feeling better about my choice of Viking...

After all of the negative comments about Viking the last few days, I was beginning to second guess my choice for a Rhine cruise next May on the new Viking Longship Gullveig.

One of the main reasons I chose Viking, was because of the beautiful new fleet of Longships.

I met a long time friend today who just came back from the Budapest/Vienna/Prague Tauck River Cruise during the nightmare scenario of the flooding.

She said that many were VERY upset about the compensations offered, and many of the passengers were also strung along and told things were fine although they weren't. Sounded like a similar story as what I have been hearing about Viking, with MANY very unhappy cruisers who felt they were treated unfairly.

She had upgraded to what Tauck called a Jr. Suite, which was 185 ft., since the standard cabin is 150 q. ft. She said the 185 (actually 183 on the site) was very comfortable, with a French veranda. I checked on their site to make sure she had that right and she did. I just checked the Viking site, and my A class veranda cabin (not French) is 205 sq.feet, a full 25% bigger than their standard cabins.

In all fairness, she did say the service and tours were outstanding on Tauck, and when stuck in Budapest (or maybe Prague, I can't remember) because of the flooding they put them up at the Ritz-Carlton. I doubt if Viking would or could do that!:rolleyes:

What happened to all of the passengers on all of the lines during that terrible flood last month was horrible, but it sounds like Viking was not alone in their poor decisions during that period. We all have to remember that it was hopefully a once in a lifetime occurrence and hope all of the RC lines learned some valuable lessons on how to handle what nature throws at them.

But keeping my fingers crossed, it sounds like my decision to go with a brand new improved ship on Viking may be the right decision for my husband and I after all.

Robin

I was on Viking during the worst of the flooding, June 2nd to June 17. The trip sucked in many ways due to that and I would have cancelled if I had been given any warning.

Once stuck in the situation, I can't fault Viking for any of my woes. The busses were inevitable. The Hotels and mass Meals were as well.

During this period, I didn't move baggage, I didn't see a food or hotel bill, I didn't pay for fancier tours, but got them and Viking covered my significant room bill at the end. When possible, a Ship stayed tied up and was used as a Restaurant/Hotel, a good one.

The Cruise Director was with us the whole way. He had the tough job, acting as the Messenger between the grumbling passengers and the Viking Management. I believe he acted more as a passenger advocate than a corporate dweeb and I was impressed by how he handled the situation.

At our second Hotel stop, Viking offered up a generous credit towards a future cruise. Life got better for the CD after that.

When on the ship, operating normally, I really enjoyed it. The new Longships are pretty cool. The Wireless can be a bit hap-hazard in the cabins, but works fine in the nice lounge and the meals were fantastic.

If I ultimately do another cruise, I'd happily use Viking again.

I am so happy to see your post. I was hoping that eventually I would start to see some positive remarks and reviews about Viking. We too have reserved our first river cruise with Viking (doing the Cities of Light in June 2014) and I was beginning to think that we had made the wrong choice with cruise companies. While I have not posted very often, I am a frequent reader of the posts on CC. They have been a tremendous resource to help educate and plan my past ocean cruises and now to learn more about river cruising. I have tried to keep an open mind knowing that everyone has an opinion good or bad but it was getting to be a bit overwhelming with the “Viking bashing”. As other posters have noted, hopefully all cruise companies learned some valuable lessons.

I've been thinking about this for awhile now. Even before the flooding. There are cheerleaders for every river cruise line and ocean liners.

I truly feel that it's so easy to bash a line that you haven't cruised with to make you feel good about your decision with another company. I feel those posts that start out with I've never cruised with XXXX but they are bad makes me question why they feel the need to pop in with a discussion they no nothing about. Just hear say at that point. People tend to complain rather than praise and that is never taken into consideration here.

From what I have read, other lines had issues as well. It was a flood, a disaster caused by mother nature. No river cruise line could plan for it. Try making hotel reservations, restaurant reservations for a few thousand guests that were affected by ALL the lines. Top that with finding busses to transport that many people as well. It wasn't easy and by no means would I want that job. They did the best they could with the little bit of time they had to plan. I read complaints that people were not kept up with everything but perhaps the cruise line hadn't worked out all the logistics for all the ships.

It's great to love the company you chose and stick by it but don't bash another line because it wasn't your choice. The world is better with choices. We are not all cut out of the same cloth. I will respect your decision and I hope you respect mine. I am cruising with Viking and look forward to it.

This post is not aimed at anyone on this thread.

Thanks for hearing me out.

Well said JiminyC_fan!

I, too, am the type of person who tries to give the benefit of the doubt. As Jimmy said, all the lines were in the same situation, and I doubt they had a lot of advance warning. From what I have seen the rivers rose quite rapidly. I would have hated to be in the river cruise business at that time. All the passengers were greatly inconvenienced and I believe the lines did the best they could under the circumstances. They spent a ton of money to make accommodations for their passengers and still gave future cruise credits. I will be sailing the Amsterdam to Budapest tour next June. i certainly hope there isn't another flood or lock strike, but I will make the best of the trip whatever happens and trust Viking to do their best as well.

It's great to love the company you chose and stick by it but don't bash another line because it wasn't your choice. The world is better with choices. We are not all cut out of the same cloth. I will respect your decision and I hope you respect mine. I am cruising with Viking and look forward to it.

 

This post is not aimed at anyone on this thread.

 

Thanks for hearing me out.

I did my first cruise with Viking in April - and plan on cruising with them again. DH and I have also traveled with AMA, Scenic and Uniworld --> our 1st with Avalon is next year.

Many people find a company they enjoy - and stick with it. But it isn't helpful when people post " 'X' company is the best, and I'm not changing" --> without indicating *why* they feel it is the best.... for them. We can then take their comments/reasonings - and decide for ourselves if that rationale works in our travel plans.

For me, I look at itinerary, then dates, then cost. And, I must be honest - I find it hard to turn down a sale!!! :D I don't like (or agree with) Viking's never ending 2-for-1 sale - but I take it for what it is, and take the bottom line into account before making my decision.

I am sure that you will have a great time on your cruise --> it seems as if you have a "make lemonade" travel approach that will stand you in good stead for many years to come!!!

Fran

Fran, you sound like the kind of travelers that my husband and myself are. We do make lemonade out of lemons.

Stuck on the Rhine

June 5, 2013

Well our trip has turned out to be a disaster. We had a great time in Amsterdam, after that it went south. High water on the Rhine has prevented us from going any further south than Cologne. We have been here for two days. After a tour of a cathedral in the city which was great and a made up tour of a castle we sit in a basin off of the Rhine River looking at oil tanks and rusted railroad cars. Cologne was bombed out during World War II so I don't consider it anything special. All new buildings built after 1945. Tonight Viking has informed us that we will go down the river a few more miles then we will be transferred to another ship which cannot proceed any further north. Oh boy, just what I wanted, a bus ride along a highway in Germany.

We saw a castle today. Two hours to it and one hour and forty five minutes of pure hell for me on the return trip. Could you please turn down the air, Lisa my wife called out to the driver, my husband is sweating, some relief, not much though. Sitting there and now starting to fume over not having any control over my comfort I finally lit a match to my slow burning fuse. Another person spoke out......”could you please turn down the air”. I'm thinking, as I mop my head, maybe he just doesn't understand English. I remember the tour guide, a young Mexican fellow who spoke English, appeared to understand me when I approached him before we got on the bus for the return trip. I think this was clear. “Tell the driver to turn down the AC”.

We arrive at the parking lot in front of our ship and surrounded by a waste land of oil tanks. It reminds me of the Houston, TX ship channel.

We disembark from the bus and I proceeded to the Mexican tour guide. Who had no idea that my fuse had finally hit its end and I unloaded on him. I was tired of not being informed of what was going on nor would I sit on a bus tomorrow, estimated time of four hours, and sweat. I huffed off as my dear Lisa was there to hand out band aids to the guide who had just had his butt chewed. Off to the gang way to be greeted by the Captain who was there with a smile, as I walked past him looking for my next victim. With the hotel manager in my sights, she is the one who reads the prepared statements from Viking corporate head quarters every night, with a smile on her face, explaining that this flood is a 500 year event. Europe has better weather forecasters than we do. We can even predict the rise and fall of the Mississippi River above New Orleans. So I don't buy it when she tells me Viking didn't know this would happen. In my opinion Viking knew there would be a problem before we left Amsterdam. I told the hotel manager what I expected to hear in the nightly briefings. I left heading down the hall to our room. Lisa lingered and probably repaired the damage.

The food has been good, but not great. The red wine, house wine from Austria, is about a 3 on a scale of 10. None of us want to drink it and it is free.

I'll keep you informed.

Stranded

Stuck on the Rhine

June 5, 2013

Well our trip has turned out to be a disaster. We had a great time in Amsterdam, after that it went south. High water on the Rhine has prevented us from going any further south than Cologne. We have been here for two days. After a tour of a cathedral in the city which was great and a made up tour of a castle we sit in a basin off of the Rhine River looking at oil tanks and rusted railroad cars. Cologne was bombed out during World War II so I don't consider it anything special. All new buildings built after 1945. Tonight Viking has informed us that we will go down the river a few more miles then we will be transferred to another ship which cannot proceed any further north. Oh boy, just what I wanted, a bus ride along a highway in Germany.

We saw a castle today. Two hours to it and one hour and forty five minutes of pure hell for me on the return trip. Could you please turn down the air, Lisa my wife called out to the driver, my husband is sweating, some relief, not much though. Sitting there and now starting to fume over not having any control over my comfort I finally lit a match to my slow burning fuse. Another person spoke out......”could you please turn down the air”. I'm thinking, as I mop my head, maybe he just doesn't understand English. I remember the tour guide, a young Mexican fellow who spoke English, appeared to understand me when I approached him before we got on the bus for the return trip. I think this was clear. “Tell the driver to turn down the AC”.

We arrive at the parking lot in front of our ship and surrounded by a waste land of oil tanks. It reminds me of the Houston, TX ship channel.

We disembark from the bus and I proceeded to the Mexican tour guide. Who had no idea that my fuse had finally hit its end and I unloaded on him. I was tired of not being informed of what was going on nor would I sit on a bus tomorrow, estimated time of four hours, and sweat. I huffed off as my dear Lisa was there to hand out band aids to the guide who had just had his butt chewed. Off to the gang way to be greeted by the Captain who was there with a smile, as I walked past him looking for my next victim. With the hotel manager in my sights, she is the one who reads the prepared statements from Viking corporate head quarters every night, with a smile on her face, explaining that this flood is a 500 year event. Europe has better weather forecasters than we do. We can even predict the rise and fall of the Mississippi River above New Orleans. So I don't buy it when she tells me Viking didn't know this would happen. In my opinion Viking knew there would be a problem before we left Amsterdam. I told the hotel manager what I expected to hear in the nightly briefings. I left heading down the hall to our room. Lisa lingered and probably repaired the damage.

The food has been good, but not great. The red wine, house wine from Austria, is about a 3 on a scale of 10. None of us want to drink it and it is free.

I'll keep you informed.

Stranded

Stuck on the Rhine Part II

June 8, 2013

Well, we did make it a little further south on the River Rhine to a city that

has a large statue of William the First. We will leave the Viking Sun and travel via bus to Heidelberg and then on to our new ship, the Viking Helvetia II on the Rhine River at Kehl. We will be able to get back on schedule and have a tour and time for ourselves in Strasbourg, France so far my favorite city.

Our nightly briefing is still the same just enough info to keep you in the dark. We leave here tonight and will dock at Breisach, Germany which is a scheduled stop. We elected not to go see the Black Forest. Lisa and I were not interested in another bus ride.

When we arrived at our new ship after a long bus ride and sight-seeing in

Heidelberg. We were greeted by the new crew holding up a sign which read “WELCOME BOARDA”. It was corrected as we walked up the gang plank. I noticed that it felt like we had entered the botanical garden in Denver. You could cut the heat and humidity with a knife. I thought it is hot because they have had the door open in order to greet their paying customers. I was wrong. This ship is the sister of the last ship so our cabin is the same. As I walk down the hall toward our cabin the temperature increased every step of the way. I turn right into our cabin number 216. I feel myself looking for a match in my shorts pocket, in case I have to light my fuse again. IT'S HOT! Houston hot as in August and that is why we live in Colorado. I turn toward the AC control box to check to see if it is working. Guess what? It is on and you guessed it, only hot air is coming out.

As most of you are aware I don't sleep well at night anyway so this going to be unbearable. I strike the match which was hiding in my pocket. I take a deep breath and put the match to my slow burning fuse. I'm off to the front desk only to he joined by a number of other guest standing around and individually asking about the AC. The reply was pleasant and in a soft voice by the young woman behind the counter, but the answer was puzzling. Because the "ship hasn't moved for the last three days that is why the AC isn't working". I think back to the days when I worked in HVAC (heating ventilation air conditioning) business. If you need to circulate more water through the condenser Viking should have rented a pump. So the system works fine in the lounge, where they could harvest more of our money. Who would stay in a hot room? At this point I don't put anything past Viking. I snuff out the fuse and head back to the room hoping it is cooler, it’s not.

We are off to dinner. I know we will have a cooler room when we return. Dinner is the same, beautiful presentation, but nothing to write home about. Lisa and I are pretty good cooks and are disappointed. At these prices we thought we would be wowed.

We return to a hot room, too tired to do anything about it. I open the window, it is cooler outside and decide to leave it open.

I'm losing track of my days. Our dinner last night, the second night on this

Ship was another experience. It took an hour for the entree to show up after the salad. I guess you could call this poor service. While waiting, the table next to us was having the same problem. I walked over and announced that I was going to KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) and got three orders. If we were out for dinner we would have simply gotten up and left. Lisa ordered French onion soup. She was disappointed that there wasn't any onion or cheese in it. When the wait staff asked if she enjoyed her soup she said she didn't. "There wasn't any onion or cheese in the soup". She was informed she should have ordered it that way. OK, maybe it is how things are over here. Let me see if I understand. You order French onion soup and you must request onion and cheese.

Before the dinner we had another briefing. This ship would not go any further

south on the Rhine River. We would be bused to Basel, Switzerland in order to make our train connection. That is par for the course. The program director asked that like everyone fill out a survey; I almost laughed.

I overheard a crew member telling a fellow passenger that they would have another group arrive the day that we leave. This confirmed my belief that Viking knew we wouldn't go far down the Rhine nor would the new group sail up the Rhine. Once on, Viking has you. If given the option I would have taken the full credit in cash.

Stranded

Stuck on the Rhine Part III

June 9, 2013

Our last night on the Rhine, relief is in sight. It's a big night, The Captains Dinner. We have brought a set of clothes that are dressy casual. We decide to skip the briefing and Captains toast. We opened a bottle of Alsace white wine and a bottle of Pinot Noir in our room and enjoy a glass or two with our dear friends before heading to the dining room. We notice it is getting a little warmer in our room. Nothing unusual, but I hope it is only because I'm wearing a silk shirt. We head off and are surprised to see a number of other passengers who had the same idea and skipped the toast.

We sit at a 6 top table and are served promptly. We still think the wine will be better tonight. Wrong, it was the same red which we don't like. Another couple joined us. They are really fun. They complain about the wine to the Maitre d’ and we are upgraded to another bottle, a California red (Hacienda. I really can’t understand the wine selection. We are traveling through the best wine region in the world and Viking serves below average wine. The meal is good and the conversation great. I ask, “is anyone getting hot”? Dave thinks it is warm.

Connie, the hotel manager, introduces the entire staff. I feel sorry for a few who will not receive the tips they normally get. No one is in a generous mood. The suggested tip is 12 Euros per person per day.

I ask again, “is it getting hot in here”? I get more nods at the table. I'm now using my cloth napkin to mop my bald head. Something my mother would disapprove of. I'm ready for this to end.

We go to the room. The luggage has to be in the hall before 6:30 AM. We have a 7:30 AM bus ride, about 45 minutes to the train station in Basel, Switzerland. I open the door and feel the warm air. We quickly take our clothes off. Dave, our friend, calls and wants to know if we would like to have a beer at the beer garden. It is next to where we are tied up. We enjoy a beer and are ready to get in bed. It will be a short night. I open the door and feel the warm air. It's cool outside so I open the window and get on top of the covers. Right down from our room are vents and a loud noise. It is some kind of engine or generator running, about the same noise level of a 4 cycle grass mower. I'm tired and fall to sleep.

Stranded

Stuck on the Rhine

June 5, 2013

Well our trip has turned out to be a disaster. We had a great time in Amsterdam, after that it went south. High water on the Rhine has prevented us from going any further south than Cologne. We have been here for two days. After a tour of a cathedral in the city which was great and a made up tour of a castle we sit in a basin off of the Rhine River looking at oil tanks and rusted railroad cars. Cologne was bombed out during World War II so I don't consider it anything special. All new buildings built after 1945. Tonight Viking has informed us that we will go down the river a few more miles then we will be transferred to another ship which cannot proceed any further north. Oh boy, just what I wanted, a bus ride along a highway in Germany.

 

We saw a castle today. Two hours to it and one hour and forty five minutes of pure hell for me on the return trip. Could you please turn down the air, Lisa my wife called out to the driver, my husband is sweating, some relief, not much though. Sitting there and now starting to fume over not having any control over my comfort I finally lit a match to my slow burning fuse. Another person spoke out......”could you please turn down the air”. I'm thinking, as I mop my head, maybe he just doesn't understand English. I remember the tour guide, a young Mexican fellow who spoke English, appeared to understand me when I approached him before we got on the bus for the return trip. I think this was clear. “Tell the driver to turn down the AC”.

 

We arrive at the parking lot in front of our ship and surrounded by a waste land of oil tanks. It reminds me of the Houston, TX ship channel.

We disembark from the bus and I proceeded to the Mexican tour guide. Who had no idea that my fuse had finally hit its end and I unloaded on him. I was tired of not being informed of what was going on nor would I sit on a bus tomorrow, estimated time of four hours, and sweat. I huffed off as my dear Lisa was there to hand out band aids to the guide who had just had his butt chewed. Off to the gang way to be greeted by the Captain who was there with a smile, as I walked past him looking for my next victim. With the hotel manager in my sights, she is the one who reads the prepared statements from Viking corporate head quarters every night, with a smile on her face, explaining that this flood is a 500 year event. Europe has better weather forecasters than we do. We can even predict the rise and fall of the Mississippi River above New Orleans. So I don't buy it when she tells me Viking didn't know this would happen. In my opinion Viking knew there would be a problem before we left Amsterdam. I told the hotel manager what I expected to hear in the nightly briefings. I left heading down the hall to our room. Lisa lingered and probably repaired the damage.

 

The food has been good, but not great. The red wine, house wine from Austria, is about a 3 on a scale of 10. None of us want to drink it and it is free.

 

I'll keep you informed.

 

Stranded

Although I am sorry that your vacation did not go as expected, I wonder why you chose to post this on this thread, when there have been so many other threads sharing your same experience....having cruised with Viking several years ago, I am looking forward to another trip in October and like many others, use this site for valued information and positive feedback, although I was told in another thread that good feedback was unbelievable and insulted people's intelligence. Hopefully, you can give Viking another try with your credit and have a better experience.

although I was told in another thread that good feedback was unbelievable and insulted people's intelligence.

I read that thread, also. At that point, all the bashing almost becomes unbelievable. Why can't others make the best of a bad situation? Why is it that only complaints on here are believable? I am sure that there are people in the world that can find good in a bad situation. I was on a ocean cruise that ended up on the edge of a hurricane. Many complained that the cruise line should have known better but in reality the hurricane turned at the last minute. How can you fault the cruise line? It was mother nature. Like us, many made the best of the swells and the unexpected port.

We have only had the pleasure of sailing on one Viking river cruise so far but we enjoyed our trip last year so much that we will be sailing with Viking again this year and have already booked another Viking river cruise for next year. Can things go wrong or weather be a problem? Of course but there are few guarantees in life and travel is, after all, an adventure; that is in great part why we all travel! Cruise Critic has given us all the capacity to learn from the experiences of our fellow travelers and I have gotten many good tips and hints from these boards but I have also been astonished sometimes to read reviews of the very same cruises that we were on (and had absolutely wonderful times) only to learn that some of our fellow passengers thought that this, that, or the other thing which they experienced was absolutely dreadful. If you read these boards long enough you will start to recognize some of the same posters who over and over again perceive unimaginable faults with whatever cruise line they are sailing (ocean or river) and I can't help but wonder why they continue to travel since they seem to hate it so much. I long ago learned that no trip will be absolutely perfect but every trip has engendered a wonderful memory that lasts a lifetime and the anticipation of that next wonderful memory is what keeps us traveling. Anticipate wonderful memories and you won't be disappointed.

I'm not sure what the significance of this is...but it seems that virtually every person who has written a scathing review of their recent flood trip (especially Viking bashers) has been a first time poster on this forum.

Perhaps someone smarter than myself can offer some insight into this.

Perhaps Art Linkletter (who remembers him?) said it best...."Things turn out best for people who make the best out of the way things turn out".

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

Perhaps Art Linkletter (who remembers him?) said it best...."Things turn out best for people who make the best out of the way things turn out".

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

Do I remember him??? Absolutely. I was just a child but I looked forward to mom watching the shows. I enjoyed them just as much as she did! Love the quote and it's something I will have to remember. Thanks for your post!

Cruise Critic posters say the darnedest things... ;););)

Cruise Critic posters say the darnedest things... ;););)

Even those of us who aren't kids any more!!! :D

Fran

After all of the negative comments about Viking the last few days, I was beginning to second guess my choice for a Rhine cruise next May on the new Viking Longship Gullveig.

One of the main reasons I chose Viking, was because of the beautiful new fleet of Longships.

 

Robinlynn- I am on the Rhine Getaway with Viking on the new longship Forseti as I write. The cruise has been wonderful. We have enjoyed first class service. I have not had an empty wine glass at dinner or at lunch. You will love your trip as we have this week and its only Monday.

I'm not sure what the significance of this is...but it seems that virtually every person who has written a scathing review of their recent flood trip (especially Viking bashers) has been a first time poster on this forum.

 

Perhaps someone smarter than myself can offer some insight into this.

I noticed this too. However, there were a few regular posters who jumped on the band wagon (even some who had never cruised on Viking). IMHO posting here in an attempt to hurt the bottom line of any cruise line is not the purpose of cruisecritic. I think that is what was happening when these first time posters joined and posted here. I would really like to think that they did not get any more compensation than any other disgruntled passenger who contacted Viking without posting here or on other social media.

Perhaps I am missing something, but I see the purpose of this forum as exchanging ideas, information and yes, the bad as well as the good cruise experiences. I doubt that I will look for them, but it would be interesting to see if any of those first time posters who were bashing Viking continue to be active CC members.

Perhaps Art Linkletter (who remembers him?) said it best...."Things turn out best for people who make the best out of the way things turn out".

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

Terrific - thanks for posting this. I loved that show!

originally posted by jazzbeau: Cruise Critic posters say the darnedest things.

Cute!:D

After all of the negative comments about Viking the last few days, I was beginning to second guess my choice for a Rhine cruise next May on the new Viking Longship Gullveig.

One of the main reasons I chose Viking, was because of the beautiful new fleet of Longships.

 

Robinlynn- I am on the Rhine Getaway with Viking on the new longship Forseti as I write. The cruise has been wonderful. We have enjoyed first class service. I have not had an empty wine glass at dinner or at lunch. You will love your trip as we have this week and its only Monday.

 

Sounds wonderful!! Please post when you return with more details....are you starting in Amsterdam or Basel?

 

Thanks

Robin