Views, pro and con, on the new Viking Mississippi River Cruises.

[steamboats]

19 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

Having worked the Mississippi River from NOLA to Paducah, KY, I can say that the majority of the vibrations are due to the extreme low water levels.  With the propellers nearer to the bottom of the river, there is a significant "reflection wave" of the wake off the bottom that strikes the hull, causing the vibration.

 

Just to mention that Paducah, KY, is on the Ohio river ;-). And that´s why I do prefer the paddlewheelers - less vibration even in lower water...

 

steamboats

[chengkp75]

1 hour ago, steamboats said:

Just to mention that Paducah, KY, is on the Ohio river

Quite correct.  But if I'd said I worked up to Cairo, IL, fewer people would have understood, and our office was in Paducah, and it is only about 15 miles by river from the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi.

[Coral]

On 11/26/2022 at 12:10 PM, RobInMN said:

The ship looks amazing, but having lived my entire life in Iowa and Minnesota within an hour (and currently a 10 minute walk) of the Mississippi River, I can not begin to fathom paying what Viking is charging for this cruise. It's much more (twice?) than what we paid to do a river cruise from Nuremberg to Luxembourg, including upgraded (but not DeltaOne) airfare both directions. 

I agree. I live near there also and have driven through these ports and have no desire to do this cruise.

Edited November 28, 2022 by Coral

[steamboats]

2 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

Quite correct.  But if I'd said I worked up to Cairo, IL, fewer people would have understood, and our office was in Paducah, and it is only about 15 miles by river from the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi.

 

As a German I never heard of Paducah before... until we got stuck there for 3 days due to high water on our first attempt to go to Nashville by riverboat. It was love at second sight... And on my three stops there I still haven´t been to the National Quilt Museum (except for the gift shop).

 

steamboats

[happy taveler]

I visited the National Quilt Museum in Paducah and really enjoyed it. I understand that they change the display from time to time.

[Canal archive]

Stop telling me these things, I’m an avid quilter. If your anywhere near Bath go to the American Museum at Claverton they have a wonderful quilt collection.

 

Whilst waiting for a guide at an ex Mormon ranch near Chamberlain Utah, I think I was asked to add stitches to a friendship quilt by the wife of the state guide I’ve often wondered what happened to the quilt.

Edited November 29, 2022 by Canal archive

[Coral]

On 11/29/2022 at 2:37 AM, Canal archive said:

Stop telling me these things, I’m an avid quilter. If your anywhere near Bath go to the American Museum at Claverton they have a wonderful quilt collection.

 

Well - you must come to where I live:

 

https://www.internationalquiltmuseum.org 

[Canal archive]

Wow!! it’s on my list from now.
The lady asked what a certain piece of stitching was called in the U.K. being fairly new to quilting I got it completely wrong and said ‘quilting in the river’ of course idiot me it’s ‘quilting in the ditch’ what a mistaka to maka.

[CPT Trips]

Another resource quilters will likely enjoy. https://www.kutztownfestival.com/quilt-barn-star-auction and https://www.kutztownfestival.com/quilts. July 1 to 9, 2023, homepage https://www.kutztownfestival.com

I think there is also a fall event/auction in that area. 

 

 

[Canal archive]

Some years ago, at least 40 on a visit to San Antonio I had arranged tickets for the rodeo and didn’t realise what the whole event entailed including two Marquees full of quilts absolutely mind blowing. I had sorted this out from England over the phone with ticket master, TAs didn’t do this kind of thing then. Loved it loved it loved it the people we sat with went completely out of their way to make sure we got the fullest experience and the star was Alan Jackson never heard of him before. Also found out the ‘don’t mess with Texas’ means don’t throw litter around, cowboys wear wranglers and then most men wore hats raised them to women and opened doors, what gentleman.

[uwis66]

We are booked on the Viking Mississippi River cruise from Memphis to New Orleans (late January - early February 2023).

 

I appreciate ALL of your comments!

 

We have been asked to pre-book a time for dinner in the evening and we are trying to time it around any evening entertainment.

 

Questions:     (1) What kind (if any) of after-dinner "entertainment" is offered?  (2)  Is it each night?    (3) What time does it start?

 

Thanks much.

 

 

[giustot]

I want to thank everyone who has contributed to this thread. My wife and I were seriously considering taking a cruise on the Viking Mississippi in the summer of 2023. Now that's not going to happen. If I were an executive at Viking Cruises, I would be ashamed to have my name associated with this ship.

 

Tom.

[Lois R]

On 12/29/2022 at 3:04 PM, uwis66 said:

We are booked on the Viking Mississippi River cruise from Memphis to New Orleans (late January - early February 2023).

 

I appreciate ALL of your comments!

 

We have been asked to pre-book a time for dinner in the evening and we are trying to time it around any evening entertainment.

 

Questions:     (1) What kind (if any) of after-dinner "entertainment" is offered?  (2)  Is it each night?    (3) What time does it start?

 

Thanks much.

 

 

It is nearing the end of February. Did you take the cruise? How was it?

[uwis66]

Our trip was cancelled by Viking about 2 weeks before departure.     Apparently debris in the river caused damage to propulsion system and our cruise dates had to be cancelled.     ONLY our particular week was cancelled.

 

So, unfortunately, I have no information for you!

[uwis66]

I forgot to say that we received 100% refund for our cancelled Feb. 2023 Viking Mississippi cruise.

 

[cruiselvr04]

We have been so interested in the lower Mississippi for history reasons.

 
I think we will do this on our own and save half the cost. It sounds like we will see more on our own also.  
 

The boats are beautiful and we love the Viking product but it sounds like it’s not going well yet, especially for the cost.

[steamboats]

@cruiselvr04 there are two more companies operating on the Mississippi river (American Queen Voyages and American Cruise Line). Both are running their boats for years now and they don´t ask you to pay the whole cruise fare at the time of the booking.

 

steamboats

[Geosez]

We have done the entire Mississippi in two voyages on the iconic American Queen.  We are also Viking fans so we understand the difference in the two lines and their ships.  The Viking ship is beautiful but there’s just something about being on that river with that big red wheel churning along.  Re the lower Mississippi :  I would certainly recommend to Cruislvr04 that since like us you live in that part of the country,  travel on your own and preferably by car.  There’s just not much to see from the water in that section.  But plenty of history.

 

[steamboats]

We´ve done the Lower and Upper Mississippi by car and by boat (Delta Queen, Mississippi Queen and American Queen). It is definitely different and I do recommend both. Yes, on the Lower Mississippi the views from the boat are not that exciting as they are on the Upper. But it´s definitely a different perspective from the boat than from the road.

 

steamboats

[ChrisB123]

Oh my!  Now I'm a bet scared. We cruise the upper Mississippi Sept 2024 and our reservation is already paid for.  I guess I'm just going to hope for the best. It's to be a "genealogy tour," of sorts. We checked out other lines and weren't in love with what we saw, we WERE in love with what we saw Viking had to offer. I'll keep my fingers crossed and say a prayer.  

[steamboats]

@ChrisB123 don´t worry... Just make the best out of it. September is a great month for the Upper Miss. But as the river is unpredictable you never know whether you can make it or not. Had this multiple times. My last cruise should have been St. Paul - St. Louis and then was Cincinnati - St. Louis.

 

steamboats

[planada]

We did New Orleans to Memphis in November. We have cruised both river and ocean w Viking and have loved everyone of them. Mississippi left alot to be desired. The ports were all wonderful and such pleasant excursions with Vicksburg Battlefields being a treasure. The ship and staff on the other hand left ALOT to be desired. The new ship ( sailed 5 mo at this point) was filthy. Our cabin had hair in the drawers, a dirty bathrobe in the closet at check in. The Veranda Grill ran out  of silverware multiple mornings and the staff could care less. The dining room was very well run but that’s the only positive. If our rooms were serviced ( they missed 4 days where we had no service) it was between 3-5 pm. Maybe this is the American work ethic these days? We were so disappointed. The common areas while decorated beautifully were dirty, no glasses picked up, disgusting bathrooms. We did complain to Viking when we returned. Our suggestion was don't sail with full capacity if the staff cant handle the guests. The hardest working employee was “Joe” who ran the dining room. There just needed to be 3 of him.The entertainment that came in each evening were fantastic though,…..another plus! Maybe they have improved things the past 6 months….Anyone?

[PrettyParrot]

My husband and I were on the Viking Mississippi at the end of April, from New Orleans to Memphis.  Unlike @planada's experience, we had excellent service in the Veranda café and the main dining room, the ship was very clean and the staterooms were serviced each day.  The food was also delicious with a nice variety in the main dining room.  The staff was amazing and we loved our on-board experience!

 

However, I cannot say that the all of the excursions were good   I agree that the Vicksburg National Military park was a fabulous excursion, as was the Port Hudson battlefield and nature hike paid excursion.   The Frogmore and Longwood paid excursion was also excellent.  We had some guides on tours who were not well-versed in the history of the area and were unable to give much information, or even correct information.   An exception to this was Rusty, who was our guide on the Frogmore and Longwood excursion.  

 

I can also say that the fact that we did NOT dock in Memphis was a BIG bummer.  Approximately one month before the sailing we were informed that we would end the cruise in Rosedale MS, and then be bused to Memphis, which is approximately 2 hrs and 40 minutes away.  The docking facility in Rosedale was a launching ramp for pleasure craft.  The last-minute options for excursions were Graceland, The Civil Rights museum in Memphis, or get to Memphis early  after a stop in Clarksdale.  The buses were contracted from a separate company, and one bus broke down, and another had no A/C.  The Hotel where many passengers were lodged, including ourselves, at the Sheraton Memphis Downtown.  It is adjoining the Convention Center but about 1 mile from Downton and the restaurants, bars and Beale street.  It was fine to walk during the day but not great at night, so if you are there definitely use Uber at night.  The other passengers stayed at The Peabody, a beautiful hotel in walking distance to all of the downtown restaurants and attractions!  I can honestly say that Viking should have put all of us up at The Peabody, or possibly the Westin which is in the same general area.  The Sheraton is also under renovation (our room was pretty dumpy and in need of a lot of TLC), so I do not believe we received a good  value.    We did not do a pre or post add-on, but did our own thing in New Orleans prior to the cruise as well as in Memphis after the cruise.  Hopefully Viking will change back to the Memphis docking and save everyone the bus ride to Memphis, with the mediocre (in our case) hotel stay.  Definitely try Flight and/or Itta Bena for dinners.  Both have amazing food!

[CocoChip]

My husband and I just returned from a Viking Mississippi cruise from Memphis to New Orleans, and I wanted to give our perspective on some things in case it is helpful to others.  Jumping first to my bottom line, I think that anyone with appropriate, informed expectations and an interest in learning about the wonderful music, history and culture of the lower Mississippi will enjoy this cruise as much as we did.  But if you come expecting the same experience as a Viking European cruise, with a well-seasoned International service staff, and scenic cruising past castles, vineyards and quaint villages, then perhaps you will be disappointed.  We were told by more than one guide that Viking has been making a huge financial investment on both infrastructure and area jobs to support this cruise, and everyone from the bus drivers and local tour guides, to the entertainers and onshore attraction operators (and even the legislators we saw in the Louisiana capitol building we toured) welcomed us enthusiastically and were clearly appreciative for our presence.  This is an area of the country that I think can use such investment, and I was impressed by Viking's commitment.

We did the 3-night pre-cruise extension in Memphis starting on Wednesday, and were put up in the Peabody Hotel.  Lovely historic hotel in a great location, and we enjoyed meeting some fellow cruisers before embarkation.  Included excursions included visits to Graceland, Sun Records Studio and the Rock & Soul Museum.  We thought that all of these excursions were excellent and thoroughly enjoyed them.  We loved this focus on the wonderful music that has originated from this area.  Others who flew in on Friday just for the cruise were put up at another hotel not as centrally located, perhaps because the city was full with a World Barbecue Championship contest on the river front that weekend.

On Saturday, we had a choice of three excursions, and selected the National Civil Rights Museum, with a later stop en route to the ship at the Grammy Museum.  The Civil Rights Museum was very powerful and moving, and I felt was appropriate to our later visits to several plantations from the pre-Civil War era.

We embarked the ship in Rosedale, a small town about 2 hours south of Memphis.  We were told by someone that the reason the cruise does not start in Memphis is that to cover that extra distance the ship would have to run its engines at a speed that causes uncomfortable vibrations.  So instead they bus passengers from Memphis, with a short rest stop at the Grammy Museum (we would have liked more time to enjoy this museum).

The ship itself is beautiful, with the classic Viking decor and ambiance.  We had no issues at all with our cabin or its daily servicing.  It was clean, comfortable and well maintained.  It was on the 3d floor near the stern, and we had no problem sleeping through any minimal engine noise (for the most part the ship cruises at night and arrives at each port in the dark).  

Service in the main dining room and the 5th floor cafe was generally good.  We always ate dinner in the main dining room, and enjoyed the selections, although the variety was not as extensive as on Viking Ocean cruises.  My impression is that they may still be having a little trouble with staffing, but the ship was sold out for our cruise, so at peak dining hours there were just a lot of people all wanting to eat at the same time.  Only one night was the wait for service a little longer than desirable.  As another commenter noted, I think that a ship like this one, sailing wholly within U.S. waters, may be required to hire only U.S. workers, and let's face it, many Americans do not like taking service jobs - as evidenced by the many restaurant and store help wanted signs in most places these days.  So Viking may be having trouble hiring and retaining workers for these demanding jobs.

For shore excursions, Viking has its own fleet of new buses that accompanied the cruise all down river.  Excursions were well run and organized.  The bus drivers were professional and attentive to passengers with mobility issues, and the guides were enthusiastic and knowledgeable.  The included excursions were usually a "best of" type of tour by bus and/or walking of 1-2 hours, so there was time to take an optional tour in the afternoon.  We particularly enjoyed the B.B. King Museum, the Vicksburg National Military Park (although did not have enough time in the visitor center), Rosedown Plantation, ***** Plantation, Whitney Plantation and Houmas House.  Some of the plantations seem to skirt around the history of slavery, but the Whitney hits it head on with very informative displays and is definitely worth seeing.

There were afternoon enrichment lectures every day in the main lounge called the Living Room.  Evening entertainment was always live musical performances, ranging from Blues to Cajun, New Orleans Jazz and 1940s WW2 hits.  Shows were in the Living Room from 6:00 to 6:45pm and again from 8:15 to 9:00pm, so you could catch it before and/or after dinner.  The Living Room itself is a somewhat awkward space that could use some rethinking by Viking.  The view of lecturers, performers and video screens is blocked from many seats by various partitions, consoles and sculptures.  Groups use it for conversation and card playing in the afternoon and evening, which impacts the noise level for those trying to listen to performers and lectures.

The lower Mississippi is lined with an extensive levee system, and other areas are just wooded.  So the passing scenery is not particularly varied or interesting.  Towns are set back behind the levees so you cannot really see them until you go ashore.  There is passing barge traffic that is fun to watch.  But for the most part I would say that you should take this cruise for the shore excursions and the onboard experience, not for the scenery.

Hope that this info is helpful for some of you!

 

 

 

 

[Roz]

@CocoChip, thank you for the detailed,  extensive review.