Primadonna

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

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.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

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!

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

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

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

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.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

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.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

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.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

We enjoyed biking off the route to visit some small towns. Google maps worked great to get us back on track to meet the boat. Really appreciated the knowledgeable guides on the Vienna and Budapest bus tours.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

The spectacle surrounding along the river, the cycling part, the good service on board.

Tips : It could be a good idea to arrange some stops for tasting visits, local wine, other local indigence, in the cycling tour.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

The Danube is one of the top places to bike in Europe – and I’ve done it many times over the last eight years. However, I did not enjoy the Primadonna. I wish that Tripsite would’ve told me that it was a “bargain” cruise. The staff was not very professional, and although breakfast was very good, dinner was somewhere between OK and unacceptable. Worst thing was the bike route description briefing. The cruise Director talked in circles and you never had a clear understanding of what you were doing. We had to ask a lot of questions and make notes to be clear. Many people in my group struggled - and the printed hand out they gave us was worthless.
Very disappointed in Tripsite for letting me book this for my group. I feel it was their responsibility to tell me that the Primadonna and it’s staff were the bottom of the barrel on the Danube boat and bike list, compared to others they offer.
In sales, they call that: managing expectations.
I wish we would’ve taken the Manon (which I did last Summer) – far better in every sense.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

It was an amazing trip, only issue was getting an e-bike as a tall person. I was able to get one from a local bike shop in town who were great, but if It was something that caused a little more work on my part and considerable worry that it would be there.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Everything was amazing. Great trip. If you need to rent a bike in Passau for taller ebike riders the shops in passau are great.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Good trip. I knew of 2 people who complained of having a "cold" toward the end of the tour. 3 days after returning home I tested positive for covid having minor symptoms. Not the fault of Tripsite but I think you should be aware.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

This is the BEST Vacation!!
I’ve had a lot of great adventures-but the Bike & Barge 4 Countries Tour topped the list.
Riding everyday was my favypart o

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Bicycling along the Danube cycling trail was such a great experience! The route maps were good for following our daily ride.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

The food on this ship was amazing - tasted good and also was amazingly presented. The staff was really terrific also. I would go on this trip again, on a different river though. The Primadonna is a first class ship, well-appointed and very comfortable.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Waking up to a new adventure every day. So easy to get on and off the boat and enjoy the various stops while biking.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Passau to Vienna aboard the Primadonna
Austria

It was 8 days of awe! From the moment that we stepped on the boat the magic began. Biking along the Danube is something that we will never forget. Every town and the landscape is absolutely breathe taking.

The only suggestion I would have is to ensure that it is made very clear where the pick-up is for the bus transfer. We almost missed our pick-up.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

The Primadonna was comfortable, well-organized, had good food and created a good tour of beautiful parts of Europe. The bikes were easy to ride and very high quality. My biggest concern is that without GPS, the routes were impossible. Even the few German speakers had trouble with the routes. I would not recommend this trip to anyone who does not know how to use it. I believe you have to have a specific plan for your phone ( and/or a European SIM card. The ship claims to have wi-fi but it is erratic. I could not text or email most of the trip. The tv’s in each room had no English channels so we were not able to track the news. We were the only Americans on the ship so we good friends of other nationalities and that was great.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

It would have nice to have access to a tire repair kit or at the very least, a way to contact bike repair shops that are open. It would have been nice to be able to order water and not have to pay $7 for a bottle. It would have been nice to have shorter rides so that we'd have time to stop and see the sights along the way.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Great biking on an iconic river through the major cities in grand luxury.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Overall the trip was enjoyable. But the food was quite bland. Also they asked about food restrictions/ preferences, but did NOT accommodate them in any way. The directions for the biking were lacking in detail and the maps could be more zoomed in, especially on the days with many turns and route marker variations. It should also be made clear that many of the routes were directly beside busy roads. It is a great itinerary.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Very well organized
Suggestions: make coffee available before breakfast.
Food was great and we loved the 4 course dinners, but the wait between courses was consistently a bit too long.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Passau to Vienna aboard the Primadonna
Austria

The boat was awesome! Clean and modern - like new.
I have taken many bike tours in Europe and this was the best.
The daily rides tended to be a comfortable 40-to-45 miles per day.
I rented a trail bike and my wife rented an e-bike - both were very serviceable.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Passau to Vienna aboard the Primadonna
Austria

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

We really enjoyed the diversity on the ship. English was definitely the second language, but people did their best to be welcoming and accommodating. It’s important that people understand and are willing to go with the flow! The paths weren’t always as clear as they were supposed to be, so be prepared. We were thankful that all paths eventually went to the Danube!

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

The most memorable part was travelling through small Austrian villages! The bakeries and the little cafe’s were awesome!
The food on the ship was delicious and plentiful. I would suggest mentioning to participants that they must bring their own helmets. We had unfortunately assumed we could rent some onboard and were stuck scrambling at the last minute having to go to a local bike shop to purchase some.

  Primadonna Along the Danube-Passau-Belgrade-Vienna aboard the Primadonna
Germany, Serbia, Austria

The boat and staff were nice.
Food was plentiful and good
Our hotel the night before did not have our registration, very difficult to get anyone on a phone
The people we picked up the bikes from were surly and just plain painful
The bike was the same weight as a Sherman tank
The boat was poorly equipped for handling bikes although the crew worked hard to make it less painful
We never had enough time to ride and see the sights, we were always under the gun to get back to the boat
Really thought we were going to be able to sit and have lunches and drinks and see all the sights during our rides
As it turned out there was only one day where we weren’t in a deadly hurray and even that day we had 20 minutes to drink a beer at a local outside bar
Came back in the dark often, dangerous
Directions we revived sucked! Language interpretation was always an issue
The boat was often not where we expected it to be when we returned
Still enjoyed my vacation but it could have been so much better

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

We loved the arrival by night in Budapest! It was unexpectedly gorgeous with all the lighted bridges and buildings. Truly amazing. Fireworks were an unexpected highlight of the evening in Linz which just happened to have a celebration. Our third highlight was the last biking day through the Wachau Valley--such beautiful vineyards and small villages! One tip: bring a multi USB plug and more than one adaptor for use in the room.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

This is the only way to do a river cruise. You are able to see and enjoy the country and at the same time stay active and get exercise. The bike paths were mostly flat, very few hills. The boat was very nice with good food and service. The highlight of the trip was entering Budapest at 10 pm. It was more than amazing. The bike guide really tried to prepare us each day for the following day bike ride, but it is easy to get lost and the maps we were given were not very clear.

  Primadonna Along the Danube-Passau-Belgrade-Vienna aboard the Primadonna
Germany, Serbia, Austria

Primadonna was superb. We had a very relaxing holiday. Crash between boats in Budapest happened the night before the start of our trip so any delays because of this perfectly understandable. The fact that the Danube was very high was again outside the control of the trip personnel and we appreciated the effort put into making our trip so enjoyable.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

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

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Most Memorable Part? Cycling the afternoon around Vienna

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

The serene beauty of the country side of Germany, Austria and Hungry. Riding a bike through these wonderful countries was very special. The barge ride was very relaxing after a day of riding.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

The scenery was beautiful and the accommodations were great. The riding was a pleasure start to finish. We loved it all and would do it again in a heartbeat!

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

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

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

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.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

The serene beauty of the country side of Germany, Austria and Hungry. Riding a bike through these wonderful countries was very special. The barge ride was very relaxing after a day of riding.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Passau to Vienna
Austria, Germany

Great family reunion and scenic vacation. E-bikes made it easy for less experienced bicyclists to keep up with trained cyclists. Nice to hear all 8 of us laughing while riding!

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Breakfast good. Bagged lunches okay but not great and they only had sparkling water which I don't like and can't drink. No option to get still water without paying extra. Dinners good but not great. Only one meal very good. Most upset about not being able to drink the water from the room sink (which was announced over the PA system just before dinner after we had been onboard for a few hours)and then having to pay for still safe water for the cabin, breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Bike barge nightly talk about the following day was always the second talk of the evening (made for later evenings or no room in the bar). Would have liked to share the first time slot for half of the evenings.
Concierge staff outstanding and serving staff in the dinning room good.

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Passau to Vienna aboard the Primadonna
Austria

Riding along the Danube river was fantastic! We loved all the port cities and the scenery was picturesque. Our favorite memory of the trip was being able to explore on our own each day. Guiding ourselves on the daily rides was challenging but very rewarding. Usually we saw our fellow shipmates along the way and had lunch companions for our daily Danube picnics!

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Most Memorable Part? Cruising into Budapest at night. It was breath taking!!

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Passau, Bratislava, and Vienna (old version)
Austria, Germany, Slovakia

Wonderful, unforgettable trip -- best part was biking into Vienna and spending the day hiking around seeing some fantastic scenery, buildings and people. Absolutely loved the boat. Some on our trip only spoke English and the staff on the boat quickly accommodated them when it became obvious those darn Germans (can say that being related and understanding what they were saying!) weren't going to shut up during the English trip briefing by moving the following days sessions into separate areas. I would certainly do another trip somewhere else sometime with this company!