Primadonna boat/barge tour reviews — 1 to 30 of 76

The trip was great, we really enjoyed the freedom of biking during the day and the amazing signage for the trail. The boat accommodations could improve. It is clean and new but the beds could be as one and the comforters and pillows a better quality. A coffee maker in the room would also be a great addition as there is no where to go if you rise before 6:30. It would be nice to have cushions or proper sitting on the balcony. Lunch was supposed to to be prepared but it was a scramble to get food before it was all gone. The bikes were great and in perfect condition

I thoroughly enjoyed riding the electric bike along the bike paths next to the Danube when there were no cars on the path.

The itinerary, the boat, the bicycles were all fantastic. The biking routes were great and took place on mostly paved pathways, with explanations and directions given to the group either in the morning or evening each day. The electric cycles were awesome and charged and ready to go each morning. The food was good and the drinks were reasonable priced. The staff were kind, especially those working in the dining room. The rooms were clean and had a surprising amount of area to store luggage and gear. We loved watching the scenery and taking pictures from the balcony of our room. We also enjoyed watching the boat maneuver from the top deck, the spa tub up there was never quite hot enough to use. While we were sad not to be able to explore our full journey due to low water levels on the Danube, the crew made every effort to find alternate excursions in it's place. It was a good trip.

The reason I didn't give a two-star is because the customer service of Tripsite was very responsive and I liked them. The service on boat Primadonna was okay or a thumb down. My husband and I caught a flu on the way flying to Germany so we asked to sit away from other passengers, the waiter did arrange that but then he often forgot to serve us (sigh). Because of the water level was low so they changed itinerary so many times, I could understand but was not pleased. The bus tour in Vienna was not impressed. The communication on boat was mainly in German and the English briefings were not communicated well. If they want more American customers, they should sharpen up their staff's English.

We really enjoyed our boat and bike tour. We were however disappointed that we didn’t get to Bratislava and Budapest but was not the fault of Tripsite or the Primadonna. Water levels were just too low. My only complaint about the tour is that water was not included with dinner.

Bratislava was most memorable, as well as the scenery along the way.

The scenery and the historical cities were so wonderful. Especially loved the last day of biking through wine country and small villages. Food was excellent, and accommodation was comfortable. Only complaint would be the lack of clear, English directions during our information sessions each evening. A guide out on the course would be recommended.

The boat was great , all the rooms had windows and a little terrace, and the food was amazing. I would have liked to have more time to visit the cities were the boat docked. Cycling was fun...but we could not visit the interesting sites.

My only issue is the routes gps. The explanation weren’t always good and the routes we downloaded were certainly not updated. On a couple of days they said it was actually dangerous to bike so some of our friends didn’t bike. We had all gone there for the biking.

Scenery was great bikes where good boat was excellent would have been bocce if helmets could have been provided or rented as hard to pack and carry one to Europe .

The bike ride scenery was almost 75% amazing, 25% was nice or ok. Having said that, I am an experienced cyclist but I do not enjoy riding on busy roads or in traffic. The meals were ample and enjoyable. It was so nice to come back from a ride and have a 3-4 course meal ready for you at dinner. The staff were lovely, attentive, and professional. The Prima Donna was our vessel. Very clean and comfortable. Large bathrooms, good water pressure, and temperature. It is important to look at the maps provided when you attend the route briefing. Keep questions to a minimum and directed toward route information. The bike I had was a pedal with electric assist and my 1st time using e assist. Great bike with comfy saddle, good gear shifting, brakes and panniers provided. Riding near Vienna was very busy on the bike paths. Stopping at a cafe when you see one on any ride, is worth stopping and enjoying the rest and good beer or coffee. My first ever “cruise” and it was just the type of experience I had hoped. We were a group of friends and siblings, and 12 of us. Great time.

The first day and last day of biking were beautiful. The route the other days weren’t as nice.
The boat staff were wonderful and the food was delicious.
Only downside was having to be on the boat for a certain time as the boat moved all night long. I prefer the tours when the boat moves as we bike and stays in port all night. Nice for after dinner walk in towns.

Meeting people from around the world on the boat. Also the staff on the boat was fantastic very accommodating and helpful.

Beautiful boat lobby and cabins. Rooftop deserves more time spent there. Front bar has lovely views. River tour of Budapest nightlights is fabulous. Bikes are excellent . 3/6 days we had to dock late because another boat was in our spot? Therefore we rarely had time to sightsee or make cafe’ stops during our bike days. I don’t understand this. Late September is perhaps not the best time for this tour?

The caring staff, beautiful countryside and incredible sights made this bucket list trip awesome! The crew felt like family by the end of the trip and the biking was really fun rain or shine!

I loved being on the boat, but there was not enough time to bike.. Too much Barge and not enough biking . I always felt like I was on too tight of a schedule. In retrospect, I would not have done the optional tours on the bus. They were informative but ate up too much time.
I loved the food, and all the staff was great! I wish we could have moved around our seating on our table, we were a group of 10. bu we had to sit in the exact same seat every meal, why not have room numbers we move to where we are seated?
I loved seeing Budapest at night also from the boat. The bikes were fine. overall I liked, it I just felt like we did not have time to relax and explore when we were biking. I wanted to check out more towns.

The outstanding professionalism by the crew. That includes the restaurant personnel, the administrative staff, the domestic staff and of course the captain and fellow officers. However, there should be more time allotted for Vienna exploring.and some of the very historic and interesting smaller cities along with Danube.

The trip was exactly as promised and more. The chosen bike routes were very scenic, appropriate distances and gave us a great flavour of Austria, Slovakia and Hungary. The bikes were good quality and in excellent shape - top marks. The food was outstanding! Lots of food choices, special menus to highlight local foods and top quality ingredients. The Primadonna is a gorgeous boat, and our room was just as lovely as the advertising showed. One special highlight was using the boat to do a night tour of Budapest - the most beautiful city I have ever seen.

Most people on the trip were German, with a mixture of Dutch, French. There were only a few Americans and Canadians. The boat staff were mostly Serbian. That meant that there were inevitable language issues. For example, we paid 100 Euros to do a night bus tour of Vienna in English. But some German, Duthc and French travellers ended up on the bus too, so our tour guide ended up having to repeat all tour instructions in 4 languages, which was frustrating and inefficient. In the same vein, every evening we had briefings on the following days cycling trip. Our Serbian hotel manager did his best, but the information was often confusing, and the maps provided by Danau Tours were pretty average. This led to a number of wrong turns and navigation mix ups over the week.

In North America, we are used to having water provided free of charge when dining. So it felt cheap that we were asked to pay 7 Euros for a bottle of water at meals. Considering the cost of the trip, that didn't sit right. To be fair, we traveled around Europe after the trip, and we never encountered free water in restaurants, so it appears that is a European norm.

Lastly, although it is called a 4-country tour, you only cycle in 3 countries: Austria, Slovakia and Hungary. The only time you set foot in Germany is in Passau at the start and end of the week. So if you want to tour Germany, plan in time before or after the trip.

Budapest was the best city we visited during this tour. The room and food were great. The staff on the boat were very helpful and nice. The only thing I would recommend would be better bike route maps. The ones they give during the nightly presentation are not very accurate or detailed.

The actual trip was quite enjoyable. The boat was nice and the accommodations were good weight staff and food were excellent. I would not travel with this company again just because they are totally unequipped to handle a bike accident. I only received help by luck.

The night cruise around the city of Budapest with everything lit up was glorious.

Our tours in Budapest on the bus was with an exceptional tour leader. She brought the city alive with all the history and beautiful locations we visited. Very passionate about her city. The walking tour in Bratislava was Wonderful. Daca gave a well thought out tour of the city center-absolutely the best.
Our biggest issue was the language, even when bike tours were explained in English we did not always understand certain words.

Our waiter Uros, gave us exemplary service. Very professional, friendly, helpful. Always looking out for us
All crew members were top notch

Being able to see the country side at a leisurely pace with our friends. Stopped to visit the goats and trail side coffee shops. One of the most memorable of any of our trips was the boat leaving Budapest at night. A sight we will never forget. Food on board was very good and service was great. The only issue we had was we were a large group of 18 that sat at 3 tables and we were asked to not change places but we missed out visiting with our other friends. We liked it so much we came home and booked another trip with Tripsite

The biking was scenic and beautiful. The best biking was in Budapest and then in Austria on the last day. It was an experience I will never forget.

While some of the routes were challenging at times because they weren’t marked well, the biking part of the trip was phenomenal.
The ship food was excellent!

The entry into Budapest with the sun setting on the Parliament building was a once in a lifetime experience.

The bike rides and the night view of Budapest.

Please improve the GPS file for the last day of biking as the end doesn’t agree with the new ending at Marbach from Melk. We used the Danube river crossing at the power plant and damn from Melk to Marbach at Wehr Melk Damn.

The most memorable part of the trip was leaving Budapest after dark and floating past the lighted buildings and monuments along the Danube. The biking along the River was beautiful and diverse; wine country from Krems to Marbach was very pretty. Most of the routes were along bike paths though some intermittently were on rural roads and through the cities of Vienna and Budapest. Some days biking were very warm, but there were a couple of cold days with temperatures less than 10 degrees C. Its a good idea to come prepared for cool and rainy days both biking and sightseeing; layers with a hooded raincoat was essential. My wife and I are fit bikers riding often in the Colorado mountains, but opted for eBikes on the boat cruise. No regrets on this decision, we road with minimal eAssistance most of the time, but when the winds, and sometimes rain, came up on long rides, or we wanted to catch sites off the main route we had the ability to extend our rides and still make the timing to meet the boat at the next city.

We had a great time on our bike & boat trip down the Danube! We were aboard the Primadonna. The highlight of the trip was Budapest. What an amazing city! It was a rest day so we had all day to explore. We left by night when all those incredible buildings were lit up and reflected in the Danube.
Optional city tours were available when we weren’t cycling. I recommend them because we learned history & facts about where we were. The organ concert in Linz was a wonderful experience too.
The boat was great. The staff was helpful and friendly, the meals were good, reflecting the region and our lowest deck room was comfortable. It did surprise us the first morning how close to the water level our window was!
The last day, cycling through vineyards and villages in Austria was delightful.
We would recommend this trip to others. The terrain is easy so you can enjoy your surroundings. We were glad we opted for the e-bikes. The Primadonna doesn’t provide helmets though but sold them in their little bike shop on board for €35, so we bought them.
Most of the people on the trip are retirees. Not many young people. They still have to work! They would enjoy it too though.

We had a great time on our bike & boat trip down the Danube! We were aboard the Primadonna. The highlight of the trip was Budapest. What an amazing city! It was a rest day so we had all day to explore. We left by night when all those incredible buildings were lit up and reflected in the Danube.
Optional city tours were available when we weren’t cycling. I recommend them because we learned history & facts about where we were. The organ concert in Linz was a wonderful experience too.
The boat was great. The staff was helpful and friendly, the meals were good, reflecting the region and our lowest deck room was comfortable. It did surprise us the first morning how close to the water level our window was!
The last day, cycling through vineyards and villages in Austria was delightful.
We would recommend this trip to others. The terrain is easy so you can enjoy your surroundings. We were glad we opted for the e-bikes. The Primadonna doesn’t provide helmets though but sold them in their little bike shop on board for €35, so we bought them.
Most of the people on the trip are retirees. Not many young people. They still have to work! They would enjoy it too though.

The evening cruise out of Budapest with all the illuminated building was so amazing.
Take your time in the smaller towns and cities as you bike to the larger cities. Most of the big cities are more difficult to get around. With the exception of Vienna, the guided tours were superb.