Deceived by Viking River Cruises

[CruisinGert]

I've read many angry and frustrated reviews of water levels and unfair and uncaring treatment by Viking.

 

It is only fair that for those who are reading and perhaps deciding not use Viking to present another side of Viking customer service and policy.

 

We were booked on a Danube Waltz cruise for Nov 2, 2013 -- booked over a year in advance on the Viking Sky. Viking cancelled that cruise and when they contacted us I was expected a refund of my deposit but nothing more. I would simply rebook on another boat or date. Not a big deal.

 

Imagine my grateful surprise when Viking not only allowed us to rebook our cruise, we were told we could rebook it at any date. We had booked Nov 2, because it was the lowest price offered. Our Sales Rep told, "You don't have to worry about that anymore. What date would you like to go?" We moved to Sept 6 sailing thus receiving a cruise at less than half of what we would have normally paid, and a cabin upgrade as well.

 

So you see, there is a flip side. Viking does in fact have outstanding Customer Service. They follow Cruise Critic reviews and often respond.

 

 

Thank you for sharing your experience. You certainly did receive outstanding Customer Service from Viking. My Sales Rep never returned my email.

 

I, too, would be very happy with such excellent service ... same cruise, any date, cabin upgrade, for the original price agreed upon.

 

Viking Guest Relations, will you provide all your customers with that same excellent service?

[remydiva]

Viking’s parent company is known as Viking River Cruises, Ltd. and under this umbrella there are subsidiary companies, which do own vessels. The portion of the Passenger Ticket Contract that has been copied and quoted here comes from the middle of the document, which does previously state the names of the Viking entities that make up the corporation.

 

Viking River Cruises, Inc. as you have quoted it, is specifically the U.S. sales subsidiary of the Viking corporation. And as stated, this subsidiary does not own the vessels.

 

We hope this explanation has been helpful in clearing up any confusion on whether or not Viking owns and/or operates vessels; the answer is, yes, we do. The full Passenger Ticket Contract can be found on our website here: http://www.vikingrivercruises.com/about-your-trip/contract.aspx. We can also be reached at TellUs@vikingcruises.com.

 

From this link, this comes up from Viking Web page:

 

Passenger Ticket Contract

 

Tickets and other travel documents will be issued approximately 3 weeks prior to departure. Your tickets will come with a Passenger Ticket Contract; it is important to read and understand this document before you go. We understand that you might like to read it ahead of time; also, you might like to see it in PDF form so that you can enlarge the page. For your convenience we have posted the contracts on our site—there is one for Europe, Russia and Ukraine, one for China and Egypt and another for Vietnam and Cambodia. You may access current Passenger Ticket Contracts using the links below.

 

PASSENGER TICKET CONTRACT FOR EUROPE, RUSSIA AND UKRAINE

 

PASSENGER TICKET CONTRACT FOR CHINA AND EGYPT

 

PASSENGER TICKET CONTRACT FOR VIETNAM AND CAMBODIA

 

I admit I have never read the fine print of this contract even though I have travelled with Viking twice and Uniworld once. The ONLY part I did read before was the cancellation portion about what % I would get back if I cancelled within so many days.

 

Ok, so NOW I read the Passenger Ticket Contract and I think it must be written by lawyers for lawyers. I'm sure all the river cruise companies have similarly worded 'contracts' so I'm not singling out just Viking here. I think it says, to paraphrase in non lawyerspeak:

 

You phoned us.

You booked a trip.

You paid.

Hope it works out for you because if not, not much you can do about it!!...UNLESS we decide to play nice and offer compensation...but we don't have to!

 

Talk about buyer beware! :eek:

[Mark_T]

You phoned us.

You booked a trip.

You paid.

Hope it works out for you because if not, not much you can do about it!!...UNLESS we decide to play nice and offer compensation...but we don't have to!

 

Do keep in mind that just because something is written in a contract does not make it actually enforceable.

 

Various governments have enacted various versions of consumer protection which often includes something along the lines of protection for 'unfair' contract terms.

 

The USA is not particularly advanced in this regard when compared to Europe and I've no idea how Australia stands on this topic.

 

In short, read it of course, but don't assume that because it says you have no rights that you actually don't have any.

[CaroleSS]

To be honest, have you read many contracts? They are ALL written in favor of the 'company'. They absolve themselves of any responsibility if anything goes wrong! This goes for car leases, ocean cruises, apartment rentals.....you name it!

 

That doesn't mean they are legally binding, but it certainly puts the onus on the consumer to prove negligence.

[Viking Cruises]

Dear Cruise Critic members,

 

We recently posted this information on a few other threads, so we do apologize for being a bit repetitive, but there are a lot of conversations of a similar nature that are taking place simultaneously across various threads. We’ve been watching and listening to the many differing points of view shared here recently—and we’d like to offer some input to this conversation, for your consideration…

 

Timing and Making Assessments

Our Swiss nautical and operational teams rely on an extensive, established network of local authorities and port operators—along with decades of experience with past high and low water situations—to make assessments on navigability of all rivers on which we sail. Weather, soil conditions and water levels are routinely monitored and evaluated. This is particularly crucial under circumstances where a few hours or a few centimeters of difference can have an enormous impact on a ship’s sailing schedule.

 

Cancellations

Where conditions precluded us from being able to provide a modified itinerary that we believed would be worthwhile—we canceled those particular cruises. For these cancellations, we provided a refund plus a credit for a future cruise so that these disappointed guests may book another journey with Viking.

 

Modified Itineraries

If we believed that we would be able to continue operating an itinerary with some modifications, we did. Each of these modified sailings was considered individually. Partial compensation in the form of a voucher was provided. In most cases we contacted guests ahead of departure to let them know the ways in which we anticipated their itinerary would proceed based on current conditions. In some cases the rapidly changing navigational conditions prompted additional modifications to the itinerary and as a result we have re-evaluated the compensation provided for these.

 

Looking Back

Not all of our assessments were perfect and as conditions quickly changed, not all of our contingency plans always occurred exactly as we had planned them. But a good many of them did.

 

Hindsight, as they say, is 20/20. At the time we made decisions whether to cancel cruises or proceed with modifications, we always had the interests and safety of our guests and crew in mind. We have received many emails and phone calls from guests whose cruise did not go perfectly, but who still enjoyed themselves.

 

Departures in the First Week of June

We get the sense that many of the posts in which returning guests are voicing their disappointment, feedback and point of view, are from departures that occurred in the first few days of June. We understand that when these guests arrived they were taken by surprise at the conditions of the rivers; we were taken by surprise, too. Our Switzerland-based teams worked diligently and in good faith trying to make arrangements as needed and keep their guests informed. We’ve heard frustration over instances where a crew could not provide answers on contingency plans that were beyond the next day, and we apologize for this, to both our guests and our crew, as it was surely frustrating for both parties. With conditions changing quickly, we did the best we could to provide each crew with complete information as it became available. Again, a few hours or a few centimeters of difference can have an enormous impact on a ship’s sailing schedule.

 

Compensation for Impacted Sailings

We have extended compensation in the form of a credit voucher of varying percentages of the cruise fare paid for the impacted 2013 sailings. These sailings were provided alternative travel arrangements, dining, lodging, and excursions to destinations on the original itinerary (where possible) and substituted places of interest. However, based on sentiments expressed here and elsewhere online, as well as with our Customer Relations department, it is clear that some of those affected guests are unsatisfied with our attempts to make amends for a difficult and challenging situation. So, please do contact us directly if you would like to discuss your experience. Our Customer Relations team is starting to return to normal levels of incoming calls and emails after a few weeks of very high volume, and they would be happy to continue the conversation with any of our guests. We can be reached at TellUs@vikingcruises.com and will be pleased to put guests in touch with a member of our Customer Relations team.

 

Safety

The safety of our guests and crew is always our top priority; in every deliberation we had it was our primary focus. We are happy and grateful to report that no Viking guests were injured as a result of the flooding. However, we recognize that some of our guests have voiced concerns about their safety and we take those concerns very seriously; please contact us at TellUs@vikingcruises.com so we can further discuss your particular experience.

 

Updated Information

For guests on upcoming sailings, we continue to update our website: http://www.vrc.com/weatherupdate. We began providing updates on June 3rd when the situation became apparent—including email updates to all affected guests and their travel agents—and we will continue to provide updates until sailing on the affected rivers no longer requires modifications that are known ahead of departure. Please note (though we’re sure most Cruise Critic members who are actively engaged with this forum are already aware) current modifications are no longer a result of water levels, but of the recently announced extended closure of the Altenwörth Lock in Austria.

 

Contact Us

Even if you have already done so previously we ask that you contact us directly at TellUs@vikingcruises.com. We are re-doubling our efforts to address concerns with guests who may feel that they have not been adequately heard. We understand that there are members in this community who remain disappointed and we hope that each of you will contact us again so we may discuss your particular situation.

 

Thank you, as always, for reading and allowing us to have a voice within this community. We appreciate your time, patience and understanding.

 

Sincerely,

Viking Cruises

[Jozicruise]

Hi there

 

We have just come off a cruise from Ruse (Bulgaria) to Vilshofen (Germany) with AMA and we had a very similar experience. It seems that the companies were just not able to project what was going to happen with the water levels, because these floods were spectacularly high. In Passau we saw the high water level for 2002 and for 1501. The latter had been the record flood of all times. The floods in early June surpassed all of that. I think that the cruise companies acted as best they could.

 

We were all extremely frustrated with our first cruise director because we were not getting any information, but in retrospect, I think he was not getting the information to give us. Maybe the companies think if they give too much information, people will panic and then become too difficult. They should consider that we are adults and tell the truth while they try to make alternative arrangements. In the end, AMA did try to make amends by putting us up in good hotels and giving us meals in very fancy restaurants - even better than they themselves could provide.

 

Yes, it is a major disappointment not to dock in the cities as per the itinerary and we spent two full days travelling by bus and lost out on 2 days of cruising and did not dock in two of the cities we were supposed to. But under the circumstances we had a wonderful cruise and a great experience. I will be very happy if we get a cruise credit so that I can go somewhere nice again.

 

I will not keep AMA responsible for any problems they had, as I am sure they would not have arranged it this way. Give Viking a break?

[Lisa1a]

Hi there

 

We have just come off a cruise from Ruse (Bulgaria) to Vilshofen (Germany) with AMA and we had a very similar experience. It seems that the companies were just not able to project what was going to happen with the water levels, because these floods were spectacularly high. In Passau we saw the high water level for 2002 and for 1501. The latter had been the record flood of all times. The floods in early June surpassed all of that. I think that the cruise companies acted as best they could.

 

We were all extremely frustrated with our first cruise director because we were not getting any information, but in retrospect, I think he was not getting the information to give us. Maybe the companies think if they give too much information, people will panic and then become too difficult. They should consider that we are adults and tell the truth while they try to make alternative arrangements. In the end, AMA did try to make amends by putting us up in good hotels and giving us meals in very fancy restaurants - even better than they themselves could provide.

 

Yes, it is a major disappointment not to dock in the cities as per the itinerary and we spent two full days travelling by bus and lost out on 2 days of cruising and did not dock in two of the cities we were supposed to. But under the circumstances we had a wonderful cruise and a great experience. I will be very happy if we get a cruise credit so that I can go somewhere nice again.

 

I will not keep AMA responsible for any problems they had, as I am sure they would not have arranged it this way. Give Viking a break?

 

So you felt AMA treated you well under the circumstances. Some of us do not feel the same with Viking. You state that you missed 2 days of cruising. We missed out on all the cruising. Our ship did not move until we got off of it. You missed two cities that you were to be docked in we missed 8. We were not treated to nice hotels or fancy dinners. So please explain why we should give Viking a break.

[no fuss travel]

Please fight your battles with Viking and not on this board anymore. Enough is enough. We know which of you are unhappy and so does Viking. Please deal with them.

[sippican]

Please fight your battles with Viking and not on this board anymore. Enough is enough. We know which of you are unhappy and so does Viking. Please deal with them.

 

These boards are here to provide a forum for open discussion, opinion and thoughts. I can't imagine why someone would waste their time reading a thread that is of no interest to them, or worry about those who post on such threads. There's plenty of room on the boards for all. :)

[Mark_T]

These boards are here to provide a forum for open discussion, opinion and thoughts. I can't imagine why someone would waste their time reading a thread that is of no interest to them, or worry about those who post on such threads. There's plenty of room on the boards for all. :)

 

At some point though 'sympathy fatigue' starts to arise :)

 

We know that some people on certain cruises were not happy with the way things were handled and were not happy with the compensation offered.

 

Equally others on the same cruises did not feel the same way and were content with what they were offered and have moved on.

 

Viking have already tried to reach out to those still posting about their discontent, to re-engage with them and address their specific and individual concerns in a productive manner.

 

I don't know what else can be reasonably expected of them at this point so to continue to berate them on the forum instead of engaging with them starts to get a little frustrating.

 

If there is still no satisfaction after re-engagement then by all means continue to complain and perhaps mention what was being asked for as compensation so others can perhaps comment on the degree to which it sounds reasonable ...

[goose30]

I remember one time I was on an ocean cruise. I was dining in one of the specialty restaurants. I ordered the veal chop. The wait staff told me (really) that the veal was not so good that day. I said give it to me any way. It was HORRIBLE. But hey I ordered it.

 

Was I to ask for my payment back?

 

Similar to "taking" a cruise that is not a cruise. You decide to take your chances you pay your money.