River Cruise Lines Everyone Is Raving About RIGHT NOW (And Why)

[@davidhurwitz2291]

Sailed on a Viking River cruise in 2017 - 14 nights - Budapest to Amsterdam. It was our first river cruise and we enjoyed it very much. One thing that we learned is that there can be problems if the water levels in the river are too high or too low. We were on a cruise where the water levels were too low. At day 7, we had to pack our bags, and we were bussed to the next river port. Luckily, Viking has a lot of river boats. We switched to another Viking river boat and received the same cabin number we had before. We continued on our journey going toward Amsterdam. The people who were formerly on our new ship boarded our old ship and headed toward Budapest. By sailing on Viking, which has a big fleet, were we able to do this.

[@carolynherrmann9404]

This is funny. We did the same cruise except from Amsterdam to Budapest. It was our first river cruise, really any kind of cruise. We had to switch at day 7 too. It really wasn’t a big deal. I was just happy we could continue to be on the river.Our trip got delayed for two years due to the pandemic but when we did finally do our trip it was great. We loved it. We are in our late 50s so we trended young on the boat but we still had fun. I would totally do a river cruise again. We spent a day or two in Amsterdam before the cruise began and I loved it so much we just got back from visiting Amsterdam just this summer. Very fun

[@harlenerosenberg6182]

We just returned from our 5th cruise with Avalon and totally agree that Avalon is an outstanding choice for river cruising! Love the cabins, itineraries, and excursions, and the staff and food/drink selections are excellent.

[@bobcochran2890]

We took our first river cruise ten years ago. We were hooked, and have now booked seven river cruises, all with Viking. Just did Capitals of Eastern Europe…Danube from Vienna to the Black Sea. Magnificent. Thanks for your videos.

[@happytraveller2122]

You should try other companies

[@sl4193]

Such an informative overview of river cruising, thank you Gary.

[@tipsfortravellers]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for watching

[@IramisandGerry]

Thanks Gary! We did Viking for the 1st time Nov 2023. It was good, but not AWESOME! We are headed on Avalon on April 2025! We can’t wait. We hope that active river cruise feel is true and can enjoy what the company is about. Gary - After 5 years of watching, you have inspired me and I started my own channel. It’s about Slow Travel and retirement. But I do want to thank you for the inspiration over so many years. Each of these videos takes a lot of time and I now get how hard you work!!!Thank you!!🙏🏽🇵🇷💗

[@donkiml5805]

We loved loved our Avalon Waterways land/cruise from Prague (3 days) with 7 days on the Danube river to Budapest. They did have a special program for lesser/limited mobility cruisers. Great food, wonderful staff. The included tour was usually in the morning. Afterwards you could return to the ship or stay in town with their extra information and maps. Additional tours available for a fee from day tours, half day or evening concerts. A couple days had half day cruising, seeing castles etc with history narrations. We agree with the rating.

[@sarapanzarella97]

I researched a ton before we went on our first river cruise this summer - obviously you are one of the channels I watched! We went on Viva river cruises. Loved the ship - new, clean great layout. All inclusive with alcohol being available at all times. My husband was very unsure that a river cruise would be worth the money - but he loved it and thought it was a good value. I love when booking the price you see on their website is always the final price you pay. While we aren’t cruise experts, I just don’t see a reason why I would have liked a Viking cruise more and would have spent double the money.

[@adriangoodrich4306]

We've thoroughly enjoyed two AMA river cruises so far. Both extremely hard to fault in any way. Encouraging to see Gary sharing our own conclusions. This was another really helpful video, Gary - thanks!

[@jerrymachusak3216]

Great commentary, Gary! We did our first Viking river cruise last year and we're not even thinking about any other cruise line. We've already booked another river cruise and an ocean cruise with Viking. To be fair, we haven't been on Avalon in over ten years, so Avalon might be just as good. Thank you for providing the absolutely best travel blog ever!!

[@cherifurr3935]

Avalon was better to me than Viking.

[@janeg8274]

You can Never Ever Miss with TAUCK!! ❣️❣️❣️

[@billwatkins8227]

Gary, my wife and I are taking our first river cruise in October with Avalon. I have devoured your river cruise videos and enjoy the tips immensely. Thanks and keep it up.

[@gerardacronin334]

I have only done one river cruise. It was on Avalon, on the Danube, in 2014. I absolutely loved it.

[@Unazaki]

I really like to see these kinds of lists since they often have highlight options that I would otherwise have not heard of, like Riverside! Much appreciated for doing such videos and giving us more insights / choices! :)

[@janetbattersby7915]

I was very surprised that Tauck didn’t make the list

[@monkeygirl55]

I’m doing my secomd Uniworld cruise this coming December. I agree, yes the decor is a bit much, the service just hands down makes it the best river cruise company I’ve cruised with.

[@izengolf1]

I was on the Victoria this summer and her modern design was just more bland and unoriginal compared to the Beatrice. The cabins were absolutely super though.

[@katelawrence7445]

I've done several river cruises, mainly in Europe but also in Asia, and have always travelled with Avalon mainly because as a solo traveller I really appreciate the no single supplement specials they have. I have always managed to take advantage of these offers and as an added bonus they apply in a limited number to both the Panorama suits and suites that are closer to the water line and therefore have a window rather than a Juliet balcony.

[@kvom01]

We cruised Avalon in 2018 before Covid and are cruising with them again in November. Something I like with them is they offer singles with no supplement ona few cruises later in the year.

[@markwisniewski4165]

WOW really missed the mark with UniWorld except for the food and wine comment. They also have butlers since we had one on our last river cruise. Our bed also faced the window, they had bikes on board, and great tours since all the cruise lines use the same guides at each stop. You really sold them short!! And perhaps talk about the low water problems (and more specifically on the Danube), where Viking has to bus people around since their boats don't draft well.

[@lindazee]

Uniworld is still our favorite, so far.

[@amybradley5821]

Just did my first river cruise on Viking and have no complaints at all. Very different from ocean cruising. My mom had two knee replacements and managed great with a cane. We did the Grand European.

[@melissasiegel9682]

Enjoyed this thoughtful presentation. My husband and I probably have a river cruise in our near future and I will focus on these lines.

[@ahmcguffin]

Thank You for this lovely compilation! A few years ago I read an interesting and amusing review of a European river cruise. I'd forgotten which line it was and checking lines that stop in Amsterdam were no help. The beds face the large window views! The reviewer's caveat being ALWAYS make sure your curtain remote is on your bedside table when you retire! Her first night she fell asleep to the beautiful passing countryside. She woke up docked next to a bustling sidewalk Cafe in full view of seated patrons with the curtain remote on the other side of the room! She loved the cruise despite her faux pas! It must have been Avalon!

[@jenniferparry8709]

My first cruise ever was a river cruise this Easter on an Amawaterways. Absolutely loved it and booked another with them straightaway, went on the Rhone in August. Another booked for December over the New year

[@511dmc]

Scenic also offers e-bikes. One of the major reasons I selected them for our upcoming Danube cruse

[@AbsalomMcVey]

You said Uniworld and Riverside were each at the top of the luxury lines. So, which is the top? I presume it is Riverside; although, to be better than Uniworld it has to be really good. Also, this survey says that lower cost lines are better than Uniworld? Thanks for the video!

[@drj6418]

Having just returned from Paris sailing on Avalon's Tapestry ll, to Normandy I agree with the ratings of Avalon being #1. The experience on all levels was almost perfect. My favorite river cruise lines are Avalon and Uniworld

[@dinnes3375]

Scenic Cruises is excellent. You likely don’t see much about it because is advertises & fills up with Canadians ( has offices in Western Canada mainly) and doesn’t have to attract Europeans. Only English onboard, which we like. Thanks for your great videos.

[@ScottKlapman]

Like Riverside, Uniworld offers butler service on some of its ships.

[@markfortin3502]

Thanks Gary, as always! I recently cruised Avalon on the Danube and had a perfect vacation. terrific wine selections, wide food choices, and the staff was impeccable. Wife and I cannot wait to cruise Avalon again.

[@Clutching.My.Pearls]

We cruised on Avalon twice and I'm so happy.

[@DChatburn1]

I love Avalon and have cruised with them 6 times. Avalon more often offers single supplement options. Avalon has beautiful ships and excellent staff. I like their "adventure hosts" who offer biking and hiking. I have traveled with other lines, but now I have made Avalon my choice for river cruises.

[@FraserAtSea]

I've just returned from my first ever river cruise, and I went with Riviera Travel to cruise both the Rhine and Moselle. One thing that I couldn't believe was how similar all of the river ships that we passed while cruising were - on a few occasions, we'd be docked right beside a ship which was almost identical to ours! These river cruise lines must need to have such strong products from a customer experience POV, as the ships aren't the differentiating factor (unlike lots of ocean cruises)!

[@scottlewisparsons9551]

Thank you Gary for another interesting video. My wife and I did a Viking river cruise in October 2022 between Budapest and Amsterdam. We found the ship to be clean and very well maintained, the shore excursions were excellent and our cabin small but well designed. However, we considered the food to be basic and not always to our taste although it seemed to be enjoyed by the American guests. We also thought that the service was only average at best. Overall though, we enjoyed our experience very much. Would we do another Viking river cruise? Perhaps a shorter one in France, also, we might try a Viking ocean cruise in the future.

[@jeffreywagner5234]

Thanks for this Information!!! Extremely helpful. 🤗

[@Tigers529]

Avalon was fantastic when the water levels were down they made all the arrangements could not fault them. No wonder they came out on top.

[@johnm7251]

We cruised the Rhine with Avalon and were very happy with them

[@rrl4245]

We took our first cruise on Viking (Danube) and enjoyed it. Our second was on Avalon (Lower Rhine and Main) and enjoyed it more. Our third cruise starts in a couple weeks on Avalon (Seine). We love Avalon's cabins, and their ships, with slightly smaller numbers of passengers seem less crowded. I must admit though, that we haven't been all that impressed with the tour guides... Ralph

[@Mark.G475]

I have never been on a cruise. I really have no interest. But I like your channel a great deal. Best wishes from Chicago.

[@hettytravels]

I’m a big fan of Tauck land tours having been on 10 tours! But my first ever River cruise will be on AmaMagna next December. Super excited to try it out. Thanks for your video.

[@tipsfortravellers]

I hear really great things about AmaMagna!

[@davidgilhousen8191]

Sailed with Avalon twice in the last two years and concur, but we enjoyed one of their tours much more than another. Their Danube cruise featured much more authentic experiences with better docking locations, less busing on excursions, and a staff that spoke and understood English, The Romantic Rhine had some docking locations that were a mile away from anything to see, a trip to a castle crammed full of tourists that was largely a facade and a staff that spoke a form of English but with many waitstaff who acted like they didn't understand. Gary, maybe you need to do one comparing the common river cruise locations.

[@karlstriepe8050]

Great list Gary! I've gone on two river cruises, Danube and Rhine, both with Amawaterways. No point of comparison, but no complaints.

[@karlstriepe8050]

Bty, I choose Ama for the fitness stuff, e.g., gym, bikes, and certainly it's a theme, as half the boat on one of my cruises was booked out to a cyclying club.

[@Joel-dq8tt]

I only did one river cruise. It was with AmaWaterways and I loved it.

[@paulwinge4173]

We have taken five river cruise and I have not been an several of these highly rated lines. All claim to be all inclusive but we found Scenic to stand above the rest. They have butlers, their wine and liquor selection is superior and service is the best of all the lines. Like you I find the Uniworld ships a bit fussy but the service and food were outstanding. Ama would be our third choice. Viking gets lots of 'votes' simply due to all the ships and guests but 190 passengers is just too many in my opinion. Another gripe is how early the expect full payment for a cruise. I prefer to make the final payment much closer to the sailing date.

[@moose354]

We sailed on Avalon on the Rhine (Amsterdam to Basel) in 2022 and on the Danube (Budapest to Prague) in 2023. The Royal Suites are simply the best. The cruise director is fully empowered to make major decisions, regardless of cost to the cruise line in the event any point of the itinerary does not go as planned. Avalon has earned the #1 ranking and we only sail on Avalon.

[@madlenyoung2472]

Thank you Gary. I value & appreciate your opinion. 👏

[@todds9746]

My wife and I are going on our first river cruise next June. Viking's Grand European from Budapest to Amsterdam. Very excited.

[@melz5674]

Our first European river cruise was taken on Viva Cruises. Viva II took us southbound from Düsseldorf to Passau. Viva I sailed from Düsseldorf to Amsterdam and through Belgium. Although mainly Europeans onboard both ships, the staff and tours catered to the few English speaking guests without a skip. The ships were well appointed with food, bar, and service very exceptional! A must try for an all inclusive cruise!

[@lynnewilliams542]

We did the Christmas markets with Riviera. They were FANTASTIC. Have done Gate 1, and it is a great value for price paid.

[@terrysmith6067]

I was pleased to see AMA Waterways high on your list. We sailed on a trip altered because of low water on the Rhine. They still gave us a great cruise and we were very happy with our experience. Enjoyed the bikes on board in Holland. Great staff and food.

[@connie_360]

I've travelled on several Grand Circle Travel/Overseas Adventure Travel river, barge, small ship, land tours and they are fabulous. They also have amazing last minute travel prices.

[@cherifurr3935]

Especially Viking!

[@sqgallacher]

Uniworld is #1

[@donaldmeincke3048]

This was a very good and needed review. And I now agree that the rankings seem to be based on advertising revenue. We have traveled on Viking and Uniworld , based solely on ratings in magazines. Although both cruise lines were very good, they weren’t what I would consider “over the top” in service or excursions. Uniworld seemed to have better excursions and a more engaging crew. But Viking had better food and slightly better interiors. Thanks for your excellent reviews!

[@greggbull9543]

Just to clarify a couple of points, Uniworld do have butlers on their ships for Suite and Royal Suite clients and on our latest cruise our bed faced out.

[@kathyholt3516]

Went on a Rhine cruise with Scenic last September. Really enjoyed the food & excursions. Had smaller inside cabin, but mostly spent time on the top for viewing. September was best time to cruise because there were smaller crowds.

[@kchez110]

First cruise on Amawaterways. Absolutely loved it. Planning another. No reason to try another line.

[@fishandfloral]

We’ve done 6 Viking cruises, both river and ocean, and have 5 more booked. I feel like these cruises have given me a taste of various countries and cities that I want to spend more time in, so the plan after this is to travel on our own to immerse ourselves more into specific locations.

[@michaelseibold9977]

We did a Croisi cruise in 2022. We were the only English speakers on the cruise but it was lovely. Food was OK but nothing to write home about. Crew was friendly and spoke English. But it was a real bargain so value to money was good.

[@donnamattison7152]

Oh wow! We’ve done Viking and Avalon and loved them both. We would have stayed with Viking, except we had a 13 yr old granddaughter with us, so we had to choose a line that would take a teen. Loved the bed facing the window! The dining staff absolutely spoiled the 13 year old, which was wonderful. Loved the activity level as well.

[@maureenhandler5611]

I was so surprised that Tauck wasn’t rated in the top 8. Expensive…yes…but I think some of the other lines end up costing the same after you add on the extras. My vote would always be the Tauck river cruises!

[@littlemikeism]

As a former Publisher of a lifestyle magazine, I can assure you there is a direct correlation between amount of advertising and the advertiser's ranking.

[@texasboy5117]

We have done 3 river cruises with Viking and find them just about perfect for the retired traveler. The ocean trips are even better having done 10.

[@alanclarke8877]

Just FYI Scenic also have butlers regardless of cabin grade. Scenic are an Australian company, so being Australian this suited us. After having done two cruises with Scenic we would not hesitate sailing with them again.

[@janefletcher7214]

I have not heard you mention TUI river cruises on your videos. We used them this spring for a cruise on the Rhine and found them to be a great budget friendly option.

[@MarkBentleyinAustin]

I'm surprised to see that you don't mention Scenic Cruise Lines. This Australian-based cruise line is super premium, more inclusive than Viking (drinks included at all times, not just at meals) with everything inclusive. Unique balcony design, butler service, great food, totally enjoyable. I will be taking my 6th Scenic cruise next year on the Danube, but I have also cruised with them on the Seine, Rhone, Rhine, Bordeaux area (Garonne, Dardogne, and Gironde), and the canals and waterways from Amsterdam to Antwerp. You should check them out.

[@tipsfortravellers]

I'm surprised as they are covered in the video!! Not sure how you missed them as they are covered at around 03:24

[@annienelson-om6et]

Riverside, hands down, the best on the rivers. Service, food, ship…hands down! And yes, bikes on board and a small fitness center. I used to love Uniworld, but since sailing Riverside, Uniworld drops to two or three for me…running neck and neck with AMA.

[@suebutton2075]

I would love to see river cruises in the USA covered. Have you ever thought of doing one?

[@crimlarksSteve]

We're not really intersted in river cruising in Europe. Probably because we lived in Germany for 6 years and have been up and down the Rhein and other rivers already. When traveling within Europe we would rather travel by train, staying in a city or town for 3 or more days and taking the train to surrounding towns, then moving on. We really like doing that for visiting the Christmas markets. So our cruising will remain focused on ocean cruising. But I do love watching your reviews of the river cruises.

[@Commonsenseisnotcommon8]

I’ve think river cruising will definitely go more fitness focus and activity focus in the future. Because the younger generations we’re a lot more active I’m Gen X. And I’m always looking for something active been doing on my vacations. I would hate to just be sitting around. Hopefully they’ll get more competition too, and the price will go down. Is there loyalty programs like there are on the big cruise lines?

[@jeffreywagner5234]

Can you compare America River Cruises?? Thank you.

[@williambarr3535]

Amadeus are a wonderful line. Reasonable price food and wine superb. Service great.

[@francesgill8621]

A good friend recently went on a Danube river cruise with Ama but was disappointed with their local guides. I went on Gate 1 and had a great time and had terrific local guides. No free wine with lunch, only dinner, but it was very nice, and I appreciated being able to get a solo cabin. Much more affordable

[@karlstriepe8050]

Went on Ama couple years ago and they used to serve wine at lunch, but no free cocktails before dinner, which I've heard they now do. Must have cut one for tother.

[@saranyabiswas2057]

I trust ur videos .. also agree Viking is best for first timers

[@lorenadugan6355]

We chose Avalon after much research and watching KZbin videos Yours and RTI Travel interviews. 15 days in May. We loved it. We are trying Celestyal for a B2B next fall for a Greece cruise because it is a Greek Line. I’m wondering if you have tried them? Love your channel

[@aadean]

Thanks for the highly informative video. We have been considering Viva River cruises as we have seen some very positive reviews on KZbin. Do you know much about them? Just wondering where you would place them compared to the ones you mentioned in this video. Thanks!!

[@ConanTheLibrarian-n5q]

Gary, have you ever cruised on American rivers?

[@lynnmccurdythehdmmrc2561]

Was looking forward to your review of Viking. We just came from the Mississippi River cruise on Viking. Rather than travel to Europe. I'm sure comparing apples to Oranges, but we were very disappointed. The ship, the food and most (not) all the excursions were very nice. But out of the 11 cruise days, we spent 5 days on land, 2 before, 2 after and one whole day on a Bus.

[@jacquelyns9709]

When did you take your cruise? You did not mention what the water levels were on your cruise. Were American Cruise Line ships also busing their passengers? I know that the Mississippi River has had unusually low water levels in the last couple of years. This is a problem for all river cruises throughout the globe. If water levels are too low or too high, the cruise lines have to bus their passengers to their ports of call and excursions. A long river like the Mississippi can have areas of low and high water at the same time.

[@lynnmccurdythehdmmrc2561]

@@jacquelyns9709 We did the cruise in June of this year. We were told and it appeared the level was high. Not a record, but higher than it had been in years. I don't know about American Cruise Line. We never got a straight answer from the crew or Viking cruise line. Best I can figure out is the port of Memphis is not equipped for passenger vessels. Read other reviews just now, while trying to find an answer to why the ships don't dock in Memphis. Others had the same bad experience as we did. #1 was the insanely LONG bus ride. We were told before the cruise and again on the ship that it would be only two & a half to three hours. Our bus pulled out around 9am, and arrived at the Peabody Hotel in Memphis at 5pm. An unnecessary stop in Oxford (yes, southeast of Memphis) for two and a half hours for lunch, after a half hour or longer stop at a roadside rest.. Oh, and Lunch was on us. No fast food, only expensive restaurants. Then, a scheduled stop at the Botanical Gardens, that was only supposed to be an hour. Due to arriving late, temp around 95f and high humidity there was no mobile assistance due to the late hour. Don't even get me started on the Hotel. Friday night, two full weddings going on, plus the Girls softball tournament (across the street) teams staying at the hotel. Again, Lunch and Dinner, same as out stay in New Orleans was at our expense.

[@lynnmccurdythehdmmrc2561]

@@jacquelyns9709 I didn't cover all the other negatives. We received a Call from Viking due to our survey. They agreed with our "3" complains and offered a $1,000.00 onboard credit for a future cruise.

[@FrankandElizabethReich-og6ct]

Gary, the link isn’t working to the next video about the river cruise lines that didn’t make the list. I would love to watch that one, too. Great video, and you really should give Scenic a try.

[@tipsfortravellers]

Sorry yes! The video isn’t finished editing yet as behind so hopefully will be up in next few days or latest Saturday

[@edspace.]

While I've never been on a cruise my parents enjoy them. One thing I have wondered is whether someone whose never been on a cruise would be better off starting with a river cruise or an ocean cruise?

[@alisong2328]

I haven't been on one, either. I'm thinking that starting off with an ocean cruise as they are much, much cheaper. I will try to find a "smaller" ship.

[@edspace.]

@@alisong2328 Ah nice, I hope that its a good cruise. Hope you find a small ship to your liking.

[@edegidijuskas4030]

Great cruises, high end. Gratuities are above average, 25 eur/ day just waiter. So about 300 eur for 7 days, happy couple makes it.

[@lindapeterson3613]

Have you tried Amadeus line. We love the food and crew. We have done 2 cruises and love them.

[@susanr.562]

Gary: the video you point to at the end of this video, ‘On the list?’, can’t be reached by clicking, is not on your list of videos referred to in this video, nor could I find it with a search on your KZbin channel. Would you paste the link? Thank you!

[@tipsfortravellers]

Sorry yes! The video isn’t finished editing yet as behind so hopefully will be up in next few days or latest Saturday

[@susanr.562]

@@tipsfortravellers Oh, thanks for the reply.

[@willfb1]

At 61and 3 years ago we took our first cruise ever with Avalon. We toured Budapest to Vienna and it was absolutely fantastic. So memorable, we were spoiled. The cruise director was very personable with all guests. Everything about that trip was great. Last year we went on a Doro cruise with Uniworld, and was very disappointed. The ship looked worn and the cabins had no storage space to unpack. The staff seemed disinterested in the guests. We discovered that they most worked for different line for each voyage, and the food mediocre. Nothing lived up to the advertised hype nor the expense. The best was staying on in Lisbon for 2 days at the end. Next year we are going back to Avalon and touring Amsterdam.

[@judyshepplt3086]

I do not recommend Scenic. I cruiseed with them last December 2023 doing the Christmas markets. Almost everything they promised was a total lie. At best the food with mediocre and the service was certainly not five star. The excursions were extremely disorganized and we're never as promised. On day number seven because of the high water. We were informed that we all had to be off the ship within 36 hours. It was the most chaotic thing I've ever seen in my life. A few days before this happened I asked the crew whether or not they had a contingency plan just in case this happened. They said no they did not. This is not a new problem! Why were all the other Cruise companies like Viking and all others able to continue on? As far as cleanliness is concerned and I have pictures to prove this my room was full of cobwebs. Totally disgusting

[@happytraveller2122]

Have never heard anything negative about scenic before. Sorry that happened to you. So unusual

[@scottmiller7779]

Gary - I'm interested to hear how you cultivated your ratings? Were they from one site like cruise critic, or did you also look at other review sites like Trip Advisor, etc?

[@dianehedden5138]

Tauck river cruises are fabulous.

[@ellenlawrence8241]

My husband and I just did a Rhine River cruise with Gate 1. It was 5 star all the way. Travel reviewers on Cruise Critic give them a 4.7 star rating for good reasons.

[@TheWolverine-ff2rs]

I thought there were at least a thousand of the Viking ships - there were always 3-4 rafted together at each port, plus the ones you met floating down the river. Only 54 huh? and I'm sure that's more than when I last river cruised in 2018. I've been on Avalon and I liked AmaWaterways much better. I didn't appreciate the panoramic view room - because I'm a side sleeper and the view was not visible from either side only from your back or sitting up in bed.

[@spydude38]

Regardless of which is on "the list", today is the best time to be in the market for a river or ocean cruise with something for everyone. It has been reported in the media that in the U.S. there are about 80 million boomers who are retired and want to spend their money seeing the world by cruising. Viking caters to the U.S. market, although I've seen people from as far away as Australia and the Philippines onboard.

[@lynnevandewalle3829]

Thank you for the excellent video. My husband and I took a Scenic River cruise in 2018. They had private butlers and electric bikes on board. Their excursions were excellent. It is all inclusive also.

[@brucefrytz8611]

Are excursions typically included with river cruises? Or are they extra cost as with ocean cruises?

[@woofolliesmydog8628]

My bucket list river cruise is with Uniworld, in the green cabin they use for advertising. That’s the one I’m saving up for. It’ll take me 4 years to save up, but that’s the one. No other will do. ❤

[@johnsimion2893]

Considering the experience my wife and I had on Avalon, it is frankly unbelievable that they could even make the top 8, let alone #1. We were on their "Imagery II" in September 2022, "Rhine and Moselle With 1 Night in Amsterdam". This was our second river cruise, the first having been Viking (no complaints there!). Our experience on the Avalon Imagery II was HORRIBLE. The food was AWFUL. We were greeted on the ship with spaghetti that was like Spaghetti-Os out of a can. Every night the food was absolutely lousy and such small portions. On one night I had veal and cut it into six (6) bites. No second helpings, either. Overall our food was on the level of my high school cafeteria, I kid you not. Lest you think we were just picky, there were several repeat Avalon cruisers on board who had exactly the same comments! Some staff members were helpful, but several others looked and acted like they'd been chewing on sour lemons. It was also annoying that they didn't print an itinerary unless you asked for it, leaving you to get the itinerary off an electronic bulletin board in the lobby. And - BTW - when we complained back to Avalon about this, we got no reply at all. We would NEVER EVER cruise with this line ever again!

[@edbarnard7157]

Do any of these river cruises have dining for two?? We are not ani-social but we enjoy dinner on our own

[@idl9ave419]

I have the same question (see my comment above). Viking has a few tables for two in its separate "Aquavit Terrace" (same food, smaller upstairs dining room). We ate there whenever a table for two was available - but it can turn into a race to claim one.

[@edegidijuskas4030]

Gratuities on river cruise are 20+ eur/ day, or 7 days, per couple, 300 eur. Do not forget your cabin steward. Another 300.

[@clement2780]

have to consider: museums palaces included and 2 price

[@lawrencewilhelm7095]

There is no way to do a valid survey of anything that's the 'best' or the 'most popular'. This goes for the best cruise as well as the best hamburger. Unless EVERYONE who's voting has tried EVERY item, be it cruise or hamburger, how can they tell what is the best. And then it's just a matter of opinion without any empirical measurement.

[@coachingRN]

And survey validity starts with survey design. I daresay most KZbinrs aren't research specialists.

[@scottlewisparsons9551]

As no one will try every cruise or every cruise company, that would be too expensive and time consuming for very minimal positive result that would be usable, we just have to base the survey on how each customer rated their experience. We can then just look at the individual ratings and comments and make up our own minds whether we want to do it or not.

[@brucefay5126]

I get the general point being made, but it’s not the case that the only way to do a valid survey is to only seek responses from an impossibly small group of people who have experienced ALL of the things being asked about, and even then only once for each thing. More on that in a minute. A big factor is self-selected participants, which is the only thing you get on a site like Cruise Critic. Gary is simply trusting that the “crowd sourced” ratings on Cruise Critic actually mean something, and using those ratings to select his top and bottom categories for reporting on KZbin. For every one of these cruise lines, you will find multiple opinions that differ from the reported average number of star ratings. Also missing (from cruise critic and most other such sites) is some measure of the spread of ratings. 100 5-star and 100 1-star ratings makes an average rating of 3 stars, but this is much different from 200 people giving the line a 3-star rating. Etc. Just basic data analysis stuff. Opinions about cruise experiences is like opinions about music, film, etc. When it comes to things like this, people like Gary are probably more useful as they provide a curated/expert opinion based on having done this activity many times on many different cruise lines. The task then for the reader is to somehow calibrate your taste and criteria of excellence with Gary’s. Good survey design, on the other hand, would attempt to find out quite a bit about each person providing the rating (demographic or context data); sort of like you need to “calibrate” any reviewer of anything. Also, the “everyone has to have tried everything” fallacy is routinely overcome by the proper use of random sampling, which is fundamentally not self-selected reporting. Statistics 101. $0.02

[@thisismagacountry1318]

What about the American River cruise lines traversing the Mississippi and the Great Lakes?

[@mayapopova9456]

Just spoke to my travel agent today and she said a lot of people are booking river cruises nowadays.

[@mitchellgallinger5096]

Just came off our first Viking River cruise. Everything was great except for the food. I was expecting a much higher quality of food. For this reason I will try another cruise line for our next River cruise. Which one has the best food? Would love to hear opinions.

[@alexandraeverafter1015]

I just came from a Viking River Cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest, our second one. Our first VRC was on the Seine, and the food was fantastique. I agree with you about the food. We expected at least the same on our recent VRC; unfortunately, the food was a letdown. Almost every dish we had was salty, and considering the clientele, we were surprised they did not offer low- or no-salt dishes and no-sugar-added desserts. I am also not the type who carves a hamburger or hot dog (or another American-inspired dish) after flying halfway around the world. We did eat off the ship once, apart from occasional treats (especially ice cream) in town, and it was at Cafe Sacher in Vienna because I wanted to try the Sachertorte badly, and we had a full day of sightseeing in the city anyway. We didn’t feel like we missed lunch on the ship that day. We enjoyed the food on Viking Ocean Cruises and missed Mamsen’s waffles terribly on VRC. I have not been on any other river cruise line, so I can’t tell you which river cruise line has the best food. However, my parents took a Vantage River cruise back in the day (no longer offered), and they said the food was fabulous.