Ozjohnno

All those categories and not a mention of Tauck.

I have traveled twice with Tauck and I agree there is no Butler service per sae. However one day we asked for some snacks to be served in our cabin to have with a bottle of wine we purchased on shore earlier. The snacks were delivered inside 10 minutes along with two glasses and a bottle opener. The wine was opened for us and poured. To me that is as good as any "Butler" service. You don't have to advertise and make a big deal of an onboard service if it's part of the normal customer service provided to everyone onboard.

Oh wow! I paid my trip in full the day I booked but twice I have called and both times they have said they will charge to do that and then if I make any voluntary changes they will charge us $350 each! So I have been a bit leery to ask them to ticket.

I have to say when I have spoken with Viking thay are very nice and helpful.

Once again Viking applying the "do you want fries with that" marketing. It seems from all the posts over the years that Viking will do anything you want them to do as long as you are prepared to pay extra for them to do what others do for no additional cost.

Food is sooooooo subjective. I am not a foodie and I didn't have a meal on my cruise that I didn't think was great BUT I'm sure others found fault with something or other. I do remember that one lady from Chicago was convinced that the German food at home was much better than the food she was eating in Germany.

To each their own.

So, even though the OP has not ever bothered to return after spewing their unhappiness, you are saying that Viking sucks? Good to know. Glad I haven't booked Viking.... fascinating how everyone shows up tonight to support the OP...

 

interesting indeed...

 

jc

I do not see why the OP hasn't returned is relevant. The OP made a point, a valid one I believe, on Viking's business practices one that he/she and many others on this forum have agreed with. Food, service, accommodation and wine offered are all subjective and personal but bad business practices effect everyone. I am very happy that down here Viking is restricted by our very good Consumer Protection Laws.

I am sorry but I agree with OP. Firstly if your next holiday said you started the holiday in LA but actually it started in Anaheim then I'm sure you'd be disappointed as I would if I thought a holiday was starting in Sydney but was changed to Penrith. Secondly the OP clearly stated that when the cruise was booked by their TA the advertisement said it started in Paris and after a query their site had changed it to read that it started in a western suburb of Paris - clearly a change in booking conditions - at least where I live in the world. To me that is doing due diligence.

Viking should give back all the deposit but you and I know that won't happen. From all I read on CC Viking don't care if they anger one customer as there are still tens of thousands out there to attract to their product. One day they might just run out of people to offend.

I've been on two River Cruises, both with the same company, and will probably never be able to afford another one but I do like to take advantage of CC's very open forums to express my opinion on subjects that I've actually partaken of. I would hope nothing changes (except that a get a visit from the Lotto Fairy).

From what I can read on the subject down here it would appear that the lines with smaller fleets wisely cancel in advance. The bigger lines with many more boats use the "shuttle method" and seldom, if ever, actually cancel cruises. My sister recently sailed with Scenic from Amsterdam to Budapest and changed ships shortly after reaching the Danube. The changeover bus trip she reported was about 250kms. Although she knew about the low water levels Scenic didn't mention it until the night before the ship change. Only a small portion of her cruise was altered.

Fran - This Aussie is glad that I've never had to make any decisions regarding tipping on our river cruises. I am so happy that as a part of an all-inclusive price that someone else has to decide and distribute the tips. There's no doubt that I'd get it wrong.

I'll pre-empt the Op here and say that Tauck NEVER offer any optional tours that you will have to pay for on their river cruises. There may be options on what is offered on a particular day and all you'll have to decide is what included option will I take but it's all part of the price.

Our last Tauck cruise was this time last year on the Rhone. Swiss Emerald is a beautiful boat and the all-inclusive luxury of a Tauck experience would make it hard for me to think something could be better or more luxurious. The only thing stopping me from doing this on a yearly basis is I can't afford it but if this pensioner gets a visit from the Lotto Fairy then you can bet I'll do another Tauck river cruise.

Got an email from TA with new flight arrangements. Completely rational flights and connections (9 hours going and 8.5 returning). Only one problem . . . Viking added a $100 fee ($50 pp) when making the change. Have gone back once again stating if Viking can't do the job, they we'll cancel the cruise.

 

This is really nuts . . . schedule unworkable/unreasonable connections and then charge a premium to fix it

I have again ask why do you need to pay extra to get what you asked for in the first place. Your very good TA took the cost on your behalf. This Viking practice of adding on costs as you go is despicable and I would never use a company that has such practices. Where I come from the price offered is the price paid and under our consumer laws they simply can't introduce add-ons during the booking process. Sooner or later Viking is going to run out of customers to rip-off.

Just received word from my sister that Scenic have just discovered that the Danube has low water and her cruise on the Scenic Pearl has stopped. She tells me that they will all be transferred to the Scenic Ruby which is way upstream by bus. I am constantly amazed that some river cruise companies suddenly discover what others have know about for over a week. Once again Scenic fails the "sniff test".

I posted this on another thread but it probably more relevant here.........

My sister is currently on the Scenic Pearl that left Amsterdam for Budapest on Thursday 16th. She tries to keep us all updated on her trip on a daily basis and when she last contacted me (overnight our time down here) Scenic had not mentioned any possible problems with water levels (but do they ever?). They are currently still on the Rhine and are not scheduled to reach the Danube for a couple more days.

I've got my fingers crossed that the waterways remain passable as she and her husband saved for many years to take this trip and an expensive bus holiday was certainly not on her agenda.

Mt sister is currently on the Scenic Pearl that left Amsterdam for Budapest on Thursday 16th. She tries to keep us all updated on her trip on a daily basis and when she last contacted me (overnight our time down here) Scenic had not mentioned any possible problems with water levels (but do they ever?). They are currently still on the Rhine and are not scheduled to reach the Danube for a couple more days.

I've got my fingers crossed that the waterways remain passable as she and her husband saved for many years to take this trip and an expensive bus holiday was certainly not on her agenda.

I hope things change for the better soon. My sister and her husband have just left Amsterdam on the Scenic Pearl bound for Budapest. My fingers are crossed for her.

I had to give this a lot of thought as, like many others, I've had many great experiences on my travels overseas. After much thinking I decided that of all the excursions my favourite would have to be the time we spent at a farm/ranch in the Camague in Southern France as a part of our river cruise on the Rhone. Tauck have this arrangement with the family who train young men and young bulls in the art of bull fighting french style. We had a tremendous time watching a "training session" where it all ends when an old bull with a bell around his neck comes into the arena and escorts the young bull out. We had one of the finest lunches I can remember as a part of a "group excursion" and our time there was something I'll never forget. I regularly go back and look at the photos of that day.

Thanks to the OP for giving us all a chance to re-live our favourite memories.

Correct me if i am wrong, but Tauck is not being managed by a Swiss hospitality group. Only the ship is registered in Swiss, so as Viking, Uniworld, Avalon, Scenic... Tauck is being managed by a Cyprus Catering company! Viking, Uniworld and Avalon are managed by an origin Swiss Hospitality! They do not hire other company for catering, but they are managing themselves, in compare to Scylla, Tauck, Ama, Scenic...

 

Just a hint :)

I'm sorry but I just can't find where you got your information on Tauck from. Now I'm an Australian and not affiliated in any way with Tauck but they get their fair share of misinformation on some of these threads. Tauck is a wholly owned American family company that has been in the travel industry for over 60+ years. When it comes to river cruising they are in partnership with the Swiss ship building company Scylla. Scylla builds the boats to Tauck requirements and crews those boats and that includes the catering. Tauck has a CD and three TD's on every boat. Neither Tauck nor Scylla is managed by a Cyprus Catering company.

I may never be able to afford another Tauck river cruise but I can honestly say that the two cruises I took with them were everything that we wanted and much, much more. For a completely all inclusive river cruise I believe you can't do better than Tauck.

Now I hope that clears up the misinformation above.

Poss, A Tauck morning tour of the town with a local guide usually starts between 8.30 and 9am.

There are no tables for two in the main restaurant but if you wish to dine in the Lido there are tables for two but the menu is fixed. Still very nice but fixed.

I can't recall hearing any noise from the adjoining cabins and as for engine noise it never annoyed me or kept me awake at night. I had also posted in another thread that I never heard anyone on board complain about engine noise even those in cabins near the stern.

Has anyone booked a Cat 3 cabin on Taucks Jewell class boats? If so, how bad is the engine noise? It is $1300 cheaper than the Cat 4 right next door.

I've done two river cruises with Tauck and I never heard of anyone complaining or even talking about engine noise during the cruise.

Once again I'll probably be accused as being a Tauck tout but if you really want the best in luxury, food, wine and accommodation then you can't go past Tauck. Tauck is totally all-inclusive and that includes top shelf spirits at the bar.

Fancy an Australian singing the praises of an American company but we've cruised with them twice and although many will claim they're too expensive I can assure you that you get outstanding value for you dollar.

Tauck have a number of itineraries on both the Seine and Rhone. We took the French Escapade trip that includes both Paris and Monte Carlo stays but there are different cruises with different themes. If I had the money (do you hear that Lotto Fairy!!) I would cruise Southern France again. It had everything I wanted - good and varied food, great wines and lots of history.

We're booked next fall on Tauck, Amsterdam - Budapest, and there is one time when men are asked to wear jackets. That's the special "gala" evening in a Viennese palace. Fair enough I guess, although my husband is not pleased.

I had a long and interesting conversation with Tauck before taking that same cruise in 2011 and I and around half the men on board did not wear a coat and tie to the Palace. I have the photo's to prove it. I wore a long sleeved shirt and slacks and fitted in. If your DH does not want to wear a coat I can assure you that Tauck will not refuse him entrance to the dinner at the Palace. It's your holiday. Be comfortable about what you wear.

Are jeans and sneakers ok?

I'm guessing this is not a serious question but I'll answer it anyway. I wore jeans and sneakers to lunch and on a couple of occasions I wore jeans, polo and shoes to dinner. On other occasions I wore shorts to lunch and slacks and a polo to dinner. There is no insistence by Tauck or Scylla staff for coats and or ties be worn at any time.

Is Tauck more formal than AMA or Viking? Is business casual clothing for dinner ok, or do most men wear a jacket or jacket and tie? AMA advertises - it is your vacation, dress as you like. Everyone dressed nicely for dinner, but no jacket or tie. Would like to try Tauck, but don't want to have to wear jackets and ties. Thank you for your comments.

I've done two cruises with Tauck and I'm about as casual an Australian dresser as you will find anywhere and I was not out of place at dinner. I don't own a jacket and never wore one. Some men wore a coat at the Captain's welcome and farewell dinners and even a few wore a tie but they were not in the majority. You will enjoy everything that Tauck has to offer and that includes not having to wear a coat and tie. Casual dress is the norm.