Tonic Trek: Exploring Europe Like a Viking

After trekking through Eastern Europe all summer on planes, trains and automobiles, I decided to head back west on a riverboat. As an admitted Leif Ericson fan, I naturally went with Viking River Cruises and their 15-day trip between Budapest and Amsterdam.

My journey to the starry nights of Amsterdam began with three capital cities in three nights (Budapest, Bratislava and Vienna), but we spent the majority of our time in medieval Germany sailing through Bavaria and along the Rhine. These are towns that flourished during the river trade days, but in the age of overnight mail and semi-trucks, they transformed into tourist attractions for riverboat passengers like myself. I'm currently on the second of the trip's three rivers and plan to write about the individual towns in coming posts, but let me start by highlighting three ways in which riding the riverboat differs from my previous experience on ocean cruises.

1. Size Matters -- In this case, smaller is better. Naturally, the boats must be smaller since they're navigating shallower waters with river locks and bridges. Add in an open seating format for meals, and you end up meeting nearly everyone on the ship. Sure, most passengers are old enough to quote the Smothers Brothers and one lady made me look at photos of her cats, but there were also sharp-minded retirees who generously recounted memories of World War II and Korea, hearing the Beatles and Elvis for the first time and seeing now-classic films like "Rebel Without a Cause" and "Casablanca." Of course, there was the occasional slip, such as the gentleman who said he liked "On the Waterfront" but not the sequel. The sequel? "Yeah, the one were he actually wins the title from Apollo Creed." Um, that would be the "Rocky" series, and while Stallone is no Brando, his character actually was a contender.

2. A View to a Hill -- Ocean liners offer beautiful sunsets, but the Viking Legend one-upped the sunrays with oversized windows displaying a constant stream of magnificent riverside sights. From misty forests and rural towns to castles and chateaus, the views were always different and beautiful, especially for an urban native like myself. In fact, I can see a castle through the lounge windows right now as I write.

3. Party All Day, Sail All Night -- The boat sails at night and the towns generally aren't too far apart, so we dock each day for guided tours by foot and/or bus and ample amounts of free time. In other words, you spend the majority of your waking hours exploring cities and not sitting on the boat.

There are ocean cruises that also offer frequent stops and smaller ships, but such an itinerary seemed more natural on a riverboat. Plus, for my particular trip, I got to ride on the brand new Viking Legend, which I'm glad to say is a new "green" ship. The vessel features a hybrid engine with green propulsion technology that allows it to use less fuel and produce 20 percent less emissions. In fact, past travelers clued me in to yet another perk from the green engine -- it was astronomically quieter.

In other words, nature makes the riverboat experience better for me, and the green engine makes it better for nature. Talk about a win-win scenario!