Avalon River Cruise Reviews

An amazing cruise over the festive season! This time of year brought a different traveller to the river, we had a few families on board which was fantastic giving the cruise a different vibe! Weather was great but unfortunately no snow. Ship and staff were fantastic as was the food and selection. Our second cruise and I'm sure it wont be our last.

We had an absolute ball on this river cruise. The boat was amazing, cabin excellent, meals wonderful, staff amazing, cruise director was excellent and very approachable and the we met some wonderful people. Will definitely be doing another cruise with Avalon!

Excellent holiday - especially in Autumn with tree colours and fewer crowds. The cabins and lounges were comfortable. The boat handling and locks and other ships were intriguing. The crew members and guides were efficient AND friendly. The daily information was inspiring. The food was healthy and plentiful with lots of choices - even though I'm vegetarian. ...read more The museums and shops were entertaining at every shore stop. The architecture was intriguing and sometime awesome - took lots of photos to absorb the details later. So many highlights - electric biking through Dutch farmland, patisseries in Strasbourg etc. The Prague hotel was very classy and the city was fun to explore. Salzburg was so lovely I'm tempted to go back and live there for a while.

The whole itinerary was well presented, organised and went to plan. A good all round holiday. Good,accommodation and tours were all good. I would recommend the itinerary to my friends. Value for money, as a single traveler, could be a down side. Regardless it was a good experience.

Avalon Waterways 'hardware' lived up to all expectations. The October weather was better than average but we just managed to complete the full cruise as a lack of rain meant the Danube was only just navigable (shallow water) at the Nurenberg end. Food was generally very good though the breakfast and lunch menus were similar daily (but of a good quality). ...read more Shore excursions varied from very interesting and enjoyable to one or two that were a little mundane. Their pricing seemed on the expensive side when compared to the purchase of similar tours in situ. There was plenty of opportunity for own adventures, however. The crew were very helpful, though I think that at the end of the cruise season they may have been a little tired and were a bit reluctant to enter conversation; this may have been to do with language too as I only speak English.

Cities visited on this cruise (Blue Danube Discovery - Budapest to Prague) were well chosen for history, architecture and culinary experiences. Passengers were a good bunch, dominated by North Americans (American cruise line?). Overall I was very pleased to complete this journey which has been a long term objective and I would recommend it. Booking was easy through Global Journeys with one comment that contact seemed to be principally by email following voice message. Direct phone communication may have been easier on one or two occasions (minor comment after a hassle free experience).

This was our first river cruise with Avalon and we found the overall experience wonderful. From beginning to end we could leave everything to them and just kick back and enjoy the experience. The scenery was spectacular and the villages visited very charming. The service on board the River Ship Tapestry was excellent- the staff warm, friendly and accommodating. ...read more This particular cruise was chosen because we just wanted to relax and see a little of France, following our escorted tour through Europe, and were very surprised that it exceeded our expectations. We had a lower cabin and have to say that this was great as it did not look into other ship cabins when double docked. We spent very little time in the cabin as there was so much to see off shore and lots to talk about with friends made on the cruise - in the lounge, on the deck or in the dining room. The music and fun on the dance floor was terrific. The meals were well thought out and the dining experience was tremendous. We would definitely travel with Avalon again.

The overall organisation of the holiday from booking to the completion in Bucharest was efficient and helpful.The accommodation in the hotels and on the boat was of a high standard. The hotels were also located in convenient locations so one could get out and explore whilst in the cities. The tours were very good, interesting but a bit slow. It is recommended ...read more that one bus be for the people who like to get out and move around quickly with a guide to make the most of their time on shore. A few times I felt like I was doing the senior shuffle when I could have used that extra hour for further exploration or a bit of shopping. The mix of people on board was excellent and welcoming to a single traveller. Praise must be given to Monica for running a tight ship. She was very clear and concise on the daily programmes and they ran efficiently. The staff were very good in their service and the chef's menu suited all dietary and calorie requirements.

The highlights of our Legendary Danube trip were the tours of the cities of Prague, Regensburg, Vienna and Budapest and the tour through the beautiful Austrian lakes region.

It was so relaxing to sail along the french rivers and have everything taken care of. We saw so many lovely old villages and towns.So much more than you could do on your own. The crew were wonderful and so was the food. Our cruise director Tony was excellent.

This was our first experience of river cruising. We had a great time. The facilities on our ship, Vista, were excellent. The Cruise Director, Istvan, and all the crew made our experience one to be remembered.

Our trip from Paris was faultless, commencing with excellent accommodation for 2 nights at the Westin Paris Vendome. Next day we enjoyed a guided sightseeing tour of the beautiful city. Then by TGV down to join our luxurious ship at Chalon Sur Saone with wine tasting at Beaune along the way. The next 7 days were really fabulous visiting many lovely ...read more towns and cities whilst being pampered, wined and dined on board the MS Avalon Affinity. Finally disembarking at Arles and then travelling to Monte Carlo with a final night at the luxurious Fairmont. All meals were excellent as were the hosts and local guides. We have no hesitation in recommending this tour.

Avalon were exceptional. Every member of staff was obliging and incredibly helpful. The ship was faultless as was the food. Excursions were well organised and punctual and our tour director was a real asset. I actually couldn't imagine another tour company surpassing this package.

This was a perfect introduction to River cruising in a most scenic location providing an easy journey through ports that were central to European history. The ship was just a year old, the tour director kept things running smoothly and was available if needed, but didn't intrude. The cabin crew did a superb job and even my orchid was replaced mid-journey ...read more because it wasn't performing well enough. The captain and crew kept us running smoothly and without incident. We had a shore visit every day with a local guide and time to explore on our own and to visit a museum, a cathedral or shop or just relax in a European cafe or bar with the locals. Because we were a relatively small ship our numbers didn't overwhelm the historic cities at which we docked. The food was elegant, plentiful and delicious with many choices for breakfast and lunch and a more formal dinner with wines from the region. The waiters were well trained and polite and, as the crew concert showed, very funny. Avalon has a few sailings where they reserve a few cabins for solo travelers who don't have to pay a penalty which is why I chose the company. People were very nice to me and I didn't stand out because I am a widow on my own. As people age more of us will be left alone and we don't want to limit our horizons. Great journey Avalon. And as a bonus, the sun shone every day.

We thoroughly enjoyed travelling again with Avalon. There staff are fantastic and nothing is too much trouble. Each of the cities we visited was beautiful in its own way and lying on the top deck on a sunny day, watching the castles along the edge of the Rhine was a true pleasure.

It's difficult to criticise Avalon because they do river cruising so well. They are very well organised, the ship is very comfortable, the ship staff are fantastic and it is difficult to get off at the end having not put on weight as the food is top quality. This was out third cruise with Avalon and the main thing that stood out on this cruise as notable ...read more was that most of the cruising was done overnight except the stretch between Passau and Melk which is done during one afternoon and is well worth being on board for (some people were off on optional tours that day). Some people don't like overnight cruising as it can be a bit disruptive to your sleep with vibration due to running engines and bumping as you pass through locks. Having said that, the ship is generally very quiet for sleeping and although we did notice the odd vibration or bump, you do get used to it and it didn't effect us very much.

There are nearly 80 locks to go through on this cruise but most you will hardly notice. One other noticeable thing was that the ship did not dock in many of the towns visited along the way. We were quite often dropped off before the towns and then bussed to the town. After the visit to the town we were bussed back to the ship which had sailed on down the river. This was different to other cruises where we were often docked in the towns and could walk into the towns. This is however only a minor point and didn't tarnish our experience. Overall we thoroughly enjoyed this cruise.

This was basically two tours. The first section was on the Affinity. We were lucky with the Captain and the Cruise Directory who went to both ships. However on the Affinity we did not enjoy the same service that we enjoyed on a previous Avalon ship. We found the Hotel Manager and the restaurant manager to be not that friendly and not as welcoming ...read more as expected. There was one exceptional staff member called Emile that provided very good service. At one stage the Restaurant manager had told a waitress to not serve alcohol to us after the main meal. This is not what we experience on a previous Avalon ship. Once we mentioned this to the Cruise Director the Hotel Manager and restaurant manager spoke to us an blamed the waitress. We observed other people getting served alcohol after their main meal. Also when they have the Bistro meal I the lounge all the good waiters are servicing in that area and the main dinning room is under staffed. When you have a beer in the dining room it is not as cold as it should be as they pour it into jugs from the bar upstairs and they get warm. I would suggest that they have a tap beer in the dining room area. This was the same at both ships.

The second leg was the Creativity which was a total more enjoyable experience. The Hotel Manager (Vincent) was excellent and he greeted us on all occasion we returned to the ship after and excursion. He and the Captain were wonderful. The Captain also welcomed us on returning to the ship. All the waiters , front desk staff and bar staff on the Creativity were excellent. It was a far better experience on the Creativity than the Affinity. Nancy the Cruise Director was also excellent on both tours. The Monograms extra stay at the Pullman was also very good. Our experience on the Affinity has made us think about another Cruise line and not Avalon in the Future. We have been very good ambassadors for Avalon after our trip on the Expression from Budapest but the Affinity experience may change our minds. We would have no hesitation recommending the Creativity as a fun ship to be on.

Trip booked through Global Journeys went very smoothly. Avalon Illumination was all we could have hoped for. Food, crew and accommodation excellent. Guides on tours were exceptional - especially Helena in Prague. The best part of the cruise was friendships formed with travelers from other countries.

Loved everything about our trip...we visited some beautiful little towns along the way and really couldn't fault the service of the Avalon staff and the ship was beautiful. Thank you Hannah at Global Journeys, for making everything so easy for us and providing such great service. Hope to do another cruise in the near future.

First time with Emirates and could not fault the experience. Avalon River Cruise just great , well organised with excellent tour guide. One small criticism was after paying for balcony room to often we berthed at locations only to be looking into adjacent boat bed room only half a metre away.

The best part of this holiday was floating down the Danube watching the scenery gliding past like some endless giant picture postcard.....our suite and bathroom were both immaculate and of decent proportions, while the bed was extremely comfortable. Our fellow passengers were sociable and friendly, but there was still ample opportunity and space to ...read more do your own thing when it suited.