Originally Posted by
Out of my Element
In general, for river cruises, the quality lines up like this:
Grand Circle = ****
Vantage = *****
Viking = ******
If you use Tauck or another company, they may not own the boat, or have all of the boat reserved, which some folks may be bothered by, so find out ahead of time if this matters to you.
The owners of at least one of the above mentioned companies also have done things that would make me uncomfortable about supporting with my vacation dollars. Easily googled.
I am sorry to say that when it comes to Tauck your observations are far, far from the truth and reality. Tauck have an association with Scylla Cruises who build and crew a number of river boats exclusively for Tauck. It is essentially a Tauck leased boat for Tauck customers. Their attention to detail and service is second to none. We booked a cruise with Tauck last September and I've never received better service in my now considerable lifetime. There a many companies plying their trade up and down the rivers of Europe but none of them are all-inclusive like Tauck and none of them offer the on-board service that Tauck gives. As an Australian the strength of our dollar made Tauck cheaper than any of the other major companies selling in Australia.