Name: Diamonds on the Danube
Brand: TUI River Cruises
Rating: 2.5 (2 reviews)

Overview

There's no better way to see Europe and The Danube River than from the deck of TUI Isla, sailing with TUI River Cruises for 7 nights from Budapest. The itinerary features stops at 3 destinations, including Bratislava and Linz, before returning to Budapest. Each port brings its own character and charm, while days at sea give you time to enjoy the TUI Isla's on-board amenities. With fares from £1,075 per person, this is a wonderful way to experience Europe and The Danube River by sea.

TUI River Cruises

TUI river cruises offer adults-only voyages on all the major European rivers. The all-inclusive sailings come with top service and an array of tempting shore excursions. You'll be spoiled for choice!

There are currently three river cruise ships - TUI Isla, TUI Maya and TUI Skyla. All TUI vessels have capacity for a maximum of 155 guests, ensuring that there's plenty of personal space onboard.

Cruise Itinerary

Day 1

Budapest

Many Danube cruises start or end in Budapest, and the Hungarian capital remains a highlight for passengers. It’s a crowd-pleaser of a city, with something for everyone – muscle-melting thermal spas for those seeking relaxation, museums packed with artefacts for the culturally curious and ruin bars for travellers searching for an offbeat adventure.

Day 2

Bratislava

Known as 'the little big city', Bratislava is smaller than most other European capitals, but still has plenty to do. From castles and clock towers to cocktail bars and 'the UFO Bridge', it's full of mysteries you'll want to unravel.

Day 3

Dürnstein

Dürnstein is a fairytale town on the banks of the Danube, offering a mix of Austrian hospitality and medieval history. You can visit the castle where Richard the Lionheart was held captive before heading deeper into the Wachau Valley to stroll the rolling vineyards and sip the crisp Riesling.

Day 4

Linz

Linz is a charming stop on a Danube cruise for a variety of reasons. Firstly, it's home to Austria's largest cathedral. Secondly, it has an impressive array of art and science museums. Last, but certainly not least, it's the home of the delicious Linzertorte, which is especially popular around Christmas.

Days 5-6

Vienna

The Austrian capital is full of old-world charm. Art lovers marvel at the works of the old masters while the musically inclined head to a gilded concert hall to listen to a world-class orchestra or a ballroom for a Viennese Waltz workshop. For foodies, there's plenty to surprise and delight, from the high-ceilinged coffeehouses to the traditional wine bars that embody gemütlichkeit (the Austrian answer to hygge).

Days 7-8

Budapest

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Days 5-6

Days 7-8

155

Passengers

Crew

2020

Launched

12t

Tonnage

135m

Length

11m

Width

Decks

EUR

Currency

TUI Isla

TUI Isla follows the TUI River Cruises standard of two onboard restaurants and bars. These are thrown into the mix with a please-all top deck, featuring sunbathing, lounging and activity zones.

All Prices

Customer reviews

Reviews

Lovely staff and clean ship

Cannot fault the cruise itself apart from the weather unfortunately! The ship was clean and tidy, the crew polite and attentive and the food lovely. However it is worth mentioning that although it is suggested that if you can climb a couple of sets of stairs you will be able to manage the distance to walk from the boat to the centre of town this can be too much for someone with slight mobility problems. Unlike ocean going liners there is no shuttle service. Also the double docking means that out of 7 days we could not open our curtains or have a view on 2 full days and some parts of the days. Having paid for a double juliette balcony this was not ideal.

TUI River Cruises TUI Maya

Reviews

Great Deal

Wasn't quite sure what to expect from Tui after doing Avalon, however this was a great cruise, staff were lovely, , it was a younger crowd, wines were changed every day, good food, cabins small but no issues. Brilliant entertainment every night. No excursions included but as we docked close to towns it wasnt a problem to get out and about. Would recommend Tui and the danube cruise.

TUI River Cruises TUI Skyla

Reviews

Open and Honest

This is written in reply to a review posted on the 20/08/24 by Ian, regarding his experience on the TUI ISLA, To clarify the situation he posted and make it clear and open to potential new passengers on TUI ISLA, I was on the top deck just behind the bridge at the time of the incident and can clearly see why the four people put the complaint in, This was to me a clear failure of Health and Safety as no warning was given over the tannoy of the approaching very low bridge, had I not seen the two crew members either side if the bridge waving their arms up and down, the approaching bridge would have hit every passenger standing on the top deck, it was the shouting and noise of the passengers that notified the people at the rear of the top deck to kneel down, so this could have been a really serious situation for TUI River Cruises, Now whether the Captain took exception to the complaints made and then decided to close the top deck we wont know, but the passengers where put at risk by failure to announce the approaching very low bridge, then strangely the following day the top deck was open, I hope this clarifies why TUI decided to close the top deck, overall I had a good time on Isla and yes TUI have to be open and honest as to where they are going to port as we did port in a industrial port surrounded by a scrap yard.

TUI River Cruises TUI Isla

Reviews

Awful experience on TUI ISLA

Im on TUI Isla on the Moselle wines and vines tour. All was very well up until the evening of 19th August 2024 when we were advised that the top deck was going to be closed until the very last day of our tour apart from when we were in port. Now this is because there were complaints from 4 people on our cruise about 2 low bridges we passed under against 151 people who did not complain. So because there was a video post on social media about the bridge TUI took the not so wise decision to spoil the remainder of peoples holidays by banning use of the top deck. The TUI cruise director onboard placed all of the blame on the captain quoting health and safety and added that when we were on the river Main at the beginning of the tour the top deck is closed anyway. That was certainly not the case. Myself and others were on the top deck all of the time and up until around 11.30 at night. Yes the bridges were low but at no time were we advised to vacate the top deck. There was a meeting yesterday evening where pretty much everyone was not happy. There were also complaints about the scrapyard we docked next to all day( this is fairly common according to the cruise director lady), complaints about a cancellation of a trip today but the TUI cruise lady blankly refused to accept complaints about the top deck being closed. However they accepted complaints from the 4 people who complained about the bridges. The cruise lady cut me off when I complained and referred to me as that bloke to another passenger. I told her she should not refer to me as that bloke but use my name. I do have witnesses to that. When I spoke to her later she denied calling me that bloke and claimed she referred to me as that chap. An outright lie. Fortunately I do have the conversation recorded and as she could not offer any decent explanation for her rudeness or justification for closing the top deck for 3 hot days she walked off and refused to speak to me. There is no reason whatsoever that the deck couldnt be closed for any low bridges (of which there were just 2 on the Moselle) as its been done before. But for TUI to blame the captain and not admit it is they who have pressured the captain is a cop out and poor. It has ruined many peoples holiday and I shall be following this up with TUI. Whilst we are sailing I will also be videoing passes under bridges from the tiny bit of outside space we are permitted to use as from those, I will be able to show the relative height of bridges and show that at no point was there any danger to anyone. I will be taking this further on my return from my ruined holiday as I hope will others. Shame on you TUI and I for 1 will never book another holiday with TUI in any shape or form. This is not a reflection on the majority of staff on the boat who are excellent. The worst cruise and rudeness I have ever experienced on any cruise.

TUI River Cruises TUI Isla

Reviews

2023-06-19 12:19:22

due to easyjet cancelling flights we had a very bad start. tui stated that occasionally we had to double dock and sometimes a we had a difficult walk over two ships only twice did we not double dock that blocked any view. also stated that occasionally the top deck would be collapsed for low bridges, it was down for four days and one day we sailed all day and had to stay inside not value for money not as good as a sea cruise.. towns visited and scenery very good

TUI River Cruises TUI Maya

Reviews

2022-10-03 19:31:50

April 2022 was our second time on the lovely Tui Maya, two different itineraries on the Rhine. Enjoyed both so much that we have booked to go on the Maya again soon, this time on the German River Main. Also, we have recently booked another Tui river cruise ship, on the Danube next year. We usually have a Deck 2 Superior Cabin, but have now spent a little more for a more spacious Suite. We are experienced cruisers, e.g been on a Saga ship on the Danube some years ago. Also, we have done many sea cruises over the years on various ships, including Tui Marella We love that Tui have now gone into River Cruising. Great staff, good food and drinks, marvellous large windows in deck 2 cabins to enjoy the views, wonderful value for money.

TUI River Cruises TUI Maya

Reviews

2022-07-03 13:06:38

Very helpful,friendly crew. Ship in good decorative order. Reasonable variety of food. Super itinerary. Nice selection of shore excursions. Had a thoroughly enjoyable cruise.

TUI River Cruises TUI Skyla

Reviews

Customer Review

Superb.

TUI River Cruises TUI Maya