River Cruises - All Cruise Reviews

Viking staff, both ship and air were professional, courteous and friendly. We received helpful assistance from the concierge and the transfer representatives at the airport for both our arrival and departure.

I have taken over 30 cruises over the past 20 years.  I have stayed in balconied cabins, suites, and the traditional interior cabins.  I have been overall always very satisfied until this sailing.

I took my first Viking River Cruise last week. Here is a brief pro's and con's:

Pro's: 1) Easy embarkation/debarkation; 2) Friendliness of most Staff; 3) Virtually smoke free environment; 4) Walking Tours Fantastic; 5) PrePost trips were Superior

Con's: 1) Almost everyone became sick during the trip (probably some cleanliness issues, my party did not get sick until returning home); 2) Food was average at best; 3) Strict Dining Times (always had cookies); 4) Lack of Any Exercise Equipment; 5) Bathroom Drainage and Overall Ventilation Issues (limited fresh air); 6) Extremely Noisy due to 67+ locks

We had a Great River, Gary the Cruise Director kept things very interesting, the weather was and little cool with one day  a total rain out. Next time I would go in September as the weather and the water levels would be a little better.

We enjoyed seeing the sights of Europe with all the excursions included. It would have been nicer if the dock for Paris would have been closer to the center of the city.

We cannot stop talking about our cruise down the Danube on the beautiful AmaStella.  Everything was absolutely perfect.

We were met on the dock by the captain and officers who gathered up our bags and moved them to our room while we enjoyed a relaxing drink on the sun deck.  

Our balcony room was spotlessly clean and well appointed.  Beautiful linens, efficient bathroom and plenty of storage room so that we felt like we could put away our belongings and move in.

We met our steward, Ardi, who was there for us whenever we needed him.  He also cleaned our room when we left for tours so that we could return and relax.  At night he again tidied and left us chocolates on our pillows.

The food was wonderful.  Breakfast and lunch were mainly beautiful buffets to which you could add custom cooked dishes.  Dinner dishes were chosen from a menu and changed daily.  Beer and wine were plentiful and well chosen.  The food was the best we have had on any cruise we have ever taken.

Then there were the tours. Our Cruise Manager, Nikola, had set up both walking tours and bus tours that really made us feel we had seen and enjoyed the cities we visited.  The tour leaders were knowledgeable and funny, telling anecdotes about the character and history of each city.  When we traveled by bus, the buses were new, clean and safe.  We even had to wear seat belts.  Nikola hovered over us to ensure we were happy, entertained and educated.

Finally there was the personnel.  To a person - officers, reception staff, maintenance and cleaning staff, waiters, cooks ( and i know they played several rolls) - all were friendly, helpful and really seemed to enjoy their work. 

We give the tour and the ship 5 stars.

Can't say enough about the Delling crew, ship, and service.  With a gluten allergy Chief Daniel made a personal effort to provide me with option to enjoy his culinary talents.  Well appointed rooms, public areas and lounges.  Viking offers many excursions that are included and a wonderful additional options.  A lot of time is spent on tour coaches traveling to the tour locations, but that is an option that is at the travelers discretion.  Optional tour was guided by Nico..........Can't say enough about his knowledge, and personality.

Cruising on the middle Rhine was exceptional, staff of Viking set a happy tone.  Nicole was exceptional as our guide. The food was amazing, we never went more than 2 hours fwithout eating!  Being welcomed back from shore visits with a drink of local flavor was a great touch. the ship was so clean.  The staff were so friendly, especially Norvin and Jon Jon.

Avalon is awesome. The Imagery11 was new and beautiful. The staff was awesome. The itinerary was very enjoyable  and flexible for all needs and tastes.

The whole was 1st rate.  The crew was great, the entertainment was 1st class. A river cruise is great you have something to see on either side of the boat. We would recommend it any friend that wants a river cruise

We loved the great hotels where we stayed, while on land:  Prague Hilton, Budapest Hilton and the Bucharest Inter-Continental.  The ship was beautiful and the staff was high class- providing exquisite service.  The tours were by local guides and brought you the history and culture of the people- which we found to be wonderful.

The tours, visiting with local citizens that not only shared each country's history and culture, but shared their personal and family perspectives on culture and recent history...making it come alive for me!

We chose the cruise and land trip and it was all first class.  The Sofitel hotels were elegant and in excellent locations.  We arrived in Saigon three days early, and that gave us time to rest up from the long flight and do some exploring on our own.  We did the same at the end and stayed longer in Hanoi.  The Amadara was just as pictured and the food was excellent.  The best of all was the staff-very friendly and proud of their service always with smiles.  Try a dinner at the Chef's Table-a real treat.  The cruise manager was super and every detail was taken care of.  We never waited for anything.  The guides were very knowledgable and adding local guides at each stop made it very personal.

I wish we had been able to have another day in Phenom Phen otherwise, the stops were well planned.  If you want to explore more on your own, just take the seven day cruise and book the land on your own schedule, but don't miss Ha Long Bay that was offered as part of the land tour by Ama.

Viking delivers a good cruising experience.  They live up to their advertisements.  I like that they offer a free tour at every port, with optional tours for a reasonable price.  I especially like that they use those listening devices so that even if I am at the back of the crowd, I can clearly hear what the tour guide is telling us.  The guides counted us often so that no one was inadvertently left behind.  This gave me, traveling alone, a good sense of security - even in the Moscow Metro.

The ONLY thing that we would change about this wonderful trip would have been to spend one or two more nights in Prague... The rest of the trip was AWESoME!

Overall, we loved this tour! Viking did an amazing job...so well organized, friendly staff, great tour excursions and wonderful accommodations.

We started in Beijing. The hotel (the Kerry) was lovely. The 240+ guests were split into smaller groups and assigned an escort who travelled with us the entire trip. Our group was 32 people and our guide was Jack who really made our trip unfold seamlessly...can't say enough good things about him! It was nice to have a few days together with the small group before getting on the boat because it allowed us to form good friendships easily.

Beijing was fantastic...the architecture was mind boggling! The Geat Wall and Forbidden City tours were great...the days long and very active but rewarding. Next stop, Xi'an and the Terra Cotta warriors...again, outstanding tour not to be missed! After that we flew to Chongqing to board the ship. The itinerary gave lots of info about this huge city, what to do and see etc....we did not see any of it, ie, we got off the plane and were bussed directly to the ship to board and leave. Although we missed it, our friends saw the lights during the sail away and said it was so beautiful and should not be missed...VIking should emphasize it a little more. The cruise itself was quite good and we all needed a little down time after such a busy start. The tour excursions were interesting, especially the stop at the  school. Overall, I think the cruise is perhaps a day too long and wish there had been more time allotted to Shanghai. Our hotel, the Westin, in Shanghai was located very well and allowed us to walk to many sites. The Gardens we toured might have been one of the most beautiful things  we saw! The acrobat show was over the top. We stayed on an extra day because of our flight details which allowed us to take in more of the city, which is quite spectacular.

Perhaps my only complaint would be that the food became very boring and repetitive quite quickly. We got tired of the buffet meals, served on a lazy Susan or in the normal table layouts. The dinners on the ship were served at the table which was nice.

This was a very busy, active holiday and we totally enjoyed it and enjoyed our introduction to China...would absolutely recommend it to anyone as long as they are mobile enough to walk and enjoy the sights.

Viking tried to make the best of a bad/tragic situation. Result was more a bus tour than a cruise and not at all what we expected. I trust that Viking will do right by the passengers in terms of compensation, but that remains to be determined.

This cruise never was a cruise; low water prevented the ships from cruising and Viking never got in touch with us as they had an incorrect email address but they did not take the extra effort to call us and ask us if we wanted to cancel. We only found out when we arrived at the hotel in Prague. The "cruise" required us to change ships halfway through the trip and all travel was by bus - instead of leisurely cruising on the Elbe; Staff worked hard to compensate but there really is no way to compensate. Horrible experience even though some of the tours were really good but several were very poor.

The crew was fantastic,friendly,fun  the tours terrific, the food was amazing .

the music for dancing was great, the ship was out of this world !

It was a wonderful trip and we highly recommend Viiking.

They couldn't do more for us.

Excursions--Monserrat, Arles, Les Baux, Avignon, Truffle farm, olive farm, historic Roman sites--all charming.

Better lighting, drawers, better storage for clothes in cabins would be nice (but the ship is being replaced).

Food outstanding.

Cities--Barcelona, Lyon, Paris--colorful, entertaining, and exciting.

Overall, a great experience for our 50th anniversary.

I can't really say what our favorite part of the cruise was. We were treated like royalty by the crew and staff and never wanted for anything. The food was excellent, the excursions were very good, and the people we met on-board were very friendly. We had a really good time exploring the cities along the Rhine as well as during our Pre-stay in Amsterdam and our Post-stay in Basel. The boat was very clean and comfortable, the excursion guides were great and a good time was had by all.