As recent guests on the River Empress cruise on the 26th April from Amsterdam to Budapest. We would like to pass on some comments about the cruise.

The cruise itself was a holiday of a lifetime and was made more special by the efforts of a fantastic crew and cruise manager Markus Schindelegger. He was outstanding in knowledge of the area and went out of his way to ensure all guests had a pleasurable and informative cruise. As you can appreciate, to meet the requirements of 138 guests is a huge task, but was achieved with aplomb by an attentive ... Captain and crew.

The service on board was first class, very efficient and friendly. The range of the menu was five star.

Comments of other guests on the cruise who have traveled extensively, were that this cruise surpassed anything they have been on.

We would be  pleased if you could pass on these comments to Captain and crew.

Yours sincerely,

Beverley Jensen and Barry Hill Read More...

Ni Hao,
Hubert (HE HUI) was our tour manager for the "Grand China and Yangtze River" tour (April 21-May 10, 2009).  We want you to know what a wonderful job he did.  Hubert made our time in China so much more interesting and every detail was taken care of to perfection. He is a born teacher, brilliant, and he knows how to make learning fun and fascinating. What a great ambassador for China. We have been on other tours and Hubert is the best. He is tops!
Xie Xie,
Janet and Neil Thompson

"The cruise that Michael and I just took was excellent. Uniworld did a great job of everything. The people were very attentive, the ship was immaculate, our room was great, the food was excellent and the day tours were very informative and well done. This is well worth recommending." -- Suzanne

The cruise that Michael and I just took was excellent. Uniworld did a great job of everything. The people were very attentive, the ship was immaculate, our room was great, the food was excellent and the day tours were very informative and well done. This is well worth recommending." -- Suzanne

Well, we are back. And it was a super trip. I have nothing but wonderful things to say about Uniworld, and the River Beatice! Everything was ship shape. Everyone was extremely professional and top of the line. The service was so personal and friendly from everyone of your staff, I could commend them all. Robert was wonderful as well, and I would like his email so I can thank him as well. I did write a lengthy survey on the ship, and now I am trying to think about what specifics I relayed. Suffice it to say that ... the overall experience was so very positive, that nothing that I could suggest really stands out now.  The other guests that I met that were not in the industry were equally as pleased and are planning to go once again and select Uniworld as their host. The ship was a beauty, and everything was glorious. I can’t believe the storage room for all our things.
 
The captain was a wonderful person, and was so accessible and helpful. Everyone had his attention and concern. You will want to keep him!
 
I met a writer for USA today on board, and she apparently quoted me on her blog about river cruising.  Her article will come out soon. She was very positive, as well. Not only about river cruising in general, but about Uniworld. I certainly did my best to support you.
 
It was a very special experience, and a very special trip, and everyone was wonderful.
 
Thank you, thank you, thank you
Paula Wagner Read More...

My wife and I have just returned from The Grand China and Yangtze tour with your company and wanted to express how happy we were with the tour.  We felt that the destinations selected were all most worthwhile and the accommodations were above expectations.  We also both felt, as did everyone in our small group, that the tour was made much better by the fact that it was lead by Hubert whose knowledge and insight added immeasurable. He also made the tour fun.
 
Because of these factors I would recommend, without hesitation, your tour.
 
Regards,
Tom and Jane Chisholm

Just a short note to let you know our agents thoroughly enjoyed our Tulips and Windmills cruise aboard the River Queen on 4/21/09. It was our first time sailing with Uniworld and we look forward to highly recommending it to our clients.
 
The crew and staff was so professional and friendly from the first step aboard and made us feel right at home in our new surroundings. The staterooms were so convenient, immaculate, and comfortable. Food was outstanding and the dining room staff always made us feel pampered.
 
We're looking forward to being able to highly recommend Uniworld using our personal experiences ... which we have found is the best way to market a product.
 
BettyAnn Zyla
Owner B.A.Z. Travel Read More...

I just wanted to say a proper and huge "Thank You" for all you (and the entire River Beatrice staff!) did to make our Uniworld River Cruise experience so wonderful. Both Byron and I thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and it exceeded my expectations by a long way.

There were so many highlights on the trip that I hardly know where to begin, and all the extra touches too, like the clocks and the pillow gifts on the last evening, and having dinner with the Captain! The ship is really lovely and it was terrific to see all the various ... cabin categories. It was also great to see River Countess - I feel I have a more complete picture of Uniworld since all your ships aren't as new as River Beatrice.

I don't think there is a single thing that I could criticize about the ship, the crew or the itinerary, and of course the food was amazing. Without exception, everyone was great and with people like Captain Tom, Siggy, Gyongi, Alina and the other front desk people, we really were in good hands.

Anyway, thank you so much again...

Ellie Hender, CTC, MCC
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I turned eighteen on the maiden journey of Uniworld’s River Beatrice. This nine-day- long river cruise along the Danube started out in Budapest, went on to Vienna, Salzburg and several small enchanting villages in Austria and Germany. It was an incredible initiation into young adulthood. Every night I dined with men and women who have hiked, sailed, and flown across the world many times over. They shared with me their life experience, and took me on narrative tours of the crème de la crème of their travels.
I visited some of the most exquisite restaurants and patisseries in Austria ... and Hungary, toured magnificent Rococo abbeys, and reveled quietly in the verdant mountainsides of Salzburg.  It was my first time sailing on a river vessel, and the smaller ship made this trip more personal as the staff quickly learned my name and the distinctive occasion of my journey.  River cruises highlight the star attractions of relatively small geographical areas, and eliminate the need for spending entire days at sea. Each alluring port was promptly succeeded by another, without the long hours of wave watching on the vast ocean that are inescapable on larger cruise ships. 

...I know that I will see the Danube flowing through the concrete canyons of New York City many years from now, that opulent dinners and photographically still Bavarian countryside will adorn my daily activities at home.

Turning eighteen is a personal experience. Like getting married it is an occasion that one long waits for in eager anticipation.  It is a benchmark that seems far off right up until the very day when it comes.  Its culmination therefore leaves one in doubt asking, “Is it true, am I really eighteen?” or “Am I really married?” This incredulity is the most important reason why these days must be adorned with ceremony, to stand in the mind as reassurance that they have occurred.  Indeed, without the Bavarian hillsides to remind me, I might start to forget the occasion as time and distance encroaches.
 
This trip has held so much significance for me. On the dinner table I saw not the entrée, but the culmination of years of anticipation. I feel as if the world opened itself up to me on the deck of the River Beatrice. It seemed to promise that dreams can be scheduled in between school or workdays, and that it is better for one’s soul to be a world citizen than a national one.
– Nathaniel Black Read More...

I have just returned from our Russian River Cruise with my group. To say that they and we were pleased is a huge understatement. Everything about the cruise exceeded the expectations of my discerning clients.
 
In particular, I wanted to praise Inna Medvedkova, the cruise director, Svetlana, her assistant and all the excellent on-board Uniworld ladies, and Sergey, the hotel manager. A particular bouquet is deserved to Prof. Inna Gritsenko whose lectures were spell-binding, authoritative and enriching. And the entertainers, Galina on the piano was astonishingly talented (my wife is a piano teacher so this is high praise from her) and ... Sergey on the accordion completed a dynamic entertaining duo – they’re indefatigable!
 
I also want to thank you for the special arrangements you made regarding wine & water in the cabins as well as the greatly appreciated wine reception you now provided on board – my group felt very special indeed! And I noticed that you have the Quietvox headsets in Russia – they certainly facilitated communication between guides and their audiences.
 
This first group having gone so well, I want to tell you that we are going to feature all Uniworld Cruises on our website to individual travelers and to potential groups. We plan to grow our business with you – we have already proposed Egypt/Jordan to one group and will look particularly at the Danube. Having just received your 2009 Europe River Cruises, I acknowledge the continuation of amenities as well as the new ones for company-owned ships in 2009.
– Don Harper (Travel Agent)
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