Viking Shore Excursions

[The Other Tom]

On 6/2/2024 at 12:26 PM, Travel 25 said:

Looks like we have to book with private venders instead of  Viking.

That's not the end of the world.  We've always had good luck with "private vendor" excursions.  Make sure you read the reviews beforehand.  

Double check the roll call for your cruise.  There may already be like minded individuals who have booked an Alhambra excursion, and you can go with them.

[kctwinmommy]

3 hours ago, Islander500 said:

I really appreciated all of the information everyone shared on this thread. 

As a new booked (future) Viking cruiser, I would like to ask your thoughts about the quality, size (# of passengers) and prices on typical Viking shore excursions. I'm specifically interested in the additional paid excursions, but happy to read your experiences on any of them. 

On some cruise lines, I have stopped doing ship-sponsored excursions due to many bad experiences. More often than not, it appeared that the lines contracted transportation companies who then hired just about anyone to do the actual "tour" part. I can even remember one "guide" telling us at a stop that it wasn't really worth getting off the bus there. (I guess she had a date that evening and needed to get home.) Another guide on a full-day tour, had 5 or 6 handwritten pages of notes and repeated the same information at least 6 or 7 times. By late afternoon, I could have guided the tour (equally badly) myself. 

Wondered what to expect on Viking...and how actively I should research private companies in most ports where we don't want to do DYI. 

Thanks in advance.             

On most of our previous cruises, our excursions usually involved a beach. LOL! Alaska would be the exception, and we had some good guides there.

 

Viking is much better. Yes, there's still a chance for a not so good one, but almost every guide we had was great! They told a lot about the country/city, the history, the sights we were seeing, and overall had good personalities. They were engaging and entertaining. The guides are from the area you're visiting, so they really know the area and will tell you a lot.

 

As far as size, most of ours used a normal, touring bus, but it was never at capacity, I would say most of our groups were about 30 people. They have a quiet vox (speaker w/the ear piece that you get on the ship) that you will use with most of your tours.

 

With regards to pricing, I would say they average around $100-110/person. Some are as low as $70 and others around $180. There are a few that run over $200, but not that many. I actually posted a PDF of the excursions for our Mediterranean cruise, if you want to get an idea of that.

[CDNPolar]

13 hours ago, Islander500 said:

I really appreciated all of the information everyone shared on this thread. 

As a new booked (future) Viking cruiser, I would like to ask your thoughts about the quality, size (# of passengers) and prices on typical Viking shore excursions. I'm specifically interested in the additional paid excursions, but happy to read your experiences on any of them. 

On some cruise lines, I have stopped doing ship-sponsored excursions due to many bad experiences. More often than not, it appeared that the lines contracted transportation companies who then hired just about anyone to do the actual "tour" part. I can even remember one "guide" telling us at a stop that it wasn't really worth getting off the bus there. (I guess she had a date that evening and needed to get home.) Another guide on a full-day tour, had 5 or 6 handwritten pages of notes and repeated the same information at least 6 or 7 times. By late afternoon, I could have guided the tour (equally badly) myself. 

Wondered what to expect on Viking...and how actively I should research private companies in most ports where we don't want to do DYI. 

Thanks in advance.             

 

Our experience has always been very good with Viking excursions, both included and optional (paid).  I cannot say that we have not had the occasional guide that was boring in the way that they presented, but at the same time I could not fault their overall knowledge shared.  Some guides just have a more "fun" personality in the way that they deliver.

 

We have on occasion done our own arranged excursions, but not often.

 

If I were to take a wild guess, I would say that it is a very small percentage of Viking guests that do the DIY thing on excursions.  We have signed up for an included excursion and walked out to 10 busses for that same excursion.

 

There are quite a few on CC that speak about DIY but I would expect as an actual percentage that number is very low.  Single digits.

[CDNPolar]

Oh, and the pricing?  That is a real range... We have paid upwards of $350 pp for some excursions.  Depends on what and where and how....  Most however seem to be in the $50-$150 range pp.

[Islander500]

Thanks all.  I feel much better now about the Viking excursions. Just a few more quick questions I should have included.  Are the excursions descriptions detailed, and are they posted early enough so that you can "do your homework" and decide which ones you'd like to book in advance? How much earlier are they available to review than the posted dates they are available for booking?        

[kctwinmommy]

@Islander500 I created a PDF of our excursions when they were posted on MVJ. I know some people have gotten this from a Viking rep by messaging with them before they were posted. But they won't have prices, and it can change, as it's not set for your cruise yet. It was a way for people to start planning. I just waited, and once they were posted in MVJ, I actually cut/pasted all the info into a PDF that had what we wanted. I also condensed it on the page, and deleted the repeated info (related to demanding, moderate, etc... And yes, I had time. It was winter here in Chicago, LOL! I do better reading on paper, not on a computer screen, when it's long and I want to compare things. This way, my husband could also read it, and we put notes on the pages.

 

 

But this gives you an idea of the descriptions, length of tour, and prices.

Viking Mars excursions.pdf

[OneSixtyToOne]

1 hour ago, Islander500 said:

Are the excursions descriptions detailed, and are they posted early enough so that you can "do your homework" and decide which ones you'd like to book in advance? How much earlier are they available to review than the posted dates they are available for booking?     

Besides asking Viking for a PDF you can get a general idea of what is offered by going to the website of the cruise and clicking on the day by day of the itinerary. This will show you what is generally available. They are subject to change and not all of them are offered on every sailing, but it will allow you to do preliminary planning and research.

[island lady]

On 6/2/2024 at 10:36 AM, Travel 25 said:

Thanks for helping me relax before our date arrives to book our excursions.  When we read one of the posts, it said that your excursion is not even safe in your cart until it is paid for.  Others said you should pay for each day separately to make sure you get what you want. It just seems like a lot of extra work.  Usually, we put all of our excursions in our cart and then check out.  It just appeared that Viking is trying to force people into more expensive cabins just so they can get the excursions they want.  If an excursion is very popular, they should just add another bus to accommodate the demand.  Most other cruise lines offer even the quests in the least expensive cabins a chance to get their desired excursions. Booking 100 days before your cruise gives them plenty of time to add another bus, if needed.  Viking makes a lot of money on these excursions, and we should not be forced to use private venders, when we book more than 3 months before the cruise.  Cruise ships that carry 2-3 thousand people have no problem, if they book well in advance, so Viking with smaller ships should follow their lead. 

 

Try not to "read a book by it's cover".   Actual experience is worth much more.  How do you know for sure you will have a difficult time?  

 

We did our first Viking cruise, and did not even think about it when I booked our excursions.  Most were "included" and some were extra pay.  Not once did I find a sold out excursion, and I did not book at first opportunity...but had waited awhile, finally booking once I thought about it.  

 

The whole Viking Experience was one we loved so much, we now have another 5 booked and searching for more to add to the line up.  My glass was "half full"....now it is all the way up there. 😉 

 

 

[ural guy]

kctwinmommy-  Thanks for posting the .pdf.  We are doing a similar cruise in January, so very helpful.

 

I understand when we can book tours is based on cabin class.  When is a more detailed tour list posted, with times and prices?  We can start booking 5 October; we'll be on a river cruise so would like to have everything lined up before we leave for that trip. To make the best decision ahead of time I'd like to see if I could do the included tours plus an optional one, or would our time best be spent exploring the port area after the included tour.  I could see a situation where an optional tour looks nice, but once you see the price, maybe a slow day would be more 'worthwhile'.

 

For example, the Krka waterfalls/falconry tour has gotten some nice praise.  It looks like it's $160, and you're in the bus for 2 hours total from Sibenik, and 2.5 hrs split between waterfalls and Bird sanctuary?  We went to Plitvice Lakes Park previously and spent half a day.  Is Krka that much smaller, do people feel rushed?  Or am I completely off.  Thanks again.

[formernuke]

Details of excursions are posted at least a couple of weeks before the highest categories of cabins can choose, which therefore is typically about a month before DV cabins can select. 

[OneSixtyToOne]

21 minutes ago, ural guy said:

we'll be on a river cruise so would like to have everything lined up before we leave for that trip

River cruising is much different than ocean. You are at the mercy of the river… water level, river traffic, locks, etc. You are only given your arrival and departure times the night before you dock. Even then, times can change on the day you dock. Because of this, arranging independent tours can be tricky. Don’t book anything that isn’t fully refundable. 
 

River cruising requires you to go with the flow because times can and will change. They are not ideal for those who want to plan everything to the minute.

Edited June 10 by OneSixtyToOne

[deec]

Some details but Viking IMO could better serve its future passengers if their descriptions were more like those presented in the port talks.  How much time on the bus?  Are there bathrooms available, will there be shopping opportunities?  How difficult is the walking,  even with Included tours there are some passengers who SHOULD not attempt with walkers or wheelchairs!    Also Viking could do a better job describing the port (I know docking assignments might change but for the most part Viking could give more specific guidelines.  Is the port walking distance to the city or village, will there be a shuttles,  how far is the walk to the excursion bus, how far is the ship from town? Will the port be in an industrial area?   Armed with this information I think folks could more easily plan.  I know much of this information can be teased out with Google maps etc But when Viking has it available to them why do passengers have to be researchers too?

[SantaFe1]

27 minutes ago, deec said:

Some details but Viking IMO could better serve its future passengers if their descriptions were more like those presented in the port talks.  How much time on the bus?  Are there bathrooms available, will there be shopping opportunities?  How difficult is the walking,  even with Included tours there are some passengers who SHOULD not attempt with walkers or wheelchairs!    Also Viking could do a better job describing the port (I know docking assignments might change but for the most part Viking could give more specific guidelines.  Is the port walking distance to the city or village, will there be a shuttles,  how far is the walk to the excursion bus, how far is the ship from town? Will the port be in an industrial area?   Armed with this information I think folks could more easily plan.  I know much of this information can be teased out with Google maps etc But when Viking has it available to them why do passengers have to be researchers too?

Yes, yes, yes!  Agree with all of this. Except for brand new cruises, they have done the excursions before and the excursions manager has all this info.  It should be written into the descriptions so we know sooner that the day before, when the excursion can’t be cancelled!

[CCWineLover]

2 hours ago, deec said:

Some details but Viking IMO could better serve its future passengers if their descriptions were more like those presented in the port talks.  How much time on the bus?  Are there bathrooms available, will there be shopping opportunities?  How difficult is the walking,  even with Included tours there are some passengers who SHOULD not attempt with walkers or wheelchairs!    Also Viking could do a better job describing the port (I know docking assignments might change but for the most part Viking could give more specific guidelines.  Is the port walking distance to the city or village, will there be a shuttles,  how far is the walk to the excursion bus, how far is the ship from town? Will the port be in an industrial area?   Armed with this information I think folks could more easily plan.  I know much of this information can be teased out with Google maps etc But when Viking has it available to them why do passengers have to be researchers too?

Dee I Totally agree!  Viking has done a much better job on the cruise we just finished in describing all of these items in minute detail.  However, this is given in the port talk and is the afternoon before.  Too late for most people.

 

What they need to do, and I put it in my comments (again!), is put this information in the descriptions that people use to choose their excursions, not give it to us the night before when we are committed money-wise already.

[ural guy]

2 hours ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

River cruising is much different than ocean. You are at the mercy of the river… water level, river traffic, locks, etc. You are only given your arrival and departure times the night before you dock. Even then, times can change on the day you dock. Because of this, arranging independent tours can be tricky. Don’t book anything that isn’t fully refundable. 
 

River cruising requires you to go with the flow because times can and will change. They are not ideal for those who want to plan everything to the minute.

Thanks, this will be our sixth river cruise, first ocean.  I meant that we don't want to have to make Ocean booking decisions while on the River, just log in and hopefully book our choices while on the River when they are first available.

 

Thanks formernuke, spouse and I were both Army Chemical Corp.

[kctwinmommy]

@ural guy - I'm currently about half way through reviewing our cruise. I did a lot of details, including bus length and bathroom break info, when I could remember. It might help you.

 

As far as booking while on the river, I would definitely have a list, be ready to go. Also, be aware of the time to book, as it will probably be later in the evening. For us, in Chicago, it was mid afternoon. So, if you're in Europe, it would be like 9-10 at night.

 

 

[OneSixtyToOne]

1 hour ago, kctwinmommy said:

So, if you're in Europe, it would be like 9-10 at night.

 

We were in this situation while on our Journey to Antiquity post cruise extension. Our Mediterranean Odyssey excursions opened and I booked at 9 PM while at out hotel in Italy. We had an all day excursion with a dinner at a winery and I almost had to book while still on the bus going back to the hotel. 

[kctwinmommy]

18 minutes ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

 

We were in this situation while on our Journey to Antiquity post cruise extension. Our Mediterranean Odyssey excursions opened and I booked at 9 PM while at out hotel in Italy. We had an all day excursion with a dinner at a winery and I almost had to book while still on the bus going back to the hotel. 

 

Yikes! Glad it worked out. It is one thing that I can say I'm not a fan of when it comes to Viking. I wish they could find a slightly better way, but oh well... It obviously works as they're certainly selling out cruise after cruise.

[ural guy]

kctwinmommy-  Thanks, you've definitely been helpful.  Printed off your .pdf tour list already.  We're going Rome-Athens, can't imagine the tours will differ too much.

[CDNPolar]

13 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Dee I Totally agree!  Viking has done a much better job on the cruise we just finished in describing all of these items in minute detail.  However, this is given in the port talk and is the afternoon before.  Too late for most people.

 

What they need to do, and I put it in my comments (again!), is put this information in the descriptions that people use to choose their excursions, not give it to us the night before when we are committed money-wise already.

 

If you have not already, please email tellus@vikingcruises.com about the excursion descriptions.

I emailed them some time ago, and they thanked me for my suggestion and indicated that they were forwarding it on to the shore excursion team.

 

We need to band together on these things because discussing them here on CC does not effect change at Viking.

 

I understand that you are putting in your comments on the surveys, but with the 100's of surveys completed everyday, how long does it take for a comment to actually surface to the right department?

[kctwinmommy]

4 hours ago, ural guy said:

kctwinmommy-  Thanks, you've definitely been helpful.  Printed off your .pdf tour list already.  We're going Rome-Athens, can't imagine the tours will differ too much.

You're welcome! And like I said, I have my review going that covers everything we did. I will say, we loved Rome!! We did a private car tour there. I want to go back and spend a week there.

[lackcreativity]

22 hours ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

Besides asking Viking for a PDF you can get a general idea of what is offered by going to the website of the cruise and clicking on the day by day of the itinerary. This will show you what is generally available. They are subject to change and not all of them are offered on every sailing, but it will allow you to do preliminary planning and research.

On the web page with the possible excursions in each port, you can click on each excursion for more details. You may well find that out on your own, but I remember when I was here for our first cruise. What seems obvious later isn't always clear on first view!

Edited June 11 by lackcreativity

[rmalbers]

excursions costs: I think you can look at the cost of living/cost of fuel at the given location to get an idea if the cost of an excursion is reasonable or not.  That kind of is what it's all about.  As far as quality of excursions go, I think it's, at least with VO, really dependent on what they have to work with at a given location, some places are just a lot more scenic or have a deeper history than others.  I really can't think of having a 'bad' excursion, really anywhere. Oh, and then there's the weather, that's probably the biggest factor, lol.

[mjmagee]

I was very concerned about booking my excursions for my Can/NE cruise this fall as I was going to be away from home on the day the excursions became available. I planned to be in a quiet place with my cell phone, pre set with a link to My Viking Journey, my credit card and my list of preferred excursions.  At noon I logged on and began with my most desired (paid for) excursion.  I got it!  After paying for that one I went back in for my 2nd most desired (paid for) excursion.  That one kept giving me a weird message so I backed off and did my most desired included tour.  I then went back to the last paid for excursion and the purchase completed just fine.  I proceeded through my list of excursions.  I got everyone I wanted although 2 were at different times than I desired.  By the time I was done I could see "sold out" on several that I had successfully booked.  All in all it went smoothly but if I had not been able to work on this at exactly the start time, I am sure I would not have been as successful.  

 

Marilyn