Included Excursions: Yay or Nay?

[jtwind]

Never been with Viking before.  Does Viking go above and beyond when screening the guides for their included excursions?  Let's hear what ya got.

[SuzieTrue]

It depends on the excursion and location. On our river cruise in 2018, each included excursion and guide were awesome. We discovered on ocean cruises, many times the included excursion was just being driven around the location with short stops. We have become pickier on thses excursions.

[duquephart]

The Little Girl with the Curl.

[uktog]

17 minutes ago, jtwind said:

Never been with Viking before.  Does Viking go above and beyond when screening the guides for their included excursions?  Let's hear what ya got.

I found the guides on our Norway cruise on the included excursions to be as good as any I have had on paid for trips

[Mich3554]

We were on the trans Atlantic last fall where we lost Morocco, Senegal and 2 stops in Brazil.  On the fly, we picked up Madeira and Cape Verde, and Punta del Este.  I’m sure that Viking was looking at providing a service for their passengers with only a few days notice…..especially in places where we were the first cruise ship there in 2 years.  They did a phenomenal job, with minimal vetting.  

[MSEm]

Note:  I have found that most of the included tour is covered in any of the optional tours I have booked.

On our first Viking Ocean cruise we did included and  optional tours in several ports. The included tours was repeated on our optional tousr. 

Now we book only an optional and not in included tour for a port.

[basenji56]

Yes in Europe. No in the Caribbean. 

[austinetc]

We have been on one ocean and three river cruises with Viking. We've used both included and optional tours. In all those times we have had one bad excursion, totally due to the guide. ("There's a fountain. I don't know what it's called.") People with another guide had a great time. 

 

Some of the included excursions were less than spectacular (usually the bus "look out the window" tours), but others have been phenomenal. In many cases, the walking tours have provided enough information to suggest what to do after the tour. In our opinion, the optional excursions have been worth the money. But one must be selective. If the description doesn't excite you, the tour probably won't either.

 

Caveat: Bus rides are no fun in any scenario, but you've got to get places somehow.

[KBs mum]

Depends, if they look interesting or have a convenient route, yes. If not, no. We prefer to be independent

[lackcreativity]

Keep in mind that even though Viking has been cruising again for several months, lots of local guides needed to seek other employment during the pandemic. Getting everything up and running again has not been without some hiccups. 

 

With three ocean cruises completed, we have always done mostly included excursions with a few optional ones each time. All have been good to excellent except for two ( both related to guides). Read the descriptions carefully, as has been said previously. Note the clues, as "you will see" and "you will visit" are usually two different things, as one means from the outside and the other an actual visit.

 

Not all included excursions are panoramic bus tours ( though some are) and many include at least some part of a walking tour. With walking tours, usually there is some time on your own (unless pandemic issues prohibit). In many ports, Viking provides free shuttle bus service, so we often remain after an excursion for some independent exploring. All our experience is prior to Covid, but we will be returning to Viking the end of next week to see if these are still accurate assessments!

[longterm]

On 3/28/2022 at 1:31 PM, jtwind said:

Never been with Viking before.  Does Viking go above and beyond when screening the guides for their included excursions?  Let's hear what ya got.

We've had mixed results with included excursions; however, I don't think the issue was ever with the guides. In fact, we've done private excursions with guides who have also worked with Viking, so it seems to me that Viking chooses well when it comes to the guides they hire. (I do recall one really mediocre guide in Munich, but that's the only one that comes to mind).

On our last cruise we did a few included excursions, some of which turned out to be rather perfunctory; we excused ourselves and went on by ourselves, which was always a good option in those situations.

Paying for an excursion doesn't guarantee it to be a great tour; I've learned to be more cautious about looking at bus travel times and to look at striking out on our own, instead of perhaps spending a couple hundred dollars or going on a free short walking tour--really depends on the location.

ON THE OTHER HAND, we've done some free excursions that were great fun, and with the right guide, can be well worth the time. We had a guide in Crotone, Italy, who set the right tone from the minute she started speaking--very enthusiastic, friendly, engaging--and at the end of the free walking tour, at least half of us told her she was the best guide we'd had in a long time.

[Twitchly]

If we do an included excursion, we look for walking tours. Riding around in a bus has limited appeal. 

[Blackduck59]

We didn't enjoy our recent excursion in San Diego while others on the same bus did. In hindsight we should have just did a self walking tour. USS Midway museum was at the next pier over from us to starboard and several  "Tall ship" museum ships were a short walk to Port. Even the "Old Town" section was not far from the ship.

Why didn't we walk around after the bus tour you ask? Well by the time we got back all we wanted was a cool drink and something more comfortable than a bus seat to sit in.

The bus tour in San Francisco was okay but there were no stops where any shops were open for us to get mementos. Once again by the time we got back to the ship we were done. No mementos from San Francisco. 

Our 1 optional tour was for Astoria, it was canceled before we even boarded the ship. We will just do walkabout on our own when we get there tomorrow. 

[sugarside]

On our Viking Homelands cruise in 2019 we were given a questionnaire to fill in by each guide as we left the bus after each excursion  and after completion we handed them into Viking.

One guide explained she was a relatively new guide and her agency used feedback from Viking to assess guides and anyone with poor feedback from Viking would not progress with the company and would not be sent to Viking assignments again.

Edited April 15, 2022 by sugarside

[KBs mum]

We are usually independent, but some of the tours are worth doing, depending on destination and interests. Sometimes we use the included coach tours as transport, and by arrangement with the guide, leave them when they get to where we want to be. 

[kcpvwill]

We did the Northern Lights cruise this February and did mainly included tours.  We had excellent guides in Bergen and Narvik but the one in Alta did not do his job properly.  He did not bring his quiet vox transmitter as he said he preferred to use his voice.  Most of the 22 could not hear him and those with hearing loops ready for the quiet vox had no chance.  
He did not have much to say and luckily the Cathedral of the Northern Lights guide took over (even checking his numbers and informing he had lost 2) She was excellent.  Several people including me complained that he did not guide us properly.  Viking takes onboard all comments both positive and negative.  I think lots of guides have had to take other jobs because of the pandemic and now there are not enough to go round.  
 

I praise the good ones as well.  

[Azulann]

16 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

We didn't enjoy our recent excursion in San Diego while others on the same bus did. In hindsight we should have just did a self walking tour. USS Midway museum was at the next pier over from us to starboard and several  "Tall ship" museum ships were a short walk to Port. Even the "Old Town" section was not far from the ship.

Why didn't we walk around after the bus tour you ask? Well by the time we got back all we wanted was a cool drink and something more comfortable than a bus seat to sit in.

The bus tour in San Francisco was okay but there were no stops where any shops were open for us to get mementos. Once again by the time we got back to the ship we were done. No mementos from San Francisco. 

Our 1 optional tour was for Astoria, it was canceled before we even boarded the ship. We will just do walkabout on our own when we get there tomorrow. 

Great Maritime Museum in Astoria. I enjoy this town so much on a land trip many years ago. Situated at the mouth of the Columbia River , it has a rich history. Good  local beers and brewery in converted cannery  building. 

[Janelofton]

My husband and I have been on two river cruises and two ocean cruises with Viking. The included river cruise excursions were all excellent. The ocean ones were more mixed. I think a lot of the reason for that is that river cruise stops are more suited to walking tours and ocean cruise stops often are further from the sites so they go with more panoramic bus tours. On our second ocean cruise in Australia and New Zealand we did do a handful of included excursions, but paid the extra for optional excursions at most ports. We also took advantage of one third-party excursion through Viator, and were very happy we did. For our next cruise in Greece, we plan to go with a combination of included, optional, and third-party again, and mostly avoid the panoramic bus tours. 

[longterm]

3 minutes ago, Janelofton said:

My husband and I have been on two river cruises and two ocean cruises with Viking. The included river cruise excursions were all excellent. The ocean ones were more mixed. I think a lot of the reason for that is that river cruise stops are more suited to walking tours and ocean cruise stops often are further from the sites so they go with more panoramic bus tours. On our second ocean cruise in Australia and New Zealand we did do a handful of included excursions, but paid the extra for optional excursions at most ports. We also took advantage of one third-party excursion through Viator, and were very happy we did. For our next cruise in Greece, we plan to go with a combination of included, optional, and third-party again, and mostly avoid the panoramic bus tours. 

We just spent 5 days in Greece with Viking—one day upon arrival on the ship, 4-day extension. 
 

We really liked all 3 of the Viking excursions there; we hired a private guide for 2 excursions, but the Viking excursions were better. Delphi was a bit of s as drive, but it was worth it. 

[Janelofton]

Ah, thanks for sharing that, longterm! Could you tell me which excursions you did? We have booked 4 extra days in Greece on our own, along with the overnight on the ship, so will be planning multiple outings. We definitely want to go to Delphi and are wondering about the Viking excursion or if it would be better with the long drive to book a private guide for that one. Also, could you tell me what time the Viking Delphi excursion started? (My husband doesn't like early mornings.) Thank you!

[longterm]

6 minutes ago, Janelofton said:

Ah, thanks for sharing that, longterm! Could you tell me which excursions you did? We have booked 4 extra days in Greece on our own, along with the overnight on the ship, so will be planning multiple outings. We definitely want to go to Delphi and are wondering about the Viking excursion or if it would be better with the long drive to book a private guide for that one. Also, could you tell me what time the Viking Delphi excursion started? (My husband doesn't like early mornings.) Thank you!

Viking provides 3 post-cruise extension excursions: the Acropolis, which is of course stunning. We headed there after disembarking, and went directly to the Acropolis, so even though it was a Saturday, the crowds weren't bad at all--many more people were entering by the time we exited.

On the 2nd day we went to Mycenae and a 2nd stop, to an area whose name escapes me--Mycenae was wonderful and well worth the visit--the 2nd not so much, although the ancient theater was interesting. The drive took us over the famous canal at Corinth. 

On the 3rd day we took a 2-hour (yes, two hours) drive to Delphi; I was questioning whether I would've wanted to go if I'd known its length, but it was well worth the drive. I think we left around 8:30 or 9; it wasn't bad on the bus, not sure a private guide could've improved much, but perhaps. It actually snowed on us up there--it was March 23rd--but despite a few snowflakes, our time at Delphi was spectacular. The museum there is excellent as well--not large, but very interesting, and our guide was very knowledgeable. 

On the way up to Delphi, we saw tens of thousands of olive trees in the valley below--really amazing to see.

Before getting to port, the Viking cruise stops at Katakolon; we took the paid excursion to Olympia, which was really interesting, the site of the 1st Olympics--and another great site. The excursion also went to Magna Grecia, which is a small olive farm; it's definitely set up for tourists, but we enjoyed it nevertheless--so much so that we had a lot of their olive oil shipped home to us.

 

The ship also stops at Corfu, which was one of our favorite stops; we took the included excursion, which was nice, but after a half-hour decided to wander around on our own and had a wonderful lunch near the water.

 

We had 2 days with a private guide in Athens as well; the 1st one was after our first day's excursion to the Acropolis. Our guide Niki took us to see the temple of Apollo, which overlooks the Adriatic; we stopped along the way home and had a wonderful Greek dinner at a small restaurant. She also took us into the old part of Athens, where we wandered around in shops, saw the huge fish and meat market, then took us to her home where she gave us a cooking lesson on traditional Greek food--tzatziki, spanakopita, hummus, some other great food. 

[Janelofton]

47 minutes ago, longterm said:

We just spent 5 days in Greece with Viking—one day upon arrival on the ship, 4-day extension. 
 

We really liked all 3 of the Viking excursions there; we hired a private guide for 2 excursions, but the Viking excursions were better. Delphi was a bit of s as drive, but it was worth it. 

 

Edited May 14, 2022 by Janelofton
posted in error

[Janelofton]

Thanks so much for the information, longterm.