Our time in London is coming to an end, but there is still time to take one last trip to mainland Europe before heading back to Tasmania. This time we cross an item of Stacey’s Bucket List with a river cruise through four countries aboard the Amadeus Imperial. Seven nights starting in Budapest, Hungary floating down the Danube River through Slovakia stopping at Bratislava before heading on to Vienna and Durnstein in Austria then finishing in Passau in Germany.

I had a few concerns about this trip as the last time we sailed Stacey didn’t cope well with the motion of the cruise ship and ended up spending four days adjusting to the movement before finding her sea legs. I also found being aboard an ocean liner way too confining so was a bit apprehensive however that all changed very quickly.

The boat provides a mechanism to deliver you to each stop in a calm and comfortable way. There was minimal wave action or rocking motion to speak of and we had free time at each stop to wander the streets looking at the sights and history. Stacey handled the boat ride like a champion and I didn’t feel like a caged animal as we had plenty of time on land.

We fly from London, Heathrow to Budapest where we are greeted by a guide who shows us to a coach for the ride to the boat. It becomes apparent that we are in the younger age range of passengers giving me the feeling we are about 10-15 years too early. The drive to the boat takes us through the Pest side of Budapest providing a glimpse of a city of two parts. Like a lot of cities worldwide the river is a natural divider but, in this case, it separated two distinctly separate cities of the hilly Buda and flat Pest, which in 1873 combined to become Budapest.

Over the next two nights we get to enjoy both sides of the city and come to understand some of the issues it faced between wars, floods, good times and challenging ones. The history is intriguing, the monuments informative if not sometimes confronting and the architecture a pleasant blend with some interesting standouts thrown in. We have free time on our first afternoon, so we head down the Pest side of the river towards the Parliament Building.

Our first night onboard and we are treated to a cruise up and down the river. It’s a chance to see the city from a different viewpoint and it’s well worth it. The buildings and bridges are floodlit and make an outstanding statement. The Parliament is stunning and for most of us, the jewel in the crown of this wonderful city.

Our next day was filled with a guided tour of both sides of the river, first taking in the old town area of Buda, then the central part of Pest. Stacey and I quickly realised that we are not ones for guided tours and prefer to set out on our own. Thankfully there was no issue with us making our own way around.

The late afternoon comes and it’s time to return to the boat for the first part of the cruise taking us to Bratislava. It’s sad to be saying goodbye so soon to Budapest. We will be looking to visit here again as one and a half days is not enough to appreciate all that is on offer.

We cruise through the night to Bratislava in Slovakia arriving mid-morning on a warm, sunny day. Our excursion into the city is cut short due to the road up to the castle being closed for a Pride march which is a disappointment. We break away from the group again and wander through the heart of the city taking in the views. The old city centre seems quite small belying the sprawl that lies beyond it as this is the fourth largest city in Slovakia.

With an afternoon of sightseeing behind us, we head back to the boat and prepare to set sail for the next port, Vienna in Austria. It again starts as an evening departure which provides our last views of the city under lights. There is a particularly interesting bridge across the Danube in Bratislava that looks modern and has a restaurant placed high above the road level. At night it looks like a UFO but it is the walled castle on the opposite bank that steals the show.

I mentioned earlier that I felt that we were a bit younger than the other groups on this cruise as the average age seems to be around the seventy mark. This is not a real problem as Stacey and I can make conversation with almost anyone, though at dinner tonight, we are fortunate to meet a dynamite English couple around the same age as us and with similar interests who have bought their father on this trip. We quickly strike up a friendship that keeps us laughing and bouncing off each other for the rest of the journey. (Jess, Nigel & Peter thank you for making the trip so much more enjoyable.)

We float into Vienna early morning and decide to get an early start exploring as its turning into a hot day and we have limited time here. The boat is docked in Nussdorf which is quite a distance from the city, so we walk to the nearest tram station and navigate our way to the city centre. Vienna strikes us as a place that will need many days to explore. Everywhere you look there is a beautiful building, stunning palace or impressive garden. Top that off with amazing monuments and churches it requires you to slow down and enjoy its highlights.

We walk through the old city taking in St Stephen’s Cathedral, Sisi Museum, Heldenplatz, the museum quarter, the house of parliament, Volksgarten, Rathaus House and park then onto Votive Church. We have simply scratched the surface of this area alone. We will definitely have to revisit this city in the future.

From Vienna we head to Durnstein which is still in Austria and is a small township compared to Vienna. It sits on the banks of the Danube and has the ruins of a castle high above the town. We walk the quaint cobbled streets well before the town awakens so manage a few good photos prior to people moving about. We also decide to tackle the steep climb to the castle ruins. It’s quite warm already and the path to the castle is a mixture of steep slopes and irregular steps which become quite challenging. We huff and puff to the top and once there, realise that it is a truly awesome view of the township and the Wachau Valley area.

A bit of a note on the Rabbit Shit poster photo in the gallery below. This area is renowned for its apricot products and there is a sweet that is dried diced apricot coated in chocolate and locally named Rabbit Shit. It tastes great and well worth a try if you are in the area. If you are outside of this area and see a sign for rabbit shit, beware, it may be something very different…

After lunch we continue our trip down the Danube through the Wachau Valley to Melk to see the Abbey then onto Linz. The scenery rolls by at a nice slow pace so there is time to enjoy every moment.

From Linz there is an opportunity to visit either Salzburg or the Austrian Lakes area which includes Hallstatt. We opt for the lakes and take the bus ride to one of the most beautiful areas we have seen. Think of the backdrop for The Sound of Music and you have the picture. There are seventy-plus lakes in this area with our side-trip allowing us to visit three of them. The first is Traunsee which has a beauty of its own. The lake meets the foothills of the alp region and has that iconic looking backdrop.

The second lake is Halstatt which is equally as beautiful although far more crowded. We have a few hours to walk around the town and to enjoy a packed lunch while sitting on the shoreline. Its peaceful away from the crowds and would be incredible with a dusting of snow on the mountains. Maybe a return visit at a cooler time of year is on the cards.

Our final lake on this loop is Mondsee which has a township of the same name. The highlight there is the Basilica St Michael which is the church used for the wedding scene in The Sound of Music. This visit is more about the church than the lake, but it is as beautiful as the previous two. We take a short break to enjoy a nice beer on the deck of a restaurant before boarding the bus and heading back to the boat.

Our final voyage is from Linz to Passau in Germany. It’s an early morning start, on a cracking day which we enjoy from the upper deck of the boat. The early light makes the scenery standout and adds a level of contrast, while the low mist creates a bit of drama. We end the journey in Passau and have some time to look around before our final night aboard ship.

It was a great trip with plenty to see and do. Now it’s time to return to London, pack up our lives and head back to Tasmania after nearly 15 months away. It seems to have gone quickly, and we have managed to visit more countries and cities than I ever expected to. The strange thing is that it hasn’t reduced our desire to travel which means there are more trips in the future. Maybe we will go home and start planning the next adventure. Who knows where that may take us.