The Blue Danube, as Europe’s Danube River is often called, is one of the most popular and most important rivers for cruising Europe. It passes through Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria.
So, it’s no wonder that Tauck World Discovery has increased its 2010 river cruise program with two new itineraries along the rumbling Danube, one of the longest and most interesting European waterways that passes through the heart of German wine and castle country through Vienna to Eastern European treasures such as Budapest.
The two new river cruises Tauck will offer next year are the 12-day “Strasbourg to Prague Serenade” and the 19-day “Romance of the Rhine & Danube.”
The Strasbourg to Prague cruise (from $3,990 per person for double occupancy, cruise only) begins with two nights at the Sofitel Strasbourg Grande Ile, and includes sightseeing in Strasbourg, Alsatian wine country, and a seven-day cruise through Heidelberg, Nurnberg and Regensburg, ending with a two-day stay at the Hilton Prague Old Town.
Tauck’s new cruise along the Rhine and Danube rivers (from $6,790 per person with double occupancy, cruise only) also starts with a two-night stay at the Sofitel Strasbourg Grande Ile, and includes a 14-day cruise through Passau, Salzburg, Vienna and Bratislava, ending with a two-night stay at the InterContinental Budapest.
With the two new programs, Tauck is offering a total of nine European river cruises next year aboard a fleet of three ships — the Swiss Jewel, which launched just this April, the Swiss Sapphire and the Swiss Emerald. All three 118-passenger ships have been launched within the past three years and are very similar in look and feel. The ships feature 14 suites, each 300 square feet, with marble baths and full-sized tubs. The remaining 45 junior suites and cabins range from 150 to 183 square feet. All suites and cabins feature plasma TVs, mini bars, terry cloth robes and slippers and L’Occitane toiletries.
River cruising has evolved.
The river cruising model of touring Europe on an overnight passenger vessel dates back to the late ’70s and early ’80s, when pioneers like Uniworld, KD River Cruises and Peter Deilmann Cruises first explored the idea.
Since then, KD River Cruises was acquired in 2000 by Viking River Cruises, and this June, Peter Deilmann Cruises announced that its 2009 river cruise season would be the company’s last.
Deilmann was one of the grandfather’s of river cruising. So, what has changed? Well, quite a bit during the last few decades.
What was supposed to be a lavish christening ceremony in Cologne, Germany on July 2 for Viking River Cruises’ newest river ship the Viking Legend, has been postponed until this fall.
The transfer of the ship from the shipyard to Cologne, Germany, was delayed by low water levels on the Elbe River and unfavorable weather conditions in the North Sea, Viking said.
The brand new ship is still expected to be delivered in time for her maiden voyage, which starts in Amsterdam on July 5. Viking said that cruise departures for the summer months are heavily booked and that the christening will be rescheduled for the fall.
On Avid Cruiser
