Board your ship in Amsterdam for an amazing 15-day river cruise to Budapest along three different rivers. Absorb the atmosphere of Budapest’s Café Gerbeaud, learn the Viennese waltz, sample food and wine of Austria’s Wachau Valley and view Rhine Valley vistas from a 900-year-old castle. The most iconic itinerary traces the Danube, Main and Rhine rivers between the stunning landscapes of Hungary and the windmill-dotted waterways of Holland, with engaging encounters at every bend.
*This itinerary runs departures aboard multiple sister-ships. Contact us for more details.
Highlights
View the Benedictine monastery featuring Austria’s finest Italian baroque architecture
Visit the impressive baroque cathedral, St. Stephen’s with its ornate interior
Involves minimal physical effort and is typically associated with leisurely activities. Activities are low-intensity or last less than a few hours each day.
Welcome to Budapest, capital of Hungary. After boarding your ship, the afternoon is yours to relax or do a bit of exploring. Tonight, return to your ship for a traditional Hungarian dinner.
Today, visit highlights of the hilly Buda and cosmopolitan Pest sides of the city, starting with Pest’s National Opera House and historic Heroes’ Square. In Buda, walk along Castle Hill to Fishermen’s Bastion and Matthias Church. Enjoy lunch on board your ship; the rest of the day is yours to explore the city. You may choose to join an optional excursion to experience the thermal springs, restorative natural spas whose waters locals have bathed in for centuries. Or, perhaps select another optional excursion designed to allow you to delve deeper into the history, culture and cuisine of this fascinating city. Return to your ship for dinner and evening departure.
The Panoramic Budapest excursion is included. Optional excursions are available for an additional charge: Budapest Castle Hill City Hike, Hungarian Horseman, Life Behind the Iron Curtain, Hungarian Icons, Dohány Street Synagogue & Jewish Budapest, Grand Market: Taste of Hungary, Budapest Thermal Bath and Budapest by Bike.
Enjoy a day of scenic cruising along the beautiful Danube toward Vienna. As you sail, perhaps join this morning’s German language lesson to learn a few key words and phrases. You may also choose to attend an afternoon presentation on Viennese coffee houses. Arrive in Vienna early this evening. After dinner, relax or enjoy an optional classical concert.
The following morning, tour the Austrian capital of Vienna. Ride along the Ringstrasse, which replaced the city walls in the mid-19th century. See some of the city’s baroque architecture, including the world-famous Opera House, St. Stephen’s Cathedral and Hofburg Palace. Return to the ship for lunch. The rest of the day is yours to further explore. As always, the Program Director can help you plan your free time. Or, you may choose to join an optional excursion; perhaps visit Schönbrunn Palace, erected in 1778 and admired as the “Versailles of Vienna,” or explore the Spanish Riding School to see its famed Lipizzaner stallions. This evening, you might enjoy an optional classical concert or celebrate the bottling of this year’s wine vintage among the locals at a high-spirited optional Heurigen dinner.
The Panoramic Vienna excursion is included. Optional excursions are available for an additional charge: Schönbrunn Palace, Schönbrunn Palace & Vienna Boys’ Choir, Behind the Scenes at the Lipizzaner Stallions, Historic Framer's Market Visit with Viking Chef, Behind The Scenes At The Vienna Boys’ Choir, Mozart & Strauss Concert and Heurigen Dinner.
After breakfast, visit the abbey at Melk, a 900-year-old Benedictine monastery featuring Austria’s finest Italian baroque architecture. See its wonderful frescoes and admire the comprehensive collection of medieval manuscripts in its library. Rejoin the ship and cruise through dinner.
The Melk Abbey excursion is included. Optional excursions are available for an additional charge: The Abbeys of Göttweig & Melk
Arrive this morning in Passau, at the confluence of the Inn, Ilz and Danube rivers. Your guided walk along the town’s narrow streets takes you through Old Town and past traditional patrician houses. View the New Bishop’s Residence and visit the impressive baroque St. Stephen’s Cathedral with its ornate interior. Inside, you are treated to a special concert played on the 17,000-pipe organ*, considered Europe’s largest church organ. Enjoy lunch on board your ship and return to the city for further exploration on your own before departing. Alternately, set out this morning with your guide to enjoy a full-day optional tour of picturesque Salzburg, the birthplace of Mozart and setting of The Sound of Music. Cruise through the night.
The Passau Walking Tour & Organ Concert excursion is included. Optional excursions will be available for an additional charge: Salzburg Highlights, Bavarian Cruise & Baroque Town Of Schärding, Bavaria by E-Bike, Hike the Passau Hills, Fairy-tale Neuschwanstein Castle By Plane, Flightseeing over Passau.
*Passau organ concert is available May 1-October 31 only and is closed on Sundays.
Arrive in Regensburg midday. After breakfast, tour this wonderfully preserved medieval city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, including structures dating back to Roman times. Discover many 13th- and 14th-century patrician houses and see the splendid St. Peter’s Cathedral. During free time, visit the Alte Würstküche (Old Sausage Kitchen), Germany’s oldest restaurant. Alternately, you may choose to disembark this morning and drive with your guide to Munich for an optional full-day tour of this cultural and historic city, rejoining your ship in time to enjoy dinner on board before the evening departure.
The: Regensburg Through History Walking Tour is included. Optional excursions are available for an additional charge: Munich Highlights, Sausage Making Class.
After breakfast, disembark in Nuremberg and visit the ruins of Zeppelin Field, the Nazi parade grounds of the 1930s; then see the Palace of Justice, site of the infamous Nuremberg Trials. Alternatively, you may take an optional World War II tour that includes the illuminating Documentation Center Museum. After lunch, spend free time exploring Nuremberg’s Old Town. Or, join an optional tour to discover the secret network of underground bunkers where priceless art was hidden in wartime. Depart just before dinner.
The Nuremberg Through History excursion is included. Optional excursions will be available for an additional charge: Nuremberg & World War II, Surviving the War: Art in Nuremberg and Gingerbread Baking Class.
Continue along the Main–Danube Canal this morning, arriving in Bamberg in early afternoon. Enjoy a tour of Bamberg, with its medieval city center, an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Your walking tour includes a visit to the magnificent 11th-century cathedral, reworked in late Romanesque style in the 13th century and the picturesque city hall built on a tiny island in the middle of a river. Take some free time to enjoy Bamberg and sample some of the town’s distinctive smoke-flavored beer before returning on board.
The Bamberg Walking Tour is included. Optional excursions will be available for an additional charge: Franconian Countryside.
After lunch on board, tour Würzburg’s Bishops’ Residenz, one of Germany’s largest and most ornate baroque palaces and an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Or, instead, join an optional full-day journey along Germany’s picturesque “Romantic Road” to Rothenburg, with its turreted city wall and impressive Gothic and baroque architecture. Upon returning to Würzburg, enjoy a tour of the Bishops’ Residenz before rejoining the ship for dinner and an evening glassblowing demonstration.
The Würzburg Residenz & Walk excursion is included. Optional excursions will be available for an additional charge: Rothenburg ob der Tauber and Hike the Würzburg Hills.
Wertheim is located at the confluence of the Main and Tauber Rivers. During your morning walking tour, experience life in a typical small German town. Stop in a bakery and a butcher shop, and learn about Wertheim’s glassblowing tradition. Enjoy free time to explore before returning to your ship for lunch. Alternately, depart this morning on an all-day optional excursion that offers a rare glimpse into noble life, enjoying Privileged Access visits to two very different castles: Schloss Mespelbrunn and Schloss Löwenstein.
The Wertheim Walking Tour is included. Optional excursions will be available for an additional charge: Modern Aristocracy, Wertheim Castle Hike and Wertheim by Bicycle.
Cruise past hilltop castles along the Rhine, stopping in Koblenz to visit Marksburg Castle, the only Rhine fortress never destroyed. After the tour, continue cruising this stunning stretch of the Rhine, an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Be sure to keep an eye out for the Lorelei Rock, which marks the river’s narrowest point and is named after the legendary Rhine maiden who lured sailors to their demise. Lunch and dinner are served on board your ship.
The Marksburg Castle excursion is included. Optional excursions will be available for an additional charge: Ehrenbreitstein Fortress and Moselle Wine Tasting.
Begin the day with a morning tour of Cologne, Germany’s fourth-largest city. Stroll through Old Town past St. Martin’s Church and visit the Dom, Germany’s largest cathedral and an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Spend the free time enjoying Cologne’s atmospheric waterfront, or perhaps join an optional excursion on which you ascend to the Dom’s roof for up-close views of the cathedral’s architecture and bird’s-eye vistas of Cologne. Afterward, return on board for dinner. Alternately, you may set off on an optional excursion to explore Cologne’s spirited beer culture, sampling Kölsch, a light, crisp beer brewed only in Cologne and enjoying a brauhaus dinner. After, return to the ship for a late-evening departure.
The Cologne Walking Tour is included. Optional excursions will be available for an additional charge: Cologne by Bicycle, Bruhl UNESCO Palaces, Historic Cologne Cathedral, Top of Cologne, Cologne's Beer Culture & Dinner.
This morning, sail to Kinderdijk, an UNESCO World Heritage Site for a tour of this ingenious network of windmills and other flood management devices. Learn why the windmills were built and see how they work, and enter a working windmill for a tour of its mechanisms and living quarters. Return on board for lunch and an enjoyable afternoon of Dutch diversions: sample handcrafted Dutch cheeses and jenever, a distilled juniper liquor, and take in a culturally enriching presentation on the Dutch Golden Age. Cruise through the night.
The Kinderdijk Windmills excursion is included. Optional excursions will be available for an additional charge: Kinderdijk Windmills by Bicycle, Kinderdijk by Vintage Barge, Kinderdijk Windmills & Dutch Cheese Making.
Day 15: Amsterdam, Netherlands | Disembark
1 Breakfast
After breakfast, disembark in magnificent Amsterdam.
Apologies for the inconvenience. Prices for not yet published. Below per person rate based on previous season. Contact us to confirm upcoming season pricing.
Prices for are estimated based on inflation. Contact us to confirm pricing and availability for your desired departure date.
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Standard Stateroom (F)
150 sq ft, river-view with half-height picture window. Hotel-style bed with optional twin-bed configuration; luxury linens & pillows. Flat-screen TV with infotainment system, outlets & USB ports. Telephone, safe, refrigerator, hair dryer & individual climate control. Private bathroom with heated floor and premium toiletries.
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Standard Stateroom (E)
150 sq ft, river-view with half-height picture window. Hotel-style bed with optional twin-bed configuration; luxury linens & pillows. Flat-screen TV with infotainment system, outlets & USB ports. Telephone, safe, refrigerator, hair dryer & individual climate control. Private bathroom with heated floor and premium toiletries.
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French Balcony Stateroom (D)
135 sq ft, river-view with floor-to-ceiling sliding glass door & French balcony. Hotel-style bed with optional twin-bed configuration; luxury linens & pillows. Flat-screen TV with infotainment system, outlets & USB ports. Telephone, safe, refrigerator, hair dryer & individual climate control. Private bathroom with heated floor and premium toiletries.
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French Balcony Stateroom (C)
135 sq ft, river-view with floor-to-ceiling sliding glass door with French balcony. Hotel-style bed with optional twin-bed configuration; luxury linens & pillows. Flat-screen TV with infotainment system, outlets & USB ports. Telephone, safe, refrigerator, hair dryer & individual climate control. Private bathroom with heated floor and premium toiletries.
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Veranda Stateroom (B)
205 sq ft, river-view with floor-to-ceiling sliding glass door & full-size veranda. Hotel-style bed with optional twin-bed configuration; luxury linens & pillows. Flat-screen TV with infotainment system, outlets & USB ports. Telephone, safe, refrigerator, hair dryer & individual climate control. Private bathroom with heated floor and premium toiletries.
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Veranda Stateroom (A)
205 sq ft, river-view with floor-to-ceiling sliding glass door & full-size veranda. Hotel-style bed with optional twin-bed configuration; luxury linens & pillows. Flat-screen TV with infotainment system, outlets & USB ports. Telephone, safe, refrigerator, hair dryer & individual climate control. Private bathroom with heated floor and premium toiletries.
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Veranda Suite (AA)
275 sq ft, river-view with full-size veranda off separate sitting room & French balcony off sleeping quarters. Hotel-style bed with optional twin-bed configuration; luxury linens & pillows. Flat-screen TV with infotainment system, outlets & USB ports. Telephone, safe, refrigerator, hair dryer & individual climate control. Private bathroom with heated floor and premium toiletries.
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Explorer Suite (ES)
445 sq ft, river-view with private wraparound balcony off separate sitting room & French balcony off sleeping quarters. Hotel-style bed with optional twin-bed configuration; luxury linens & pillows. Flat-screen TV with infotainment system, outlets & USB ports. Telephone, safe, refrigerator, hair dryer & individual climate control. Private bathroom with heated floor and premium toiletries.
Notes
*This itinerary runs departures aboard multiple sister-ships. Contact us for more details.
We are so glad that we chose Adventure Life. The service is top-notch. Everything is well taken care of and we just have to print the documents and go. Franny even gave us timely updates on possible airport strike.
KC Chan
TrustScore 4.8 | 177 reviews
TrustScore 4.8 of 5
Based on 177 reviews on
10 hours ago
First class all the way. Enjoyed our Guide, Karla, Driver Mark so much. Personalized tour of Antigua during Easter was like a National Geographic in person. Trip of the Lifetime. Such a spiritual and magical tour. Many Thanks.
Ben Shaver
Ben Shaver, Jr.
2 days ago
Adventure Life is always an excellent choice when planning complicated, extreme, or exotic vacations or expeditions. They provide friendly professional services and advice and are enthusiastic and encouraging in helping us to prepare and thoroughly enjoy our trip. They handle all the details which greatly reduces the stress of planning a difficult trip. I'm very impressed with Adventure Life and definitely recommend them to friends and family.
Scott Trochim
4 days ago
The response from Adventure Life to my first inquiry was prompt and promising. I worked with Jamie Broeckel, Trip Planner, via text, email, and phone calls- always extremely responsive and thorough with information and explaining the process to arrange a private tour for me to Malaysia Borneo. Within about week, the booking was complete and I made decisions because of Jamie's great customer service , friendly manner, and overall competence on behalf of the company's travel expertise. Now I have an itinerary, additional Trip Planner Assistants, several links for vital information for traveling to Maylasia, etc. Still many details for Sept. trip, but now the heavy lifting is done and I can enjoy the rest of the anticipation and research!! Thanks Jamie- you are amazing!!!!
Susan Campo
6 days ago
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
1 week ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.