My First River Cruise

Written By:
Sharon Bernhardt
President
Westside International Travel Inc.

By the time I took my first river cruise I had been on numerous ocean cruises. It was about ten years ago. Though Europeans had been enjoying river cruise vacations for many years, it was just starting to catch on in the United States as a great cruise based vacation.

Check-In Is A Breeze

The moment we arrived at our ship it was clear this was going to be a unique cruise experience. I was taking a cruise on the Danube. Our new home was docked right in the middle of a lovely German town. The embarkation (check in) process took no more than five minutes, since the full passenger count was approximately 200.

Cabins Are Spacious

I was sharing this trip with a girl friend and we were both impressed with how much room we had in our cabin and we both agreed one of the favorite items we found there was the European feather beds - so cozy. We had a large picture window that allowed us to watch the river and the bank beyond as we moved gently down the river. There's never any 'rocking and rolling' when traveling on the river like one gets on an ocean voyage at times...it's always smooth and quiet sailing.

Views In All Directions

We weren't in the cabin very much because it was too much fun sitting out on deck watching for castles, cathedrals and lush green villages that dotted the river's edge. There was a gorgeous view on either side of the ship. It was really an experience each time we approached each of the many low sitting bridges that cross the river. Everything on the top deck of our ship had to be lowered in order to make it under the bridge.

Shore Excursions Included

All along the way people waived as we went by and in some cases we could even exchange "hellos" we were so close to the shore. Every stop we made put us in the middle of town. I'll never forget our arrival in Budapest. We docked right in front of the palace. It was like stepping into a movie set every day. Sometimes the stop was a village that was the quiet home to a famous area cathedral. And some days it was a major city like Vienna or Budapest, but it was always a smooth arrival and magical setting. All of our excursions were included and even those were a breeze to find and were a great way to explore each port. They weren't expensive either. On an ocean cruise the excursions can be a major investment.