Viking Njord Review

4.0 / 5.0
134 reviews

Viking Njord 5/26/12-6/9/12 Budapest to Amsterdam

Review for Europe River Cruise on Viking Njord
User Avatar
Section44
10+ Cruises • Age 20s

Rating by category

Value for Money
Embarkation
Dining
Public Rooms
Entertainment
Fitness & Recreation
Service
Cabin

Additional details

Sail Date: May 2012

I was told river cruising would be different. Nobody told me how different. After 20+ ocean cruises we decided to try Viking based on recommendations from passengers on ocean cruises. Accommodations were small(not surprising), our cabin was 80% below the water line(again not surprising)and the cabin had a big screen Sony tv(very surprising). That would have been nice if there was anything worthwhile to watch or if the channels were in HD. No HD with a tv that size is like buying a Mercedes without wheels. But how much tv do you watch on vacation anyway?

Let me say first that the entire crew on the Njord was very pleasant, enthusiastic, helpful and friendly. We had an 8 hour delay in Charlotte causing us to miss our connecting flight at Frankfurt but a call to the desk on the ship resulted in Viking sending a car to Budapest airport to pick us up at 11pm at their expense(we had purchased Viking's air & transfer package). A good start. But downhill from there.

The concept of river cruising is light years from that of ocean cruising. Lack of space on the vessel, which must be built to fit the many canal locks the ship must pass through, precludes culinary variety and many types of activities. Yet we expected something to do aboard ship when the day's included excursion ended. There was a huge amount of downtime. A few lectures were scheduled but that wasn't enough to keep us or most other passengers engaged.What few activities they did have were all itinerary specific. Hungarian folk dancers, opera singers, a glass-blowing demonstration. Pretty boring. The best was the night they showed a slide presentation of Viking's other itineraries for the purpose of selling more cruises. More effort should have been put forward to involve the guests in active participation. It was almost as if they didn't think we could handle any excitement. We're old but we're not on life support yet.

Cabin Review

The cabin surprised us in that at first glance there didn't seem to be enough room to fit our belongings but we ended up managing nicely. We had no issues with the comfort of the bed or the bathroom plumbing.

previous review

Find a cruise

Any Month

Get special cruise deals, expert advice, insider tips and more.By proceeding, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

© 1995—2024, The Independent Traveler, Inc.