The interior décor and decoration certainly set a new standard for a river ship. This is honestly a case of where a 5 Star River Ship meets a 5 Star Ocean ship. The attention to detail throughout the ship is fantastic.

A few details about the Mozart. She has a total of 77 guest suites ranging in size from 219 sq. ft. to 883 sq. ft. 41 of her suites are on the lower deck with a picture window almost at the waterline, and 36 suites are one deck up and have French balconies. All of the suites have a small sitting area with sofas and tables for in-suite dining. Of course the larger the suite the more goodies.

Dining Options
The Vintage Room seats 12 guests and is a Crystal Signature item that is available for lunch or dinner at extra charge, not for the faint of heart as it’s pricey but a real treat.

Waterside is the main dining area which will seat the entire ship. In typical river ship style, breakfast and lunch are buffets and dinners are “a la carte”. The food was fantastic.

Blue is an interesting dining venue located at the stern of the ship with great views that is typically only open for lunch. It seats 38 but can be made available for groups and private functions. They serve sandwiches, pizza and pasta. The burgers are a needed break and they’re good.

Bistro Mozart is open 8 am to 9 pm. This is an onboard coffee shop that serves a rotating choice of snacks and food during the day and at night serves tapas and a light dinner fare.

And of course room service is available 24 hrs.

Other Mozart public spaces include the Palm Court and the adjoining Cove Piano Bar. Great spots for pre or post dinner cocktails. The Palm Court will hold the entire ship seated. There is also the Connoisseur Club which is an indoor cigar and smoking room, a rarity on river ships.

Unique Features on the Mozart
Vista Bar on the very upper deck is a true “pop up” bar. It has to go entirely down into the ship when going under bridges. The upper deck makes a very nice lounge area other ships simply don’t have.

Mozart has a large spa and fitness area by any standards but the indoor swimming pool is one of a kind. This is at the very bow of the ship with glass windows so you can lounge and relax and watch the river.

Ebikes are available for the guests at no charge.

The Pantry is near the gang way so you can grab a water, coffee or other treat as you head off the ship.

The Mozart Tour Buses only seat 35 guests, in buses that normally seat 48 to 50. You really will appreciate this added space when touring.

Mozart carries a small very fast “yacht” for touring the river, for up to 6 guests with Butler service and Champagne, of course! This is an additional charge item.

Entertainment consisted of a very, very good piano player/singer. A Party in the Round featuring The Phly Boyz which actually started in the dining room during dinner. A very good high energy act. Crystal On Broadway is new on both Crystal’s Ocean and River ships and it brings featured entertainers on the ship with a variety of talents. This was a very nice show.

The high light event was a night at the Belvedere Palace for a private concert. Truly an amazing evening. Champagne and canapes to start in the entrance lobby, a tour of the art collections and then a concert with full orchestra and several opera singers. As we exited the concert room, which was opulent in itself, we headed back to the entrance where the lobby had been transformed into an elegant ballroom for our orchestra to play again with a display of classical waltzes. A truly magical event that every Mozart cruise will experience.

What is included on a Crystal Mozart Cruise? Crew and guide gratuities, open bar, most tours, wines with meals, all suites have Butler service, some laundry service, internet, special events such as the evening at Belvedere Palace. Practically everything is included.

This was the first cruise of the season and a thank you for Crystal’s top producers. The service was 5 star and to Crystals award winning Ocean cruise standards. The food and dining service are honestly as good as it gets. Crystal calls it 6 star and I would agree.
Mozart for sure is the Queen of the Danube just because of sheer size and the Crystal Touch. You get what you pay for and this is at the top end of the scale, as it should be. The Mozart can also handle groups where many river ships really can’t, and of course full ship charters.

Disclaimer
I should point out while this was an industry event with many extras planned. There was one big unplanned extra event. Crystal had arranged for 2 waves of clients to take two 5 day cruises. On the first cruise the vessel broke down with a major mechanical problem. Basically the transmission blew up, now this is not a quick fix in the middle of nowhere. It took days to repair the problem and the ship is stuck in Komarno, Slovakia – the towns highlight is a Tesco super store.

The show has to go on and GO ON it did in high style. My heart has to go out to entire Mozart team for having to deal with this and all the hard work that went into the event. But I have to give them an A+ for working even harder to make the really best of what could have been a bad situation. We all see our suppliers under the best of situations and here was a case of the worst possible of situations, and Crystal and Mozart crew and staff were totally up to the task at hand. GREAT JOB

This report was prepared by Steve Bloss[954 452 8800 | sbloss@www.cruiseco.com] on March 1, 2017. The views expressed as solely those of the author and not necessarily those of WWTCA.