The Viking Cruise

The Embark

Arriving in Budapest to an Airport surrounded by Military was a little confronting but given our location kind of made a lot of sense.

We were taken to our hotel via a chauffeur driven transfer only to find out there was a "Maintenance Issue" with our room and that they had made alternate accommodation for us at the Mecure Hotel. 

The Mecure was a bit more central and beautiful though and allowed us to explore the city centre and the Danube river was close by!

We decided to also check out the National History Museum and the local Great Marketplace before we boarded our Ship " Viking Gimir" at Lunchtime.

The afternoon and evening was spent on the ship and dealing with a "Slight Issue" of the Air Conditioning not working and them having to wait for a part from Vienna which took until Midnight to fix. 

The crew were amazing though and did their very best to accommodate and deal with the situation. All in all wasn't too bad and we had a great day!

Day 1 - Budapest

First morning on board didn't disappoint with picture perfect skies and breakfast on the terrace. Day soon became a scorcher with 35' in the shade, but this didn't stop us from heading off on the Panoramic Budapest tour.

Our guide was very informative and gave the highlight reel of 1000 years of history. 
- Capitol is actually 2 areas on each side of the river.
- Buda being the older western side with royal palace and St Mathais Cathedral.
- Pest is the Eastern side and the flat area with cultural offerings, brimming with great architecture, Europe's biggest Synagogue, their version of Champs-Élysées with a boulevard of designer shopping and a mecca of cafes and eateries!
- Final leg of the tour saw the Shoes Memorial to pay respects to many who lost their lives through the holoucast!

An afternoon and evening spent on board meeting and eating with new people from Canada and America. The food as always, was amazing and meeting the Executive Chef and following his advice lead to a culinary delight with local Hungarian Flavours.

Anchors up during dinner and set sail for Vienna!

Day 2 - Cruising & Vienna

Cruising through the night had us waking in Slovakia to a cooler morning, traversing our first of many locks!

Some amazing views along the river of castles and ruins and some great local flavours were added to our menu!

Arriving into Vienna at around 5pm we enjoyed a lovely meal and then boarded busses heading for a Mozart & Strauss Concert which did not disappoint. Make sure to check out the highlight video below! 

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Video -  Vienna Mozart Concert Highlights.

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Day 3 - Exploring Vienna

Following yet another buffet breakfast we boarded the tour bus again for a morning of sightseeing around Vienna. Our Guide was very funny and informative! 

Exploring the palaces and middle of the city was a great experience! Lisa even enjoyed some Zara shopping joy along the way!

The afternoon was spent mainly in recovery ( Napping ) following lunch although Lisa did do a small explore on her own to the local shops ( She probably won't do that again though 😉 )

Day 4 - Melk

Cruising the Danube in the morning was very relaxing and some great sight seeing. 

Our shore excursion took us to one of the oldest Abbeys in Germany where we enjoyed a guided tour of the Abbey and its huge library.

Day 5 - Passau

Arriving in Passau in the morning was a very hot day. Europe is soaring in a heatwave but being close to the river did make it quite bearable. 

Passau is at the merge of 3 river systems and is at the German Boarder to Austria. It was and is a critical port and trading place on the Danube. Dating back to Roman times with evidence of roads etc was an eye opening experience.

Day 6 - Munich

The ship docked overnight in Passau and in the morning we had an early breakfast and then boarded the bus for a 2hr trip to Munich. 

Our first stop was the BMW Factory and Museum which was amazing. Lisa may have found her new car there! We then headed into the older town area and a tour of the Imperial Palace and Gardens.

We also checked out St Stevens Cathedral and its amazing architecture. We watched Glockenspiel Clock display which is like a Cuckoo Clock on Steroids! Lunch was at the Ratskeller Restaurant which was the size of a city block and 3 courses of amazing traditional German foods. After a small free time shopping wander we boarded the bus and headed back to the ship!

Once on board we were told that the river ahead had become to shallow to pass and that our trip to our next port would be by bus and we would be swapped to the sister ship for the remainder of our trip. ( Ironically the EDGIR is the ship we were originally supposed to be on )

Dinner was spent celebrating an Anniversary with our new friends Mark and Wendy ( 25years Married and from Texas ) we also are enjoying a bit of local company also with Michael & Jill (South Australia) and Jock and Debbie  ( New Zealand )  whom are great fun and great company!

Munich Tour

Munich Clock Tower:
A display of one of Europe oldest clock towers and its "Show"

Day 7 - Nuremberg

The morning was spent packing up and transferring to busses for a 3hr trip to Nuremburg. Arriving to meet our new Ship (The EDGIR) at lunchtime. It was a bit of an ordeal for both passengers and crew but I must say all handled it very well and it was extremely well organised!

Following lunch we boarded the bus once again and headed to our scheduled tour of the Nuremberg World War 2 History and the Trials. A very sobering and eerie feeling being in the Rally Building where thousands of Nazi Party members gathered for rallies. The building now houses a Museum for the period with the intention of ensuring we don't forget and recognise this type of insane politics again.

We left the Museum and headed to the Courts which are still in operation today, in particular Courtroom 600 where the main trial for the remaining high ranking Nazi's was held. Having watched many documentaries and history videos on this period it was a weird feeling being in this courtroom and seeing how it was setup and then reported to the world! 

Highly recommend this to anyone who has an interest in the WW2. Not a lot of photos or videos were taken however as Lisa & I were both interested in our guides comments and taking in the experience! 

Day 8 - Bamberg

Cruising overnight through a number of Locks found us waking to a cooler and overcast day in Bamberg.

A bit later start to our shore excursion into Bamberg which is a very old city that escaped most of the bombings during the war. With buildings over 500 years old it was great to take in the architecture of the city. We also explored a church overlooking the city. 

A few photos also of the city Town Hall which is located in the middle of a bridge was very interesting. Lisa also managed to find a few bargains in the shopping area.

Day 9 - Wurzburg

Arriving into the city of Wurzburg early morning gave us a chance to sleep in for a bit. Following breakfast, we boarded a bus for a short (10min) ride to the Prince Bishops Palace. 

The palace was like nothing we have ever seen...Opulance and architecture. We keep being amazed each time we enter a church or such but this was a private residence and although 90% of the city was reduced to rubble during World War 2 the main part of this building and a lot of the furnishings and lights etc were preserved. 

Once we left the Palace we were guided into the main town and given the highlights including "Wine Bridge" where it is customary to have a glass of wine in the middle of the bridge! The markets and stores provided us with some shopping joy also. lunch was has with a few friends we have made at an Italian restaurant in the city before heading back to the ship for what has become a customary "Nap"!

Day 10 - Wertheim

Arriving in Wertheim found us boarding a fun little train into the village centre. Our guide was amazing and full of local knowledge and jokes. 

Wertheim escaped bombing during the war mainly due to its location and fog even though it was home to the Luftwaffe (German Airforce). The village was very medieval design and the buildings reflected the age of the village. This area often floods and the locals seem to take it as part of everyday life!

It was great to explore some local shopping and then a leisurely walk back to the ship for lunch.

Day 11 - Koblenz

The morning was spent cruising along the Rhine River with an amazing commentry by Dominc. Castles came thick and fast and we were treated to the history of the area and how it has been utilised over the years.

The afternoon was spent at Marksburg castle, the oldest and still inhabited castle in Germany. The castle was untouched during WW2 and escaped damage during every war and occupation previous to that. Our guide showed us through the many rooms and explained castle life and the defences of the castle even though it never saw siege or battles. 

Being in the castle with a history dating back hundreds and hundreds of years was truly amazing!

Day 12 - Cologne

Arriving in Cologne after travelling most of the night to a rainy day was a bit disheartening but the weather actually held off for most of the day. The guided tour of the city centre saw us explore one of the most amazing churches so far and also the largest gothic cathedral in Europe. 

The church is home to the tomb of the 3 wise men from Christianity and was certainly worth the visit! The ornate design and the sheer size of the church was incredible.

Following lunch we headed into the shopping district which was only a few hundred meters from the ship ( Very convenient for Lisa ) and enjoyed some relaxed shopping.

We however did witness some ride by pick pocket on a bike which made us hyper vigilant for security of our belongings! 

Day 13 - Kinderdijk

Traveling overnight into the Netherlands found us waking to a completely different landscape. Not a mountain or even a hill to be seen! A few logistics had to be sorted out in the morning as tomorrow is our last day on the Edgir and we will be disembarking in Amsterdam tomorrow.

Our final dinner with new friends was amazing! We have enjoyed some amazing food and drinks on the cruise.  And we did relax and have a great time overall! As a bonus we ( well Brett ) did not get kicked off the ship!

Day 14 - Amsterdam

Arriving at our final destination for the cruise part of our holiday in Amsterdam. The clockwork precision of the Viking crew had us disembarked pretty efficiently and they even organised a taxi to our hotel for us!

The Grand Amrath is a luxury 5 start hotel and our suite was welcomed after the smaller cabins on the ships. We booked into a GURU tour ( Highly recommend GURU Tours in Europe ) and was taken on a much needed walk around Amsterdam!

Our guide was amazing and went through the history of Amsterdam, The highlights and some amazing sightseeing. The old buildings ( Mostly leaning! ) were incredible to see.

After lunch we treated ourselves to a couples massage ( was needed! ) and then headed out again to explore the main part of Amsterdam including the famous "Sex Museum" and the "Red Light District" and some general wandering around.