Why choose Viking??

[retiredslug]

"Why Viking" is one of the tabs on their website and we too have wondered why. There are a number of excellent riverboat cruise lines available from which to choose and maybe that's why it's so confusing. Viking seems to have older vessels, smaller cabins, and increasingly negative reviews. We have not cruised with Viking and in fact have only completed one river cruise with Amadeus last year with our second coming up in August with Avalon. Since we have no firsthand knowledge of Viking we cannot criticize; however, we often wondered, "What are we missing here?"

 

It appears that their European itineraries and pricing are similar to the competition. We prefer newer boats because that usually indicates more comfortable living environments, especially bedding. Yes, Viking is introducing a new ship in 2009 but most are older, I think, than Amadeus, Avalon, or even Uniworld.

 

As we were reading through Viking's latest brochure it appears they have cut back the itineraries somewhat. Does this indicate problems?

 

River cruises are not inexpensive--we must choose wisely.

 

Oh, one final thought. Wine not included with dinner??

 

Bill

[coasters]

"Why Viking" is one of the tabs on their website and we too have wondered why. There are a number of excellent riverboat cruise lines available from which to choose and maybe that's why it's so confusing. Viking seems to have older vessels, smaller cabins, and increasingly negative reviews. We have not cruised with Viking and in fact have only completed one river cruise with Amadeus last year with our second coming up in August with Avalon. Since we have no firsthand knowledge of Viking we cannot criticize; however, we often wondered, "What are we missing here?"

 

It appears that their European itineraries and pricing are similar to the competition. We prefer newer boats because that usually indicates more comfortable living environments, especially bedding. Yes, Viking is introducing a new ship in 2009 but most are older, I think, than Amadeus, Avalon, or even Uniworld.

 

As we were reading through Viking's latest brochure it appears they have cut back the itineraries somewhat. Does this indicate problems?

 

River cruises are not inexpensive--we must choose wisely.

 

Oh, one final thought. Wine not included with dinner??

 

Bill

Bill,

Our experience comparing others with Viking (river cruising), limited as it is, Viking proved to be quite impressive. They exceeded our expectations, which were high in every measure we chose to consider.

The venues, hotels, ships, amenities and guides were superb. Many of the persons we met were satisfied Viking guests, on tour again only because they felt Viking had done so well in the past.

We felt that the value was excellent (better than others we cruised on) the ship and hotel accommodations were near new or recently refurbished. The size of the cabin on Viking Century Sun was beautiful, large, great size lavatory, hotel style comfortable beds and even nicer than we imagined.

We booked again for next year with them only because we were so pleased with our Viking China Cultural Delights trip.

From the many CC comments and comparisons regarding river cruising, it seems to me that there may be significant differences in the number of tours and meals included in the price (vs. optional) and the quality of accommodations.

We had 5 star hotels and ships.... in China.

Oh yes... About the wine...

I do agree that Viking should offer free table wine.... they did so a few nights, but not all. That should be easy for them to fix and I have written to suggest they do so.

I'll report next year about Ukraine....

Jerry

[Bill S]

We sailed on Viking two years ago and had a great experience! Although it was our first river cruise, we had done about a dozen ocean cruises, so we had one form of a baseline. We thought the itinerary, service, food, excursions, guides and crew were very good. We are not wine drinkers, so that was not a factor.

We will be going on Avalon in December, so then we will have a better comparison with respect to river cruise lines.

[retiredslug]

Hello Jerry and Bill,

 

Yes I remember reading glowing reviews from those who cruised with Viking in China but my comments were concerning European itineraries. I'm glad to hear you're both happy with Viking--but they're probably on the bottom of our list. We had such a great time on Amadeus last year that I'm hoping Avalon is a similar experience. Uniworld is another cruise line that gets our attention and plenty of rave reviews on these boards.

 

It would be fun to travel with a more international group by cruising with Deilmann but the additional expense, fixed seating, and formal nights will prevent us from that experience.

 

Bill

[coasters]

Hello Jerry and Bill,

 

Yes I remember reading glowing reviews from those who cruised with Viking in China but my comments were concerning European itineraries. I'm glad to hear you're both happy with Viking--but they're probably on the bottom of our list. We had such a great time on Amadeus last year that I'm hoping Avalon is a similar experience. Uniworld is another cruise line that gets our attention and plenty of rave reviews on these boards.

 

It would be fun to travel with a more international group by cruising with Deilmann but the additional expense, fixed seating, and formal nights will prevent us from that experience.

 

Bill

 

Bill,

I just did a quick search on CC to see what comments (Viking European trips) there were.

From what I read ... those I looked at quite randomly were very positive.

Why do you claim to have them "at the bottom of our list"? Have you any direct past experience?

Interested in knowing, as we were so pleased. Also, FYI, I heard that Amadeus was a split off by relatives of Viking.

Jerry

[micked10@earthlink.net]

We did a Viking river Cruise from Vienna to Amsterdam--Rhine, Main and Danube Rivers several years ago ( 3 years ago to be exact). It was our first River Cruise after doing 25 ocean Cruises and numerous land trips. We were competely satisfied and I am pretty picking. The ship was beautiful, cabins very nice with plenty of storage space and cleaned twice a day. The food was excellent and so were all of the guides. Everything was very well organized. We loved it1

This year in April we did a tulips and windmills with Uniworld because the Viking trip was sold out ( we would have gone with them again). We also loved Uniworld and had very comfortable cabins, good beds and an excellent Cruise Manager. It would be very difficult to choose between the two because they were both excellent. I do think the food was a little better on Viking but that is just a personal opionion. My husband thought it was very good on both of them. Uniworld does have free wine at dinner, that flows freely. We are not wine drinkers but my husband was offerred soft drinks instead.

We would not hesitate to do either line again. I guess it would come down to the eitinerary and dates availabe. I think they are very comparable in their pricing.

micked10

[hockeymadhockey]

I have posted before re: Viking and will continue to do so when these questions come up. I did not do the research that I should have and that you are now doing, so good for you. Had I done the research I would have selected another line. Since our return last year on the Viking Sky from Amsterdam to Vienna I have done lots of research. Perhaps what follows will help.

 

1) The sights were incredible. The only thing I would have liked, is longer stops in some places but locke schedules must be met and this is certainly no fault of Viking.

2) Nothing is free on Viking and they do NOT refund. This means if you miss a sight (like a separate Nuremburg trip) through no fault of your own, too bad. They will not refund the extra you paid for that trip. Needless to say some of those on that extra trip were not happy.

3) The cabin sizes are small compared to say Amadeus, Vantage, Uniworld. Check the square footage of each. My cabin was adequate, not alot of storage space (the suitcases did NOT fit under the bed). There was a small bathroom with a small shower, again adequate. The windows on many of the ships do NOT open. Apparently the newest ship has french balconies (this does matter to me but does not to others-when I choose in the future it will be one that has french balconies). The cabins were clean, the beds were comfortable, the walls were very, very thin (couple next to us had nightly arguments-I can tell you exactly what it was about and they weren't yelling), the television has two english news stations and a nightly, usually old, region approriate movie (IF you remind the gal up front to turn it on-she forgot to nearly every single night-I was reading but others kept having to call the front desk-again no big deal for some but other ships have DVD, movie selections, internet in the rooms, etc-so if this is important, select that line)

4) Breakfast and Lunch were very good buffet style, Dinner was forgettable most nights unless you like things drenched in liquors (desserts especially) but meeting new people was fun and the food didn't matter alot to us (especially since my father found every bakery in every town and brought mega goodies back-the tea served on the ship was poor-the pastries might as well have been cardboard)

5) Nightly entertainment consisted of a wonderful folk dance one night only, glass blowing another, dancing later and bingo-not a big deal to us because we read or socialized. We had a wonderful group of people on the trip.

If you have more specific questions, I would be happy to answer. I will not be on Viking again. Some people who read these posts seem to get a little perturbed with any negative remarks about any cruise line. I'm not trying to change anybody's mind but I am saying there are things to look for in the brochures or by calling the line directly BEFORE you book. I have now done lots of research and I will probably go with Amadeus next time (I can't afford Premicon). I have walked on the Amadeus ship docked next to ours and the difference was very noticeable.

 

Whatever you choose, river cruising is the most delightful way to see Europe and I can't wait until our next one. Enjoy!

[coasters]

Not to get into naming the cruise lines....

however we've been on another line that you recommended instead of Viking.. and found the cabins and hotels were FAR INFERIOR to those that we had the good fortune to get on Viking.

So, it's not always going to be as easy to compare as it may seem.

Suggest anyone trying to decide on a river cruise company read all the postings and email or ask others any unanswered questions - then go with what appeals to you, is within your budget and feels good.

Jerry

[pacmom]

As Steamboats always says--ITINERARY first. Then look at all the lines with that itinerary. We are Uniworld lovers. We used Viking on the Elbe because it was the line that had what we wanted. The cabins were awful--pullman beds needed renewing, which they will do this winter. We have always wanted to go from someplace to Basel. Uniworld goes from Amsterdam--spends too much time there. ( we have spent 10 days there). Viking starts in Antwerp, a city never visited. So we chose Viking because of the itinerary. We upgraded the cabin, so as to have hotel style beds. The window opening or not--no big issue for us. Our Christmas market cruise this year will be with Vantage because Uniworld does not offer the ITINERARY we want--again upgraded to have hotel style beds. The only time we have used a line's hotel was the Elbe. Hotels were excellent--brand new Sol Melia in Berlin and the Hilton in Prague. Thought the food was quite good--eggs on all cruses seem to be good only if freshly cooked. so good luck finding a line to your satisfaction. Pat

[loge23]

I can't offer a comparison as we have not cruised on any other River lines. We have just returned from our first - a seven nighter Provence/Burgundy on the Viking Burgundy.

I can say that the Burgundy compared very well physically to the other river ships we were docked with (Uniworld, Avalon, among others).

Our trip was wonderful and we were very satisfied w/ Viking.

Yes, the beds could have been bigger, etc., etc. but as veteran large ocean cruisers we thoroughly enjoyed the difference.

My advice would be to don't sweat the small details and just enjoy your vacation. Complementary wine at dinner (no), or free bottled water (no) are not difference makers to us. I rather enjoyed the wine selection available and the courteous manner displayed for corkage of our own bottles (good wines are decanted). Ample, inexpensive bottled water is available at any port.

Special mention should be made for the fantastic hard-working crew aboard the Burgundy. These fine young people from mainly Portugal and Germany couldn't do enough for us and did so unfailingly cheerful and promptly.

The included tours were very good as well.

Highly recommend!

[Tennessee Traveler]

loge23,

I was on the Viking Burgundy 3 years and had a fabulous time. We met wonderful people and quickly became friends with them. The ports were great and so were the shore excursions. We could have used more port talks & bottle water included, but they were not deal breakers.

Next Viking trip was on the Century Sun in China. It was the best cruise ever among the many we went on. We enjoyed meeting many new friends aboard that we still communicate with regularly. The trip was perfect in every way. See the movie Up the Yangtze if you ever go. It gives you a behind the scenes view of the great young staff aboard.

The third Viking cruise was on the Surkov last July. WE enjoyed the trip, but it was not up to the standards on the two previous Viking cruises. To be fair, the Surkov is going through a vast refurbishment & reconstruction that will make it better. However, the price will go up quite a bit. That's the trade-off. We loved the ports & the talks by the guides aboard & ashore. The food & service did not compare to either Provence or China. Tennessee Traveler

[loge23]

Thanks TT!

We heard so many good things about the China trips from some of the more experienced river cruisers aboard the Burgundy.

I'll look into that film.

Happy Cruising!

[Teresa Price]

Hi, looking at a Rhine cruise next Easter and not sure who to go with. We are doing our first river cruise in October with Peter Deilmann but don't want to wait that long before booking really. Viking has a 14 day trip which i like the look of.

the trouble is every cabin is going to seem small compared to the ocean cruises we have done [20+].

Anyway I'll keep reading up!

Teresa

[coasters]

Hi, looking at a Rhine cruise next Easter and not sure who to go with. We are doing our first river cruise in October with Peter Deilmann but don't want to wait that long before booking really. Viking has a 14 day trip which i like the look of.

the trouble is every cabin is going to seem small compared to the ocean cruises we have done [20+].

Anyway I'll keep reading up!

Teresa

 

Having about 32+ "big ship cruises" it's hard to compare cabin sizes. Some of our river ships had comparable sized cabins, others not. Seems to us that the big difference is that we spent VERY little time in the cabin on the river packages, as almost all of the tours were included in the price. The tours were very well managed, quite extensive and many included lunch and/or dinner.

If anything, some CC folks have reported that they would have liked more free time... we however, loved the destinations and appreciated the depth of knowledge and communication skills (and sound facilities) of the tour guides we were assigned.

None of the big ship cruise tours we've been on has yet to compare as nicely with those we experienced on the river cruises.

I'd be interested in the opinion of others about this subject.

Jerry

[Teresa Price]

Thanks for that Jerry. I've become fed up with ship's tours over the years and we usually organise ourselves. On our Deilmann cruise the tours won't be included but are much cheaper than big ship tours.

Teresa

[loge23]

The ship tours on our recent Viking Burgundy trip were very good - and we usually loathe organized tours.

The guides provided were well-versed and entertaining. Yes, we could have used a little more free-time in some of the locations (particularly in Beaune on Sat AM market day), but we were also close enough to do what we wanted to if we wished. We opted for one of the three "optional" tours in addition to the included tours.

The cabins on the lower level are quite tight, but we rarely noticed as we were almost always outside or upstairs during our waking hours. Frankly, the additional cost of the larger cabin was not a good value proposition for us.

[MSEm]

I was on Avalon in June 2008. Our first river cruise was on Viking. When you add the cost of all the tours and the recommended tips, I could have booked Tauck for almost the same total cost. Viking also would price out at about the same. Avalon only included a general city tour. If the city tour was in the afternoon, I had seen at least 1/2 of thing places we went to on the city tour. Since the tours are almost all optional on Avalon, you would be cheaper if you just stayed on the river vessel or walked on your own. Several times there was not way to get into the city without being on the tour bus.

The food was OK. We always had fish with sauce as 1 of the 2 entree ooptions. You could substitue grill chicken breast or grill salmon for the entree of the day. If you do not eat fish your entree choices are very limited.

The inluded wine was drinkable, but not something I would purchase.

Tours were not well organized. We wasted 1/2 with the tour dictor trying to find the master head set. The mast head set for the guide was still on our river vessel.

 

I do not plan to travel with Avalon again. I would look at Tauck, Viking, AMA (Amedaus) or Uniworld.

 

Emily

[smallturtle]

MSEm,

we will be on the Tranquility in october;

I would like to know if, in Vienna or elsewhere we can take the include tour and leave the bus in town to continue and come back on our own?

[webfoot]

Hi ... we were on the Artistry in April/May and one of our stops was Vienna. In the morning, there was a bus city tour. Then we were left off near St. Stephen's where we started a walking tour. This would probably be an idea spot for you to get off and go on your own. Our ship didn't leave Vienna until early morning, so you should have plent of time to explore Vienna (my favorite city) as long as you want to. It is easy to get the subway back to near where the ship docks.

[micked10@earthlink.net]

Jerry, I agree whole heartedly with you. We have been on 26 + ocean cruises and 2 river Cruises. One with Viking and one with Uniworld. Our cabins were small but with plenty of storage space and everything well organized. You are seldom in your cabin, as you say, because everything is so well organzied and runs like clockworks. Both of these lines included all shore escursions except for 2 optional choices on Uniworld and I believe about 4 on Viking, that we did not feel it was necessary to do. We took the free time instead to do our own thing. The shore excursions on both of these lines were divided into 4 groups so you seldom had more than 15 people in each group. They use those vox boxes with ear phones so you do not have to be close to the guide to hear everything.

We do love ocean cruises too but sometimes we found we were paying quite a bit for the shore excursions or even when we did them on our own it was expensive.

We love the pace of the river Cruises and didn't feel as if we needed more free time. Almost of the excursions we done around 8:30 AM for several hours and then you would have the rest of the day free.

We enjoyed both of our trips and would not hesitate to use these lines again. I think our next River Cruise will be a Nile Cruise.

micked10

[smallturtle]

Thank you Webfoot for your response

We are going from Budapest to Trier

Is there a shuttle bus service in each port?

It is our first river cruise but we are familiar with Europe

[webfoot]

We did Amsterdam to Budapest ... so, I'm sure there are others out there that can help. We docked in Budapest very close to shopping. Visit the market ... lots of interesting things to look at and purchase.