RoadLover
New Member
I just returned from the worse cruise experience of my life and I blame it on Viking
River Cruises. Viking is not the image they advertise! Their website didn't work for months before my cruise. It took an hour to get through the phones. My flight back - that they arranged - was canceled and they never informed me (Luckily I looked at
the airline schedule). The day after I arrived Eastern Europe closed down for
another pandemic breakout. Surely they knew about the closedown 24 hours
before. They should have told me the morning of my departure and I could have
avoided the hell I went through. Viking mishandled 90% of my Elegant Elbe River
Cruise. Viking boasts how they've does business in that part of the for years and
are the best. Most of our advertised main river stops were closed to us. Instead, Vikiing took us on buses to dreary non-tourist cities and left us at repetitive small
local Xmas markets; a few kiosks, sausages and candy every time. The ship was
dreary, not a touch of a decoration or color, zilch entertainment except for an
afternoon piano and the worst TV of any cruise I've experienced. "Happy Hour" was
peanuts and a piano. Meals were not creative or interesting. When they used their
metal gangplank there was no rubber mat to prevent us from slipping on the wet
surface. One passenger was badly injured and they didn’t have a doctor or a
medical kit onboard. Every excursion (except for Prague) was about WWII, nazis
and walls from bombed buildings. Never could our guide come up with a
recommendation for a place to eat or other tips (haven't they heard of Trip Advisor?) This was one
of their most costly cruises. When I returned, I got a voucher I'll never use for 25%
of my $12,000 cruise!
River Cruises. Viking is not the image they advertise! Their website didn't work for months before my cruise. It took an hour to get through the phones. My flight back - that they arranged - was canceled and they never informed me (Luckily I looked at
the airline schedule). The day after I arrived Eastern Europe closed down for
another pandemic breakout. Surely they knew about the closedown 24 hours
before. They should have told me the morning of my departure and I could have
avoided the hell I went through. Viking mishandled 90% of my Elegant Elbe River
Cruise. Viking boasts how they've does business in that part of the for years and
are the best. Most of our advertised main river stops were closed to us. Instead, Vikiing took us on buses to dreary non-tourist cities and left us at repetitive small
local Xmas markets; a few kiosks, sausages and candy every time. The ship was
dreary, not a touch of a decoration or color, zilch entertainment except for an
afternoon piano and the worst TV of any cruise I've experienced. "Happy Hour" was
peanuts and a piano. Meals were not creative or interesting. When they used their
metal gangplank there was no rubber mat to prevent us from slipping on the wet
surface. One passenger was badly injured and they didn’t have a doctor or a
medical kit onboard. Every excursion (except for Prague) was about WWII, nazis
and walls from bombed buildings. Never could our guide come up with a
recommendation for a place to eat or other tips (haven't they heard of Trip Advisor?) This was one
of their most costly cruises. When I returned, I got a voucher I'll never use for 25%
of my $12,000 cruise!
