November 2024 my husband and I were invited to experience the magic of Emerald River Cruises. Emerald isn't heavily advertised like other river cruises. I didn't know too much about them but back in March of 2023 I was lucky enough to be invited to a Scenic cruise to the Sea of Cortez on the Scenic Eclipse. I knew and loved the level of service with Scenic and wanted to test out the Emerald brand. I was pleasantly surprised. The main difference is that Scenic is butler level service. Each cabin will have a butler and room service while Emerald does not. Service is still impeccable. The public spaces are all filled with light and very welcoming.
We flew into Munich and spent a few days touring. We did a food tour one day and did an all day tour of Neuschwanstein Castle and Linderhof Palace. We learn much about the Fairy Tale Prince, King Ludwig II. I believe these two are must sees.
Day 1 of the cruise we meet Emerald Cruises at the Munich airport to take the included transfer to the ship in Regensburg. Once on board we were served lunch and had time to walk around Regensburg on our own as we overnighted there. At night after dinner we could either watch a movie at the pool that was converted to the movie theater or watch the Bavarian band that was brought on board to the ship.
Day 2 we did an escorted tour of Regensburg. You can choose from gentle walkers, regular or active, which usually was a bike tour. We did the normal tour and walked around the town and had a Bavarian sausage tasting.
We sailed from Regensburg to Passau that evening. Going through locks and watching the scenery from our room was great.
Day 3 we did another escorted tour of Passau. Last year when I did this same cruise itinerary I was able to do the Christmas markets there but this year we were still a bit too early. We, however, were able to do the escorted walking tour of the city. We learned about the history and visited St Steven's church.
We still had time to do another tour. The Discover More tour has an extra cost but it helps pay the local farmer. We learned about this wonderful single woman that raised her 2 young daughters while working full time on her farm. She does children's programming and invites river cruises excursions to tour her farm. Her daughter is now part of the farm and has her own separate part of the business growing organic produce while supplying local restaurants.
Day 4 - Vienna WOW!! We were lucky to visit Vienna on the first day of 2024 Christmas market season. We did a walking tour of Vienna. To be honest Vienna is such a beautiful city that needs to be visited again more deeply. We were still able to visit the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien in the old palace. I visited back in 2023 but this time we had an art historian show us a few key pieces. We also visited the Stephanesplaz Christmas market. It's a smaller Christmas market but had some really nice booths. I was finally able to try the famous Chiminey Cake.
That evening we did a Discover More tour to a private Opera show at the Palais Lobkowitz. It was spectular!
Day 5 was Budapest!
Again there were 3 different tours for Budapest. Gentle Walkers, Normal walking tour and the active biking tour. Budpest is pretty spread out. We took a bus tour around the city and saw the thermal baths, Hero's Square, Liberty Square, St Stephen's Basilica and that evening Emerald Cruises brought on board local entertainment. Afterwards we did a cruise along the Danube river and saw the city lit up.
Our experience with Emerald Cruises was spectacular. The food was great and local to each city we visited. Beer and wine is included with each meal. They even had non alcoholic beer and wine. Our cruise director and activites director was fantastic. They had the guests entertained. They answered every question and concern. The crew was also fantastic. They had so much fun with the guests. We voted for the best crew member and there was a tie.
Why I love Emerald River Cruises? The price includes so much. Beer and wine during all meals. Airport transfers are also included. It's nice to know that you are taked care of from beginning to end. Gratuities are also included, for both the crew members and the tour guides. It's really nice to know that the crew members are paid well and are happy. It really shows when you see them interacting and taking care of the guests.
In 2026 I'm escorting 2 groups. Dec 1 - 8, 2026 we will be on the Emerald Destiny on the Rhine river. From Amsterdam to Basel. We will tour each city along the way as well as visiting the Christmas markets there.
Dec 9 - 16, 2026 we will be escorting another group along the Danube river. From Budapest to Regensburg. We will on the same river tour as I've just done but with a couple of other stops. Also, we will be experiencing the magic of the European Christmas markets.
Contact me for more infomation.
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