Scenic Crystal Review
Rating by category
Additional details
We saw this cruise advertised about a year previous. it had an excellent price and was listed as a luxury cruise. We booked and were not disappointed. All decent river cruise lines have good food, service and staff. However, Scenic has brought it up a notch. The food was varied, excellent and the presentation was exquisite. Kudos to the chef and his staff. All staff were very well trained, friendly and accommodating. In addition, the tour director, Kathy, went to great lengths to handle any minor problems that came up.
One the best features, which all the guests that we talked to found of great importance, was the fact that the price was all inclusive - all tips, drinks (except for certain premium spirits), tours, transfers, etc. were included. No guessing on what to tip to whom, no envelopes to fill, no fumbling for coins or bills to tip the guides, all-in-all a very pleasant and stress-free experience. When comparing prices with other lines, we took that into consideration. In other words pay a little more at the onset but no extracurricular charges through the trip and no invoice at the end unless you buy something in the on-board shop.
The Scenic Enrichment tours were extravagant ( all included in the price )and the normal tours were guided by locals that really knew their business.
Cabin Review
Cabin was small but adequate. We don't normally book a verandah suite as we spend no time inside except to sleep. Unfortunately, the showers in the lower cabins on this particular ship, the Crystal, are almost useless due to their extremely small size. My wife and I are not very big and we could just barely get by. In this particular ship, I suggest a suite in the decks above as those showers are considerably larger. This is something that I think should be disclosed by Scenic, however, I understand that subsequently built ships no longer have that problem. Just as well, as their competition, which we have previously sailed with, does not have that drawback.
On a positive note, our cabin steward, Mellica, was a delight! Always cheerful and smiling, she really looked after us. As a matter of fact, despite the no-tipping-necessary feature, we felt compelled to reward her for her excellent service. She was worth it.
Port Reviews
Rudesheim
Excellent tour! Good guide with lots of relevant information.
Wurzburg
Due to high water, we could not stop at the town and had a rather long ride in resulting in a lack of time in the town. however, what we did see was worth going for.
Bamberg
Beautiful town with time to enjoy it.
Nuremberg
Would have been better had we more time but still worth the tour.
Regensburg
We loved this place the best. Fascinating buildings and an excellent guide as well as adequate time to enjoy it.
Vienna
City of love, music and romance. We quite enjoyed our tour.