Avalon Vista Reviews

Avalon Panorama was a perfect experience, each day waking up in a new country was so fascinating. The on board experience from the beautiful big window , happy hour, four course meals or optional casual, a place to sit quietly and read or watch the world go by. The room was a good size with a very functional bathroom. The people who made the trip was ...read more the staff , the tour director Simona , our room gentleman Blessing ,every person I interacted with was kind, polite and happy to be there . They made it fun, interesting and a pleasure.

We can't recommend Avalon Waterways cruise enough - it was brilliant from start to finish. The facilities were well maintained, modern and spacious (the bed was extremely comfortable). The staff went out of their way to make you feel welcomed. The excursions were very well run and informative. The food was delicious and plentiful, and the free drinks ...read more were also generous. Entertainment was great. With only 100 guests onboard we felt we were valued guests. Will definitely be returning to do another Avalon cruise.

Being a single passenger, I only booked this Avalon cruise since they sometimes have a few cabins available with no single supplement. I had never been on a river cruise and this one had 106 passengers out of a maximum possible 168. I went for the "dungeon" lower deck with 2 small top of the room windows looking out at river level since it was the ...read more cheapest. Not really a problem as it was only used for sleeping and I was out on excursions every day and one could sit on the viewing decks if necessary.

Having been on over 30 coach tours of Europe, this provided a different experience, with visits to places I had not been to. My personal highlights were Strasbourg, cycling the Dutch countryside, and cruising past the castles one afternoon. The staff were excellent and friendly even though English was not their first language; the food, of course, was superb, and the range of tours at every location was impressive, to the extent that one could repeat the tour but end up seeing different attractions at each venue. There are just a couple of points I wish to make. One, is that the internet signal was variable, and sometimes non-existent. Secondly, the cruise is called 'Romantic Rhine'. For the most part, all one saw on the banks were factories, warehouses, nuclear plants and unkempt river banks. It was only one afternoon when the cruise passed a host of castles. I thank Hannah at GJ for organising the tour for me, and have booked on another Avalon cruise in 2024.

For our first river cruise, this didn’t disappoint. Our stateroom was very nice the outlook that we got from the door sliding back all the way was just beautiful. We loved how we got to try the local food that they served on the boat. We would have to say, we enjoyed of the excursion to The Maginot Line the most above any other!

Absolutely brilliant, the cabins were spacious with plenty of storage space to unpack. The staff were amazing, the food was excellent. There were onshore activities that you could participate in or you could just sit back and relax on board. Would recommend to anyone.

We were so lucky with the weather, being so late in the season, the water levels were kind to us. We really enjoyed the cruise, the food was amazing.

Travelling the Rhine with Avalon as a single provides the best of everything. Great accommodation, ease of travel, lovely accommodation, lots of interesting included tours and above all, a great opportunity to meet like minded travellers.

We loved this trip! Avalon met expectations. I admit personally I had set a very high standard for them to meet after travelling with Viking for a Danube cruise. The rooms, the food, the options, the service, everything was of the highest quality. I have two points of feedback that let them down slightly, but I cannot stress enough, these are my observations ...read more only and did not impact on my enjoyment of this great trip.

1. Older passengers were struggling and left behind/unaccounted for by excursion guides on several occasions. Only other members of the group raised concerns regarding footing safety and their lack of keeping pace with the group.
2. Timings were very tight around excursions on several occasions and the crush/complaints and behaviour, along with the corresponding rush to eat, at the buffet was disheartening. Everyone was fed perfectly well but an adjustment to timings here would leave people a whole lot happier.

A big thank you to Jemma and Global Journeys for making this possible. You guys are the best. The cruise was amazing - we just discovered river cruising and are loving it. Amazing food, amazing service and people, amazing boat, amazing activities, and experiences. As far as we can tell, no corners were cut. And most things were included. Everything ...read more done with class. We could get used to this. As the tour director said, the history of Europe is to be seen from its rivers. It's a very immersive way of travelling. And no frequent hotel swap is a big bonus - let alone how good it is. On a side note, we got there when Europe was hit by a heatwave and all records were broken at every stop. Reminds us of summer in Perth! It got hot which limited the amount of exploration we could do during the later part of the day. But luckily we didn't experience any complications - the water level on the Rhine was navigable.

Pretty towns with decorated stores everywhere. A great variety of quality keepsakes instead of the usual stuff. Had plenty of time to explore the town or stop for coffee and cake. Townfolk warm and welcoming and good sense of humour. Wear good walking shoes as most streets have the original cobble stones. Avalon staff were thoughtful and professional. ...read more Food on the ship was fantastic and changed each day.

We booked this Tulip Time Cruise because my husband is a keen gardener and thought we would be gliding down the rivers of Holland and Belgium seeing endless fields of tulips. Unfortunately this was not the case and the only opportunity to see tulips was the included visit to Keukenhof Gardens. In fact, we did not see much of the countryside at all as ...read more the boat sailed at night except for 2 afternoons towards the end. This was very disappointing and rather disturbing sleep wise.

The cities we visited were all lovely with beautiful old buildings we don't have in Australia but I would have liked to see the little towns along the river too. The boat was nice and well appointed, the staff friendly and very helpful and of course the food was good with a French chef, maybe a little bit too fancy as only the French do.

There was a mix of nationalities on board, the majority of passengers being American, Australian, and English. Everyone seemed to get along. We had a few showery days and it got unseasonably cold for the last few days but overall the weather was as expected. We were disappointed with the amount of entertainment on board... there was only a few nights when anything was on. They were good acts but we were expecting more local acts.

We booked the trip with Jemma and as usual it was easy and everything went as planned. Thanks Global Journeys once again.

I was a bit unlucky with the weather but it did not stop me having a great time. Especially seeing the tulips which was my main reason for taking this river cruise. I really enjoyed the trip, my accommodation was excellent (even if I was at the end of the corridor) the staff were excellent as usual. Food, wine and entertainment were very good, as was ...read more the organisation.

We recently took a river cruise on the Danube with Avalon & Global Journeys. Our much needed break away was everything and more we had hoped for. From beginning to end, we enjoyed professional service in every area, from booking with Global Journeys through to the experienced captain and crew on our cruise. Our Cruise Director, Tony was exceptional ...read more and obviously very experienced.

Every detail was attended to above and beyond our expectations. The meals were delicious, with the menu changing daily including local cultural delicacies. There were many 'extras' included in our daily tours and there simply isn't any better way to travel than watching the villages and local landmarks pass before your eyes, sipping on a glass of something special in the warmth of the sunshine as you cruise along the riverways. We can warmly recommend Avalon and Global Journeys river cruises.

Excellent arrangements from Hannah Campbell at Global Journeys, as usual, great to work with. First ship was excellent then changed onto second ship - not as welcoming. Tour director was excellent and all ground tours were very well arranged with great additions for those who were less mobile - which was very much appreciated. Overall a really great ...read more tour - ready to do the next one!

Every aspect of the trip was outstanding. The ship was immaculate; the crew, from the Captain down, were efficient, friendly and courteous, particularly those with whom we were in daily contact in the dining room, lounge and cabins - they made us feel as though it was a real pleasure for them to serve us. The Cruise Director, Tony, was knowledgeable, ...read more entertaining and approachable; the local guides for each excursion were well chosen and effective.

Dining room menus were varied and interesting and the food was attractively presented. Wines provided with lunch and dinner were of good quality and were usually sourced from the region through which were travelling. Included and optional shore excursions provided the opportunity to obtain as good an impression of the local area as was possible in the time available. Onboard accommodation, both cabin and public areas, was well designed and immaculately maintained. The only thing missing which would have enhanced our experience was a large wall map in, e.g, the lobby, that would have enabled us to trace the journey from start to finish.

This was my first river cruise even though I had been on many ocean cruises. It was a completely different experience with only 152 people onboard and I really enjoyed it. Our cruise director, Tony, was excellent and we had some wonderful entertainment onboard. The accommodation on Sapphire deck with a bed facing panoramic windows was very comfortable ...read more and tastefully decorated.

There were so many lovely stops on this cruise but one memorable experience was a magical snowy day tour in Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic. I would recommend staying a couple of extra days in Vienna and an extra day or two in Prague as there is lots to see in those two beautiful cities. My favourite Christmas markets were the ones at the Rathaus in Vienna and in Nuremberg.

Thank you to Yvonne at Global Journeys and to Avalon for making this such a wonderful Christmas holiday!

A high standard of guided tours were provided at every port of call, with usually the provision for slower/elderly walkers; plus interesting on-board lectures and plenty of on board entertainment - some very good. So in that regard the cruise offered excellent value for money. The meals were of a very high standard and the service excellent. The ...read more staff/crew were all efficient and some were smiling and friendly too. The cruise director was very efficient and experienced. At one point, Passau, the river was too low to proceed, so we all disembarked and boarded the ship again down river later that day. This complex manoeuvre was seamlessly performed.

We opted for two of the 'extra cost' excursions. The one to Salzburg was excellent with a brilliant guide who travelled hundreds of km (back and forth) that day to perform this task. The other extra was the concert in Vienna. The concert itself was very good however the venue, though grand was a touch gloomy with rather hard seats. (On a previous visit to Vienna I had attended a similar concert at the Kursalon which was a far more sparkling, audience-friendly venue).

Our cabin was on the lowest deck with a window just above water level. It was luxuriously appointed but definitely on the small side for a two week stay. Calling it a stateroom was a little over the top, I thought. Most of the passengers were in the over 50 age group from USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and UK. One couple was from Taiwan and one couple from Brazil. We found most passengers friendly. My overall comment is that if you want a full-on cruise that teaches you a lot about this part of Europe then this is the cruise for you. But if you want a really laid back cruise to completely unwind and veg-out then this is probably not for you.

The booking with Global Journeys was fine and Georgie always most helpful. I think the arrangements for actually joining the ship at Amsterdam could have been made clearer. An email confirming final details about exactly when and where to go to join the ship in Amsterdam would have been handy ie confirming the actual hotel where we were to meet.

Highlights included the attention to detail and highly organised and well orchestrated operation with multiple opportunities to get off the ship and explore the various cities and towns that we visited. The ship felt spacious and clean and the cabins comfortable (106) and products used in the bathroom of good quality. The Cruise Director was extremely ...read more good and balanced a great sense of humor with meticulous attention to detail and highly effective and organised.

Avalon Waterways 'hardware' lived up to all expectations. The October weather was better than average but we just managed to complete the full cruise as a lack of rain meant the Danube was only just navigable (shallow water) at the Nurenberg end. Food was generally very good though the breakfast and lunch menus were similar daily (but of a good quality). ...read more Shore excursions varied from very interesting and enjoyable to one or two that were a little mundane. Their pricing seemed on the expensive side when compared to the purchase of similar tours in situ. There was plenty of opportunity for own adventures, however. The crew were very helpful, though I think that at the end of the cruise season they may have been a little tired and were a bit reluctant to enter conversation; this may have been to do with language too as I only speak English.

Cities visited on this cruise (Blue Danube Discovery - Budapest to Prague) were well chosen for history, architecture and culinary experiences. Passengers were a good bunch, dominated by North Americans (American cruise line?). Overall I was very pleased to complete this journey which has been a long term objective and I would recommend it. Booking was easy through Global Journeys with one comment that contact seemed to be principally by email following voice message. Direct phone communication may have been easier on one or two occasions (minor comment after a hassle free experience).

This was our first experience of river cruising. We had a great time. The facilities on our ship, Vista, were excellent. The Cruise Director, Istvan, and all the crew made our experience one to be remembered.