Oceania vs Viking Oceans

[roothy123]

And, for the previous cruise had they just come back with a 100% refund, management would have been in control of the situation, even if it meant everyone sat in Tallin (on a nice ship) until they could get them to their disembarkation airport. Not happy, but compensated.

 

They just kept flipping plans on bad information (ship could be fixed in 2 days, finding out too late there were not enough hotel rooms in Bergen).

 

Well, a crystal ball to consult would be nice, but I don't know of any cruise line that has found such a thing. If someone could invent one, it might be more popular than selfie sticks - for any business, not just cruise lines!

[LHT28]

Well, a crystal ball to consult would be nice, but I don't know of any cruise line that has found such a thing. If someone could invent one, it might be more popular than selfie sticks - for any business, not just cruise lines!

They would not need a crystal ball

just call the hotels & see how many rooms they can get before telling everyone they will be flown to Bergen

[Mura]

Just a point of information about Copenhagen ...

 

It's a nit pick but I thought I'd mention it anyway!

 

My Danish friends refer to Copenhagen as CPH -- not CPN. I can certainly understand, however, why someone would abbreviate it as CPN.

 

Mura

[LHT28]

Just a point of information about Copenhagen ...

 

It's a nit pick but I thought I'd mention it anyway!

 

My Danish friends refer to Copenhagen as CPH -- not CPN. I can certainly understand, however, why someone would abbreviate it as CPN.

 

Mura

Me bad :o

I should know better

the airport code is CPH of course

[hypercafe]

Sorry, I think we posted at the same time, or else I didn't read your comments before posting, so mine are a bit repetitive. I'm glad you're taking back your harsh words! After all, those folks are probably staying in great hotels while in CPH, and enjoying the same tours they would if the ship were there. We once experienced a glitch on a Viking River Cruise due to unusually low river levels. I can tell you that they put us in a wonderful hotel, bussed us to two ports we couldn't visit by ship, and took care of everything. It wasn't ideal, but when mother nature plays a trick on you, what can you do? When a part on a new ship fails, what can you do? You have to shut down the ship and handle things as best you can! Some people won't be happy, but many others will understand and deal with it. We chose to deal with it. The biggest problem for me on the Viking cruise was ending up in a city I knew nothing about - but it turned out to be a pretty nice one, so it was fine!

 

Why don't you read the first hand account of the deal on the Viking board. Sounds like a nightmare to me. I stand by my remarks, Oceania did 1000% better and at this point I would not sail with Viking.

 

Sent from my SM-T320 using Forums mobile app

Edited August 8, 2015 by hypercafe

[Mura]

Me bad :o

I should know better

the airport code is CPH of course

 

HAH!! I never thought of looking up the airport code! I just figured Sisse knows everything about the Danes and Denmark ...

 

Mura

[Vineyard View]

We were on board the Viking Star for 29 days (Barcelona-Stockholm) during her maiden voyage. We had previously taken their Rivers Grand Euorpean 15 day and unlike what I have read on this thread, we were very happy with food, service, etc.

I will say that we have sailed multiple cruise lines, however we have not sailed Oceania. I jumped over to this message board because over the past year I have read a lot of references to O on the Viking boards, and having just looked through an O catalogue I ordered, I am even more interested.

 

Regarding Viking Star....a disjointed overview....the ship is beautiful with a lot of light and space. The crew was top drawer, the food was very very good (although one of the specialty restaurants was just not our style). We are not big 'excursions' people, and we're glad of that as that dept. was horrible (I read that marked improvement has occurred). We tend to DIY or arrange private tours prior when the port makes sense to us. The spa was beautiful on the Star, and being able to access the amenities whether you have a booked service or not - and regardless of stateroom category, was really nice. Having wine& beer freely poured during lunch and dinner at no additional cost was attractive for sure, as well as being allowed to bring it on board from ports at no charge, nor corkage fee... was also a bonus. Our room (Penthouse Veranda) was well spaced, with a very comfortable feel and plenty of storage....the shower the best we have experienced on any ship or category including suites.

We were very disappointed that the itinerary changed at the last minute, after cancellation date, reducing both London and Paris from 2 to 1 day each - that was a BIG deal for us. There was compensation for this, but that did not make the change whole for us. At the end of the trip - we thought we would sail VO again (and yes, they will be coming to North America very soon) should the right itinerary present itself.

 

That said, we have very good friends who were just on the 7/25 Baltics itinerary that just ended early due to mechanical in Tallinn. We have been in touch with them via email frequently throughout this ordeal. I have to say that their story has not been one that I would want any part of. VO Management - in my opinion - has a lot of opportunity for improvement in their communication processes as well as their implementation of responses to the situation when the ship could not sail. I think that a lot of people, including DH & me, are watching closely to see where V Management goes with their final compensations to these passengers. And based on how this whole deal rolled out, we also will be shy of booking again anytime soon until they have some time & history with Ocean cruising. I hope that these are growing pains....and that they become a worthy competitor as I honestly believe that good competition makes everyone better.

 

So I can't give you all a comparison.....yet. I do know though that Oceania has caught my eye and attention......and that I am glad to have this forum to do some research and ask questions.

[CB BOARDER]

I wouldn't exactly call it a "nightmare" with "tug in tow" and "mechanical problems for the last 8 days." She is cruising, with no tug in sight, and at 14.5 knots, toward Copenhagen. I don't know if the repair of the part was done while she sat in Tallinn or will be done in CPH, but I certainly don't call this a nightmare. At least her electricity and engines were working, unlike the Carnival ship that kept her passengers on board with rotting food and overflowing toilets! That, plus the Costa Concordia's ill-fated running aground as a result of a captain's attempt to show off might be worthy of the term "nightmare." However, I feel your terminology is a bit off base for the Star. Please don't scare people more than they already are. This is a new ship, with new technology for a cruise ship, with less than 4 months of service. Stuff happens, especially to new ships.

 

As for others' comments about Oceania - I agree. They are top notch. However, they weren't nearly as top notch when we cruised with them years ago. They have gotten better every year. They also had existing ships to use, so they had a head start over Viking. If you want perfection right off the bat, I would NOT book a new line and new ship its first year of service. No ship is immune to mechanical problems, even Oceania. We cruised Oceania Insignia a few months before the fire. The fire brought home that even a top notch line like O can have its problems. A fire is certainly a bit closer to a "nightmare" than a ship that has to cancel cruises due to an electrical issue that restricts their top speed. Let's give Viking a chance here. As for right now, she's headed to Copenhagen at 14.5 knots. Let's not spoil things for her next passengers.

 

Roothy123,

 

I wasn't trying to scare or insult anyone and if I was on this cruise, I'd consider it a nightmare. Furthermore if this was an Oceania vessel, I'd still consider it a nightmare. Keep in mind many of these cruisers have been planning this trip for almost 2 years and for your dream vacation to end/start in this fashion would be extremely disappointing and stressful. The situation is what it is and the mechanical problem was most likely out of Viking's hands. However from what I've read they haven't handled the customer service issues very well. Viking's initial offer (for the first cruise) of a 50% future cruise credit is laughable and downright insulting. Supposedly Viking has changed course and is now offering 100% refund. If so, kudos to them. Poor customer service can turn an unfortunate mechanical issue into a PR "nightmare."

 

I do hope the Star is truly repaired and everyone can enjoy (from what I've read) this beautiful ship.

[Jancruz]

Having dealt in the past many times with Viking, I had decided last year never to have anything to do with them again..their on board product may be good but their office in California is impossible to talk to and work with..the only answer they know is NO..so fortunately I never have to talk to any of them again..

Jancruz1

[Vineyard View]

Jancruz, very sorry to hear that you had multiple bad experiences with Viking.

We have not had those issues with them. They have worked with me on a couple issues and we continue to....and their Rivers is a very successful company - expanding too quickly? Quite possibly. But they do have a loyal following of repeat passengers.....

The good news for you, as you say, is that we all have the choice.....

 

I look forward to reading some contrasts and comparisons between O & V as experienced O cruisers report back and as V progresses in their ocean cruises......

Edited August 9, 2015 by Vineyard View

[Mura]

I just read through the whole thread (actually several of them) on the Viking Oceans board and I can understand the unhappiness, particularly with the unfair remuneration when the cruise has been so abbreviated.

 

Ignoring whether a 50% refund plus a 50% discount on a future cruise is fair or not, there is the aspect of unequal treatment of the passengers. Some were sent on to Bergen for four days with hotel, meals and tours included. Others were just flown home, almost certainly in coach. (Some described them as flights from hell.) It is certainly inequitable to give them ALL the same refund or discount.

 

We've only sailed on Viking's riverboat cruises: the first two were excellent (Amsterdam-Basel in Oct '03 on NEPTUNE and China in May '08). But the last one -- B2Bs in France on NEPTUNE and a sister ship in April '12 was not at all wonderful. Viking certainly seemed to be cutting services in order to cut costs. There's no way 5 servers can tend to 150 passengers at dinner in a reasonable amount of time.

 

So we have decided not to return to Viking in the future ... and this saga doesn't make me want to change my mind. If we do more riverboat trips, it will be with another line.

 

I realize that not everything was under Viking's control, but their customer service was certainly lacking. At least the ship has finally gotten to Copenhagen.

 

Mura

[sammiedawg]

I have mixed feelings on Viking. We did one River cruise last June, the fourteen night Grand European. We booked two weeks prior and got a fabulous package deal including air for a price less than the standard price most people pay for just the cruise. I was mostly satisfied for the price paid but would have been dissatisfied had I paid more. The weak link was the so so, not so good food quality with limited selections and almost no choice of side dishes and accompaniments. Staff to passenger ratio was poor, we had 190 passengers and six or seven servers each evening. ( also their expected tipping schedule is way out of line with the service levels but we paid it as suggested.)

The included tours were OK in most of the little River ports, generally quick walking tours or bus drive by tours. The included tours would be inadequate on an ocean cruise where we prefer private touring to see more.

The River boat was beautiful and new. The ocean vessels also are beautiful.

 

Viking River and ocean cruises command high prices and I'm amazed people pay them. Viking also requires payment in full way in advance.

However I will be watching for big discounts on the ocean vessels and if I see one I will book Viking Star and give it a whirl.

 

I really think Oceania rolled out the O life program in response to VO. I prefer a la carte pricing, especially on excursions.

Oceania is far, far superior to Viking River cruises, The two lines are not even in the same league. We'll see how the ocean business goes, I wish them lots of luck, they need it.

[Vineyard View]

I completely agree that Viking needs to get their responses to this recent failure equalized to their customers based on how their trip concluded. It is the key reason we are now looking at Oceania. Sadly, their immediate response was less than satisfactory......and we wouldn't want to find ourselves in the situation that so many are in. 'Stuff' happens.....how you are accommodated is what travels forward.

[roothy123]

There have been many on the Viking Ocean forum that, in my opinion, were extremely rough and vocal about Viking the first couple months out, with some people continuing to be. I may be flamed for this (and definitely would be if I posted on the Viking board), but I also feel that many people on Star have little experience on ocean cruises and therefore have some rather unrealistic expectations. Viking Rivers holds your hand, which some people need and apparently lots of people like, but that's a little harder to do on an ocean cruise.

 

I do think that comparing Viking Ocean's first response to a trip interruption to Oceania's response to their first (huge) trip interruption is a little unfair. Despite what some people may have reported, people on Star were initially offered to be flown home if they wanted, or flown to Bergen if not. They had already had tours in their embarkation city, in St. Petersburg, Tallinn, and perhaps one or two more cities, before Viking learned they could not do a quick part replacement before proceeding. That's a little different from a fire in which people die and it's obvious that much work must be done to resume operations. Yes, apparently Oceania handled that beautifully, and yes, most of Oceania's rather faithful (deservedly so) passengers were satisfied. However, Viking Ocean has less experience in this type of thing, was in a different city in a different time and it's hard to second guess whether they could have done better. Besides, is a 50% refund really that awful in this particular situation? That's what an insurance company would have paid, regardless of how loud people complained. Were flights back to North America in coach, arranged on short notice in the middle of summer for 930 people such a horrible thing? If so, I've survived many such horrors!

 

Quite honestly, I've been a little concerned that we'll be traveling with people on Star who are expecting a Cunard line white glove, formal and pampered experience after paying less than Oceania prices for their Viking Ocean cruise. Even if I do run into some of them, I am fully expecting to have a wonderful cruise. I'm going to try to step on that ship with an open mind, without comparing the experience to Oceania, and without expecting perfection after only 5 months of Viking Ocean's existence. Who knows, afterwards I may go back to cruising Oceania (which I dearly love), but at least I will have one more choice, which is always a good thing.

 

Oh, and as for the excursions:. Yes, some people weren't overly impressed with the complimentary excursions. While those work on a ship with 120 passengers, it's a bit more difficult on a ship with 930! At least with Viking's paid excursions, you can actually get some good ones for $49 or $59 - generally half of what Oceania is charging for similar excursions in the part of the Med I will be visiting next month.

[hypercafe]

I do not know why you find it so important to defend Viking, however I hope you have a great trip. I am sure the ship is in very good shape at this point.

[Mura]

There have been many on the Viking Ocean forum that, in my opinion, were extremely rough and vocal about Viking the first couple months out, with some people continuing to be. I may be flamed for this (and definitely would be if I posted on the Viking board), but I also feel that many people on Star have little experience on ocean cruises and therefore have some rather unrealistic expectations. Viking Rivers holds your hand, which some people need and apparently lots of people like, but that's a little harder to do on an ocean cruise.

 

 

Good comments and attitude, Roothy. I'm only questioning your comment that Viking Rivers "holds your hand" because my first experience on a Viking riverboat was in October 2003 (and maybe things have changed by now). But what struck me on that first trip was how very experienced my fellow travelers were. Most of them seemed to have been everywhere else already so now they were trying river cruising. More than half of us were independent travelers -- i.e., traveling on our own both before and after the river boat cruise. They definitely did not need any hand holding.

 

I frankly didn't notice on my most recent Viking riverboat cruise three years ago if this was still the same dynamic. We ourselves don't need hand holding so I wasn't paying attention to this aspect.

 

You may well be right that many passengers had unreasonable expectations.

 

Enjoy your cruise! You are certainly starting out with the best attitude. We're about to take a cruise on NCL. We last took an NCL cruise in April 2010 so we do know what to expect, and it will not be an Oceania experience. There are some things about NCL that I can do without, but in general it's been a decent product. Since we're sailing with a group of friends I'm sure we'll all have a great time.

 

Mura

 

Mura

[occruiselady]

Roothy, I was on the 7/25 canceled cruise and I need to tell you that you are incorrect on what Viking offered the passengers and how we were treated. Viking's first offer in written form was 1) Go home 2) Stay in Tallinn for 5 days while boat is repaired, then ride the boat directly to Bergen, arriving Friday evening in time for you to catch your flights home on Saturday. No ports, no sightseeing. I have the form, that is what it said. Many people decided it was very "iffy" to stay with the boat, what if it wasn't repaired in time? what if it broke down while we were at sea? etc. What was the point of staying with a boat to nowhere? We were given maybe two hours to decide. The next morning, before 6 am, another form appeared outside our door, now the option was, as you stated 1) Go home 2) Fly to Norway, stay in a hotel with meals and tours provided by Viking - BUT - Viking will not be able to accommodate all of the passengers due to the lack of hotel rooms. All passengers must be off the ship by 8/4 for the repair, so bottom line, we all entered the "Norway Lottery". They were able to accommodate approximately 50% of the passengers, leaving the rest to fly home from Tallinn. We were a group of six couples, some went to Norway and had a first class experience, some were evicted with a few hours notice during the middle of the night to go home, some made it to Norway days after the first group, but stayed in airport hotels, not close to the city and saw very little. How could the same 50% refund be appropriate for all of these groups? It is true, no one died, but you would have had to endure the long lines trying to get information, the constant misinformation, and the stress of not knowing what to do or how to get the real story, in other words, you had to be there. No one can sit at a computer and pretend to know what others went through. I hope your Viking cruise goes well, but just remember that was not the case for several hundred other passengers who invested several thousand dollars to get one-third of the trip that they purchased.

[wripro]

You expect a twenty or thirty year old ship to break down, but a brand new one? I don't know why anyone who knows anything about river cruises where Viking is one of the worst (despite the commercials on PBS) would think they would do any better on the open seas.

[LHT28]

I have been reading some of reports on the VO forum

Let's face VO dropped the ball with a lot of their passengers :rolleyes:

Just one of many horror stories

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=47390512&postcount=24

 

Maybe they can only deal with 150 passengers at a time when things go belly up

It is different just stick 150 people on a bus to a hotel than 900

 

I was considering a cruise with them a few yrs ago & even back then their river cruises did not have good reviews

 

so we chose another line & we did not have to pay in full until 90 days out

Edited August 10, 2015 by LHT28

[Vineyard View]

Hi Roothy....as you know, I was one of the champions of VO - in fact I started two threads assuring people on CC that we loved a great overall experience. they were posted:

a) one while on the ship, sharing that all the complaining was from a minority of people and a very select few

b)the second when I returned, I reported my observations of the complainers and sited examples that supported the rediculous and outlandish expectations and behaviors

 

I was completely slammed, and we know who they were.

Having said that, my statement regarding the excursions was based on three that I paid for that were not what they were billed to be, and quite honestly with quite a bit of excursion experience with ocean cruising, one specifically was not at all acceptable, the other two were just misrepresented. We cancelled all future excursions. Further, there were, in writing, excursions and transfers that were incorrect and provided incorrect locations as to where they would be taking you that we caught at the last minute. So.....my point is, my statement regarding their excursions department being HORRIBLE was based on MY ACTUAL experiences (as well as many others with cruise backgrounds)while on board their maiden voyage for 29 days. It is my understanding that this department has greatly improved since then and quite honestly they were the worse part of the experience (5 different occasions and that was trying to avoid them all together after the first 3).

 

We have very good friends who were on the 7/25 sailing that ended in Tallinn. I was in constant communication with our friends throughout this debacle.....VO totally blew it. Period. They did not have protocol in place, no exit strategy, and the worse part was their lack of communication. True that the mechanical was not of their control, and the logistics were huge to figure out....but their response to it and how they handled it was below acceptable. I am hoping that they will come around and make this whole for the people who went through it all....and that there is more consideration given to the individual experiences resulting in this extremely unfortunate situation.

 

So for me, it is because of all of this that I am exploring other cruise lines....and Oceania is the name that kept populating in the VO forums as the company that VO needed to hold up to........so I am on this forum to find out about Oceania and explore future cruises with them.

 

I too hope that you have a fabulous time.....we did. Truly. And I have stayed pretty positive throughout my postings, just as you have (which I really appreciate) But there were misses and it is okay to point them out, along with all the positives that I also spoke to. JMHO

[LHT28]

...my point is, my statement regarding their excursions department being HORRIBLE was based on MY ACTUAL experiences (as well as many others with cruise backgrounds)while on board their maiden voyage for 29 days.

As long as you do not expect much from Oceania tours or book their pre/post hotels/transfers you might enjoy Oceania ;)

 

Those things are way overpriced

 

Enjoy

 

Lyn

[Vineyard View]

LHT28 - thank you for that tip! I think where I went wrong was being lured by the low pricing for the additional excursions, rather than just going with what works best for us - private tours when necessary to see what you want - otherwise we DIY as we did this last time for all other ports and we are happy covers with that.

We always arrange our own pre and post cruise time....for a whole lot of reasons.....

I look forward to learning more about Oceania.

Thank you

[roothy123]

I certainly respect the opinion of you, Vineyard View, and anyone else who seems to be a reasonable person. Just one question: I'm taking Viking's $49 excursion to the Temple of Poseidon (down the coast). That's not one you took, was it? I know it's at least an hour's ride down there, but I don't mind that, as long as the views of the coast are nice and the Temple is worth a visit.

 

I'm big on doing research pre-trip and not relying on the ship's excursions. My husband and I have had a LOT of fun going off on our own - sometimes truly DIY and sometimes, on an arranged shared tour. We started doing that a long time ago due to the high prices Oceania charged, but now we do it regardless of how much the cruise line charges. It's a great way to see what you want to see.

 

Just book that Oceania cruise, you'll love it. By the way, if you had asked a lot of people a long time ago what the weakest department on Oceania was, you would have gotten a lot of people mentioning Excursions. Back when O started, they gave NO information on how to do anything on your own, and even discouraged going a few laces on your own (safety concerns, but we never experienced any problems). They didn't seem all that knowlegeable about some of the ports, and sometimes the tour providers didn't stick to the agreed-to schedules and things like that. Now that they've been all over the world for a number of years, they are MUCH better. They also have a tourist info person come on board in a number of ports to sit at a desk and tell people how to find the closest ATM, a landmark, a bus stop, etc.

 

Just be careful about the starting and ending points in any cruise you choose. If you don't go in a day early and stay a day late, you won't see much of the cities by the time you get to/from the airport. I learned that the hard way. Last year we started another cruise in Lisbon and I did it the right way - and loved Lisbon. Now we use O's free air (don't expect nonstops, but don't expect horrible flights either), but pay O for an air deviation and go a day or two early. It helps us adjust to the time difference, provides a cushion in case of air delay, and lets us see more of the embarkation city.

 

I agree with Lyn (and you) about the excursions and transfers - best to do your own.

 

Back to dreaming about Venice now...

[Vineyard View]

We were Barcelona-Stockholm, so did not do that excursion. The Internet has sure provided all of us so much more flexibility when planning our travels.....private tours a big one for me when cruising.

We always give ourselves time prior to and post cruise in those ports or at least in those time zones - those are more difficult to adjust to the more years go by! 😳

 

Thanks for your input and we will look forward to exploring Oceania and are open to any and all suggestions/advise!!!

[twinkletoes4445]

Also just read some of the many post and I feel sorry for anyone who is on the ship. This certainly does not sound like a line Oceana lovers would like.

 

If this Viking is the same as Viking River cruises, I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole. We've cruised Uniworld and loved it. Friends tell us Oceana would be on that level, which is why we're going to cruise Oceania in the near future. Viking has terrible customer service issues, among other things.