Explore The Danube On A Cruise

Classified as an international waterway and spanning 1,771 miles, the Danube is Europe''s second longest, but most important river, and has been so since Roman times. It flows through or acts as a border for 10 countries including Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia and Romania.

It is in the Black Forest in the small German town of Donaueschingen where the Danube springs into life. It then heads south-eastwards to meet the Black Sea. The journey is long and winding and owing to the sheer number of countries it flows through, the scenery is diverse and ever changing.

It''s not just the natural scenery that varies dramatically. Cultures, fashions and architecture are different not only from country to country, but also from region to region. The river passes through small and remote villages as well as some of Europe''s grandest and most spectacular cities.

It is the Danube''s diversity and variety that make cruises along its waters so unique. The river''s beginners are magical journeys into the past and you''ll cruise through medieval Black Forest villages and past Bavarian fairy-tale castles and fragrant vineyards.

The scenery in Austria is just as storybook like. Upper Austria is full of dramatic scenery that towers up from the ground at a terrifying rate, best exemplified in the Wachau Valley. From towering mountains to dominating skylines, the Danube also courses through on of Europe''s most alluring capital cities, Vienna.

After saying aufweidersehen to Austria, the Danube continues on to Slovakia and its Gothic capital, Bratislava. Eastern European exploration doesn''t stop here as the river flows on to Hungary''s effervescent capital, Budapest. The river gives character to these cities and divides each into two very different halves.

Out of the built environment and back into the realm of Mother Nature, the scenery in Slovakia and Hungary is rugged and barren with harsh mountains meeting small floodplains, pinpricked with villages and historic towns.

As the river makes its way into Croatia and Serbia, the countryside softens into rolling, green hills given over to dairy farming.

The Danube flows through yet another capital city, Serbia''s Belgrade. This means the Danube flows through more capital cities than any other river in the world.

It is in Romania where the Danube finally meets the Black Sea. The delta and river mouth make up the Biosphere Reserve, a natural wetland reserve for thousands of birds and water animals.

By: PALMIRA HAGEN

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PALMIRA HAGEN is a freelance writer and travel expert. They recommend Avalon cruises for Danube river cruises.