Traveling Huntleys

Inspiring travel stories, tips, and guides from a couple exploring the world one destination at a time.

Germany

From Amsterdam to Bucharest: Our Complete Rhine, Main, and Danube River Cruise

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Last Updated: May 2026

Some trips stay with you for years. The river cruise Sandy and I took aboard Uniworld’s River Duchess — from Amsterdam to Bucharest — is firmly in that category. Over three weeks we sailed through eight countries along three connected waterways: the Rhine through Germany’s most celebrated wine valleys and cathedral towns, the Main through Franconia’s medieval heartland, and then the Danube itself — broad and green through Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania, growing quieter and wilder the further east we traveled.

We wrote a dedicated post for every stop on the journey. This is the post that connects them all — a stop-by-stop account of twenty-one destinations in the order we visited them. If you are researching a similar cruise or simply want to revisit the journey with us, the links below will take you to each full story.

Michael Huntley, lunch, Bucharest, Romania
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Passau, Germany

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Last Updated: May 2026

Passau is nestled in southeastern Bavaria at one of Europe’s most dramatic geographic intersections. Known as the “City of Three Rivers” (Dreflüssestadt), Passau sits at the confluence of the Danube, Inn, and Ilz rivers near the Austrian border — a location that has shaped its history as a powerful trade hub, an episcopal capital, and one of the most distinctively beautiful Baroque cities in Germany. Sandy and I sailed aboard the River Duchess from Regensburg as the Danube grew wider and the countryside more dramatic, arriving at Passau with its pastel-colored buildings tumbling down to the water’s edge and the twin towers of St. Stephen’s Cathedral rising above everything. Even from the ship, it was immediately clear this was a special place.

Sandy Huntley, a beautifully carved wooden door of Jesus Christ at a church in Passau, Germany
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Regensburg, Germany

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Last Updated: May 2026

Regensburg, Germany, is a city rich in history, culture, and economic vitality located at the northernmost point of the Danube River in Bavaria. Originally founded as an imperial Roman river fort, it has been continuously inhabited for over 2,000 years, making it one of the best-preserved medieval cities in all of Germany. After the weight of Nuremberg, Sandy and I were ready for something a little lighter on the spirit, and Regensburg delivered beautifully. We sailed south along the Danube aboard the River Duchess as the Bavarian countryside rolled past our cabin windows, arriving to a city that felt immediately welcoming — sun on the river, flowers everywhere, and the twin spires of the cathedral rising above the old town like old friends.

Royal Villa, Regensburg, Germany
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Nuremberg, Germany

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Last Updated: May 2026

Nuremberg, nestled in the heart of Bavaria, is a city whose medieval charm stands in stark contrast to its profound role in some of the 20th century’s darkest and most pivotal events. While its half-timbered houses, ancient castle, and bustling market squares draw visitors year-round, it is Nuremberg’s connection to the rise and fall of the Nazi regime that has etched its name into world history. Sandy and I sailed from Bamberg through the Main-Danube Canal aboard the River Duchess, arriving in a city that carries its past with unusual gravity. The image below captures the spirit of Weimar-era cabaret culture — the vibrant, often transgressive nightlife that flourished in Germany in the years before Hitler’s rise. The Nazis quickly suppressed the cabarets after coming to power in 1933, though the performances had ironically been a private indulgence for some party officers even as they publicly denounced them.

Weimar-era cabaret performance art, Documentation Center exhibit, Nuremberg, Germany
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Bamberg, Germany

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Last Updated: May 2026

Bamberg, Germany, is a charming medieval city nestled in the northern part of Bavaria, renowned for its rich history, stunning architecture, and vibrant cultural scene. Often called the “Franconian Rome” due to its seven hills each crowned with a church, Bamberg offers visitors a unique blend of religious heritage and medieval charm that has been remarkably well preserved through the centuries. After our inland excursion to Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Sandy and I returned to the River Duchess and continued our Uniworld journey along the Main River toward Bavaria. Arriving in Bamberg felt like stepping into a fairy tale — cobblestone lanes, church spires on every hill, and the faint scent of smoked malt drifting through the air from the city’s legendary breweries.

Classic car on the cobblestone streets of Bamberg, Germany
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Rothenburg, Germany

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Last Updated: May 2026

Rothenburg ob der Tauber is one of the most remarkably preserved medieval towns in the world — a place where the Middle Ages didn’t merely leave traces but essentially survived intact, with a nearly complete circuit of fortified walls, half-timbered houses crowding cobblestone lanes, and a market square that looks much as it did five centuries ago. From Würzburg, the route took us from wine country toward beer country — a transition from Franconia’s vineyard-covered slopes toward Bavaria. Rothenburg is an inland town rather than a river stop, so we arrived by excursion bus, and Sandy and I spent the day completely absorbed in its fairy-tale atmosphere. Very few places in the world deliver on their reputation as completely as Rothenburg does.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber café with scooter and flower boxes, Germany
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