Cruise Description

Whether you’re an art lover, a foodie, a history buff, or an energetic adventurer, your Active & Discovery cruise on the Danube River offers just-right included activities and excursions to suit your interests. With Avalon Choice, you can select the experiences that are perfect for your preference and pace. From Classic to Active to Discovery inclusions, you can explore and experience each destination your way.

Embark your Avalon Suite Ship in Budapest and enjoy a scenic sailing through the Danube Bend on your way to Visegrád. Attend a Medieval Knights Tournament at a Visegrád castle; see Gustav Klimt’s renowned “The Kiss” painting in Vienna. With Avalon Choice, each day is yours to spend your way. Whether you prefer browsing the art collection of the Habsburg Empire, sipping local vintages at an Austrian wine tasting, or joining a canoe excursion, your Active & Discovery cruise is packed with inclusions for every pace in every place we go. Sample cheese and beer made by Trappist monks and explore their Abbey gardens; take a hike to Count Dracula’s prison tower; or tour Mauthausen Concentration Camp, one of WWII’s most notorious sites, selecting from an unmatched variety of daily included excursions.

Join us on this Active & Discovery cruise and experience the Blue Danube your way. No matter how you choose to explore new locales—from paddling canoes to picnic views—Avalon Choice includes the excursions and activities to invite you to discover each destination your way. Your Active & Discovery Danube River cruise can be as active or leisurely as you like!

Day 1
Welcome to Hungary.
Your Suite Ship is Ready for Boarding. Flights into Budapest must arrive by 3:30 pm. Guests must be on board ship by 5 pm. The day is yours to relax and enjoy Eastern Europe's shining city on the Danube. Enjoy a Hungarian Dinner on board during a scenic cruise through the Danube Bend. Later, enjoy live entertainment on board.
EVENING CRUISE TO VISEGRAD (D)

Day 2
Jousting Tournaments and Dracula's Tower
ACTIVE - Visit Count Dracula's prison tower on a Hiking Tour, OR:
ACTIVE - Take part in a Canoe Excursion through the picturesque Bend Region of the Danube for a truly unique perspective of one of the river's most beautiful stretches, OR:
DISCOVERY - Join a Guided Visit to the Medieval Knights Tournament at Visegrad's Lower Castle, featuring targeting and fighting demonstrations by members of the St. George Knightly Order.
Spend free time after your selected activities to explore Palotahaz, where stonemasons, smiths, potters, and paper-makers produce their traditional items using age-old techniques.
AFTERNOON/OVERNIGHT CRUISE TO VIENNA (B,L,D)

Day 3
Strauss, Schnitzel, Strudel and Sachertorte
ACTIVE - Take a Guided Bike Tour along the famed Ringstrasse and pedestrian avenues of Vienna to see the city's highlights from a unique perspective, OR:
DISCOVERY - Take an Insider's Tour of Vienna to get behind the scenes of her sights and attractions. You will meet locals, have the chance to prepare some food, and enjoy other surprises, OR:
CLASSIC - Take a Guided Sightseeing Tour of Vienna, including a tour of Belvedere Palace to see Gustave Klimt's renowned "Kiss" painting.
Spend free time this afternoon strolling through the pedestrian Karntnerstrasse then take a break for a piece of Sachertorte. This evening consider joining an optional excursion to attend a Royal Waltz Concert in an elegant hall.
OVERNIGHT DOCKING IN VIENNA (B,L,D)

Day 4
A Feast for the Soul
DISCOVERY - Enjoy a morning Guided Walking Tour to see the city in her best light, along with breakfast at a Viennese cafe, OR:
CLASSIC - Dive into one of the world's most important museums with a Guided Tour of the Habsburg family's private art collection at the Museum of Fine Arts, and enjoy Italian or Dutch master works, OR:
CLASSIC - Take a Guided Tour of the Museum of Fine Arts, followed by the Military Museum, commemorating the past of the Habsburg Empire.
OVERNIGHT CRUISE TO KREMS (B,L,D)

Day 5
Take a Canoe or a Bike through Austria's Wine Country
Join your Adventure Host for today's special activities.
ACTIVE - Paddle a canoe on a Guided Tour to see the Austrian waterways and shoreline scenery from a unique perspective, OR:
ACTIVE - Take a Guided Bike Tour from Krems to Spitz, and enjoy a stop in Durnstein to see the mesmerizing blue Stiftskirche, and to sample local specialties, OR:
DISCOVERY - Join an interactive Wine World Experience with wine tasting, OR:
DISCOVERY - Enjoy a Guided Visit that showcases production of regional fruits, vegetables, wine, or other products.
Relax on board this afternoon to enjoy the picturesque Wachau Valley scenery as you cruise to Grein.
GREIN: A Modern-Day Castle and the Count
DISCOVERY - See Burg Clam on a Guided Visit, and meet the Count of Clam during your tour.
OVERNIGHT DOCKING IN GREIN (B,L,D)

Day 6
Theatre History...Alive and Well in Grein
CLASSIC - Take a Guided Walk of Grein, including its historic theatre, the oldest in Austria still holding regular performances.
Take a mid-morning cruise to Mauthausen.
MAUTHAUSEN: History Lessons and Monastic Life
ACTIVE - Take a Guided Bike Tour along the Danube and discover how fertile this area is. Stop at a local farm and learn more about farming life and flood protection, OR:
CLASSIC - Visit the 9th-century St. Florian Monastery-the largest monastery in upper Austria and home to Augustine monks, OR:
CLASSIC - Join a sobering Guided Tour of Mauthausen Memorial, one of the largest and most brutal Nazi camp of WWII.
This afternoon sail to Linz arriving this evening.
LINZ
Tonight, enjoy live entertainment on board your ship.
OVERNIGHT CRUISE TO ENGELHARTSZELL (B,L,D)

Day 7
Memories and Beer in the Making
ACTIVE - Bike your way to a local trappist monastery in Engelhartszell, OR:
DISCOVERY - Join a Guided Tour to the "House by the stream" (Haus am Strom) and walk across the Danube Power-Station Jochenstein, OR:
CLASSIC - Visit the stunning rococo-style Engelszell Abbey, and explore its Sensory Garden-complete with stone labyrinth, herb garden, and vineyard. Sample cheese and beer made by the resident Trappist monks.
ACTIVE - This afternoon, enjoy a scenic Guided Hike along the Danube's Schlogen Oxbow, a dramatic bend carved by centuries.
Or, as a relaxing option, enjoy free time on the Sky Deck this afternoon while you sail through the amazing horseshoe bend of the Danube's Schlogen Oxbow on your way to VILSHOFEN.
EVENING/OVERNIGHT CRUISE TO VILSHOFEN(B,L,D)

Day 8
Your cruise ends with breakfast this morning. Flights should not leave Munich airport before 8 am. (B)