Patricia Ibbotson

Age: Over 50:
Number of Cruises: Over 25
Cruise Line: Croisieurope
Ship: M.S. Beethoven
Sailing Date: September 11th, 2004
Itinerary: Danube River from Passau to Budapest

This cruise was part of a package with Collette Vacations that included two nights in Prague, Czech Republic, prior to the cruise. Prague is simply one of the best of the old European cities, and we stayed at the Hotel Central which as its name implies was centrally located and very close to the old market square. It is a new hotel that was once an Art Nouveau theater, and has superior accommodations, and includes free Internet access for guests.

We left Prague by motorcoach for a three hour drive through the Czech countryside to Passau, Germany. This is a charming Bavarian town where three rivers converge, and it is the departure point for many cruises. There were boats lined up ready to take on passengers. The problem was that it was a Saturday and all the banks and exchanges were closed. Many German businesses and restaurants don't accept credit cards, so we ended up paying for our meal in a local restaurant with dollars. The manager didn't want to accept dollars, but that is all we had. I would recommend that anyone going on a Danube cruise take an ATM card along as the machines are generally available 24 hours a day.

We boarded our boat at 4 p.m. This boat has three decks and 90 cabins and can accommodate about 150 passengers. There is a crew of 35, and most of the management staff is French, though the waitresses and cabin attendants are mostly young Hungarian women who speak limited English. Announcements were made in French as most of the passengers were French, and then in English. There were 37 of us in the American group. This is a new boat, and very clean, though I didn't personally care for the decor. The cabins are small with two twin beds pushed together that can be separated, three closets, a desk and chair, and a T.V. that only has French language channels. The bathroom is very compact. I had to call the front desk the first night to ask them how to turn the shower on. The door key also controls the room lights and the safe. My biggest problem with the cabin is that it did not have room darkening drapes, so I was awake at first light.

Passengers are required to purchase a drink card for 50 Euros which is used to purchase alcoholic beverages, soft drinks, and coffee and tea (outside of meals,) and any remaining money on the card is refunded at the end of the cruise.

Lunch and dinner are set menus with only one entree. Breakfasts were basic continental. The beer on tap was Meteor which was very good. The food was good, and the presentation was very good.

Our first stop was at the 11th century Melk Abbey. This is well worth a visit, and the view of the Danube from the Abbey is very nice. This was an optional shore excursion that cost 18 Euros.

After Melk, we docked at Durnstein, a pretty town in the scenic Wachua Valley. We had time to explore on our own before the boat sailed to Vienna. There is an optional Vienna by night excursion. The next day I had a full day in Vienna, managing to see two palaces -- Schoenbrunn and Belvedere --and did a walking tour of the city, stopping for lunch at Rosenberger's Cafeteria which was recommended by our tour escort and which was reasonable and had good food. After lunch I did the Treasury Museum and St. Stephen's Cathedral. The palaces were part of an optional shore excursion that cost 30 Euros, and the admission to the Treasury Museum cost about 6 Euros, but they accept credit cards. Our tour escort took us all back to the boat via the very crowded subway. That was the fastest and least expensive way to get back to the boat.

That evening we set sail from Estergom, Hungary. The Danube was blue in Vienna, but it turned brown in Hungary. In Estergom we climbed a hill to visit the basilica and castle, then we proceeded on the boat to Budapest. Budapest is really two cities separated by the river, with Buda on one side and Pest on the other. There is quite a spectacular view of Budapest coming in on the river. We docked on the Pest side parallel to two other river boats, and had to exit our boat across the tops of the other two boats. Later that day another boat docked on the other side of us, making four boats parallel parked. That made sleeping that night difficult due to the foot traffic over my cabin and bright lights from the German boat parked next to us. My cabin window had a view of a stairwell in the German boat, so I had to keep the drapes closed for privacy.

Because of bridge construction on the Danube, we were told our 5-night cruise would be a 4-night cruise. After the optional morning sightseeing tour of Budapest the following day, we were transferred to the Le Meredian Hotel in Budapest, and the hotel and our lunch and dinner were paid for by the cruise line. There weren't any complaints about losing the last day on the boat as the accommodations at Le Meredian -- one of Budapest's better hotels -- were quite elegant, and the meals provided at local restaurants were good.

Before taking this cruise, I had never heard of Croisieurope River Cruises, but I understand they are one of the bigger European cruise lines. In addition to Danube cruises, they offer cruises on many other European rivers.

I enjoyed the cruise and the experience of cruising on a French line, but I think people who like things "American" would probably be more comfortable cruising on a line that caters to Americans and American tastes.