This was our first cruise. We wanted to see Norway without frenetic travelling. It suited a couple who like the quieter things in life. It didn’t fail to please. Lectures and points of interest calls made for an interesting trip aboard a ship with helpful, friendly staff. Accommodation was in clean, adequate cabins and there was plenty of really delicious food. The itinerary was amazing. The Norwegian coast is truly beautiful. The northbound trip allowed daytime trips to Trondheim, Tromsø and the North Cape, while an extra day spent in Bergen allowed us to take in the sights there too. All longer stops can be enjoyed as excursions or as we did, using local sources or just a map! Hurtigruten operate a well-oiled machine. Clear information was forwarded prior to the trip. Transfers were included, including the optional extra day in Bergen. It allowed us to take a truly relaxing break. The polar outside cabin pretty well always faced shore, northbound, though in fjords, cabin side did not matter. The ship offered a fairly smooth trip. The highlights - late night sail into the Trollfjord, the breathtaking North Cape and a glimpse of the northern lights. Read Less

We chose the Viking Sea because we really liked the itinerary and had never sailed on Viking before. Our previous river cruising has been on Uniworld and Avalon. Trying the Viking ocean experience was a change for us. Embarkation in Bergen was easy and we were so impressed once we got on the ship. It is just lovely. Our stateroom was a PV1-Penthouse Veranda suite on deck 5 and it was great. The bed was comfortable and there was plenty of storage. Our only issue was with our shower head. It kept sliding down the pole and would not stay in place. We told our cabin steward and he had a plumber take a look at it...didn't fix it though...it was a pain to take a shower. Our cabin stewards were fantastic...Niko and Ariel were some of the best we've ever had. The laundromat onboard was a great perk. It was free to use and they also provided laundry detergent. Viking touts the free beer and wine with meals. What they don't tell you, is if you order a drink during lunchtime hours in The Living Room where they have muffins, small plates and various snacks to choose from, they will ask you for your room number and you get charged. They don't specify that you need to be in the dining room, buffet or one of the specialty restaurants. Sorry, but I think that's petty. The food overall was good. We enjoyed Manfredi's very much. The waffle with berries in Mamsen's was great. The buffet was good but some of the food servers could use an attitude adjustment....it costs nothing to smile. We ordered room service breakfast several times and have no complaints. One day from 9 AM-1PM they put on an amazing brunch in the Wintergarden area. It was a sight to behold. You could tell a TON of work went into planning and executing it! Our biggest disappointment was the lack of interesting (for us) entertainment. The enrichment seminars were never ending. The lack of varied entertainment was glaring. The best show we saw starred the Cruise Director...singing. During this cruise I read 3 books and took naps (which I rarely do) out of boredom in the afternoons. The included shore excursions were just okay. We loved the tour in Lerwick, Scotland but thought the included excursion in Reykjavik was awful. The first place our German tour guide took us was to a ditch where women washed clothes 100 years ago......zzzz Based on our experience on the Viking Sea, we don't feel we got the value for the amount of money we spent on this cruise. For the amount spent, we can get a Neptune suite on HAL along with many more activities. Read Less

We really enjoyed this cruise, our first Viking Ocean Cruise. It was nice not to have photographers, daily advertisements in our cabin and no gambling. Beautiful ship and excellent staff and the food was wonderful. Overall the premium excursions were excellent. I hope that the ‘included’ excursions improve to the quality that Viking River Cruises has provided for many years. Often these excursions were too short and we drove past sights but couldn’t go in to see and hear the history inside the buildings. On one day we did two different excursions which included a major cathedral. On the first one we drove through the parking lot and on the second one the bus parked and we walked around the cathedral and to the view point but never went inside. On the excursion to North Cape we didn’t even have a tour guide for the hour and a half drive (each way) that we could have received a lot of history of what we were passing and other details that make tours most interesting. I hope this improves. Read Less

Viking cruise line lived up their reputation as being extremely fabulous!! Great ambiance! Great staff- so eager to please! Wonderful food! Informative tours! Viking does it right!!!! We took advantage of every included excursion! It would have been nice if they were more than just a couple stops for photo ops though! We especially enjoyed many of the waiters in The Restaurant! They were so polite and eager to please! The food was very good and menu selections were very adequate!! We loved Manfredi’s and the Italian restaurant! Nice to have variety! The ship was very beautiful! It was kept impeccably clean by the very hard working cleaning staff! Our room steward was so friendly and always considerate and polite! We so enjoyed our first ocean cruise and have booked two more! We have and will continue to recommend the Viking cruise line the family and friends! It is a pricey cruise line but so much is included- which helps!! Giving sizable price breaks/incentives to repeat customers would be very appreciated! We flew SAS- as arranged by Viking! NEVER AGAIN!! Horrible flight home!!! They lost our luggage for 6 days!!! Many we spoke with shared our concerns! They agreed and advised - avoid SAS!!!!! Read Less

a very nice ship, enough chairs and space in the public rooms, marvellous lounge-bar in front of the ship on deck 7, and in the back on deck 7 there was a lovely coffe bar with nice norwegian furnitures. every day we had very delicious food (excellent fresh fish) and very friendly waiters - we enjoyed it! We also loved the free drinking water, and the wine selection was good, but a bit expensive. The expedition Team (Monica and Rebecca) was excellent! We heard a lot about the nature, the people, the animals, the language - it was very interesting and we just loved it!!! We saw the northern lights and the noth cape, the beautiful landscape of the norwegian coast - we had a great trip in Norway! Our cabin had only 2 portholes, but we knew it in advance and booked it with this restriction. The cabin was small, but there was enough storeroom and we estimated the many hooks for our coats. We had our own toilet and shower, and they changed the towels whenever we needed. Read Less

Love Viking & loved the itinerary! Many of the ports we had not visited before. Also loved the idea of a few sea days as this ship is so comfortable. We were just ready to enjoy all that Viking had to offer on this remarkable ship...as we had been on it just a year ago. However this was our 4th Viking cruise. I recommend Viking to everyone. We love the richly rewarding historic lectures on the culture of the areas we are visiting! No Casinos and picture pressure! Truly a relaxing adventure. The entire trip was so very enjoyable, from Bergen Norway to Barcelona Spain! Viking does everything to ensure your comfort & safety. We did have to forego our Falmouth England port because of weather but thanks Captain for thinking of our safety first! The employees/crew are so friendly and will go out of their way to help in any way. Need more hangers for your clothes, pillows...how many?...done! On other cruise ship I have had to pack extra hangers or layer everything! Food was for the most part outstanding! In each dining room we were treated like royalty! We didn't enjoy the Chef's Table so much and I heard the same from many other people, we were still hungry after 4 courses. The included wines served daily with meals were plentiful, excellent quality & variety. Also appreciated the plentiful water whether on ship or off! Entertainment & lectures were simply outstanding! Viking only fell short on the included tours in a couple ports. River included tours are handled much better & make provision for a "leisure" tour selection for folks who have walking issues. The free time in Knokke, Belgium was a waste, very little open, prices no one could afford in very exclusive shops that were! Couldn't wait to board the bus! I never heard a positive comment. Wish we could have just explored the historical little town of Damme, I think it was, that we drove though. Other tours were exceptional! Guess you can't win them all but I think Viking needs to re examine this aspect. These included tours makes Viking unique in the the cruise industry but that could change quickly. Also our last day in Barcelona lacked communication on the optional "An Evening of Flamenco" ( not worth the $139 pp) as we had to switch docks late in the afternoon and that caused all types of confusion. They combined our included city tour with it as we had to change the time 2 1/2 hours and we wouldn't have known this if we hadn't have ask! Thus our city tour ended up in the dark, with very low visibility, right before our dinner. Hated to disembark and head for the USA...Looking forward to cruise #5 soon! Read Less

Great value for an itinerary that covered several areas that we had not visited before. The offer of two guests for one fare with free air was too great a temptation. The trip was excellent except for somewhat rough seas for a couple of days. It could have been a lot worse! The excursions were well planned, and for the most part were interesting and informative. The service on the ship was excellent. Our cabin was kept spotless and the dining was always good. Most of the dishes were very good, but other options for special order were also available. One evening I ordered a New York strip steak that was as good as any I have ever had--even at some very expensive restaurants. The entertainment was also excellent, as were the informative talks about European history and environmental issues. We especially enjoyed the entertainers. The three young female vocalists were especially talented and performed in a most professional manner. The string trio also was an elegant touch to the trip. We have been on a number of ocean and river cruises, but the cruise director on this one was the best I have ever seen. Read Less

We really enjoyed this cruise as our first Viking Ocean cruise. We had three disappointments, however. The one day we had for shore excursions in Bergen, Norway didn't occur because a major bicycle race was taking place which didn't allow for the various tour buses for the excursions. We found out about this a few days before the cruise. With Bergen being such a big port for Viking, we feel someone should have known about this disruption well in advance and warn us so we didn't waste time booking a shore excursion in addition to the "included" excursion. Disappointment #2 was having to miss our port stop in Falmouth. We had to sail directly from Portsmouth, UK to Porto, Portugal to avoid a storm coming to the UK. The onboard history lectures were really great and primarily focused on World War I and II events. The theme of the cruise was "Trade Routes of the Middle Ages", so disappointment #3 was the lack of lectures on that theme. Our stateroom, the food, the stafff, were all excellent and we really enjoyed our time onboard and in the various ports. Read Less

As a retired 35 year History teacher traveling alone, I was searching for a cruise that would be more appropriate to the classroom experiences I had with my students. The Viking SEA cruise "In the Wake of the Vikings" filled that bill and more for me. The cruise began in Bergen, Norway, and crossed the Atlantic to Montreal. I took advantage of pre and post extensions in Oslo and Montreal for two days each and was not disappointed. Bergen was also a joy, and the fact that this pro cycling fan was there during one day of the week long UCI World Championships was a pleasure that was unexpected when I booked the cruise. To get to the ship, I traveled by train from Oslo to Bergen. The views were amazing, and definitely a harbinger of things to come on the cruise itself. The Viking SEA was easy to get around, and the staff was the best part of the entire experience! Whether it was my Steward, Tito, the food staff, or the security and boarding staff for the three tendering situations, they couldn't have been more patient or professional. The food was outstanding! When I arrived on the first night, I went to the Buffet ("World Cafe") expecting to pick up a burger and fries. Imagine my surprise when the offerings included Duck a L'Orange and Lamb Shoulder...the excellence and variety of the food was unchanged for the next two weeks. I got my first taste of Venison, and Caviar as well. Breakfast and luncheon offerings were equally as good. The 'reservation restaurants,' Manfredi's Italian, and the Chef's Table, were above and beyond expectations. A cautionary note: If you intend to hit the Casino, buy art, rock climb, or see extravagant Broadway type shows with large casts; this cruise is not for you. The stage time is taken with lectures on the History, Geography, and politics of the area served. We had four lecturers who touched mainly on the Viking legacy (it was the theme, after all), but also included climate concerns, political policy issues regarding whaling, oil, and other natural resources, and more recent Historical events. There were also "Port Talks," led by the Cruise Director. If you missed any of the lectures, you could watch them later on your cabin television. Entertainment was controlled by an eight person troupe, who brought a different show each night to the theatre. Despite the small size of the troupe, they handled their assignments very well. They, like the rest of the staff, were also very gregarious and thoughtful to the passengers off the boat. The Spa and exercise areas were excellent! The Deck 2 walking area was a quarter of a mile around, which surprised me, because I have been on much larger Carnival and Disney ships where the walking distance was identical. How did Viking do it? The Shore Excursion opportunities brought unexpected visual experiences. The beauty of the Shetlands, the Faroes, Iceland, Greenland, Newfoundland, and Quebec were the highlights here. The local guides were all knowledgeable and easy to converse with. The views from the ship were also amazing, especially going through the fjords in all of these locations. Prince Christian Sound in Greenland was at least equal, if not superior, to the views in Alaska's Inland Passage. Three glaciers, icebergs, and mountains around every corner kept the camera busy! The included tours usually were of the "Panorama" variety, where we took buses to various areas as an orientation of the location, with opportunities for stops for photo opportunities. I was most disappointed with the included tour of Reykjavik, Iceland, because we spent an inordinate amount of time driving through residential areas and were not allowed to stop at key locations because "we do not have time." I was also a bit frustrated with one of the onboard consultants informing me that the 'excursions in Saguenay, Quebec, were very helpful, because there isn't much to see in the town.' Two opportunities to walk proved to me that this was a very charming town, and there was much that we weren't able to see otherwise. Perhaps a reevaluation of the opportunities in this region for excursion purposes would be helpful. The optional tours were tremendous! In my case, a walk through the Shetlands' capital of Lerwick, a ride around the Faroes, a visit to a fur house in Qaqortoq, Greenland, a walk around the L'Anse Aux Meadows Viking settlement in Newfoundland,and walking and carriage tours in Quebec City were stunning! On three occasions, we had to "Tender" from the ship to the shore. The crew was excellent in getting us on and off board, but suffice it to say, the term "Tender" is now an oxymoron in my book...remember that the North Atlantic in mid September is not easy on good days. We also had to miss the Nanortalik, Greenland port due to treacherous wind and waves. Kudos to the Security and Boarding crew who had to deal with disembarking so many in limited time in all of the ports. The cruise was exceptional, and, despite a few minor issues, I would go again...In fact, while onboard, I signed up for a future Viking Ocean Cruise. Read Less

My wife and I, both in our 70's made the cruise. Our pre-cruise visit to Bergen was great. We had Viking plan the air, which was a mistake. They routed us through Heathrow, which I avoid based on experience several years ago. It has gotten worse. It took over an hour standing in line with our carry-on luggage to get on a bus to take us from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5. We had reserved the Hotel Oleana in Bergen. It was conveniently located, nice staff, but the furnishings were spartan. Good weather and we ate well in the 3 days there before we boarded the ship. I thought embarkation went smoothly but my wife disagrees. We both were very happy with our stateroom, especially the heated bathroom floor. Wish I had one at home. I screwed up, not having looked at the ships plans/specifications enough beforehand. I thought it would be too cool to use the pool, so didn't pack a bathing suit. But the main pool and it's hot tub were protected and there were two more hot tubs plus the two pools and the sauna in the spa. Dining was great, with several options. I regret that they did not offer more choices of joining others when we went into The Restaurant. We met fewer other cruise travelers than we have on other cruises. We both took advantage of the talks and enjoyed them a lot. One speaker was so good that I regretted I was not going to be on the next leg (to New York) to hear some scheduled for it. All of the crew were helpful and pleasant to deal with. Security process for exiting and reboarding at the port stops was very efficient. I appreciated the steps they went to to help us keep our hands clean and prevent the spread of disease. There were several locations outside of the staterooms where people could relax and read. An ample number of books were available at multiple locations. In many of these one could be close enough to the performing musicians to have the music in the background. All of the musicians were top notch. Portable hearing sets were available to help people hear the excursion guides but they were awkward to use and were unnecessary except on one tour I went on. The size of the ship is large enough to have great facilities but small enough to go places larger ships cannot visit. We were already book for a Spring 2018 cruise on the Viking Sea when we booked this one. We liked it enough to book a cruise on the Viking Orion in December 2018. Read Less

We chose this cruise partly for the Viking Route and partly to try out the Viking Ocean ship as we were also looking at another Viking cruise. On the whole we greatly enjoyed our experience. Customer service pre-cruise was not very good, in particular because we were never informed that the ship would not be docked where the cruise material said it would be! Fortunately we learned via Cruise Critic where it was, and saw it ourselves from the Maritime Museum. Embarkation after that was fine, as was disembarkation. Shore excursions were a mixed bag. Several places relevant to the Viking theme were not shown on the port maps, nor mentioned in the port briefings. Fortunately we had done our own research! Excursions in large groups on buses were not as enjoyable. Stops where you could spend some time exploring on your own - such as L'Anse aux Meadows, or Qaqortog in Greenland, were the best! And we appreciated our day in Quebec. Dining was mostly enjoyable. The World Cafe was packed at certain times, and service was stressed to get beverages to diners. We tried the restaurant and found it also could be very slow service. Book as many dinners as you can in the specialty restaurants - you can always cancel if need be. If you'd like to meet some of your fellow passengers, ask to join a table rather than dining by yourselves. Music throughout the day from the pianist, guitar player, and music groups was a lovely accompaniment to the cruise! The weather made walking or jogging around the deck ifffy at times, but the fitness center had plenty of equipment and I never saw it full. We booked another cruise while onboard! Now that we know the ship we expect to rate the next cruise "excellent!" Read Less

My husband and I chose this cruise for the itinerary as well as Viking's stellar reputation. We weren't disappointed. The cabin, food and service were exceptional. We've cruised with RSS and Celebrity but Viking outperformed them both in these areas. We enjoyed a few days in Oslo prior to the cruise staying at the Hotel Thon Opera. We were a bit unhappy that our rooms weren't ready when we arrived at 3:00pm and we had to wait in the lobby for a bit. Other than that, the hotel was very nice and the breakfast they offered was sensational. And because we were inconvenienced by the delayed check-in, Viking arranged a very nice coach tour of the Oslo area, which included a stop at the the very interesting Viking Ship Museum. We took a very comfortable and scenic train ride from Oslo to Bergen to embark the lovely Viking Sea. Excurions: We highly recommend the Fish Farming and Maritime History tour offered while at port in Bergen. We toured a facility that builds beautiful wooden boats and makes rope, then drove through beautiful Hardangerfjord to reach the fish farm. We were then taken to the mountains, to Voss, for a delicious lakeside lunch. It was a great day! It was fortuitous that our tour took us out of Bergen because Bergen was hosting an international cycling event the day we were in port so most of the Bergen city tours were cancelled. (A boat tour of Bergen was substituted.) Viking provided everyone with a $200 ship board credit for being inconvenienced. Very nice of Viking. While in Lerwick, Scotland, we opted for the walking tour, The Nature Trail of Mousa Island. After a brief coach ride through town, we boarded a small boat for a 10 minute ride to Mousa Island. It was a beautiful day for a walk; scenic, sunny and very breezy. The 'trail' is over uneven grassy ground and a bit slippery and wet, so be aware. Make sure you have the appropriate shoes. But it was a wonderful experience seeing the Moussa Broch. The guide was knowledgeable. We're glad we chose this tour. We booked the Sea Safari tour while in Torshavn, but due to high seas, the tour was cancelled. Safety first! So we walked through town and toured on our own. We opted for the all day, Golden Circle tour, while at port in Reykjavik. It was well worth the time and cost. And the guide was very knowledgable. Such fantastic scenery! We had a wonderful salmon lunch too. I wish I could have spent a bit more time shopping at some of the gift shops. The most spectacular sight on the entire cruise was waiting for us in Greenland. We cruised slowly through the magnificent Prince Christian Sound. Breathtaking, really. Mountains, glaciers, bergie bits, seals, whales, sun, snow - fabulous! And no other ships around. We saw one person, a kayaker, on the 5 hour sail. Unbelievably harsh beauty. Wow! Due to weather, we were unable to dock Nanotorlik. But the ship was able to dock in Qaqortok. There is not much to see there, but we walked around town in the sunshine and found the grocery store to be an interesting visit. L'Ans Aux Meadows - was interesting. It gives you a real sense of the Viking life there, hundreds of years prior. Saguenay, Ontario - our least favorite excursion. We opted for Zodiac in the Park tour. We felt we spent too much time on a school bus there and back. The actual tour on the zodiac was brief and just ho hum. And a very rough ride. There is no food offered, so Viking should arrange snacks somewhere along the line. (We were gone from 10:00 until 3:00.) The guide didn't really offer insights or history of the area on the long rides. Beautiful scenery though. Quebec City - Many ships in port that day (8?) so it was very a very busy, crowded port. We opted for the included tour, which was fine with us. The streets were clogged with people so sitting on a coach with a guide telling us all about Quebec City was just about perfect for us on our last day. Food - we loved Manfredi's; left the Chef Table after the second course - not to our liking. But enjoyed every other meal everywhere else on the ship. We especially enjoyed the fresh seafood the chef arranged for us in Bergen. Mussels were yummy. And Mamsen's deli for waffles in the morning. And High Tea daily! And drinks at the Explorer's Lounge! We look forward to our next cruise in April. Love you, Viking! Read Less

Our experience with a Viking river cruise was excellent and the ship's itinerary was what we wanted. The staff is excellent and is very friendly. The support staff works well together providing quiet and efficient service. I was always greeted with a hello and a smile. Service was outstanding and our cabin steward was the best. The dining experience was outstanding with great food, excellent food presentation and food choices. Due to a medical incident I needed to visit you ship's medical facility. The care I received by Dr. Soric and his staff was outstanding. The shore excursions were disappointing and not up to my standards. Not enough time spent at the different stops, Sometimes it felt like it was a march or die excursion. You need to learn from the river excursions on how to improve the shore excursion experience. The enrichment lectures were only OK and could improve. Overall it was an excellent cruise and we will take another cruise with Viking. Read Less

We chose this cruise for the itinerary, but 5 of 9 ports were skipped (2) or significantly delayed. Shore excursions were just ok, even the ones we purchased were just ok. Most of the staff and crew were excellent, friendly, and bent over backwards to please. Public areas were overcrowded at events or activities. Food was very good to excellent in main restaurant and especially Manfredis. World Cafe , pool grill, and Chefs Table just ok. Cabin was roomy enough but very limited drawer space in Deluxe Veranda. Bathroom was nice. A lot of people like the stark Scandinavian decor, but we found that the abundance of hard surfaces and minimal softening features made the restaurants and public areas very noisy. We chose the post cruise Montreal stay (Westin) and are very disappointed with the hotel. Waited 5 hours for room to be ready. Room looks into windows of adjacent building, have to keep drapes closed all the time. They refused to change the room. The flight Viking booked leaves at 8:30 am but the transfer leaves at 4 am. Airport is only 30 minutes away. Just adds to the misery of the Montreal experience. By contrast, the pre cruise in Oslo and Bergen were wonderful. We tried to book business class but Viking said they only have economy for this cruise. We found out later this was not true. We are too old for the discomforts of economy flights ( even though we managed to upgrade to premium economy through the airline) all the way from the west coast. It's definitely a deal breaker on any future cruise. Read Less

The Viking Sky is indeed a beautiful ship, tastefully decorated with wonderful art. The common areas are inviting, especially the Explorers Lounge on the 7th deck, which offers fabulous ocean vistas. The ship is spotlessly maintained. We have taken several other cruises and were excited about visiting new countries We should have had the best time ever! However, Viking dropped the ball on several fronts, First, the travel department is difficult to deal with. Be forewarned, if you use a travel agent, they will not speak to you. We finally got our itinerary resolved, and then Category 5 Hurricane Irma became a major player. We were booked on Delta to leave Miami at 12:20 pm on 9/8, and a the airport was scheduled to close that afternoon. Our connection time in Atlanta was only 1 hour. Days before, we tried to change our flight to leave earlier, but were denied, unless we wanted to pay Delta a change ticket fee of $3,000 per person. We offered to drive to Atlanta and pick up the itinerary there, but Viking did not go to bat for us. Apparently, they have no pull with Delta. Finally, we called them again on 9/6 and literally begged, and spoke with someone who was willing and able to help. We got grudging approval to begin our flight in Atlanta. The next day, we drove 20 hours to Atlanta in bumper to bumper traffic, normally an 8 1/2 hour drive, and slept at an airport hotel. We noted that our original flight out of Miami was delayed and we would have missed the connection in Atlanta. Then we flew to Norway to begin the cruise. We were exhausted. I had not really slept in 3 days and missed my tour in Bergen. Our room and bathroom were surprisingly small with no excess storage space, but again, tastefully decorated and with quality linens. The bathroom floors are heated, which was fantastic! There was a coffeemaker, but it was up too high for me to use. However, the cappuccino onboard was excellent, so we didn't mind scooting out to get it. The TV system, like most cruises, is not the best for live TV but offers a nice selection of movies. We were anxious to see news of the hurricanes. Most of the time it worked ok, but the live tv was not working the last several days of the cruise. Wifi: On previous trips, I had no problems downloading my photos from my phone to my iPad via iCloud, but the wifi was so slow that they could not download. I was surprised, given the newness of the ship. Several of my emails refused to send and I had to keep trying. Our cruise experienced a lot of rough seas, so they canceled port docking in the Shetland Islands and also one in Greenland. We already had many days at sea scheduled on this transatlantic cruise, but we can't blame Viking for bad weather. Days at sea featured lectures, some bland music, and movies, but not much in the way of interactive or physical activity if the weather did not cooperate, which it did not. It would have been nice to go to a class in the fitness center but they were not offered to my knowledge. The daily afternoon tea is in a particularly lovely venue. Lots of reading time and looking out the windows in the Explorers Lounge. We did see icebergs and a few whales, and a lot of people, myself included, got excited about a rock that initially looked like a whale. One couple went outside one afternoon and had to be rescued because the winds were so strong. The Faroe Islands and Reykjavik were fabulous and we enjoyed our tours there. It was great to be off the ship. Qaqortoq, Greenland was disappointing, as our private tour with Sagalands canceled without notice even though they had confirmed a just few days earlier. The town itself is not really worth a stop, especially if arriving early on a Sunday morning when the few establishments in town are closed. Quebec is a charming European style city for walking and touring. The food on board is very good. Dinner in the restaurant is slow, often taking 2 hours for a 3 course meal, but we had nowhere to go and not much else to do. Our primary waiter was friendly and personable. Thankfully, our friends are great conversationalists! The buffet restaurant was fresh and well presented, and was a good option when we did not want an overly long meal. Fellow passengers on the ship were generally highly educated, pleasant, and courteous. We almost missed our flight home. For a 10 am flight, our bus left at 8:15 for a 40 minute drive to the airport. We were unable to check in to our flights onboard because the internet was too slow and it timed out. We got to the check in desk, and were told that had we arrived 5 minutes later, we would have missed the cutoff for checking luggage for an international flight. Again, unnecessary stress should have totally avoidable, ending this long cruise on a questionable note. Do I recommend this cruise? Although this beautiful ship is 5 star rated and some people love endless days at sea, it was too sedate for me. The quality of the lectures was excellent, but I have had much more rollicking fun on other less expensive cruises where more varied and interactive onboard activities were offered. Even bingo, karaoke, disco, dueling pianos, a bad art auction, penny poker, flower arranging, Hawaiian theme night....none are great but something that makes you laugh! I also learned to NEVER book flights through a cruise line again. Maybe it was the weather..... Read Less

We purchased our trip in Fall 2016. My wife had double knee replacements and we were told we could get first class or business class seats on the flight over to Europe; we would pay the upgrade cost (fine with us!). We waited in July and had to call twice to get our flights. When we were finally able to get ahold of someone we were told that due to the “ CONTRACT” we were only permitted couch. We called the airlines to see if we could upgrade they referred us to Viking. When we called Viking we were told (from an unsigned anonymous email that: "This is a limit within our CONTRACT and likely a detail that your initial sales representative was not privy to, for this we apologize.” And for this we filed a complaint with the FTC for false marketing. We also wanted to go a day early so we could enjoy Bergen. Not possible (see the contract). So the two days we were told we would have in Bergen amounted to getting to the ship at 8 pm and we left at 6pm the next day (22 hours). 1) Shetland Islands - no go - too bad of weather to dock for “safety” reasons so we never got there. 2) Faroe Islands - We went on the cruise up a fjord. The advertisement for the trip said we had a chance to see Puffins. Except the guide told us the Puffins leave in August so no Puffins, nice scenery though. The ad did say a chance! 3) Rejkavik, Iceland - Fantastic Day with views of a huge waterfall and a national park and geysers. Although Yellowstone had better waterfalls and geysers 4) Nanortalik, Greenland - no go - too bad of weather to dock for “safety” reasons so we never got there. 5) Qaqortoq, Greenland - Five hour stay on a Sunday morning. One gift shop and a 45 minute wait to purchase an item. Most of the people were no where to be seen. Neat Church. 6) L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland - We were suppose to dock at 7 am but due to Canadian Customs, we were not able to get to shore until after 10 am. Of course that left us little time to visit the Viking village that had been found, in the pouring rain. 7) Saquenay, Canada - We went up from the St. Lawrence River through a fjord to get here. Beautiful scenery. At least we were told so. We could not see anything due to the fog. The ship had to go up the fjord slower due to whales in the area so we were 3 hours late. No we did not see any whales. The docking is not in the town but at a docking facility about 10 miles south of town (not mentioned in the tour guide - see the CONTRACT). We took a tour of four craft areas, goats for wool, glass blowing, and an artists who fit intricate paintings all over his house. The last was a lame aquarium and a stupid video the tried to be a poor example of a Disney ride. 8) Quebec City, Canada - Warm & sunny a nice walk around the old town. 9) Montreal, Canada - We were told we would get into port at 4 am. Of course AFTER we left Quebec City the Cruise Director Aaron announced the we would get into port at 6 am. We docked at 7 am and we were able to get off the ship at 7:30am. All “guests” were told they had to be off the ship by 8 am - read the CONTRACT. They collected our luggage at 10 pm the previous evening but all this meant was that we had to wait dockside for them to bring our luggage to us. This meant much lost time. We were told the night before that the trip to the airport would take 20 minutes. We we got on the bus we were told it would be 45 minutes. The bus driver went through town very very very slowly. Many people missed their flight due to this delay. The Viking people were of no help (see the CONTRACT) to those so affected. Some took taxis. Although the original plan was for us to dock at 4 am, the Viking flight staff put us on a Delta flight leaving at 3:20 and arriving home at 10:30 (7 hours) . We found a flight leaving at 9:30 and arriving home at 1:00 pm (3.5 hrs). There was another flight leaving at 5 pm and arriving home at 9 pm (4 hours). Of course we tried to change - Delta said to call Viking who said no dice - read the Contract. We were able to get out sooner due to a family member interceding - a big thank you to the Montreal Delta Airlines staff!!!! Other things to Note (in no particular order): A) I conclude that Viking does not consider your air travel to be part of the “Viking experience” so they spend little time on this area. We were so disappointed in our treatment that we will probably never us the company again. We had taken a similar Viking river cruise in Europe and had the same problems. We thought it was a one off problem. Apparently it is a corporate policy to short the customers on the air travel in and out of the cruise B) During high seas the toilets will back up and with the heated floors in the bathroom it gets pretty smelly - flush then often and keep you door open to the outside for better air. You can were a coat in your room since it is 40 degrees outside. C) No one seems to have used either of the pools or hot tubs D) The Viking time is very variable. When they say we dock at x time, add two hours at least E) The Crew that did all the work were wonderful F) I go the sense that the Ship Captain and his team were not letting us in on all the information we needed until it suited their purposes. G) Remember that THE CONTRACT rules everything, no exceptions, no allowances, no wavering. H) Average age of the customers is probably in the low 70s. There were a lot of handicapped people so allow for extra time getting on and off the boat. Read Less

We were fortunate to travel with friends who all wanted to see these sites of interest from Bergen to Montreal, most of which we had not seen before. Also, we had heard such positive feedback from other friends who had experienced the grandeur of Viking's new ocean liners. The ship was exquisite, modern and comfortable. Without exception, the entire Viking crew & staff were polite, considerate, smiling and most welcoming. Our cabin stewards were over the top in service, taking care of any of our needs and answering questions. The food was awesome. We appreciated the variety of dining options, the outstanding quality of everything from appetizers to desserts and the beautiful presentations of the meals. You felt like you did not want to mar the appearance of the dishes with a knife and fork. The excursions were handled in an organized way with the embarking and disembarking mostly flowing effectively, and our tour guides were very knowledgeable and informative. We thoroughly enjoyed the shipboard entertainment and shows in the evenings. Two of the highlights for us were the tour and scenery in Iceland, and the stop in Saguenay, Quebec, where the townspeople showered us with a grandiose welcome at the port and presented a fantastic musical and technological performance of the history of their community. It was a super trip. We have done Viking River Cruises previously, so it is quite difficult to say which we would opt for next. Read Less

We chose this cruise because of its itinerary. We cruised from Bergen to Montreal. To start with, we had booked air through the Viking Air department, something we will never do again. We had assumed they would be more proactive on our behalf than it turned out they were prepared to be. Just days before departure we were facing Hurricane Irma, and they made no effort to fly us out early. We spent a precious 48+ hours begging to be allowed to fly out of Atlanta and drop our Miami-Atlanta segment before they finally decided that yes, they would allow us to do that. If we hadn't persevered, we would have missed connections, and missed the cruise. As it was, because they delayed so long, it took 20 hours to drive to Atlanta as many of the mandatory evacuation orders (including ours!) had already been issued, and all of South Florida were on the roads north. The ship is gorgeous, and we found the food to be outstanding as well. But for me, a cruise is all about the EXPERIENCE and here they failed miserably. While there were a few outstanding staff, most were inept, and confusion abounded. Everyone was nice, but no one seemed to work as a team. In the dining rooms, we got wrong orders, we were asked repeatedly what the order WAS, and though we bought the premium wine package, we frequently had to wait a half hour at dinner before we got any wine. (if you stayed with the included wines it was much better--you got service immediately). One night my husband had to get up and speak to the maitre d' because it had been an hour between courses. We were constantly aggravated at dinner, which is NOT how you want to be! We liked our cabin, the heated floors in the bathroom, and the availability of free laundry. And I must say our cabin steward, Ronel, was the BEST we have had in over 30+ cruises! But the cabin really lacked storage space--2 drawers and a little space in the nightstands. We asked for, and got, about 30 extra hangers and ended up hanging just about everything. Wifi was slow, but we appreciated that it was available and complimentary, so no complaints really. The Spa was gorgeous. I didn't try spa treatments. Yoga was offered but as a long-standing yoga practitioner, I didn't think it was age appropriate. There was a serious miss-match between the demographics of the passengers and the yoga routine offered. They should be offering YIN or INYNGAR yoga, and instead, the teachers' background was Ashtanga. When she started out doing a jump-back chaturanga, I knew the class was doomed. The poor ladies in the class did their valiant best, but they could have really hurt themselves with the routine we were put through. Explorers Lounge was lovely, and here, the staff was lovely as well. Skilled, pleasant--really really excellent. Lectures were excellent and a feature we really appreciated was the ability to watch them later on recorded TV. We were frequently busy at the times the lectures were 'live' but we managed to watch/listen to every one of them thanks to the recorded TV. LOVED this! Very much enriched the voyage. The shore excursions: included ones were so-so, but the optional ones that we paid for were all outstanding. Our tour guide in Quebec, Marie, on the Quebec Discovery Day was absolutely outstanding. BUT!!! The WORST feature of the entire cruise was the daily disembarkation, which was TERRIBLE. Viking really needs to learn how to get 900 people off a cruise ship. We waited almost an hour to get on the tender at L'Anse Aux Meadows, and then sat on the tender for 45 minutes before we could get off. This was the worst, but even regular disembarkations were routinely a bottleneck.. And finally, our transfer to the airport at the end of the cruise. Again, the staff showed their inexperience, to be charitable. Our bus departure was scheduled for 8am. Our flight was at 10am. And it was a 45 minute drive to the airport. We only made our flight because my husband had status on the airline, so we were able to use an expedited check in--but even at that, the agent said we were the last to be able to get our luggage on board. These kinds of repetitive 'glitches' made me think that although we had paid a 5-star price for this cruise, we did NOT receive a 5-star cruise. We have cruised well over 30 times, at various price points, and many different cruise lines, and this is the first time we felt we did not get our money's worth. There were just too many issues overall. Read Less

We picked this cruise because it offered stops at many interesting places that are otherwise not easy to get to. We chose Viking because of the excellent experience we had on previous river cruises with the company. The ship is beautiful. Very clean and well laid out, and tastefully appointed. A variety of public rooms and places to eat from quiet to very sociable. Service is friendly and professional. Good variety and quality of food. Our stateroom was large, bright, and well thought out with a small balcony (as all of the rooms on this ship). We did miss two ports of call (to be expected - this was the North Atlantic in September, after all). But we were never at a loss for things to do. Most of our ports of call were quite small and quiet, but very interesting. Tours sponsored by Viking were worthwhile and well run. I would recommend spending extra time at the beginning (Bergen) as the town is beautiful and the surrounding fjordland countryside is spectacular. The trip ended in Montreal, where you should also spend some time, as it is a wonderful city. My best memories - hard to decide. Touring the fjords from Bergen, the wild landscape of the Faroes, little places in Reykjavik my son pointed us to, cruising wild fjords in Greenland, L'anse aux Meadows (mmm squashberries), some of the custom meals in the Chef's Table, and just enjoying all the moods of the North Atlantic from the deck or the Explorers Lounge. I would recommend this cruise for couples, who are interested in a little adventure as opposed to just entertainment. I say a little adventure, as stays are only for a day and you don't get a chance to really explore, but you can always pick your favorite port and come back---- Read Less

We were interested in traveling to Iceland, Greenland and other small islands. We have traveled on Viking and think it is a first class operation. The meals were outstanding. We tried all of the restaurants and enjoyed "The Restaurant" the best - getting our favorite table was special. The entertainment and cruise director, Aaron far surpassed our expectations. The ports were lovely, educational and very enjoyable. We wish we could have spent more time at some of the stops. The residents made us feel very welcomed as we landed. We thoroughly enjoyed the live stage show in Saguenay. Outstanding! The disembarkation went smoothly considering how many people needed to leave at the same time. Returning to the ship sometimes took longer than we thought it should. Maybe having another security check-in would have speeded up the process. We would definitely consider another cruise on the long ships. However, the river boats are still our favorite cruises. Less people and smoother waters. Read Less

This was our first experience with a Viking Ocean cruise after three Viking River cruises. We got off to a bumpy start because our luggage didn't arrive until the next morning. We were nicely accommodated until we finally got our luggage. The ship is beautiful and pristine and the food incredible. The staff is so friendly and helpful and they helped to make the cruise the success that it was. We couldn't wait to get to the Star Theater every evening for the entertainment. We were disappointed because many of the optional tours were sold out and we had to settle for the included tours. We felt they should have offered more and longer included tours. Our tour of Reykjavik, Iceland was very disappointing. We were also disappointed because two ports were missed due to rough seas. It was a great way to visit so many countries on a beautiful ship and we would definitely recommend this trip. Read Less

If you expect a typical cruise ship then forget it. No red carpet, no cinemas no swimming pool. BUT you get an experience of a lifetime. You are the 1910's explorer in a ship, we went on the MS Richard With, which has the high Savoy Hotel standards and decorations. The staff amazing and responded to your smile and interest. The food amazing. OK the evening meal was a pre set 3 course high standard quality sit down served meal with those smaller portions but you could over eat at lunchtime to counter this meal. If part of this meal didn't suit then a replacement was produced. If you find fault with these excellent conditions then why did you come on this cruise in the first case. It is an exploration boat; it is a working boat serving the many ports on Norway's coast. The trips covered a large range of activities and like the alcohol slightly on the pricey side BUT prices are higher in Norway anyway. This also applies to the onshore prices where the standard of living is higher than in GB. For instance the duty free prices in Bergen Airport are dearer than buying from Tesco back in Blighty. The weather cannot be guaranteed to be perfect which you have to accept - we had blue skies and saw the Northern Lights on 7 nights! Can't rate this 12 days 'cruise' high enough! Staff excellent who put themselves out to help you on every occasion! Just go for it with an open positive mind and blow your mind with sights, sounds, clarity of the scenery, food, companionship experiences of a lifetime. Can't rate this trip high enough and big tick on my bucket list! Mr Aitch Read Less

We chose this cruise because of the route and stops on this cruise The cruise was from Bergen Norway stopping at the Shetland Islands, the Farro Islands, Iceland, Greenland, the Viking archeological site in Newfoundland, and then down the St.Lawrence River to Montreal. This was the first transatlantic crossing for the Viking Star which was first put into service in 2015 and had been in service in Europe. We have done Viking river cruises and since we liked the stops on the route we thought we would try a Viking ocean cruise. The ship is new and quite nice. It is very well maintained and the crew is friendly and helpful. The food was excellent with a very nice variety. Overall I would rate the cruise as average. First of all the cruise is not all inclusive which in today's market is really out of place. You will be charged $14 per person per day as gratuities for the staff. On our 15 day cruise that added an additional $420 to the cost of the cruise. Viking apparently doesn't want to tell you the true cost of the trip by including these costs in the ticket. Beer, wine and soft drinks are included at lunch and dinner and you are charged for them at all other times. You can purchase an all inclusive drink package but the cost is quite costly There is a mini fridge in your room and you have four soft drinks in it. You can drink them without charge but if you want more you are charged $2 for each soft drink. I personally find it to be insulting that soft drinks are not included in the price of the cruise. Service in the restaurants was spotty at best. At times service was acceptable but never really good and other times it was just plane bad. I never saw any service around the pool or lounge areas. There is one main bar on the first deck with a few tables around it and here there was service. In the surrounding lounge area if there was service I never saw any. We always had to go to the bar and get our own drinks. One aspect of the restaurant service that I found especially discusting was when you finished one course of your meal the waiters would remove your dishes but would place your used silverware on the table for you to use on the next course. I would expect this type of service in a truck stop but not here. Overall I would rate the cruise experience as average. You will have a good time and you will enjoy the cruise but Viking is not one of the top tier of cruise lines. Don't expect a Viking ocean cruise to be the same as a Crystal or Seaborne cruise. These cruise lines have better amenities and service. However as I said you will still have a good experience on Viking Read Less

My wife and I choose this cruise based on the itinerary. It was called "In the Wake of the Vikings". We left Seattle on Seattle on Sept. 15 the spend some time in Norway. We flew through Iceland to Oslo and took the train from Oslo to Bergern; a wonderful trip. We arrived in Bergen on the evening of the 17th with the intent of checking in on the Ship and doing some planned activities. We arrived at the pier about 10:15 AM, neither conveyor belts that scan your items was working, thus a full pat down. Once through we were told it would be 10:30 AM before we could check in. It turned out that the systems to check us in were down and we could not check in until 11 AM. It seemed like no one knew what was happening and it was hard to get straight answer. That should have been a hint. We got passed that and rode the funicular up the mountain, had lunch in the Fish Market and took a fjord tour by boat...a great day in Bergen! Since we were not sailing until the evening of the 19th, we took a farm tour that was included on the 19th and it was very enjoyable. Let me say at this point that we are experienced cruisers with this being our 26th cruise since the early 1990's. All ocean cruises, no river cruises and no Viking. We read great things about the Star, which turned out not be true. Our first stop was the Shetland Islands where we had a great tour and my wife bought wool (she is a knitter). Our second stop was the Faro Islands, which we had toW pass due to rough seas. Iceland was next and we had a great time in Reykivik; we had lunch at Cafe Loki where we had the traditional meat soup and several varieties of herring. For dessert we had Rye Bread Ice Cream (delicious). My wife bought more yarn and we bought some gifts. Nice Day. Then the fun began! We ran into a substantial storm that night with up to 45 foot waves and winds gusting to 80-90 mph. Lots damage on the ship and some people were hurt. Everyone had to hunker down for the night. Fortunately we were not seasick. Several items broke in our cabin. It was by far the worst storm that we have ever encountered while cruising. The next day was better, but 15 foot seas and 30 mph winds were not that much fun. Greenland had a stark beauty highlighted by a floating iceberg, a glacier and some very remote villages. We stopped at two very small Inuit villages and had to tender in since there was no dock to handle our Ship, even though we were under 1,000 passengers. After another sea day, we landed at L'Anse aux Meodows, a site of reconstructed Viking village. We were in one of the last two groups when the Captain cancelled the tendering due to rough seas. We felt we could have made since we have tendered in rough seas before. He later apologized since the seas did not get as bad as he expected. Needless to say we were very upset about missing this site. Our next port, Sagueny, Canada we took a paid tour of crafts, etc. At our first stop the bus broke down; end of tour Quebec City was really hopping and we had a good tour. Finally Montreal where we stayed in the Renaissance, a Marriott property which was outstanding. Especially using points and an upgrade to suite. I am a Platinum Elite, which is helpful. Here is our assessment: the Ship is beautiful, the staff is very attentive, but ineffective, the cabin is very well designed and the food ranged from horrible to very good. We ate in every dining venue. The phones have a clock, which was out for 4 days, thus when putting in a wake up call you were awakened two hours early until the problem was corrected. The wifi is free but very slow and not there several times. Everything you as for takes 2-3 to get it; making little things big things and gets you angry. There is no single point of contact like a concierge and/or a butler. At $7,000 per person one would hope for something like that. Entertainment was minimal, but surprisingly very good. We felt that Viking is not ready for prime time ocean cruising. Also DO NOT CRUISE THE NORTH SEA AND NORTH ATLANTIC IN SEPT-OCT. Read Less

As with most of our adventures, this cruise was chosen with an eye to itinerary, schedule, and environment. A late season North Atlantic crossing, Bergen to Montreal, is almost guaranteed to be a nautical adventure. This cruise did not disappoint. The scheduled Faroes Islands stop became a "drive by" due to unfavorable winds and seas. Later that day and evening we were "privileged" to experience the force of an early fall North Atlantic gale with 40 foot seas and greater than 60 knot winds. The crew, and passengers, learned some lessons about securing for heavy seas through first hand experience. The ship did just fine, demonstrating an ability to navigate in any even marginally reasonable conditions. The ship was again a delight. The cabins are spacious, the cuisine excellent and the entertainment well presented. The common areas are pleasant, and generally available even when the ship is fully occupied. Particularly noteworthy on this itinerary were the many enrichment lectures and activities addressing Norse and Viking culture and heritage, and anticipated encounters with marine life. The theme "In the Wake of the Vikings" was well presented through out the cruise. The included shore excursions provided an overview of the ports while conserving time and energy of the participants. The daytime transit of Prinz Christian Sund in Greenland was a nautical delight that will be remembered for a long time. Cruise participants were "older" than those on many trips we have taken. There were probably several factors at work. Viking does not encourage children onboard. There are no programs for the young, and long Fall cruises conflict with school. This cruise sold out early in the year, months in advance of departure. Most passengers had taken previous cruises with Viking, and many had previously cruised in Viking Star. We will return to Viking Ocean Cruises any time their itineraries, our interests and mutual schedules coincide. Read Less