Avalon Active Discovery Prague to Budapest

I want to send a special shout out to a very important person who truly made this past week so incredible - our fabulous cruise director Katy Huyskens!! She was always there with a smile and kept things running smoothly. With so many exciting tours to select from, Katy was and is a superstar!!

Cathy travelled into the past the morning we were in Visegrad Hungary and participated in a medieval tournament. Guests were selected for various roles including the king, queen and court jester! Afterwards, they visited and tried their hands at some craftwork like pottery and metal forging. After all that excitement, it was time to fill their glass in the fountain of eternal wine! I think we all need one of those!!

An intimate experience in Vienna - a cooking class to learn how to make some delicious Austrian specialities including schnitzel, potato salad and cake with plum sauce! A very happy and well fed group!!

One of our most popular tours on this cruise was the Insider's tour in Vienna. Guests had the opportunity to take the metro, an original street car, visit a local residence and then bake some bread. A truly unique opportunity to get a glimpse into Viennese life and culture!! The fabulous breads that were made were served at the grill lunch onboard the ship for everyone to enjoy!

Another wonderful experience in Vienna was the opportunity to attend a private concert performance highlighting the music of Mozart and Strauss. Vienna truly is the city of music!!

In the beautiful city of Vienna, Paul and Cathy enjoyed a fabulous evening enjoying Viennese specialities at a Heurgurian restaurant, surrounded by beautiful vineyards and al fresco in a pretty little courtyard.

Missing the fabulous food onboard the Avalon Luminary already! So many spectacular dishes prepared for us and when you see how small the kitchen space is, it's incredible what our executive chef Dragos and his staff can do!!

The morning we arrived in Mauthausen, Cathy joined her first ever guided bike excursion from Mauthausen to Enns. It was a beautiful morning for a 15kms bike ride along the Danube and getting to take the cute ferry across the river was so much fun.

We wanted to use this page to share many of the diverse excursions that are available onboard Avalon's Active Discovery cruise. Sorry for the delay, but now getting photos of some of the other tours! These are slightly out of order but hope you find them interesting!! From Cathy!! My Active Discovery Included tour in the Wachu Valley region: The Wine Tour of World Experience in Klems . This interactive tour is a unforgetable, unique, journey into the world of Austria's major producer of quality wines.

Ah Budapest! Such a beautiful city, especially at night!!

What could be more perfect than relaxing in the hot tub while our ship the Avalon Luminary sails into Budapest!!

After a lovely hike through a national park, Cathy and I decided to sign out bicycles from the ship to go for a little ride through the town. Bikes onboard Avalon are very comfortable and easy to ride. They even supply the helmets! We enjoyed a stop at a cute little local Hungarian restaurant for a glass of wine and then stopped at a beach so we could dip our toes in the Danube before making our way back to the ship.

Greetings from Hungary! We departed Vienna yesterday evening and arrived in the lovely town of Visegrad this morning. Took part in a hike that offered incredible views of the surrounding towns along the Danube.

Guided tour of the Vienna fine arts museum this morning before it opened to the general public. Such detail and intricacy in the works of art! An extra special treat - as we were walking to the gallery, we saw the Lippizaner stallions out for their morning walk!! A truly awesome experience after taking part in the behind the scenes tour yesterday!

Once in a lifetime experience this afternoon. An inside visit with champagne reception of the famous Spanish riding school in Vienna! The Lipizzaner horses are stunning!

Welcome to Vienna!! This morning we had a wonderful sightseeing tour by bicycle - Such a fun way to explore the city of music!!

How close do river cruise ships come to the underside of bridges? THISCLOSE...

Truly enjoyable bike ride today from Spitz to Krems with a stop in the picturesque town of Durnstein. Rolling hills, stunning Danube views, cobblestone streets in little villages and hillside vineyards - a perfect morning!

Want to canoe along the Danube with an expert river guide? It is an included excursion on this itinerary, great for most ages and abilities, and offers out of this world views! Here is :30 as we approach the historic village of Durnstein this morning...

Visited the charming town of Grein this afternoon which included a visit to Clam castle. We got to visit with a real Count too!! - so cool!!

Very moving tour this morning in Mauthausen of the concentration camp, one of World War II's largest and most brutal Nazi work camps. It is still hard to comprehend the horrors that these people faced and the tragic losses that occurred. "Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy son's sons."

Want to see a trip through a lock? This was taken today on the Danube outside of Engelhartzsell, Austria. 12 minutes of video - cut down to 30 seconds! Enjoy...