This was our first cruise with Viking and we did not know what to expect. I can honestly say that from start to finish Viking really exceeded our expectations. When we disembarked the plane we were met by Viking hosts who whisked us off to our shuttle. We stayed for 3 nights in Paris prior to our cruise and they even had a Viking Concierge at the hotel we stayed at. We booked everything through Viking and it was very seamless. It was well worth the extra expense to stay in Paris because we saw a lot. When it was time to board the ship everything was handled efficiently and we never felt at anytime like Viking dropped the ball in any area. The food onboard was excellent with enough choices and the wine was very good as well. It wasn't top shelf wine, but was more than adequate and they even had regional wines a few nights. The cabin was clean and the French Balcony was worth the extra because it let in a lot of natural light. Cabin wasn't huge but the space was used well. The ship had a nice intimate feel to it and it sort of felt like being on your own private yacht!! Staff went out of their way to make sure you were having a good time. The included excursions were a good way to see the different stops with some time on your own as well. The nighttime entertainment consisted of trivia or piano playing and most times we were so tired we would just go back to our cabin. Dinner would usually be around 7 PM and by the time we were done it was after 9. So we would go to the lounge to grab a drink or simply retire to our cabin. One night they had a cheese tasting and that was fun! It was a very relaxing cruise and a nice departure from the huge cruise ships with thousands of people.