River cruises are like no other. There are maybe only 150 passengers. Entertainment is by locals at each stop. We loved it. Took the one from The Netherlands to Budapest and then did the extended 3 day stay in Budapest. We went with Vantage because all except gratuities was included. It was the best trip. Consider the 15 cruise instead of the 7 -8 day cruises. There are many good lines out there compare prices and what it includes then make your choice. Hope the cruises start up again sooner than later. Good luck in whatever your choice, you will not regret it. The only down side is that you hope and pray that the river is not too high because the ships cannot go under the bridges.

Check out a company named Grand Circle. Wonderful cruises. Less expensive than Viking.

I would recommend Vantage over Viking. Contact them directly! TV advertising doesn’t always mean a company is good.

We loved Vantage over Viking

I just contacted them directly and it was easy as pie. Nice vacation.

Check out Tauck Tours before you book. They are the best. They put Viking to shame. Not cheap though

[QUOTE=Rollie;1829619]Thinking about doing a Viking River Cruise. Wondering if anyone knows a local travel agency that specializes in them?

Before you book a river cruise, check the weather and rain conditions in your country of destination. My friends booked a river cruise in Europe last year. Unbeknownst to them, the region they were supposed to cruise through was experiencing a drought. The river had dried up somewhat and was too shallow for their boat to pass safely. So the passengers spent their entire "cruise" on a tour bus being driven from destination to destination. No fun and no refund. And they did NOT receive an advance warning from the cruise company that this would happen. Suggest looking into water conditions before you book.

River Cruise
 

Add Uniworld to your compare list.

We loved Scenic. Excursions included. All drinks at any time are included. Treated very well from beginning to end. We traveled Prague to Budapest, adding 2 or 3 nights in Prague before boarding. Our travel agent highly recommended Scenic. Due to rivers that were too high, we had to juggle a couple of stops. We were told to fill out paperwork thru their ins company when we got home which we did. We received a check for $1000 due to those changes. I would use them again.....if we ever get to cruise again.

We used AAA because we did some time in Munich and Amsterdam and Lucerne on both ends and we felt better having one vendor for the entire trip. If I was only doing the River Cruise and home would most likely deal directly with Viking. We did talk to them about what we wanted to do and they suggested I use someone else for the side trips. The price direct from Viking for the cruise portion and airfare going and returning were the same with AAA so no price advantage.

Travel agent Teresa Ruud at Ocala Travel located by Southern Trace does that and has been on a Viking cruise herself

Thanks everyone for your thoughts.

Rollie

I highly suggest looking at AMAWaterways instead. I'm a former River Cruising Specialist.