We did a Viking river cruise from Amsterdam to Basel and loved every minute. Greeted at the airport, there was a short walk to our bus and on to the boat. From there we were shown to our room which was a balcolny room on the second floor. I must say that we never used the balcony in Nov/Dec as it was too cold. Maybe if we take a summer cruise it would be good. A french balcony room would have been just fine during the winter months. There was a walking tour of Amsterdam departing so we took part in that. We were back in time for dinner and off the boat went. Our cruise director/manager Morgan, was fantastic. He gave nightly port talks which were informative and fun. Some nights there were games and music and dancing. We met other folks from all around the globe. Fun! Morgan made the trip great and we learned along the way. The food was over the top and the servers were so friendly. When it was time to eat people would line up to try to get their favorite spot because they had bonded with their servers. Our favorite was Niki and he had several guests running for his area! My daughter is a very picky eater and she was able to find something she liked on every menu. A couple of times she was slowly eating her meal and the servers thought she didn't like the meal and brought her something else. They were so attentive and sweet. I have read several of the reviews prior and I'm not sure what boat they were on because I never saw a sour face. From the cleaning staff, to the repair people on the outside of the boat, everyone always greeted you with a smile. I had a book beside my bed and when I returned I even had a new bookmark on top of my book! There was a coffee machine up near the lounge and when we were sailing it was wonderful to grab a coffee or a fizzy water and sit and read, or watch the little towns go by. The reason we went so late in the year was to be able to see the Christmas markets. We hit every market at every stop and came back home with the best memories and pictures. Seeing the markets don't open until at least 11am or after, we were able to take the walking tour of each town, or which ever tour we wanted. Then when the markets opened we spent the rest of our time shopping. Our last morning we docked in Basel. I had read that Basel had great Christmas markets and I didn't want to be rushed off to the airport, so I booked a hotel right in the center of the Christmas market. (Motel One) Viking aranged for a taxi to take us to the hotel in the morning. We had the entire day/night to explore Basel and their Christmas markets and left the following day. If you are thinking about doing a river cruise, I highly recommend Viking. Watch for their sales.

Worst packaged tour in Germany. The tour got cancelled once in want of minimum count of passengers, then when it was accepted, that day one passenger did not turn up, the whole team waited for 1 hour till it was found that the passenger will never come. Due to Christmas rush, we did not visit the fair, we rushed to places as it was getting dark. The cab driver wanted to recover the quota of tip from only 2 of us as other 2 did not turn up. Overall very bad experience. I will suggest people to carry enough cash to tip.

Guide was good, bus ride was very good, food and wine tasting was bland and tasteless. Overall scenic beauty is excellent and could enjoy money's worth

We had been traveling on our own to various Christmas markets and needed a day off from navigating. I enjoyed meeting the other travelers and listening to Michael’s entertaining narration. The cruise portion of our day was only 1.5 hours, with the rest being in a comfortable tour van. The highlight for me was the stop at the market at Rüdesheim. (Only during Christmas season)

This was very misleading. We thought we were having dinner or lunch on the boat and being on the boat for at least four hours, but this was not the case. We actually ate at a restaurant where the boat docked which had horrible food. We were actually only on the boat about one hour. Very disappointing. We did not get to go off the boat and go touring the little city. Way too expensive for the things that were offered.

Heidelberg was nice and the castle was interesting, but we really didn’t get to see much of either and the tour itself seemed disorganized. By the end of it there were only 8 of the 22 people on the tour that stuck with the guide. If it weren’t for the nice people we met that were also on the tour, my mom and I would have probably gone off on our own, too. Honestly, for the price, I’d skip this tour and just get there yourself if you really want to see the castle and town.

Wonderfully informative guide and a good variety of things to see. We had a few stops to get off the bus and take some photos, and never felt rushed to get back to the bus. This was an easy, informative, low activity tour which was perfect for my travel buddy on this trip. We had a lot of fun.

We had a knowledgeable and patient guide; Peter was fantastic. The giant wine barrel was undergoing construction, but still available to tour. The pharmacy museum is small and very well done. We were fortunate to have beautiful weather as the day was mostly outside. The views of the town from the castle were stunning. We also enjoyed the cable car ride and walking through town. Peter recommended a fantastic German restaurant for lunch. Our only critique is that none of the directions stated to meet in front of the Meridian hotel. We clicked on the address in the trip advisor app and it took us to the wrong meeting location.

I would give 3 stars rather then 1 star just because the beautiful museum line restaurant where we ate our lunch and nice cruise boat on Rhine Less said the better for customer service and reception The meeting time is 11:15 Am at W. Pl 38 . As usual we arrived 30 minutes earlier and stood at pick up point and as it was cold decided to go inside the lobby of Lemeredian which actually the address of W. Pl 38 We wanted to come out and stand on the road at around 11:10 Am, when we did there was none at the place . We panicked and called the ETS, who told curtly that that they would not pick up from hotel . We told the customer service lady that we are outside on the road and did not find anyone . We were told that how cone all others found the bus at 11:00 Am and sitting inside the bus which was parked opposite road . We told them that netting time is 11:15 Am and we expect someone to meet us . They arranged to send the guide from the bus to meet us . It was difficult to recognize as the guide was not wearing any badge or identification. We had to ask with our accent to confirm . Anyway we were able to catch the bus and continue the tour Note : you can see the castle from remote distance and highlight was the stature of Germanic Wine tasting later is inside the restaurant where we had our lunch . The guide explained well about the ice wines

We had a delightful day cruising the Middle Rhine and viewing a large number of castles dotting the landscape. In addition, we were treated to three huge statues dedicated to Germania (the German People and their lands), Kaiser Wilhelm I who united the various states into a German national entity, and the Lorelei Rock (dedicated to the legend and the number of seamen lost in this location. I would recommend this cruise to you.

Immediately started off on a bad foot when the guide made comments insinuating I was dumb - not once but twice within the first 10 minutes after checking in. Most of the tour you’re crammed on a bus. Food was eh - options were pork, pork, or vegan - I ended up having to pay for my own entree as I don’t eat pork, and the vegan option was not appetizing. Mind you, when you check in, they make you decide immediately what you want for lunch. Drinks are not included, not even with the “included meal” (minus the 4 “sips” of wine you get at the end of the tour, and the wines are nothing great). I’d recommend saving your money, especially as you’re just put on the public ferry with loud teenagers for an hour and a half before returning to Frankfurt.

We had an amazing trip with great views and the guides were so friendly and courteous. Well worth the trip and enjoyed the time.

Great trip to some very nice sites. This late in the year the cruise was a bit chilly, but the castle a long the river were great. Lunch was also very good. The visit up to the Germania statue was a nice bonus and a great view.

Our tour guide was Thomas. He is an excellent ( and very fast!!) driver and also regaled us with endless stories about the castle and the town along with his various life experiences. However, he was more interested in telling us what he wanted us to know rather than answering our questions along the way. He is very knowledgeable and we had a great tour, but we felt that he could have listened just a but more rather than talking over us.

The guide and driver were great. Very friendly, informative and interactive. The food in the restaurant was very mediocre as was the beer and wine.