The Romantic “Cities of Light” Viking River Cruise – From Paris to Prague

By Carol Doyel –

This summer my husband and I discovered the tranquility of “river cruising” on a glorious 12-day trip, with Viking River Cruises – on the “Cities of Light” Paris-to-Prague tour. We have never really been interested in ocean cruising, although from what other guests on the cruise shared with us we may want to do a Viking Ocean Cruise next, but the river cruise was a relaxing way to experience international travel, while visiting multiple countries and cruising on the Moselle, Rhine and Main Rivers. It was smooth sailing all the way.

There are many European river cruise options offered by Viking – we chose the Cities-of-Light itinerary because we wanted to visit Paris and thought it would be wonderful to end in Prague – We were not disappointed. Both Paris and Prague are cities filled with history, stunning architecture, and old world charm as well as an unlimited number of cuisine options.

We were captivated by the “romance capitol” as Paris is known for. Our favorite romantic experience was the moonlit cruise we took on the Seine River, which I highly recommend for couples looking for one of the most romantic experiences of a lifetime. The captain gave a great narrative tour that pointed out famous landmarks, and shared many historical facts about the famous river and bridges. There were a number of local cruises to choose from (I highly recommend taking an evening cruise so you can enjoy the spectacular city lights).

We cruised under 22 of the 38 bridges within the city of Paris, including the famous bridges – Port Alexandre III and the Lover’s bridge, Pont des Arts, which crosses from the left bank to the Louvre museum.

The only downside…we had just two nights in Paris. If you are considering a Viking package that includes Paris, I recommend that you purchase the pre-extension option that includes two extra days in Paris. You can also add a post-extension two day stay in Prague to have extra time in both extraordinary cities.

We stayed at Le Meridien Etoile hotel, which was bustling with people from multiple Viking groups, which meant it took much longer for our bags to be taken to our room (I recommend if you need access to your luggage before you begin exploring the city upon arrival to ask the Bell-hop if you can take up your own bags).

The room was nice, and the bed comfortable, but the highlight was the fabulous daily breakfast buffet – probably one of the best we’ve ever had. The hotel seemed to be centrally located and fairly close to a number of points-of-interest with many restaurants on the same block as the hotel or within walking distance. It was about a half mile walk to Arc de Triomphe, one of the most famous monuments in Paris located in the center of the Place Charles de Gaulle at the west end of the Champs-Élysées.

In our short time in Paris we managed to visit and see a number of famous attractions. The day we arrived we took a short nap and then got a cab and headed for the Eifel Tower to make sure we did not miss this most famous landmark of all. The Viking tour of the city was well worth getting up the next day early, even with jetlag, and enabled us to see Paris from the comfort of the Mercedes Viking coaches that included a number of stops and a tour of Notre Dame – Another of our favorites and included in the Viking Cities-of-Light package.

Following the city tour of Paris we selected a restaurant near the hotel and took an evening stroll, then headed back to the hotel so we could get an early start the next day. The following morning we loaded again onto the Viking coaches to head to Luxemburg for another city tour, free time for lunch and a stop and tour of the Luxemburg American Cemetery and Memorial. We were very taken by the tour and history of this important memorial in honor of mostly American soldiers,  including many unknown soldiers, most of whom died in the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. You will also find the grave of General George S. Patton, Jr.

From Luxemburg, we boarded the Viking coaches once again and headed for our ship – the Odin, which awaited us just a couple of hours away in Trier, Germany. Upon boarding the Odin, we were pleasantly surprised by the luxury of the ship. It was even more beautiful than the pictures on the Viking website. When we arrived at our stateroom we were greeted with a delicious fruit tray, that was replenished daily, and a bottle of Champaign.

The room was lovely, with plenty of space for all of our things and included a balcony where we would sit while cruising along the rivers. One of the most memorable days was an afternoon of reading and napping in our stateroom while cruising along the middle Rhine. Looking out at the river banks as they gently rolled by, and from time-to-time a fairytale like castle would come into view, some so close to the river bank it seemed one could reach out and touch them. I had no idea there were so many castles along the middle Rhine.

This was just the beginning of a wonderful experience that we will never forget – You can read more in the next article in the series covering our 12 day “Cities of Light” tour with Viking River Cruises.

 Carol Doyel is Editor-in-Chief and Founder of LivingBetter50.com. She is a graduate of The Full Gospel Bible Institute and has a passion for women’s ministries, issues and lives. She and her husband of 26+ years have three grown kids and four grandchildren. They currently reside in southern CA. Her desire is to inspire women to live better physically, emotionally, financially, and spiritually.