4 Star Slovakia Tour Reviews — 91 to 120 of 164

We really enjoyed the biking. Most the trails were very nice and the scenery was beautiful.The most memorable part was probably the Wachau Valley. The bikes were very good. The rooms on the boat were good and the food was also plentiful and tasty.We enjoyed the entertainment put on by the crew.

Best Parts: cruising, dining, kitchen, bar, admin, cleaning staff - wonderful, friendly, helpful. couldn't be better
food - very good variety and quality. lunches especially good
cycling and tour director and staff - excellent every day with information, quality equipment, attention to questions
ship public facilities - quite adequate quality and quantity. updating on decor is needed
hotel staff - very nice, accommodating and efficient
hotel - needs cleaning, air conditioning was not working every day, which was a problem. air quality was not great. updated decor is needed.

Best Part? Biking along the Danube the first day in the beautiful countryside. Spectacular!!

The biking was absolutely wonderful; so incredibly beautiful especially through the vineyards and orchards. The ride around Bratislava was not marked well at all and 90% of the riders got lost going in all different directions, thank God for smart phones. The food on board was well prepared, always hot and nutritional. Where this trip fell short was the crew abroad the Normandie. Unlike the other TWO Bike and Barge Trips I experienced, this crew was a bit unwelcoming, rude, and times condescending and scolding. Not everyone but it certainly was the feel on the boat and many were talking about it. I know the crew work long hours and they all have to help with most tasks on the boat; however, there would be nothing to do if WE weren't there. I absolutely love this way of travel and will do another one again very soon. This was NOT a Tripsite issue but am hopeful this information will be passed to the appropriate people. Tripsite has been excellent in providing information and always seems to offer a great deal.

I loved the convenience of all the planning and coordinating by Tripsite which allowed my party to really enjoy the biking, hotels and experience of the trip. I was pleasantly surprised with the quality and care of the bikes which could make or break of this trip. Working with Tripsite was easy and pleasant.

The Cycling and travel along the Danube River. Still more markings on the Bike routes.

Most Memorable Part: Food & last day of riding + Vienna

We really enjoyed Wachau. Definitely stop for the wine tour, and enjoy the biking through the vineyards. It was absolutely beautiful.

Fantastic Value; super helpful staff. Only 80 riders. Very friendly guests attracted. Beautiful sights. Good food. Bikes heavy and clunky with no choice in quality except electric. Excellent trip overall.

Briefing by tour director daily with clear instructions on the following days ride. Highlighting and suggestions where to break for coffee and lunch, and points of interest along the way.
Breakfast and evening meal was delicious.
A great range of reasonably priced good quality bike attire, including wet weather jackets ,and bike helmets for sale.

Riding in the foothills/vinyards in Austria. Stopping for a beer and a slice of homemade cake at a hotel on the trail.
The boat was too slow traveling upstream against heavy current. This meant we were late in docking for our next ride. Yes, the current was heavy but this is likely to happen every spring.

Best Part? The nice people on the boat

Earlier this year (May), my wife and I did the 4 country bike - barge tour, on the Danube. First I have to remark that everything "Tripsite" advertised was delivered at what we thought to be a reasonable price. In spite of unusually cold (damp) weather, our first experience (s) in Passau, Bratislava, Budapest and Vienna were very memorable highlights. However, aboard the "Normandie" we did have some concerns with the overall tour management. There were some particularly disappointing moments with an apparent strategy to keep the English speaking guests, and non-english speaking guests (mostly German) separated? For our part, we were keen to mingle - assimilate with all the guests aboard. That should not reflect our overall impression of the boat crew, who were very courteous and helpful.

Sailing down the Danube at night under the full moon we witnessed the beautiful lighted bridges and magnificent buildings of Vienna. It was magical!

This was a great experience. Andreas was a wonderful tour director/leader. 2 weeks aloud us to have a great experience. As this was the ship's first cruise of the year we did experience a problem with our room but Andreas resolved the problem promptly and provided some compensation for our troubles. The crew provided excellent service. The meals were better than expected( I am not a gourmet but enjoyed every meal). the bike routes were very interesting. Our only issue was with the a/c but as this was an older ship some things are not always up to modern standards. Great value.

Simple the thrill of cycling through Europe along the Danube River.

We really enjoyed the Abbey in Melk, Tulln Gardens and the short walk about tour in Bratislavia

The most memorable part of the trip was sitting on the top deck in the evening, wrapped in a blanket, watching the clouds sail past the moon as the barge moved on to our next city on the Danube.
Ensure you respond to the call to choose a table for meals on the barge if you wish to sit with or close to friends.
Stay an extra night in Passau if you have the time...there is a lot to see and do.
If possible, do some cycling before your trip to prepare you for the daily tours.
If you would prefer to cycle with a guide let your agent know and they may be able to arrange it. It may be an option and worth an extra cost if it would make your trip more enjoyable.

The beautiful bike paths along the Danube and the great food on the MS Arkona. Found the unguided bike tour confusing. Comfortable beds but loud vibrating boat motor at night made it impossible to sleep. Yay sleeping pills.

This was a wonderful tour with many interesting & historic stops along the way. The portion in the Czech Republic included challenging terrain while the ride from Vienna to Budapest was fairly flat. The hotels were all unique and very different, from botels to spas to penzione. Locations were great, had delicious breakfasts and were clean with the exception of the last one, which I'll discuss later. This trip would have been perfect if a few simple things had occurred: we received detailed information for the trip the day we left for Prague. Since there were some modifications, I lost half a day in Prague getting those worked out. That easily could've been taken care of before we left if we had the detailed info sooner. When we arrived in Prague, the cycling company sent Maps.me files to load. Because of the types of phones we have, it again took some vacation time to figure out how to download. We discovered that these were imperative to smooth navigating along the routes so I recommend that those files be sent in advance. The only other disappointment was that the hotel in Budapest was very dirty with mold all over the shower floor and walls. We had been told we'd be in a much nicer hotel, but i'm assuming they were unable to book it. Fortunately, we had booked our extra nights elsewhere. Bottom line, I would recommend this trip with the modifications above.

My wife and I just finished this trip with another couple. First of all, remember that you get what you pay for. This cruise is much cheaper than Viking or Avalon or some of the others so you can't expect as much opulence or fine cuisine. That said, everything was fine. The food was good but not great. The walls to the cabins are thin so if the person in the room next to you is a loud talker, you will hear every word. Also, try to avoid the lowest level of rooms - the windows don't open and are noisier as you are close to the engine. The trip it self was great. The cycling was easy and scenic. We had Axel as our guide, and seriously, he ruins you for any other guide. If we went on another cruise, it would have to be with Axel - any other guide would suffer in comparison I suspect. He is Austrian with a very keen sense of humour (He would have to be as he is an Arsenal fan). He went above and beyond.

We had a mixed experience on this trip, having completed two other bike and barge trips on smaller boats (and smaller waterways). This is a wonderful region for riding - much of the route follows bike paths that parallel the river and provide gorgeous views of river towns. Unlike our other trips, participants ride on their own without a guide, and this worked well for us. Because the boat travels from Passau to Budapest and back again, there is quite a bit of travel time on the boat. At times, we enjoyed watching the scenery, but this also meant that our time on land was quite limited. Food was decent and several options were available at each meal. The dining room was noisy and it does take quite a bit of time to serve everyone, with the staff clearly working hard! During our tour, there were engine problems which resulted in a change in itinerary. The company struggled to manage this and identify reasonable options. In the end, they have promised us a partial refund, which seems quite fair. We would have preferred that this offer had come sooner in the process, without the numerous conversations that were needed to help the company understand the concerns of passengers.

This trip provides a chance to explore the rural areas along the Danube by bike and to visit the great cities of Budapest and Vienna. There is a lot packed into this trip.

Cycling past the remnants of the Iron Curtain. WOW!
There were so many highlights, but having Axel as our guide certainly added a great deal to our daily rides. Thanks Axel!

We had a great time along the Danube river! The cycling was very good and the bikes adequate. The crew of the Theodor Korner were especially nice and competent. The tour guide was really on his game! Unfortunately, the boat itself needs a thorough rehab- our stateroom had an odd odor and was extremely noisy due to mid-ship engines. If we decide to do the Danube tour again we will choose a different boat!

Wachau valley was my favorite part...small towns, great shops and wine.

We loved our trip on the Danube! From the first day to the last, we enjoyed the food, scenery and new friends. Would definitely recommend.

It was our 35th anniversary and we had lots of alone time to tour ourselves but also met the nicest people on the boat

I really enjoyed the first and last days a lot which were in the beautiful countryside along the Danube. It was good to see the cities but the visits too short to really visit anything in depth.
I recommend the Mozart concert which I really enjoyed.
I loved meeting people from other countries and wish we could have had meal seating change every couple of days to mix with other people who also were interested in meeting others.

Most Memorable Part: Riding on the bike paths without having to worry about road traffic.