Could this be the best way to see Europe?

By Lauren Ferrone
Published: Thursday, May 31, 2018

No seasickness or flying? Here's what it's really like to cruise Western Europe's second-longest river – the Danube – passing some of the continent's finest cities as you go. Words: Craig Tansley

For anyone who’s journeyed through Western Europe in summer, can you even imagine travelling between tourist hotspots like Vienna, Budapest and Prague and never having to fly? Without ever having to drive a rental car on the opposite side of the road, deciphering street signs in foreign languages? Never having to wait till 2pm before you can check in to your next hotel? These are just some of the benefits of seeing Europe on a river cruise.

A hotel that moves with you

A river cruise lets you see numerous European cities and regions without needing to stand in an airport line once. Instead, the continent will float right past you as you head down Europe’s second-longest river, the Danube (pictured at top). It flows for close to 3000km, from the north of Germany to the Black Sea beside Romania, travelling through 10 countries.

I’ll be seeing half of those countries aboard a cruise that starts in Germany and winds its way through the Czech Republic, Austria and Slovakia, before ending in Budapest.

Until now, I resisted going on a European river cruise because I figured it was too pedestrian. But these days, cruise itineraries allow for all types of travellers – from adventure enthusiasts to art and culture lovers, from young to old.

Once I board and pack my belongings away in my room, a sense of calm washes over me: it’s the knowledge I won’t have to pack my bags again for an entire week.

From the top deck, I watch Germany pass by. There are fields of maize and paddocks of sunflowers and Catholic churches with skinny steeples, and families out for walks beside the mighty Danube.

I feel like a voyeur up here with wine in-hand – and a lazy one at that. I can glimpse into the lives of all those I pass by, looking for subtle differences in how they live and dress to determine which country I might be in.

Here on the Danube, it’s much easier to peer into the lives of locals than it is from any hotel.

Watch Germany's Catholic churches pass by.

Difference between river and ocean cruising

A huge difference between river cruising and ocean cruising is that river boats must be designed to fit into locks, meaning they can’t be wider than 11m.

That means river boats generally carry fewer than 100 passengers, allowing for a far more intimate experience compared to ocean liners which might fit up to 4000 guests.

You won’t have to worry about seasickness, as the boat barely rocks on the river. Most nights I forget I’m on the water at all, until I wake in the morning in a new country.

Adventure on and offshore

I soon discover it’s the smaller ports – those that barely caught my eye pre-trip – which most surprise me.

In Nuremberg, our first port of call, I walk through the old town, stopping for coffees beside ancient canals.

Downriver at Regensburg, I take an excursion up a tributary of the Danube on another boat, to a historic abbey with the oldest beer brewing operation in the world.

But it’s the history right beside the river I cherish most. Austria’s Wachau Valley is my favourite destination – it’s Austria’s main wine-growing region. Here, 800-year-old family vineyards are stacked up steep hillsides right beside the river, near ancient castles and monasteries built on the tops of cliffs.

Some villages here are so small no vans are permitted to enter, so we view them on walking tours in groups of fewer than 10.

Wachau Valley in Austria.

Watch Europe float by

We stop for the night in Vienna, which – in my eyes – is Europe’s prettiest city. Its First District contains the best preserved historical buildings outside of Paris, all beside rambling green parks.

I resist taking a tour of its most famous buildings, instead riding trams through the city, staring at the Gothic and neoclassical architecture in the centre of the former Habsburg Empire.

It’s just a short cruise to Bratislava from Vienna, but this is another of my top picks.

Its historic centre, Old Town, can be condensed into an easy-to-navigate day tour, though I like to simply hang out at cafés and bars, basking in the sunshine.

Thermal spa baths in Budapest.

My tour ends in Budapest, Europe’s most under-rated architectural masterpiece.

Split in two by the Danube – one side Buda, one side Pest – it’s a treasure trove of baroque, neoclassical and artnouveau buildings built in the city’s golden age (of the early 20th century), tinged with bullet holes and shrapnel scars of the darker days of its Communist past and Nazi occupation. These days it’s a food and wine hotspot, and party central for those with the stamina.

If you want to avoid the witching hours though, there’s just as much frivolity to be had at al fresco cafés and bars in the long sunny afternoons of the summer months.

Once satiated, soak your body in one of the city’s famous thermal bathhouses. Doesn’t that sound like the perfect way to spend a day?

Go on a river cruise

For more advice on booking a river cruise, give RAA’s travel experts a call or drop them a line.

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