Anyone sailed Viking OCEAN cruises?

[GigemAggies]

We sail Celebrity more than any other cruise line but have been looking at an itinerary that steers us towards one of the new Viking Ocean cruise ships. I am posting this on the Celebrity threads because I'm afraid the Viking thread might be a little "tainted". When I read the Viking ocean cruise reviews (as opposed to river cruises) I noticed they were almost all 5 stars however, I also noticed that all the 5 star reviews were written by brand new members to cruise critic and they were all 1st time reviews. A warning went off in my head. I was wondering, did Viking offer some kind of perk to passengers if they wrote them a 5 star review so a bunch of people just signed up for cruise critic to write that review? Regardless, I was wondering if anyone has been on an ocean cruise with Viking and could compare their experience with a Celebrity cruise.

[Azulann]

I suggest you go to the Viking Forum . There is a active thread there about "why book a Viking ocean cruise...... "

I have only sailed Celebrity . Had a fabulous 14 days cruise on the Constellation in July in Europe.

I have just booked my first Viking Ocean cruise. It is a transatlantic from San Juan to Barcelona in March 2018. First time leaving Celebrity for another curise line.

I picked Viking because it is a smaller ship, great modern design with lots of al fresco dining options. Love that there are no children udner 18, no casino, all veranda cabins, no art auction, no fee for speciality dining, wine and beer included at lunch and dinner, included wifi, one shore excursion in every port. Can bring wine, spirit on board without any problem for use in your cabin.

Thir web site is far better than Celebrity. MYViking Journey has all the details I need for excursions, questions about the ship, sea days, dining menus, bar menus etc.

Many posters on roll call and the Viking Fourn are previous Celebrity crusiers and they provide some great feedback in their reviews and posts.

[CRZR58]

I haven't been on a Viking Ocean cruise yet, but it's definitely on my list. If you go thru their forum, you'll see a difference in the tone of most of the posts than you see on Celebrity's forum. Search Celebrity in the Viking forum and you'll get bunch of hits that should answer most of your questions.

[kencr]

Viking web site is interesting. Has free excursions at ever port, Has washing machines on every deck. All cabins have balconies.Plus what Azulann said. Please review your Viking cruise .

[ClaudiaB]

We have only ever sailed Celebrity - 14 cruises, most of which are 11-15 days. We wanted to branch out, try something new. In late October we're taking a Viking Oceans cruise. It's just to the Caribbean - we didn't want to do anything too extravagant. We transferred to our normal TA like we do on our Celebrity cruises. No perks added but 10% of the cruise cost deducted from our total. So be sure to do that!! Payment is due really early, but we asked and we don't have to pay until mid April for the Oct. 26 cruise. So that's a consideration for some, maybe. We chose an 11 day cruise that is round trip from San Juan, PR and the airfare is only $45 each. The cruise line pays the rest. We're looking forward to our Oceans cruise. I've been reading up and it sounds great. 950 passengers.

 

We have another cruise booked, but for July 2018. It's also on a different line - we're sailing 15 days with Azamara up the Norway coast past the Arctic Circle. Great itinerary. Even smaller ship than Viking Oceans ship.

 

I have a feeling we're going to be doing more and more with those two lines. Looking at a world cruise in 3 years ...

 

We won't be taking any of the free included excursions - they're basically all bus tours of the islands. Not gonna' happen. Plus we know what we like on the islands, been to them all many times. Hopefully Viking will get different/more varied included excursions on their ships as time goes on. They're a new line. Lots of people will absolutely not get on a big bus to be taken around stopping for photo ops and shopping and restroom breaks. We might take one to get into a certain part of town but then we're off ---

[espresso68]

i took my 1st viking ocean cruise last april & it was wonderful.loved the food,ship was beautiful & staff excellent.the food was over the top.i've

been cruising X for many years,but i think viking ocean is much more superior.i can't say enough about viking ocean.you will not be disappointed.

only thing about viking is that want all your money up front.i had to pay up for 16 months in advance.you will enjoy.

[floridaag]

No but I know Heather Clancy - cruise director on the Viking Sea from when she worked at Seabourn and she is awesome

[espresso68]

i like to mention,although i was impressed with viking i still enjoy celebrity s class

[cruzzzinma]

We were very impressed by Viking Ocean. I would rate at 4.5 stars.

 

We been on eight Celebrity Cruises, two Viking River cruises and one Viking Ocean Cruise. We have three Celebrity cruises and one Royal Caribbean Cruise booked this year.

 

Here is my review posted on the Viking Ocean forum: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2457374.

[mafig]

What is the pricing like? More like Oceania and Azamara .... or higher.?

[jayoldschool]

Watched the episode of Mighty Cruise Ships yesterday on Viking. Went to their website to check it out. Their liberal smoking policy makes them an immediate no go for me. Other lines need to catch up to Celebrity.

[mrsaquashark]

We also recently returned from a Viking Ocean cruise very impressed with the experience. Our review can be found here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2450125

 

We found the pricing to be between AquaClass on X and a balcony on Azamara, but with much better service than either. We appreciated the free excursions and often took one early morning to orient ourselves before exploring on our own. We also liked the availability of an off-season Mediterranean itinerary, as we found few crowds and very comfortable weather for touring.

 

 

After discovering Viking, DH has pretty much ruled out our sailing Azamara again, as we can bring the impending DD on X and purchase inclusive beverages and any excursions we would want, or we could leave DD home and sail Viking.

[suspaul]

jayoldschool, just curious what you know about Vikings liberal smoking policy. From their website : All Viking ship interiors, staterooms and verandas are nonsmoking; this policy also applies to e-cigarettes. Each ship has an outdoor smoking area, generally on the Sun Deck.

 

Basically that's what we've seen on Celebrity and other cruise ships so I'm not understanding your statement.

 

 

 

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[guy999]

We also recently returned from a Viking Ocean cruise very impressed with the experience. Our review can be found here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2450125

 

We found the pricing to be between AquaClass on X and a balcony on Azamara, but with much better service than either. We appreciated the free excursions and often took one early morning to orient ourselves before exploring on our own. We also liked the availability of an off-season Mediterranean itinerary, as we found few crowds and very comfortable weather for touring.

 

 

After discovering Viking, DH has pretty much ruled out our sailing Azamara again, as we can bring the impending DD on X and purchase inclusive beverages and any excursions we would want, or we could leave DD home and sail Viking.

 

 

i recently looked into it and the prices for viking ocean was the same as the celebrity suite that we booked with premium drinks and the rest. It didn't compare pricewise, for a 14 day cruise with aquaclass was like 3,000 more.

[Host Jazzbeau]

We have another cruise booked, but for July 2018. It's also on a different line - we're sailing 15 days with Azamara up the Norway coast past the Arctic Circle. Great itinerary. Even smaller ship than Viking Oceans ship.

 

I have a feeling we're going to be doing more and more with those two lines...

 

 

Not to hijack the thread, but we did that Azamara Norwegian Fjords cruise last year and it was wonderful. But [back on topic] we have also booked our first Viking Ocean cruise because they seem to offer real value. Their itineraries are somewhat limited at present, but if you find one that floats your boat you should have a great experience. [We found the balcony cabins on Azamara a little cramped, so we have booked a CC for our next Azamara cruise -- and a PV on Viking for the same reason]

[cruzzzinma]

Watched the episode of Mighty Cruise Ships yesterday on Viking. Went to their website to check it out. Their liberal smoking policy makes them an immediate no go for me. Other lines need to catch up to Celebrity.

 

 

Viking Ocean doesn't have a liberal smoking policy. Smokers were in a very limited area on the sundeck aft of mid ship on the starboard side. There is no smoking anywhere inside.

[villauk]

Have to say, I'm very tempted having just taken a quick look at the itineraries and ships - definitely one to consider for our future sailings ;).

[excitedofharpenden]

I have a number of friends who have cruised Viking and they all loved them. Ships, cabins and food all top notch. Very friendly crew. Now cruising mainly the smaller ships of Azamara I'm keen to give them a go. They also have a presence in the Med during winter and I would enjoy seeing the ports out of the busy season and take my chance with cooler weather and shorter days. They did very well in the Cruise Critic awards recently.

[tybeelucy2]

On our Summit cruise in DEC we were coming back on the water taxi in St Marten and were talking to a crew member from the Viking ship in port next to ours. He told us the average age on board was 76, so that's one thing to keep in mind, that the crowd may be a bit older than on Celebrity.

[GigemAggies]

Thanks for the great feedback!

[ISABELLA]

i took my 1st viking ocean cruise last april & it was wonderful.loved the food,ship was beautiful & staff excellent.the food was over the top.i've

been cruising X for many years,but i think viking ocean is much more superior.i can't say enough about viking ocean.you will not be disappointed.

only thing about viking is that want all your money up front.i had to pay up for 16 months in advance.you will enjoy.

 

 

I had trouble understanding their refund policies. It sounded to me that I will need some sort of insurance to get a full refund, even months before the sailing date.. Can you clarify?

thank you

[dgraham]

One thing that may help them keep costs down is they do not take passengers who are confined to wheelchairs, there are no wheelchair cabins, and their ships seem to be designed with this in mind which I'm sure makes it much simpler for them. We'll probably never see them sailing to U.S. ports.

[mafig]

Don't some of them leave from Miami?

[dgraham]

Don't some of them leave from Miami?

 

You're right, they do. It will be interesting to see if someone challenges them using ADA (govt accessibility) regs.

[jayoldschool]

Apologies! Just went over this with DW., We watched TWO episodes of Mighty Cruise Ships. The one on Viking Sea... and... the one on Europa Two. It's Europa with the bad smoking policy. Smoking allowed on balconies and all open decks. There is smoking in two of their restaurants, and other indoor areas. Sorry for the confusion.

 

With Viking's policy, and what I saw on the show... I'd check them out.