Bill'sBride

Sparky, we just came off our first river cruise last week, we did Viking's Cities of Light and just loved it. Prague was better than I imagined, the views on the middle Rhine and all the towns were so great. I think you will love it. As I get closer to deciding, I may ask questions!

I have only done one RC, and it was on Viking last month. I did not have one single complaint. They made special arrangements for airport transfer when I had a late flight home - instead of arranging a car they could have bused me with the rest, but they didn't. The ship and crew were great. I have read all the negative threads about Viking from the concerns about not enough use of hand sanitizers by guests, the fact you pay early all the way down to a piece of chipped china. I did not see one thing on my trip that backed up any of the negatives. And I was critical and looking! I am sure that not all cruises are great for every passenger, but I plan to be a repeat customer. Like most other things we will all have our loyalties. But as long as they have itineraries that interest me, or until something terrible happens on a cruise (that is/was within their control) I think I will choose Viking. :)

Thanks for this post and the replies/pics. I am considering this as a Viking Cruise in 2015. This info is great!

Hi OnWeGo-

The hotel in Paris was nice. A business hotel but very clean, and our room was very modern. The bed was very comfortable, the closet was a good size and that bath was updated and nice. One couple complained about the room they had, a very small room with almost no closet and was outdated, and they were moved to another room promptly. The rooms had the normal amenities of shampoo/conditioner/body wash/lotion and soap. There is also a hair dryer (there were dryers in each hotel and in our cabin). There is an ice machine near the elevator with large Styrofoam cups so easy to grab a bunch of ice on the way to the room. The dining room for breakfast is a good size, and the food is good but the menu does not change at all. One morning I was surprised by the line to get in, but we were seated in under 5 minutes. Just remember to bring your breakfast ticket with you when you go down - it will be in your room key package. If you want to go the Louvre, get your tickets from the concierge desk, and he will tell you which entrance to use so you don't have to stand in the long lines. We walked right in and it was great. Tip if you do this - keep your ticket very handy you will need to show it to go into the different sections. The concierge at the hotel was super helpful. The hotel is on the same block as the Metro and the RER train line. We used the RER to go to Eiffel Tower (direct shot just 4 stops and no changing trains like the Metro) and to Versailles which was one train change at Eiffel Tower and took about 40 minutes total to get there. The people at the stations were very helpful. We got on the bus for the Viking tour of the city, but did not get back on after the stop at Notre Dame. We just told them we were heading out on our own - so we could spend a few more minutes there, and then walked to the Louvre. About a 15 minute walk but really nice, then we walked back past Notre Dame to hit up some left bank cafes for drinks and dinner. In the Palais of Congress across from the hotel you will find stores, a fabulous grocery/wine/liquor store and ATMs. The Prague hotel has an ATM in the lobby, but not Paris. There are many restaurants around the hotel, go left or right out of the lobby and you will easily find them. The hotel is about a 15 minute walk to Arc de Triomphe - if you walk down past the RER station you have a great view of it. I found the Metro the best way to get places at a distance, and still have the energy for lots of walking. The only extra excursions we did on the cruise were the ones to Rothenburg and Lobkowicz Palace. If you do the Palace lunch you will get back to the hotel between 4 & 5, it is a long day as the city tour leaves around 8:30 I think. The Palace lunch/concert was fun and being the first full day of our trip that is where we met other passengers. We did not do any wine tasting tours (I took that time to taste it on my own!) but others said they were nice. In most towns, we were not walking distance from the boat, you are bussed for short rides. You are able to walk into Cochem and Rudesheim. Rudesheim is the best opportunity to have an evening ashore. We found nice places to have drinks and ended up eating at an Italian restaurant suggested by the Program Director. In each town there was about 90 minutes free time after tours to grab drinks and shop. We had about 2 hrs in Trier and really had fun grabbing a bite to eat and having drinks. I am not sure if you have done these kinds of trips before, this was my first, but they get you up and out early most days to start the tours. I loved them - and it only took a few days for my ankles to get used to walking on the wobbly cobblestones. Hope I answered your questions, feel free to ask me more as they come up - I am sure you will love this trip!

We returned from our trip last week, and I still can't think of one bad thing about this trip or Viking. When we arrived in Prague, the Viking rep was super easy to find as we exited baggage claim (no immigration or customs to go through) and were taken to nice, small buses within 15 minutes. Arrival at the Hilton Prague and check in was a very smooth process. Our two days in Prague were great and I wish we had extended on that end as well. The hotel was nice and clean and about a 20 minute walk to Old Town Square. The tours were well organized and very good, and the transfer to the ship went off without a hitch. The ship was very clean, and the entire staff was helpful and friendly. I was surprised at how little time we actually had as down time cruising during the day, on morning and one afternoon, as we went on all excursions we could. The towns were all so beautiful and interesting. The local guides all spoke perfect English and were very informative. The QuietVox system is wonderful, it allowed me to hear the guide and not have to be in the middle of a crowd trying to hear. The local restaurants we visited with tours were all very good, and they provided the beer and wine as it would have been served on the boat. I felt that the meals were well prepared, and with sufficient variety that we were never bored, or felt that there was nothing we wanted on the menu. The waiters were always available during the meal to top off drinks and get whatever you needed. Portions at seated meals were not huge, but we were never hungry! The lunches in the lounge were very nice, and serve yourself style with beverage service at your tables. If you are considering this trip, take the extra trip to Rothenburg, the drive through the countryside is worth it alone! Another great thing to do, in Rudesheim take the cable car up the hill over the vineyards to the statue and admire the view. Pay the extra 6 euro for the split of sparkling wine and 2 glasses to keep, it really made it fun. We were there during what seemed to be the peak color for foliage. The miles of vineyards along the river, and the trees, were all in various fall shades of color and the beauty of it was overwhelming. We extended our stay in Paris for the 4 nights, and were so glad we did. Our Program Director, Julian, was an amazing guy. Helpful, full of great tips for things to do and places to eat, and he really made an effort to interface with all the passengers. I wish I could have him on every vacation! Things I would pass along as tips - almost nobody dresses for dinner, a nice sweater and shirt with slacks was the standard outfit. Even jeans with a nice top was fine. Some brought dresses and jackets for Capt farewell dinner. All the hotel reviews for Prague Hilton tell you about the market across the way (food, booze, drugstore) but not the same about the mall across from the hotel in Paris (Meridien Etoile) they too had a great shop and I did not notice until day 3 but still was happy to get a nice bottle of gin. From Prague I brought some cokes and a bottle of Vodka I bought while in the hotel onto the boat and Viking does not care that you bring your own. There is an in room mini fridge which was great, and convenient ice machine. Once we were settled in the cabin at night we did not always want to go down the hall to the lounge for a fresh cocktail and it was nice to have that option. Take a french balcony room, or full balcony if the ship has one - that view is one in a million! This was my first river cruise - Viking or otherwise - and they have earned a loyal customer in me. Viking handled everything perfectly from my booking til I left for the airport to go home. It was 19 months from booking to sailing and I was so afraid it would not live up the ads on TV, or what I was expecting. They exceeded it. No, I am not a paid advertiser or first time traveler - I have been all around the world on many vacations by land and a few ocean cruises, and River Cruising was a new way of travelling that I wanted to check out. If you are considering this cruise, take it !

We sail on Viking in 4 days. I learned on a Baltic cruise years ago to travel prepared when we ran out of cold med and could not find any. Our doctor prescribed Cipro and Zpaks for both of us and I take with me hand sanitizer and wipes, day and night cold pills, Benadryl, various bandaids and neosporin, an ice bag and roll of ace bandage in case somebody has a spill, aleve and a variety of stomach ailment treatments. All this is lightweight and the way meds are now packed in bubble packs don't take up much room. Oh, and a good bag of Hall's cough drops. All this weighs less than half a pound and is well worth it!