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Tell Me Why.....


Oville
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No one should be afraid.

I personally rate Viking ships among a few best afloat.

However I need to add that this thread is nice and sweet for those who already booked a cruise, but for those doing a serious research, this thread is overly sugar sweet - the only few compliments that are missing in this thread are probably that the sea is blue, water is wet, the sun is hot, and the sky is high - that is why we cruise on Viking!

Our next four cruises are not with Viking.

But we always keep the beautiful Viking ships in mind while planning our cruise life. :)

 

The OP's subject was "Tell me why I should try Viking." I wouldn't expect that to elicit negative comments. Probably "Tell me your impressions of Viking" would get a range of opinions. Then again, maybe not. :rolleyes:

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We are doing the Alla company because of seasoned cruisers (we met them last October on our Viking Portugal cruise) who raved about it for St Petersburg. I'll try to post when home.

 

We left early and have been in the U.K. for a week and just arrived in Stockholm today. This is our second time in Stockholm and again, there is so much to do in four days. We have restaurant reservations (a must) for each night.

 

Just was told by the hotel here that the taxis are not regulated. Use the ones the hotel gets for you or use Uber.

 

Trav25 -- would love to hear about your experience. We are "this close" to booking Viking Homelands for next spring -- it "won out" over HAL. Private tour for St Petersburg is planned but haven't checked out other ports yet. We have 3 days in Stockholm -- restaurant reservations "a must"?

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What a wonderful thread. So much information. I was wondering about the included tours -- are they very crowded? Do a fair number of passengers take the optional tours? I'm not a fan of large busses, preferring smaller grps and a little more freedom.

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What a wonderful thread. So much information. I was wondering about the included tours -- are they very crowded? Do a fair number of passengers take the optional tours? I'm not a fan of large busses, preferring smaller grps and a little more freedom.

 

About 30 people per bus (depending on the tour).

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What a wonderful thread. So much information. I was wondering about the included tours -- are they very crowded? Do a fair number of passengers take the optional tours? I'm not a fan of large busses, preferring smaller grps and a little more freedom.

 

The Quiet Vox audio system that Viking uses has excellent range, so usually it is not necessary to stay right in the cluster of people with the guide. I tend to lag behind, looking for my own photo ops, and haven't gotten lost yet! Most tours include some time on your own, and most ports have shuttles that run from a pre-determined spot so that you can return to the ship at a later time, if you choose not to go back with your tour bus.

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What a wonderful thread. So much information. I was wondering about the included tours -- are they very crowded? Do a fair number of passengers take the optional tours? I'm not a fan of large busses, preferring smaller grps and a little more freedom.

 

We never had a full bus while on included excursion (ocean cruise). River cruise tours were mostly walking with a lot of free time. Some of the Ocean bus tours were ok but I really loved River cruise walking tours.

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The Quiet Vox audio system that Viking uses has excellent range, so usually it is not necessary to stay right in the cluster of people with the guide. I tend to lag behind, looking for my own photo ops, and haven't gotten lost yet! Most tours include some time on your own, and most ports have shuttles that run from a pre-determined spot so that you can return to the ship at a later time, if you choose not to go back with your tour bus.

 

Unfortunately, not all of the tours I have been on used them. Personally, since I can't hear the guide unless I am right on top of him/her (or not at all if there is a lot of other noise), I wish their use was mandatory for all guides on all tours.

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Unfortunately, not all of the tours I have been on used them. Personally, since I can't hear the guide unless I am right on top of him/her (or not at all if there is a lot of other noise), I wish their use was mandatory for all guides on all tours.

 

I agree, certainly all guides should use them for every tour. We were fortunate to have them in use for each excursion. Hopefully, Viking will work on this issue.

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We never had a full bus while on included excursion (ocean cruise). River cruise tours were mostly walking with a lot of free time. Some of the Ocean bus tours were ok but I really loved River cruise walking tours.

Agree. River cruise tours mostly good but included ocean tours not most not great on the Homelands cruise. Arrange your own or pay for other excursions.

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  • 1 month later...
Try it because you are tired of mindless entertainment.

Try it because you don't need a casino.

Try it because you are sick and tired of the nickel-and-diming.

Try it because you can live without other people's children.

Try it because you are more interested in the ports of call than in partying until dawn.

Try it because you are never asked to pose for photos.

Try in because you like cruising among friendly people.

Try it because you are invited to BYO wine, beer or other potables.

Try it because you don't have to hide in your room to drink your BYO.

Try it because there is no corkage fee in the dining rooms.

Try it because specialty dining is included.

 

Wow! You've stated the facts perfectly! :)

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  • 3 months later...
Time to put all the "try it becauses" in one place. Please do continue to add to the list. I'm sure we have only scratched the surface:

Try it because you are tired of mindless entertainment.

Try it because you don't need a casino.

Try it because you are sick and tired of the nickel-and-diming.

Try it because you can live without other people's children.

Try it because you are more interested in the ports of call than in partying until dawn.

Try it because you are never asked to pose for photos.

Try it because you like cruising among friendly people.

Try it because you are invited to BYO wine, beer or other potables.

Try it because you don't have to hide in your room to drink your BYO.

Try it because there is no corkage fee in the dining rooms.

Try it because specialty dining is included.

Try it because there is no formal night.

Try it because there is no bang-bang music.

Try it because there are nooks and crannies everywhere to read, relax, and just be.

Try it because the tables in the cafe (buffet) are set with silverware and napkins and a beverage server comes to take your order as soon as you sit down.

Try it because room service will deliver delicious coffee and juice, even on debarkation day, within 10 minutes of your call.

Try it because the free spa area is unbelievable!

Take Viking because the staff can't help enough. If you have an issue they are quick, efficient and do their job with a smile.

Take it because even the service at the buffet is better than any other cruise ship.

Take it because you love English tea in the afternoon.

 

Heavens. It sounds like we picked the perfect cruise company for us, then.

 

 

I say this is our first cruise because that’s how I see it, but I did cruise once before for work (long story). That cruise line was fine, I’m sure, but it also had a lot of features that made me think I’d never enjoy going on a cruise for vacation. In your list above, you pretty much covered all of them.

 

 

I think Viking sounds like the perfect cruise line for introverts who enjoy a good chat but who also value their space. That was emphatically NOT the case on the other cruise line.

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I think Viking sounds like the perfect cruise line for introverts who enjoy a good chat but who also value their space. That was emphatically NOT the case on the other cruise line.

 

I am extremely shy and I think you could call me an introvert because of it. Viking was a great match for us.

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I am extremely shy and I think you could call me an introvert because of it. Viking was a great match for us.

 

I’m very outgoing and my DH not and Viking was great match for us. We’ve met quite a few couples where I and one of the other spouses will chat away and our better halves would smile to each other with understanding smiles :halo:

BTW, we just booked our 3rd cruise with Viking! If I could only survive Air Department :(

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I’m very outgoing and my DH not and Viking was great match for us. We’ve met quite a few couples where I and one of the other spouses will chat away and our better halves would smile to each other with understanding smiles :halo:

BTW, we just booked our 3rd cruise with Viking! If I could only survive Air Department :(

In other words, perfect match for all personalities.:D

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We are considering our first Viking Ocean. It will be a transatlantic. We have done 40 with Celeb one Oceania and are looking for something new. We found Oceania a little too quiet. Thank you for all the info here.

 

If anyone has recently returned from a Viking Ocean cruise, could you please add here your experiences.

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We are considering our first Viking Ocean. It will be a transatlantic. We have done 40 with Celeb one Oceania and are looking for something new. We found Oceania a little too quiet. Thank you for all the info here.

 

If anyone has recently returned from a Viking Ocean cruise, could you please add here your experiences.

 

You might get more responses to your request if you were to start a new thread with your request rather than burying it at the bottom of an older thread. Getting responses is about being seen by more people and more people will see a new thread than will return to read this old one.

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If anyone has recently returned from a Viking Ocean cruise, could you please add here your experiences.

Recently posted Cruise Critic reviews will also give you a good overview ... but of course take an overall perspective rather than being put off by one individual review (eg the reviewer who was 'bored to death').

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We are considering our first Viking Ocean. It will be a transatlantic. We have done 40 with Celeb one Oceania and are looking for something new. We found Oceania a little too quiet. Thank you for all the info here.

 

If anyone has recently returned from a Viking Ocean cruise, could you please add here your experiences.

 

you've done 40+ cruises but were any trans' crossings? If so then disregard the following ....

 

I'll not comment on Viking but will on a TransAtlantic ..... you have a number of days in a row with no port calls. Even on a LARGE ship this can be 'boring' for some. Unless you like reading and just watching the water go by a TA can be taxing - lectures, casinos, other 'special features' can help the time go by ..... and depending on the time of the year and route, going outside may be a COLD experience.

 

Our last crossing on QM2 was a west bound in June and it was too cold and too windy to do ANYTHING outside all but the last day.

 

And wrt to vessel size, in addition to 'what is there to do' consider that 'if the weather started getting rough' .... bigger is always better!!!!

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Also, Viking culture embraces continuous improvement so where a tour or something is below par, they work to improve it.

I saw this happen on a River cruise where a tour and tour guide seriously underperformed.

Even that sub par tour was OK, just not up to the quality level I've experienced on Viking tours.

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