Picture this: you’re strolling through a picturesque European town in December. Massive Christmas trees shimmer with lights, people sip mulled wine from little ceramic stockings, a live band plays Christmas music, and rows of holiday chalets bustle with shoppers. This isn’t a picture from a Hallmark Christmas movie; this is real life at a European Christmas market.
I recently went on my first Christmas Markets river cruise with my mom. We sailed with Viking on its eight-day Danube Christmas Delights itinerary. Over a week, we enjoyed six different ports of call in four countries. The cruise started in Budapest, Hungary, and as we sailed down the Danube, we spent the day in ports like Bratislava, Slovakia; Vienna, Austria; Linz, Austria; and Passau, Germany. Between exploring new-to-us destinations, enjoying time on the ship with new friends, and more, one thing really surprised me about my first Christmas market cruise: the pace worked for both me, a 30-something-year-old, and my mom, who is in her 60s.
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Grand Days In Budapest
One of the main outdoor Christmas markets in Budpest, Hungary.Megan duBois
We started our trip with a pre-night in Budapest. And take it from someone who’s cruised for decades and completed more than 50 sailings from oceans to rivers and expeditions: you must arrive at your embarkation city at least one day early. Not only does this give you more time to enjoy the city and adjust to any time changes, but it also relieves the stress of reaching the ship on time if you have travel delays. My mom and I took the first day before getting on our cruise slowly, especially after a long flight to Hungary and jet lag catching up to us in the afternoon. By our second day, which was also the official cruise embarkation day, we were well rested and ready to go.
I loved that we got to spend another overnight in Budapest on the ship because the city has a lot to offer. My mom and I went to the city’s main Christmas market at St. Stephen’s Basilica, which was about a 10-minute walk from the ship’s docking position. We spent a few hours here before escaping from the cold rain on the ship. On our first official day of the cruise, we walked just over five miles.
The following day, we explored the city on our own, including a visit to the Grand Market Hall, Budapest’s central food hall. The joy of doing things at our own pace, stopping when we saw something interesting, or enjoying a cup of coffee in a cafe was a great way to start the trip. We walked just over six miles on day two.
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Walking 5 Miles Or More Nearly Every Day
Outside of the Christmas Market in Linz, Austria.Megan duBois
The same sentiment rang true for us in our next port of call, Bratislava. Instead of joining the cruise ship excursion into the city, we ventured out alone to the Christmas market, where rows of vendors were selling everything from hand-crafted ornaments and decorations to grilled sausages and potato pancakes. Because we chose independent exploration, we moved a little faster than the tour group and stuck around longer at the Christmas market before the ship’s all-aboard time. We walked five-and-a-half miles that day.
The highlight of the cruise for my mom and me came in Vienna, which also happened to be our longest day off the ship. The morning started with a quick bus ride to the town center. We were dropped off near one of the city’s smaller Christmas markets, which, at so early in the morning, was already filled with a flurry of people. We spent a few hours there before walking to Wiener Christkindlmarkt at Rathausplatz. The large outdoor Christmas market featured everything from ice skating and photo opportunities to a light show and, of course, food and gifts. We shopped and dined around for a few more hours before heading back to the ship for a short break. The evening brought a late-night excursion to a Heurigen Dinner, where we sipped wine and ate a traditional dinner at a local vineyard. Even though the day was long (nearly 14 hours) with just a few breaks, the day’s pace was still manageable for both of us. We ended up walking about five miles.
Day five brought a half-day tour of Göttweig Abbey in Krems, Austria, before an afternoon of scenic sailing. The slower day allowed my mom and me to enjoy some time reading and sipping tea in the ship’s lounge. I also took a much-needed nap in preparation for our final days. Because of the slower pace, we only walked about three miles.
Our final few days were in Linz and Passau. In Linz, we joined the Viking-hosted walking tour, then shopped at two Christmas markets and on the main street, and enjoyed the city’s lively atmosphere. We even stumbled upon the cafe that created the Linzertorte, an Austrian pastry dating back to 1653, filled with fruit jam. This was easily our biggest walking day, reaching eight miles around the city.
Passau was easier, thanks to the ship’s docking position close to the main square. But even then, we still clocked in about six and a half miles of walking through the city.
Overall, I was really impressed with how much my mom and I fit into the week. We walked nearly everywhere over seven days, but the pace was never too much for either of us. We walked 39 miles throughout the week, not including our pre-day in Budapest.
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What To Know About The Pace Before Your Next River Cruise
Going at your own pace is easy on a Viking River Cruise.Megan duBois
For others going on this or a similar river cruise itinerary, remember you can set your own pace. My mom and I decided to peel away from the group a few times or use our free time to venture further into a city. This really added a lot of extra walking that many others on our cruise didn’t do. But we were rewarded with more time in each destination, seeing what we wanted without the schedule of a ship-sponsored tour, and the ability to take a break when we felt we needed it (often for another coffee in a cute cafe).
It was also nice to see that Viking offered a variety of pace groups for the planned walking tours in nearly every port. When my mom and I did participate in the walking tours, we always chose the standard tour, which was still a little slow for me but perfect for my mom. There was also a slower, leisurely tour, which visited many of the same sites in each town, but at a more relaxed pace for those who needed extra time to walk from point A to point B. Leisure tours are only offered if there’s enough demand, but on my Christmas markets cruise, plenty of guests wanted a slower-paced tour.
This is the real joy of river cruising. You can choose how you want to spend the day, whether that’s in a faster walking tour, a slower-paced walking tour, or just exploring the city on your own. No matter which you choose, you can enjoy a pace that works for you and your travel companions.
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