Melissa

Jan 18, 2024

Nightmare on River Rhine

We were on the APT Budapest to Amsterdam Christmas Cruise Dec 23 to Jan 24.. it was truely horrifying and more like a reality television show of survivor!! We had been informed prior to the cruise that the ship would be changing halfway due to water levels but that would be the only change… we agreed that would be fine. Like everyone we had a tough year and save hard for this holiday.. We were on the lower deck cabins so immediately noticed the horrendous noises the toilets make when flushed… as we were at the bottom of the boat we heard toilets flushing all night and day… they sound like an aircraft going over head… The Christmas decorations were a few red ribbons suctioned into the window.. no Christmas tree it was awful.. Christmas night a woman poorly dressed as an angel sang some horror songs with her accordion.. it was heart breaking. Due to heavy rain the rivers were rising.. I’m aware the other companies of river cruises stayed in Vienna due to safety and welfare of passengers… not APT they stated they had to hurry out of Vienna or we would be stuck there! Instead we were stranded at a nowhere town sitting on flooded waters unable to go anywhere…I asked why couldn’t we have stayed at Vienna as I would have left the cruise …. The director stated other ships had cancelled but APT didn’t want to give refunds and loose money by passengers leaving… By this time everyone on the ship started coughing and it well know that some passengers had Covid and even boarded at the beginning with Covid… pretty soon everyone was sick and stranded!!! APT continued with Buffett food with everyone coughing over it… I pleaded with the receptionist to hand out masks and ask people to use to them but she said the mask cost money and APT would not provide them… I sent emails daily to APT begging for help but as it was Christmas everything was closed. I was told if I left the ship I would not get a refund unless it was approved … we rang emergency APT but they too were not interested and didn’t know anything about being stranded… The director decided to hire buses and bus 150 Covid passengers 6 hour round trip to a village we could view it for 30 minutes…. I was in tears. The next day they decided to risk the waters to get to the next boat… again 8 hour bus ride full of sick passengers to get to Frankfurt… I told the tour guide I was too sick and had to wait on the bus 3 hours while other did a tour. I was throwing up and had a fever but the tour guide said there was no first aid help and wait until we got to Frankfurt… I was so sick I couldn’t stop crying. We got to Frankfurt on a bus of coughing sick people..I went straight to my cabin. I reported to the director I was very ill and needed a taxi to go to hospital …. He took it upon himself to call the ambulance. Two German ambulance officers were screaming at me saying saying if I’d been sick for 8 hours prior it wasn’t an emergency and get my own way to hospital. The director just sat there and didn’t say a thing. I then wave down a taxi and went to hospital… my lungs had to be flushed due to Covid so I spent the night there. The director or APT did not enquire about my health it even if I made safe to hospital. I returned to the ship and slept for 3 days. I had other passengers bring me drinks and food … the cruise director avoided me for the rest of the cruise… APT stated if I got off the ship at Frankfurt they would refund me a few days but by this time I was too sick to go anywhere… As the ship was going into dry dock as they ran out of supplies they did not restock… there was no English tea, hot chocolate and apparently a lot of alcohol was not restocked.. On the farewell night Staff stated they were on their 6th Hotel manager in a year that’s how poorly APT are run. We spent $24,000 for this experience … we didn’t get too see anything on the itinerary.. it was more of a sickness bus ride… I’m only 50 year old and always in good health ! This ship made me gravely ill and it was depressing. 199% ripped off. It’s sickening. I saw other cruise ships that were decorated beautifully, happy smiling staff…. Do not give your money to APT it was horrific… you must rely on other passengers to look out for each other as the cruise director couldn’t care less. I honestly didn’t think I was going to make it out alive,