This was my aunt's cruise and I was accompanying her to help her as she is elderly. I was pleasantly surprised with the help we received although we were very self sufficient. The advice that we received regarding where we were able to go with her walker was excellant and they accomodated us where possible. Viking cruises was very helpful with information prior to the trip and we were not dissapointed when we arrived. The crew was very friendly and the program director was very organized and everything was on time. The shore excursions were excellent, well thought out, and very informative. I wish we could have taken in all of the optional excursions but there were too many to fit in and we had to have some rest time!

Dining was excellent, we always had a choice of local offerings, but if you wanted to stick to the basics, they were on the menu as well. The only downfall of the Russian cruise is that we were not docked within easy access of the cities. We were well out of town and had to do the shore excursions. It limited our freedom, but since the shore excursions were great, it was not a deal breaker.

The entertainment on ship was not top class and therefore we didn't go into the lounge at night. I loved the Panorama bar during the day as it gave us the opportunity to sit in an area that had the perfect view of the landscape while sailing while you played cards, downloaded your pictures on your computer, or enjoyed a leisurely drink. I also liked the Russian language lessons and the lectures about the history and culture and also the meetings in the evening before then next day's excursions. It really brought the whole experience together. I met a lot of wonderful people and would definitely recommend Viking Cruises to anyone who is interested in a river cruise.