gymswim Cruise Review on Viking Sea on Jan 29, 2017

Reviews: 5

Helpful Votes: 118

Review summary

Viking Ocean Sea Jewels of the Southern Mediterranean mini review I just disembarked the Viking Sea. The ship is lovely and offers great amenities throughout the ship as well as in the cabin. Being a techie, I loved using the free WiFi Web Access throughout the cruise as well as being able to access my personalized daily calendar which listed my booked excursions and restaurant reservations on my phone, tablet or cabin tv. In the cabin, I had plenty of power outlets as well as usb plugs just above the bedside tables. Each headboard also has a built in swivel reading light making it easy to read in bed without disturbing your partner. The spa and gym were well equipped and open most of the time . A nice amenity in the spa was having an ample supply of robes, towels, even comfortable plastic sandals to wear in the spa or up at the pools. It eliminated the need to use the robes in your cabin and to get them wet unnecessarily. The mid ship salt water pool was open all the time which was nice. The temperature was set about 81degrees F. The aft infinity pool was out of commission and I never found out why. The ship has the look and feel of a fine five star hotel rather than a cruise ship. The public areas and the spa on Decks 1 and 2 are beautiful but somewhat enclosed so it's easy to forget you are on a ship. The staff go out of their way to be cheerful and helpful although I found the service in all the dining rooms a bit uneven at times, depending on the waiter. Several times during the week we our entree didn't arrive for 15-25 minutes after our salad. I don't know if the delay is caused by the kitchen backup or something else. I suspect Viking will work it out with time. Viking promotes having women serving people in the dinnertime which is nice to see after so many male dominated cruise lines. My favorite space in the entire ship is the Explorer Lounge on Deck 7 forward. It is simply stunning and a great place to read, get a snack and watch the world go by. There is ready access to the outside as well if you want to venture out for photos or to get a broader view. The the World Cafe is nicely designed and the food was just as good or better than the dining rooms. The only problem we encountered was on days when there were many excursions returning to the ship at the same time, or excursions leaving around the same time. Then it was really crowded and not especially pleasant. I'm sure Viking can work this problem out over time by staggering their tours better. The singers and dancers performed in the theater which has a state of the art sound and lighting system, including the latest in LED screen technology. The shows were not always successful in showcasing the talented singers and dancers, a couple of show themes kissed the mark. But the Abba song show was a huge crowd pleaser as well as a perfect way to showcase their singers. The two classically trained dancers could have been used more effectively and more often. For those who enjoy non alcoholic beverages, they have the best selection of choices of any cruise line I've been on, including, non alcoholic beer, wines and even champagne. EMBARKATION and disemarkation was the smoothest of any cruise line I've been on too. They break up the departures for example in 15 minute intervals so that there isn't that giant crush of people looking for their luggage at the same time. Bags are tagged and organized ashore according to each group of 25. Very nice. Our cabin attendant did a great job, although I hardly saw him and couldn't get him to understand my desire to keep the beaker of fresh water provided in the cabin each day in the bathroom where I used it. I was so busy with extra excursions that I didn't spend much time aboard during the day. One disappointment on our itinerary was that in two ports we couldn't take advantage of the included tours because the optional paid cruises we took returned to the shop 15 minutes after the free tour departed. I would have expected Viking to work this out and to make accommodation. The Excursion desk people said they could not. Overall, I am very impressed with Viking Ocean. Their ships have much to offer above others in the small ship market. The staff are a wonderful United Nations, especially of Eastern Europeans etc. And having women servers was nice to see. Our cruise director was a very talented Mezzo soprano who at times was a bit too overbearing/ dictatorial and somewhat condescending to passengers for my taste, but she softened and grew on me as the cruise progressed. She went out of her way to give credit to the entire staff the lady night and made the passengers feel appreciated. One big advantage Viking has over other American based cruise lines is that Viking goes to more places off the beaten track like Algiers, Vallencia and Tunisia, Egypt and Istanbul that I want to continue to visit. They are a little pricy but I hope they can offer sales that will enable me to use them more often. We used their air offering both going and coming. The pricing was unbeatable given our itinerary arriving and departing from different ports.