Viking River Cruises
Dec 19, 2009, 9:42 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Programs: Alas, not enough to earn miles
Posts: 169
Viking River Cruises
Viking River Cruises is offering 2 for 1 deals until December 31. They have some interesting itineraries and the 2 for 1 makes them even more appealing. Before my husband and I take the plunge, has anyone been on a cruise with the company to give us some feedback?
Dec 19, 2009, 12:14 pm
#2
Join Date: Aug 2005
Programs: AA, UA, DL,
Posts: 588
Hello OP,
I was on Viking River Cruise two years ago on a two week trip from Budapest to Amsterdam and really enjoyed it.
The food is ordinary.... not like a cruiseliner... but edible. The scenery is gorgeous. The staff is wonderful. I'm not sure which cruise you're taking but you're busy every day. There's at least one city to visit each day.
What I liked about my cruise is that I visited cities that I would have never ever taken the time to visit because it is just too far to get to on my own.
I highly recommend Viking River Cruises.
David
I was on Viking River Cruise two years ago on a two week trip from Budapest to Amsterdam and really enjoyed it.
The food is ordinary.... not like a cruiseliner... but edible. The scenery is gorgeous. The staff is wonderful. I'm not sure which cruise you're taking but you're busy every day. There's at least one city to visit each day.
What I liked about my cruise is that I visited cities that I would have never ever taken the time to visit because it is just too far to get to on my own.
I highly recommend Viking River Cruises.
David
Dec 21, 2009, 8:39 pm
#3
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 509
It has been several years since we have taken river cruises. 1st with Uniworld- Vienna to Amsterdam; then the others were with Viking: Avignon to Chalon-sur-Saone and Paris to Honfleur.
Enjoyed the scenery and daily city walks. We received small booklets focused on the cities we would visit. -- Uniworld issued us a red "travel bag"/basic square catch-all; Viking gave us sturdy luggage tags on first trip and on the 2nd one a travel wallet.
If you mention a past passenger, as I recall for a referral, both parties get some sbc or modest fee deduction. We don't have to be sailing together. Returning past passengers were getting a $100 off their fare.
DH enjoyed seeing the local bakeries delivering fresh baguettes and croissants early in the AM when we sailed in France. Early risers often would take a stroll in the villages/cities where we were docked by; return in time for breakfast, then the local tour guide would take the guests to local sites -walk or by pre-arranged buses. Back on-board for lunch soup/sandwich or a hot entree. The ship would sail further on to the next destination. Very idyllic and easy to enjoy the heartland of Europe.
Europeans who traveled with us had assigned seating and I think they were part of a tour group with an escort. The Americans had open seating. I recall having 2 choices for entree, besides soup and dessert. Tasty. Alcohol drinks & soda were extra--not too expensive.
We enjoyed these small ships. Modest amenities. Good value. Hardworking staff. In the PMs, a local singer or a folk dance group may be asked aboard to entertain. Relaxed atmosphere, casual outfits most of the time. The Captain's Welcome aboard was the "dressy" night, and DH had a jacket and I was "smart-casual +".
Viking has our vote!
Enjoyed the scenery and daily city walks. We received small booklets focused on the cities we would visit. -- Uniworld issued us a red "travel bag"/basic square catch-all; Viking gave us sturdy luggage tags on first trip and on the 2nd one a travel wallet.
If you mention a past passenger, as I recall for a referral, both parties get some sbc or modest fee deduction. We don't have to be sailing together. Returning past passengers were getting a $100 off their fare.
DH enjoyed seeing the local bakeries delivering fresh baguettes and croissants early in the AM when we sailed in France. Early risers often would take a stroll in the villages/cities where we were docked by; return in time for breakfast, then the local tour guide would take the guests to local sites -walk or by pre-arranged buses. Back on-board for lunch soup/sandwich or a hot entree. The ship would sail further on to the next destination. Very idyllic and easy to enjoy the heartland of Europe.
Europeans who traveled with us had assigned seating and I think they were part of a tour group with an escort. The Americans had open seating. I recall having 2 choices for entree, besides soup and dessert. Tasty. Alcohol drinks & soda were extra--not too expensive.
We enjoyed these small ships. Modest amenities. Good value. Hardworking staff. In the PMs, a local singer or a folk dance group may be asked aboard to entertain. Relaxed atmosphere, casual outfits most of the time. The Captain's Welcome aboard was the "dressy" night, and DH had a jacket and I was "smart-casual +".
Viking has our vote!
Jul 10, 2010, 2:01 pm
#4
Join Date: Aug 2004
Posts: 71
Viking 2for 1 sale
We would like to take advantage of 2 for 1 sale for China in 2011. However, not willing to pay in full by July 31 of 2010. Any educated guesses if this sale with low cost air will be offerred later in the year or closer to 2011 travel dates? Also hoping to upgrade to business class with AA frequent flyer miles. Any suggestions. I am afraid we are not too savvy on these matters. Thanks for any help.
Jul 11, 2010, 1:28 pm
#5
In Memoriam
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: dallas texas usa
Programs: aa plt 4.9MM LTAC
Posts: 14,828
take a look at cruise prices the rest of this year, you may get a hint....if you are using the cruise air, you must get a custom itin on aa to ug.....afaik, you can't use aa mi to ug on other airlines....if you are comfortable w/the price, take it, however, if the depression conyinues, you might find a cheaper fare later.....good luck...
Aug 2, 2011, 11:08 pm
#7
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: Manhattan NV
Programs: Hilton LTD, Hyatt Glob, Marriott LTTE, AA LTP, Avis PC, National EE, Seabourn DE
Posts: 3,027
We booked Viking for a 10 day tulip trip from AMS last April. Forked over an extra $600 for drink package. First night spent in Amsterdam. We walked off after the first breakfast and paid for a five day cruise on Royal Crown. Happily lost everything paid to Viking to avoid 9 more days of what would have been torture for us. No way, no how would I book Viking. However, they do have a system in place that obviously appeals to the US market.
Aug 4, 2011, 12:43 am
#9
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: Manhattan NV
Programs: Hilton LTD, Hyatt Glob, Marriott LTTE, AA LTP, Avis PC, National EE, Seabourn DE
Posts: 3,027
You are a SB sailor, yes? Me too. I (highly) doubt Viking's product would be to your liking. Anything I write would be refuted by 95% of happy Viking passengers. And that, should say enough. No shortage of options for river cruises.
Aug 4, 2011, 10:59 am
#11
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Escondido CA USA
Programs: AS, UA, HY, Hil, Merr
Posts: 3,207
Afraid I don't get it?
We also are looking at a 15+- Amst to Bud on viking or other. We are a married couple, 66. We have been on several sea cruises of up to 20 days each (Alaska, Carrib-many, Europe, antiar., so pac, etc...on Holland, NCL, RoyalC, Carn, plus), traveled all of Australia and NZ, some of Canada, done a couple long bus trips, car, train, travel...but never a river cruise and never a safari. May be too late for the safari, but the river cruise is looming.
To walk from $10,000+ suggest a material no go problem.
SB sailor?
We also are looking at a 15+- Amst to Bud on viking or other. We are a married couple, 66. We have been on several sea cruises of up to 20 days each (Alaska, Carrib-many, Europe, antiar., so pac, etc...on Holland, NCL, RoyalC, Carn, plus), traveled all of Australia and NZ, some of Canada, done a couple long bus trips, car, train, travel...but never a river cruise and never a safari. May be too late for the safari, but the river cruise is looming.
To walk from $10,000+ suggest a material no go problem.
SB sailor?
Aug 4, 2011, 5:49 pm
#13
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Mackay Qld Aust
Posts: 18
We're off on September 6th on a Tauck river cruise Amsterdam to Budapest. The high Aussie dollar rate made this a very affordable cruise. During our planning some 12 months ago we considered all river cruise lines including Viking. We found, and I encourage you check, that the 2 for 1 deal was in reality not a deal at all as the price was identical to their regular price times 2. It seemed to us to be a poor marketing ploy and we took them off our list.
Aug 5, 2011, 12:03 am
#14
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: FLL
Programs: AA Gold, DL Gold, Marriott Platinum, Hilton Gold, Starwood Gold, too many cruise programs to list
Posts: 655
We're off on September 6th on a Tauck river cruise Amsterdam to Budapest. The high Aussie dollar rate made this a very affordable cruise. During our planning some 12 months ago we considered all river cruise lines including Viking. We found, and I encourage you check, that the 2 for 1 deal was in reality not a deal at all as the price was identical to their regular price times 2. It seemed to us to be a poor marketing ploy and we took them off our list.
Oct 2, 2011, 2:04 pm
#15
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: PDX
Programs: AS Emerald; UA 1MM; Hilton Gold; Marriott Platinum
Posts: 349
avoid Viking River Cruises - no customer service when things go wrong
We took the Eastern Europe trip with Viking in September 2011. This is from Budapest to Bucharest, down the Danube. It was our first Viking cruise (and our last) for reasons that will become apparent later.
We started with a guided bus tour of Bucharest, which was just average and in fact when we compared their itinerary with that put out by the local tourist office, which listed the "10 not to miss sights in Budapest" we realized they had not taken us to a single one of them! So we paid to go on the "Hop On- Hop Off tour" during our free afternoon and this was excellent and covered most of the not to miss sights and gave way more explanations.
We did find the cabins to be comfortable, clean and spacious. The rest of the ship was light and airy. The crew was helpful and friendly. The food was plentiful and tasty
There was supposedly free Wi-Fi on board, and yes, it was free, but almost so slow as to be useless. I ran a speed test and most times it was around 0.04 Mbs and yet at the average restaurant in any port of call, their free Wi-Fii was about 4.0Mbs. This lead to the strange site in most ports, of people walking around with iPads and laptops in front of them, searching for a signal!
Most of the ports along this route did not seem to have a lot of very interesting things to see or do and so most of the excursions left a lot to be desired. And bearing in mind the average age of passengers (70+), some were downright dangerous - climbing rocks several hundred feet high!
However the final blow was when we ran aground and got stuck for 36 hours on a sandbank. We never got the whole truth, but suspect captain error as we were well off the ship channel. The rescue was a joke...they finally send a car ferry for us and put 150 people on a car ferry (with no toilets) for 3 1/2 hours. We sat on an open deck in 85 degree temperatures, on plastic chairs, under umbrellas. Then on arrival at Bechet, Romania (an outpost which was just a car ferry departure point) we were immediately put on busses and driven for 1/2 hour to a gas station, where 150 people descended on the 2 toilets! Then we had another 4 hours by bus to Bucharest, finally arriving at our hotel at 8pm.
Compensation: Well they gave us a dinner at the hotel in Bucharest....we missed 2 full days of tours, and disappointingly the one of Bucharest, which looked to be a beautiful city (as we saw on our trip to airport next AM)
Following our return to the US we did receive a letter from Viking offering a credit of $946.65 per person - for a future cruise - which I considered a rather empty offer, as we will never cruise with them again
We started with a guided bus tour of Bucharest, which was just average and in fact when we compared their itinerary with that put out by the local tourist office, which listed the "10 not to miss sights in Budapest" we realized they had not taken us to a single one of them! So we paid to go on the "Hop On- Hop Off tour" during our free afternoon and this was excellent and covered most of the not to miss sights and gave way more explanations.
We did find the cabins to be comfortable, clean and spacious. The rest of the ship was light and airy. The crew was helpful and friendly. The food was plentiful and tasty
There was supposedly free Wi-Fi on board, and yes, it was free, but almost so slow as to be useless. I ran a speed test and most times it was around 0.04 Mbs and yet at the average restaurant in any port of call, their free Wi-Fii was about 4.0Mbs. This lead to the strange site in most ports, of people walking around with iPads and laptops in front of them, searching for a signal!
Most of the ports along this route did not seem to have a lot of very interesting things to see or do and so most of the excursions left a lot to be desired. And bearing in mind the average age of passengers (70+), some were downright dangerous - climbing rocks several hundred feet high!
However the final blow was when we ran aground and got stuck for 36 hours on a sandbank. We never got the whole truth, but suspect captain error as we were well off the ship channel. The rescue was a joke...they finally send a car ferry for us and put 150 people on a car ferry (with no toilets) for 3 1/2 hours. We sat on an open deck in 85 degree temperatures, on plastic chairs, under umbrellas. Then on arrival at Bechet, Romania (an outpost which was just a car ferry departure point) we were immediately put on busses and driven for 1/2 hour to a gas station, where 150 people descended on the 2 toilets! Then we had another 4 hours by bus to Bucharest, finally arriving at our hotel at 8pm.
Compensation: Well they gave us a dinner at the hotel in Bucharest....we missed 2 full days of tours, and disappointingly the one of Bucharest, which looked to be a beautiful city (as we saw on our trip to airport next AM)
Following our return to the US we did receive a letter from Viking offering a credit of $946.65 per person - for a future cruise - which I considered a rather empty offer, as we will never cruise with them again
