Warsaw, Budapest, Vienna & Prague

This was an exceptional exposure to Jewish History that I had not much previous knowledge of. Nineteen of the Twenty Four in the group were of Jewish origin; although not orthodox or serious practitioners of that religion, they were well versed in their history. As a result, the meal times were filled with lively and educational discussions.

We had a fantastic time. Loved every place, everything and made wonderful memories, not to mention photos. Our tour guide, Steven, was great!

We had a fantastic time. Loved every place, everything and made wonderful memories, not to mention photos. Our tour guide, Steven, was great!

This was a fabulous trip. The intinerary was fantastic and I didn't feel rushed in any city or at any time on the tour. I particularly liked that during this tour each hotel stay was at least two nights. I enjoyed all of the Tauck extras - piano recital, etc. Anne Marie was a great tour director - very helpful, good sense of humor, informed and wonderful with making everyone feel at ease. I love taking Tauck tours, because I know that everything will be taken care of for me and I can relax and enjoy. I was a single traveler on this trip and I made wonderful new friends and never felt as though I was on my own at all. The one thing that future guests should know is that at certain times of the year the weather can be unpredictable and if they are going in the fall they should make sure to bring at least some very warm clothes.

Tour director was excellent. Choice of hotels were good the trip from start to finish was excellent, my only complaint it was too short.

Everything was wonderful. Stephen Fischer was terrific as were the guides along the way. Sensitive and informative, which was important on this tour. I would highly recommend this tour to everyone!!

My sister and I were traveling with my 87 year old father and my 11 year old nephew--we are all fairly experienced travelers (this was 4th Tauck tour, and I have lived abroad for a few years in the past), so we wanted something a little off the beaten track. I thought Central Europe might be a little grim and Soviet-block (what can I say? I was last in Prague before the Wall fell, so I have "old-fashioned" ideas. And my Dad is a WWII vet). But I was so surprised! Although we did take trips to where history had been grim, the present-day country is lively and absolutely LOVELY. The people were fantastic. Warsaw had a wonderful town center, totally rebuilt from the destruction of WWII and looking economically sound and thriving. Countryside was beautiful. Krakow was an exciting medieval center and university town. Budapest was a larger, beautiful city, on par with Vienna these days. Lots of arts and commerce. Vienna is always worth a visit. And Prague is a must-see, these days! I would highly recommend the tour. A wonderful mix of history and interesting sites and great cafes and restaurants. Definitely a must-see for those who want to see a bit more of Europe, beyond the main capitals that everyone sees.

This was a very sobering and educational tour. It felt like a Jewish pilgrimage if you weren't Jewish. Budapest was enchantingly beautiful, especially viewing the tour in the evening on the dinner cruise. I thought it comperable to Paris.

i loved the trip.the oldest hotels lacked safety features i take for granted at home.(tubs and showers) everything else was great especially Blake.

It was a very arduous trip that many seniors were not able to fully participate in. The weather in Prague was not conducive to walking the streets.

Outsatanding trip! Our tour director Stephen was also outstanding and his knowledge of the countries visted was very impressive; he made the history come alive. The tour covered all the places of interest we wanted to see, was well paced and offered just the right amount of "down time" to do our own exploration. I would strongly recommend that potential guest do their homework before choosing a tour company and recognize that when they do a true orange to orange comparison Tauck offers far more value dollar for dollar than those companies offering optional tours to be paid in addition to the basic tour. Also they should look closely at the size of the tour groups - there's nothing intimate about 130+ travellers!!

The guide was outstanding, and all of the sites and stops were worthwhile.

The tour director was very good. He was dealing with a group that didn't "gel" particularly well, but he still seemed to manage to make everyone happy. The history I learned on this trip was extensive and important. It was an excellent trip choice and I would recommend it.

Warsaw-Krakow was a pre-tour for a Central Europe cruise. We had local guides arranged by Tauck, and that worked out fine. Only one other couple was on the trip with us (they had already done the cruise), so we almost had a custom tour. Food is on your own. Local guides were very proud of their cities. Warsaw is a testament to the resiliency of the Polish people. Krakow is a beautiful city with a wonderful central square with great day and night life. We visited Copernicus' university! Auschwitz is the skeleton of a human-created Hell in the midst of a Garden of Eden. Warsaw-Cracow is a great addition to a cruise, but do it first so you are more energetic about touring. It is worth it.

It was an excellent trip. The excursions,the food and the ship.It was nice to have all expenses,including tips included in the tour costs.Expect to be treated like royalty.

Wonderful trip. Everything was well done. Just go and enjoy the beautiful cruise with a great group and enjoy the many things to see and do.

it was adelightful experience. Ship was excellent as was the food. Did not spend enough time in Vienna but whta we spent was great.

What wasn't well done would be easier to answer. Nothing wasn't well done! Everything was perfect, except an occasional rain cloud. But the crew event took care of that. We have recommend this trip to others.

Our tour director was fantastic and the sites were great. Two problems:

1. Because of the Spanish tradition of eating after 8:30 p.m. and the requirement of starting early in the day to accomplish seeing the sites and also because of constant need to pack up and unpack, the tour was a bit more stressful than the unbelievalby wonderful Tauck tour on the Danube from Budapest to Prague in 2008.

2. Running into the difference for luggage weight restriction within Spain as oppossed to flying into Spain cost us an addition 100 Euros. We were particularly vulnerable since we had to pack for a two conference and a 3 day wine country tour prior to joining the Tauck tour.

Excellant

This tour was packed...44 people. Do not ever want to do that again. Before I take another Tauck tour, I would want to know how many are going to be on it. This was our third Tauck tour. We had fun because we traveled with another couple on this tour but for an upscale(?) tour, it wasn't with that many people on it. We had fun with Debbie Holmer in Italy and Michael Furillo in Australia but this trip to Ireland not so much.

It was wonderful. I understand you are no longer offering this trip. Unfortunate - it was wonderful.

Every day was different and exiciting. Didn't expect to have as much fund and to learn and experiene so much in the process.

Wonderful trip but should be marketed toward healthy, fit, middle aged or below. Our tour guide, Birgit, was the best! Us old folks struggled to keep up and she had the compassion and patience to keep our spirits high! The itinerary was superb and we especially loved Carrara! That was awesome! Our tour guide, Umberto, told us "we were going to meet the Angels" and he was right! After bicycling in Lucca, we came home and bought ourselves bikes! Now everyday we cruise the neigborhood. Another great Tauck tour...we are never disappointed.

This is a physically demanding tour. Having said that, there were people along that could not take part in all of the physical activity (hiking and biking), but, I think that they were taken care of very well and did not miss out on any of the really important aspects of the tour.

This is a physically demanding tour. Having said that, there were some on the tour that were unable to take part in all of the physical activities, but, they did not miss out on the overall theme which was to get deeper into the life style of the area we visited.

It was a wonderful experience, and, I highly recommend it. I just might do it again.b (how's that for a recomendation?)

The itinerary was great but there was rarely enough time to do more tnan the tour and eat lunch. The rooms were exceptionally small, and being at the back of the boat very noisy. The food was OK- nothing more. The tour director, Stephen, was a miserable man whom most all the passengers disliked. He was haughty, not accomodating, and rarely could be found. He certainly did nothing to make the trip enjoyable!!! I would never take another riverboat trip.

This was a fantastic cruise. The most fabulous place on the trip is very har to choose as each one was so unique. This was my sixth trip with Tauck and as usual the care and experience Tauck gives to their travelers is outstanding. The tour directors on the ship as well as the land tours were very knowledge-able.Entertainment aboard the ship was varied and so enjoyable.The staff coouldn't have been more accomodating.

Marvelous trip. Everything was planned superbly by Tauck. The Swiss Sappire Riverboat was impecable, the food was excellent and the Tour Directors were very professional and helpful. The trip from Prague all the way to Budapest was very enjoyable.

Well planned riverboat tour. Our evening in Vienna at the palace was the most special event of the tour.

Tauck takes you to places that may not be seen with other providers. Hotels in Budapest and Prague were the best.

Well-organized, good balance of planned and free time, excellent previews of daily trips.

The Blue Danube trip was simply superb. From the brilliant tour directors and local guides at every stop to the beautiful ship with fabulous service and gourmet (truly) meals to the great itinerary with lots of "wow!" moments to the individualized customer care from door to door -- this was an adventure of a lifetime. We especially appreciated the radio guide boxes/hands free receivers making the walking tours so accessible. Riverboat cruising is the way to go!

The trip was a disaster. We never sailed after Linzand rode coaches all the time. We wrote to Tauck to express our displeasure but Tauck saw fit to blithly ignore our comments. We will be hard pressed to take nother Tauck trip or recommend Tauck to others. If Tauck were at least to acknowledge our concerns, we would be molified to some entent.

Tauck makes traveling easy, fun, and unforgettable. Everything is customer-oriented and your comfort and satisfaction are a top priority. We wouldn't travel with any other company!

Everything was well done. The land segments in Prague and Budapest were excellent. The towns and cities visited were all interesting and delightful. The Tauck staff and the staff onboard the ship were warm, personable, knowledgeable and caring.

I particularly liked the progressive scavenger hunt...it focused our visit to each port and got us to see things we might not have known about or just skipped. This was a delightful experience.

I loved everything about the trip. It was a magical cruise. It was especially comfortable for a woman traveling alone. I felt very safe and welcome and I made many new friends.

Excellent travel experience. Tauck handles everything,you show up and enjoy.Every traveller is treated as a special guest.

What wasn't well done?! From being met at the airport to thank you for being our guest everything was beyond expectations. The staff was, without exception, courteous and willing to help in any way needed . The food was very good( and I'm a pretty good cook so am tough to please) For future guests I would suggest that they be very open to meeting wonderful people with great life stories. We so look forward to our next trip in August of 2010

We had a great time, and never having been on a river cruise, just big cruises, we were pleasantly surprised with all the accomodations. Loved the beautiful little towns we passed, and those we visited. I would highly recommend this trip to anyone.

It was an older crowd, many in their 70's which I didn't expect. I am 59 and was the youngest on board.The weather was colder than expected for Oct. I wore a winter coat every day and it was often in the 40's.Next time I'd leave earlier in the season. We paid for a junior suite which is barely larger than a regular room and not worth the big difference in price. The regular suites are worth the extra because you get alot more room and comfort. All that being said the trip was wonderful, the itinery, tour guides , cruise director , food, entertainment was marvelous.

This was the first Tauck tour where we were all Tauck on the river, unlike their other tours. Got to meet more people on the tour with their experiences. The tour was so interesting looking at the Austria-Hungary empire that we stayed in the Czech Republic for ten days after the tour to see in depth the effects on Czech in the whole country, not just Prague. Extremely telling on the whole empire on the Danube with our tour directors led us to stay in Czech instead of going elsewhere to finish our trip out. Out standing history lesson of those periods in European history.

Everything is included except for alcoholic beverages on the riverboat. The benefit of all Tauck tours is the confidence that they are giving you the best available. They even cover the restroom expenses on land! You never feel like you are part of a large group---it is more like you are traveling with kindred friends.

Everything is included except for alcoholic beverages on the riverboat. The benefit of all Tauck tours is the confidence that they are giving you the best available. They even cover the restroom expenses on land! You never feel like you are part of a large group---it is more like you are traveling with kindred friends.

It was a great trip, thoroughly enjoyable. The only disappointment was the hotel in Budapest. However it is in a good location.

Needed better organization in Vienna. Too loose for the significance of the city. Tour guide in Bratislava was too hurried and not into the group. Exellent otherwise in all respects.

It was a wonderful trip. Everything was well done. However, being in central europe I think it would have been appropriate to visit jewish cites with a local tour guide.