I'm not quite sure why AmaWaterways shows up under Building Supplies, as we took a Danube River…read morecruise on their Ama Sonata, and that is the subject of this review.
While this was our first river cruise (after several ocean cruises), we were very pleasantly surprised, and are extremely likely to not only take more river cruises, but in all likelihood, will do so on one of AmaWaterways' ships.
Our particular cruise began in Budapest, with a night in port in that lovely city, which included a sailing up and down the Danube to view the city by night--it is simply magnificent, with all the buildings lit up.
We then sailed up the Danube, with stops in Bratislava, Vienna (overnight there), Durnstein and Melk in one day, Linz, Passau, and ending in Vilshofen. From that city, most passengers went on by bus (included in price) to Prague, with a stop in Regensburg. A smaller number of passengers took a bus (also included in price) to Munich.
There were capacity-controlled tours included in every city, with each passenger getting a receiver enabling all passengers to hear the tour guide easily, even from 50' or more away. Bicycle tours were offered in three cities, and there were only two optional tours that had additional costs (we attended one, a concert in Vienna at a cost of roughly $125-$130/person, and well worth it).
Food on the ship was very good, with an emphasis on local cuisine at each stop. Beer and wine were complementary with all meals, although upgraded wines, along with mixed drinks, were at the passenger's expense. (Prices were reasonable.)
With only roughly 160 passengers on board, it's econically infeasible to have big entertainment, but we did enjoy some local folklore dancers, along with a classical music trio, and a June Oktoberfest (on a 90-degree evening) in Regensburg. Other nights we were treated to a keyboard player with a wide range of selections. Considering that the average passenger's age was probably somewhere near the age of dirt, there wasn't much dancing.
The entire crew was very friendly, extremely service-oriented and eager to please. We enjoyed getting to know most of the staff and learning a little Romanian, Hungarian, Slovakian, German and a couple of other languages.
We truly loved the cities and towns where we stopped, and highly recommend this line, particularly if you don't mind being with an older group, most of whom are very sharp.
