Viking Emerald Cruise Reviews - Reviews

The ship was easy to move about, cabin was clean, arranged for easy movement, Dining Room- open feeling,menus selection developed with atmosphere ( Chinese) and Western Menu for change of pace. Library, Computer Room, Bar, Open deck all organized and maintained and the crew had the passenger's welfare in mind at all times.

So this River cruise to China is as much about the land excursions as it is about the river -- and the land accommodations and tours did not disappoint. the 5-star hotels were excellent, and the food off-shore was generally good (one really bad meal in Beijing). Onboard the meals were excellent, good variety, nice service, plenty of decent complimentary wine. I would have preferred more varied exercise equipment, and there wasn't much to do onboard other than relax and mingle. Stateroom was surprisingly comfortable. The organization was top notch -- buses were always where they should be, flights and luggage handled well. Our Chinese tour escort was absolutely the best -- she provided so much insight into the life of Chinese people in addition to making the sights come alive with her stories and background info. She made it really special.

Updated and excellent

The staff was great!! Food was excellent!! No complaints

This is a cruise-tour in China that included several hotel accomodations and flights, plus the cruise part of the trip. The land part of the trip was exceptional, the hotels were 5 stars plus, and the flights and transportation were done just right. Our general experience was very good.

The hotels we stayed in were top notch 5-star hotels. Very luxurious, excellent attention to detail. World class staff, excellent food, extremely comfortable, with all amenities. Our tour guide, Jimmy, was very friendly and knowledgable. He shared about the history and culture and made our entire trip enjoyable. We actually have emailed back and fourth several times. Despite being taken to some tourist traps like the silk rug factory, jade factory, embroidery store we enjoyed all of the tours. The main reason we went on this trip was to see the Terracotta Warriors. In the end the highlight was the great wall. It was awe-inspiring and breathtaking. Some of the museum tours were a little long for my taste but we got a very well rounded taste of the history and culture of China. This was my first river cruise experience. I have cruised oceanliners 8+ times. If you are expecting an ocean cruise ship this is not it. That said, we loved it! All staterooms are outside cabins with balconies. The ship was very clean and since it is not very big we did not get lost. The one thing I wish it had was a swimming pool. It was very hot and humid in August. It would have been nice to be ableto cool off. Our first night on the ship was very humid and our cabin felt very damp. We went to the front desk and they immediately gave us a choice of other cabins. (I think the airconditioner was malfunctioning) They were very accomodating and our next cabin was great. The crew is essentially the only entertainment, but they put on a great show for us. They are very friendly and can't do enough for you. There were some intersting lectures onboard but frequently we bypassed those to sit outside with a drink watching the scenery and taking pictures. Did I say it was humid? At times I could not use my camera due to the lens fogging up. The scenery ranges from boring to incredibly beautiful. The food was very good and there were several choices each meal. I did enjoy the food while touring the various regions in China and found the choices abundant. The meal stops while on tour were not typically high class, but the food was good. Overall excellent experience. I was a little leary of going with a tour group as we usually discover places on our own. We thoroughly enjoyed it and made friends that we have been in touch with and shared pictures and stories with. Will definitely river cruise again. I love the constant scenery and there is no motion sickness!

Viking River cruises delivered a superb experience in every way. From booking/planning and arrival, each step was shephearded by my United Cruises consultant and I couldn't have asked for a better experience. Our United flights were excellent, the Tour was completely escorted, including all baggage handling, all meals for 12 days, 3 internal flights within China and some included and optional evening entertainment. The initial touring around Beijing included major sites and descriptive insights by our tour escort/tour guide. Xian was the high-point featuring the Terra Cotta Warriors and then free time to explore the local Pagoda. The 4 night cruise was a wonderful way to get to know passengers from other buses and see the beauty of the river and the 3 Gorges. I was pleasantly surprised to find the ship had a tailor on board making custom silk clothing, an artist producing paintings in front of our eyes and pearl jewelers who make pearl jewelry per your own design all overnight at a very reasonable price. There was even a tea ceremony section where the tea expert spent considerable time educating and delighting all of the passengers . The evening entertainment featured our ship staff performing ethnic Chinese song and dance. This was so distinctive and different from large cruises.  Our fellow guests were a wonderful mix of academics (teachers/professors) and other professionals. Sharing our interests and views of the trip as we experienced together made the journey even more special. Viking attracts a very educated clientele, including young couples, families with teenagers and young adults as well as middle age and slightly older crowd.  This trip was definitely a bit strenuous for the guests in their mid-late 70's.  We were very pleased with this trip in every way from cost to experience.

We just completed the Viking trip to China that started in Shanghai and ended in Beijing.    It included the terra cottas in Xian as well as the 3 gorges dam on the Yangtze.   It was an excellent trip and really well done by Viking.    We had not been on a Viking tour before, but it was definitely a great experience.   We plan on going on more in the future.   We were able to see all of the important things in China with this tour, which was well organized, great tour guides, and the weather cooperated for us as well.   The fellow travelers we had on the trip were also great, and we thoroughly enjoyed their company.   I would highly recommend this trip for anyone who wants to see all the highlights in China with a great tour group.    All of the hotels were 5 star, and excellent.    The in country flights that we took were also convenient and top notch.   We loved it.