We chose this cruise to experience Viking's new ocean cruising ships and to visit countries we hadn't visited before. The ship was only a year old and very beautiful. We visited 8 countries around the Baltic and 11 ports. The cruise included a shore excursion in each port plus a number of optional excursions. Viking also included a chartered train from the port in Germany to Berlin and back for a 12 hour day. The ship had two specialty dining rooms that were open at no extra charge. There was a very nice trio in the atrium lobby every evening before dinner. They also had a number of speakers who gave talks during the cruise. All the talks were available on the in room TVs. They had a number of evening entertainment programs in their very nice theater. One evening they presented songs from ABBA and another evening in St. Petersburg they brought a group of Opera singers on board to entertain us.