Viking Chateaux, Rivers & Wine

[loge23]

Day 4 is all but done but for a small group of merrymakers still in the

lounge.

Today began in Libourne with a brief walking tour through the market. Then, back to the Forseti for a short bus ride to the optional Chateau Siaurac luncheon. Others went on to the truffles hunt.

Both tours were well recieved and I can personnally attest to the Siaurac tour. We were met at the gates to the Chateau by owner Paul Goldschmidt with enthusiasm and charm. After a thorough tour and tasting, we were served a beautiful lunch complimented with the wines of the property. Mr. Goldschmidt was the connsumate host and won everyone over with his genuine hospitality. From there we went to St. Emilion for a guided tour of the monolith church and about an hour of free time. Not enough for arguably the most beautiful and important village of the region.

unfortunately, due tot the tidal issues, we then had to endure yet another hour+ bus ride to.... Blaye!

It is a bit confusing but also evident of the great job Viking did to adjust to this regions tide quirks.

After another excellent DR meal, we enjoyed the impromptu nightclub act that our fellow passengers have developed. The fellow passengers are wonderful and several great friendsbips have already been made.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, we will awaken in Bordeaux for a 9am bus/walking tour of that city. We will pass, sleep in, and go on the ship tour to Cadillac.

Great cruise so far but a bit exhausting - be ready for this one!

 

More later - need some sleep!

[ginabab]

Hi loge23

Thanks for the update

Lots of good things

[id4elizabeth]

Bottled water was available all the time, but the water that was brought to your cabin was in liter sized glass bottles. Small plastic bottles were available at the doors upon the start and end of each excursion - as many as you want. We asked at the front desk other times and they gave us small bottles. All were "still".

[Bet & Peg]

Loge23 ~ thanks once again for your great update!! Chateau Siaurac sounds wonderful by everyone's account!! Its on our list - I just hope Mr Goldschmidt doesn't get tired by October!!! I just bought more of his wine - the only one I've seen from Chateau Siaurac is their Plaisir - tried it a few weeks ago and enjoyed it! Can't wait to experience lunch there!!!!

 

And I understand about the cruise being exhausting! Before our first RC I had the idea that RCing was a very slow pace - but quit the opposite if you take all the included excursions, not to mention the optional!! So we'll catch up on sleep at home!!

 

Thanks for taking your time to update us!!!!

[loge23]

Bon Jour from the Garonne gently cruising south to Cadillac. It's a beautiful day and a very nice afternoon cruise. We departed Bordeaux within a 15 minute window to just barely pass under the Napolean Bridge to great fanfare aboard!

In about an hour we will arrive in Cadillac. There will be two separate tours: the wine tasting of the great Sauternes and a land tour of the castle. Half the ship will go on one of these tours and then switch in the morning for the other. We will then return to Bordeaux for -alas - the last port stop.

The onboard service continues to shine. Chef Pascal has been getting well-deserved raves.

Being a wine-themed cruise, there are many merry-makers aboard, great fun!

[vcgeno]

My wife and I went on the July 12 voyage henceforth known as the “Oops I left the rope in the water cruise” where a crew member forgot to pull in the docking rope into the boat, causing it to wrap around the propellers, causing the boat to be immobile for all but a couple of hours on the last couple days of the cruise. That said, in the tradition of the Skipper and Gilligan, if not for the courage to the mighty program director, the last couple days of the vacation would have been lost.

 

What the lassoing of the engine did was cause us to be bused to Cadillac instead of sailing to Cadillac. To make up for the rope screw up what they did is took us to lunch at a local restaurant while we were enjoying that day’s activities. We had a wonderful Sauternes tasting after the tour of Cadillac. They split us up into 4 groups and our group went in a restaurant in a bed and breakfast in a small town the name of which I don’t remember near Cadillac that was once a post office. We had a tasty salad, some delicious duck, and some nice wine. With all due respect to the chef on the ship, it was my favorite lunch of the week and the setting could not have been nicer. Because we only had this lunch because some guy forgot to pull the rope out of the water I asked the program director if I could leave the guy a tip because I enjoyed the lunch so much. She shot me dirty look so I decided not to pursue it.

 

They are now modifying the cruise itinerary to fit the tide pattern for the week to minimize issues. Good move

 

We had a French balcony and that is the most your really need on this trip. It spends so much time in Bordeaux and the regular balcony’s face the dock, and you spend very little time at sea I see no reason to have one.

 

Because of the holiday they brought us back to Bordeaux to watch the Bastille day fireworks from the roof of the ship. The fireworks going off over Bordeaux at night was a great experience. Nice touch and much appreciated.

 

They offer two walking tours as well as a bus tour of Bordeaux. They are a bit repetitive and you can skip at least one of them.

 

What follows are how I would rate different aspects of the voyage from no stars to 5 stars.

 

0 Stars

 

The rope incident. There is a revolutionary invention called a checklist. They should have one when leaving a dock. One of the items should be “put rope in boat”. Enough said.

 

1 Star

 

The breakfast in the lounge area. Went to try it once but not very imaginative. Could use a couple more items.

 

2 Stars

 

The travel arrangements through Viking. We booked our travel through Viking. Had trouble on the front end and the back end. When I got my flight arrangements they only booked us to Paris. It seemed strange to me but I thought maybe they put you on a bus to Bordeaux. About 10 days before the trip I got a cell phone call from Viking changing all of my flight information correcting their error and flying us to Bordeaux. They also changed our return flight. We had also signed up for the Paris extension. They never communicated the change in our return flight to the staff in Paris. About 8:00 the night before we left we realized that they had us on a shuttle that left one hour before our flight, in plenty of time for our old return flight but not our new one. We got up early and asked the Viking person in Paris to get on an earlier shuttle and after some grumbling, reminding me that there was too much luggage on the shuttle now, she was able to accommodate me. Lesson here is don’t assume Viking has it right, double check what Viking sends you. What got it up to two stars was the amazing staff that greeted us at the airport and the guide that took us to the Bordeaux train station to go to Paris. They could have not been more helpful.

 

The Bordeaux Market Tour. We had signed up for the optional market tour with the chef which would have probably been more personal and interesting but because the ship was immobilized and they had to improvise they had a market tour for the entire ship. We love going to these type of markets but there was so many of us, we were herded around like sheep, and were rushed from station to station. It was not very pleasant. Did enjoy the cheese tasting however and we appreciated the efforts by the staff to put this together at the last minute.

 

3 Stars

 

The Wine Program. The standard wine they served at lunch and dinner was good not great. That is what I expected. I did not sign up for the drink upgrade program so I can’t comment on how much of an improvement that would have been. They were also not squeamish about the quantity of wine the poured at dinner. This was a bit of a booze cruise for the senior set. I observed a couple of folks that got the upgraded drink package and you could tell from the look in their eyes and the way they walked they were taking full advantage of it. I don’t know how you could physically drink any more than I did for free so I see no need for the all you can drink upgrade. I wish they would have had some variety in the wine they served especially the whites. There is only so much acidy citrusy white Bordeaux you can drink. They should throw in French Riesling, or a white burgundy every once in a while even if they did not fit the theme of the cruise to give white wine drinkers a choice. I also expected a wine expert on board. The person that was in charge of wine stayed in the background. They conducted a couple of wine classes”. One was a wine tasting class conducted by the program director. They served some wines and gave everyone some basic instruction. It was nice but the Program Director is not a wine expert. They also had a wine/food pairing class that did not feature food or wine. That one is a bit of a head scratcher. So overall the variety and the instruction were less than I expected, the quality was what I expected, and the quantity was more than I expected.

 

The tour guides. Most of the excursions featured a different guide. Most of them were very good or better. A couple of them were barely decipherable. If you are going to do a tour aimed at English speaking people then you should be able to speak clear understandable English. That is one of the reasons we chose Viking. That said the tour guides that were top notch not only were understandable but by being transplants to the area they were able to add a level of context to their presentations that made their tours quite informative and enjoyable.

 

Our Room. Was what we expected. Small shower, small bathroom, small room. Great Bed. Liked the refrigerator.

 

Libourne Flee Market/St. Emilion/Chateau Siaurac Day. It was too much. We got up early went to the town market in Libourne. We have been to several town markets and this was OK. We then went to Optional Chateau Siaurc tour/lunch which dispite an effort to sell their wines that was more aggressive then I would have wanted was wonderful. Do it it is worth it. Then we went to the St.-Emilion tour. They put a tour of a church in a cave in the middle of our time there that kind of limits your ability to roam. The cave church was only moderately interesting and the tour guide was only moderately understandable. I would have preferred someone showing us the other highlights of the town or using that time to see the town on my own. I feel I missed out on something by following the program.

 

Blaye/Citadel. Nice walled city. Well preserved. Enjoyed watching the steeplechase completion going on in the moat of the Citadel. Enjoyed watching the local Bastille day ceremony.

 

4 Star

 

Lunch and Dinner in the dining room. Great meals every day. Wait staff could not have been nicer or more accommodating. Whether you eat a little or a lot you will enjoy lunch and dinner. Better than I expected.

 

The ship. Lounge comfortable. Sun Deck was great. Dining room is great. All the common areas are well done. Nice job.

 

Margoaux bus tour/Wine Tasting/Chateau Kerwin Day. We drove past 4 of the 5 Premier Grand Cru chateaus so I have 80% of a bucket list item complete. Only thing that detracted from it was too much time on the bus and we repeated several areas. Nice wine tasting at Chateau Lynch Bages. Dinner at the Chateau was fantastic and a top trip highlight. You will enjoy it.

 

“Sounds of France”. A young opera group they bring on board on the last night. It took some convincing by my wife to get me to go but I’m glad we went. Not only where they talented singers they were great entertainers as well. Don’t miss it.

 

Chateau d’ Arche Sauternes Tasting. Nice setting. Learned to appreciate Sauternes. Not to be missed.

 

The way they tried to make the best of a bad situation. They did a great job of recovering from the rope screw up. My hats off to the program staff.

 

5 Star

 

The housekeeping staff. Did an amazing job of making our cabin clean and comfortable. Always friendly and always willing to help. Fantastic.

Breakfast. Way way better than I expected. They should consider making all three meals breakfast at some point.

 

The people we met. We enjoyed our time getting to know several other couples on the ship and it was an eclectic group. We got to know two couples from Florida living the Bocca Del Vista lifestyle, and a couple from Florida who are still hippies at heart and take medicinal vacations to certain locations where certain medications are legal, two couples from England that are extremely kind and extremely funny (one of them became my first UK Facebook friend), a couple from Chicago that met when they lived in Germany and used to build homemade airplanes in their garage. Time with them was time well spent.

 

Bottom Line

 

Enjoyed the trip a great deal. Glad we did it. Wish we would have done more by boat and less by bus and wish they would have had a more sophisticated wine program (could they offer an optional wine tour every day?). Loved the Château visits, this ship, the food, the service, the people we met, and the quantity of wine.

 

If you don’t mind staying in the same general area, and you like wine then you should consider this trip. If you are not into wine or you want to see several areas and spend more time on a river and less time on a bus or in port then you may want to look elsewhere.

 

Let me know if you disagree or have any questions.

[Bet & Peg]

vcgeno ~ thanks SO much for the detailed review!!!! Much to think about and some interesting suggestions for Viking!!!

 

I am surprised to learn that there is no wine expert on board - one would think that on this type of cruise - highly advertised for wine lovers - there'd be a sommelier to give the wine-talks and accompany the guests to the vineyards! oh weel, Viking can only learn by the comments/suggestions they receive!!!

 

We are still debating about the drinks package - I think the package gives a wider, and probably better, choice of wines - not necessarily the amount changes!!

 

On your cruise did you hear from anyone who took the optional excursion to Arcachon?? I still haven't decided about that one!!!!

 

Thanks again!!!

[vcgeno]

vcgeno ~ thanks SO much for the detailed review!!!! Much to think about and some interesting suggestions for Viking!!!

 

I am surprised to learn that there is no wine expert on board - one would think that on this type of cruise - highly advertised for wine lovers - there'd be a sommelier to give the wine-talks and accompany the guests to the vineyards! oh weel, Viking can only learn by the comments/suggestions they receive!!!

 

We are still debating about the drinks package - I think the package gives a wider, and probably better, choice of wines - not necessarily the amount changes!!

 

On your cruise did you hear from anyone who took the optional excursion to Arcachon?? I still haven't decided about that one!!!!

 

Thanks again!!!

 

Because of the change in itinerary caused by the rope incident most people chose to do Cadillac instead of the Arcachon. I heard secondhnd that ony 3-4 people went.

[Bet & Peg]

vcgeno ~ thanks - that does make sense!!!

[magellan2022]

Thanks for the book recommendation, FotoPeg. Wine and War is in at my local library so I'll pick it up soon! There's a question I'd like answered, maybe someone on the cruise or going soon would get an answer and post it. Or maybe one of you out there already knows the answer!

All the chateaux that we visited were proud of the fact that all their grapes are picked by hand. A friend who's familiar with other regions in France was saying that she's seen grapes picked by machine, Is it the entire region Bordeaux or just the chateaux that we visited that pick by hand?

[loge23]

Terrific review, vcgeno, and one that I mostly agree with.

I'll offer a wrap-up upon my return. You are so right about the staff, many of whom are vets of cruise lines and well-experienced with fine hospitality.

To elaborate on the Cadillac tours, as vcgeno wrote - don't miss the tasting tour, one the highlights of the trip; skip the other one.

[Bet & Peg]

Loge23 ~ I'm confused about Cadillac. Reading the itinerary part of the booklet it sounds like in Cadillac there's one included tour -Sauternes Excursion that's a short tour of Cadillac then goes to the Chateau d'Arche for sauternes tasting. Is there another tour that day? Or did you mean to ship a different tasting?

 

Thanks much!

[Bet & Peg]

magellan2022 ~ good question about grape picking! I think in any region the older more traditional wineries pick by hand and the ones trying to be more "modern" are using machines - but worth asking!

 

In 2012 when we took the Rhone River cruise we stayed in Avignon and took a small group day- long wine tour - just fabulous! Our guide explained that the area is divided into the houses that have a "natural" wine still produced the old-fashioned way but often using some updated equipment and those who manipulate the wine for consumer taste. He didn't praise or condemn either - just different approaches.

 

It'll be SO interesting to experience Bordeaux!!!!!

[loge23]

Loge23 ~ I'm confused about Cadillac. Reading the itinerary part of the booklet it sounds like in Cadillac there's one included tour -Sauternes Excursion that's a short tour of Cadillac then goes to the Chateau d'Arche for sauternes tasting. Is there another tour that day? Or did you mean to ship a different tasting?

 

Thanks much!

 

Hi Peg

 

No, that is correct. What happens is they divide the consist into four tours: A, B, C, & D. Two of these go to the tasting while the other two do the short tour of Cadillac. On this cruise, we arrived in Cadillac at approx 4pm. So the two main tours took place on that afternoon and again on the following morning to accomodate everyone. A&B went to Sauternes on Wed. Afternoon and did the town tour Thurs. Am. C&D did the opposite.

Tonight is the cocktail prty for repeat offenders (mostly everyone), followed by the chefs dinner. We are back in Bordeaux but cruised all afternoon.

[ABQcruiser]

vcgeno ~ thanks SO much for the detailed review!!!! Much to think about and some interesting suggestions for Viking!!!

 

I am surprised to learn that there is no wine expert on board - one would think that on this type of cruise - highly advertised for wine lovers - there'd be a sommelier to give the wine-talks and accompany the guests to the vineyards! oh weel, Viking can only learn by the comments/suggestions they receive!!!

 

We are still debating about the drinks package - I think the package gives a wider, and probably better, choice of wines - not necessarily the amount changes!!

 

On your cruise did you hear from anyone who took the optional excursion to Arcachon?? I still haven't decided about that one!!!!

 

Thanks again!!!

 

On our sailing (May 30) we enjoyed the contributions of Frank the sommelier. He joined Chef Magalie each evening discussing the pairing of wines with dinner, and presented the wines for each person who had the special wine package.

 

On the wine package, the two people I chatted with who had the package said they would not have done it if they had known how readily wine was available for all and with satisfactory quality. A third person seemed more of an oenophile and seemed to appreciate the special touch.

 

And on Arcachon, the folks we know who went really enjoyed it. Even the one who wasn't enthused about oysters enjoyed the rest of the experience.

 

It's fun to follow the posts and relive my experience. I wish I could go all over again!

[loge23]

Back home after the 22-hour marathon return trip, a little tired but full of happy memories.

A couple of points of information:

The current chef is Chef Pascal, a large affable Frenchman. I see Magalie was onboard prior.

The wine steward/waiter was Kris(shortened version) from Bulgaria. Kris is a great guy and an excellent server.

The Director is Mieke (sic) (pronounced Mee-ka) from Amsterdam. Very organized, very efficient. We heard that she was specifically selected for this itinerary by upper management,as she is considered one of the top Directors in the system.

The Silver package is $410 (dollars) per couple and the line frowns upon only one person taking it from a couple unless one is a teetotaler. Wines from the wine list are an average of 30 euros. Drinks are an average of 6 euros. On our cruise, some folks enjoyed a cognac (8-12 euros) or champagne. Do the math. 1 Euro = 1.34 dollar currently.

The house wines were taken directly from the wine list and differed every evening.

As vcgeno observed, how much can you drink?!

The wine list is all Bordeaux's - both red & white. It does get boring if you are a regular wine drinker. I also found some food pairings crying out for a Rhone or a Chardonnay form Burgundy.

Weather was hot, hot, hot.

I'll be back later with some more observations, but vcgeno really summed it up quite well.

We really enjoyed the fellow passengers - quite a group!

[kbella]

I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to this thread. I have been a lurker and have read every post. I am now even more excited about our August 9 cruise aboard the Forseti and hope to be able to contribute to the thread's information base while on board.

[Bet & Peg]

kbella ~ welcome!!! (even lurkers are welcome to the site!!). With 616 posts and 60,842 views it's obvious there are many lurkers out there!!!! And Thank You for reading all the posts!!!

 

Glad you're excited - it seems like forever-ago that we booked this cruise andwhile I want it to get here fast - I also don't want it coming too fast since then it'll be over!!

 

I hope you have a fantastic cruise and PLEASE come back to tell us all about it!!! Adding to the information base is the best way to help future cruisers - comments, opinions, suggestions, thoughts are more than welcome!! Hope you have time to "drop-in" while aboard the Forseti - but I know how difficult that is!! Last December it was my intention to post daily during our Christmas Markets cruise on the Rinda - but never enough time, even when I was up early!!! I'd answer e-mails, transfer photos to my tablet, and then it'd be time for breakfast and to begin the day!! And I guess I was not disciplined enough to break-away from friends we had made to post during the day and evenings were just too busy!!!

 

But we'd all love to hear from you IF you have time aboard or PLEASE promise to post after your return!!! There's still a list of passengers who'll be following you - like me!!!!

[kbella]

Thank you Foto Peg. We are planning on taking 3 of the optional tours, Cognac blending, truffle excursion, and Arcachon. Wifi willing, maybe I can contribute some first hand observations of these.

Leaving in 1 week and will spend 2 days at the Quality St. Catherine hotel in Bordeaux prior to the cruise. I really appreciate those who have commented positively about this hotel. I chose it for location but good to know it has a helpful staff.

Edited July 29, 2014 by kbella
typo

[Bet & Peg]

kbella ~ will be very interested in your comments about the Arcachon excursion!! It's one I've been thinking about since the very beginning but not sure the missing the time in Bordeaux will be worth the trip! It does sound "different" and that's what we usually look for!! I'm not a raw oyster fan but in this case I think I could be!!!

 

Our traveling companions are interested in the truffle farm - at least she is, so he'll go also!! We've already decided on the Chateau Siaurac lunch - I've bough their wine so now I want to enjoy the experience!!! But anything you can tell us about the truffles will be greatly appreciated!!

 

And the Cognac blending - the guys want to do that! I'd rather just go to the town of Cognac - will check at the desk about possibilities!

 

Bordeaux - I'm still annoyed that the other 3 - including my husband - didn't see the need to spend a day or two post-cruise there! But them I really can't complain about 8 days in Paris pre-cruise!!!! Let us know about any good places for lunch - we may try and do that some day if we have time!!

 

Have a great trip - and don't get stressed if there's no/limited time to post live - you can fill us in afterwards!!!

 

ENJOY - sadly it'll go too quickly!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Bet & Peg]

kbella ~ hope you don't mind if I add your name to our "roll call" list!! I originally began it with the hopes of passengers finding others on their specific sailing but didn't happen often!! But it does give us a sense of when our fellow CC posters will be traveling!

 

So here's the lastest list for Viking's Chateaux, Rivers and Wine

 

April 12, 2014 ~ id4elizabeth – ports missed Cadillac

April 12, 2014 ~ Go Pack – ports missed Cadillac

April 26, 2014 ~ tipsygirl – ports missed Cadillac & Blaye

April 26, 2014 ~ ChesapeakeSailor – ports missed Cadillac & Blaye

May 10, 2014 ~ editor@cruisecritic: Carolyn

May 17, 2014 ~ kidfixer: Linda

May 24, 2014 ~ MalibooNewYork Theresa

May 31, 2014 ~ ABQcruiser

June 28, 2014 ~ Le bon vin

July 5, 2014 ~ magellan2022

July 12, 2014 ~ vcgeno

July 12, 2014 ~ SueFrankuk

July 19, 2014 ~ loge23

Aug. 9, 2014 ~ kbella

Aug. 16, 2014 ~ lovetocruise17 – cancelled, illness

Aug. 23, 2014 ~ MABoat

Aug. 30, 2014 ~ roebud; Rose & Gary

Sept. 6, 2014 ~ indianrider - CANCELLED

Sept 13, 2014 ~ smokinmike

Sept. 20, 2014 ~ zmjh45

Sept. 27, 2014 ~ parkie

Oct. 4, 2014 ~ FotoPeg: John & Peg, Tony & Linda

Nov. 1, 2014 ~ Laffey724

Nov. 22, 2014 ~ itchyfeetx2

Nov. 22, 2014 ~ sable16

[Ozjohnno]

Even though I'm not cruising with Viking this coming August (we're on Tauck) I have certainly gained many thoughts and ideas from this thread showing me that general area threads like this one can help everybody.

[ganski]

We are going on this cruise 08-22-2015 on the Viking Forseti, yes it is over a year away. This year we are on the Viking Tor 12-20-2014 Basel to Amsterdam Christmas Market Cruise

[vcgeno]

On our sailing (May 30) we enjoyed the contributions of Frank the sommelier. He joined Chef Magalie each evening discussing the pairing of wines with dinner, and presented the wines for each person who had the special wine package.

 

I'm surprised that a couple of you have commented that there was a sommelier on board. We went to the nightly briefings where they told us about that nights dinner and only the chef talked and the wine was never discussed. No one came to our table either. Perhaps I forgot to ask?

[Bet & Peg]

Ozjohnno ~ you are SO correct that General Area threads can be very helpful! Each cruise line may do things a little differently - itineraries, sailing times, etc - but the area is the same and often even the ports so we can learn from each other!! And its fun to anticipate your own cruise!!!

 

Hope you have a great trip!!!