Viking Excursions How much $?

[stormz]

Considering a Viking Ocean Cruise.   They emphasize the cruise fare is “all in”.  When I look at the excursions on each itinerary I see one excursion is noted in the upper corner as “included”.   So all the others cost extra $?   How much typically? It appears the all in just includes a bus tour of the town? Thanks for any info.

[SrCruizer]

We have been on many Viking Cruises & as stated, the included is typically a 2 or 3 hour bus or walking tour of the town. We have done a mix of both included & paid Viking tours depending on the port. The cost of the paid tours really varies depending on the length & what it entails. Some tours are less than $100 and some $200 plus. We have also had good luck getting together with fellow cruisers on Cruise Critic and booking tours through local tour operators. Do your homework & explore the options available to you. Good luck.

[Dauntless]

Viking's included is an overview.  If you've seen the port before it might seem a little lack luster but it's not suppose to be an in depth look into anything in particular.  I loved the included in Alborg, Denmark and P   Croatia.  Both walking tours, maybe form 3-4 hours from my recollection.  I did the included to Berlin.  A 12 hour excursion: 3 hours on train to the city and then about 1.5 hour bus tour with a couple of stops and then about 4 hours on your own before being transported to the train and back to the ship.  It was fine since we had not been but some thought is wasn't enough to bother.  I would suggest another excursion that I feel had more to off but I was trying to save money so I thought it would be fine,  Now I know.  Dubrovnik, Croatia and Stavanger, Norway were nice walking tours that included some time in a museum.  Just depends on your interests.  The do have other excursions for a fee and you can compare these to other excursions for the same place On Trip Advisor or Viator to see if you think the price falls in line.  They do have other extreme excursions that could break the bank but that again would be if you think it has the value.  I have also arranged local tours I have found that are different than the ships or maybe the excursion I wanted on the cruise was not available by the time I could book(always a V cabin)

[Dauntless]

22 minutes ago, Dauntless said:

  I loved the included in Alborg, Denmark and P   Croatia.  

 

"P   Croatia" was suppose to be Split,Croatia. 

[Heidi13]

Each port has an "Included" excursion, which is guaranteed. While many of them are walks or bus tours, during our cruise we found the included varied significantly from the Marquesas Islands, where it was a timed tender ticket for a non-guided wander ashore, to Safaga, which was a 10-hr tour to Luxor, and Komodo, which included the Komodo Dragon walk.

 

Compared to other cruise lines, we found Viking's optional excursions were more reasonably priced.

 

In many ports, when not booking a private tour, we could book the included and an optional. 

[Virgo61]

Before our Trade Routes of the Middle Ages cruise for September 2020 was cancelled we had picked all of the optional excursions we were hoping to book. They added up to just over $1600 for the 2 of us which I found rather shocking. This was not choosing an optional in every port but only in certain ports. It probably depends on the cruise and what you wish to see.  

[Peregrina651]

 

Keep in mind Viking is not a budget cruise line and those who sail with Viking expect the tours to be of the same quality as the accommodations. While the prices are in general reasonable for what you get, Viking still is not contracting for the cheapest tours in town. They work with the most experienced providers in each port and they expect the best bang for our bucks.

 

 

Edited August 22, 2020 by Peregrina651

[philw1776]

Spent nearly $2,700 on Homelands optional tours. $600 of that was 2 days TJ Travel in St Petersburg...Excellent!

RED not worth the $; do it yourself  

BLUE Exceptional!

2017 prices!!!

Edited August 22, 2020 by philw1776

[Peregrina651]

14 minutes ago, philw1776 said:

Spent nearly $2,700 on Homelands optional tours. $600 of that was 2 days TJ Travel in St Petersburg...Excellent!

RED not worth the $; do it yourself  

BLUE Exceptional!

2017 prices!!!

 

Which of these were half day and which were full day? How many days were you in St. Petersburg?

[philw1776]

Two days in StP.  Private tour with 12 of us in a Mercedes van. Guide flawless english and 27 yr old PhD from the Hermitage. Two Russian lunches. One basic and one fancy, for contrast. Loved both. Saw everything long days.

Flam on the Flamsbana railroad was all day with bus to & fro.  Excellent.
Vasa included a nice lunch but easily done by self.
Pulpit Rock major price ripoff vs ~$65pp from locals. Problem being not a lot of margin on return time with local.

CORRECTION: Loved the Palmse Manor tour. Included delicious family style lunch and a walk thru woods to the seacoast 

Copenhagen, Roskilde  & Marlbork were single prices, others for 2.

Edited August 22, 2020 by philw1776

[stormz]

Thanks good info, so I can expect to add another $1000 easy to our budget if we choose non inclusive tours.    Any guess on the average age of Viking Ocean guests?

in the end it appears the excursions will all be first class.  When you add it all up you can look at regent and crystal and be close to same Total costs?

Edited August 22, 2020 by stormz

[knoxclone]

Agree w above posters.   Have had many good experiences with the Viking included yours on both ocean (Estonia especially) and river.  But  It's all about doing your homework and making priorities.

 

Thanks to fellow CC'ers, for our Homelands cruise, we learned about booking the Pulpit Rock via Rodne Cruises on our own and saved $$$.  Only thing we did not get was the waffle 🙂  Likewise, how easy to do the Vasa Museum on our own  - took the hop on hop off boat cruise!  

Likewise, we did not take advice to do a smaller private tour while in ST/ Petersburg and very much regret it. We tend to DYI, but sometimes its worth the peace of mind to book through Viking - especially if you have to worry about getting back to the ship.

[Cienfuegos]

Planning, and doing your homework, can make your trip very enjoyable.  I like to pull out the map, and get a sense of how much bus travel etc is involved.

 

For our (Viking) Trade Routes of the Middle Ages trip in 2019, many people opted for the Paris trip from LeHavre. Left at 7 am, back about 9 pm as I recall.  It was a long trip, from what I was told.

[Sunflower & The Scientist]

We liked using the included tours as overviews, so we booked them at ever port along with whatever tour looked good to us.  There were times we cancelled the included and just headed out on our own.  Some were really good, others not so much.  We found that once onboard, the talks they gave the day prior to a port, were most helpful.  We were able to see what the included was going to offer us, and judged from there. 

 

I would highly suggest watching the daily port information talks.  

[lackcreativity]

Viking often arranges free shuttle service in a port, and for us, that combined well with the included excursions. We often stayed after a tour for time on our own. I am not certain what excursions will look like when cruising resumes, so that time on our own may not be possible at first.

[stormz]

With Covid 19 it seems most lines will want to retain control over the excursions rather than have passengers do their own thing.   Refer to the first MSC cruise that just went out.   It would not let a family back on as they wondered off on their own. Just a reality of this pandemic.

[duquephart]

16 hours ago, philw1776 said:

Two days in StP.  Private tour with 12 of us in a Mercedes van. Guide flawless english and 27 yr old PhD from the Hermitage. Two Russian lunches. One basic and one fancy, for contrast. Loved both. Saw everything long days.

Flam on the Flamsbana railroad was all day with bus to & fro.  Excellent.
Vasa included a nice lunch but easily done by self.
Pulpit Rock major price ripoff vs ~$65pp from locals. Problem being not a lot of margin on return time with local.

CORRECTION: Loved the Palmse Manor tour. Included delicious family style lunch and a walk thru woods to the seacoast 

Copenhagen, Roskilde  & Marlbork were single prices, others for 2.

 

Somebody beat me to the waffle.

Edited August 23, 2020 by duquephart

[Peregrina651]

11 hours ago, stormz said:

With Covid 19 it seems most lines will want to retain control over the excursions rather than have passengers do their own thing.   Refer to the first MSC cruise that just went out.   It would not let a family back on as they wondered off on their own. Just a reality of this pandemic.

 

And then again, by the time Viking returns to operations, the situation will have changed and creating a bubble may not be necessary. In the meantime, I am happy to let the other cruise lines do the experimenting.

 

Also, there is no doubt in my mind that a lot of the advice to fellow travelers that we have shared in the years in this forum will be obsolete once we start sailing again. A goodly portion of what we tell people about how Viking handled things before the pandemic will change and we will be waiting with baited breath for the first returnees to share their experiences.

 

Edited August 23, 2020 by Peregrina651

[Homosassa]

On 8/22/2020 at 12:29 PM, stormz said:

    Any guess on the average age of Viking Ocean guests?

 

 

It probable depends on the itinerary and the time of year.

 

When we cruise in the summer of 2019 (Empires of the Mediterranean), many of our fellow passengers were teachers on summer break .

 

I estimate the ages ranged between 30 -  60 for the teachers on board.

[Jim Avery]

As a general rule I would say Viking passengers are older than what you might find on more mass market lines.  No kids and most Viking cruisers are experienced travelers who have sailed on a number of other lines.  I would guess around 65 as the "norm" with 30 definitely being the lower end.  But then there was a couple in their 50s on the Inaugural World Cruise on their very first cruise.... A World Cruise.  Might as well start at the top.😎

[rbslos18]

9 hours ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

And then again, by the time Viking returns to operations, the situation will have changed and creating a bubble may not be necessary. In the meantime, I am happy to let the other cruise lines do the experimenting.

 

Also, there is no doubt in my mind that a lot of the advice to fellow travelers that we have shared in the years in this forum will be obsolete once we start sailing again. A goodly portion of what we tell people about how Viking handled things before the pandemic will change and we will be waiting with baited breath for the first returnees to share their experiences.

 

Very true. There is hope, however, given the success of the NBA Bubble--not a single case.

[Cienfuegos]

On our two Viking cruises (Cuba in October, 2018) and Trade Routes (October 2019), I'd say the average guest age was in the mid 60s, maybe a little older.

 

For what it's worth, my brother won't take Viking as he prefers to sponsor his kids and grandchildren, making cruises a mini-family reunion. 

[Squawkman]

My non-scientific observation: river cruises median age = 65; ocean cruises = 60.

[philw1776]

Viking Ocean demographics are older. Guessing avg age mid 60s.  Silversea cruises were noticeably younger, and not because of kids.

[Squawkman]

35 minutes ago, philw1776 said:

Viking Ocean demographics are older. Guessing avg age mid 60s.  Silversea cruises were noticeably younger, and not because of kids.

I would have agreed with you 2 years ago, but there was a big difference in my last VO cruise (late November, 2019). More honeymoon couples and 30-somethings. In fact, my 42 year old cousin had one booked for this summer - he is rebooking. I think some of his friends went or are going too.