The Danube, City by City

The Danube is not one river. It's a necklace of cities, each one convinced it's the reason you came.

Start in Budapest, and do yourself a favor: be on deck after dark when the Parliament building lights up gold on the water. It is, without exaggeration, one of the great arrivals in all of travel. Then sail west and let the river unfold — Bratislava's compact old town, Vienna's coffeehouses and waltz-time grandeur, the apricot orchards of the Wachau Valley, and finally Passau, where three rivers meet beneath a baroque cathedral.

There's a reason the empires fought over this river. Everyone who has ever seen the Danube has wanted to keep it. A week on it, and you'll understand the impulse.

My advice for first-timers: choose a sailing that overnights in both Budapest and Vienna. These cities are completely different after dark, and the evening illuminations from the water are worth the fare alone.