River Cruise Excursions, Etc.

[Lola Granola]

I’m booked on a Danube river cruise with ABD and I was wondering if experts could weigh in on a couple things. I’m thinking that I would skip the puppet show and do something else. Is it possible to go out on your own at that point?

Also, can you skip dinner on the ship and go eat locally? I would probably not do that every night, but a Sound of Music sing a long doesn’t interest me as much as possibly going out and checking out some local food and shopping.

Thanks

 

[Doingitagain]

I personally would skip the puppet show. Not sure what the options are, though, I can't remember, COVID limited options.

We were on an adult only river cruise, and the itinerary was very close to what they have for the regular family itinerary. There are clearly things like the puppet show and marzipan making and equestrian show that are targeted towards families that I would have preferred another option (but these were limited due to COVID).

You can skip dinner on the ship and eat locally. Just be aware if there are any COVID restrictions (either the ship, ABD, or the city) and what the ship's travel schedule is.

 

[Lola Granola]

I personally would skip the puppet show. Not sure what the options are, though, I can't remember, COVID limited options.

We were on an adult only river cruise, and the itinerary was very close to what they have for the regular family itinerary. There are clearly things like the puppet show and marzipan making and equestrian show that are targeted towards families that I would have preferred another option (but these were limited due to COVID).

You can skip dinner on the ship and eat locally. Just be aware if there are any COVID restrictions (either the ship, ABD, or the city) and what the ship's travel schedule is.

Thank you!

 

[Doingitagain]

I should mention, however, that the Kopfing Treetop Walk was surprisingly a lot of fun for us adults! The guides also add quite a bit of fun to every excursion.

 

[sayhello]

I loved the puppet show (I'm assuming you mean the marionette show at Schönbrunn Palace). It is really incredibly phenomenal how they make those marionettes move. They are really artists. It was great. Depending on where your show is in the rotation (I did the Danube pre-covid, and they split us up into 3 groups that rotated through all the activities at different times) the marionette show for us was right after we had around an hour of free time to explore the palace. You could always skip the marionette show and just ask your guides when you can come back to meet them after the show, and continue exploring the grounds until you had to meet them after the show. The time at the marionette show was probably about 50 minutes. I think most of the activities were that long so that the rotation worked.

You can skip dinner and eat locally any night as long as the ship is docked that night, obviously. You have to let them know you're leaving the ship, but you are free to leave and return to the ship at any time throughout the day as long as the ship is docked (some of the days, the ship moved to a different dock while we were out on excursions, and we met it at the new place afterwards). They'll let you know what time you need to return to the ship, as they usually sailed in the late evening.

I should mention, however, that the Kopfing Treetop Walk was surprisingly a lot of fun for us adults! The guides also add quite a bit of fun to every excursion.

I agree. Especially since my cruise did the Treetop Walk at the end of the cruise. While all the cities we visited were wonderful, it was really nice to get out into nature and enjoy the paths and bridges, etc.

Sayhello

 

[aggiedog]

I've not done the ABD river cruise, but have done a few river cruises with other companies. If you've not done a river cruise, but have ocean cruised, be aware of a couple of key differences. Unlike ocean cruises where your port times and locations are fixed for months ahead of time, river cruise port times and locations can change up to the day of due to water levels and river traffic. It is not uncommon to be dropped off in one port, and the the tour brings you to a different port to get back on the ship. That can make it challenging to DIY for touring. They won't up and leave without warning, though, so you can come and go as you like as long as you're back on board by departure time. As Sayhello mentioned, you can go out to dinner if you wish, but only if you are actually in port. It's also common to get on the ship before dinner and then be underway thru dinner.

 

[Lola Granola]

I should mention, however, that the Kopfing Treetop Walk was surprisingly a lot of fun for us adults! The guides also add quite a bit of fun to every excursion.

That does sound like a lot of fun. I was wondering if there were other options that day however.

 

[Doingitagain]

That does sound like a lot of fun. I was wondering if there were other options that day however.

There was an alternative. But so much is subject to COVID…

 

[Lola Granola]

That does sound fun but it’s also something we can do here in the states. I’d love another option.

 

[sayhello]

That does sound fun but it’s also something we can do here in the states. I’d love another option.

Are you still talking about the Marionette show? Unless you want to pay for like a taxi or Uber to take you somewhere else, you're kind of stuck on the Palace grounds until everyone is done, and the motorcoach leaves. (You totally *can* pay to leave - that's always an option. You just have to be sure you tell your Adventure Guides.) But the length of the marionette show is really not long enough to go somewhere and come back in time for whatever your next activity is. You can always pay the extra to tour the Private part of the gardens (I just looked at them through the fence, and they were very pretty). But unless you wanted to repeat one of the other activities, I don't know that there's an actual alternative offered besides checking out the extensive and beautiful grounds. You can always ask the Adventure Guides.

I just checked the Schönbrunn Palace website, and there are all sorts of other areas and things that you can do, but they cost extra (although I can't find how much) and would most likely be at your own expense (since they aren't actually paying to get you into the Marionette show - it's a part of the tour).

https://www.schoenbrunn.at/en/

"You can enter the Palace Park free of charge during opening hours. If you wish to visit to the Schönbrunn special attractions, such as the Privy Garden, the Orangery Garden or the Maze, you need to purchase individual admission tickets."

I attached a map of the Palace grounds that shows everything that's there.

Sayhello

 

[Lola Granola]

Are you still talking about the Marionette show? Unless you want to pay for like a taxi or Uber to take you somewhere else, you're kind of stuck on the Palace grounds until everyone is done, and the motorcoach leaves. (You totally *can* pay to leave - that's always an option. You just have to be sure you tell your Adventure Guides.) But the length of the marionette show is really not long enough to go somewhere and come back in time for whatever your next activity is. You can always pay the extra to tour the Private part of the gardens (I just looked at them through the fence, and they were very pretty). But unless you wanted to repeat one of the other activities, I don't know that there's an actual alternative offered besides checking out the extensive and beautiful grounds. You can always ask the Adventure Guides.

I just checked the Schönbrunn Palace website, and there are all sorts of other areas and things that you can do, but they cost extra (although I can't find how much) and would most likely be at your own expense (since they aren't actually paying to get you into the Marionette show - it's a part of the tour).

https://www.schoenbrunn.at/en/

"You can enter the Palace Park free of charge during opening hours. If you wish to visit to the Schönbrunn special attractions, such as the Privy Garden, the Orangery Garden or the Maze, you need to purchase individual admission tickets."

I attached a map of the Palace grounds that shows everything that's there.

Sayhello

Thank you.

I mean the treetop thing. We live in an area where we can do outdoorsy things like that (albeit, without a view of the alps).

 

[sayhello]

Thank you.

I mean the treetop thing. We live in an area where we can do outdoorsy things like that (albeit, without a view of the alps).

Ah, OK. Sorry! Obviously, everything can change, but when I did this cruise, the Option 2 for that timeframe was "Depart for a hike up to the Veste Oberhaus, the castle above Passau. Enjoy some free time for shopping before returning by bus to the ship in Vilshofen." Or you could stay aboard the ship and cruise to Vilshofen (this included going through the lock of Kachlet). This was one of the excursions where we did not return to the ship at the same port as where we disembarked, so staying in Passau was not an option.

Of course, my cruise was Budapest to Vilshofen. If you are doing it the opposite direction, logistics might be a bit different.

Sayhello

 

[Woodview]

Follow Sayhello's advice ( above ) And also find a place to Sit down and " People Watch "

Relax near a fountain , if there is one,, strike up a short conversation with someone like yourselves
Signs & gestures & pointing out things works even if you do not speak the language
And remember if you feel foolish so what you may never see these people ever again

 

[Lola Granola]

Ah, OK. Sorry! Obviously, everything can change, but when I did this cruise, the Option 2 for that timeframe was "Depart for a hike up to the Veste Oberhaus, the castle above Passau. Enjoy some free time for shopping before returning by bus to the ship in Vilshofen." Or you could stay aboard the ship and cruise to Vilshofen (this included going through the lock of Kachlet). This was one of the excursions where we did not return to the ship at the same port as where we disembarked, so staying in Passau was not an option.

Of course, my cruise was Budapest to Vilshofen. If you are doing it the opposite direction, logistics might be a bit different.

Sayhello

Thank you.