New announcement from ABD

[sayhello]

It's available on the ABD website under Destinations->Europe

It's an awesome looking trip. I think it would be tough to decide between the Prague, Salzburg, and Vienna ABD and this one. Having visited Prague, Vienna, Bratislava and Budapest last Christmas, I strongly encourage people to choose the Prague pre/post stay if doing the river cruise. Prague is the gem of the entire Central Europe area and not to be missed. The one advantage to the land tour I would think is more time in Vienna and of course seeing Salzburg (which I've yet to see). On the other hand, seeing Budapest on the cruise will definitely be a highlight.

I hope ABD does very well with this cruise and brings in a new segment of guests. It would be awesome to see them expand to more destinations. It will be interesting though as they need 4X the amount of guests to fill each date compared to a typical ABD. I'm curious as to the contract between Disney and AMAWaterways. What if they only fill 50% of the rooms? Are the rest released as nonABD rooms by AMA? Does ABD rent out the entire ship and incur a loss if not enough guests book? I guess limiting the available dates will help. I have no doubt these will become very popular, I'm just curious if they will be 4X as popular as their typical ABDs. I hope so.

I'll probably pass on it just because I was recently in many of these cities. Still, it looks pretty neat.

So, the river cruise *does* include Salzburg, as an excursion from Linz!

Sayhello

 

[Cousin Orville]

So, the river cruise *does* include Salzburg, as an excursion from Linz!

Sayhello

Awesome! That's a great itinerary. If you could add the Prague pre or post trip, I'd choose the cruise over the land trip. If I hadn't recently gone to the area myself, I'd probably do the cruise next year myself. ABD needs to send me their 5yr plan so I can coordinate these things better.

 

[sayhello]

Awesome! That's a great itinerary. If you could add the Prague pre or post trip, I'd choose the cruise over the land trip. If I hadn't recently gone to the area myself, I'd probably do the cruise next year myself. ABD needs to send me their 5yr plan so I can coordinate these things better.

I am doing the post-trip add-on in Prague. Prague was one of the places I was really looking forward to for the land trip, so it made sense to add it on. This really just looks wonderful!

I agree! They need to let us know this stuff ahead of time!!

Sayhello

 

[tufbuf]

I am doing the post-trip add-on in Prague. Prague was one of the places I was really looking forward to for the land trip, so it made sense to add it on. This really just looks wonderful!

I agree! They need to let us know this stuff ahead of time!!

Sayhello

Just a suggestion, if time and everything else allows, I would add more post days in Prague. The tour they are offering only touches the surface of what Prague has to offer. If you can, I'll do a full day in the Little Quarter (where the Prague Castle is located) and a day in Old Town. There is so much history and so much to see, so many unfamiliar names, half a day will not do it in my opinion. Vilshofen to Cesky Krumlov is a 2-3 hour drive and CK to Prague is another 2-3 hour drive, so you probably have about a couple of hours to send in CK. It's a wonderful wonderful city!

I can recommend a really nice hotel where we stayed if you are interested. The service is ala-Disney!At least in our opinion.

 

[sayhello]

Just a suggestion, if time and everything else allows, I would add more post days in Prague. The tour they are offering only touches the surface of what Prague has to offer. If you can, I'll do a full day in the Little Quarter (where the Prague Castle is located) and a day in Old Town. There is so much history and so much to see, so many unfamiliar names, half a day will not do it in my opinion. Vilshofen to Cesky Krumlov is a 2-3 hour drive and CK to Prague is another 2-3 hour drive, so you probably have about a couple of hours to send in CK. It's a wonderful wonderful city!

I can recommend a really nice hotel where we stayed if you are interested. The service is ala-Disney!At least in our opinion.

Thanks for the input! I've just booked, so I'm still not sure about how many days pre- or post-, but I'd appreciate any info you have! I would *definitely* be interested in your hotel recommendation!

Thanks!
Sayhello

 

[tufbuf]

Thanks for the input! I've just booked, so I'm still not sure about how many days pre- or post-, but I'd appreciate any info you have! I would *definitely* be interested in your hotel recommendation!

Thanks!
Sayhello

I started a "Conversation", not sure if that is the right way, since I don't see a PM tab. Anyway, you know what I mean.

 

[sayhello]

I started a "Conversation", not sure if that is the right way, since I don't see a PM tab. Anyway, you know what I mean.

Yes, "Conversations" is the same as "PMs". The nice thing is, Conversations are a thread, so all the messages & replies are in one place rather than the "Inbox" vs "Sent" folders we had with PMs.

Thanks!
Sayhello

 

[familygoboston]

So...It seems it's what we thought, AND I noticed another "active adventure" company (think biking) is also offering river cruises on AMA...we just did a Danube River Cruise (Budapest though Eastern Europe) on the AMA ships AMAPrima...I have photos and a report on my blog and I am happy to answer any ship related questions!! The Danube River Cruise stuff starts here:
http://www.goseeittravel.com/travel-blog/?category=River+Cruises
(our website is non commercial...just our travel experiences!)
But be sure to also look under the Budapest tab for more on the city too! Now that I know more folks will want to see ships photos I will work to get my AMAprima ships tour and trip report up on my website before you all take your cruise! You will love this ABD, I think it will be all the benefits of the fantastic ABD experience with the addition of no repacking every two nights! And the service and amenities on AMA are incredible...top notch from top to bottom! You are going to loooove it!

 

[sayhello]

So...It seems it's what we thought, AND I noticed another "active adventure" company (think biking) is also offering river cruises on AMA...we just did a Danube River Cruise (Budapest though Eastern Europe) on the AMA ships AMAPrima...I have photos and a report on my blog and I am happy to answer any ship related questions!! The Danube River Cruise stuff starts here:
http://www.goseeittravel.com/travel-blog/?category=River+Cruises
(our website is non commercial...just our travel experiences!)
But be sure to also look under the Budapest tab for more on the city too! Now that I know more folks will want to see ships photos I will work to get my AMAprima ships tour and trip report up on my website before you all take your cruise! You will love this ABD, I think it will be all the benefits of the fantastic ABD experience with the addition of no repacking every two nights! And the service and amenities on AMA are incredible...top notch from top to bottom! You are going to loooove it!

Cool beans! Thanks for posting the link, I'll definitely be checking it out! And I'd *LOVE* to see more photos of the ship!

Sayhello

 

[WeLoveABD]

Cool beans! Thanks for posting the link, I'll definitely be checking it out! And I'd *LOVE* to see more photos of the ship!

Sayhello

Disney did a lot of research for this-sounds like everyone is impressed so far! We have Australia in our sights for 2016-hope the river cruise prices don't increase too much for 2017!

 

[tufbuf]

Most of these riverboats are structured the same. You will see it. The Danube is narrow so boats double dock parallel to each other and you would have to go through boats at times to get to yours. The main difference is the decorations.

 

[tsgirl]

Is anyone planning to do this trip who has been on the Prague/Vienna trip previously? Just wanted to get an idea from all of you about the amount of repeat activities. It seems to me, with the choices, that there are only about 2 definite repeats.

 

[Calfan]

Is anyone planning to do this trip who has been on the Prague/Vienna trip previously? Just wanted to get an idea from all of you about the amount of repeat activities. It seems to me, with the choices, that there are only about 2 definite repeats.

I think there are way more repeats than that.

 

[tsgirl]

I don't think so. On day 2, you can do option 1 (CLIMB AROUND THE FAMOUS TREE PATH KOPFING) instead of option 2 which is from the previous itinerary (EXPLORE HOHENWERFEN CASTLE AND SEE A LIVE FALCONRY SHOW).Day 3 is a repeat. Day 4 is new. Day 5 morning is a repeat but the afternoon offers new options. Day 6,7, and 8 are all new. So, only Day 3 and the morning of Day 5 are repeats without alternative options.

 

[sayhello]

So the FAQ is still a bit confusing, because they don't have it separated by itinerary/direction, so some of the stuff about arrival/departure isn't 100% correct. But I did just notice this one thing:

Adventures by Disney has taken care of gratuities for all included meals and activities, such as tips for porters, housekeepers, drivers, activity providers, local experts and all crew. Gratuities for your Adventure Guides are also included.

The bolding is mine. I wonder if this is because you're likely to not have the same 2 Adventure Guides for the whole cruise? There's going to be 8 Guides shared by the whole cruise. They certainly couldn't expect you to tip all 8, or figure which Guides you worked with for what percentage of the tip, and it's probably easier for them, too, than to expect them to spread the tips out to all the Guides like they do to "regular" cruise servers. I still may tip them a bit extra, anyways, but it's one less thing to worry about, and a bit fewer euros to have to worry about carrying.

Sayhello

 

[tufbuf]

So...It seems it's what we thought, AND I noticed another "active adventure" company (think biking) is also offering river cruises on AMA...we just did a Danube River Cruise (Budapest though Eastern Europe) on the AMA ships AMAPrima...I have photos and a report on my blog and I am happy to answer any ship related questions!! The Danube River Cruise stuff starts here:
http://www.goseeittravel.com/travel-blog/?category=River+Cruises
(our website is non commercial...just our travel experiences!)
But be sure to also look under the Budapest tab for more on the city too! Now that I know more folks will want to see ships photos I will work to get my AMAprima ships tour and trip report up on my website before you all take your cruise! You will love this ABD, I think it will be all the benefits of the fantastic ABD experience with the addition of no repacking every two nights! And the service and amenities on AMA are incredible...top notch from top to bottom! You are going to loooove it!

Just a quick question. Was the boat geriatric? From what I've noticed, these river cruises cater mainly to the more senior folks.

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

So the FAQ is still a bit confusing, because they don't have it separated by itinerary/direction, so some of the stuff about arrival/departure isn't 100% correct. But I did just notice this one thing:

The bolding is mine. I wonder if this is because you're likely to not have the same 2 Adventure Guides for the whole cruise? There's going to be 8 Guides shared by the whole cruise. They certainly couldn't expect you to tip all 8, or figure which Guides you worked with for what percentage of the tip, and it's probably easier for them, too, than to expect them to spread the tips out to all the Guides like they do to "regular" cruise servers. I still may tip them a bit extra, anyways, but it's one less thing to worry about, and a bit fewer euros to have to worry about carrying.

Sayhello

I so appreciate this. I hate having to carry extra cash with me on ABD trips (& having to think about it). I wish they would just roll the gratuities into the cost for all the trips. This was great to see.

 

[SingingMom]

I booked the Central Europe trip for this June and now am second guessing myself since this new trip was announced. (I didn't get the Insiders notice as an Insider either, although I have gotten things in the past).

I'm trying not to think about it since I don't want to feel disappointment on embarking on such an expensive trip very soon. Oh well. :-(

 

[distravel]

I booked the Central Europe trip for this June and now am second guessing myself since this new trip was announced. (I didn't get the Insiders notice as an Insider either, although I have gotten things in the past)

I'm trying not to think about it since I don't want to feel disappointment on embarking on such an expensive trip very soon. Oh well. :-(

Do not feel bad about your decision to go on the Central Europe land trip. We went last summer and absolutely loved this trip. I am not a very active person and surprisingly the hike to the ice cave was my favorite day. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking and I had such a feeling of accomplishment that evening. The hotel in Berchtesgaden is surrounded by the Bavarian alps and I've never had a more scenic view from a hotel room. (Also, they had the best buffet breakfast including chocolate waffles)

The river cruise does not include this experience.

You will have a wonderful time.

 

[SingingMom]

Do not feel bad about your decision to go on the Central Europe land trip. We went last summer and absolutely loved this trip. I am not a very active person and surprisingly the hike to the ice cave was my favorite day. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking and I had such a feeling of accomplishment that evening. The hotel in Berchtesgaden is surrounded by the Bavarian alps and I've never had a more scenic view from a hotel room. (Also, they had the best buffet breakfast including chocolate waffles)

The river cruise does not include this experience.

You will have a wonderful time.

Thank you! I hate to sound ungrateful! I'm sure it will be as magical as our other ABDs!