Waltzing down the Danube
Coast’s Brian Kelly shares river cruise tips
In June my wife, Roanna, and I had the best holiday of our lives. Sailing on a nine-day Avalon Waterways Active Discovery Cruise on the Danube, we departed from beautiful Budapest and along the way visited Visegrad, Vienna, Krems, Grein, Engelhartszell before disembarking at Linz.
This was our first time river cruising and we thoroughly recommend it. Avalon Waterways offers many different cruise experiences on European waterways, as well as in Asia and the United States.
To get you ready for an experience of a lifetime, here are my tips for first-time river cruisers.
Space odyssey
The beauty of river cruising is the small number of passengers. On our cruise, there were 158. The on-board experience was very personal and there was never a sense of crowding. There is plenty of room in the cabins, restaurants and bars. The staff are amazing, and nothing is too much bother.
Log on
If the cruise company has an app, it’s important to download it and thoroughly study it before you leave home. The “Go Avalon” app is brilliant, providing everything you need to know about life on board, information on each port, currencies and many other details, including a space for you to keep a journal. Brilliant.
Packing
Check the app for advice on dress codes but generally it’s smart casual, even at dinner time.
As our cruise was an “Active Discovery” cruise, there was a gym on board and mountain bikes for on-shore excursions, so pack the lycra. Comfortable footwear is a must — prior to our departure I bought myself a pair of All Birds.
Line up
Pack a portable washing line. Laundry facilities are available on board at reasonable prices, but the portable line was handy to hang our washed undies on at the end of each day.
Feel the power
Pack a travel adapter. With mobile phones, iPads, computer and hair straighteners, the adapter was a godsend. It meant we only required one European plug and never left anything behind.
Take direction
Make your cruise director your best friend. Ours, Adrian, was brilliant and each afternoon prior to happy hour she ran a talk in the lounge about the next day’s activities. Very informative and a daily must.
Go your own way
Don’t feel you have to take part in all of the daily port activities. These are well organised and fun, but sometimes it’s nice to just hang back and go off on your own exploring a local village.
Open up
Go with an open mind. The people we met were amazing folk and we thoroughly enjoyed their company. I absolutely guarantee you will enjoy a river cruise wherever it takes you and you will make new friends along the way.