Viking Sineus - Ukraine

Hi

Just come back off this cruise (Kiev to Odessa). I would give it 5 out of 10 compared to other cruises we have been on.

Restaurant staff are friendly and helpful but could do with more training e.g. don’t bring out second course before passengers have finished the first. Very good at topping up alcoholic drinks but if you don’t drink alcohol you would rarely get asked if you wanted a top up. Their lack of understanding of English could cause confusion at times.

Food was OK, they did good soups and fish dishes. Main meat dishes were a bit mixed. Also if you just wanted a basic steak there seemed to be an inability to cook it as you liked (medium rare, medium etc.). A chef’s recommendation was Veal and sphagetti in tomato sauce, which I did not think was a good combination. Anything with gelatine in had much too much, therefore chocolate mouse was like chocolate rubber, similarily cheescakes were rubbery. A dessert described as a Saucher Torte was not a Saucher Torte. The toaster (which several people complained about and seemed was like a long term issue) took at least 3 tries before it browned bread, so don’t bother having toast for breakfast!

Evening enertainment was poor. We had 1 good music quiz, another night had quiz that lasted 20min and on another night a local group who because of the design of the sky bar only the first 2 rows could see what was going on. That was it for the evening entertainment.

The tour guides had good English, for us Lena was the best. For some of the others their “delivery” was a bit stilted, but much better than my Ukrainian would ever be!

Kiev and Odessa were obviously the best stops, with mixed Quality in between. The Cossack museum and show were very good. Ackerman Fort was good but too short there to look around . The journey each way is 2-2.5hrs. In the middle you have a 30min tour but then only 20min to walk around. Didn’t do any of the add on tours, so can’t comment on those but people seemed to enjoy the visit to the opera house.

Beware public toilets are of the the hole in the ground type, so not very pleasant.

If you have mobility issues the lift on the ship is unreliable, it broke down at least 3 times.

Everyone was friendly and welcoming and the interior of the ship has been refitted well and everything was well organised. Oliver, the cruise director was entertaining.

Hi

 

 

 

Just come back off this cruise (Kiev to Odessa). I would give it 5 out of 10 compared to other cruises we have been on.

 

 

 

Restaurant staff are friendly and helpful but could do with more training e.g. don’t bring out second course before passengers have finished the first. Very good at topping up alcoholic drinks but if you don’t drink alcohol you would rarely get asked if you wanted a top up. Their lack of understanding of English could cause confusion at times.

 

 

 

Food was OK, they did good soups and fish dishes. Main meat dishes were a bit mixed. Also if you just wanted a basic steak there seemed to be an inability to cook it as you liked (medium rare, medium etc.). A chef’s recommendation was Veal and sphagetti in tomato sauce, which I did not think was a good combination. Anything with gelatine in had much too much, therefore chocolate mouse was like chocolate rubber, similarily cheescakes were rubbery. A dessert described as a Saucher Torte was not a Saucher Torte. The toaster (which several people complained about and seemed was like a long term issue) took at least 3 tries before it browned bread, so don’t bother having toast for breakfast!

 

 

 

Evening enertainment was poor. We had 1 good music quiz, another night had quiz that lasted 20min and on another night a local group who because of the design of the sky bar only the first 2 rows could see what was going on. That was it for the evening entertainment.

 

 

 

The tour guides had good English, for us Lena was the best. For some of the others their “delivery” was a bit stilted, but much better than my Ukrainian would ever be!

 

 

 

Kiev and Odessa were obviously the best stops, with mixed Quality in between. The Cossack museum and show were very good. Ackerman Fort was good but too short there to look around . The journey each way is 2-2.5hrs. In the middle you have a 30min tour but then only 20min to walk around. Didn’t do any of the add on tours, so can’t comment on those but people seemed to enjoy the visit to the opera house.

 

 

 

Beware public toilets are of the the hole in the ground type, so not very pleasant.

 

 

 

If you have mobility issues the lift on the ship is unreliable, it broke down at least 3 times.

 

 

 

Everyone was friendly and welcoming and the interior of the ship has been refitted well and everything was well organised. Oliver, the cruise director was entertaining.

I’m sorry but I have to disagree with you. We would give it 9 out if 10. The staff went out of there way to make sure everyone was happy. The Restaurant staff we had were great, Dasha went out of her way to make sure we enjoyed our meals. The steak I ordered was cooked just as I ordered and I thought the chocolate mouse was delicious.

I agree the sachet torte was not as it should be but I did manage to finish mine! The Maitre’d came round to the tables every evening to make sure we were happy.

The toilets were what we expected for that part of the world and if you don’t like it then don’t travel out of your comfort zone.

It was a river cruise so we did not expect a lot of entertainment and we were at the back when the local group played but we really enjoyed their music even though we could not see them. We really enjoyed the two quiz nights.

The night at the opera house was great! Oliver got us great seats right close to the front.

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As to the toilets, even in China Viking managed to find Western-style toilets for us no matter where we went, so I am a bit surprised to hear that you didn't encounter the same. In Ukraine, our buses had toilets and the drivers did a good job of keeping them clean.

As to the toilets, even in China Viking managed to find Western-style toilets for us no matter where we went, so I am a bit surprised to hear that you didn't encounter the same. In Ukraine, our buses had toilets and the drivers did a good job of keeping them clean.

Yes the buses all had western style toilets and they were very clean.

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Is the cruise director Oliver the tall chap with dark hair and glasses (german) who was a ballroom dancer previously?

I've got very mixed feelings for my upcoming cruise on the 4th September!

I've got very mixed feelings for my upcoming cruise on the 4th September!

Why? Perhaps sharing your qualms and letting folks respond will help set your mind at rest, or at least give you a strategy for dealing with things.

Is the cruise director Oliver the tall chap with dark hair and glasses (german) who was a ballroom dancer previously?

Yes, that’s him. We thought he was very good .

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Dear redcymru,

We’d like to take this occasion to welcome you home, and thank you for the thoughtful feedback on your recent voyage with us.

While we’re delighted to hear that you found the staff to be friendly and helpful, and had enjoyable interactions with the Program Director, we regret to learn that some aspects of the journey were disappointing.

Should you be interested in discussing your experience with us further, we welcome you to contact us at TellUs@vrc.com. We appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns, redcymru, and look forward to hearing from you through that outlet.

Kind regards,

Viking Cruises

Hi

 

Just come back off this cruise (Kiev to Odessa). I would give it 5 out of 10 compared to other cruises we have been on.

 

Restaurant staff are friendly and helpful but could do with more training e.g. don’t bring out second course before passengers have finished the first. Very good at topping up alcoholic drinks but if you don’t drink alcohol you would rarely get asked if you wanted a top up. Their lack of understanding of English could cause confusion at times.

 

Food was OK, they did good soups and fish dishes. Main meat dishes were a bit mixed. Also if you just wanted a basic steak there seemed to be an inability to cook it as you liked (medium rare, medium etc.). A chef’s recommendation was Veal and sphagetti in tomato sauce, which I did not think was a good combination. Anything with gelatine in had much too much, therefore chocolate mouse was like chocolate rubber, similarily cheescakes were rubbery. A dessert described as a Saucher Torte was not a Saucher Torte. The toaster (which several people complained about and seemed was like a long term issue) took at least 3 tries before it browned bread, so don’t bother having toast for breakfast!

 

Evening enertainment was poor. We had 1 good music quiz, another night had quiz that lasted 20min and on another night a local group who because of the design of the sky bar only the first 2 rows could see what was going on. That was it for the evening entertainment.

 

The tour guides had good English, for us Lena was the best. For some of the others their “delivery” was a bit stilted, but much better than my Ukrainian would ever be!

 

Kiev and Odessa were obviously the best stops, with mixed Quality in between. The Cossack museum and show were very good. Ackerman Fort was good but too short there to look around . The journey each way is 2-2.5hrs. In the middle you have a 30min tour but then only 20min to walk around. Didn’t do any of the add on tours, so can’t comment on those but people seemed to enjoy the visit to the opera house.

 

Beware public toilets are of the the hole in the ground type, so not very pleasant.

 

If you have mobility issues the lift on the ship is unreliable, it broke down at least 3 times.

 

Everyone was friendly and welcoming and the interior of the ship has been refitted well and everything was well organised. Oliver, the cruise director was entertaining.

Dear redcymru,

 

We’d like to take this occasion to welcome you home, and thank you for the thoughtful feedback on your recent voyage with us.

 

While we’re delighted to hear that you found the staff to be friendly and helpful, and had enjoyable interactions with the Program Director, we regret to learn that some aspects of the journey were disappointing.

 

Should you be interested in discussing your experience with us further, we welcome you to contact us at TellUs@vrc.com. We appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns, redcymru, and look forward to hearing from you through that outlet.

 

Kind regards,

Viking Cruises

Definitely, definitely take them up on their offer to talk! Viking is very responsive to our comments and criticism in trying to make our cruise experiences flawless.

Ooh thats good then we had he on one of our previous cruises and he was so helpful and always dashing here there and everywere!

Yes, that’s him. We thought he was very good .

 

 

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Getting closer to our September 4th Cruise, we have just checked in on-line and we now have our seats allocated and our boarding passes for the first two flights (london - warsaw, warsaw to odessa). Not many seats presented on the map - only two rows , I guess quite a few of row 5 and 6 will be Viking guests?

See you all on the ship...looking forward to the Ukraine. only 2 more sleeps...

Jim and Hilary

Thank you to all those posting reviews and comments. They are very helpful. Still not too sure whether to book the opera in advance or to go on the meal out in Odessa

We are looking at this cruise for next August. I can’t wait to see reviews in the next few months. Please keep this thread going!

We are looking at this cruise for next August. I can’t wait to see reviews in the next few months. Please keep this thread going!

Threads like this keep going only if there are people with a vested interest in keeping it going working on doing so. It is the nature of the beast.

We are also booked on the Sineus but later in September and finding these comments and reviews very useful. Thanks.

I just found this review thread and was happy to find so many reasoned comments with good information. We are on on the Sept. 24th sailing. You also?

Gail

Yes same sailing Gail.

Yes same sailing Gail.

Hooray! And based on the comments offered here, I've booked our excursions to the Odessa Opera House. A ballet will be the performance that night. Looks lovely.

Thanks to all for the advice.

Those who picked this cruise belong to three major categories: 1. Those who had 6-10 cruises and running out of options, 2. Those with Ukranian roots. 3. Those who are intrigued by the uniqueness of the region and its rich culture & history. I belong to the 1st & 3rd group. I did not set my expectations too high, mainly because this is a new cruise in a country that just came out of the Soviet era. You will be disappointed if you use Grand European Cruise as your standard.

We did this cruise July 16 from Kiev to Odessa, and I would recommend taking it this way rather than from Odessa to Kiev. Odessa is the grandest city on the voyage, and a nice way to finish the trip.

My husband's family and my dad are from this part of the world, and we wanted to experience what was once their world. Being Jewish, this trip was depressing because of all the atrocities done to Jews and others in that area, plus the cities between Kiev and Odessa are very depressed and still building their way back from the devastation of 70 years ago.

The Odessa opera house was so impressive, but the show we saw did not sit well with most attendees. We saw “Queen Forever”, a band who sounded like Queen. They started the performance 45 minutes late due to technical problems, and the first 30 minutes were poor due to those problems. The band was very loud, and many of our group left way before the concert was over.

This was our first Viking cruise. We thought the ship and the crew were marvelous. Everything was immaculate, all events were on time, buses were on time, and the tour guides were so knowledgeable.

As for the food, soups were marvelous and the best part of the cuisine. There were some regional foods each day, but not many and the menu did not offer much variety. The wait staff were so pleasant, and the house wines were nice and plentiful.

There was little or no entertainment in the evening aside from the talks about the next port. We did have some historical lectures from Michael, our cruise director.

We met such nice people onboard. The many who were repeat Viking customers rated this cruise much lower than we did as first time cruisers. They cited the boat, food, and ports among other items not being up to the previous Viking standards. Not having anything to compare this to, we thoroughly enjoyed the boat and staff.

Viking is an impressive company, and we intend to cruise with them again.

Glad you enjoyed your trip. I plan on doing this trip in the future. We had a great first Viking trip on the Danube in 2017 that we booked two more trips with them!

We are looking at booking this cruise for 2020. Viking is changing up the itinerary a bit and won’t be spending as many days in Odessa, ending in Bucharest. Any recommendations as to which month might have the best weather?

July was a great month weather-wise to be in this area...not sure about other months. Enjoy your cruise!

On 9/2/2018 at 2:47 PM, Happy explorer said:

Thank you to all those posting reviews and comments. They are very helpful. Still not too sure whether to book the opera in advance or to go on the meal out in Odessa

The Odessa Opera House is beautiful...definitely  worth seeing!

On 3/24/2019 at 7:58 PM, KatnMom said:

We are looking at booking this cruise for 2020. Viking is changing up the itinerary a bit and won’t be spending as many days in Odessa, ending in Bucharest. Any recommendations as to which month might have the best weather?

We sailed in early May and were actually there for the May 9th celebrations commemorating the end of WW2. I don't function much above 70° so it was perfect for me. I don't remember any rain and the flowers were in bloom.

But, weather is impossible to predict from one year to the next and just because we had fabulous weather does not mean that it will be so in 2020.

I was looking at the change to the itinerary for 2020 and was thinking that if the timing is right, it really sets up nicely for a back to back with the Bucharest to Budapest run