2024 December - Adventures by Disney - Danube River Cruise: Magical Holidays - Part 1

Adventures by Disney

This was our first experience with Adventures by Disney (ABD). We had previously done an AMA Waterways cruise as a family back in 2022, so we were interested to see how the two experiences would compare.

First, the elephant in the room, is an ABD river cruise worth the investment? Absolutely. We had five extraordinary adventure guides that elevated this amazing bespoke experience and ensured that everyone (young and old) was having the time of their life. They built a community on board that made everyone feel like long-time friends. Any issue (and there weren't many) was met promptly with a smile and quick resolution. They were entertaining, inspiring and so much fun. We never had a dull moment with this group. From the daily gatherings and nightly gifts…everything was magic.

AMA Waterways has always been at the top of its class in terms of river cruising. ABD adds an additional layer of exceptional services on top of an already extraordinary experience. Meals were modified to include additional child-friendly options, but they still offered AMA's well-known and exquisitely crafted menu items during the ABD sailing as well. There were planned activities in the evenings for Jr. Adventurers (for the 5-13 year-olds) and Teen Adventurers (for the 14-17 year-olds). Beyond the planned activities, the adventure guides were often in the lounge engaging with their fellow adventurers or playing games with the kids. This helped to build a unique sense of community on board. The kids that were close in age would meet up throughout the sailing to play games, eat snacks, and hang out with the adventure guides. The adults would often gather in the common areas to meet with fellow adventures and adventure guides to recount adventures or discuss future plans.

The Adventure Guides would host a daily meeting before leaving for excursions to ensure everyone was prepared and informed of the day's plan. They would also designate one family to host Daisy Duck on their adventure to take photos and share her experiences in the nightly gathering. Each evening the Adventure Guides would host a briefing to discuss the next day's location and activities, check in on Daisy's whereabouts, and provide options for evening entertainment on board.

We were fortunate to be sailing over the holidays, so the Adventure Guides hosted a New Year's party and holiday cookie decorating party during our sailing. We also had several local musicians and dancers provide entertainment in the evenings. The days were packed with well-curated experiences and options.

The ABD river cruises are unique from the DCL and ABD land adventures. The ABD river cruises involve larger groups of adventurers...around 150 guests as compared to around 40 guests for the land adventures; however, they also have many more Adventure Guides...around 5-6 as compared to 2 for a land adventure. Unlike some of the ABD land adventures, you do have some options regarding excursions. Most days there was an option A or B for off-ship adventures that allowed families to tailor their experience based on individual interests. The ABD river cruise is a much more bespoke level experience than DCL...even more so than the highly coveted concierge floor. Additionally, unlike DCL, each excursion was attended by 2-3 ABD adventure guides (in addition to the local guides operating the tours). to assist with any questions or concerns and each experience was well curated. (We did not have a single excursion that I wouldn't do again...they were all that great!)

AMALea

The AMALea was a first-class floating hotel. The rooms were well-appointed and the staff was unparalleled. For example, our luggage was misplaced by the airline and the cruise manager had our laundry picked up late each night and delivered by early morning free of charge to help ensure we had clothes throughout our journey. Talk about going above and beyond!

AMALEA CATEGORY AB ROOM

As we were traveling over the holiday, the ship was beautifully decorated inside and out for the holiday season. Simply stunning!

AMALEA HOLIDAY DECOR

Stops & Excursions:

• Vilshofen, Germany

As we departed from Vilshofen, we met with our Adventure Guides to learn more about the upcoming week and meet our fellow Adventurers. Our tween quickly found a group of kids of similar age to play UNO in the lounge. The Adventure Guides hosted an Oktoberfest party! They had local musicians perform, taught us a folk dance, and served beer and sausages. And here we go!

ABD MAGICAL HOLDIAY WELCOME OKTOBERFEST PARTY

We were also fortunate to attend the Chef's Table dinner that evening. They served an amazing tasting menu! All seven courses were a hit! They were more than accommodating to address any food preferences or allergies. They encouraged our tween to try some of the more adventurous dishes (and loved most of them) and offered alternatives for the few courses that weren't quite a hit. For those who aren't foodies (myself included), this was a great opportunity to try some unique dishes in a judgment-free environment. Both the head waitress and chef were so nice and attentive to all of the guests.

ABD MAGICAL HOLIDAY AMALEA CHEF TABLE DINNER

• Passau, Germany

Passau is a beautiful city with a rich history. We started the morning with a walking tour of the city to hear about its fascinating history. The local guide was dressed in 18th-century period clothing and led an interactive discussion with the group. Members of the group volunteered (or had someone volunteer them on their behalf ) to play historical characters and interact with the guide. The local guide was informative, but also very engaging. This is a tour that I would not have booked for myself...as a dressed-up guide sounds a bit corny....but I'm so glad we did. It was a really fun way to learn some interesting history!

ABD MAGICAL HOLIDAY PASSAU WALKING TOUR

After the tour, we went to a local bakery to make marzipan piglets as a symbol of luck for the New Year. I'm not artistic by any stretch, but the baker provided very simple and clear direction. At the end of the class, we all had something that really did look like a tiny piglet!

Note: We visited Passau on a Sunday and almost everything was closed in the small town, other than the bakery and a few small coffee shops. The bakery was well worth a visit.. try the amazing Gingerbread cookies!

ABD MAGICAL HOLIDAY PASSAU MARZIPAN MAKING ACTIVITY

We opted for the Aldersbacher Brewery Tour and Monastery Visit in the afternoon. I'm not a beer drinker, but when in Germany. My husband enjoyed hearing about the various brewing processes and history of the brewery. The tour was informative and pretty brief. Following the tour, they hosted a small Oktoberfest party, complete with musicians, beer (and lemonade), and pretzels. I will say the beer was flowing freely and the beer steins were some of the biggest I've seen. After learning the chorus to a few songs and yelling "Prost" every 5 minutes, we were all in great spirits!

ABD MAGICAL HOLIDAY ALDERSBACHER BREWERY TOUR

The monastery is beautiful. It was just recently restored this past year and it is breathtaking. Leave time after the festivities at the brewery to visit this hidden gem!

After a fun-filled day, we joined the adventure guides for an amazing meal on the AmaLea and a another fun-filled evening. The junior adventurers had a pizza party, had a ball decorating the Christmas trees on the ship, and spent the evening in the lounge playing various card games.

• Linz, Austria

Our next stop was Linz, Austria. In Linz, we opted for the Salt Mine Tour. This is another tour that I would not have ordinarily picked...but again ABD knows what they are doing. This was one of our favorite excursions! The tour was informative, interesting, and fast-moving. After donning our mine gear, we took the mine train down into the salt mines. Que Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs "Heigh-Ho"! We started to hike further down into the mine and received a multi-media presentation at several stops to learn about salt mining and how important it was to the area. We crossed back into Germany and back to Austria...all while underground. There were also three slides along the way...I'm not sure who had more fun on those...the kids or the grown-ups. So much fun! After an amazing underground adventure, we went to have lunch at Hofbrau Kaltenhausen. We were served a buffet lunch with no shortage of food or options! In the afternoon, we did a quick walking tour of Salzburg. We saw many of the highlights including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s home and beautiful Mirabell Gardens made famous in the Sound of Music. We also had free time to spend in the Christmas markets outside of St. Stephen’s. This is one of the few makers that runs through New Year's. It was truly magical! After having our traditional Glühwein, sampling the various holiday treats, and shopping for Christmas treasures, we returned to the ship filled with Holiday cheer!

That evening we enjoyed another fantastic meal, local performers, and another adventurer gathering to review the events of the day and prepare for tomorrow’s adventure. We were also given 10 euros per adventurer to buy a gift for a gift exchange later in the sailing. The guides even set up a gift-wrapping station!

Stay tuned for Part 2 of our trip…including Melk, Austria, Vienna, Austria, and Budapest, Hungary!

• Additional Notes

Will we do it again? Absolutely...we are sold! This is a great option for tweens and teens who are ready for more adventures and experiences beyond the DCL offering. Stay tuned for the Barcelona Escape and Peru adventures in 2025!

Until next time...