Christmas markets river cruise along the Danube

Our cruise started in Budapest and we visited Vienna, Salzburg, Melk and Passau ending in the German town of Vilshofen. As ours was a Christmas markets cruise we enjoyed at least one market in each destination and each was different. Our favourite though was Vienna, there were over 20 markets, each was different some selling handmade craft produce, food and drinks.

We were onboard AMA Waterways AmaMagna a new ship that has only been sailing since May 2019, it was beautifully decorated with Christmas lights and decorations.
We were greeted onboard by captain Jan and his crew with a rose and bubbly reception, a lovely start to our holiday.
The service was impeccable and friendly. We had the most delicious food served daily (imagine a top notch restaurant for dinner every night) wine was included with meals, selected dependent on which country we were in.

Water was provided in the cabins daily and although there were no tea/coffee facilities in the cabin there was a machine in the lounge that was free 24/7.
There were around 140 guests onboard and we were the only Brits. The majority were Americans and Canadians, average age around 50 I guess. We made quite a few friends and whilst entertainment was generally low key (local musicians came onboard to perform) there was always the opportunity to have a dance afterwards (not ballroom though).
There was a daily wellness programme that included yoga, spin classes and walking. Cycles were available free of charge in each port and most destinations had the option of a guided cycle ride.
Excursions are included in the price, guests choose which option they prefer to take part in. We were pleasantly surprised to see that they split the groups into small tours so we didn’t feel like we were traipsing round with 50people every day. If you don’t want to take part in one of their included trips you can just get off and do your own thing. The beauty of the river cruise was that you dock in the town/city centre so you can literally just walk off the ship into town.

We loved every minute of this cruise and will definitely cruise with AMA again.

River cruise tips
Be aware that you may need several different currencies for your destinations
Get dressed before you open your cusrtains! Many cruise ships dock alongside each other, we saw at least one naked man who hadnt noticed us!
Cheaper cruises tend to use older ships, compare facilites and inclusions carefully

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