What is it that's giving Viking No 1 spot on ratings ? I don't get it

[Clay Clayton]

2 minutes ago, millybess said:

How long has Mark been on Sky?  We had a guitarist named Mark on Sea a few weeks ago and he was really good.  By far, the best guitarist Viking has had in the EL during any of our cruises.

Not sure if he boarded in Fort Lauderdale or in LA with us?  He is from the Philippines and has a very high voice-tenor? When we first heard him, without seeing him, I thought it was a woman singing. 

[FlyerTalker]

4 hours ago, Clay Clayton said:

Flyer, ya know I love ya, but here is my arrow-I don’t think Viking positions themselves in the same market as Seabourn, Silverseas, or Regent-they certainly aren’t priced that way.   I see Oceana as their major competitor not those uberlux lines. 

 

Agreed that Viking doesn't explicitly position themselves in those markets.

 

 

[philw1776]

18 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

IMO....anyone who votes for Viking as being better than Seabourn, Silversea or Regent....has never sailed on Seabourn, Silversea or Regent.

 

Viking is a premium line, even though they try to position themselves in the luxury segment.

 

Ready for the slings and arrows.

 

 

I could imagine that Regent & maybe Seabourn could be better but I have sailed on Silversea several times, enjoyed the cruises but prefer Viking. I have made several cruise critic posts comparing the two in detail. I would sail on Silversea again but my 1st choice is Viking.

[LisaDee]

17 hours ago, RichardPTV said:

My wife and I really enjoyed Michael as well. We were on the Mars for the Panama Canal transit over Christmas & New Year and have another trip on the Mars scheduled for April. We're hoping he'll still be on board then.

 

Michael was disembarking at the end of our cruise to go back home, I’m not sure how long he has off.  He recently got married so was excited to return to see his wife.  On the 2nd to last night he headlined the 9pm show in the Star Theater.  The band backed him up and he played both acoustic and electric guitar with songs from Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Johnny Cash, Proclaimers and others.  It was fantastic.

[duquephart]

11 minutes ago, LisaDee said:

 

Michael was disembarking at the end of our cruise to go back home, I’m not sure how long he has off.  He recently got married so was excited to return to see his wife.  On the 2nd to last night he headlined the 9pm show in the Star Theater.  The band backed him up and he played both acoustic and electric guitar with songs from Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Johnny Cash, Proclaimers and others.  It was fantastic.

 

Led Zeppelin and Johnny Cash. Now there's a trick.

[Riverroad]

19 hours ago, kctwinmommy said:

And I'm guessing the amount of people who are cruising those lines are even less than Viking, so a much smaller voting pool. Which might affect how many reviews they get.

You’re exactly right. It’s the number of reviews. Many more people on Viking so many more votes. Doesn’t mean they’re actually the best.

[formernuke]

i think it goes by average rating, not the number of votes, so I don't think it matters that more people sail Viking.

[Hanoj]

4 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

Agreed that Viking doesn't explicitly position themselves in those markets.

 

 

 

Not until Viking includes gratuities. It would be ironic if Oceania does this before Viking.

 

But, by price Seabourn has some sailings (at least ones we might be interested in) much lower on a per person, per night basis than does Viking. In one recent Mediterranean cruise comparison in November 2024, SB was about $6,000 less total fare (excluding air - though Viking doesn't seem to lower the fare if free air is declined) than a similar Viking itinerary. This price differential should more than cover purchased SB excursions included with Viking. Granted the particular SB was on "sale" and the Viking one was nearly fully sold.

[mklions]

When booking in the UK gratuities are included in the price, why is it different for US guests?

[duquephart]

6 minutes ago, mklions said:

When booking in the UK gratuities are included in the price, why is it different for US guests?

 

British consumer protection laws require the total price upfront. No need to be upfront with US customers.

[mklions]

2 minutes ago, duquephart said:

 

British consumer protection laws require the total price upfront. No need to be upfront with US customers.

Then why do some cruise line that we brits go on add gratuities to our final statement at the end of the cruise, such as Cunard for example?

[Cienfuegos]

1 minute ago, mklions said:

Then why do some cruise line that we brits go on add gratuities to our final statement at the end of the cruise, such as Cunard for example?

Do British consumer protection laws protect travelers who book cruises in the US?

 

I like the idea of an "all in" price

[Jim Avery]

5 hours ago, duquephart said:

 

Led Zeppelin and Johnny Cash. Now there's a trick.

Did they also do "Free Bird"??

[Jim Avery]

FWIW, we have sailed Seabourn and Regent.  Much prefer Viking to Seabourn for reasons listed in an earlier comparison thread and think Regent is considerably better than Viking.  Costs considerably more so it should be.  All is totally individual opinions.🍸

[FetaCheese]

1 hour ago, Hanoj said:

 

Not until Viking includes gratuities. It would be ironic if Oceania does this before Viking.

 

But, by price Seabourn has some sailings (at least ones we might be interested in) much lower on a per person, per night basis than does Viking. In one recent Mediterranean cruise comparison in November 2024, SB was about $6,000 less total fare (excluding air - though Viking doesn't seem to lower the fare if free air is declined) than a similar Viking itinerary. This price differential should more than cover purchased SB excursions included with Viking. Granted the particular SB was on "sale" and the Viking one was nearly fully sold.

V included shorex:  mostly bus panoramic with a few stops, or walking tours.  With money saved one can purchase SB shorex that you would want to experience.

 

However,  The HNL Pearl Harbor Tour was a highlight of recent Hawaiian Islands Sojourn cruise. Also took us us to Cemetery of the Pacific -- Punchbowl.  

 

 

[chipmaster]

Having sailed a few cheaper lines, I can say there was nothing disappointing about Viking and I can understand their high rating.   Given their demographics they seem to know it well and cater the experience and ports and excursions  very sensitive to keep that demographic happy.   

[Vineyard View]

On 2/20/2024 at 3:32 AM, Clay Clayton said:

Flyer, ya know I love ya, but here is my arrow-I don’t think Viking positions themselves in the same market as Seabourn, Silverseas, or Regent-they certainly aren’t priced that way.   I see Oceana as their major competitor not those uberlux lines. 

I would suggest that it can depend on a few different factors. Having sailed Viking several times, we looked to do so again for our first cruise post Covid. We do not find value in ship excursions, so the costing with Viking that includes this is not of value to us. We all know that pricing post Covid is crazy across the board, but when I penciled out total cost per person per day on Viking (adding in gratuities and silver spirits) I decided to look around. We landed at Seabourn last year visiting ports in the Mediterranean that we haven’t been to, that Viking does not sail to. SB pricing includes everything except excursions. Their pricing was less pp/pd so we decided to try them. It was a great experience, and we would not hesitate to sail therm for the right itinerary/price point. Same with Viking. We felt that Viking exceeded at some things over SB (spa, promenade), but that SB was a higher level experience…for us. 
I am looking at next year, May/June for a special anniversary. Mediterranean or British Isles. Since we have sailed to most of the ports in the med with Viking, I compared British Isles. Same outcome. SB is again less pp/pd than Viking - once I add in extra costs. Same for the Mediterranean itineraries. 
That said, if ship excursions were important to us, and the included excursions with Viking were satisfactory, then the balance would not be the same in total cost pp/pd. 

[duquephart]

34 minutes ago, Vineyard View said:

I would suggest that it can depend on a few different factors. Having sailed Viking several times, we looked to do so again for our first cruise post Covid. We do not find value in ship excursions, so the costing with Viking that includes this is not of value to us. We all know that pricing post Covid is crazy across the board, but when I penciled out total cost per person per day on Viking (adding in gratuities and silver spirits) I decided to look around. We landed at Seabourn last year visiting ports in the Mediterranean that we haven’t been to, that Viking does not sail to. SB pricing includes everything except excursions. Their pricing was less pp/pd so we decided to try them. It was a great experience, and we would not hesitate to sail therm for the right itinerary/price point. Same with Viking. We felt that Viking exceeded at some things over SB (spa, promenade), but that SB was a higher level experience…for us. 
I am looking at next year, May/June for a special anniversary. Mediterranean or British Isles. Since we have sailed to most of the ports in the med with Viking, I compared British Isles. Same outcome. SB is again less pp/pd than Viking - once I add in extra costs. Same for the Mediterranean itineraries. 
That said, if ship excursions were important to us, and the included excursions with Viking were satisfactory, then the balance would not be the same in total cost pp/pd. 

 

And there's the if.

[Vineyard View]

And what I meant by that was that the included excursions are satisfactory and enjoyable by many. So that changes the equation. I didn’t exactly state it how I meant to. 

[CDNPolar]

I don't think that these "awards" or accolades that are given by various publications and magazines are a reliable source because everyone who loves Viking votes for Viking.  We have only sailed Uniworld once and our experience was not as good as Viking.  Every other cruise we have done was on Viking and we are at 12 or so now.

 

When these voting surveys come out I vote for Viking because we have loved Viking enough to sail on them over and over. 

 

I have no other experience so the vote is not objective, it is subjective.

 

These #1 awards are marketing tools.

[duquephart]

10 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

I would suggest that it can depend on a few different factors. Having sailed Viking several times, we looked to do so again for our first cruise post Covid. We do not find value in ship excursions, so the costing with Viking that includes this is not of value to us. We all know that pricing post Covid is crazy across the board, but when I penciled out total cost per person per day on Viking (adding in gratuities and silver spirits) I decided to look around. We landed at Seabourn last year visiting ports in the Mediterranean that we haven’t been to, that Viking does not sail to. SB pricing includes everything except excursions. Their pricing was less pp/pd so we decided to try them. It was a great experience, and we would not hesitate to sail therm for the right itinerary/price point. Same with Viking. We felt that Viking exceeded at some things over SB (spa, promenade), but that SB was a higher level experience…for us. 
I am looking at next year, May/June for a special anniversary. Mediterranean or British Isles. Since we have sailed to most of the ports in the med with Viking, I compared British Isles. Same outcome. SB is again less pp/pd than Viking - once I add in extra costs. Same for the Mediterranean itineraries. 
That said, if ship excursions were important to us, and the included excursions with Viking were satisfactory, then the balance would not be the same in total cost pp/pd. 

 

There is a Seabourn thread comparing experiences with Viking. Seabourn seems worth looking into.

 

[lisiamc]

On 2/14/2024 at 9:09 PM, phillipahain said:

Totally agree about return from Belize yesterday  Viking really needed to have made arrangements ,,,,thankfully i had thought ahead and  snagged 2 each of the lovely beef and  smoked salmon open sandwiches at the Coffee Bar on Deck 1 as did others  who like my other half took one look at Pool Grill queue and decided against it ....

 

Yes there are nice things about Viking but i just do not think it rates as Number 1 hence why i wondered how they got the rating .......itinery and service is everything when you have been fortunate to cruise many lines and unless something changes Viking wont be our choice 

Yes, great advice! I was just going to mention the lovely little open-face sandwiches served all afternoon in the Living Room. They are the same as Mamsen’s serves at lunchtime. If you’re back to the ship too late for the World Cafè, and the queue is too long at the Pool Grill, have a quick sandwich (or two!) in the Living Room to tide you over until you can have an amazing tea in the Winter Garden. It’s really hard to go hungry in a Viking ship. 

[CDNPolar]

20 hours ago, lisiamc said:

Yes, great advice! I was just going to mention the lovely little open-face sandwiches served all afternoon in the Living Room. They are the same as Mamsen’s serves at lunchtime. If you’re back to the ship too late for the World Cafè, and the queue is too long at the Pool Grill, have a quick sandwich (or two!) in the Living Room to tide you over until you can have an amazing tea in the Winter Garden. It’s really hard to go hungry in a Viking ship. 

 

It is hard to go hungry on a Viking ship - yea, kind of true - but I am a very early riser.  I want tea or coffee at 4:30am to 5:00am.  That is difficult on a Viking Ocean ship.

 

I won't use the in-cabin coffee maker at that hour because the noise it makes could and will wake the dead, and my husband.  

 

I have tried room service with a note on the door hanger menu to "knock ONCE ONLY" but they will come and ring the buzzer several times and wake my husband.

 

The best thing for me is to slip out the door - does not wake my husband - and go to the World Cafe.

 

This is a fine choice but I have so many times found the coffee machines there in cleaning mode, being restocked, or whatever and therefore not able to get a coffee or tea.

 

Viking Ocean need a station for folks like me to self-serve early.  River has it and I LOVE River for this fact.

[lisiamc]

14 minutes ago, CDNPolar said:

 

It is hard to go hungry on a Viking ship - yea, kind of true - but I am a very early riser.  I want tea or coffee at 4:30am to 5:00am.  That is difficult on a Viking Ocean ship.

 

I won't use the in-cabin coffee maker at that hour because the noise it makes could and will wake the dead, and my husband.  

 

I have tried room service with a note on the door hanger menu to "knock ONCE ONLY" but they will come and ring the buzzer several times and wake my husband.

 

The best thing for me is to slip out the door - does not wake my husband - and go to the World Cafe.

 

This is a fine choice but I have so many times found the coffee machines there in cleaning mode, being restocked, or whatever and therefore not able to get a coffee or tea.

 

Viking Ocean need a station for folks like me to self-serve early.  River has it and I LOVE River for this fact.

I agree that they should clean and restock the machines in the World Café one at a time, so outliers like you 😁 (and there are actually a surprising number of super-early birds on a cruise) have options. As much as I like and use the Nespresso machine in the cabin, it can’t make a cappuccino.

[molymoo]

1 hour ago, CDNPolar said:

 

It is hard to go hungry on a Viking ship - yea, kind of true - but I am a very early riser.  I want tea or coffee at 4:30am to 5:00am.  That is difficult on a Viking Ocean ship.

 

I won't use the in-cabin coffee maker at that hour because the noise it makes could and will wake the dead, and my husband.  

 

I have tried room service with a note on the door hanger menu to "knock ONCE ONLY" but they will come and ring the buzzer several times and wake my husband.

 

The best thing for me is to slip out the door - does not wake my husband - and go to the World Cafe.

 

This is a fine choice but I have so many times found the coffee machines there in cleaning mode, being restocked, or whatever and therefore not able to get a coffee or tea.

 

Viking Ocean need a station for folks like me to self-serve early.  River has it and I LOVE River for this fact.

Interesting ... Have been a 4:00 AM person for more than 45 years.  Was my wake up, get up time while working and commuting so it is pretty much in my DNA now.  Have done more than 10 VO cruises and never had any issues getting coffee from the WC in the wee hours.  Would happily use the in room coffee maker but it's a bit complex for my tastes ... my daughter is in charge of the later cups.