Suggestions that could make Viking even better!

[lackcreativity]

I totally agree that they should provide more detailed information on excursions in advance. The brief descriptions provided in My Viking Journey give a decent overview, but they are nothing like the descriptions given at the port talks. We have changed our plans several times after hearing the port talk, particularly after getting more information on how long the bus rides will be, etc. Unfortunately, by the time of the port talk it is often too late to cancel a paid excursion, but if you want to change from an included tour to a paid one, and there is still room, you can still join. I know that they sometimes have to make adjustments in the excursion schedule, which is understandable, but they know if a particular 4-hour excursion is going to include 3 hours on a bus and it would be helpful to have that information before making your reservations.

 

Did you know that if you go to the list of excursions on the web page for a particular cruise (see CharTrav's description above), and you click on each excursion, you do get a pretty detailed description of the tour? They do not specify a numerical breakdown of how much is bus time vs. walking time, but if you read carefully, you can get a pretty good idea. I know the actual port talks contain more information, but I found the full descriptions on the website (not just the little blurb on the main excursion page) to be quite helpful.

[PRH]

I would like to see isotoner/foam pillows offered as an option. The two pillows were very soft and the firm ones brought by the room steward were much too firm. Otherwise we were very impressed with the bedding.

 

I also agree on the shuttle information. I would like to be able to clearly mark it on my town map before leaving the ship. And certainly to know if shuttles are not available. Just so many panoramic tours you can take.

 

 

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[CharTrav]

Did you know that if you go to the list of excursions on the web page for a particular cruise (see CharTrav's description above), and you click on each excursion, you do get a pretty detailed description of the tour? They do not specify a numerical breakdown of how much is bus time vs. walking time, but if you read carefully, you can get a pretty good idea. I know the actual port talks contain more information, but I found the full descriptions on the website (not just the little blurb on the main excursion page) to be quite helpful.

 

Thanks. I've spent entirely too much time navigating through all the nooks and crannies of the Viking Ocean web site and will admit that realizing what lies "behind" (i.e. linked to) things is not always obvious. Wouldn't it be nice to have a page that explains how to find what you need on their site? But then Madame Geek here wouldn't be able to "strut her stuff". [emoji1] (please...don't throw tomatoes at me!)

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[Viking Cruises]

What a marvelous thread! Thank you all for offering these thoughtful suggestions to enhance the Viking Experience. We hope that you and fellow cruisers know just how valuable your feedback is to us, and to future travelers.

 

Please rest assured that all of your comments have not gone unheard. The opportunity to hear your suggestions is appreciated, and they will be passed along to management for review.

 

With your help, we look forward to continued growth, and happily welcome any additional thoughts at TellUs@vikingcruises.com.

 

Warm regards,

Viking Cruises

[Twitchly]

Better temperature control in the showers. Ours goes from blazing hot to ice cold, back and forth, with complete unpredictability. Sure wakes you up in the morning but not in a good way. Not sure if this is typical?

 

 

Guess what? Today our steward stopped us in the hall to tell us that a plumber would be checking out our shower. (!) This is particularly remarkable because the only place we mentioned the issue was here on this forum. We didn’t think to report it to the staff; we just figured it was one of those things you live with on a cruise. (I figured maybe it was due to the choppy seas we’re having and subsequent pitching of the ship.)

 

Apparently someone from Viking saw my comment and connected it to my real name and to our room number and reported it, which is both great and a little weird. Mostly I’m impressed by Viking’s attention to threads like this and prompt action.

 

I’ll let you all know if there’s an improvement.

[Azulann]

Guess what? Today our steward stopped us in the hall to tell us that a plumber would be checking out our shower. (!) This is particularly remarkable because the only place we mentioned the issue was here on this forum. We didn’t think to report it to the staff; we just figured it was one of those things you live with on a cruise. (I figured maybe it was due to the choppy seas we’re having and subsequent pitching of the ship.)

 

Apparently someone from Viking saw my comment and connected it to my real name and to our room number and reported it, which is both great and a little weird. Mostly I’m impressed by Viking’s attention to threads like this and prompt action.

 

I’ll let you all know if there’s an improvement.

 

 

 

HA! This happened to a poster on my live review of Viking Sea TA. She had a minor issues: wanted two soap dishes in bathroom. LO and behold, the extra soap dish appeared in their cabin the same day.Great that Viking not only monitors the threads but moves into action as soon as feasible.

 

 

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[CharTrav]

Char, I'm gonna disagree once again. Three cruises now, two on Sea and one on Star. It did not take us long to figure out all of the knobs and buttons on the shower but it did not make a difference; the shower always went from too hot to too cold and back again during the course of the shower.

 

So we were lucky on both VO cruises and our one (so far) VR cruise? Cuz honestly we never experienced what you and clearly others on this thread have experienced. And where else have we disagreed? As tho it matters. Some time, some cruise we really need to meet. [emoji6][emoji4]

 

 

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[vnb2003]

what a marvelous thread! Thank you all for offering these thoughtful suggestions to enhance the viking experience. We hope that you and fellow cruisers know just how valuable your feedback is to us, and to future travelers.

 

Please rest assured that all of your comments have not gone unheard. The opportunity to hear your suggestions is appreciated, and they will be passed along to management for review.

 

With your help, we look forward to continued growth, and happily welcome any additional thoughts at tellus@vikingcruises.com.

 

Warm regards,

viking cruises

 

(y) :)

[lackcreativity]

What a marvelous thread! Thank you all for offering these thoughtful suggestions to enhance the Viking Experience. We hope that you and fellow cruisers know just how valuable your feedback is to us, and to future travelers.

 

Please rest assured that all of your comments have not gone unheard. The opportunity to hear your suggestions is appreciated, and they will be passed along to management for review.

 

With your help, we look forward to continued growth, and happily welcome any additional thoughts at TellUs@vikingcruises.com.

 

Warm regards,

Viking Cruises

 

This is just a perfect illustration why, after sixty plus years of never wanting to take an ocean cruise, our experience on Viking Rivers tempted us to take our first ocean cruise with Viking last spring. Number two comes up in October, and number three in the spring of 2019. Viking, I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

[Etexvrc]

I'm glad to see that Viking monitors these threads and appreciates our input.

 

As someone who has been on two prior ocean cruises with Viking (and four more booked!) I agree with the original poster's suggestion #5. On more than one occasion my wife and I would have just completed dinning at the World Cafe only to then discover a cooking station around the corner close to the bar. Some type of notification that it exists upon entering the WC (from the other direction) would be most helpful.

[dln929]

So we were lucky on both VO cruises and our one (so far) VR cruise? Cuz honestly we never experienced what you and clearly others on this thread have experienced. And where else have we disagreed? As tho it matters. Some time, some cruise we really need to meet. [emoji6][emoji4]

 

 

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Our shower has never run hot/cold either so this makes me curious as to whether only certain deck are susceptible? Five Oceans cruises thus far, always on deck 3, and our showers are fantastic.

 

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[aquidneck1]

I would like to see them make some changes to the way that excursions are managed and booked.

1. I would like to see the cruise specific availability posted earlier and opened earlier for booking for the established routes at a minimum

2. I, personally, do not agree with the concept that the ability to book excursions should be based on cabin category. I have no problem with those that pay more getting better rooms, earlier access to specialty dining or any other on board amenity.

3. If the current system continues, I think that there needs to be more availability so that everyone has a chance to book by at least 60 days out. I do not agree with the current model that puts any passenger in a situation that they cannot book an included tour at a reasonable hour or have a reasonable selection of optional tours at 60 days out.

4. I do not agree with the concept that people feel the need to get up at 3AM (or other hours in the middle of the night)to try to get the tours that they want.

5. If the size of the ships are too large to manage the included tours, I would prefer to see the cruise fare reduced and reasonably priced optional tours that are readily available to all passengers.

 

Today I received my cruise documents. The booklet consists mostly of lists of excursions for our cruise. At least 1/3 of those are not available and at the moment 2 of the included tours are not available for booking. I would hope that Viking can figure out a better way to manage this as they seem to have an otherwise excellent product.

 

I am not putting this out for debate. It should just stand as one person's thoughts.

[CharTrav]

Our shower has never run hot/cold either so this makes me curious as to whether only certain deck are susceptible? Five Oceans cruises thus far, always on deck 3, and our showers are fantastic.

 

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We were on deck 5, 513 both times.

 

 

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[Vineyard View]

I would really love to see a chart of some sort that lays out by ship/by date the itineraries. I have seen this with other lines and it is really helpful if you are wanting to put B2B together. There are a number of itineraries that may work really well together B2B to form a longer journey. Unless I am missing it somewhere, which is entirely possible :o I would find this extremely helpful. I also think it would be a benefit to Viking.

[Peregrina651]

Thanks. I've spent entirely too much time navigating through all the nooks and crannies of the Viking Ocean web site and will admit that realizing what lies "behind" (i.e. linked to) things is not always obvious. Wouldn't it be nice to have a page that explains how to find what you need on their site? But then Madame Geek here wouldn't be able to "strut her stuff". [emoji1] (please...don't throw tomatoes at me!)

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And a search function that really finds things!!!

[CharTrav]

I would really love to see a chart of some sort that lays out by ship/by date the itineraries. I have seen this with other lines and it is really helpful if you are wanting to put B2B together. There are a number of itineraries that may work really well together B2B to form a longer journey. Unless I am missing it somewhere, which is entirely possible [emoji5] I would find this extremely helpful. I also think it would be a benefit to Viking.

 

I created one last year for 2017-2019 that does what you seek and just updated it as of 2 days ago for 2018-2020. You can download it from Dropbox - https://www.dropbox.com/s/407gwfvniuy11wq/Viking%20Ocean%20Cruises%20%282018%20to%202020%29.xlsm?dl=0. It's an Excel spreadsheet you can filter any way you want. If you need help with it, feel free to contact me directly. My contact info is there.

 

Oh and btw - you can extrapolate the beginning date for each cruise using the "First sail" date provided for each ship/calender year along with the cruise duration.

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Edited April 20, 2018 by CharTrav

[Cyber Kat]

We were on deck 5, 513 both times.

 

 

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Interesting. We were also on deck 5.

 

 

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[Cyber Kat]

Guess what? Today our steward stopped us in the hall to tell us that a plumber would be checking out our shower. (!) This is particularly remarkable because the only place we mentioned the issue was here on this forum. We didn’t think to report it to the staff; we just figured it was one of those things you live with on a cruise. (I figured maybe it was due to the choppy seas we’re having and subsequent pitching of the ship.)

 

Apparently someone from Viking saw my comment and connected it to my real name and to our room number and reported it, which is both great and a little weird. Mostly I’m impressed by Viking’s attention to threads like this and prompt action.

 

I’ll let you all know if there’s an improvement.

 

 

 

If you signed up for the Meet & Mingle, I think Viking has your real name and your Cruise Critic handle/user name.

 

 

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[Cyber Kat]

 

 

 

Today I received my cruise documents. The booklet consists mostly of lists of excursions for our cruise. At least 1/3 of those are not available and at the moment 2 of the included tours are not available for booking. I would hope that Viking can figure out a better way to manage this as they seem to have an otherwise excellent product.

 

 

 

I am not putting this out for debate. It should just stand as one person's thoughts.

 

 

There has been much weeping and gnashing of teeth over the excursion booking system. But you are guaranteed the included tours. You may not get the exact time you want, but you will get on the tour. Call them or email tellus@vikingcruises.com. They will take care of it for you.

 

As for the optional excursions, they may be able to put you on a waiting list. If not, or even if they do, go to the shore excursions desks as soon as you board. They are far more accommodating than the website. They will do all they can and then some to help you get the ones you want.

 

 

 

 

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[Twitchly]

Update: All is now well on the shower front. A plumber apparently came while we were out and did some plumber magic, and the water temperature no longer swings wildly from scalding to frigid. Kudos to Viking for the excellent customer service.

 

Moral of the story: call housekeeping if your shower becomes possessed. They may be able to do something about it.

 

We’re on deck 4, BTW. I doubt it’s a deckwide issue. Probably more to do with the design of the plumbing and shifting mechanics on rocky seas. Not that I have the faintest idea what I’m talking about.

[philw1776]

I would prefer that they email me a post-cruise survey, or at least offer that in addition to paper forms. I was not a fan of the paper forms and was surprised that I could not do feedback at my leisure when I returned home.

 

 

I think they could do better at detailing the amount and type of walking on excursions. We were on a couple excursions labeled Moderate that had 2-3 hours walking on steep, uneven surfaces with lots of steps. Some folks struggled and were not expecting that much walking. So clarity in the descriptions, either distance or time spent walking, would help in decision-making.

 

My only wish list item would be LeCroix type flavored fizzy water as an alternative to sodas.

That, and having steel-cut oatmeal at breakfast in addition to the porridge type. Most people I know prefer steel-cut. But I realize that food is highly individual, and overall they had lots of healthy options.

 

Yeah, the Viking oatmeal is like concrete before it hardens. It was probably used to toughen up aspiring Viking raiders. Would LOVE steel cut.

After the first few days of pigging out on omelets, croissants filled with meat & cheese and everything not moving I switch to oatmeal on Viking cruises despite that it's not very good.

LeCroix suggestion is also excellent.

[Vineyard View]

I created one last year for 2017-2019 that does what you seek and just updated it as of 2 days ago for 2018-2020. You can download it from Dropbox - https://www.dropbox.com/s/407gwfvniuy11wq/Viking%20Ocean%20Cruises%20%282018%20to%202020%29.xlsm?dl=0. It's an Excel spreadsheet you can filter any way you want. If you need help with it, feel free to contact me directly. My contact info is there.

 

Oh and btw - you can extrapolate the beginning date for each cruise using the "First sail" date provided for each ship/calender year along with the cruise duration.

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Thank you very much - I will give this a try - and may need to reach out to you. I appreciate all the time and effort it must have taken you to do this!

[CharTrav]

Thank you very much - I will give this a try - and may need to reach out to you. I appreciate all the time and effort it must have taken you to do this!

 

You're very welcome. The initial build last year - figuring out how to organize it took a bit of effort; updating (and double checking) the data and tweaking its organization didn't take anywhere near as long.

 

 

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[CILCIANRQTS]

I’d like to see regional (i.e. New England, Southeast, etc) informal, cash bar gatherings on the first sea day, so that folks can find others who live near them early in the cruise. How often have you heard “Oh, I met someone from your state earlier in the cruise. You should look them up!” Roll call gatherings can be difficult to navigate the entire room.

 

 

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[CharTrav]

I’d like to see regional (i.e. New England, Southeast, etc) informal, cash bar gatherings on the first sea day, so that folks can find others who live near them early in the cruise. How often have you heard “Oh, I met someone from your state earlier in the cruise. You should look them up!” Roll call gatherings can be difficult to navigate the entire room.

 

 

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Not a bad idea. When we did our first VR cruise we met a couple who actually lived a little over a mile from us. And another couple who lived in a neighborhood a few miles away. In a smaller - <200 - pool of people this was relatively easy to do. Not so easy with a pool of 930.

 

 

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