Cruising with Viking

May 13, 2024

Our “European Sojourn” with Viking will take us from Amsterdam to Budapest. Along the way we will travel through eight countries along three rivers…the Rhine, the Main, and the Danube. Our boat is the Lofn. She is 443 feet long, has 4 decks, and holds 190 passengers and 45 crew.

Built in 2015 she is well cared for and still looks brand new. The lower deck int the photo below is where we enter.

There are lots of places to sit and relax with a good book or play a game with a friend.

You can choose to eat inside or out…

There is a sun deck on top with a walking track…

Just before we entered the Romantic Rhine area of the trip all of the railings on the sun deck were taken down and the chairs stored away so that we can fit under the bridges ahead. As we approach the river bridges the Captain’s Bridge (the white “box” in the middle of the second photo) will be collapsed as well. Three bottles of water are placed on the edge of the deck to assess clearance. If the tallest bottle of water falls down, the Captain knows he should slow down. If the second bottle falls, he knows to reverse. If the third bottle falls he knows to reverse really fast!!

You think I’m kidding, but here they are at work. Ken took this picture as we went under a bridge just before Würzburg. The red and white sign is hanging on the concrete bridge. Just below are the water bottles.

There is live piano music playing in the background in the lounge from lunch on, and music and dancing after dinner. We have a fantastic and tireless Cruise Director, Nicki Nicholas, who also offers talks about the history of the area, arranges special presentations from local craftsman, such as an expert glass blower, and hosts trivia games in the lounge when we’re sailing.

A coffee bar is open 24/7. You can help yourself to coffee, cappuccinos, lattes, hot tea, and still or sparkling chilled water. There are always fresh pastries and croissants first thing in the morning, two varieties of cookies between lunch and dinner, and a third variety for a midnight snack.

We see lots of interesting things as we glide silently along the river…fields, towns, cattle grazing, people catching ferries, lots and lots of campgrounds (Germans really like to camp!), even a festival! When we passed the tents in the last photo we could hear a cover of Lady Gaga loud and clear!

The hallway to the rooms is narrow – definitely a one-way traffic situation – and the room is small, but big enough for our needs. We’re not in it much, and there’s plenty of storage.