WJ Tested: Why Cruise With AmaWaterways?
WJ Tested: Why Cruise With AmaWaterways?
WJ Tested: Why Cruise With AmaWaterways?
WAVEJourney Takes a 14-Night AmaWaterways AmaPrima River Cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest
The very first river cruise we took was with AmaWaterways in March 2008. The itinerary was from Amsterdam, The Netherlands to Trier, Germany – along the Rhine and Mosel rivers. It was this river cruise experience that got us hooked, and one of the main reasons we absolutely love this mode of travel – unpack once and see the sights from the comfort of your floating luxury hotel. Speaking of love… “Ama” is derived from the Latin word “love” (that might explain our love for the AmaWaterways experiences we’ve had).
We’re very happy to report that our latest AmaWaterways river cruise (14-night Magnificent Europe) aboard AmaPrima cemented why we are so enamored with river cruising and still rank it as our favorite mode of travel.
Take a look at the highlights of why we enjoyed this trip, and recommend you try an AmaWaterways river cruise for yourself.
VALUE
AmaWaterways Offers Exceptional Value
If you want to take a luxury river cruise that provides excellent quality, offers a variety of tour and excursion options, employs a professional crew that provides top-notch service, has a first-class safety record, is dedicated to providing the customer with the very best holiday experience possible, all at a reasonable price, then AmaWaterways fits the bill.
FOOD & BEVERAGE
AmaWaterways Magnificent Europe River Cruise – Food and Beverage
AmaWaterways is the only river cruise company that is a member of the prestigious international culinary society, La Chaîne des Rôtisseurs – membership is by invitation only.
Fresh. Plentiful. Innovative. With beautifully presented meals and excellent service, nobody will go hungry!
Meals and Snacks Include:
- Early Riser Pastries in the lounge.
- Breakfast served in the Main Restaurant: Breakfast buffet with hot and cold items; omelette station; hot menu items prepared to order from the menu – waffles, eggs benedict, poached eggs, pancakes, etc.); sparkling wine and fresh juices.
- Late Riser Pastries in the lounge.
- Lunch is served in the Main Restaurant and Light Lunch is available for self-service in the lounge. European cheese selection is available self-serve.
- Tea Time in the lounge (cakes, finger sandwiches, savory tarts, sweet tarts and treats, etc.) with live music by the onboard musician.
- Dinner is served in the Main Restaurant – 4-course dinner (appetizer, soup, main course – a fish, meat and vegetarian option was always available, dessert). European cheese board is available.
- Tapas is available in the lounge for guests to order at any time between meals.
- Late Night Snack in the lounge.
The Chef’s Table – An intimate Chef’s Table 7-course dinner is enjoyed in a separate dining room where the meal is prepared by the chef working in a glass-enclosed kitchen only a few feet away. Passengers make a reservation for this included dining experience for whichever evening suits them during their itinerary to partake in this special culinary event.
BEVERAGES – AmaWaterways includes unlimited soft drinks, beer and wine with lunch and dinner. A full bar menu is available at reasonable prices during the day and evening.
Travel Tip: Always be sure to inform the company you travel with of your dietary needs before you start your trip. Food allergies and restrictions can be accommodated with advance notice.
EXCURSIONS
AmaWaterways Magnificent Europe River Cruise – Excursions
AmaWaterways offers a variety of included excursions in each port of call during their itineraries. They divide passengers into smaller group sizes – typically in the 20 to 24 passenger range per group (but quite a few groups were much smaller on our cruise – 4 to 12 passengers). When motorcoaches were required for excursions, there was typically a maximum of 24 passengers per 45-50 seat bus (which provides ample room and space so passengers are not crowded).
- Included active tours and excursions – guided biking and hiking.
- Included active, regular and gentle walker groups on tours.
- Culinary and tasting regional specialties tours.
- Quietvox listening devices are provided for each passenger in their cabin – this makes it possible to listen to your guide on tours within about 100 feet distance.
CREW
AmaPrima Crew
The hard working Cruise Manager, officers and crew are highly professional and knowledgeable. We found them to be dedicated in providing passengers with excellent service (noticeable by the ratio of passengers to crew at approximately 3 to 1). The barkeepers and dining waiters quickly learned our preferences, likes/dislikes, which made our trip more enjoyable (they anticipated and responded to our needs and requests).
ITINERARY
AmaWaterways Magnificent Europe River Cruise – Itinerary
The Magnificent Europe itinerary is a fantastic way to take in the highlights of many of the most scenic sections of both the Rhine and Danube rivers and includes stops at many of the best villages, towns and cities along the route – and we found it is the perfect combination of cruising and visiting destinations during our 14-night river cruise experience.
Cruising 1645 km/1022 miles, passing through 68 locks on 3 rivers – Rhine, Main, Danube, plus visiting 18 cities in 5 countries over a 15-day span is definitely the most amazing way to see these parts of Europe.
In Europe, AmaWaterways also has ships sailing the Rhine, Mosel, Main, Danube, Rhone, Saone, Seine, Douro, so there are plenty of excellent itineraries to suit every interest based on theme of cruise (wine/biking) or stops along the rivers.
SHIP – AmaPrima
Heated Swimming Pool on AmaPrima
Built in 2013 in The Netherlands, AmaPrima is a luxury river cruise ship with a modern design and furnishings. She has a length of 443 feet, width of 38 feet, with 81 staterooms and 3 suites.
SHIP FEATURES:
- Sundeck with various sitting areas – some have sun shades or umbrellas.
- Heated pool with swim-up bar.
- Bicycles – each AmaWaterways ship carrys bikes that are used for guided tours, and are also available for passengers to sign out and use by themselves at various stops on the itinerary.
- Indoor fitness room with weight machine, treadmill and stationary bikes.
- Hairdresser and Massage Rooms.
- Lounge and bar with piano – entertainment and lectures and light breakfast/lunch/snacks are available.
- 24-hour coffee and tea station.
- Library with an assortment of table games and books on the destinations.
- Chef’s Table Dining Room.
- Restaurant where breakfast, lunch and dinner are served.
- Glass elevator reaches 3 decks for interior access to all facilities – it does not go to the sundeck.
CABIN – AmaPrima
French Balcony Cabin on AmaPrima
AmaPrima features roomy cabins with ample storage, comfortable beds, and high quality linens. Our cabin on the second deck was a twin-balcony cabin – #202. This approximately 210 sq. ft. (BA category) cabin has both French balcony sliding glass doors and an outside balcony with two chairs plus a side table.
We personally prefer the middle deck on river cruise ships as we have found it to be quieter than the top deck (the sundeck is where the railings and furniture need to be moved depending on bridges).
Premium bathroom amenities included shampoo, body gel, conditioner, body lotion, and bar soap. Bath robes and slippers were provided in the cabin. The bathroom has a spacious shower with glass doors, also both a rainfall shower head and handheld shower head.
All cabins have an Apple iMac with a very large screen (where you can watch TV/movies, listen to music, view the bow camera, and access the internet if you didn’t bring along a device of your own to connect to the complimentary WiFi).
BOTTOM LINE
WAVEJourney Cruises Aboard AmaWaterways AmaPrima on their Magnificent Europe River Cruise
AmaWaterways leads the way in river cruise innovation, design, service, itineraries, destinations, onshore excursions and experiences. We look forward to experiencing more exciting destinations aboard their river ships.
View our daily travel highlights and photos from this Magnificent Europe river cruise:
Day 1 – Embarkation in Amsterdam
Day 2 – Keukenhof Gardens in The Netherlands
Day 3 – Cologne
Day 4 – Rhine Gorge and Rudesheim
Day 5 – Main River to Miltenberg and Wertheim
Day 6 – Wurtzburg and Kitzengen
Day 7 – Bamberg
Day 8 – Nuremberg
Day 9 – Regensburg
Day 10 – Salzburg
Day 11 – Melk and Durnstein
Day 12 – Vienna
Day 13 – Bratislava
Day 14 – Budapest
Notes: WAVEJourney travelled on AmaWaterways Magnificent Europe itinerary in May 2017 as media guests. Read our full disclosure statement to see our review policy.
