OK, so let's sum up the Santana Blue Danube tour.
First, I have to say that it was very well organised by Santana. The boat provided a moving hotel for the guests, without the need to pack and repack repeatedly. The cabins (we were on the lowest deck) were adequate in size and well equipped. Vee was a big fan of the air conditioning as the outside temperatures were mid-30s. The food was plentiful, with heaps of choices and a good standard of preparation and presentation. The service was good considering the number of people to be served and the fact that just about everyone came in at the same time. i guess that normally on a river cruise people wander in in smaller groups, while a Santana tour is a group thing.
The breakfast buffet offered a huge variety, from smoked meats to fresh omelettes, with a bread buffet offering everything from white toast to kugelhof. Also available were cereals, yoghurts fruity or natural, fromage frais et sec, bain marie scrambled eggs, sausage, as well as smoked fish and fresh fruit. Lunch buffets were similarly bountiful, lots of crudities, salads, cooked meals, etc. Dinners were ordered at the table from an ever-changing table d'hote menu with chef's recommendations and plenty of choices. Draft beer and house wines were plentiful, if you could catch the eye of the waiter, and a fuller wine list was available. I'm sure no one went hungry!
The middle reaches of the Danube offer lots of historical sights - castles, walled towns, abbeys a go-go, but the natural scenery becomes a bit plain as you leave Vienna.
We took the Wolfgang rides, with Wolfgang Haas, the European Santana distributor, as guide and found the pace at times challenging - we're tourists after all - and the company varied and pleasant. I would think that the riders doing the shorter rides might be a bit bored with the riverside scenery as opposed to the Wolfpack hills, but no one mentioned it. A few years back we cycled the Danube from the Black Forest to the Donauwerth and that part was very scenic but of course wouldn't accommodate a floating hotel!
Anyway, bravo to Bill and Jan and Robert and Wolfgang for a well planned and enjoyable trip.
At the end of the trip we were transported to Budapest airport. Our reorganised bike bags were just underweight and the flight to Paris was just a few minutes late. Unfortunately, that few minutes - combined with a 50 minute wait for the half-hourly Air France bus - meant we missed our train from Paris Montparnasse to Agen by 10 minutes. An expensive ten minutes as it meant we had to catch the next TGV and pay a 96 euro supplement. Ah well, it was still cheaper than if we hadn't booked at all.
Our stay with old friends in Agen was delightful as always, and we ate and talked way too much over 3 days.
Now we are back on the road, having ridden our single bikes from Agen to Castelnau-Magnoac 124 kms in 35c+ heat. Our hotel tonight is a simple Logis de France - Hotel Dupont. The meal was copious and reasonable quality and the wine (St Mont 2006) was excellent. Tomorrow we hit the Pyrenees, with a 90 km jaunt over Col de Peyresourde to Bagneres de Luchon before we cross over to Spain.
Photos soon!
No comments:
Post a Comment