5 Star Vivienne boat/barge tour reviews — 1 to 30 of 73

i loved biking through the country side and small towns. We would stop for ice cream and even visited a winery. It was nice having the guide, didn't have to think about where we had to go each day. Visiting all of the towns along the way tasting their food and beer and shopping in the small shops was fun. The boat had a good vibe and relaxing atmosphere.

The service, food and the beautiful boat. It was a wonderful trip.

We had a wonderful time aboard the MS Vivienne for this tour. The cabin was quiet and comfortable, no movement from the water. The food and staff aboard were wonderful. The cycling was beautiful, we got to visit several historic cities and we met some very nice people. We would definitely sign up for another bike and boat tour like this!

This is an excellent bike and barge. The Vivienne was a beautiful boat with excellent staff. The schedule is well laid out, allowed time to enjoy the biking and scenery. The navigation app worked really well but take a phone holder for your bike so you can see the map. I have Bluetooth hearing aids so the directions were also provided by audio which was very helpful. That city bus tours were ok, if you are a city traveller you could have navigated both Budapest and Vienna on your own.
The cruise director has lots of information and will answer your questions…. If in doubt ask questions.
The food was amazing … you will not go hungry.

The scenery on this tour was amazing. The Danube River valley is quite picturesque! The bike trails were awesome.

Boat was nicely appointed and good clean cabins. A small gym room with some weights would be a nice addition Tomas was a superb guide. A great balance between local knowledge and keeping 18 riders moving at a comfortable pace. Leslie , the cruise director was always available and worked hard to keep us informed for the next day and volunteer ice packs when needed! Even a restocked bottle of our favourite gin was procured when the bar ran out! Crew were excellent; bikes were always on shore or back on the boat as needed. Service at meals and bar were first class. Bratislava was the most interesting city tour; being the place where the iron curtain came down. Budapest night walking tour was spectacular. We found the e-bikes to be very heavy and a 30 minute familiarisation on day one would have beeen good. 95% of the meals were good. Certainly the most scenic and interesting cycling that we have ever done. Total was about 205km in the week. Take care on the 2km long bridge on the second day. It’s a very narrow cycling track; best walked if comprised by height and traffic noise! Overall, we thoroughly recommend this tour.

This was truly the best trip I’ve had in a long time! Everything about it was fantastic from the incredible sites We visited to the breathtaking biking routes. Every day was amazing. The experience on the boat was unforgettable, with outstanding staff, delicious food, and excellent service. Leslie, our cruise Director was absolutely top-notch. He was informative, funny and always ready to answer questions. Honestly, it’s hard to pick just one highlight because the entire trip was so special. I’ll definitely be recommending this adventure to all of my biking friends!

The bike riding, the staff, the food and the new friends we met during the week were all amazing. The last ride from Krems to Melk was absolutely breathtaking! I literally cannot stop smiling!
Tip: expect to take some wrong turns, just enjoy the ride.

This tour exceeded my expectations. I loved the variety of biking along the Danube River and through vineyards and beautiful small towns, and free days to explore some larger cities by foot, bike or bus. Having one home base was perfect & our cabin was very comfortable.

I recommend that you view the trip as a sampling of the beautiful areas and not expect that you will be able to thoroughly tour many of the landmarks.

We opted for a guide, Tomas, who was wonderful, leading the way and giving us a great experience. Leslie, the cruise director, was good as well. He had lots of tips and his almost daily talks were full of humor and good advice. The ship staff was also terrific, making us feel at home and providing great service. The e-bikes were not the best, very heavy and a bit unwieldy ( I ride an ebike at home so I am quite familiar with them). Otherwise a fabulous trip and I would highly recommend!

Excellent organization and service.
Enjoyable cycling routes and good information.
The facilities on board the ship and the staff’s attitude are exemplary.
Very good guides on the city tours.

The biking was the absolute best. It is a great way to see the countryside, the small villages and the cities. We had an excellent itinerary. The sites were beautiful, the tours interesting and the crew was great. We got a lot of exercise and didnt worry about overeating.

We love bike and barges! Unpack once, meals provided and spectacular scenery exploring new parts of the world on a bicycle. This was the largest boat we’ve been on with 150 bicyclists, but at no time did we feel that it was too many people. We met new friends and overall it was a great experience. Bicycling Austrian countryside and vineyards, Old world Bratislava and beautiful Budapest were highlights of the tour. And the strudel! The chefs on the boat made the effort to provide meals that were characteristic of the area. The Vivienne cruise Director, Leslie went above and beyond in his duties and was a delight! It was a wonderful bicycling vacation.

The last day of biking was the most beautiful! I would recommend to bring along a mirror for your bike.

Overall great trip. Shout out to Cruise Director Leslie who was wonderful.
Recommendation:
1. Food: Fish entrees & apps weren't very good. Try better please & consider serving more chicken (breast) or turkey (white meat).
2. Coffee served w meals was not good. Thank God for the free coffee from coffee machine!!! Also PLEASE offer CREAM w coffee, not milk.
3. At the very end of the cruise when you introduce the members of the crew. Please tell us a little bit about each one… Where they're from how long they've been with the company, anything else personally interesting. It would be very interesting to us customers & it will really validate the crew. They did a wonderful job and deserve better recognition!
4. Out on the wheels fell off yesterday the very first day, please offer a short tutorial on how to use an E bike. Some of us were new to E bikes and it was hard to learn it when we were trying to jump on our bikes and keep up with everyone. It was a bit of a madhouse!
5. Really loved the daily briefings of the routes we would be taking the next day. Maybe provide a daily handout to summarize the talking points. Some of the routes were a bit confusing, and a handout would really REALLY help.
6. Would have really loved a little more time and some of the smaller (& bigger) towns such as Krems & Bratislava. And was not impressed with Vienna, it was big kind of dirty, a bit overwhelming. Would've liked to overnight in one of the other cities instead. I did speak to other passengers and three other women said they didn't think much of Vienna.

I THINK THOSE ARE THE BIGGIES FOR ME. I LOVED THE DAILY COFFEE HOUR WITH THE DELICIOUS CAKES. I LOVED THE COFFEE MACHINE IN THE COMMON ROOM! I LOVE THE PARTIES.
ALSO, AT FIRST I WAS A LITTLE PUT OFF BY ASSIGNED TABLES AND SEATS… BUT AFTER WHILE I GOT USED TO IT. IF OTHER PASSENGERS DID NOT LIKE THAT, I WOULD TAKE A LOOK AT IT AND SEE IF YOU CAN GET WORTHWHILE INPUT FROM PASSENGERS ON WAYS TO IMPROVE ON THAT.

THAT'S IT GUYS, GREAT JOB OVERALL! BRAVO TO THE CREW!
Elisa Morrell

The tour was exceptional and gave us an opportunity to experience a taste of each country. We cycled through the countryside and stopped at all of the major points of interests in the cities. The guides shared both historical and current perspectives. Overall the trip was well organized and the food and service were amazing.

Absolutely loved this trip. Excellent crew, food, cabin quarters. Scenery was among the prettiest I’ve ever seen and optional excursions helped immerse me into new cultures. Thank you!!

Experiencing the sights while riding a bike is magical. Forest, farms, charming small towns, stunning cities, and castles galore. Loved meeting new people. Loved being on the water and enjoying the scenery gliding by. And the food, wow!

The crew was extremely helpful and always available to help.

Fantastic active vacation with beautiful rides. Incredible delicious and healthy food. Fun activities on board and options for additional tours were good. Highly recommended.

The ride along the Danube was spectacular! Especially the last day from Krems to Pöchlarn. Some of us opted to go for city bike tours in Budapest and Vienna. I found Vienna to be especially crowded and wouldn't do that ride again. Nevertheless, our guide was very knowledgeable and interesting.

The beautiful scenes while biking along the Danube. We would of liked to have a longer trip in order to spend more time in the cities.

The beauty of the old towns, villages and cities we rode and cruised through was breathtaking. The fact that two weeks prior to our arrival the Danube flooded most of our routes and was already cleared was inspiring. The accommodations on the Vivienne were excellent and we were very well fed! The crew were excellent and very accommodating to our needs. The bikes met our needs and beyond (they survived riding through mud and flood waters).

We did a bike/barge tour several years ago in the Netherlands on a small 20 guest boat so we weren’t sure what to expect on a larger ship. We loved the ship and the larger group wasn’t a problem. We had some special dietary needs which the crew handled seamlessly. Our room was pleasant and comfortable. The crew had our bikes ready to go in the morning and reloaded on the ship after we completed out ride. The rides were beautiful. We enjoying cycling through villages, natural areas and the wine region. A lovely special trip!

Great trip! Despite flooding on the Danube that did not allow us to dock at some locations, we got to all advertised locations. The bike ride through the Austrian vineyards was absolutely stunning!

The Vivienne is a superb boat with comfortable rooms, excellent meals, amazing staff - from Captain Igor to hotel manager Margot to program director Leslie to restaurant manager Najeh to our wonderful server Nidhal and all the crew who carried bikes, took care of rooms, reception, bar and the like. Everything ran so smoothly. Party events were memorable and fun. The Danube cycling beautiful, as were the cities and towns we visited with so many historic sites. We would recommend this trip and this boat to everyone!

Rating this tour is challenging in a way due the the fact we were there during the worst weather condition's in that part of Europe in years. The Danube rising at unprecedented levels along with flooding. I'm sure you are well aware of all of this. The Vivienne crew and Leslie the tour director did an amazing job of keeping all of us on board safe and making every attempt to help us to continue to have the best possible experience we could given the horrendous conditions.
While we missed out on a lot of cycling and seeing and experiencing this part of Europe, we were very fortunate to be able to do what we could, given the conditions.
Again, Chapeau to Leslie and the crew of the Vivienne!

Loved it! We went as a couple and met wonderful people. Two things to suggest
1. Better app navigation
2. Lighter e-bikes ( other companies like VBT and backroads have lighter, safer bikes

Staff couldn’t be nicer and we had a flood emergency which was handled professionally and compassionately

The bikes, the ship, the crew and the food! All were fantastic! We definitely feel that our experience aboard the Vivienne was a value commensurate with the cost. The upgrade to a Superior room was worth that little extra cost as the views were beautiful. The bikes were in great repair, the e-bike controls were easy. None stop scenery as we rolled through woods, urban roads, country trails and picturesque towns. Even the weather did not disrupt our enjoyment as Captain Igor and all crew worked to keep us safe and entertained during three days of nonstop rain and 30-year record flooding on the river. We have great stories to share!

Leslie our Cruise Director was Great! We were lucky to meet a lot of new people. All the people working on the boat were wonderful and did a phenomenal job! From the Food to the cleanliness of the boat! Loved Disco night!