Deceived by Viking River Cruises

[Viking Cruises]

Hi Amtico,

 

Please know that we truly are sorry for your disappointment in how your cruise was altered. We know you’re frustrated and upset and we would like to help, if possible. Please email us at TellUs@vikingcruises.com. Our Customer Relations team has been experiencing a very high volume of calls and emails, and therefore it is taking more than our standard amount of time to get back to our guests. We do care and wouldn’t want you to feel like we are disregarding your concerns when in all likelihood our teams are working as hard as they can to maintain individual communications with guests who have returned home, guests who are currently sailing, and guests who are about to travel and have questions. Again, we want to help, so please do email us at the above address.

 

Very best,

Viking Cruises

 

P.S. We see that you have posted a few times today, and we don’t want to seem unresponsive…so we’ll risk sounding repetitive (with advance apologies for that) and post in some of the other threads too.

 

 

Never fear we will (there are quite a few of us!)

 

We're currently giving Viking a chance to try and repair their potential PR disaster regarding our cruise and possibly others too.

 

So far, apart from a partial credit offer towards another cruise, we are being met with stony SILENCE. Other Companies cancelled their cruises, with a similar itinerary & refunded, in full - one departed on the same day as us from Budapest, realised after two days that the holiday could not feasibly continue, abandoned it and gave their customers a full refund. Their customers are naturally praising them from the rooftops.

 

Information given out during the holiday was extremely sparse.

 

Viking do not appear to care. :(

[peterdkiwi]

Hi Amtico

From details provided, Viking failed to delivery what they had contracted to supply, In NZ we have a Consumer Guarantee Act that would require the supplier to provide a full cash refund.

Nothing less than 100% cash refund and a additional credit on another cruise for the stress you were put under is acceptable. Other cruise lines have done this.

WAKE UP VIKING

[Amtico]

Dear Viking - thank you for your response.

 

I personally am in the UK and booked this holiday directly via Viking UK (I have been in touch with them, with no response) - does this apply to me?

If not, I would be grateful, if YOU could liaise with your UK office so that they will respond to me and my fellow UK passengers.

 

I shall make sure the American passengers are aware of this.

 

I look forward to reading your follow up post.

 

 

 

Hi Amtico,

 

Please know that we truly are sorry for your disappointment in how your cruise was altered. We know you’re frustrated and upset and we would like to help, if possible. Please email us at TellUs@vikingcruises.com. Our Customer Relations team has been experiencing a very high volume of calls and emails, and therefore it is taking more than our standard amount of time to get back to our guests. We do care and wouldn’t want you to feel like we are disregarding your concerns when in all likelihood our teams are working as hard as they can to maintain individual communications with guests who have returned home, guests who are currently sailing, and guests who are about to travel and have questions. Again, we want to help, so please do email us at the above address.

 

Very best,

Viking Cruises

 

P.S. We see that you have posted a few times today, and we don’t want to seem unresponsive…so we’ll risk sounding repetitive (with advance apologies for that) and post in some of the other threads too.

[Amtico]

Hi Rockwell - the 75% discount offered on a future cruise is not quite how it seems, well certainly not in the offer made to me - I cannot speak for others.

 

It is 75% of the total amount that I paid for my cruise, that I have just undertaken - will be deducted from any future cruise I book.

 

As prices are more expensive next year - this is not a true 75% discount/reduction. This would be deducted off whatever the published price is at time of booking.

 

Certainly, in the UK our prices are not discounted by anything like 50% ... though there is an offer if you book a 2014 cruise before the end of June 2013.

After that we are led to believe that prices will not be discounted.

 

Our cruise Danube Waltz - 2 June 2013 was not cancelled. We did not sail a single millimetre but undertook a series of continually lengthening bus tours.

 

Good luck - I hope your cruise passes without incident and you enjoy a wonderful holiday. :)

 

 

 

 

For those who have been offered a 75% discount on a future cruise, I have a couple questions.

 

Is this a 75% discount in ADDITION to a refund for the cruise that was cancelled?

 

Is it 75% of the actual price you would have had to pay normally or 75% of the published price which is always discounted 50% anyway?

 

I leave on a Viking cruise in 2 weeks and of course would be very disappointed if I have the same experience as you. In fact, I would rather cancel the cruise, and visit Europe on my own rather than take a bus tour!

[Viking Cruises]

Dear Amtico,

 

We did see that you are in the UK – and yes, it absolutely still applies to you. You are a Viking guest and that means that no matter where you are located, we want to help you connect with the Viking team member (no matter the office or department) best suited to assist with your concern. If you’re open to the suggestion, we’d recommend the following:

 

• Please do email TellUs@vikingcruises.com. It will help us put together guest details such as name and booking number that can be shared with our colleagues in the UK so that they can assist you as quickly as possible. We will happily do the initial liaising on your behalf, and the UK office will reach out to you. There’s one small thing we ask… it’s quite late here in the States and we’re about to turn in for the night, so please do email us and believe that we’ll begin working on it for you as soon as possible, but there will likely be a bit of delay due to time/day difference. (Very sorry about that, honestly.)
   
  
• Please also share this email address with the other members of your group so that we can try to assist there, as well.
  

 

Very best,

Viking Cruises

 

 

Dear Viking - thank you for your response.

 

I personally am in the UK and booked this holiday directly via Viking UK (I have been in touch with them, with no response) - does this apply to me?

If not, I would be grateful, if YOU could liaise with your UK office so that they will respond to me and my fellow UK passengers.

 

I shall make sure the American passengers are aware of this.

 

I look forward to reading your follow up post.

[capeaches8834]

I think you have to take the lemons and make lemonade. What do you expect Viking (I am no Viking cheerleader and would not cruise with them) to do about high river levels? All of the river cruise lines were scrambling to make alternate arrangements. There is only so much that could have been done with alternate docking arrangements.

 

On the other hand there has been much talk in past weeks on these boards and others as well as various web sites about high river levels. I am sure that a search would have brought these sites up. One that I happen to remember talked about Budapest being flooded and that emergency measures were being taken by city officials.

 

I am sorry that you were disappointed and certainly hope that you get some compensation. Maybe they will offer you two for one fare on a future cruise.

 

Your lemonade statement made me angry. We were on the Odin June 5 th. I cannot believe the POOR customer service. What they did was totally unacceptable. There is a pattern here of the WORST customer service in the industry. Do not defend Viking, they have chosen greed over good customer relations. STAY AWAY FROM VIKING!

[capeaches8834]

A harsh posting by an angry, disappointed traveller. Having observed the situation as it gradually emerged, it sounds more like a bunch of humans doing their best in a difficult and constantly evolving situation.

Obviously the long awaited and planned for holiday went badly wrong for circumstances outwith Viking`s control. It must have been a difficult judgement call- to cancel at short notice could have left self travellers stranded as well as risk that the situation didnt actually deteriorate and they`d have been left looking stupid and accused of overreacting. No winners here.

Scientists tell us that the increasing wet weather is due to global warming and we should all try to cut our long flights, gas guzzling cars and recycle lots more. Oh joy...................

 

We were on Viking Odin June 5th. We were all deceived, if not downright "lied to". Viking has chosen to handle this badly. They will not refund our money? For a cruise that never happened. Actually, because of the deception, they held us hostage, in a way. Please do not defend this greedy corporation. I recommend you RUN from VIKING!

[capeaches8834]

This is a shocking report of a company who doesn't care about their customers

NEVER USE VIKING

 

Totally agree.. NEVER VIKING. What about class action? Anyone interested?

[CruisinGert]

Thought I should follow-up on this thread since I started it.

 

I received a call from Viking Customer Service yesterday. The phone call went well, she explained Viking's position, I explained mine. I asked her why Viking did not tell us the truth from the very beginning of our cruise, before we embarked. As best I recall, she stated that they did not want to alarm or frighten people, & they thought they could make the necessary changes without undue interruption to the planned itinerary. She said that they have listened to their customers, have learned from this experience & plan to make changes in the future.

 

She explained the 75% discount compensation (see other thread on this). I told her that was not the way I had understood it, & I was even more disappointed now because that's not even a full 75% discount. She asked if there was some way I could be satisfied & I said I would be satisfied with a 100% credit of what I paid.

 

We actually talked for some time. I thanked her for the call, & she said she would call back next week.

[capeaches8834]

I will be following this thread with great interest. While flooding is out of Vikings control, how the problem is a handled is a great indicator of the company. I am going to book a China river cruise in Oct 2014 and was considering VRC. I may have to rethink this.

 

Find another company to cruise China. You still have time. I have never in all my years of traveling experienced such poor customer service and greed from a company. Viking is far below Carnival or Costa in my opinion. RUN while you still have time.

[Mark_T]

There is a pattern here of the WORST customer service in the industry. Do not defend Viking, they have chosen greed over good customer relations. STAY AWAY FROM VIKING!

 

Sorry, it just isn't working, still happy to have booked our 2014 China trip with Viking.

 

In the worst flooding for over 500 years they delivered the best they could once the full situation became clear and then offered a 75% credit of the cost that had been paid.

 

In similar circumstances I'd be very happy to receive such 'poor' service.

 

Nobody is going to be made 100% whole for what is after all uncontrollable weather, Viking are certainly not benefiting from what happened, they did after all incur costs in doing the best they could to move you around, feed and house you during the period you were with them and they are still giving you a 75% credit.

 

Hindsight is always 20/20, they did cancel later cruises and I'm sure you wish they had cancelled yours, they may even wish the same looking back, but it is what it is at this point and you didn't receive nothing for the duration of the time you were there, just not what you expected, in the circumstances 75% credit doesn't seem so bad.

 

I'm sure this is going to rumble on for some time but all the anger and vitriol is not going to make what seems like a perfectly decent offer appear to be an insult.

 

I'm sure we are all sorry that you and many others happened to be there in the wrong place at the wrong time and suffered the consequences of that in a much smaller way than many others in the same vicinity, I just don't blame viking 100% for that happening, in fact about 75% is probably closer to the mark ...

[capeaches8834]

Yes, I am an angry & disappointed traveller, but my post is not harsh. It is a partial accounting of my experience.

 

Quite simply, Viking lied - from before our cruise began on June 2nd. On May 31st when they sent an email telling us they were swapping ships due to scheduling change, they lied by omission. In fact our ship was marooned in Bamberg due to massive flooding. And while they were telling us "the water is receding", it was in fact still rising and several days from cresting. Viking knew all this, and more. They failed to share it.

 

And now we are also being given stoney silence to our calls, letters & emails. A refund for the unused portion of my cruise will not cut it. The cruise should never have been attempted.

 

Tauck River cruises also had a June 2nd Amsterdam to Budapest cruise. On June 4th they offered their guests full refunds if they decided to leave. Avalon Waterways and Uniworld canceled similar cruises in June & have offered their guests full refunds and a $500 credit towards a future cruise.

 

Viking can do the right thing. They have a choice.

 

I agree. Viking should have cancelled all European cruises. But greed got in the way. They could care less about their customers. They should not be in the "hospitality" industry.

[capeaches8834]

For those who have been offered a 75% discount on a future cruise, I have a couple questions.

 

Is this a 75% discount in ADDITION to a refund for the cruise that was cancelled?

 

Is it 75% of the actual price you would have had to pay normally or 75% of the published price which is always discounted 50% anyway?

 

I leave on a Viking cruise in 2 weeks and of course would be very disappointed if I have the same experience as you. In fact, I would rather cancel the cruise, and visit Europe on my own rather than take a bus tour!

 

You still have time to cancel. I just got back fro Prague today. No boats on the river.

[CaroleSS]

Not that this is a river boat story, but a "lemonade" story.

 

DH and I went on a cruise through the Greek Islands. When we arrived in Athens, our luggage was nowhere to be found. British Airlines had no idea where it was. We spent two days in Athens prior to the beginning of our cruise, so we thought we'd see it any day. We bought minimal personal items and waited....and waited...and waited. On the first day of our trip, British Airways sent a representative to the pier to give us out luggage - which turned out to be COMPLETELY EMPTY!!

 

We made a hastily planned trip to a flea market near the pier and picked up some of the goofiest clothes you'd ever seen! They fit funny and looked hideous, but we had the time of our lives! Although this was completely British Airways' fault, we didn't LET it ruin our vacation.

 

While companies/people may do awful things, YOU have the choice as to whether to let it "ruin" your <whatever>. Anger is a cancer that only eats at YOU.

[capeaches8834]

Thought I should follow-up on this thread since I started it.

 

I received a call from Viking Customer Service yesterday. The phone call went well, she explained Viking's position, I explained mine. I asked her why Viking did not tell us the truth from the very beginning of our cruise, before we embarked. As best I recall, she stated that they did not want to alarm or frighten people, & they thought they could make the necessary changes without undue interruption to the planned itinerary. She said that they have listened to their customers, have learned from this experience & plan to make changes in the future.

 

She explained the 75% discount compensation (see other thread on this). I told her that was not the way I had understood it, & I was even more disappointed now because that's not even a full 75% discount. She asked if there was some way I could be satisfied & I said I would be satisfied with a 100% credit of what I paid.

 

We actually talked for some time. I thanked her for the call, & she said she would call back next week.

 

I just got off the phone with Viking. We were on the Odin, June 5th Romantic Danube. I have several communication attempts and no responses June 3rd to the 5th. They have NO INTENTION to give any refunds. It is my mission to spread the word... Viking is a TERRIBLE company and if you have any bookings with them...please cancel them while you still have time. Did you ever wonder...how they had the money to build all those ships in just a couple of years. Now I am thinking...what corners did they cut on building those ships? Vikings integrity is so questionable. Are their ships even safe? Can we trust anything they say?

[travelfirst]

Not that this is a river boat story, but a "lemonade" story.

 

DH and I went on a cruise through the Greek Islands. When we arrived in Athens, our luggage was nowhere to be found. British Airlines had no idea where it was. We spent two days in Athens prior to the beginning of our cruise, so we thought we'd see it any day. We bought minimal personal items and waited....and waited...and waited. On the first day of our trip, British Airways sent a representative to the pier to give us out luggage - which turned out to be COMPLETELY EMPTY!!

 

We made a hastily planned trip to a flea market near the pier and picked up some of the goofiest clothes you'd ever seen! They fit funny and looked hideous, but we had the time of our lives! Although this was completely British Airways' fault, we didn't LET it ruin our vacation.

 

While companies/people may do awful things, YOU have the choice as to whether to let it "ruin" your <whatever>. Anger is a cancer that only eats at YOU.

 

That is good you had a fun trip regardless of what happened.

 

After reading all these posts I am wondering why no one checked the weather before they left home. And did no one have travel insurance so they could have got a flight home instead of waiting to see what happened and then complaining.

[CaroleSS]

travelfirst......exactly!

 

My best information comes from these boards. The flooding was all over the news and these boards. There were numerous accounts of the devastation. Yes, a cursory look at the weather might have said "sunny and pleasant", which is what the weather was to BE....not what WAS.

 

Blindly going on vacation - or anywhere - without knowing that there is a hurricane coming, a tornado just passed through, there is civil unrest, etc is not the kind of thing *I* would do, but not everyone is the same. We drove through hurricane Irene after our flight to NY was cancelled, just so we could "maybe" get on a cruise to Bermuda. It was an adventure! Our cruise was cut short because the ship was delayed getting into NY, but we had a room and each other and work was oh so far away!

[CruisinGert]

"... the 'make lemonade' comments do not adequately address the situation that the cruise bought and paid for did not occur. If one booked a cruise of the Mediterraean and was instead taken by bus to Austria I cannot imagine everyone would say "oh great make the best of it" this is not what passengers contracted for. They did not contract to ride a bus and stay in land hotels. There were not minor disruptions. Please do not respond as if a few ports were interchanged but we blithely and gayley made the best of it and everyone else should have as well. That is extremely discourteous and rude to your fellow travellers."

 

Thank you, kdowneymd, I hope you do not mind me quoting you. I am a little inept at how to maneuver on these boards.

 

To Mark_T and all others who wish to defend Viking:

 

- Viking did not "do the best they could with a bad situation". They intentionally withheld information prior to embarkation, thus depriving their customers of any choice.

 

- I cruised for ONE day on a 15 day cruise. Some people didn't even get one day.

 

- Cruising on rivers is the heart & soul of the Viking product. It is not bus & city tours. If I had wanted a bus tour, I would have booked with Globus.

 

- I was on a cruise in the past which had unforeseen engine trouble. That company gave every passenger a totally free cruise. Viking could/should do the same.

 

- Passengers have lost more than just the cost of the cruise. We have lost the cost of airfare, change fees, hotel costs, etc. I haven't read anywhere on this site that we're asking Viking to repay those losses.

 

I wish you a wonderful cruise to China with Viking, Mark. I hope it goes as well as my first 2 trips with Viking. If not, just remember ... it is what it is.

[Amtico]

This was our first river cruise.

 

The Viking representative that met us at Budapest Airport informed us that "the river is a LITTLE high, you are going to a hotel for a short while, then you will be taken to your ship."

He also told another couple on arrival a similar thing adding that when we joined the ship, we would be on our way.

 

The information that was given to us was extremely sparse, up until Tuesday evening, we had been led to believe that we would still be sailing.

 

You rely on the Company you are booked with to give you all the most up to date information - we trusted them, they have betrayed that trust.

 

Please note that Tauck cancelled three cruises on The Danube, sailing 31 May and two on 2 June. They also abandoned another cruise which departed on 2 June, on 4 June, acknowledging the impossible conditions. Full refunds were given to ALL their affected passengers.

 

I'm afraid that unless you were 'there' and heard the sketchy, at best, information we were being given - its impossible for you to judge accurately.

 

 

 

 

That is good you had a fun trip regardless of what happened.

 

After reading all these posts I am wondering why no one checked the weather before they left home. And did no one have travel insurance so they could have got a flight home instead of waiting to see what happened and then complaining.

[CaroleSS]

Please don't suggest that we are "defending" Viking. I (at least me) am suggesting that sometimes bad things happen to us. No, you didn't get what you "contracted for", but even ocean cruises have in their contract that they can deviate from the planned route.

 

What I am saying is that this was an unprecedented occurrence. They may have withheld some information hoping the situation may have gotten better, but you certainly had the option to walk off the boat and go home. Yes, you wanted a river cruise, but a river cruise was not available - and not at the behest of Viking. At that moment, what did you want/expect them to do?

 

Granted, they did make some poor decisions and apparently continue to do so, but I'm from the south and I learned a long time ago that honey gathers more flies than vinegar. Talk reasonably with Viking, have specific examples of things which could have been done better and have a specific request for compensation. You might just catch a fly or two ;)

[CruisinGert]

That is good you had a fun trip regardless of what happened.

 

After reading all these posts I am wondering why no one checked the weather before they left home. And did no one have travel insurance so they could have got a flight home instead of waiting to see what happened and then complaining.

 

-- We left home on May 29th for a June 2nd cruise. There was NOTHING on the news about flooding in Europe. Weather websites made no mention of it, either. If you can find something on this website that warned of flooding prior to May 29th, I would love to read it.

 

-- Yes, we purchased travel insurance. Travel insurance will not compensate you for a tour should you decide to voluntarily leave it.

[Mark_T]

I wish you a wonderful cruise to China with Viking, Mark. I hope it goes as well as my first 2 trips with Viking. If not, just remember ... it is what it is.

 

Thanks for that, I'm sure I will be thinking exactly that if some natural disaster overtakes us during our stay there.

 

You have to understand that there is every sympathy here for the miserable time that some people had on their recent trips.

 

What is not going to find sympathy is the completely ludicrous and probably actionable attempts by some posters to destroy future business for Viking in an attempt to extract even more compensation that the 75% credit already offered.

 

A rational debate and report of what happened would be a lot more help than some of the recent posts that have appeared here, and probably a lot more effective in reaching a final resolution for those affected.

[remydiva]

-- We left home on May 29th for a June 2nd cruise. There was NOTHING on the news about flooding in Europe. Weather websites made no mention of it, either. If you can find something on this website that warned of flooding prior to May 29th, I would love to read it.

 

-- Yes, we purchased travel insurance. Travel insurance will not compensate you for a tour should you decide to voluntarily leave it.

 

Not prior but exactly ON May 29

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1853137

 

May 29th, 2013, 12:39 PM

ingo_e

Cool Cruiser

 

Join Date: Feb 2011

Location: Nuremberg

Posts: 229

 

Waterlevels are quite critical at the moment. Had heavy rain over the last few days. Some "minor" high water on the Main and Danube tributaries 2 days ago. It started to rain again today in Northern Bavaria. A lot of water on the river - two accidents happend yesterday: Viking Legend ran aground downstream of Linz and Serenity hit 2 bridges between Regensburg and Passau. Read more http://www.rivercruiseinfo.com/conte...anube-may-2013

 

may 29

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1853478

On Avalon Amsterdam to Budapest and we have been told water levels too high to get through Main river so we are in Frankfurt and will be busing to ports of call for next two days returning to ship 1 night and in hotel for 1 or two nights depending on what levels do.

Has anyone else been in this situation? What happens if water levels stay high will we end up doing a bus tour the rest of way? Cruise director keeping us informed but would like others experiences in this situation. Thanks

__________________

[Amtico]

Hi Carole :)

 

I actually think I have been the voice of reason on here - I haven't insulted anyone and have been polite at all times.

 

I am actually a fairly experienced ocean cruiser too.

 

Our particular cruise didn't just deviate from the planned route - I shall use my oft used phrase - we didn't sail a single millimetre on board.

 

We didn't walk off the boat because as I said we were led to believe that we would in fact cruise at some point - until Tuesday evening when we were informed we would not.

 

The information was out there before we arrived (Tauck knew as mentioned in my previous post) - they acted. The shipping companies have access to the finest forecasts, river condition information etc - we do not. We had to rely on what we were being told.

 

As soon as Viking knew our cruise would be impossible (probably before we arrived on 2 June) they should have cancelled it.

IF and I don't believe this, this was not crystal clear until we arrived we should have been given all the information they had and been given the option to make an informed choice - whether we wanted to continue or abandon.

 

I have written to Viking, as have others from our 'group' and not received a response but thanks to Viking USA responding this morning to a post on here and forwarding another email of mine on to the UK offices - I am expecting a phone call tomorrow.

 

 

 

Please don't suggest that we are "defending" Viking. I (at least me) am suggesting that sometimes bad things happen to us. No, you didn't get what you "contracted for", but even ocean cruises have in their contract that they can deviate from the planned route.

 

What I am saying is that this was an unprecedented occurrence. They may have withheld some information hoping the situation may have gotten better, but you certainly had the option to walk off the boat and go home. Yes, you wanted a river cruise, but a river cruise was not available - and not at the behest of Viking. At that moment, what did you want/expect them to do?

 

Granted, they did make some poor decisions and apparently continue to do so, but I'm from the south and I learned a long time ago that honey gathers more flies than vinegar. Talk reasonably with Viking, have specific examples of things which could have been done better and have a specific request for compensation. You might just catch a fly or two ;)

[cruzemaven]

You still have time to cancel. I just got back fro Prague today. No boats on the river.

 

Still no boats on the river...is that because of the damaged locks or the water height?