Central Europe Via Rivers and Bicycles
(64 Reviews)
98% Recommended
Hanna Elmore
Oconomowoc, WI
River Cruise, Cruise, Australia Advisor
My passion is to travel & I enjoy sharing this with my clients to create vacations full of memories. I believe that meeting with my clients face to face helps us to develop a rapport, which in turn helps me to create an itinerary that is perfectly...
My passion is to travel & I enjoy sharing this with my clients to create vacations full of memories. I believe that meeting with my clients face to face helps us to develop a rapport, which in turn helps me to create an itinerary that is perfectly customized to their needs and desires. I think meeting in person with my clients who live in the Madison, Wisconsin area also helps to put them at ease. They know that I'm local and not a faceless entity on the Internet or on the phone.
While I enjoy booking adventures for all clients, my specialty is in working with retired couples and girls' getaways. And because I love taking my own family on vacations to explore the world, I have a true passion for helping other parents to do the same with their children.
I am a seasoned traveler, having been to the Caribbean, Europe, and Mexico, and I have also been on numerous cruises to Alaska, Hawaii and the Caribbean. I have learned a lot from every one of my journeys, and this is firsthand information that I use when I arrange journeys for my clients. In addition to my travel experience, I also strive hard to keep up to date on my knowledge of the industry. I am an Accredited Cruise Counselor with CLIA and have been certified with Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Princess Cruises and Uniworld River Cruises. I am also a specialist for Apple Vacations and Sandals.
When you're ready to take your next trip, give me a call so that we can get together over a cup of coffee and create the perfect itinerary for that amazing journey you've always dreamed about.
Can Be Reached At
1-262-567-6658
Collage of my river cruise experience
Over the past 14 years in the travel industry I have been on nine ocean cruises and one river cruise in Italy. I had long desired to explore Central Europe on a river cruise and it all came together in November 2017. My husband, Jim, and I sailed with AmaWaterways on the AmaCerto on the Danube from Budapest, Hungary to Vilshofen (Munich), Germany. The itinerary was the ‘Melodies of the Danube’ cruise with wine-themed tours. Three of the tours went to interesting vineyards in the area. AmaWaterways had invited a Californian vineyard owner to guide their wine club members and the other cruise guests. We had several wine tastings on board; we enjoyed wines from the area comparing them to Californian wines. The vineyard owners and several of their employees joined us on the cruise. During one of our tastings they played a game that tested our sense of smell with a number of different little bottles of scented oils. Everyone had a lot of fun.
Below are some highlights of my journey:
The Ship
The AmaCerto is a very comfortable ship. The crew took excellent care of us while on board. They were always very friendly and attentive. We were in an E category room. It was small but very functional with many shelves in the closet. As we sailed through several locks, we enjoyed observing the process on the sun deck.
The Food
The food in the buffet and main dining room was excellent. The breakfast buffet had various fresh baked breads, meats and cheeses, a yogurt and granola station, an egg/omelet station as well as a menu for any other breakfast options.
At lunch, each day the chef brought us new and various items from the area. There was a salad station and a dessert/ice cream station. They always had several tasty soups. Again if you did not want to eat off the buffet there was an a-la-carte lunch menu.
The dinner menu changed every day and included many options. There were two small rooms off the main dining room where groups of up to 12 people could enjoy the dining menu but in a more intimate setting. I was invited to the Chef’s Table Dinner. The variety and quality was amazing. The presentation of each course was beautiful to the eye and delicious to the palette. The service was fantastic all week and at the Chef’s table the managed to outdo themselves.
During the day, the ship also provided snacks between meals in the lounge. There was Early Riser’s breakfast and Light Lunch options. In the lounge there was coffee station which included hot chocolate and tea selections.
The Tours
I loved how in each city AmaWaterways offered multiple ways to explore the area. Guests could choose from a city walking tour, a hike or a bike ride. Each tour group was led by people familiar with the city and its history. Each bike ride had two guides, one led the group as the other stayed behind with the slower riders. I took several bike rides and enjoyed seeing large areas of the cities. We rode through new parts, old parts, parks and along the river.
Destinations we explored via bicycle:
Budapest, Hungary
Vienna, Austria
Weissenkirchen, Austria
Linz, Austria
Passau, Germany