After being on a Viking River cruise we decided to go for the Viking Ocean cruise over Christmas in the West Indies. We so much enjoyed the "Viking" experience I wanted to see if it transferred to the big ship. Our conclusion - kinda. It's hard to get the small, family feel with even as few as 930 people. The itinerary was fine and hit ALL the major places we wanted to see. However, weather kept us at sea the day we were to be on Tortola and since it was Christmas Day we couldn't stop in Martinique either.

The places we did hit were fun and mostly pretty to see. Included tours were mostly bus rides around the islands and we saw lots of things we didn't want to see. Outside of the main tourist areas there's lots of poverty and rustic living.

On board, the food was to die for. Even for folks who don't like buffets, these were fresh, clean and constantly stocked or cooked fresh when you asked. The 'special' restaurants don't require a special fee and were worth going to if you wanted to feel like you were at a restaurant ordering food. Don't come looking for casinos or climbing walls or the like. Shows were OK and there were some good educational talks and TED talks on video. LOTS of areas for quiet time and being in the sun. Read more