European river cruises are hugely popular, but what if you want to explore a less travelled part of the continent by boat? Guest contributor Bill Watt boards the Emerald Sun in Romania to find out.
How fabulous do those TV ads look? You know the ones. Luxury river cruise ships sailing past picture-book mediaeval towns, towering castles and lush vineyards.
Over the years my wife and I have been increasingly tempted by such ads until, just recently, we took the bait ... but with one proviso: We wanted a cruise that took us to places we might otherwise not visit.
The result: in the European spring we boarded the Emerald Sun at the Romanian riverside town of Giurgiu for an Enchantment Of Eastern Europe cruise that would wind along the Danube all the way to the Hungarian capital of Budapest.
And, boy, this odyssey really did meet our (high) expectations. Effortless transport, a room with a view, first class food and drink, memorable excursions to places most people have never heard of, and sojourns in three eastern European capital cities.
On board
Cabin: The most obvious advantage of a river cruise over other travel alternatives is that you can unpack in your cabin and not repack until you disembark. Our "Panorama Balcony Suite" was just perfect for us. It had plenty of storage and an extremely comfortable queen-sized bed. The panoramic window, which ran down the entire length of the cabin, was ceiling-to-floor which lowered halfway for fresh air or photo shoots.
Food & drink: Honestly, we have never eaten so well in our lives, and I'm not talking quantity here, although you can eat as much as you want. No, I'm talking quality. From the buffet breakfasts and lunches to the three course meals in the evening, it was five-star cuisine. There was plenty of choice, but I generally stuck with the chef's selection as it was cleverly themed to match the particular region we were sailing in at the time. Same with the beer and wine (no added payment) served and topped up throughout your meal.
Special mention goes to the head chef on the Emerald Star. He had a meeting with my wife who is coeliac and lactose intolerant, at the start of the cruise, then his team produced - day in and day out - the most incredible meals for her. It was a delightful personal touch which we have rarely encountered anywhere else.
Fellow travellers: Mixing with our fellow passengers was a delight. Everyone seemed to have an interesting story to tell about their lives. Mainly English-speaking nationalities were represented - Americans, Canadians, Aussies, Kiwis, English, Scots - but there was a sprinkling of others, and all on board seemed to be having a ball.
RIVER DANCE
I loved the wild scenery of this part of the Danube. It was mainly rolling, wooded hills and marshes, with the occasional towns. Very peaceful. There are a few ancient forts and such along the way, too, but I don't think you can compare it to the rivers of western Europe, with their seemingly endless flow of storybook mediaeval villages and castles.
A highlight was passing through the Iron Gates gorge, with Romania on one side of the river and Serbia on the other.
The massive head of ancient local hero King Decebalus, carved into rock on the Romanian side, is spectacular.
But, for me, the best part of our voyage was how it gave us access to stunning places that most people in the western world wouldn't know even existed.
The author travelled at his own expense. He flew Turkish Airlines (https://www.turkishairlines.com) to Bucharest where he joined Emerald Cruises' Enchantment of Eastern Europe tour to Budapest (https://emerald.cruises/AU/en-GB).
* For a longer version of this story with full details on side trips see https://www.bringbitz.com/post/waterway-wonder
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