Caveat Emptor on Viking Star

Thanks Becki. I would agree that better wines during meals would make a very nice difference.

A reasonable wine and beer comes with lunch and dinner.

You can also bring your own wine aboard - no corkage fee.

I have no idea of the per drink prices on the ocean ships, but on the river ship it was reasonable.

A reasonable wine and beer comes with lunch and dinner.

You can also bring your own wine aboard - no corkage fee.

 

I have no idea of the per drink prices on the ocean ships, but on the river ship it was reasonable.

Agreed.

We've traveled with Silverseas which included any wine and all cocktails. They made money off us as we were easily pleased and averaged one cocktail per day between us. Our longtime travel companions more than made up for us. Did enjoy the ability to ask for the wine we had last Thursday instead of the evening's selection.

On our last river cruise Viking must have done a massive buy on merlots :p which my wife does not like. :( The waiter explained that she could buy a cabernet instead. She enjoyed the alternative. I was charged a reasonable 8 1/2 Euros. My occasional cocktail was of similar cost. Quite reasonable.

If Viking Ocean simply delivers on their stated package on our cruise (we're Penthouse Veranda) and offers an alternative wine for a reasonable price if merlot is the evening's selection :) we'll be very satisfied.

On our cruise on the Star in July, both a red and a white were available at lunch and dinner. No, I didn't love all of them but they were okay. Certainly a higher level in the specialty restaurants. We found the drink prices to be extremely reasonable on the Viking Homeland cruise.

During a long talk with Viking it appears wine and beer are considered alcoholic beverages and we were supposed to receive and replenish both on a daily basis. Based on some other posts it seems our cabin attendant might not have been doing his job.....

Hope your issue is resolved. Would be interested in your views on other aspects of the cruise. You mentioned in your original post that it might have been your one and only Viking cruise. We loved our first one and have booked another (both Med cruises). We also love Azamara and are booked on them in May.

Your cabin attendant is not responsible for refilling the drinks in your room each day. That is done by a different set of people. There was a small form that we filled out that told them what drinks we wanted each day. We were in a DV.

We were on the Viking Sea aborted cruise, so only had a couple of days to use our beverage package. We did request wine in our mini-bar and a full size bottle of wine was there later that day. We did not get a sheet to fill out preferences, but might have if we had been there longer. As has been mentioned, you do get the "premium" wine pairings in the Chef's Table. We like the option of ordering what we want when we want it and not needing to be concerned about the cost. As to getting advice on choosing wines, we were not on board long enough to establish a relationship with anyone, but we did have a "go-to" bartender on the river cruises who would make recommendations prior to each dinner.

VV,

 

 

 

When we were on our Paris and the Heart of Normandy river cruise, we had the Silver Spirits package. We had a waiter who was very knowledgeable about wine and even the nights we didn't have him at our table, the waiter would get him to select our wine, and my husband so enjoyed trying those premium wines each night.

 

 

 

Becki

Just booked the VR France's Finest for next year which includes Paris and the Heart of Normandy. Looking forward to some excellent wines with dinner!

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Mrs Miggens, my overall review should be up shortly. There are strengths and weaknesses, and booking another Viking cruise will be a careful consideration of itinerary and comparative cost. I now know I should have been more proactive on the ship to get the wine in stateroom resolved and if I am sailing from a US port I will bring my own wines for dinner and beverage related issues will be resolved..

Yes, there was a form for the mini-fridge attendant but it 1) did not list wine and 2)listed the number of beers to be replaced at "0". Obviously something was wrong with this voyage..

We were DV2 with Silver Spirits package on West Indies Explorer. The first day I requested rose wine for me and Ginger Ale for my husband who is a non drinker. We received premium Ginger Ale and tonic water (Schweppes) and wine was replenished as needed.

We also had no difficulties with the size of cabin. We rearranged the coffee table/chair arrangement to create a bit more floor space and the room was great.

Did they allow you to have Silver Spirits Package and not for your husband? In River Cruise (we had five), they did not allow that. I asked because my wife does not drink. I guess they are afraid that we would share the drinks. Am I wrong?

Did they allow you to have Silver Spirits Package and not for your husband? In River Cruise (we had five), they did not allow that. I asked because my wife does not drink. I guess they are afraid that we would share the drinks. Am I wrong?

Both occupants of the cabin must buy the package.

We did both have to purchase the beverage package. He did not mind, as we stopped for beverages throughout the day and he was able to enjoy whatever he wanted even it it wasn't meal time. Ginger ale and OJ was a favorite of his and I dubbed it a mock Mimosa! We also spent time before and after dinner in the Explorers Lounge and at some shows, so his non-alcoholic drinks and my wine were always free. Now that they have dropped the price it is not so prohibitive for a non drinker to consider.