nancydip

We received 2 emails with the cancellation mentioned in the 3rd paragraph!  Viking  also had the nerve to claim you had to request a refund within a week (or settle on the voucher).  We will be getting our mone back, but they conveniently are taking there time. This was Iberia, the Med and Malta. 
 

Like you, we were stuck dealing with our plane tickets just 8 days out, as well as post cruise hotel  and the car service booked to get us to the cruise from LHR. 

Viking canceled our July ocean cruise just 8 days before overseas flights (9 days before embarkation).  2 1/2 weeks later, refund is still "being processed."  Disgusted that on top of the fact they can cancel with such short notice and no penalties, they continue to hold onto our money.  Not happy about floating cash for Viking.

We just returned yesterday and there were plenty of cabs both at the airport and cruise port.

Thanks so much! We're arriving 11/18 for the Summit, and while I prefer taxis, was concerned. Great news. We'll be supporting the economy there.

We flew home on Saturday, 11/4 on JetBlue and were allowed to check our bags 8 hours prior to departure. We opted to wait at the airport since there's not much to see/do in San Juan right now.

What was the taxi situation like at the airport? We're flying in 11/18 for a Celebrity cruise. We usually just grab a cab, but I know nothing is normal on the devastated island. What did you find? Also, were there plenty of taxis at the port upon your return?

thanks,

Nancy

Wilnesteven - We were on AMA's "La Marguerite" two months ago and enjoyed the cruise very much. However, one should approach a Mekong River cruise with much different expectations than a European river cruise. I would consider the two AMA boats, La Marguerite and AmaLotus, to be the most comfortable boats on the Mekong at the present time; but they are not "luxury" riverboats at all in the same league as their European sisters. And the Viking and Avalon boats are certainly not, either.

 

First, one should look at the basic style of the boat. The "Tonle" design of the Viking and Avalon boats have cabins looking out onto a promenade, as far as I can determine from the photos and deck plans. (We saw the Viking boat on the river; so I can confirm that is the design of that boat.) The result of this design is that anyone can walk by one's windows/doors and see into the cabin from the promenade - not my favorite boat design, as we like to have the curtains open all of the time.

 

In contrast, on the AMA boats, all of the cabins are directly on the side of the boat, with totally private windows and balconies. Further, the cabins on the two AMA boats are much larger than on the other boats. But I will admit that for some peculiar reason the 226 sq.ft. in the standard AMA cabins does not feel like that much space. The AMA cabins at all levels (including the Indochine suite, which we were lucky to grab, as the two of them sell out immediately upon the opening of the schedule) do not make the best use of space. They are beautiful, though. :)

 

I agree with Shorex that one should look at the total package, as the cruise is only a part of the experience. AMA appears to do a very good job with the land portion. In our case, we took another approach and did our own land tour at each end of the cruise and then did the AMA cruise as a "cruise-only" option. For us, the whole experience was indeed A+; but the cruise was pretty much a B. That being said, it remains our humble opinion that AMA remains the best choice for the river cruise portion of a Cambodia-Viet Nam adventure.

 

Full disclosure here, one of the things that made us grateful that we were on AMA was encountering a couple of groups from the Viking boat on our same itinerary on land excursions. They were all wearing stupid name tags, as if they were at a convention. Aaarrrggghhh!! We are not name-tag-people and try to avoid tours with that sort of philosophy.

 

Although I don't entirely understand PhillyGirl's logic (if it's too hot to use the balconies, why does it matter that they're too small??), I agree with her that balconies are not important factors in a Mekong River cruise. It is indeed usually too hot or too buggy to use them. However, one should take a close look at the privacy issues in the design of the boat, as I have mentioned above. It is truly a luxury to be able to sit at the big windows of the AMA boats and look out without anyone walking by and looking in.

 

Cheers, Fred

This is sooooo helpful!! Thank you.

I cannot post this in the review section as Cruise Critic doesn't have it listed.

 

The Mekong Princess is a 6 month old ship sailing 7 day itineraries from Cambodia to Saigon. As it is a 24 passenger vessel, it is able to travel on some of the less-used waterways in the area.

 

We boarded the ship just south of Tonle Sap near the end of the dry season. This seven night voyage was part of a 2 1/2 week tour with Abercrombie and Kent. Traveling to the ship involves a four hour bus ride from Siem Reap. The bus was well-air conditioned and made two rest stops along the way.

 

Boarding the ship is done from a dirt hillside and the crew is there to help passengers down the hill. My first impression of the ship was that is was clean and exceptionally well appointed. We were given a short briefing by the cruise director, Chantel, and then shown to our rooms before lunch.

 

Our suite was beautiful, on the second of two decks. We had a four poster king sized bed, dressing room and covered balcony with two loungers. The bathroom had an oversized shower, whirlpool tub, and one vanity. There was a pillow menu. This suite included butler service with free laundry, canapes each night and packing/unpacking. Laundry took one day and was delivered hanging or folded in a beautiful basket. Shower toiletries and bath salts were included. Our butler, Makara, did an outstanding job for us during the week, including filling one or two special requests.

 

In addition to the twelve suites, the ship consisted of the restaurant, small gym, library, one room spa treatment room, and an indoor and outdoor lounge. Each guest receives a free one hour spa treatment during the cruise.

 

Breakfast and lunch are served buffet style, dinner from a menu. All meals included both Western and Asian selections. Service was excellent from the well-trained staff. We found the food delicious. Beer, house wines and some local liquor are included during cocktail hour and meals. The dining room was set up with a couple of tables for six and one four top. Passengers could choose where to sit. Our cruise only had 20 passengers. Our guides ate meals with us. We enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.

 

Shore excursions are included, and too numerous to mention all. Highlights for me were the mangrove swamp sampan tour, the small Cambodian village, and the Cow Dai temple. The ship provides a VOX to each passenger for listening to the guides. It was very hot and humid. We wore lots of linen, as well as some of the hot weather gear from REI. A good hat is a must. Most people showered between the morning excursion and lunch, and then again before dinner. Passengers wore their excursion clothes to breakfast and lunch. The dress at dinner was slightly less casual, more of a country club casual look. Upon returning from excursions, the crew collected and cleaned all of our shoes. We were always greeted with a clean towel and refreshing fruit beverage.

 

Entertainment consisted of shore excursions, watching the Mekong Delta float by, and two movies in the lounge. One afternoon our guide gave a one hour lecture on Vietnamese history and culture.

 

The staff is all Cambodian, other than the Vietnamese captain. They are friendly and hard-working. All speak some English, although now and then it took a couple of tries to communicate. The cruise director was from St. Lucia.

 

I would not recommend this trip to anyone handicapped. The ship has no elevator. Most of the excursions require boarding one boat to another or climbing hillsides or wooden plank makeshift platforms.

 

The ship is small enough to sail right into central Saigon and dock. This saves another bus ride from outside the city. We were served a lovely breakfast before leaving the ship at 8 in the morning.

Thank you for this. We're trying to figure out how best to take a Viet Nam-Cambodia river cruise tour and I came across this boat.