Viking Legend

[no fuss travel]

Bob Glad you took my advice about sitting close to the galley. Seta and Joesf were incredible and made our dinners fantastic. They also made sure that I was aware of anything that had nuts in it so that I did not have to worry about my allergy.

Viking does need to listen to its passengers and after the service and attention we received in China while on their ship we were very disappointed with the European river cruise. They have a long way to go to match the service Viking provides in China.

[library lurker]

We were on the Legend from Budapest to Amsterdam July 19th. Agree that the cities and tours were generally well done and interesting. I believe I was prepared for some of the rigors from earlier posts about this itinerary. But, I agree that Viking should be more explicit about the obstacles for the less-fit. We too missed the Observation Deck much more than I would have expected. In terms of food--it was okay, just became sort of predictable after a while. My biggest issue with the cruise was the staff. I felt that they were definitely too few in number and everyone seemed to have too many things to do. But, I also found that many of them had unpleasant or snide attitudes that didn't make things any easier. A few were openly sarcastic and engaged in a lot of making faces and eye-rolling! The personnel on the China trip last year were simply amazing! So, this was a let-down, to be sure, and one that could be eliminated with more training. Overall, I will still recommend Viking but will be more cautious about a brand new vessel!

[ddean52]

many of them had unpleasant or snide attitudes that didn't make things any easier. A few were openly sarcastic and engaged in a lot of making faces and eye-rolling! [/u][/b][/b][/color][/b]The personnel on the China trip last year were simply amazing!

 

Yes!!! from everything i heard, it seems the china experience is totally different from the euro river experience!!!! you have to ask why is it?? as in any business it starts at the top with upper management then to middle and lower management down to supervisors..etc.

if there is a euro devision in viking then the whole devision needs a major shake up with the head of that devision being sacked. there is no excuse for the product being sold for the euro cruises!! why would a company not want repeat business?? on our cruise there was a small reception for previous viking passengers, there were maybe 2 or 3 people there-which is just as well because aside from a free drink there was nothing compelling served!

viking could learn a few things from royal carib. about throwing a party for loyal repeat business! not that rcl is perfect by any means but they do a lot of things in the ok to good range!

and the rolling of eyes by the staff of legend was hard for me to believe! also, while the sun deck was out of service they could be found on the deck of the library smoking and using cell phones!! many of the staff (not all ) acted like working on legened was beneath them! we are seasoned travelers, however, the viking experience was one we shall not forget-which is the only way it could be memorable!LOL

Dean

[library lurker]

The China trip is extraordinary, though hectic, hectic. On the river, the service was just wonderful. We were not a full boat, however, so perhaps that made a difference. There were a lot of folks at the returning passenger reception and it was nice, not exciting. Many of the other passengers are ocean-cruisers and found the amenities lacking. But, you can't offer choices for 200 passengers that you can offer a thousand or more. Our CD and the shore escorts were mostly nice. We are just going to say it was overall a wonderful trip and many of the downsides were probably new-ness.

[bbsiming]

The CD on our cruise (Aug 30 to Budapest) was a young guy named Markus Graf. I believe he was a stand-in because his picture was not on the wall with the other staff members. One day I asked him a question about the boat and his response was that he was not allowed to talk to me about it. This struck me as being odd but now, given what I know about some of the previous sailings, I am beginning to understand.

 

This also jibes with the reports from the first sailing that the crew refused to acknowledge any issues or problems with the boat.

 

They won't stay in business long with that attitude.

 

Bob

[ddean52]

yes he came on during the last few days of out cruise. short with facial hair. i asked him what his background for c.d. job was. he told me he sometimes gave tours on ship excursions. i asked him if more experience wasn't necessary to be a c.d. on legend and he just shrugged his shoulders and smiled! at some point he alienated some pax (not sure of the whole story). another time as we docked to be bus loaded yet again for the 1 hr drive to Amsterdam i saw him searching the grass for a viking cell phone-very funny......not!!!!

[jacksonnh]

Hi Dean,

I do hope you copy all your posts and send them to Viking!

[ddean52]

Hi! I emailed viking a list of all points about which i have posted here. I have total faith in the fact that I will not hear a single word from them! What can they say? What can they do? The upper management of viking are either aloof, indifferent or incompetent. Im sure they have some god people in high places over there, however remaining silent makes the good ones equally as culpable

as the bad ones. LOL how do i know what is going on in their board rooms! this is all from my perspective!!

Dean

[bbsiming]

You would think they would be savvy enough to read these blogs without being prompted - but I don't think they care.

 

Bob

[ddean52]

Bob,

i agree. dont know what else to say. i know i would read these blogs if i were in their position!! maybe they do maybe they dont. it is my impression that they are stupidly smug. they will lose my china booking and if i feel this way then many others do as well! thank good for competition and other vendors!

[jacksonnh]

Dean - entirely up to you but I don't put much faith in general email boxes. Reminds me of a big black hole. Perhaps taking the time and writing a letter hi-lighting your complaints and feelings and sending it to the President of Viking would be the way to go. Not that a response would put them back in your good graces but at least it would or would not reinforce your feelings about how they operate. Besides, this way its' got a better chance of getting to the man in charge.

Just a thought!

Dave

[ddean52]

Dave,

I guess great minds travel the same course! <S> as we speak i am writing that letter to the C.O.!

Dean

[no fuss travel]

Interesting that another CD was brought in. Ours was so memorable I don't even remember his name. I felt he was not prepared for the job and was forced to cover up for the ship problems. I realize that the economy is bad but if you want to keep your customers coming back you have to give good service. As previous posters have stated the difference between Viking China and Viking Europe is humongous. There is no comparison with one being at the top and the other at the bottom. Maybe it is part of the culture differences, I don't know but I was not impressed. I loved the ports and found the tour guides there very good but we managed to luck out and get good ones at each port. Viking needs to have the CD let people know with disabilities what problems they will encounter at each port and possibly design a tour that will work for them. It would be possible in most of the ports to have a tour that people with walking difficulties could enjoy if Viking made the extra effort. I did notice on other Viking boats that they did have help for getting people with problems walking stairs to change levels with a stair chair

[ddean52]

No Fuss,

his name was......mal........something. He reminded us of a young Peter Sellers! Nice guy......but nice guy means little...in business. As you put it so well "he was green" when we should have had savvy!

Just one flaw of many! <SS>

Dean

[ddean52]

and why would you place such a young, green C.D. in your "best" and newest ship??

[bbsiming]

Once he learned of our plight, Markus did go out of his way to inform us which tour would not be appropriate for people with mobility problems, but that turned out to be just about every tour.

 

They did attempt to run "light walking" tours but that essentially meant riding the bus directly to the pick up point and spending the guided tour time on your own. It was an attempt to provide some shore opportunities for handicapped but it did nothing to eliminate the nature of most of the cities on the tour with their cobblestone streets, lack of sidwalks and ramps, and stairs.

 

Also, because of the way the boat was docked on many days, handicapped people stood little chance of making it off the boat. When they did get off, it was the fellow passengers that pitched in and helped get us on and off the bus.

 

We never should have been on the cruise to begin with and the Viking salespeople didn't warn us.

 

I'm in the process of writing my letter to the Viking brass but I'm waiting until I am calm enough about it so that I don't come off like a whiner or a screamer. I also have it in my mind to let Conde Nast know that their awards and reviews are meaningless. I will never trust them again either.

 

Bob

[library lurker]

Just to reiterate--the China trip was 1st class all the way. Great hotels, wonderful service, sights not to be missed. Just really really busy and very physically and mentally active. Well, that was last year, anyway. I am pretty sure they read this stuff but I don't know why they don't respond. If not on this forum, then elsewhere. We KNOW they have our addresses, don't we? LOL

[no fuss travel]

We tried to get the CD to let people with walking difficulties how difficult the terrain was but he would not say a word. Maybe it is a company policy that needs to be changed.

[ddean52]

We tried to get the CD to let people with walking difficulties how difficult the terrain was but he would not say a word. Maybe it is a company policy that needs to be changed.

 

No Fuss

LOLLLLL one, of many polices that are in need of reconsideration!

[bbsiming]

We tried to get the CD to let people with walking difficulties how difficult the terrain was but he would not say a word. Maybe it is a company policy that needs to be changed.

 

Markus was a little more forthright but we seemed to have a conspiracy against us. On the days that we were docked close enough to town that we might have had a chance to step ashore and get some of the local color it either rained or they had the boats docked so that we couldn't get off the boat. The same goes for the days when he had arranged an "easy walking" tour. On some days he just came out and told us not to attempt it.

 

One exception was the day in Vienna where we took a cab to the Duomo and did some sightseeing and shopping.

 

Bob

[jcrandle]

And now let me pass on some advice. I cannot think of a simpler way to put this so I will just put it out there. If you or anyone in your party is not physically fit, and by that I mean able to climb up and down two flights of stairs and then walk at least a mile on uneven surfaces in a 30 minute period, do not book this cruise! If you are not fit as I described above and are booked on the cruise you need to decide if you are willing to forego most, if not all, of the shore excursions and stay on the boat or cancel your booking now. As I mentioned above, the Viking boats are not suited for persons with disabilities but in fairness neither is most of the areas in Europe that you will be touring. Streets and sidewalks (when they exist) are very uneven and the terrain is hilly. There are no ramps at crosswalks. There are no ramps to access many buildings. Most of the tours involve climbing stairs and negotiating narrow alleys and corridors. I spent a good part of the time leading up to the sailing date trying to determine how to provide two of my companions with wheelchairs while on the cruise. Not only were the Viking personnel in California of no assistance but they would have better served me, my companions, and their own company if they had done all they could to dissuade us from booking the cruise. We ended up using a wheelchair and a walker that we carried over ourselves but one of our companions could not participate in any of the shore excursions except one and the other was able to participate partially in two of the excursions. I can’t tell you how bad this made them feel and frankly, since the cruise is all-inclusive, we subsidized those people who were able to take the tours.

 

With all due respect, it is wrong to state that no Viking ships have elevators. If you go to the Viking website you will find that some of the ships have traditional elevators, and some others have the staircase elevators (chairs that transport one person up a flight of stairs). It is fair to remind passengers that ADA laws are not universal, and even in the US, one can't assume that accessibility is guaranteed, since the ADA doesn't require construction to accomodate unless significant changes are being made to the facility.

 

One of the most difficult venues for the disabled that we have seen is China. The Viking Centruy Sun and its sister ship have elevator access to all decks. That said, the infrastucture in China for shore transport is years behind the USA. Once you are off the ship, there are often steps to navigate. Most buildings have a high threshold, due to the tradition that a high threshold keeps the "luck" from running out of the house.

 

We had several wheelchair travelers on our China trip. Both the Viking staff and our fellow cruisers made every effort to accommodate them. While there were some shore excursions that they had to adjust to, I believe that they were all able to enjoy their experience.

 

It is reasonable for those with disabilities to do additional research with the cruise line to ensure that any problems can be sufficiently addressed.

[Little Toot2]

In the past my wife and I always simply booked a flight, rented a car, and wandered wherever we wanted to when we traveled in Europe. I booked this trip because my wife is now disabled and cannot get around without a walker. I figured the idea of unpacking only once and letting the boat bring us from place to place was a good strategy. In fact, it wasn’t. I feel that Viking should have been more forthcoming when I explained my reason for choosing their cruise and when I inquired about accommodations for handicapped people.

 

We also met some wonderful people but unfortunately we did not get to sample much of the local color because we couldn't get off the boat in many places. When we did get off the boat it was with the assistance of the other passengers who helped the four members of our party with the walker and the wheelchair.

 

I'm trying to put a positive 'spin' on it but essentially our trip was a 'bust'. I just want to warn others who may be in the same situation we are in.

 

Bob

 

Bob, while I am truly sorry that your Viking cruise experience turned out to be "a 'bust", I'm a bit puzzled by the fact that you failed to recognize some the logistics involved as you state that you have been to Europe previously.... Certainly you must have recalled uneven steps, few elevators, cobblestone walkways, crowded tourist filled streets, etc.

 

Perhaps I'm misreading your post and your frustration lies solely with Viking as you feel that they should have done more to accommodate your group's individual needs both on the ship itself as well as while disembarking at various ports. I would agree that Viking's website fails to address a level of recommended passenger fitness and I would guess that you may be able to persuade the parent company to include such recommendations in future postings.

 

Just FYI, a quick check of cruise offerings on the Elderhostel Adventures Afloat website included the following fitness recommendations for comparable European riverboat cruise offerings: Activity Level 4 -Participants must be able to climb a few flights of stairs and walk on uneven surfaces up to two miles at a 2.0 mph pace over the course of the day. In addition, participants must be able to handle their own luggage, climb a few flights of stairs and walk on uneven surfaces from three blocks up to one mile at a 2.0 mph pace over the course of the day. (Program Activity Level 3) Also, participants must be able to handle their own luggage, climb a few stairs, stand for up to an hour, get on and off a motor coach easily and walk a few blocks indoors or out. (Program Activity Level 2) Participants must be able to handle their own luggage, climb a few stairs and get from sleeping accommodations to classrooms and dining rooms. (Program Activity Level 1) LT

[bbsiming]

With all due respect, it is wrong to state that no Viking ships have elevators. If you go to the Viking website you will find that some of the ships have traditional elevators, and some others have the staircase elevators (chairs that transport one person up a flight of stairs). It is fair to remind passengers that ADA laws are not universal, and even in the US, one can't assume that accessibility is guaranteed, since the ADA doesn't require construction to accomodate unless significant changes are being made to the facility.

 

One of the most difficult venues for the disabled that we have seen is China. The Viking Centruy Sun and its sister ship have elevator access to all decks. That said, the infrastucture in China for shore transport is years behind the USA. Once you are off the ship, there are often steps to navigate. Most buildings have a high threshold, due to the tradition that a high threshold keeps the "luck" from running out of the house.

 

We had several wheelchair travelers on our China trip. Both the Viking staff and our fellow cruisers made every effort to accommodate them. While there were some shore excursions that they had to adjust to, I believe that they were all able to enjoy their experience.

 

It is reasonable for those with disabilities to do additional research with the cruise line to ensure that any problems can be sufficiently addressed.

 

I was talking specifically about the Great European tour (and the European tours in general). I did see the chairlift on the Viking Danube that was on one flight of stairs as I made my way up two flights of stairs, across a gangplank, across a multi-level sun deck, down a short flight of stairs, and then down two additional flights of stairs to get to shore.

 

My issue is with the personnel at Viking River Cruises because, as I was doing my "additional research", I was led to believe that even if the members of my party could not participate in the guided tours we could get them ashore and fend for ourselves. The fact was that in many cases we had no hope of getting them ashore. I am quite aware of the surface conditions in the centers of the old cities of Europe and was willing to take my chances navigating on shore but in many cases we couldn't get there. In one case the Viking salesperson even discussed with me the possibility of using a motorized scooter! He suggested it wouldn't be good for the bus tours but it would be useful on shore. He even sent me a Viking policy on motorized scooters.

 

Defend Viking if you will but I feel they were not honest with me in the way they represented the appropriateness of their boats and itinerary for people with mobility problems.

 

Bob

[bbsiming]

Perhaps I'm misreading your post and your frustration lies solely with Viking as you feel that they should have done more to accommodate your group's individual needs both on the ship itself as well as while disembarking at various ports. I would agree that Viking's website fails to address a level of recommended passenger fitness and I would guess that you may be able to persuade the parent company to include such recommendations in future postings.

 

Just FYI, a quick check of cruise offerings on the Elderhostel Adventures Afloat website included the following fitness recommendations for comparable European riverboat cruise offerings: Activity Level 4 -Participants must be able to climb a few flights of stairs and walk on uneven surfaces up to two miles at a 2.0 mph pace over the course of the day. In addition, participants must be able to handle their own luggage, climb a few flights of stairs and walk on uneven surfaces from three blocks up to one mile at a 2.0 mph pace over the course of the day. (Program Activity Level 3) Also, participants must be able to handle their own luggage, climb a few stairs, stand for up to an hour, get on and off a motor coach easily and walk a few blocks indoors or out. (Program Activity Level 2) Participants must be able to handle their own luggage, climb a few stairs and get from sleeping accommodations to classrooms and dining rooms. (Program Activity Level 1) LT

 

I'm dissatisfied with the level of support provided by the personnel on the boat but I am more upset with the fact that we were there in the first place. My recommendation is that the moment a potential customer begins to talk about mobility issues or wheelchairs or motorized scooters (such as I did) that the salesperson do all they can to paint a realistic picture of what is entailed for a person with these issues on these cruises. It appears that the boats used in China may be more appropriate for people with mobility problems but the boats on the European rivers certainly are not. And the way they must dock the boats in Europe makes it impossible to get ashore in some places.

 

I didn't expect the crew and the fellow passengers to do a 'fireman's carry' to get my friends to shore and to lug their equipment for us. I just wish the salesperson hed been more forthright and we could have avoided the issue altogether. I probably would have rented a very large van and made it a road trip.

 

The Elderhostel Adventures Afloat information is precisely what I would have liked to see but we were not on a Elderhostel Adventures Afloat tour. Viking offers no such information. All they say is that a physically handicapped person must be accompanied by a physically fit person and a wheelchair must be collapsable to be broughr aboard.

 

Bob

[no fuss travel]

Viking office, are your reading this? We are giving you good advice on how to improve your ships and not lose return passengers.

As far as the food goes, it depends on the individual on how you view it. We found the food to be quite tasty, but then maybe we are not as fussy as some others. I have found even on the large ocean liners that the quality of food has slipped considerably from what it used to be. I found the Viking chef to be very accommodating with my nut allergy and he would make the dessert dish for me without nuts so that I could eat it.