Avalon River Cruise Reviews

Wonderful holiday and the cruise met all expectations. The staff and service was second to none. Thank you.

Well appointed ship with larger than expected cabins. Entire staff we helpful and very friendly. Our Cruise Director Sylvia Foxx was excellent. Food and wine were five star. A holiday that encompasses comfort, five star food and wine, fantastic touring at a relaxed pace. Highly recommended. Our Global Journeys consultant Georgie Walpole was excellent ...read more and extremely helpful and never too busy to answer questions. Thank you.

Overall the cruise was wonderful, the ship was comfortable and casual, the rooms were spacious for a ship, the service was great. Our intent was to relax and take it easy on the cruise, whilst you have the option to participate on the included excursions-and we wanted to, having to depart the ship by 8-8.30am for morning tours and waking up earlier ...read more to make breakfast, was too early for our preference- no sleep ins!

Loved the intimacy of the smaller river cruise ship. We had a wonderful experienced Tour Director who made things work even when the Rhine River was blocked by a multi barge pile-up! The local guides she organised were also fantastic. Food and wine was excellent. Now we're trying to work out which cruise we'll go on next!

The accommodation, food, general level of service were very much up to the standards of three previous river cruises. As before, we enjoyed the company of several fellow-passengers. I would, however, be less inclined to recommend this cruise than previous ones - Moselle/Rhine/Danube to Budapest; Paris to Normandy and Saone/Rhone to Monaco - for two ...read more reasons: 1) because most of the lower Danube is less scenic the cruise involved lengthy side trips by bus virtually each day. Many were good, some were tiring, and one (a visit to a so-called Champagne factory) was uninformative and environmentally noxious from dust and mould. 2) the cruise director, while helpful, was irritatingly verbose and over-enthusiastic about quite banal 'highlights'.

The ship was very well equipped, in particualar the cabins. The cruise cabin was very welcoming and accommodating. Cruise pace a little bit slow for us but nothing to complain about really. The food and service were excellent. Entertainment on board and shore excursions a bit lacking.

The river cruise exceeded my expecations. The cruise director did an excellent job in ensuring that everyone got the most out of their cruise. Very helpful & flexible with organising optional excursions. The crew were very friendly. Overall it gavethe impression that each traveller was very special. I would certainly recommend Avalon to any traveller ...read more looking for a cruise.

It was our first river cruise and we both thoroughly enjoyed every bit of the trip. We could not find any fault with the accommodation, food, tours etc. We would recommend Avalon to anyone who is wanting to go on a river cruise.

Great experience! Enjoyed every moment both on and off the Felicity. Service on board couldn't be faulted. The food was excellent. Tour guides were excellent - very knowledgable. Took nearly 2000 pics on the cruise. Would we do another trip with Avalon? Absolutely yes! Please don't wait till you get too old! Nike says 'just do it' you'll never regret ...read more it! Nice meeting people from all over the world including a lot of Aussies.

We had a wonderful and enjoyable time. Everything is well-organised. food is excellent. We felt like we were in a floating 5-star hotel with tasteful decor and first-class amenities. Crew were great and very accommodating, and the cruise company takes the time to make provisions for the elderly especially for the walking tours where they made provisions ...read more for the 'gentle walkers'. I will definitely recommend Avalon/Global Journeys to anyone. Yvonne, our consultant is very efficient and accommodating.

Thanks Hannah for all your help in organising our tour. It really excelled all our expectations, food, service was all we could ask for. The Tour Coordinator was very good and always included a bit of humour into everything - spot on with everything he did.

We were quite impressed with the efficiency of the organisation. Everything was scheduled and acted on like clockwork and daily briefings were excellent. The facilities on the cruise and the hotel accommodation in both Prague and Budapest were excellent. Food on board was of a high quality with plenty of choice. Thank you.

Our experience in Budapest followed by the most relaxing seven nights on the Danube and finishing in Prague for three nights was a trip of a lifetime. We loved the experience of going though all the locks, the relaxed on board life where we felt at ease reading, enjoying a coffee at any time, and of course the magnificent meals, not to mention the inclusive ...read more trips onshore, and those we chose to add to our experience. Our tour director Hans was magnificent with time for everyone, and every member of staff friendly and eager to please. We will recommend this trip of a lifetime to all our friends. Well done Global Journeys.

Our river cruise was excellent, much more than our expectations. We were very impressed by the standard on the ship and the standard of the staterooms and bathrooms. The thought that went into the detail hanging space etc. We liked the mix of the organisation and the relaxed atmosphere, we were free to join in everything or just to relax. The food was ...read more outstanding as was the service. We would recommend the holiday to anyone and very much hope to go on another journey with Avalon.

The Avalon Budapest - Amsterdam river cruise was certainly a highlight of our 3 month European holiday. It was great not to have to live out of a suitcase for 2 weeks. The scenery was fantastic and the tours (both included and optional) were well organised and priced. The only downside (apart from the trip having to end) was we were on the western ...read more side of the boat which got the afternoon sun and was very hot (admittedly there was a heatwave through Europe while we were on the tour). I suggest you ask future travellers which side of the boat they want to be on - the shady or sunny side. Which side of the boat that is (left or right) will depend on which way it is sailing. Budapest - Amsterdam the right hand side (even numbered cabins) faces west and are the hot ones. Amsterdam - Budapest it is the other way around. Just about everyone on the west side had the same complaint.

Exceptional cruise. The staff great and very friendly and could not do enough for you. Thoroughly enjoyed the walking tours of the villages and the tour guides were exceptional. Great value for the money, could not fault anything except that we were overfed and are now paying for it.

From Budapest to Paris was faultless. We enjoyed every moment and met some great people along the way including our tour hostess Danielle. Service left nothing to be desired, the tours were all very well co-ordinated and the individual guides did a great job and showed good knowledge of their areas with some entertaining personalities as well. Chef's ...read more were to be congratulated and the food was varied and of excellent quality. There were only two negatives. One was that the ever popular coffee machine decided to strike halfway throughout the trip so we all went into withdrawal. Maybe they could carry a spare? The second was that we flew Cathay Pacific as booked by Global Journeys and had good flights but in future would ensure that there were no extra stops or deviations as Cairns via Brisbane to Hong Kong added an undesirable extra 3 or 4 hrs both ways. If we had known, we would have looked at other options with flights as some do go direct even if it meant greater cost or traveling on a different day. Overall though, I would use both Avalon and Global Journeys again as we had very good experiences in my dealings with both. Thanks Georgie for expertly organizing a wonderful holiday for us.

I had the most amazing time. The choice of optional tours on land were of high standard and very interesting. We were unfortunately caught up in the loch masters strike in Germany which resulted and disappointingly meant leaving the cruise for 4 nights boarding again at Melk. Avalon arranged our coaches, accommodation and daily tours during this period ...read more and other than the first 2 dinners not being of the standard we were accustomed to on board, all went well. I could not fault the crew, they were all very helpful and professional. Thank you Georgie for your advice and helpfulness and making the organising of my trip so pleasant. I would like to give you 5 stars for service and friendliness.

Could not find fault with anything on the cruise. The Tour Director (Janos), Captain, Operations Manager and other Crew members made sure that we arrived in Amsterdam on schedule even though they all had to contend with the German Lock Keepers strike. All the crew from the Cabin Stewardess to the Captain made us very welcome. The meals were varied ...read more and well presented, and the Waiters were always on hand to assist in any way possible. Kristina (Restaurant Manager) managed to find me a bottle of sweet wine (only sort I drink) to tide me over for a few evenings. Perhaps there should always be at least a couple of bottles of sweet wine on board for those who don't like the reds and white offered. Our only complaint was that Peter, the pianist, had no variation in the music he played each evening, and after a while this got to be boring. This was our first river cruise in Europe and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

WOW. Where to start. Had an amazing time on the Visionary. The whole experience was wonderful. We started our adventure in Prague staying at the Hilton. Prague is a city like no other. The buildings, the river, the flowers, the people, and everything is so cheap. I am so glad we arrived 1 day earlier and had time to settle in and take a good look around. ...read more 1 day before we were to depart for Nuremberg we were advised that the German Lock workers were conducting rolling strikes so we would be bused to Regensburg instead. The Visionary was docked in Regensburg and we didn't sail until Friday (instead of Thursday) but we still did get to see Nuremberg even though it was by bus instead of cruising the river. Not a great start to our 'river cruise' as we hadn't left dock, but on a positive note Avalon did what they could with a situation that was beyond their control. If you had to be 'stuck' well then Regensburg would be the place. Absolutely beautiful city and again so many beautiful flowers..

When we actually did sail on the Friday it was special and everyone was excited to get moving. I can not describe the next morning as we cruised into Passau. Just breathtaking to wake up to the most quaint little German town. To be docked so close and be able to walk into town at your own pace was just wonderful. The sad thing then was that the ones that had booked the 'extra trip' to Salzburg had to leave the ship at 8.30am and we sailed at around 11am and had the most amazing day sailing thru the most spectacular scenery that you could imagine. We sailed all afternoon past gorgeous villages and past castles and we arrived in Linz at about 5pm when the other passengers that had been to Salzburg then met the ship. They missed an amazing day. Linz was the most Vibrant place we visited. Saturday night and a summer festival happening. Again another city where we were docked so close to town we could just walk and explore...fantastic.

We sailed that night and the next day arrived in Melk. The tour of the Melk Abbey included was wonderful as it was so informative about the different ages but sadly we didn't have any time in the town. The view from the top of the hill was wonderful, but we would have loved time in the town as well. We sailed then for Vienna. Wow! The most beautiful buildings ever. Not as many flowers as the other cities but the buildings are unbelievable. Tuesday morning and we sailed for Budapest. Sailed in to Budapest on Tuesday afternoon and wow again! Cruised in slowly past the Parliament Building and into another gorgeous European city. That briefly covers the cities and towns that we visited. Words can not describe how we now feel about that part of the world. But now to get onto the actual Avalon experience.

Firstly the cabin, unbelievable. The bed would have to be the most comfortable thing I have ever slept on in my life. The other passengers saying they had pulled the sheets off to try and see what brand the bed was. You just sunk into the bed and the pillows and not to mention the feel of the doona, just heaven. The cabin was so spacious and well designed, so much space in the wardrobes and heaps of room to move around. The bathroom was fantastic, great hot shower and heaps of space in there as well. The beauty products were great, and plenty of them. The food was great. I have a different view to my husband - I like a little fancy and he likes a good old fashioned feed. What ever view you take, there was plenty. The breakfast buffet was full of the usual fruit, yogurt, cereals, breads, bacon, eggs, beans, hash browns, tomatoes, mushrooms, pancakes, pastries etc. The lunches in the restaurant were of course wonderful, everything you could ask for. The luches on the sky deck were just like a good old fashioned BBQ back home in the land of OZ. The Gala nights consisted of many courses of little bites followed by starters, followed by entrees followed by mains and then incredible desserts, and then you could have cheese and crackers and fruit. OMG, and I wonder how come I put on weight and hubby had to let his belt out a notch or 2. The wine and beers were included, and there was plenty of both. Oh and the 24/7 lounge also had help yourself cappuccino / coffee / hot chocolate / tea machine with choc chip cookies - not to mention fruit and juices and also iced tea was pretty cool as well.

The staff - wonderful - as you can see by my brief summary of the 11 wonderful days of our Legendary Danube cruise I quite enjoyed myself. My husband has a few things he was not happy about. eg Wifi dropping in and out, even though they warned us about this - it is 2013 and maybe they really need to look into improving this as it is how many people communicate with loved ones back home. Overall I would have to say that I loved the whole experience, of course you can never please 100% of the people 100% of the time - but Avalon certainly tried.