read more For my husband who liked more energetic exploring that was available for him and for me the quieter pace of traveling with the group suited me. We also made many ongoing friendships from that time. So glad we went.

Our experience with Global Journeys was great we could not fault anything. Yvonne our Consultant that booked everything for us was extremely helpful. The Cruise director, the Captain, all of the other staff were all very helpful you were always greeted with a smile. The Chef the kitchen staff and the waiters could not do enough for you. The food was ...read more excellent and great choice of meals. The guided tours were very informative and well organised. I would recommend the Avalon River Cruise to anyone that was interested in a relaxing holiday. You can do as little or as much as you want.

We had an amazing river cruise with Avalon Waterways. The ship was brand new & beautiful. The cuisine on board was varied and offered choices for all diets. The staff just couldn't do enough for you. We would definitely travel with Avalon in the future. Our experience with Global Journeys was also excellent.

The Magnificent Europe exceeded my expectations. Andrea our tour guide was outstanding and very helpful and went out of her way to provide extra information. She was always happy, beautifully presented and really enjoyed her job. All the staff on the ship were courteous, helpful and friendly. The food was sensational. Presentation and service five ...read more star. We were very happy with our stateroom, and had plenty of room, except there was no where to put our bags. The towns and cities we visited were all interesting and the shore excursions very informative. We took about 6 optional extra excursions as well and they were all good. The entertainment brought on board on a number of occasions was a very high standard. Sergio our resident pianist/singer was pretty boring though. Our Tour Consultant Hannah was not very helpful and had somewhat automated responses - she would not even send us a brochure, saying Global Journeys were an online agency (Ed. Sorry Carolyn, that's our policy, we don't post out brochures because all the information - plus a whole lot more - is available on our website) . Overall a fabulous experience and I would not have any hesitation in recommending an Avalon river cruise.

The overall trip was wonderful. The only thing that was a little disappointing was the assumption that we were all incapable of much physical exercise, as the pace of the various onshore trips was excruciatingly slow at times. One of the best trips from our point of view was the opportunity to get on a bicycle and ride along the riverside.

From our first contact with Global Journeys we have been very impressed by the service, the prompt response to any questions and the help we received booking our trip. Our cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest on board Avalon Panorama was amazing, the staff on the ship were fantastic, always smiling, friendly and willing to help. Because we were Global ...read more Journeys members we were welcomed to the ship with special memento's and a beautiful fruit bowl in our stateroom. Our consultant Georgie was helpful and professional at all times. We will certainly be travelling with Global Journeys again.

In many ways the Global Journeys / Avalon River Cruise exceeded our expectations. Arrangements went off without a hitch. There were quite a few included activities that we were not expecting such as on board entertainment and lectures. The ship's cruise director, captain and staff did a great job in making the trip memorable. The only downside was that ...read more several passengers came on board with colds and flu and sickness spread in spite of attempts to contain the problem. It helps to be well prepared. We would certainly recommend the cruise with Avalon to friends. (Insufficient water in the river system can sometimes be a problem but we were fortunate to encounter no real issues. Some other ships having greater draft did experience difficulties.)