As part of a rather ambitious 2024 European vacation, we booked a Viking river cruise on the Danube. This area was all new to us and included visits to several iconic European cities.

Our journey started in Munich.  After a long flight from Florida and a short train ride to the city our hotel room was not available due to the morning arrival. We decided the best use of our time before check-in was to walk and explore the city.  Munich is a beautiful city with tons of history.  We walked until we got lost then learned how to use the subway to return to our hotel. We found the city very busy with tourists from all over the world yet it was clean and well maintained..

The next day we took the train to Passau where our river ship Viljalm awaited us.  Passau is a pretty little town where 3 rivers come together. The river was rising but we didn’t know a week later the city would be flooded and the docking area would be under water and un-usable .

Our first stop was Linz Austria. Our included tour touched on Hitler’s link to the city. He had the best years of his childhood there, made a significant speech there and sought to make Linz a cultural capital of his Reich.  It became an industrial center for Hitler’s Reich and was heavily damaged during World War II. Linz was a nice little city. We love the trams in Europe and rode a historic tram to a park overlooking the city. Linz was founded by the Romans as Lentia in the first century.

Next Viking took us to Gottweig Abbey near the town of Krems. The abbey has been active since 1083. Its located in the Wachau Valley a UNESCO World Heritage site famous for high-quality wines. The abbey is famous for its products made with apricots.

Vienna was so impressive and crowded.  The former imperial capital is beautiful with great architecture, museums and cafes.  We attended a classical music concert that was the best we’ve ever seen. Museums were plentiful and busy. Many had timed entry but we were able to tour the palace museum with many royal artifacts. We barely scratched the surface of things to do in Vienna.

Next stop was Bratislava in Slovakia.  Another great Medieval city with a tower in the old walled part of town and a castle overlooking the city and the Danube. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1563 to 1783. We only had a half day here and could’ve used more time.

We arrived in Budapest late in the evening and experienced the Hungarian Parliament from the river bathed in stunning golden light. As we sailed past the ship broadcast the Blue Danube Waltz and fireworks erupted nearby. Truly an unforgettable moment.  Our tour of Budapest the next day included both Buda (the low flat east side) and Pest (the hilly west side of the Danube).  We also had free time to ride the trams, visit the Central Market Hall and see the memorial shoes recalling the slaughter of Jews on the banks of the river. There is much more to see here.

This was our second Viking river cruise and we enjoyed it. Our previous cruise dinner took 2 hours every night. This time they got it done in an hour and a half max. Big improvement. They brought on local entertainment that was top notch. The food was good. As with any cruise this was a sampler tour of central Europe. We could definitely see ourselves revisiting Vienna, Bratislava and Budapest.