OpenTube

Our First Viking River Cruise - Was It Worth It?

2 Lane Traveler

53,224 views

Our First Viking River Cruise: Was It Worth It?

After years of road trips, ocean cruises, and exploring America's backroads, Sharon and I finally experienced our very first river cruise.

We spent 12 unforgettable days aboard Viking's Herja, sailing the Rhine River from Basel, Switzerland to Amsterdam, Netherlands. Along the way we visited five countries, explored medieval villages, toured historic castles, wandered through magnificent cathedrals, cruised through the legendary Middle Rhine Valley, visited the famous windmills of Kinderdijk, and even took a day trip to Antwerp, Belgium.

But after all of that, one question remained:
Was our first Viking River Cruise worth it?

Join us as we share the highlights, surprises, favorite moments, and lessons learned from our first-ever river cruise experience.

📍 Destinations Featured:
• Lucerne, Switzerland
• Basel, Switzerland
• Breisach, Germany
• Black Forest, Germany
• Strasbourg, France
• Heidelberg, Germany
• Koblenz, Germany
• Cologne, Germany
• Kinderdijk, Netherlands
• Amsterdam, Netherlands
• Antwerp, Belgium

🚢 Viking Herja
🗓️ June 2026

Explore beautiful scenic travel locations across Europe, from tranquil canals to rolling hills. See stunning vistas today.

This collection of footage captures the serene atmosphere of European towns, featuring quiet canals, historic fountains, and peaceful rolling hills along a river. If you appreciate the aesthetic of European travel, these clips offer a quiet escape into some of the continent's most picturesque areas.

Beyond the landscapes, the video highlights the modern side of travel with shots of a contemporary train station and candid moments of people relaxing at an outdoor gathering. Whether you are looking for travel inspiration or simply want to enjoy some calm, scenic European landscapes, this video provides a visual tour of these destinations. Use these clips to plan your next trip or to enjoy a moment of tranquility while viewing scenic travel locations.

Subscribe for weekly travel inspiration and scenic footage updates. Which of these locations would you visit first? Let us know in the comments.
If you've taken a river cruise, we'd love to hear about your experience in the comments!
#VikingRiverCruise #RhineRiverCruise #RiverCruising #VikingCruises #Germany #Switzerland #Netherlands #France #Belgium #TravelEurope #2LaneTraveler
________________________________________
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
01:17 Chapter 1 – Arriving in Switzerland
03:46 Chapter 2 – First Impressions of Viking
05:37 Chapter 3 – The Black Forest & Breisach
07:06 Chapter 4 – Strasbourg: A perfect Afternoon
08:43 Chapter 5 – Heidelberg & the Schloss
11:13 Chapter 6 – The Rhine We Came To See
16:22 Chapter 7 – Koblenz & A Real German Beer Fest
18:36 Chapter 8 – Cologne: A City Reborn
21:26 Chapter 9 – The Windmills of Kinderdijk
23:05 Chapter 10 – Amsterdam and a Surprising Discovery
26:57 Chapter 11 – The Final Verdict – Was it Worth it?

________________________________________
🚗 More backroad trips, small towns, and roadside stops:
@mikethe2lanetraveler
________________________________________
Website: https://2lanetraveler.com
Instagram: Instagram: 2lanetraveler
Facebook: Facebook: mike.curtis.98499
________________________________________
🎥 More stories: @longwayhomewithmike
________________________________________
🎵 Music: YouTube Audio Library (Except as Otherwise Noted)

"Long Road Ahead" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
________________________________________
ABOUT 2 LANE TRAVELER
2 Lane Traveler is all about taking the scenic route.
We explore America's backroads, historic highways, classic diners, vintage motels, roadside attractions, scenic byways, waterfalls, small towns, and hidden gems that many travelers drive right past.
Sometimes the journey really is the destination.
Subscribe and join us as we continue discovering the people, places, history, and stories found along the road less traveled.
📍 Based in Tennessee
🛣️ 2 Lanes • Endless Possibilities
________________________________________
(Not sponsored. All opinions are my own.)

20 Comments

@anneedwards141 2 months ago

Thanks for taking us on the journey with you. Loved your dialogue, music and relaxing vibe. 😊

@Sheamusj 2 months ago

Kind Greetings From Canada; Thank you for making this lovely video, and importantly, your music selections for this video are wonderful. Wishing you both good health and best wishes!

@lorettamaloney6287 2 months ago

❤ Well done! Your video is stunning and inspiring us to try the Viking Rhine River cruise. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful travel experience with all of us.

@reneesimmons4817 2 months ago

Loved this video!!

@brendaf2511 2 months ago

Our first river cruise was 10 years ago on a Rhine Christmas Market river cruise with Tauck . We did a pre-trip stay in Amsterdam before taking a train to our departure city, Cologne. The stay in Amsterdam at a boutique hotel was unforgettable; loved the city, enjoyed a food tour (exceptional), Anne Frank house, Van Gogh museum, Rijksmuseum, night time canal boat tour, Delft shop. Our experience with TAUCK was exceptional. Fewer guests on board, bigger rooms, all-inclusive drinks, excellent cruise director and tour guides, and on board entertainment including local musicians and vocalists that were top notch. Seeing all the cities and sites adorned in European Christmas beauty was a highlight. We arrived in Basel, and stayed an extra night before our departure. The extra day was so worth it, as we visited city and Christmas markets, absorbed the historic architecture and city buildings. One memorable adventure found us visiting a small church where a Christmas concert practice was underway and being welcomed to listen to one of the most meaningful and beautiful performances I have ever heard.
This was the first of our 4 river cruises, 3 have been with Tauck (2 Christmas, one on Rhone in France). The most recent cruise was a Viking Christmas market cruise on the Elbe in Germany. Tours were interesting, markets not as spectacular, rooms much smaller, night time entertainment adequate.
I would highly recommend TAUCK all inclusive for future cruises.
We did a Danube Christmas market cruise with them as well. Started in Vienna and ended in Rothenberg (we did our own planned pre trip and post trip stays in Vienna and then on to Old Town Rothenberg, back to Rothenberg departure).

@dllw2413 1 month ago

That was lovely! My husband and I have been wondering about taking a river cruise. I think your video definitely pushed the idea from a maybe to a yes! Thank you. 😊

@wolfgangpolzer248 2 months ago

What a great travel experience. And what a great way of telling us about it. Loved it. Thank you!

@texasjody9835 2 months ago

Beautiful, thank you for posting.

@sheristewart5923 2 months ago

Loved this!! I have also been on numerous Viking cruises....but one day I was lucky and remained on the vessel as others visited a castle along the Rhine. As I saw and remembered the views (including the Lorelei) I got teary eyed from remembering how special that trip was. Thank you for the memories returned!!!

@Pappy-knows 2 months ago

Wonderful video! A+ trip.

@gordonyates7972 2 months ago

I know I commented before but just had to say what a great video and thank you for reminding me what it felt like going through the Rhine river valley! Such a beautiful place!

@susanpollak3528 1 month ago

We’re planning a river cruise on the Rhine for 2027. We’ve chosen AnaWaterways because we like the variety of the three excursion choices at each stop, but we really enjoyed seeing and hearing about your Viking experience. Your video was beautiful, comprehensive and helpful. I enjoyed your narration and attention to details, especially mentioning the things you enjoyed that were not part of the itinerary! Thank you!

@stevetuttle1508 2 months ago

We have done 6 cruises, all with Viking. We did your cruise in each direction, 3 Danube with different itineraries, and the Elbe. I, like you do lots of research in preparation for a trip, but honestly the best advice is to set back, trust the process and let it happen. If something doesn't happen to your expectations, IT IS NOT A PROBLEM, IT'S A NEW ADVENTURE. As you said it is the unexpected or spontaneous things that create great memories.
Congratulations on such a great video. I have watched hundreds and think this is the most wee done and enjoyable I've seen.

@AD0VP 1 month ago

Great video! We are booked March 2027 and can’t wait!! We also booked Lucerne pre-cruse and the post cruse stay in Amsterdam. ❤

@betty_crosses 2 months ago

This looks amazing, thanks so much for sharing. My husband and I are going on our first Viking ocean cruise to Greece and Italy and have been thinking about a river cruise. I wasn’t sure it would be for us since there really isn’t much to do on the ship but I can see that it’s really about the destination and it does look so lovely and relaxing. Again, thanks for a wonderful video ❤

@stephenmeeks684 2 months ago

Thank you for getting off the 2 Lane for a river adventure. Your photos and videos were a window into an adventure we might follow you on.

@iriswagstaff 2 months ago

Great vlog!

@susanrossman529 2 months ago

We did the same, it was our first River Cruise and it's still the most fun memories, even through we've done several more cruises with Viking and are considering some additional ones for 2027 & 2028. Viking is the style we love the most and have also been consistently good at everything we want to do.

@stevenmex 2 months ago

My husband and I andour sister and her husband are doing this same cruise next spring but doing the reverse from Amsterdam to Basel. Your video is the best video I have seen and you have added to the excitement of the upcoming trip. Thanks