River Cruises - All Cruise Reviews

Ship was very well maintained. Some of the smaller towns (e.g. Golubac) had very little to offer. Loved the fact that there were portions of several days where we were cruising during daylight hours giving us the opportunity to relax and enjoy the scenery. Budapest and our post-cruise extension to Prague were definitely the highlights. Hotels in all three cities (Bucharest, Budapest and Prague) were very good especially the excellent breakfast in Budapest and the location of the Augustinian hotel in Prague.

Most of the sailing is at night so there is not much sightseeing from the ship. In some ports you might have an obstructed view because you are tied up to another ship. In most ports the ship does not dock in the city center. The buses for the tours don't stop in front of the ship except at Breisach Am Rhine, Germany.

The pre-cruise Swiss excursion (5 days) was truly excellent, including the Glacier Express train. Viking did an excellent job overall of managing the cruise; the staff was outstanding. Hotels in Zurich and Paris were good hotels but not convenient for visiting sights. Zermatt was a lot of fun. The pre-cruise Swiss excursion guide (Charles) was excellent. Guides on the river cruise portion for the most part were ordinary. Management of time by the guides on the tours was not very good. Viking cruises are expensive so you expect top quality. That was not the case about 30% of the time. Some of the wine tasting were truly sub-par, not worth the money spent on the excursions. The Versailles excursion was way overpriced. Should have cost 1/2 of what we paid for what we saw and did. The river cruise had only 4 hours of scenic cruising, the rest was very mundane. Once again, the Viking staff was truly outstanding.

Well organized. We visited many sites and had different experiences. Excursions are really interesting and very well organized

Disappointing cruise because 50% of cruise we were traveling by bus for hours back and forth.Very poor value. Nothing relaxing. Balcony rooms tiny. Half of the time we were parallel docked next to other Viking ship with no views, privacy. Why to pay extra to have balcony if you can’t enjoy it? There is nothing to do on board. Food was average. No communication from Viking company regarding constant changes. Staff is excellent but I felt that they were used as “escape goats”for Viking company.

The entire experience with Viking was wonderful and I highly recommend this company for a river cruise. The staff, the food, the ship, the daily activities, the included tours and many optional tours were all wonderful. I could have stayed another two weeks and I hope to experience an ocean voyage next (along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea) based on feedback from others on this ship. There were only 150 guests, so we all became friends. The sun deck and lounge were great spaces to relax and meet new friends. We were on the lower level so only had a small window (upper two levels had balconies). We did not miss the balcony and since we were often docked next to other boats and while sleeping or dressing the curtains are closed, unless one plans to stay in the room a lot, I think it is unnecessary as the state rooms are the same size.

Cruise was excellent and would consider another in the future. Would have liked a bit more entertainment at night but overall a great experience

This is a true expedition ship, definitely not your usual cruise! Multiple PhD's on board giving lectures on geology, oceanography, etc., and gathering data for NOAA and universities. The ship itself is magnificent, and has very unique facilities -- Zodiac boats, high-speed boats, and two mini-subs!! Visiting small settlements on Great Lakes islands and taking hikes, boat trips, etc., while the scientific teams do their research and give scientific lectures.

The scenery was outstanding both from on board and excursions. The Expedition Scientists were readily available and knowledgeable. We attended all daily briefings and lectures which added depth and content to the overall experience. Viking hospitality was in full effect. Our cabin was well tended and spacious. We sampled all dining venues and were pleased with all.

We found we like ocean cruising better than river cruising for several reasons: more dining options at varied times on an ocean cruise (river cruise had set dining times and no other options). More entertainment and more quality entertainment on ocean cruise. If you are big into history and like seeing churches and cathedrals on every excursion, this would be a great cruise....seeing the same type things over and over got old to me.

Highly recommend this trip! Viking is wonderful and the cities are all a must-see!

Positives: Cruise director Marco was exceptional, specially considering the many issues encountered. Food service was vey good with adequate selections. Personnel on the Baldur during the first half of the cruise were very friendly, After changing to the Magni there was a considerable reduced friendliness from the Bar and dining room service personnel with exception of Ivan who was very friendly and helpful. The first excursion to Kinderdijk was very disappointing, though the guide we had tried to do his best in the allotted time of about one hour. While from Amsterdam to Kinderdijk is only just over one hour drive, we were told that due to low water conditions the ship would go on to Emmerich in Germany and then a bus would take us to Kinderdijk. The bus trip was nearly 3.5 hours each way to and from, when arriving at Kinderdijk we were immediately told we would not be able to visit or go close to the windmill due to time restriction set by Viking. To top it all of there was another Viking cruise ship moored at kinderdijk with another tour group. So obviously low water was not an issue for them. Similar issues were experienced throughout the cruise where we would moor at less than desirable docks often with extreme slopes for embarking and disembarking, most often away from the towns we were to visit. The upper deck was not available for over half of the cruise due to locks and low bridges. We asked Marco about checking the filtration system on the contracted busses since we noticed considerable coughing by various guests. And yes we started coughing after a few days though we did use our masks most all the time while in the various busses, when arriving at home we confirmed we had Covid with an at-home test kit. We did ask at the beginning of the cruise with the customer service desk for a potential upgrade since we were in cabin 106. We were told that his would cost us $1500 to do so to a French Balcony. After the next several stops, we were glad we did not take them up on this “offer” since it would only have added to the disappointment and frustration. As was also noted by other friends, the only time they were able to use their balcony was while cruising down the river (which was mostly at night) since while at the various docks we were most often docked between other vessels causing the windows and balconies exactly to line up with the same balconies on the other ships making use of the windows and balconies very uncomfortable while looking into other passenger’s cabins. While some excursion guides were very informed and knowledgeable about the cities and buildings some were less than informative and not very good.

The Viking Cruise was our 2nd one so we knew what to expect. The staff and crew were so friendly and accommodating, food was excellent and our rooms were always sparking clean! We like that the River cruises limit the number aboard which makes it so personal meeting others and learning where they live.

This was our 2nd Viking River Cruise so we already knew what to expect. The staff was so friendly and welcoming, food excellent and room accommodations couldn’t have been better! Weather was hot but all the tour guides followed the shade walking and gave us advice.

I would suggest the last half of the trip with crew of the first ship Aegir

We prefer ocean cruises as there are more food choices and flexibility when you eat.

The ship Director, Sharon, was amazing and well organized. You will have a tremendous experience on the Mani with her.

This is a very nice cruise. Typically an older crowd so they cater to that. It would be nice to see more younger people on board.

I generally don't like to socialize on vacation, but that was one of the best parts of the trip. The people we met were very friendly, and we had an amazing time getting to know them. The ship and the crew and the cruise director Joost were all exceptional and had great service. The food and the accommodations were all amazing. I definitely want to do this again.

An excellent cruise for folks interested in Roman and French history and , of course, French wines. Excellent food and drink. Viking does not disappoint. Susie the cruise director was very attentive and enthusiastic. Shore excursions were very informative and well organized. Viking handled the embarkation and debarkation process seamlessly.