Thoughts on First Viking Cruise

Another interesting item: Canada’s Discovery channel was onboard filming an episode for The Might Cruises. All were very friendly and unobtrusive.

We will be taking this same cruise in October, as our second cruise with Viking. I'm glad you enjoyed your first cruise as much as we enjoyed ours.

The classical trio was a great addition to our cruise. I hope you had the chance to comment about the reported change on the end of cruise questionnaire.

Thank you for posting your impressions of your first Viking Cruise. I concur. :hearteyes:

the serivce and attention to detail was outstanding. Their ship design and the thought that went into the interior common space is the best ever.

My first Viking cruise was in March, it is now my cruise line of choice.

We took our first Viking ocean cruise in July 2017 (Homelands) and loved it so much that we did our second cruise in May (Empires of Mediterranean) and have booked two more (Eastern Seaboard in October and British Isles in July 2019. We had done one Norwegian cruise and 3 river cruises (on AMA and Scenic). Viking Ocean is by far our favorite and I'd love to do several a year (if only the budget would allow that!!).

We took Ocean River cruise in China in 2013. Excellent! In 2015 we did Homelands with Viking and loved the Star. Unfortunately, the Star had a problem and the end of our trip was cancelled. Viking put us up in Estonia, provided many free tours and the put us up in Bergen. Again they kept us busy everyday and made sure our meals were provided. We cannot explain how wonderful Viking staff were. We had a Rhine River cruise next with Viking and then Asia last year. The trip was better than we had hoped.. Next month we are on the British Isles Explorer and we know it will be wonderful. Viking knows how to please everyone.

We did complete the questionnaire at the end of the cruise. We stated how pleased we were with our cruise, but also expressed concern about the possibility of reducing the classical group to just two members. It just seems like an unnecessary way to reduce expenses. They did seem anxious for feedback during the cruise so I am confident that our comments will be read.

We did complete the questionnaire at the end of the cruise. We stated how pleased we were with our cruise, but also expressed concern about the possibility of reducing the classical group to just two members. It just seems like an unnecessary way to reduce expenses. They did seem anxious for feedback during the cruise so I am confident that our comments will be read.

Viking often does seem to be receptive to feedback. After our first cruise, we suggested that Viking Air should reevaluate the connection time they allow between flights in Frankfurt (we missed our flight), just as a FYI for future passengers. We were not complaining, as Viking was not responsible for our first flight taking off late. However, just as a courtesy, they did send us discount vouchers, which we happily used for our upcoming trip.

I do hope others repeated your comments about the Classical Trio, and that Viking reconsiders.

Thanks for the review, we are doing our first Viking ocean cruise in March 2019 and very excited about it! One question - is there an advantage to booking a future cruise while on board?

On each of our Viking Cruises we really enjoyed the Classical Trio......it will be too bad if it becomes a Duo!!!

Thanks for the review, we are doing our first Viking ocean cruise in March 2019 and very excited about it! One question - is there an advantage to booking a future cruise while on board?

I think there was value to booking a future cruise while onboard. If you book a 14 day or longer cruise, a credit of $400per person was provided. Additionally, you will an immediate $100 credit toward your current cruise. The amount of the credit was a bit less for shorter cruises. You are also not locked into the cruise you choose. Anytime within 4 months of your sailing, you have the option to switch to a different cruise. That said, any future bookings do require a deposit of $500 per person.

I hope that answers your question.

The possible advantage of booking a future cruise while on a current cruise comes up frequently, but not always linked. Our experience is to book while on a cruise, take the benefits that are possible on the current cruise and includes benefits for the future cruise, and link it to our travel agent so he/she can add additional benefits. Viking will always come out a winner (I’m okay with that- build more ships, give me more options) and our travel agent gets credits and we benefit because they appreciate the credits. I guess it’s a food chain and I’m a willing participant.

The possible advantage of booking a future cruise while on a current cruise comes up frequently, but not always linked. Our experience is to book while on a cruise, take the benefits that are possible on the current cruise and includes benefits for the future cruise, and link it to our travel agent so he/she can add additional benefits. Viking will always come out a winner (I’m okay with that- build more ships, give me more options) and our travel agent gets credits and we benefit because they appreciate the credits. I guess it’s a food chain and I’m a willing participant.

This is a good way to operate, but one question: what happens to the benefits you took for the current cruise if you later cancel the future cruise?

If you don’t rebook, you will receive a $100 pp cancellation fee if it is more than 120 days prior. So on board credit of $100 is pretty much negated. That is what what comes to my mind anyway.

Thanks for posting Steve Q. I am even more excited (if that's possible) for our first Viking Ocean cruise after readng your experience. We board Saturday in Greenwich for the Into The Midnight Sun cruise. Flying tomorrow night to visit with a friend outside London for a few days. We met on a previous cruise and have become great friends and travel together, too.

We have already booked 3 other Viking cruises based on their itineraires and our TA's experience with them. Just booked the Amazon in 2020 and thinking maybe I should have waited until we got on board ths upcoming cruise!

Thanks for posting Steve Q. I am even more excited (if that's possible) for our first Viking Ocean cruise after readng your experience. We board Saturday in Greenwich for the Into The Midnight Sun cruise. Flying tomorrow night to visit with a friend outside London for a few days. We met on a previous cruise and have become great friends and travel together, too.

 

 

We have already booked 3 other Viking cruises based on their itineraires and our TA's experience with them. Just booked the Amazon in 2020 and thinking maybe I should have waited until we got on board ths upcoming cruise!

Talk with the Cruise Consultant when you board. If you booked additional cruises, there was an additional credit toward 2nd and 3rd bookings. I cannot recall the amount, but I am positive that additional bookings received more than $400. I would definitely ask for the credit.

The Cruise Consultant’s desk is on the 2nd floor near the model of the Viking ship. You just sign his book and choose an appointment time from the times offered. I would visit early in the Cruise as he was a very busy person. He also made an hour long presentation in the theatre on one of the sea days. Honestly, I would love to know how many future cruises he booked. It was literally just one appointment after another.

Good to know, we'll definitely do a bit of research for a future cruise before we board. Thanks for everyone's answers!

Thanks for posting Steve Q. I am even more excited (if that's possible) for our first Viking Ocean cruise after readng your experience. We board Saturday in Greenwich for the Into The Midnight Sun cruise. Flying tomorrow night to visit with a friend outside London for a few days. We met on a previous cruise and have become great friends and travel together, too.

 

 

We have already booked 3 other Viking cruises based on their itineraires and our TA's experience with them. Just booked the Amazon in 2020 and thinking maybe I should have waited until we got on board ths upcoming cruise!

J,

Have a great cruise.

Would love to hear about it and your comparison to Oceania.Our first VO is coming up in May - Tokyo to Vancouver.

Paul

We just returned from “The Trade Route of the Middle Ages” voyage on the Viking Star. This was our first Viking cruise so I thought I would share some thoughts. Our previous cruise history includes numerous voyages on HAL, Celebrity, and Princess. In 2017 we sailed Oceania on the Riviera. Our particular cruise was recently reviewed by another member, so I thought I would just provide some general impressions, rather than including a discussion about the ports.

 

I must say that, overall, we were very pleased. The Star really is a well designed ship. The service onboard far exceeded any of our prior cruises. The attention to detail was very noticeable. Our favorite venue was the Explorers Lounge which was a great place to listen to music nightly before dinner. In general, the quality of the food was excellent. We ate at Manfredi’s on 3 occasions and enjoyed it very much.

 

I mentioned that the service was excellent. We were surprised when we disembarked that there were at least 10 Viking associates, positioned along the exit path, to guide us as we left the ship. Upon entering the terminal, there were people with signs pointing in the direction of our luggage. When we located our luggage, they were taken by local teenagers, acting as porters, to our awaiting bus. A Viking representative then boarded our bus and accompanied us to the airport to see that we went to the proper lines for check-in. All were noticeably identified by red Viking colors. We were really surprised as on other cruises you were generally on your own when you exited the ship.

 

Another surprise was the level of entertainment. The cruise director, Nolan Dean, really made you feel welcomed. The assistant cruise director, Brian Rodriguez, was an amazing singer and performed in his own show one evening. All three of the in-house musical performers were excellent. We really enjoyed the classical trio as they performed in several venues nightly.

 

Viking will probably be our favored line going forward. We booked another cruise while onboard; something we have never done before. They are expanding rapidly, so I do hope they can maintain the quality. I find the expansion interesting as, to my knowledge, Oceania has no new builds scheduled. Viking is opening a 3rd U. S. location in Tempe, Az this month. It will be only a 10 minute drive from the Phoenix airport. I suspect, this is only my opinion, that sometime in the future one of the other sites (California and Massachusetts) might be consolidated in Tempe as the cost of doing business is less expensive.

 

One last thought concerns the classical trio. A Viking staff member mentioned that the contract with European talent agency used to provide the classical musicians is being discontinued. An American agency will be taking its place. The plans include reducing the group to just two musicians from the current three. That just seems like a totally unnecessary change. The current arrangement seems to work so well, that it just seems like a poor decision to reduce the number of musicians.

Another interesting item: Canada’s Discovery channel was onboard filming an episode for The Might Cruises. All were very friendly and unobtrusive.

This is great to hear. We are considering a China trip for 2020.

I agree with your assessment. We greatly

enjoyed all aspects of our first Viking cruise

to the West Indies this past January. We

can't wait until the next one

Gary and Nancy R

Blacksburg, VA

Another interesting item: Canada’s Discovery channel was onboard filming an episode for The Might Cruises. All were very friendly and unobtrusive.

This is great to hear. We are considering a China trip for 2020.

One of the river cruise itineraries or one of the ocean itineraries that calls on a couple of ports in China? Keep in mind that there are differences between Viking Rivers and Viking Ocean and while the philosophy is similar, the experiences will be quite different. Personally, I suggest that if you have never been to China before, that you do a river cruise.

The classical trio was our favourite entertainment option on our May 2018 Homelands cruise. We often picked up a glass of wine and then enjoyed the music. I hope that Viking listens to all the feedback and keeps this option. It is on our PLUS side for Viking when comparing with other cruise lines.

We are booked for the Caribbean in October and Sydney to Bali in 2019. So glad to see positive reviews! We are interested in the round table discussions and a different vibe from princess, Celebrity, etc. I’m going to call Viking about the $400 we should get back since we booked 2 cruises. We booked our shore excursions for the Caribbean and have calendared the date we can book for Sydney to Bali. Any ideas or suggestions to make our trips more memorable would be appreciated!

Thanks for the review, we are doing our first Viking ocean cruise in March 2019 and very excited about it! One question - is there an advantage to booking a future cruise while on board?

Where are you cruising in March? We are doing Sydney to Bali! :)

We just returned from “The Trade Route of the Middle Ages” voyage on the Viking Star. This was our first Viking cruise so I thought I would share some thoughts. Our previous cruise history includes numerous voyages on HAL, Celebrity, and Princess. In 2017 we sailed Oceania on the Riviera. Our particular cruise was recently reviewed by another member, so I thought I would just provide some general impressions, rather than including a discussion about the ports.

 

I must say that, overall, we were very pleased. The Star really is a well designed ship. The service onboard far exceeded any of our prior cruises. The attention to detail was very noticeable. Our favorite venue was the Explorers Lounge which was a great place to listen to music nightly before dinner. In general, the quality of the food was excellent. We ate at Manfredi’s on 3 occasions and enjoyed it very much.

 

I mentioned that the service was excellent. We were surprised when we disembarked that there were at least 10 Viking associates, positioned along the exit path, to guide us as we left the ship. Upon entering the terminal, there were people with signs pointing in the direction of our luggage. When we located our luggage, they were taken by local teenagers, acting as porters, to our awaiting bus. A Viking representative then boarded our bus and accompanied us to the airport to see that we went to the proper lines for check-in. All were noticeably identified by red Viking colors. We were really surprised as on other cruises you were generally on your own when you exited the ship.

 

Another surprise was the level of entertainment. The cruise director, Nolan Dean, really made you feel welcomed. The assistant cruise director, Brian Rodriguez, was an amazing singer and performed in his own show one evening. All three of the in-house musical performers were excellent. We really enjoyed the classical trio as they performed in several venues nightly.

 

Viking will probably be our favored line going forward.

We booked another cruise while onboard; something we have never done before. They are expanding rapidly, so I do hope they can maintain the quality. I find the expansion interesting as, to my knowledge, Oceania has no new builds scheduled. Viking is opening a 3rd U. S. location in Tempe, Az this month. It will be only a 10 minute drive from the Phoenix airport. I suspect, this is only my opinion, that sometime in the future one of the other sites (California and Massachusetts) might be consolidated in Tempe as the cost of doing business is less expensive.

 

One last thought concerns the classical trio. A Viking staff member mentioned that the contract with European talent agency used to provide the classical musicians is being discontinued. An American agency will be taking its place. The plans include reducing the group to just two musicians from the current three. That just seems like a totally unnecessary change. The current arrangement seems to work so well, that it just seems like a poor decision to reduce the number of musicians.

Another interesting item: Canada’s Discovery channel was onboard filming an episode for The Might Cruises. All were very friendly and unobtrusive.

Sort of hoping we can say the same (referring to the highlighted portion). We will be on the Sky in March. If all goes well, I sort of have my eye on one of the Viking China trips as well as the one that goes to Moscow.