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Zambezi Queen

Staff great but other problems

Fanning Island

This was our 8th river cruise however the only three were in France on Uniworld and because the other cruises involved small ships there isn’t a good comparison (the Viking Vietnam was outstanding).

We chose this because we had never been in Bulgaria or Romania and like wine!  Except for Hungary our earlier experiences were in Yugoslavia in the 70’s so nice to see what had changed.

Other reviews have commented on the excellent staff and we would add the pre-cruise advisors and the information regarding travel was also excellent.

One somewhat minor complaint was that the guides required tips (recommended was four Euro for guide and two for driver on ½ day excursions (per couple) which meant we needed small bills and coins that the ship didn’t have in adequate amounts.  Another was that at the end there was a recommendation to tip the cruise manager fifty Euros since guides and manager are not AMA employees.  (The envelope for our excellent manager at the end was a surprise and I had to use dollars, lacking enough Euros).   It was possible to pre-pay staff gratuities.

The BIGGEST problem was the lounge and restaurant where the noise-level especially in the lounge was so great that talking was very difficult, added to by the piano playing that barely could be heard but added to the levels.  Part of the problem was that the cocktail and dinner hours were usually at six and seven with the entire group gathered all at the same time.  Also, drinks at times other than cocktail hour were charged (wine, beer gratis at lunch and dinner) which isn’t in itself bad but because of it few guests drank except during the one hour period to aggrevate the noise problem.

The food we found was OK but not wonderful.  A few dishes were not very good at all and with others it was fairly obvious that they were mass produced creating some not so good results.  An example was the crepes suzettes where it appeared the crepes were added to a bowl and the sauce then poured over rather than adding them to the saute pan with the crepes.  Also I am pretty sure the sauce was made with orange concentrate rather than the traditional fresh orange juice and orange rind.

I suspect part of the lower quality food was that it was made difficult because all 100+ guests were served at the same moment. (I found choosing the “alternate” rather than the recommended provided better food but only tried this a couple of times so maybe not correct)

They have a chef’s table but there is only a single menu whereas it would have been nice to have that choice for two meals (that small room with I believe room for 28 guests also too noisy.

AMA Waterways is not equal to Uniworld.

Coordinator, Social Media

We were on a Winemaker cruise as the hosts.  Our previous experience with any cruise were huge ships which both of us disliked.  This was so intimate and such a delightful experience!  The ship's crew are beyond lovely- attentive, smiling attitudes and always asking to assist us.  

Our cabin was roomier than expected and we were able to completely unpack and stow luggage away.  Bed and pillows were sooo comfortable!  Food was very very good with lots of menu options daily- never tired of the menu.  

There are many excursion options for all:  gentle, regular or active types.  Our visit to Salzburg was terrific with a beautiful drive.  Others who went to Cesky Krumlov fell in love with the town.  We had many sites and history to see and learn about.

Our only least favorite was the entertainment...it just wasn't our style.  Most enjoyed I believe.  

Romeo, Viktoria, Boda and to all the crew- Thank You!

We plan to cruise again in couple of years based on our experience.

Loved life on the ship

My first river cruise! Was a wonderful experience. The boat was exceptionally clean and well maintained! The staff was amazing. So friendly and welcoming! The food was delicious and always prepared and presented beautifully! Full breakfast in dining room and small buffet upstairs  Cheese board at both lunch and dinner and wine was flowing at both !The gym was very small and there wasn’t anything to do if you wanted to remain onboard!  The excursions were nice but again not very much to see. Multiple forts which can be a bit boring  the bike tours were ok but again not much to see The only reason I didn’t give it 5stars was because of the itinerary-most ports were not very beautiful -the worst being disembark-absolutely in the middle of nowhere-but it was very educational and well done for what they had to work with! Thank you all for a wonderful week.

Wonderful experience 

This was an amazing cruise.   We did the Lower Danube starting in Bucharest.  Beautiful ship and cabins were very comfortable.   Staff and cruise were friendly and attentive.  Food was amazing and tours were very interesting.   Well recommended cruise line and itinerary.

This itinerary is unique and not recommended for 1st time cruisers or first time to Europe.   There is lots of history in the eastern part of Europe and the tours and guides really help you understand the history and culture of the area.   This part of the river is pretty quite with hardly any other ships on it.   Going through the Iron Gates was beautiful and a day to be remembered. 

Cruise manager was fun and personable.   She took care of our every need, even helping with a taxi issue the morning of disembarkation.  Love the Sip and Sail hour before dinner.  Lots of comfortable spaces on board to read or visit with new frriends.

Amazing Cruise

Thoroughly enjoyed 2 prior cruises on Amawaterways, but this was very disappointing. Definitely the worst culinary experience we have had on River or Ocean cruises. There were only about 60 passengers onboard so the staff closed off all the dining room booth seating for the entire 7 day cruise, & they did so by laying crumbled up table cloths on the table tops. Not only looked sloppy & unprofessional (see photos) but was a total guest turn-off. Have absolutely no idea what was going on in the kitchen, but to say the food was substandard would be to offer an unintended compliment. One night they served lamb, but it was not lamb chops. Plates arrived with 2 "tiny" slices of lamb loin or leg that were absolutely 3" long x 1" wide x 1/4" thick. Most pathetic serving of any dish I have received on any sailing on any vessel. Same with all other meals, & even the basic hamburger was disgusting. It was a discussion point among guests if it was even beef on the bun? Food variety was totally non-existent on this sailing. The exact same small round bread rolls for both lunch & dinner for 7 days. Never any variation OR options. Breakfast had a slightly larger selection, but only 1 side of the single toaster was working. There was apparently no pastry chef on board since the same exact 3 types of tiny pastries were served each morning. Look & tasted like they had been bought in a huge bag at departure & became harder & less attractive & flavorful daily. Unforgivable.  With the single exception of 1 night when a very talented couple calling themselves No Boundaries came onboard to play, the entertainment was almost painful to watch. Excellent housekeeping & overall service was top notch, just as it was on the 2 previous cruises, with all staff being helpful, courteous & eager to help. No complaints about the cabin or bathroom, but it would be nice to have a small lounge chair in the cabins as opposed to the 2 small straight back chairs. WiFi worked fine & the boat was in good condition. Itinerary was enjoyable, with good guides at each stop. Unfortunately, the kitchen was a HUGE disappointment.

Very disappointing.

We did the Southeastern European cruise with a post cruise in Istanbul on AmaVerde in April 17th. We did the Danube cruise with Ama before and we liked it and that is why we did this one with them as well. We were recommending and even encouraging others to go on AMA.

It was a big disappointment as far as the cabin accommodations and food. The cabin had a funky smell like there's mold because it was musty. I have a bad asthma and we were worried that I could badly sick. My wife told to the reception crew about it and if there's anything they could do including getting a paid upgrade. Disappointingly, they did not do anything or suggested what can be done to alleviate the issue. Worse thing, they never talked to me or showed any concern. I guess they don't care about the welfare of their customers. I told my wife that I could get off the cruise in Belgrade to return home rather than get sick. She did everything to masked the smell by spraying Lysol and other stuff. My CPAP helped during my sleep but nothing was really done by the Ama. I felt bad for my wife and so I just endured it and just prayed that I don't get badly sick although my asthma got worse and worse. I don't think they prep the boat well or did good upkeep of it. It's hard to understand how they could ignore their customers.

The food was not what we expected and very disappointing. The kitchen did a bad job preparing the food particularly the fish dishes. The selection was not only bad but also very limited. Were they cutting costs on food? Maybe. But at least the preparing could be better. I'm trying to find anything good about the food but unfortunately, there's none.

The crew in the restaurant was very good. Excellent if I can say. The housekeeping crew was also very good given the situation and condition of the boat and cabin.

I should say they post cruise in Istanbul was excellent. The tour guide we had was excellent and took care of us very well. The hotel was very nice. The transfer provided was very good. At least Ama did well with this one. 

It's the crew's service and Istanbul experience are the reasons I gave 2 stars. Or it would have been negative stars. I tried to do the review on AMA's app after our post cruise was the app won't let me. I wanted to finish everything before doing a comprehensive review but could not do it. It's unfortunate they would not read my review because I was hoping they can make improvements so that other customers will not suffer or be disappointed.

Hopefully, our coming cruise on Oceania in October would be a better one. Hard to imagine something worse than this last one with AmaVerde.

Bad Cabin Smell and Disappointing food

My sister and I had talked about taking a river cruise like this to see the Christmas Markets in western Europe for a number of years and we finally turned "someday" into December, 2022! To say it was an OUTSTANDING trip for us is an understatement! 

AMA delivered a great experience for us and exceeded ALL of our expectations. The ship was beautifully decorated for Christmas, we had a very comfortable cabin, the food was excellent, the flexibility for dining was wonderful, the staff was very friendly and accommodating, and the local guides we had on all of our daily outings and excursions were the best!  They really added to the overall experience of each daily outing. Oh........ and the Chef's Table experience was an unexpected surprise which we thoroughly enjoyed on our very first night. 

Our ratings of the Christmas Markets was 1.) Salzburg 2.) Vienna - not to be missed!! But having said that, they were all wonderful and each one- especially in the smaller towns - had it's own "personality". 

We had an outstanding trip and LOVED the AMA cruise line. So much so that we hope to return for another river cruise with them......... but this one, as our first, will always be a very special memory!

Christmas Markets delight!

Our trusted travel agent recommended this as our first river cruise. We did the pre-cruise tour of Istanbul and the post-cruise tour of Prague as well. The cruise and the pre-/post- were excellent. No concerns or complaints at all. We've done several ocean cruises and there are pros and cons as seasoned travelers will recognize. We especially liked the constant scenery and no "at sea" days plus excursions every day. Our cruise offered vigorous (often bicycle), regular and gentle tours at each port. Our cabin was very comfortable and so were the other ship amenities. The cuisine was excellent, and we enjoyed having regular seating with dining partners that we got to know rather than just "chit chat." The ship staff was across the board excellent with special kudos to our dining room waiter "David" and the Cruise Manager Monika. I had a haircut and two massages on the cruise, and they were great. We're already signed up for another AmaWaterways river cruise next year!

Wonderful Experience on the Danube

First river cruise with APT. The cruise embarkation was well handled from the hotel to ship. Welcome and cabin allocation all ok. First night cruising the Danube just wonderful, however that was the best part overall. Unfortunately the vessel had an outbreak of gastro which wasn't surprising as we did notice that hygiene e.g. mandatory sanitizing of hands wasn't enforced. One guest was actually transferred mid river to hospital so not a great impression. The dining area can be very crowded at all sittings and breakfast can see ques at toasters and serveries. Waiter service was good but the menu, although brandishing fancy names, just didn't measure up in comparison to other 'luxury' cruise dining. Actually it was pretty bland. The scenery is lovely on the trip but the little town ports can be the usual tourist traps and if you've seen one old church.. you know the rest! However Wien was very good as was Neurenburg with excellent guides.= and the concert very nice. However, at other places one was left to wander around towns for ages waiting for buses and sometimes in the dark.
You also go through 60 or more locks so it can be somewhat stop and start. The entertainment was one chap playing the same songs every night with his European accent. One or two nights would have been OK but over 14 it gets to be boring. Also the visiting entertainers were only on for very short periods between locks and all were intent on flogging their CDs.
Look some guests loved it but we're Aussies and we don't necessarily want to be on an international cruise consisting of 95% other Aussies so that may have tainted us from the start so beware if that is of concern to you as well.
The cruise director and staff tried hard and were pleasant. The drinks variety were good. We got a 2 for one deal but had we paid full fare I honestly would have felt short-changed..

Didn't Impress

We booked the 15 day Magnificent Europe itinerary from Budapest to Amsterdam and travelled the last week in October and the first week in November.  Our pricing included flights from the UK, transfers, port charges,  gratuities, all shore excursions and drinks with both lunch and dinner.  We booked as a special offer 3 months before our travel date through APT, an Australian company, so the vast majority of passengers were Australian with only a tiny number from other countries.  Although we are veterans of ocean cruising, this was our first river cruise.

The boat actually exceeded our expectations.  Launched in 2011 everything still had a new appearance, all furnishings and equipment were of a high quality and the colour schemes carefully co-ordinated in soft, pleasing tones.  It was immaculately clean in all areas that we saw.

Our cabin was one of the standard ones on a lower deck with windows but no balcony.  Beautifully fitted and furnished with a fridge, bathrobes and slippers, quality toiletries, and the entertainment system available through the monitor had a very good selection of tv channels, music channels, films and free internet access. There was also free WiFi onboard.  Complimentary bottles of water in our cabin were replenished daily and we also appreciated the use of umbrellas which we used on several occasions! Shower was excellent and we had no problems with variable water temperatures which we have experienced on some ocean ships. We could also vary the temperature in the cabin to our own preference. Plenty hangers and storage, and we noticed that the safe and wardrobes interiors illuminated when opened in the evenings. There was a pillow menu, and a choice of sheets and duvet or sheets and blankets. Under one side of the bed there was an underbed storage drawer. 

Public spaces were adequate for the number of passengers and we had no difficulty finding seats in the lounge or in the restaurant at any time during the day or evening.  In the main diningroom, through choice, we often had the same table and wait staff.  This sailing however, was not full.  Our understanding is that there were only 120 plus passengers and the boat can take 160 plus. What it would be like with a full sailing I cannot say. The sun deck was only occasionally used by small numbers of passengers due to the very variable weather we had, most passengers preferring to enjoy the scenery from the warmer lounge, because, at this time of year, even the dry, sunny days were quite cool especially when we were on the move.   The main sun deck was closed for 4 days due to the number of low bridges we passed under.  As we were docked most days anyway, this did not impact anyone to any great extent.  One small area of the open upper deck remained open as it was located at the bow and at a slightly lower lever than the sun deck so it was still possible to go "up top" if you wanted.

We thought the food and wines were amongst the best we have experienced with everything made from scratch by a team of 12 in the galley.  Having seen a gradual lowering of food quality on ocean cruising ships in recent years, this was a pleasant surprise.  Apart from the "always available" and the usual international menu, every day at both lunch and dinner there was an excellent choice of local regional dishes from the various countries we were cruising in, with local and/or regional wines to accompany the meals.  Wines were carefully selected and of good quality.  Most surprising for us were the Austrian reds.  Lovely!  It was a refreshing change to be able to try local specialities onboard on a daily basis should we want, as it is an experience we find lacking on most ocean cruises which only give the occasional opportunity to try the food of the countries we are sailing in.  Once a week we could choose to experience the  Chefs Table  restaurant "Erlebnis" where we were greeted with a pre-dinner drink. The menu changes each week and there is no additional charge although you do need to reserve ahead of time.  A complimentary range of teas, coffees and hot chocolate were available 24/7 from a machine.  These included espresso, latte, cappuchino etc. 

Staff were excellent in all departments and we really could not fault them.  Friendly and professional.

Excursions were all included with a reasonable choice in most places. APT call this Freedom of Choice touring.  In smaller places with less to offer, there was maybe only a walking tour although several tours included a sampling of local wines, beers, or, in Vienna, Sachertorte  served with either coffee or hot chocolate with cream.  If you wanted to do your own thing anywhere, you could leave a tour at any time or choose not to go on one at all. Some days there was the option of choosing a "regular" tour, a more "gentle" tour, or even a "late risers" tour. As ours was a Platinum cruise, we had an additional  number of complimentary  "Signature Experiences" along the way and personal highlights for us included a tour of the Hungarian State Opera House in Budapest and an evening concert in Vienna.  At both, glasses of sparkling wine were served.  There are also a number of complimentary bicycles and helmets available for anyone to borrow. 

Entertainment we thought was a bit hit or miss.  We enjoyed some of it but not all of it. It is low key and mostly consists of either one, two or three entertainers who are mostly singers and/or musicians. Apart from those, one evening there was a glass blower, another evening we had a music quiz, another we enjoyed a 60's themed evening.  Some evenings you could go ashore if we were sailing late.  As we were usually docked in a very central location it was often easy to do this.

APT actually impressed us a lot.  There were many small details which we noticed and appreciated, we were extremely well looked after throughout, the little gifts we received both pre-cruise and in our cabin were also quality items and useful, and our overall impression was of a company which knows what it is doing and does it well.  We would book with them again.

As for the itinerary, it was a wonderful way to cruise the Rhine, Main and Danube. The fabulous larger cities were nicely balanced with medium and small sized towns, with many of the smaller ones having well preserved medieval centres, cobbles and half timbered or pastel painted buildings to great effect.  The scenery in some sections was stunning, with vineyards, forests, castles and attractive small towns on both sides. Several of our stops were in places ideal for exploring at a leisurely pace. Local street maps and info were handed out at almost every port so that you were not restricted to the tours.

As for timing, we would advise careful consideration. We had the advantage of the most stunning autumn colours more or less throughout this trip with the Wachau Valley being a particular highlight amongst many others. We had anticipated some colour, but not the dramatic sights we enjoyed.    Another advantage was that traditional high season crowds had gone and everywhere was only either moderately busy or quiet.   As for disadvantages, before we left, we knew that one downside would be dusk and darkness falling in the late afternoon and this impacted on some of our sightseeing. It was worsened by the clocks changing by an hour a few days after boarding. European weather is also notoriously unpredictable, and our dates this year brought us everything from bright, sunny but cool days, to more rainy and/or showery days than we wanted, and even sleety/snowy showers for one of our two days in Vienna.  On the other hand, summers can be extremely hot in these areas, the majority of these towns and cities will be full of tourists, and the glorious autumn colours will be missing, only green everywhere.  It is quite a difficult decision to make.  Best advice is to pack for everything and anything in terms of weather.  And be prepared for the locks.  Over 60 on this itinerary. Choose your cabin carefully as weather could impact on potential use. And with close cruising, it is usually preferable to be out on deck or in the lounge where there are views of both sides.

A most enjoyable first river cruise

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