Avalon River Cruise Reviews
The 493 Avalon River Cruise reviews listed below are from past clients of Global Journeys that have traveled with Avalon. Each review has been individually verified by our team.
4.7
5 Star
4 Star
3 Star
2 Star
1 Star
Trip very good, what was expected ship & service excellent, shore excursions very well handled & informative guides commentary & knowledge first class. Transfers to & from airports went without hitch additional accommodation good, I was definitely not impressed with the fact documents did not arrive till two days before departure this was stressful read more and unprofessional. (MD. Ouch - thanks for your feedback Robert, unfortunately we can only get them to you when we get them from the Operator. I've put processes in place to make sure all our clients are made aware if they are delayed for any reason - luckily this only happens rarely. Glad you enjoyed your holiday, and hope you give us another go!)
I enjoyed the cruise so much I booked a Magnificent Europe cruise for April 2020, unfortunately because of Covid-19 it has been cancelled. I will rebook again.
Loved the fact that there were so many included tours 1
Romantic Rhine
Julie, WA, Australia, Apr 2015
As the ship was only on its second cruise, everything was beautiful and new. The decor was modern and lovely. The staff were friendly and helpful, although one passenger was quite distressed when she hurt herself getting off the ship and no one from the ship offered to help her.
The cabins were spacious and comfortable. We loved the fact that read more there were so many included tours that you didn't really have to do optional tours unless they were of special interest. We did the Keukenhof garden tour, because it was the right time for the tulips. Despite some showers, it was a spectacular visit and well worth the money.
The cabins were spacious and comfortable. We loved the fact that read more there were so many included tours that you didn't really have to do optional tours unless they were of special interest. We did the Keukenhof garden tour, because it was the right time for the tulips. Despite some showers, it was a spectacular visit and well worth the money.
Very enjoyable. Knowledgeable guides and interesting excursions. A great way to meet new people from all corners of the earth. The timing of meals and excursions were perfect to ensure a really good balance. Missed a quiz night though.
It was very relaxing you could do as much as you want or as little as you wanted. Staff were excellent and friendly.
This was our first river cruise and we utterly enjoyed it. The sitting room close to our cabin complete with 24 hour access to hot drinks - including real cappuccino - was a great bonus! Gwen's need for gluten-free food was met with no fuss and chef even made special cookies for her to have with her coffee in the cabin. Only disappointment was the first read more onboard visiting entertainer. The singer was not very good. By contrast, the string trio was amazing! Cruise guide was helpful and knowledgeable in his commentaries. Thank you for a great holiday.
Very enjoyable time from beginning to end 1
Romantic Rhine
John & Helen Hains, QLD, Australia, Apr 2015
Holiday exceeded our expectations. Organised trips away from the ship were marvellous and would not have been possible were we doing it on our own . Very enjoyable time from beginning to end.
Wonderful, friendly staff who made sure we enjoyed our experience. Waiters/waitresses, cabin cleaning staff/housekeeping were very friendly and considerate. They added a great deal to our experience. Meals and accommodation were excellent. There was nothing we could fault. We had a ball, met some delightful people, and enjoyed the choices on offer. Thank you.
Avalon will still be my first choice for any river cruising 3
The Rhine & Moselle (Northbound)
Karl Smith, Australia, Oct 2014
I felt the overall standard of this cruise was a little bit lower than the Avalon river cruise I did in 2012. Although my points of disappointment are very minor I was not the only passenger to have similar views. 1. Previous cruise. Cake/pastry selection for afternoon tea had several choices. This cruise. Only one choice. 2. Previous ship looked immaculate. read more This ship had rust showing through in a number of places. 3. I thought housekeeping standards, although very good, had dropped a little. 4. Noise in the restaurant at meal times was abominable. This comment was made by others in the Tour Operator survey. Avalon definitely need to consider sound absorbent ceiling tiles. 5. The tour guides for the shore excursions, although excellent at what they do, tend to load you up with so much information that your brain hurts when you are getting this every day. This is not limited to Avalon but common across all the cruise operators. The longer the cruise went the more people opted out of guided tours in favour of 'doing their own thing'. Despite the above negatives Avalon will still be my first choice for any future river cruising.
Definitely recommend this tour 4
Magnificent Rivers of Europe
Lyne, Tsuyoshi, Joanne & Chris, Australia, Oct 2014
The new Avalon ship (Impression) was a wonderful design and the staterooms were large - turned out to be bigger than our hotel rooms in Amsterdam and a number of other places. Overall the shore excursions were good - plenty of free time so you did not feel like, 'off the boat, on the bus, quick walk then back on bus to go back to the ship'. The extra read more excursions were also good and it was a bonus these did not have to be booked prior to travel - we could decide a couple of days prior. Food - with 4 courses it was a bit too much but awfully hard to say no when it was so good and the variety was great. All the staff on the boat were great and could not do enough for you. Overall the length of the boat cruise was good, enough time to relax, enjoy the scenery and the offshore trips, get to know others with out being too long. The booking through Global Journeys was trouble free, all questions and queries were answered promptly and clear directions for payment, extra tours etc was great. Prepaying the Gratuities was good too. Would definitely recommend this tour and Global Journeys to others and would look at doing other river cruises in the future.
The trip was most enjoyable and very well planned. We only had 2 areas in which we think significant improvements could be made without much or even any additional cost. There was only minimal opportunity for exercise other than walking on the shore visits. Thus the exercise room was tiny and poorly equipped. Also there were no cycles on board, although read more most of the cruise ships we passed had large numbers of bikes for the use of passengers. On the plus side the cruise guide and ship staff cheerfully made arrangements for the 4 of us to rent bikes at one city but they did say that no one had ever asked them to do this before. Without any exercise opportunities the cruise was clearly directed at older people which contrasts with some of the other operators. The city guides employed were not very good and in one case (Heidelberg) rambled on about British royalty links even though not one of our cruise group was from the UK. In contrast we didn't learn all that much about some of the buildings or towns/cities.
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.
Cruise was like being on a floating 5 star hotel 3
Romantic Rhine
Jennifer Martin, Australia, Sep 2014
This 13 day cruise was the highlight of a 6 week holiday I had with my sister. It was like being on a floating 5 star hotel with the most excellent service from competent, friendly staff, from the kitchen to the crew on board who hooked us up with ropes whenever we docked. The cabin was well appointed with the most comfortable beds and linen alike. read more Every night was a good sleep which is paramount when away from your own bed. In room facilities were excellent, everything was pristine, modern and clean. The days were filled with exciting tours in each country we visited and 9 out of 10 tour guides were well versed in the history of each place we visited, were well spoken, considerate and had a great sense of humour. The nights were all about socialising, dining and drinking. The food in the dining room was plentiful with a variety of dishes to suit all palettes. Breakfast in the dining room was something to look forward to every morning. Even vegetarian and those gluten intolerant were catered for. Local wines were on offer of an evening and the menu was varied over the course of the cruise. Upon your return to your cabin after dinner, your bed was turned down, dressing gown laid upon the bed together with the next days schedule and a yummy chocolate. Oh, and the TV screen had a picture of a glowing fireplace with classical music playing in the background. Water and audio headsets (whispers) were provided for every tour off ship. Tours were either included or optional and each night an information session was held including where and what time to meet your coach, a little about each port, culture and tips by our Tour Co-ordinator (Gerome) who we all wanted to take home with us. A real gem, genuine with a wealth of knowledge, and more than willing to assist with any concerns. Downtime when cruising along one of the three main rivers meant you could sit up front or back of the ship or up top on the sun deck to relax and catch up on reading, socialising or uploading your great camera shots. Well, these are just some of the things but I can't give everything away. You will just have to find out for yourself. Enjoy!
I just want to say that the river cruise my sister Jenny and I did with Avalon last month from Amsterdam to Vienna was magnificent. From the first step of arriving at the Movenpick Hotel to the end of the cruise was unbelievable. The staff were all incredible. The hospitality unbelievable. The food was spectacular not to mention the scenery. Our cruise read more director Jerome was excellent. Nothing was too difficult for him. His knowledge and professionalism excellent. We had the most amazing trip. I cannot thank you enough for organising this for Jenny and myself. I am planning another river cruise for three years down the track with my husband. Not sure where we will go but you will be my first port of call. Can you please send my gratitude to Avalon and inform them that we were totally thrilled. Value for money. Our rooms were always clean and service from all areas of staff excellent.
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.
Our first ever trip to Europe and first ever river cruise. What a fantastic trip we had. The Avalon Visionary and all the crew made this one of the best ever holidays we have ever done. Full marks to Avalon for providing an excellent service. Wish we could have spent more days on the boat. Global Journeys handled our booking in an excellent manner. read more Thank you Michelle for your attention to our booking. Great service.
Cannot offer any more as it was all excellent. Can highly recommend to people who are thinking of taking an Avalon trip.
Most impressed with everything about our cruise 3
Magnificent Europe
Kira OLney & Paul Majda, Australia, Sep 2014
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!
We enjoyed the holiday on the cruise ship. Everything was very good, the ship was excellent, the crew were very helpful and our cabin was kept spotless during our stay on board. The food was excellent, but as usual too much. However, although we are 65 years old, we believe that we are still too young to be going on another one of this type of trip. read more We believe that we were probably the youngest and most active people on this cruise. Most of the other passengers were older Americans, and we found them to be very loud and annoying. They were very slow moving, and took forever to get on the buses, on the boat, getting a meal, getting off the bus, etc. We found it very hard to engage with many of the other passengers at meal times, and really only enjoyed a couple of evening meals when we sat with a couple of British people. The Americans were also part of some type of University Alumni, and had their own program of activities. We have never been on a trip like this before and did not know what to expect, and that is why we deliberately booked a shorter cruise. Friends of ours have been on River Cruises and told us that we would enjoy it, and we only booked on their recommendation. We actually booked 6 months before the trip, and found very few berths left on any cruise ship. Due to our inexperience we didn't realise how much impact the other passengers would actually have on our total enjoyment of the trip. Looking at the photos of all your tour consultants I can see that you are are very young and attractive. I am convinced that if any of you had have been on the cruise we went on you would have similar comments to ours about this trip. (GJ. Thanks...I think :) I will make sure we only employ older and more unattractive consultants in the future to even things out! Yours is the first review that we have received regarding displeasure at the mix of nationalities onboard an Avalon river cruise, so my guess is that a lot of the cabins on this departure had been snapped up by a US Alumni?)
The cruise was better than I expected, never having done a river cruise before. Other river cruises are definitely on our agenda. Perhaps some better way of meeting up and getting to the ship for embarkation should be investigated. We arrived at Zurich airport at 1400hrs as per the arrangements, and the representative asked - 'Where have you been?' read more I explained to her that we didn't have to be there till 1500? Then we had to wait in the cold for the Movenpick shuttle to arrive after 3 buses we departed to the hotel. Although we received our tickets earlier than stated due to my work commitments and travel plans, a number a fellow travelers complained in general as to the very short time between when they received their tickets and the actual cruise. For example a number of other people had travel plans before and after the cruise. (GJ. Perhaps they should book with us next time :) ) We enjoyed the cruise and will most certainly do another one.
