Current experience Azamara v Viking

[uktog]

Part one

 

I am posting this on both the `Azamara board and the Viking board as this post is relevant to both.  If anyone on the Azamara board wants to know more about the itinerary, the ports of call or more detail about life onboard  and the food, I did an “almost live from” and this post in two parts is my conclusion.

 

So in summary what did we feel about Viking and our overall experience onboard?  I will break it up for ease.

 

The ship

 

When comparing it to Azamara in terms of the ship – well you should not.  It is not like for like.  However, if you were looking at identical itineraries and prices (payment terms are identical in the UK) then Viking would win in terms of the ship.  It’s the little things in so many places, the fact that there is so much space indoors or outdoors to sit either with company or without is a huge bonus.  Viking Saturn may have 300 more guests, but it felt much less crowded particularly in inclement weather.  There was also other small (but significant) differences such as such a great number of spotless restrooms some of a really decent size – for example the one outside the restaurant has been designed to recognise that is a highuse area so had significant additional “capacity”.

 

Our room was a Deluxe Veranda so the second lowest category although the difference between that and the lowest is in amenities provided rather than room size.  It was a lot bigger than an Azamara Veranda and had much better storage and included a Nespresso machine. (They had also put a kettle and teabags in the room, kind of stereotyping UK guests, don’t mind that, we just had it taken away as we are coffee people in the morning). The room was kept immaculate by the two attendants (yes its two still on Viking) though as they do more rooms they are not as good at nipping in when you go out for a few hours for breakfast and a walk, they seem to service rooms in a sequence.  

 

However there were other nicer touches Azamara could adopt even in their current layout such as better bathroom products in colour coded tubes (no trying to work out from the tiny print is this the shampoo or the shower gel) and leaving lovely chocolate bars and two bags of snack nuts in the fridge each day for you to have when it suited you (or squirrel for the next day) rather than the small creamy square centimetres you get at night from Azamara.  Other little touches  included (OK clever ongoing marketing) we bring a lot of books and had them on the shelf.  When we went to read the first one we found they all now had Viking bookmarks in them.

 

Food

 

In terms of food, we had previously sailed on Viking in March 2022 and our last Azamara cruise was December 2022.  Viking food was far better than Azamara and seemed even more enjoyable than on our first Viking cruise.  They appear to have a much higher budget per head (or alternatively  spend it differently, there is no elaborate brunches, buffet or white night food – more on white night later…).  There was always a dish involving beef, often served as steak in some form on the main dining room menu and whilst there were some spicier dishes, the focus on Viking was on herbs and flavouring rather than spice.  Lobster featured twice along with cod, the duck was cooked to perfection and the pasta was to die for.  Desserts were beautifully presented and very varied.  There is also an everyday menu (including a standard steak, chicken and an excellent salmon dish) if you want and of course in the evening the world café reflects the restaurant food plus some special stations should you prefer that.  

 

A major difference is the way Viking serve food.  A waiter does not take orders from several tables and head to the galley and come back with towers of plates to then distribute.  Food is finished off and brought out on a table by table basis.  We had a useful conversation with the Executive Chef who explained how they manage this on Viking.  As a result in the main dining room it felt, also helped by its sectioned layout, that like you were in a restaurant not a banquet hall and unlike our last Azamara cruise nothing had to go back and everything was piping hot.

 

We had two dinners in Manfredi and two Chefs tables (Scandanavian and Californian).  All were lovely meals with the food cooked to perfection.  The service on our first Manfredi visit was “off” but the Head Waiter identified this before we made the point, it was due to a galley malfunction, and insisted we came back a second time.  Second time it was as she said it would be – spot on.  These two venues are at no additional charge and deluxe veranda level guests are guaranteed one reservation in each.  However if you can be flexible on time and do not want 6 or 6.30 tables you could pretty much go as often as you like.  The chefs table is not the same “extravaganza and pomp” as on Azamara but then I am not spending almost $200 and I would say if the Azamara table is 5 star, this one is 4 star -its pretty enjoyable.

 

The World café was very good as was the more extensive pool grill with much more varied salad bar.  The Pool Grill however is not open in the evenings (but its onion rings are far less “processed”).  There is also a dedicated Asian station with its own chef offering cooked to order dishes from that part of the world breakfast, lunch and dinner.

 

The afternoon tea served daily in the Wintergarden with musical accompaniment (but no dress code) is so lovely – four pages of teas to choose from, three tiered serving stands and scones with proper clotted cream - even the special Aqualina afternoon tea comes nowhere near that experience.

 

Drinks

 

A big difference is Viking only includes wines and beers at meal times and gives you six sodas restocked as required in your room fridge.  We went for the additional Silver Package which costs $25 each per day, both have to have it and you cannot buy it for part of the cruise.  So that is an expense you have to bear in mind though many agents do include it as a “perk”.  It is however a far better package than on Azamara with a much more diverse range of wines all available (about 40 in total) and several spirits that would be beyond the package on Azamara.  All were available though we did have some issues in the dining room re their service I will cover later.

 

I found the staff mixed martinis and cocktails extremely well and have the spirits to mixer balance far better on Viking.  They very much worked to measured amounts so if you are someone who likes your favourite bartender to be heavy handed on the spirits, you are better with Azamara however they had no issue serving doubles.  As one with a much “lower capacity for spirits” these days the Viking approach worked far better for me.

 

[uktog]

Part Two

Entertainment

 

Entertainment is more extensive and varied on Viking our cruise having a classical pianist, a classical duo (piano and violin), a guitarist, a four piece band (piano, guitar bass and drums) and a duo who would play in the nightclub with some or all of the band.  On the singing front we had four singers (one of whom did her own show) a cruise director and an assistant cruise director who also both did shows.  Apart from the male singer in the duo who was awful all the others were top notch and the cruise director Damien in particular was extremely talented an charming,  All the shows they were involved in were excellent and above Azamara standard.  Unfortunately the two guest entertainers (a guitarist and a ventriloquist) were of a very poor standard, below anything we have seen elsewhere so Azamara is well head in terms of the guest entertainers.

 

One thing we loved on Viking was Dancing Under the Stars – which of course benefits from the pool deck having a roof so is an all weather guaranteed event – in our case it was probably about 4c outside that night.  There is no buffet before it, everyone dines in other venues as usual and then comes for the dancing.  Honestly if that meant the food budget was better used across the time I was onboard I would like Azamara to go that way!  It was a fantastic night, it was as much fun as white night but we were not cold, worried about rain or sitting at tables that had the remnants of a meal setting.  A far higher % of guests were dancing (they did play more slower numbers!!!) and the absence of pressure to pack an outfit just for one night was for me a bonus.  

 

Viking makes a thing about enrichment and here again they were streets ahead of Azamara with their resident historian and four speakers three of who were top notch.  (The fourth only did one very simplistic how to use your iphone talk).  Corey Sandler and Brigadier General Joe Shaeffer both really made our cruise with their talks which of course we could watch on catch up an hour after they were done and thanks to the technology onboard, these were broadcast quality replays.  Whilst I accept Azamara does not have that technology, they could try and book speakers of this quality (though I understand Viking look after their speakers better, that’s what one onboard who had been on both indicated) and a simple thing – Viking requires their presentations to be in a standard format in terms of background colour, font type and size.  It helps so much  and would be a no cost improvement Azamara could make.

 

We used the included Viking tours -all were walk arounds or short bus trips.  They worked well for us given we have been in several of the ports before.  But we know they do not work for some and some find the booking process stressful though it was clear if you did not get a space before boarding, you could usually get a space onboard.  As an aside, we loved the Quiet boxes they worked so well, but our greater like is that shore excursions are handled via Guest Services so there is always someone you can talk to, and there were never lines to have a conversation other than the one morning  when due to very late arrival into port everything had to be rescheduled (though amazingly the letter of changes was in our room 30 minutes after the problem was announced and all the ships digital displays reflected the changed hours, locations etc. Obviously the beauty of integrated electronics.

 

Another difference is in relation to the Port Talk/Shore Excursion presentations.  On Viking these are not “sales pitches”  Each on happens late afternoon the day before the port.  They are double headed by the Cruise Director (who bookends the presentation with an introduction to the port and concludes with top tips) and the Shore Excursion Manager who clearly knows the detail of everything they are offering.  He covered logistics, number of steps, types of incline and surfaces you would be walking on, times to restroom stops and the likely content of any included meal.  They also as we discovered automatically transfer to the operators all allergy information and require them to act on it accordingly.  So DH had snacks in one included tour specially prepared for him – they were ready.  Whilst the information transfer may currently be challenging for Azamara, the Shore Excursion Team having detailed knowledge of every excursion and sharing it should be readily achievable.  So again Viking is well ahead here.

 

Staff Service

 

So where might Viking be less good – I would say that whilst there are a few employees who are really good at providing service and remembering guests and their preferences, many rely only on their hand held devices and will spend more time looking at them than you.  The technology is great but at times it is limiting the service when it should be the opposite.  The dining room staff are allocated on a section rather than table basis so you will get several people trying to look after you and very rarely do they communicated well.  Our experience, the restaurant manager (Yuri) and head in Manfredi’s (Olivia) were really on top of their game and we could see them nudging staff to get things right.  But it was inconsistent.  

 

Wine service in the main dining room was uncoordinated.  Our preference is to order a change of wine for our main course  which Azamara always copes beautifully with this. It was not a success on Viking.  On several nights early in the cruise we had to chase the second wine, one night it appeared as we had our last bite of our main.  We solved the issue, we asked them to bring both our wines at the start (on the pretence of breathing).  Cracked the problem!! 

 

On the same note, the Captain was pretty invisible though, if I am to base my judgements on our previous Azamara cruise, the hotel director is more visible on Viking.  However even he is not a Heike!  I suppose to sum up if you want a cruise where the officers and staff are to become your best buddies, Viking is not for you.  It is not a factor for us.

 

Technology, Website and Shore Service

 

The wifi worked very well – we experienced no significant outages even in Greenland.  The website worked a treat, my booking as a travel agent reservation but all the time I saw accurate information on My Viking Journey.

 

Our flights were included in the fare, we asked for a price to move up to Business Class and the cost was far less that the published economy to business class difference.  All our flights were on British Airways.  The connection times were good and I had the flight references 60 days before hand where I could manage seats using my airline loyalty.  I also note I earned full loyalty points.  This has never been my experience with Azamara.

 

I had one occasion where I had to call Viking direct, their UK business is handled from an office in London and the call was answered promptly by an extremely knowledgeable well spoken agent – say no more!!

 

Conclusion

 

Will we sail again on Viking?   - absolutely (bookings now in place)

Will we sail again on Azamara – absolutely (bookings now in place)

Who would we book with in the future?  - All depends how our experience is on our next two Azamara cruises, will we book again with them, move away for a small percentage of our cruises or move away for a significant percentage?  

The ball is in Azamara’s court. they have a lot to prove, Viking now has very little to address for us – and with new itineraries coming on for them and the older Azamara ships getting more and more port restricted that is going to play another card into Vikings hand.

 

Lets see – happy to clarify any points…..

[Mackdogmolly]

Thanks for your summary! I suppose you know that the payment terms for US Viking guests are not so attractive!

We are looking forward to our first Viking Ocean cruise next month, following which I will post my own reflections.

[uktog]

Yes I do know the terms are less attractive for UK guests which is why I prefaced that part.

 

I did forget to mention Mamsens as another very good snack venue

Waffles made to order for breakfast (with or without cream, berries and brown cheese)

Beautiful open sandwiches and cakes at lunch together with excellent soup - always pea and one other

and soup and snacks from 10pm if the munchies crept in - we never did the late session but loved having a soup and a sandwich on several lunch days

[royallondon]

uktog, thank you for your detailed and very interesting summary.  We look forward to our first Viking Ocean cruise next May and will be delighted if it affords us a similar on board experience to Azamara.

[Mrs Miggins]

Having completed 4 Viking and many more Azamara I agree with more or less everything in this review.

I would also mention the wonderful free Spa on Viking.  Far far superior to the rather sad offering on Azamara.

However we did really like the mix of Nationalities on Azamara.  On our Viking cruises there were a small handful from the UK, the great majority of the rest were from the US with some Canadians.  Whilst I love both Nationalities, especially the Canadians who seem to be laid back, uncomplaining and good fun, I do like the greater mix I have found on Azamara. 

 

We have not booked on either Viking or Azamara at the moment but I am looking forward to our 4th Scenic river cruise next July.  

 

I would be happy on either when we find an itinerary and a price we like.  A combination of the Viking ships with most of the rest Azamara would be my ideal.

 

[ECCruise]

We've been trying to book Viking for quite a few years, but our self-imposed budget keeps holding us back.

 

No matter where I look for a Viking sailing, I find that I will need to be paying in the range of $800-1000 per day for an entry level verandah.  Some may be a bit less, but the vast majority in that range.  I would then need to add the admittedly small but additional $50 per day for the Silver Spirits package.

 

For kicks and grins, just priced out our 7 booked Azamara sailings through the end of 2025 (which includes a Viking-priced sailing to Iceland/Greenland in 2025) and the average total per day is $480.  Most V1s except 1 V3. That does not include OBCs from either Azamara or my TA, which add up to a fairly considerable amount.  Since we do almost all our touring independently, the included Viking excursions are not a deal mover for us.

 

I am quite certain that we would like Viking, but with pretty similar itineraries, and our loyalty benefits at Azamara (laundry, internet, etc.), we simply cannot justify the $300-500 extra per day that it would entail. And that doesn't even take into account the crazy long period that they have locked in your final payment. 

 

But we will keep trying 🙂

Edited September 15, 2023 by ECCruise

[uktog]

Oops forgot to mention the Spa - it is more extensive and open to all.  It was bliss.

 

 

Our cruise had a good mix of guests, I did not feel it was any different to Azamara.  One effect of Vikings pricing (rare sales, most US guests have committed financially some time ago) was there were no "braggers" about the last minute price they had paid.  On Board Credit was rarely discussed, it does not seem to feature much in the Viking model

 

It would also be fair to highlight they have a very different, very low key approach to recognising loyalty.  However we only met one set of guests who were first timers.  The repeaters event is a relaxed event in an open area and in theory anyone could attend.  The "top cruiser" is recognised by a round of applause only and no "parading out front or gift'  Everyone gets the same repeater discount £100.  There is almost no officers with guests dining.

 

So if recognition of loyalty is important to you, Azamara is the line for you not Viking.

2FA9C4C6-146E-48DE-AA76-937A3388E482.heic

[Jay19]

Thanks for your very interesting review.    We have not considered Viking because of their upfront payment policy, however I was interested in your comment in another thread that you have booked 3 itineraries that Azamara does not do.    Would you mind sharing details of those?   Thanks.

[hamrag]

uktog....interesting, thank you! Methinks you are morphing away from Az,

 

I speculate by this time next year you may be a Viking cheerleader. Now, pre-Heike departure and Sycamore buying Az, who could have foreseen such  seismic change coming! 😂

 

Edited September 15, 2023 by hamrag

[uktog]

21 minutes ago, Jay19 said:

Thanks for your very interesting review.    We have not considered Viking because of their upfront payment policy, however I was interested in your comment in another thread that you have booked 3 itineraries that Azamara does not do.    Would you mind sharing details of those?   Thanks.

The three are the two we’ve now done

In Search of the Northern Lights (March 2022)

This itinerary - Azamara is starting that in 2025 we booked in 2022 when they were still not offering it

Our next one is LA-LA round trip via Hawaiian and Polynesian islands.  Azamara only do a one way which doesn’t work for us

 

 

[uktog]

2 minutes ago, hamrag said:

uktog....interesting, thank you! Methinks you are morphing away from Az,

 

I speculate by this time next year you may be a Viking cheerleader. Now, pre-Heike departure and Sycamore buying Az, who could have foreseen such  seismic change coming! 😂

 

Nothing to do with any of that. Not morphing just struggling after recent experience. We are also trying other lines and types of sailing

[Jay19]

54 minutes ago, uktog said:

The three are the two we’ve now done

In Search of the Northern Lights (March 2022)

This itinerary - Azamara is starting that in 2025 we booked in 2022 when they were still not offering it

Our next one is LA-LA round trip via Hawaiian and Polynesian islands.  Azamara only do a one way which doesn’t work for us

 

 

Thank you.    We booked the Azamara 2025 one as soon as it came out, something a little different.   We did the Hawaii one years ago before we discovered small ship cruising, very enjoyable apart from so many sea days which we struggle with.    You'll never find us on a TA that's for sure!   😄   Hope you have a great time and thanks again for your reply!

[Werangels]

Thank you.  I found your summary very interesting.  
 

Of the included wines, you mentioned 40 which I think was the silver package.  What champagnes does this include and does it include Whispering Angel?  Such a shame that the drinks upgrade requires both to participate.  It appears very unfair when one drinks and one does not.

[uktog]

47 minutes ago, Werangels said:

Thank you.  I found your summary very interesting.  
 

Of the included wines, you mentioned 40 which I think was the silver package.  What champagnes does this include and does it include Whispering Angel?  Such a shame that the drinks upgrade requires both to participate.  It appears very unfair when one drinks and one does not.

The champagne was Jacquard Brut - ok not top drawer but fine

The rose was either a French Grenache wine from Provence which blind taste to the angel I am not sure you would spot who was who or a Spanish rioja based rose Marquis di Rascale (sp)  Both were very enjoyable

I did hear onboard a guest had brought a medical letter explaining she could not drink and they did allow the husband to buy a single package.  Not sure if this is the start of a move to single buyers being allowed

[Rabbit27]

Have been on two Viking cruises 2018 and 2022 and love there ship everything about the company😊 our last cruise we got a free upgrade as our trip was postponed from Covid which was very nice especially will the long flight from Sydney.

We are on Azamara next month October 17 nights on the Journey doing Trade Routes have watched all the you tubes trade route and we are looking forward to this itinerary.

Azamara prices have increased sense we booked in 2022 so we got a good deal unfortunately are $ doesn’t 🥂

Happy to answer any questions 😊

[Grandma Cruising]

Thanks uktog for such informative and interesting posts. Certainly food for thought.

[fruitmachine]

23 hours ago, uktog said:

We went for the additional Silver Package which costs $25 each per day, both have to have it and you cannot buy it for part of the cruise. 

Thanks for a great comparative review. 

Is the $25 pp/pd plus a gratuity, or all-in?

[Mackdogmolly]

54 minutes ago, fruitmachine said:

Is the $25 pp/pd plus a gratuity, or all-in?

It includes gratuity 

[takemewithyou]

@uktog, I am happy you enjoyed your cruise with Viking

Unfortunately, our experience, as you remember since I posted my review here, was not as good as yours.  All cruise lines have their good and bad points and unfortunately none are perfect and the products keep evolving post Covid.
 

But we keep searching……😀

[Mrs Miggins]

Interested to see the reaction on the Viking board but cannot see the review.  Perhaps not posted yet.

[uktog]

1 hour ago, Mrs Miggins said:

Interested to see the reaction on the Viking board but cannot see the review.  Perhaps not posted yet.

It is posted as the final section of the Almost Live from thread

[Carnevale]

Many thanks uktog for this review. All the things you noted as points in favour of Viking underscored areas were we felt Azamara really missed the mark. We have yet to try Viking ocean but as you specifically note these areas as positives over Azamara we are encouraged to give Viking ocean a try. We have sailed Viking river and see some similarities in our experience there with your experience at sea. Our next cruises are booked on Princess and Cunard both of which we have sailed before and which, for us, are lines we have found to be much better than Azamara.  We realize there are a broad range of tastes and opinions when it comes to cruising and are grateful there are different lines with different types of offerings. It’s important to us to hear different opinions and, based on having read many other things you have posted, I feel confident accepting your observations so again, many thanks!

[oddjob16]

The main demographic target for Viking is retired americans and they don't even sell the cruises here in Scandinavia. I doubt very much if we would ever be tempted to do one of their cruises. On our last Azamara cruise there were 36 different nationalities among the passengers. Wouldn't have it any other way.

[uktog]

1 hour ago, oddjob16 said:

The main demographic target for Viking is retired americans and they don't even sell the cruises here in Scandinavia. I doubt very much if we would ever be tempted to do one of their cruises. On our last Azamara cruise there were 36 different nationalities among the passengers. Wouldn't have it any other way.

I can see the attraction of that. I’m intrigued though because we met Swedes, Norwegian, Finns and lots of European guests (and Kiwis and Aussies) so it looks like some Scandinavians take the risk of booking by other routes. 
They do not publish or share the country or age profile  by passenger, which, of course is always interesting. However, I have to say it was an extremely cosmopolitan mixed group of passengers on a cruise, not unlike an Azamara mix.  .
The one thing we did notice different, was there very very few people who openly indicated they were connected with the Travel trade or were picking up interline rates. which makes me wonder again about a different policy .  
Likewise, because of the early payment requirements for the USA and Canada there seem to be very few if any last-minute bookers and certainly no one even hinted they were on the cruise because they “got a good late deal”. People were very much there because it was a journey they wanted to do a lot of people were back to back going on from Iceland to Barcelona on the current voyage, which did look an attractive combination