Viking Rinda Paris to Normandy

[tearhead]

April 25-May 2. For some reason, Viking had not thought about May 1 being a national holiday (France's labor day) so the Versailles tour had to be cancelled. They called a couple of days before departure but Viking's communication was lacking in that we didn't get the message that we could see Versailles on the first Paris day instead. This was disappointing, though the tour of Malmaison was great. Also, they had to do a very quick shuffling of ports in order to get back to Paris fast because the locks would also be closed on May 1. This affected the amount of time we might have had to stop and explore the port towns. All this should have been foreseeable. One of our guides says the holiday seems to be a surprise to Viking every year. Be aware, the ship is in port a lot during the tour, and the emphasis is not on seeing scenery while cruising. We mostly cruised at night. Emphasis is on port stops. The only times I saw people up on the sundeck were the muster and the wheelhouse talk. It's mostly a floating hotel. Very nice, but if you're expecting to sit up top and watch the world go by, this is not your cruise.

The ship was nice (not as nice as the Avalon ship we took on the Danube) and the food was very good and very plentiful. Service was very good and the wait staff were fun. The cruise director did his best to adjust our expectations according to the ongoing/mounting list of changes for the day ahead, each evening. They plied us with wine at lunch and dinner. Beer was out of pocket. There were several cocktail receptions, their treat.

Our stateroom had both kinds of outlets. I did take along a curling brush but hid it away in a drawer when I was not using it and it was not confiscated. I could tell a lot of the other women had been using curling or straightening irons, so the "no curling iron policy" must be a policy that they don't really enforce on the Rinda. They have a nice hairdryer and plenty out outlets--both ends of desk, both bedsides, and in the bathroom. Lovely toiletries--body lotion, shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, shower cap.

The Paris port is at Le Pecq, which is a nice suburb. They offered a very nice walking tour of a historic park and site near the port the afternoon of arrival and that helped us get our bearings. The guides and sound equipment were excellent throughout. We went to Monet's garden and the walking tour of Vernon, the Normandy beaches, La Roche Guyon (glad we picked that one, it was pouring rain and snow and the other tour was a steep hike on a stone path where we were on a bus and indoors for a lot of it), walking tour of Rouen (excellent!), the Paris tour with the Louvre (first full day) and then the Malmaison and City Lights tour the last night (neither the first day Paris/Louvre nor City Lights involves getting up into the tower, though). Before you book the City Lights tour think about your return flight home the next day. It ends at midnight. Because we had booked that online we were not allowed to cancel it, but had we booked it on board, we would have been able to cancel it.

Because of all the craziness with the holiday, they also offered shuttles to Paris the last day. You could either stay for the morning or stay until 5. Drop off and pickup were at the Petite Palais near the Champs Elysees. We were happy to find a couple of small stores open on the holiday but most were closed so we just walked around. We came back at noon because of the Malmaison tour in the afternoon. They did try to accommodate us, though a lot less of that would have been needed, had they factored the holiday in. There is a rail station walking distance (uphill) from the port at Le Pecq but they have rolling strike days on the railway so it would be risky to depend on that. Evidently there are many holidays throughout the year, so you might want to look into that as you plan.

I wished I had taken a stocking cap and gloves. My rain jacket got a lot of use, as did my three sweaters (On Normandy day, the high was 42 degrees F). Nobody dressed to the nines, but people for the most part abided by the dress code and most people dressed up a little for dinner. People wore athletic shoes and sturdier sandals for the excursions, but more dressy shoes/sandals to dinner.

[KathyK13]

I'm puzzled by this. I thought May Day was a national holiday in most countries in Europe. Since Viking has the most river ships I would have thought they adjusted their schedules on all cruises for May 1. Surely shows lack of planning on their part. I wonder if other cruise companies adjusted their schedules ahead of time.

[workstocruise]

We were on this same ship on the Seine the first week of April. We had no holiday issues but our flight from the U.S. was delayed 6 hours which pushed our arrival into Paris from 9 am to 3 pm. Therefore we lost that day in Paris. This was our 2nd time on the Rinda and both times I used my curling iron and left it out on the desk where I put my makeup on and curled my hair. I have taken 5 river cruises with Viking and not once did I read or was told not to bring a curling iron. My problem with the Rinda is we thought the food was not very good at all. There were a lot of complaints from mostly everyone. Last year we were on the Rhine river on the Alruna and the food was excellent. The Rinda’s food was nowhere near as good.

We had a lot of rain on this trip and our travel was affected by both train and airline strikes. We did both the Seine and the Rhône rivers and we are done with France. We loved the places we visited on both rivers but we’re planning to do the Elbe river next.

[Peregrina651]

We were on this same ship on the Seine the first week of April. We had no holiday issues but our flight from the U.S. was delayed 6 hours which pushed our arrival into Paris from 9 am to 3 pm. Therefore we lost that day in Paris. This was our 2nd time on the Rinda and both times I used my curling iron and left it out on the desk where I put my makeup on and curled my hair. I have taken 5 river cruises with Viking and not once did I read or was told not to bring a curling iron. My problem with the Rinda is we thought the food was not very good at all. There were a lot of complaints from mostly everyone. Last year we were on the Rhine river on the Alruna and the food was excellent. The Rinda’s food was nowhere near as good.

We had a lot of rain on this trip and our travel was affected by both train and airline strikes. We did both the Seine and the Rhône rivers and we are done with France. We loved the places we visited on both rivers but we’re planning to do the Elbe river next.

 

In general, curling irons and other heated styling tools are a fire hazard and that is why they are not permitted on many vessels.

 

Perhaps Viking can reply here and let us know for certain whether such electrical devices are forbidden and on which ships.

[Viking Cruises]

Dear Peregrina651,

 

We are pleased to jump in and clarify that we have recently updated our online documentation to reflect that, for safety purposes, heat-producing appliances such as irons, steamers, curling irons and heaters are not permitted on board. We apologize for any confusion this has caused, and welcome a conversation at TellUs@vikingcruises.com should you, or fellow cruisers, wish to discuss packing tips for an upcoming voyage.

 

It's always a pleasure to chat with you, and we wish you a lovely weekend.

 

Kind regards,

Viking Cruises

 

 

 

In general, curling irons and other heated styling tools are a fire hazard and that is why they are not permitted on many vessels.

 

Perhaps Viking can reply here and let us know for certain whether such electrical devices are forbidden and on which ships.

[rothbury]

So, Viking, I guess I'm confused by this policy. Aren't your provided blow dryers heat producing appliances? This new policy being the case; I guess I'll start looking at other cruise lines.

[kentchris]

So, Viking, I guess I'm confused by this policy. Aren't your provided blow dryers heat producing appliances? This new policy being the case; I guess I'll start looking at other cruise lines.

Recognise this? You've sailed on HAL so it shouldn't be difficult.

 

For safety reasons, travel irons, steamers, and electric water heaters/kettles may not be used in your stateroom.

Viking's policy is pretty typical for the industry, and it's not self contradictory, so I don't see what the problem is.

[rothbury]

Wow!! Not sure what & when I cruise has to do with this. Since you seem to know me you should know I don't have enough hair to need a "heat producing appliance". I call Viking's statement, "having your cake and eating it, too". I still don't understand how a cruise line can draw a line between their own "heat producing appliance" and one brought onboard by a passenger. Not that it makes any difference but I don't recall a fire on a cruise ship from a "heat producing appliance". I do recall several fires and lost lives from cigarettes. Most (if not all) cruise lines still allow smoking onboard. Maybe you can help me out and explain the difference. By the way, I don't smoke either. So, I'm not going to defend the practice of smoking. Just making a comparison.

[philw1776]

It DOES make a difference. Viking needs quality & safety control over such appliances. With nearly 500 guest suites, Viking has no control over someone's possibly substandard safety or possibly defective electrical appliance. There are also potential electrical grounding issues as with surge protector power strips which are prohibited.

I was on an ocean cruise (not Viking) with an electrical caused fire. Not a joke at sea. Fortunately, all went well.

[Peregrina651]

Wow!! Not sure what & when I cruise has to do with this. Since you seem to know me you should know I don't have enough hair to need a "heat producing appliance". I call Viking's statement, "having your cake and eating it, too". I still don't understand how a cruise line can draw a line between their own "heat producing appliance" and one brought onboard by a passenger. Not that it makes any difference but I don't recall a fire on a cruise ship from a "heat producing appliance". I do recall several fires and lost lives from cigarettes. Most (if not all) cruise lines still allow smoking onboard. Maybe you can help me out and explain the difference. By the way, I don't smoke either. So, I'm not going to defend the practice of smoking. Just making a comparison.

 

 

The least offensive of the heating items are blow dyers and this is where the cruise lines have drawn the line. Just as there is a line drawn between smoking cigarettes and smoking pipes and cigars. Many cruise lines now severely limit smoking to just one or two places on the ship and have policies that expressly forbid smoking in cabins, on balconies and in most interior spaces.

 

The other items --travel irons, curling irons, immersion heaters, electric kettles--are forbidden for multiple reasons, most of them having to do with the lack of safety features built into these items, with the wide range of manufacturing quality and with the wattage of these items (which can cause overheating or shorts in the circuits, which can start unseen fires behind bulk-heads, etc.). The cruise lines do not have the manpower to inspect each of the items that people might wish to use, so if they want to ban these items altogether for the safety of all, I don't have a problem with it.