Convince me

We love cruising and are confirmed Princess customers. DH has recently been looking at Viking and I’m hesitant to switch from a line that we enjoy to an unknown. I have concerns, which have been shared with us by those who have cruised on Viking. Wondering about the consensus re: excursions (though included, not the quality promised or expected), interesting and varied entertainment and what justifies the higher cost compared to other lines. I am guessing to some it’s more appealing to be on a smaller ship. Looking forward to input from Viking supporters. Thanks.

Start with this thread: Tell Me Why.....

As for the excursions, they are done by third-party providers and are only as good as the company supplying them. "Quality" will vary from port to port just as it varies from guide to guide. The same companies that serve other cruise lines will also be serving Viking. Moreover, everybody views quality differently. Your friends had expectations that were not met but you have no way of telling what those expectations were based on. If you have a particular itinerary in mind then you should read all you can from passengers who have already done that itinerary. If you are just cruising the Caribbean, stick with Princess. If you are looking into the Med or the Baltic, look at Viking. Viking is about the ports, not the ship.

I'm a die-hard Viking fan but I am the first to admit a) they aren't for everyone and b) they aren't perfect.

Thanks for your quick response. You are so right with your comments. We did take a Med cruise on Princess just a few months ago and it was wonderful. I think the point I failed to make was that we enjoy the whole package, the itinerary AND the ship. We are looking into Baltic cruises and Princess has attractive itineraries. All things being equal, my thoughts were on what Viking had to offer ON the ship. I will proceed to the link you provided. Thanks again!

Thanks for your quick response. You are so right with your comments. We did take a Med cruise on Princess just a few months ago and it was wonderful. I think the point I failed to make was that we enjoy the whole package, the itinerary AND the ship. We are looking into Baltic cruises and Princess has attractive itineraries. All things being equal, my thoughts were on what Viking had to offer ON the ship. I will proceed to the link you provided. Thanks again!

We did the Viking Homelands cruise in 2016 and since it was our first VO cruise I went a little nuts/overboard with the excursion planning materials I prepared - not doing the huge timeline extravaganza again - but still make up a consolidated excursion info report. I would expect that some of the excursions have been dropped but not that many. Also when we got back I scanned all the daily sheets which should give you a view of ship life. Posted it all to DropBox, which you can freely access - no account required. Hope you find it useful.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/v41tt71jnasjpu2/AADp_Qk6-C8GOPj1Z4uZ0FCwa?dl=0

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

My question to you is why is your DH thinking of Viking? What is the attraction for him?

I have only sailed on Celebrity. Got tired of the crowded ship on sea days, slippage in service , less wait staff etc.

Fell in love with the Viking ship design in every area. It blew me away, once I go on board.

The include excursion are fine.

Need to read what the excursion entails. If you want to do private tours then do it, organize them onyour roll call. I have done tht many times when on Celebrity.

CharTrav: and I thought I was organized! Loved your spreadsheet and appreciate the daily Viking activities.

Thanks!

We cruised Princess for the third time last October, and Viking Ocean for the first time last month. We prefer Viking over Princess in every area (ship design, food, entertainment). Especially food: Princess was just ok, while Viking was up with the best cruises we have taken (e.g. Azamara, Celebrity suite class, and Oceania – only Crystal was better). As to the excursions: we ended up not taking any of the included ones because they were mainly bus tours or basic walking tours that left out too much; we did take four of the optionals, and didn't think any of them were up to the quality of the private tours we arranged through the Roll Call here. We also didn't use the Viking Air 'discount,' because Viking's net price was higher than I could get by booking directly. So bottom line is we loved everything about Viking, but when you take away the included excursions and the airfare discount – the value is harder to justify.

I highly respect Jazzbeau’s assessments and those of Perigrina- 2 of my favorite sources for the “real” story.

We’ve only done a few Viking Ocean cruises and have loved them, especially the ship. The spa is fabulous, I love the restaurant service , whichever restaurant we visit- no request is beyond possible. The staff, from room to restaurant to front desk bend over backwards to provide what you want. We have supplemented the included excursions with some I’ve found online (I love researching possibilities) and, for the most part, many of the included have been fine. Search the port discussions for evaluations. We tend to do a number of the Viking included and optional excursions as well as special ones we’ve arranged on our own.

If you are traveling with a group, ask your travel agent to arrange for one of the private dining rooms- no extra charge and a fun way to celebrate whatever seems special.

Enjoy and find those elements that surprise and please you!

Start with this thread: Tell Me Why.....

 

.

Especially Post #323 - it says it all!

We are taking Viking Ocean for the first time in February. We very rarely ocean cruise but when we do, it is ONLY on smaller, premium to luxury lines. We abhor the mass market experience that Princess and the others offer. Our last mass market was on Princess 8 years ago and we will never repeat that experience on that line or any other mass market line.

Viking: No kids, no photographers, no constant sales, very limited nickel and diming, included specialty dining, all larger cabins with balconies.

We will likely not use any of their excursions, included or otherwise, as we always prefer to do our own thing, on our own timeline.

We chose Viking based on input from friends with similar taste and more for what they don't have on their ships (listed above) than what they do. No crowds, no lines, peace and quiet and an upscale adult atmosphere with high quality food and service are what matters to us.

We had never taken an ocean cruise, as the descriptions I had heard from family members who enjoy them convinced me that large ship cruises were not for me. We took one Viking river cruise, and then were convinced to give Viking Oceans a try. We loved the experience, and have two more ocean cruises booked with them.

In an odd way, what we loved about Viking was that it was so unlike what we pictured a cruise to be. The ship is beautiful, and never felt crowded. There is a resident historian and guest speakers who provided really interesting talks on history and art. There are no silly contests, and the live classical music in the public areas was very enjoyable. Food and service were fabulous. We met really interesting people and spent most evenings in conversation with other passengers, some who became new friends.

I don't know if my perceptions of large ship, mass market cruises are accurate. I didn't need a hundred different activities on board, as we travel for the ports we can see. We used a mix of the included excursions and some Viking optional ones. All but one were very good to great. We also liked to take advantage of the free shuttle service Viking provides to stay in port on our own after the tours ended.

I won't try to "Convince You" to try Viking, as you have expressed how much you enjoy Princess, and they seem to be very distinct experiences. Only you can decide if you might like something completely different!

The above suggestions certainly made quite an impression. I value them and now looking further into some time on Viking. You all should be Viking Ambassadors!

We cruised Princess for the third time last October, and Viking Ocean for the first time last month. We prefer Viking over Princess in every area (ship design, food, entertainment). Especially food: Princess was just ok, while Viking was up with the best cruises we have taken (e.g. Azamara, Celebrity suite class, and Oceania – only Crystal was better). As to the excursions: we ended up not taking any of the included ones because they were mainly bus tours or basic walking tours that left out too much; we did take four of the optionals, and didn't think any of them were up to the quality of the private tours we arranged through the Roll Call here. We also didn't use the Viking Air 'discount,' because Viking's net price was higher than I could get by booking directly. So bottom line is we loved everything about Viking, but when you take away the included excursions and the airfare discount – the value is harder to justify.

So glad you liked your first Viking Cruise.

I was looking forward to your feedback, knowing your first cruise on VO was this summer.

Thanks.

We are and proudly so!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

CharTrav: and I thought I was organized! Loved your spreadsheet and appreciate the daily Viking activities.

 

Thanks!

Thanks! The spreadsheet I shared was a trimmed down version of a 4 tab spreadsheet - cost accounting, itinerary, excursion planning/preference/selection, and timeline - with the cost and timeline tabs linked to the planning tab. The timeline tab was an absolute bear to build even as it did a great job helping to visualize how the excursions overlapped or didn't. In subsequent incarnations of this spreadsheet I moved alot of the data presented in the timeline over to the 3rd tab. Anyway - it's just fun. Or I wouldn't do it. I keep thinking I should share the whole thing but then I'd have to do a better job of documenting how it works. Also it requires a certain amount of "care and feeding" to adapt to the number of excursions being entered. [emoji4]

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

We were long time (about 40 yrs) passengers with Princess and I even worked for them as Navigator. However, our 2015 World Cruise will be our last. In our search for a new cruise line, we have spent many, many months researching all premium and luxury lines and even considered HAL & Celebrity. Although we have not yet cruised with Viking, we have booked the 2020 World Cruise.

These are some of the factors that swayed us to Viking

Ship Size, # Pax & Pax/Space Ratio

Although my favourite ships were the original Island/Pacific Princess & Sun Princess, the original Grand Class & Coral/Island were decent ships. However, lately Princess created the Super Grand Class by adding an extra full deck of cabins to the same hull. Now they have the even bigger Royal Class.

Some luxury lines had ships that were too small for us, but Viking has ships I class as bigger, small ships. At 930 pax, they still have multiple options for entertainment and dining. They may not have 3 show lounges, but they still provide more options than ships with 400 or less pax.

Pax/space ratio, which is Gross Tonnage/Max Pax - this provides an estimate of the space available per passenger. Viking is a little lower than some of the true luxury brands, but significantly better than the mainstream lines. Viking also does not provide casinos or kids clubs, which are areas we never use. Therefore, the entire passenger space is available to us.

Meals

While quality of meals is highly subjective, the average opinion of many long time cruisers is that the quality of meals on Princess & other mainstream line is significantly below what was available in the 70's, 80's & 90's. Viking's meals were reported as very good, being comparable to most other premium/luxury lines, with the exception of possibly Crystal. On the World Cruise they also introduce local dishes. Specialty restaurants are free.

Entertainment

We read many times that Viking port lectures focus on - history, culture and heritage of the ports being visited. Princess used to focus on - shopping, shopping, ... Viking has a resident Historian & on the newest ship a resident Astronomer, while Princess has a shopping guide and art auctioneer.

Viking may not have the same variety of games and entertainment aimed at a wide variety of interests, probably because Viking has much tighter interests from the majority of passengers.

As the previously posted copies of the Viking Daily shows they do have shows in the Theatre and extensive classical & easy listening music. What we did not read about was the game shows and various evening trivia contests, with winners receiving ever cheaper plastic prizes.

Excursions

Yes, most included excursions are walking tours or bus tours. The optional excursions are most likely similar to any other cruise line, as most ports have fairly limited tour providers. For us, this was a minor consideration, as we thoroughly research every tour and many times will use private providers.

Cost

Comparing our 2015 WC (Princess) with the 2020 WC (Viking) the base price caused some significant sticker shock. However, once I reviewed what was included, it made sense to conduct a detailed cost comparison, broken down to a daily cost. Based on the daily base fare, the 2020 Viking cruise is about $100 per day more than the 2015 Princess cruise. By the time you account for business airfares, included tips, beverage package, wi-fi, Visas, etc the daily cost is very similar. Also note our Viking cabin is almost twice the size of our Princess cabin.

Andy & Judy,

Our reasons and research for choosing Viking were much the same as yours and our first Viking Cruise was also a World Cruise. Food is generally good as any line we have sailed and better than most, including a recent Seabourn cruise. But inevitably it can be somewhat boring in 4 months. Anyplace would be. 🍸

Jim,

Our last WC was really a series of segments, as the menus repeated on every segment. Did get a tad repetitive, although not as bad as when I worked Alaska.

On 7 day Alaska, for the entire season, we got exactly the same menu, on the same day, every week.:eek:

That does sound boring. Had better choice on my old rust bucket freighters. My cook in Alaska loved to hand line halibut off the stern when we anchored in the Aleutians. Always something good. Y'all mentioned the speakers on viking. We found them to be very good and even better, if you don't feel like heading to the Theatre, about 30 minutes after speakers or port talks are over it is on the big screen tv at the foot of the bed. Talk about lazy.....;p

I never made it through all of the cocktail choices!!!!! I do miss the Explorer's Lounge.

The above suggestions certainly made quite an impression. I value them and now looking further into some time on Viking. You all should be Viking Ambassadors!

After looking over your past cruises, if you are interested in trying some different parts of the world, I would suggest that the Viking Homelands itinerary seems to be one of their most popular. I'm not sure which part of the Mediterranean you did previously, but our first cruise was Empires of the Mediterranean, from Athens to Venice, and it was practically perfect!

Have fun researching, and check out some of the videos on the Viking website. I thought the website is really helpful.

JoRoy218, we sailed Viking Ocean for the first time earlier this year, on a B2B Mediterranean itinerary on the Viking Star. We select cruises almost solely based on itinerary these days, so we now find ourselves on various lines. Like you, we have an extensive history with Princess, as well as HAL. We've also sailed on Celebrity, NCL, and Regent. Our next cruise will be on Oceania, for the first time. We also have our eye on Azamara.

There is a lot to like about Viking, and knowing your background with Princess, I think that if you decide to sail with them, you'll recognize it is quite a different experience. The ships are understated and beautiful, as well as technologically advanced. One of the striking differences is the lack of onboard marketing... no high pressure selling at all, and as you probably know, no casino.

You specifically asked about the excursions. In our view, they provide a good introduction to the area. They are mainly a combination bus tour and walking tour, and are fairly basic. We found ourselves taking them, and essentially using them as a shuttle service... in that we would leave the tour in the town centre and continue touring independently, making our way back to the ship ourselves.

Regarding onboard cuisine, I think you'll find Viking a step up from Princess. We are not evening buffet goers by any stretch, but the dinner service in Viking's "Lido", called the World Cafe, is quite pleasant. We enjoyed several dinners in the World Cafe. And of course, there's the included beer, wine and soda during lunch and dinner at the various dining venues.

The onboard atmosphere is relaxed and casual - both in terms of attitude and attire. No dressing up for dinner required (although some do), and more often than not, if you are sitting at a table for two, your table mates will engage you in conversation at dinner in The Restaurant (MDR). Note: the tables for two are quite close together. Walking through the ship's main public areas, we would find guests comfortably lounging - sometimes with feet up, or even sleeping on sofas! LOL. Very homey!

We are not much for onboard entertainment, but on our sailing the four singers/dancers performed a very good Beatles/ABBA review around the pool - very enjoyable. Not an elaborate production, but very good nevertheless. Sometimes less is better!

The included beverages, included tours (basic as they are), and upgraded food quality do come at a price, as you have noticed. Overall, we thought Viking was a pretty good value. If you find an itinerary that is appealing, I'd definitely give them a try. As I say, it is different experience from the mass market lines, as well as a step up from the premium lines.

We love cruising and are confirmed Princess customers. DH has recently been looking at Viking and I’m hesitant to switch from a line that we enjoy to an unknown. I have concerns, which have been shared with us by those who have cruised on Viking. Wondering about the consensus re: excursions (though included, not the quality promised or expected), interesting and varied entertainment and what justifies the higher cost compared to other lines. I am guessing to some it’s more appealing to be on a smaller ship. Looking forward to input from Viking supporters. Thanks.

I can't specifically address Princess vs. Viking since my Viking cruise this year was my first cruise ever.

The excursions--okay, some were better than others. Highly variable and also depends on where you are visiting and what your expectations are. Some ports we did the included excursion and some we did optional and one we did a private excursion.

We preferred the ones that let us explore on our own as opposed to be dragged around in a group like kindergarteners. But that's us.

Read through what they offer for each port and think about what suits you best. I also always think about the worst-case weather scenario when choosing excursions.

I think the optional excursions are priced comparably to other mass-market lines.

Entertainment will not be the same as Princess. For us that was a positive. Maybe for you it is not if you enjoy casinos and more glitzy shows.

We compared costs for our Transatlantic on Celebrity against Viking Ocean. Once we added in the costs to upgrade to a decent size veranda cabin, drinks package, some basic excursions, internet, specialty dining, and use of spa area---there was not that much of a difference.

Again that is highly personal. But for us it was worth slightly more to be on a quiet, tasteful ship with no casino, no children, no photographers and heaps of quiet corners to read a book and enjoy the view.

I felt the food was much better than I expected for a cruise. Again, that is highly personal. But there were plenty of healthy options available and having sushi every night at the buffet was a huge plus for us.

It was a good fit for us---we booked another transatlantic while on board.

But---what is it about Princess that you like the most? What do you think you may miss?

As one who has cruised many cruise lines and different ships within a cruise line, I have another "evaluation" tip to add regarding continuing or changing cruise lines and/or ships.

This is my additional list beyond those usually mentioned on CC:

1. How do they react to problems they created or caused ?

2. How do they react to problems I caused ?

3. (and for me especially) How do they react when I ask if I can do something out of

the norm ?

4. How do they react to problems neither of us caused (weather, port changes etc) ?

Heidi asked about team trivia games. Well there are on sea days. But...no prizes...just pure fun and the opportunity to join teams and make new acquaintances. Held in the Explorer Lounge around noon. Should provide a link to the Dailys for the Panama & Central America cruise we did last January that had plenty of sea days. The most fun game was a skewed version of Team Trivia - which was to guess what was the popular answer to a question - not the right one perhaps - but what most people thought the answer might be. We had teams on both levels of the lounge with the folks on the top level fluttering/parachuting their answer chits down to the floor by the piano. It really was a lot of fun. But - again - no prizes except the fellowship. At the beginning of each game - the Captain would call down from the bridge to remind us - "It'a just a game!"

What none of you have mentioned but perhaps have hinted at is the spirit, ethos, not sure what word to give it but something that let's you feel like the ship is your home writ large (minus the housework).

Sent from my iPhone using Forums