This was my first riverboat cruise vs. many ocean cruises. The cost is certainly more substantial than a ocean cruiser and I don't feel its worth it. True the tours are included with some optional tours at a cost as well as beer and wine at meals only. And the wine and beer served is marginal at best. The ship is 10+ years old but the crew keeps it clean and shiny. The cabin was pretty roomy and the public rooms were nice as well. The crew on this vessel were second to none. From the Program Director- Annika to the Hotel Mgr.-Bea to the Maitre D- Brigetta. They were always visible and wanting to please. We didn't realize how good they were until we boarded the Viking Hermod for the second leg of the trip. It was like night and day. Read my not too good review of the Hermod.

The trip was sold as a 14 day trip on the Spirit and Hermod. One issue was the Viking menu repeats every 7 days. So the dinners were the same on both trips-that was a disappointment. The other issue was the lack of entertainment in the evening. One night an opera troupe from Paris performed and the other was a music trivia night. Both were great but the other 5 nights there was no entertainment or programs after dinner. It was as though Viking wanted you to go to sleep after dinner or have an evening cocktail at your own cost. The WiFi worked very well in the cabin and public rooms. The tv in the cabin was a small flat screen and had a sports channel so we could watch both Wimbeldon and the World Cup. Unfortunately there weren't any tvs in the public rooms to watch with your fellow guests. I can't say enough about the crew-Viking should recognize the crew on this ship.