Europe 2021 Celebrity or Viking?

[gerelmx]

Uncertain of which one to choose, I have always traveled with RCCL and lately with Celebrity, my plans for 2021 is a cruise through the Mediterranean, Adriatic and Greek islands, it will be my first time in this part of the world, which Cruise Company would you choose and why?

 

[Squawkman]

Most folks here would recommend Viking for any number of reasons. In addition to like having less than 1/3 the number of passengers than a typical RCCL or Celebrity ship, I would suggest that you check out this website:

https://www.vikingcruises.com/oceans/why-viking/viking-difference/main.html

Pay special attention to the section "What Viking is not" - these are characteristics that differentiate Viking (no children, no casino, etc.).

 

 

[Peregrina651]

You may find this thread helpful as well. It expands on the themes given in the link above plus it is from the point of view of the guests and not the copy writers in the advertising department. I suggest it to anyone who is on the fence:

 

Tell Me Why.....

 

Personally, these days, I would choose Viking over RCCL or X, whose ships have gotten just too big for me; too many people, too much noise, too much hustle and bustle. I'm not a party person so Viking's smaller ships and their laid back atmosphere make for a much more pleasant vacation.

 

[Pushka]

If it’s a new itinerary to Viking I’d choose Celebrity. We’ve chosen Celebrity for the Med next year. Just found Viking a very disappointing first time experience for us and marketing didn’t live up to experience. Have cruised with Celebrity three times and happy to experience it again. We just avoid casinos and photographers and have never found the number of passengers and children to be an issue when we’ve cruised with Celebrity. Being able to see and book excursions from the very beginning of the booking process is a huge plus for Celebrity. 

Edited July 17, 2019 by Pushka

[molymoo]

7 hours ago, Pushka said:

If it’s a new itinerary to Viking I’d choose Celebrity. We’ve chosen Celebrity for the Med next year. Just found Viking a very disappointing first time experience for us and marketing didn’t live up to experience. Have cruised with Celebrity three times and happy to experience it again. We just avoid casinos and photographers and have never found the number of passengers and children to be an issue when we’ve cruised with Celebrity. Being able to see and book excursions from the very beginning of the booking process is a huge plus for Celebrity. 

 

FWIW ... the Mediterranean and Adriatic are not new to Viking.  If you like RCCL and Celebrity why not stick with them.  Personally my experience with the larger cruise lines is limited and will stay that way.  I find the crowds and chaos to be sources of anxiety (I even have issues in the World Cafe at times on Viking!) so I will avoid them like the plague ... but to each his own.  Can I ask why you are considering Viking if you are so happy with the others?  Just wondering.

[Heidi13]

Having spent almost 40 years with what is now a mainstream line, we will happily stick with Viking, provided they maintain the small ship feel and standards.

 

While researching an alternate cruise line we did consider HAL & X, but their corporate owners have devastated what once were exceptional cruise lines and in our opinion are not much better than the down market brands in their respective empires. Ships are way too big, too many noisy kids, average food unless paying ever increasing prices in specialty restaurants, etc. They also promote their suites and/or ship within a ship concept, which is a marketing term for 1st & 2nd class, but once you leave those confirms you are back with cramped spaces, thousands of new friends, screaming kids and photogs sticking a camera in your face multiple times a day.

 

Viking may not be perfect, but they offer many benefits that are important to us. The links provided in 2 previous posts provide an excellent summary. Enjoy the cruise, whichever option you select.

[gerelmx]

3 hours ago, molymoo said:

 

 Can I ask why you are considering Viking if you are so happy with the others?  Just wondering.

 

 I like the Sky itinerary Barcelona to Istanbul, I can do a similar (B2B2B) on the Constellation, comparing prices a X C cabin + the perks is similar to the Veranda V2 all included

[Squawkman]

42 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

Viking may not be perfect, but they offer many benefits that are important to us

 

Agree 100%. I have not had as an extensive cruising experience as most folks here. My wife had done several cruises in the 1990's. Over the past few years, we did 2 Viking River and a Princess. Then last November, we did our first Viking Ocean. No comparison on the experience - and my wife said we're not cruising on any other line again. We booked three more Viking Ocean cruises.

[Peregrina651]

25 minutes ago, gerelmx said:

 

 I like the Sky itinerary Barcelona to Istanbul, I can do a similar (B2B2B) on the Constellation, comparing prices a X C cabin + the perks is similar to the Veranda V2 all included

 

 

This is actually a B2B2B but marketed under its own name. Viking does this a lot. There will probably be people on the ship with you on 6 different

 

Viking is familiar with all of these ports, so all should go smoothly.

[Peregrina651]

21 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

 

This is actually a B2B2B but marketed under its own name. Viking does this a lot. There will probably be people on the ship with you on 6 different

 

Viking is familiar with all of these ports, so all should go smoothly.

 

Sorry. I got side tracked mid-sentence and never finished the thought.

 

As I was trying to say, you will probably be sailing with guests doing 6 different named itineraries over the course of the three weeks. There will be guests who are on board for just a week (Barcelona to Rome, Rome to Athens, Athens to Istanbul) then there at the two-weekers doing Barcelona to Athens or Rome to Istanbul in addition to your three week itinerary. Viking will offer three Meet & Mingle events over the course of the cruise, one for each segment and segmenters are invited to attend for each segment. You should also follow all the roll calls that apply to the dates that you will be on the ship.

[gerelmx]

Hard work: trying to convince my wife to book this one: 29 days onboard the Viking Sky

Edited July 17, 2019 by gerelmx

[Peregrina651]

So, what can we do to help? What are her concerns? Can we answer any questions for her?

 

That is an amazing itinerary. If we could get away for that long --and if were done in cooler weather, I would book in an instant!

[lackcreativity]

2 hours ago, gerelmx said:

Hard work: trying to convince my wife to book this one: 29 days onboard the Viking Sky

You wouldn't have to work hard at all to convince me! The April 4 or September 19 sailings should be just about the right temperature.

Edited July 17, 2019 by lackcreativity

[Pushka]

On 7/17/2019 at 9:37 PM, molymoo said:

 

FWIW ... the Mediterranean and Adriatic are not new to Viking.  If you like RCCL and Celebrity why not stick with them.  Personally my experience with the larger cruise lines is limited and will stay that way.  I find the crowds and chaos to be sources of anxiety (I even have issues in the World Cafe at times on Viking!) so I will avoid them like the plague ... but to each his own.  Can I ask why you are considering Viking if you are so happy with the others?  Just wondering.

 

I liked the itinerary. I liked the simplicity of the ships. My brother recommended them. I thought their marketing showed a high valued product. Lots of positives. Experience turned out to be a little different. I found the release of excursions to lower cabins to be particularly annoying and ended up booking private ones because Alaska being so busy I didn’t want to miss out on prize excursions. As it turned out, four were booked out prior to our cabin release and because of the nature of this excursions (fishing charter, private train carriage etc) Viking didn’t release any further places. Their logistics with regards to tenders were surprisingly poor which surprised me given they manage this process flawlessly in Europe and UK. But something went wrong in Alaska. 

[Ditzy Dreamer]

We have sailed twice with Celebrity and did a Mediterranean cruise and a river cruise with Viking.  We are now very spoiled by Viking and will only cruise with them. We are leaving soon on the Viking Homelands cruise.   

[Squawkman]

9 minutes ago, Ditzy Dreamer said:

We have sailed twice with Celebrity and did a Mediterranean cruise and a river cruise with Viking.  We are now very spoiled by Viking and will only cruise with them. We are leaving soon on the Viking Homelands cruise.   

Amen. 

[Peregrina651]

On 7/17/2019 at 2:23 PM, gerelmx said:

Hard work: trying to convince my wife to book this one: 29 days onboard the Viking Sky

 

So, have you managed to convince her??

[gerelmx]

Just now, Peregrina651 said:

 

So, have you managed to convince her??

 

Not yet she want to see the Celebrity itineraries for 2021 to take her decisions.

 

[Peregrina651]

36 minutes ago, gerelmx said:

 

Not yet she want to see the Celebrity itineraries for 2021 to take her decisions.

 

 

Just be aware that Viking fills quickly and early.

[Vineyard View]

We wanted to sail this geographic area next year for a special occasion. To Perigrina’s point, The Viking offering has been sold out for some time (last year) now for Spring 2020.  I waited too long. We love Viking.

That said, this is the date and area we want to sail, so we are booked with HAL. We are happy with the itinerary of 24 days, and the promotion which included their drink package. The ship is 2x as large as Viking - and that is our concern. But.....it isn’t one of those megaships, which we will not sail. 

So if you are set on this itinerary it’s probably best not to hold off too long. 

Edited July 29, 2019 by Vineyard View

[deec]

What a great itinerary!   29 days would be awesome !    But may do South America itinerary first.  Viking has done it with this years WC so May have some kinks worked out.

[CCWineLover]

46 minutes ago, deec said:

What a great itinerary!   29 days would be awesome !    But may do South America itinerary first.  Viking has done it with this years WC so May have some kinks worked out.

 

deec - I think we're on the same Midnight Sun cruise together next June on the Sun.  Recognize your handle.

Will let you know how South America goes.   We are booked on Santiago to Buenos Aires on the Jupiter Dec 21.  The Jupiter and Sun will have tried out the ports just ahead of us, so hoping any kinks are worked out.   South America has always been on the bucket list.

[Vineyard View]

We also will look forward to your experience in South America CCWineLover! We are eyeing a couple itineraries and torn which one we might enjoy the most. South America and the Chilean Fjords, and the South American and Around Cape Horn. We also would like to sail where there is some experience in the ports previously. 

 

Hi Deec!  Hope all is well! 

[deec]

yes all is great....just spent 3 weeks in Northern Michigan "cruising". Not quite Viking style....anchored out and "tendered" all but 3 nights.  Was ready for a long hot shower and a bed that I did not have to climb into....Lots more work sailing our own boat but had an awesome time........stars this year were amazing. 

CC WineLover will be anxious for your review...and we are on Midnight Sun with you next summer.

[CCWineLover]

7 hours ago, deec said:

yes all is great....just spent 3 weeks in Northern Michigan "cruising". Not quite Viking style....anchored out and "tendered" all but 3 nights.  Was ready for a long hot shower and a bed that I did not have to climb into....Lots more work sailing our own boat but had an awesome time........stars this year were amazing. 

CC WineLover will be anxious for your review...and we are on Midnight Sun with you next summer.

 

Tough life, deec!   Looking forward to meeting you on the Midnight Sun cruise.  We finally got our air down, now trying to fill in the gaps on the pre and post DIY touring.

As for South America, now that is requiring a bit of research and legwork as the various tour groups and comments are all over the place!  We've signed up with Patrick Watts for Falkland Islands Volunteer Point Penguin tour but that's about it.  Again - we like to do the DIY touring on the front and back of cruies.  Going to do 8 days in Santiago/Valparaiso on the front and 9 days in Buenos Aires, Mendoza, and Iguazu Falls on the back end.   Lots of planning and logistics, but I love it!