We are avid cruisers (7 lines) and this is our 4th with Seabourn. This was suppose to be our 'celebratory' 40th wedding anniversary dream vacation! The corona virus situation was a fast paced, evolving situation which we were acutely aware of. We landed in Hong Kong, our start point on Jan 31/20. The WHO had declared the Corona Virus a "global health emergency" the day before. Seabourn had 48 hrs to advise their "valued guests" as apparently their "top priority is safety" and give us the OPTION to either cancel or rebook. Instead, they ignored our emails and on embarkment, we were told that if we didn't get on the ship (docked next to the 'Westerdam' in HK), we would be forfeiting our $40,000 vacation. Ultimately, once we set sail, we ended up being denied entry into 4 out of the 6 countries in the 'red zone' we had paid and booked to see and only saw 2 of the 13 ports of call on our original itinerary. At the 11th hour, only after most passengers had voluntarily opted to get off early in Singapore, Seabourn outright cancelled the 2nd segmont of our cruise. This was a blatant, underhanded way to mitigate their losses and be compelled to cash refund those passengers. Very bad optics!!!! Seabourn's response . . . they were following CDC guidelines. Not other cruise lines!!! Throughout our 'relaxing' ocean voyage with mystery ports, we got a total of 4 'revised' itineraries. All the while, we were anxiously watching the "Diamond Princess" sage unfold realizing full well that this could be us!! To compound the crisis, after multiple meetings on board with senior managers/captain and a sea-to-shore call to corporate office in Seattle on Feb 14, Seabourn's "goodwill gesture" was to offer us a "future cruise credit". Not at all satisfactory!! The measure of any good company is how a crisis is handled. Not 'IF' but 'WHEN' problems arise . . . deal with them. The Covid-19 was not Seabourn's doing . . . but the mishandling definitely is!!! Strong leadership with a solid moral compass was not demonstrated. Lack of PROMPT and FAIR communication!! Very much resent putting our health at risk (have had pneumonia X2) plus avoidable, unnecessary STRESS!! And then to be offered a return air on CHINA AIRLINES back to Vancouver . . . really?!?!?! Very, very unhappy!! Seabourn rolled the dice and is hoping that the mostly senior, European passengers are complacent!! Not this one!! Certainly not what one would expect from a 6 star ultra-luxury cruise line!! Read Less

After cruising extensively on Oceania I thought I would try Silversea. Oceania discourages children so it came as a shock to discover there were nearly 60 children on the Silversea cruise (10% of the passengers). Instead of being a sophisticated adult experience, the cruise was more like a school outing. Kids running around everywhere and a cacophony of high pitch screaming from the forest of high chairs in the dining room. That was a pity because other aspects of the cruise were very good. The ship and cabin were tastefully decorated, although sound proofing between cabins could have been better. Staff were wonderful and very willing to accommodate special requests. Food was good even thouhg the dessert menu was the same every night. Shore excursions were well organized and reasonably priced. One negative, the ship had the worst WiFi I have ever experienced on a a cruise ship. Silversea needs to decide if it wants to be a family cruise line or an adult cruise line. If they decide on the latter, I would cruise with them again. Read Less

We cruised from Hong Kong to Bangkok. The ship (Viking Orion) is fabulous, the ports are quite a mix, and the passengers are generally not very nice people. We enjoyed the ship, especially the Explorer's Dome and the gym/spa. The food and entertainment/ cultural series were mostly excellent. We especially enjoyed the Chef's Table, Manfredi's is also excellent. In this region of the world, many of the ports are far from the cities of interest, so most of the excursions involve bus trips with groups of people that are just too large, especially for the included tours. Also, many of the passengers are not physically fit enough to keep up with the large groups, and the tour guides were sometimes insensitive to this. Viking does not do a very good job of grouping people together based on physical ability or interests. I'm not talking about any kind of strenuous hiking or anything like that. These bus tours require sufficient mobility to climb onto and off the buses with some efficiency, and some walking through crowded places with a lot of hustle and bustle. Sometimes the only toilet was upstairs with no elevator, and some participants were unable to climb stairs. Needless to say, this created difficult situations.... Also, some of the passengers in the groups were quite inconsiderate of the rest in the group, not returning to meeting points on time, wandering off to shop while the tour guide is trying to explain the location's culture and history. While we did meet a some kind and interesting people on the ship and on excursions who were genuinely interested in learning about the cultures of SE Asia, many were just simply not very nice people at all. Very self-absorbed, often quite rude to others, and uninterested in the kind of cultural exchange experience that Viking tries to offer. They also were not very kind to their fellow shipmates who were physically not able to keep up with the tours. We did several tours through Viking that were extra, and those tended to be much better, albeit a bit spendy. The port of Sihanoukville in Cambodia is not much of a port. As you may know, Cambodia has a difficult history, and this part of Cambodia is trying to re-develop via investments from China. Simple infrastructure like trash disposal, sanitary sewers, modern roadways are lacking. I hope that the fact that Viking stops there is a way to provide some resources to assist in their development as a way to balance the Chinese investments. We highly recommend taking the overnight excursion to Phnom Penh. Yes, it looks expensive, but it was soooo much better than trying to explore Sihanoukville, which is not a very nice place. The thought of an included excursion in the kind of sad place that Sihanoukville is with the selfish and self-absorbed typical Viking passenger that we ran into is just not appealing to me. Also, Viking was clear about the trip to Phnom Penh being a physically demanding tour, and the passengers who participated in it were able to keep up. The tour guide was also fantastic, and the participants were interested in the cultural exchange, so this was an excellent experience. The port close to Bangkok was another real letdown, along with our excursion to Bangkok - we did the included tour, and it was especially bad. Lots of time on a bus, very limited time actually in Bangkok, and very inconsiderate fellow passengers who gave the poor tour guide a really hard time. The passengers should be ashamed of how they acted, and I was quite embarrassed for them. Of course, they were clueless about how they behaved. We signed up for the post-cruise extension to Angkor Wat and Siem Reap, and this was truly a highlight. Fantastic tour guide, excellent hotel in Siem Reap, group size was OK, and the participants could mostly keep up. For those that were unable physically, the tour guide was experienced enough to give them options that didn't interfere with those of us who were able to take full advantage of the excursion. In summary, we are going to wait about 10-15 years before we try another Viking Ocean cruise. Then we might better fit into the overall age demographics and physical abilities. Not sure what Viking can do about rude and inconsiderate passengers - I guess this is one of the downsides to doing a cruise. Overall, we had a nice trip, but this was the first time after doing multiple cruises on Viking and other cruise lines that we experienced so many unpleasant fellow passengers. Read Less

We chose Viking Ocean Cruise for this trip because we previously cruised with them and trusted we would receive the same amazing cruise experience. Below is a summary of our overall experience: Ship and cabin: 5 stars! Beautiful ship and cabin. Our only complaint was having to endure the smoke at the Word Cafe Restaurant on our entire 2- weeks trip due to broken ventilation fans. Service: Five stars! Everything was perfect! Staff: Five stars! Friendly, respectful, professional. Entertainment: Excellent TV entertainment choices. We did not attend any of the live entertainment because we were always leaving early in the morning for our excursions. Ports and Excursions: 3 stars. Other than Hong Kong, the remaining ports were often industrial ports and so far away from the city/towns. That said, we spent a lot of hours in buses going to towns/excursion destinations. Also, excursions not worth the cost. We don’t know if vendors were charging Viking too much or the other way around. It’s important to note that the excursion staff were always friendly, respectful and very professional. Dining: 41/2 stars for specialty restaurant and Main dining room.. 4 stars at World Cafe. This buffet restaurant often served greasy and little variety for breakfast food. Dinners we’re much better selections and always had king crab legs and beautiful large shrimps. The pizza and soup stations were excellent!. Read Less

We decided to do another Viking Cruise to celebrate my husband's retirement. He chose a cruise from Hong Kong to Tokyo with a 2 day extension in Hong Kong before our cruise began. Viking offered 2 Hong Kong included tours, one from the hotel and one from the ship. Both were very informative. We were also given information and opportunities to explore on our own, where to eat, the evening laser show, how to get around and what to be careful of. The Orion is a beautiful ship--all the Viking Ocean ships are the same so we knew our way around from our first ocean cruise. The food was excellent an a few nights were specialty dining. We mostly ate in the Restaurant or World Café, both have options for diet issues. As far as the entertainment went, there was more to do than we had time. There was a huge variety of excellent entertainment from lectures and port information, movies, shows, dancing, teas, spa and pools, music venues and miscellaneous activities. If we missed something we could watch it in our cabin later. Viking took care of every detail, we even had popcorn for the movies. Our cabin was small with a regular balcony. We like portside to enjoy arrival and departure. One night a brass band played as we left and another night there were fireworks for our departure. People gathered to wave us in and out. That was really special! The service on the ship was superior. We did all included shore excursions and we added a sightseeing excursion in Tokyo. Guides and tours were excellent, only 2 were a little disappointing, Osaka we wanted to see more and another place, it seemed the guide was a last minute substitute (I think it was Beppu). Viking is an adult only cruise. Read Less

Itinerary was perfect for us with concentration on Japanese ports. We wanted to sail with Viking since we only have booked with Oceania. Service is outstanding with Viking. As for restaurants, the Chef’s Table specialty is fantastic. Wine pairings are very well done. Manfredi’s is way off track attempting to represent Italian cuisine. The food is just not good regardless of whatever version they are attempting to serve. The main restaurant is solid, we always had a good meal. Quality of paid excursions is top notch. Viking is using 5 star local tour guides. Enrichment seminars are great. One of the most exciting features on this ship is the Planetarium theater in the Explorer’s Lounge. Only 26 seats, so book early. The Spa area with the ice room, sauna & pool is outstanding. An extremely serene experience. While Viking could not compare to the culinary experiences on Oceania, we personally preferred Viking overall. Read Less

We were particularly interested in visiting Japan and this cruise turned out even better than what was expected. Several months prior to cruise the itinerary was changed. South Korea was cancelled and replaced with another stop in Japan. Although it may have been nice to check off another country visited, one very limited day (due to delays through customs) would not have been very satisfying. Instead we had a longer time in a couple of ports in Japan. This was our 2nd Viking Ocean Cruise and we love their ships. The Viking Orion has the added "planetarium" which we visited on several occasions, for night sky show and several documentary movies. All other details in the ship were basically the same as on our previous cruise on the Viking Sea. * Food and restaurant selection is quite good, although there were occasional disappointments. * The spa and fitness areas are excellent and generally underused. * There are many places to explore and either enjoy quiet time or spend time socializing. * It's important to read descriptions on excursions. We usually enjoyed taking included excursions and then departing the group before returning to the ship as we love exploring on our own. We also chose a few optional excursions and they were very good. * Service from wait staff, room stewards and everyone else was excellent. * Great free (including soap) self-service laundry on each floor. * Take advantage of galley and bridge tours if you can fit them in. * Entertainment was just okay but we really don't cruise for the entertainment. Our favorite thing about Viking Cruises is the quality of the lectures. We had outstanding lectures from all four of the guest lecturers, from history to science, politics and culture. We will continue to travel with Viking. Read Less

This was our first Viking Ocean cruise — we’d done Viking River Cruises and they were always terrific. This cruise interested us because it called on ports in Japan and China as well as Hong Kong. We were completely satisfied with the cruise, including the room, dining and shipboard experience. We were a little disappointed with the shore excursions, not because they were bad, they just weren’t as good as they were on their European river cruises. We were told it was because Viking controls the tours on European river cruises but contracts them out on ocean cruises. Getting on and off the ship was easy because there were less than 800 passengers aboard, even with the Chinese immigration officials making it difficult. Passing through immigration in Japan was a piece of cake. The ship had scheduled entertainment nightly in the theater and other areas of the ship as well as dancing in the lounge. Viking’ ships are a great size, not too big and impersonal, but big enough to have the amenities and entertainment to make it fun. Hong Kong and Shanghai were wonderful places to spend time and snorkeling on Ishigaki Island was memorable. We could have given up The smaller ports for more time in the larger. Dining was first rate at the Restaurant, the Chef’s Table and Manfrettis’ and very good at the World Cafe. Read Less

After quite a number of Viking river cruises my wife and I decided to try one of their ocean cruises to a long awaited destination...Japan. We certainly were not disappointed! Viking has brought the best of their river cruise “philosophy” into the ocean cruising world. We felt quite at home and enjoyed this extension of Viking hospitality into the new type of adventure. As mentioned, the familiar Viking feel was present. From the design and size of the stateroom to the excellent food and beverage offerings and of course the destinations and excursions, the entire trip delivered just the right amount of luxury, style and comfort we desired. We appreciated the lack of a casino, no sketchy auction sales or the constant push to extract money from passengers one finds on the normal cruise ship. This more refined and restful experience is the perfect way to cruise and enjoy fascinating destinations. Read Less

Chose this cruise mainly for the itinerary, Hong Kong Taiwan, and the Philippines and secondly the Azamara Quest was recommended by a friend. We were looking forward to a small ship, but were surprised by the small cabin, plastic shower curtain with small shower, two seater strange shape seat that could only sit one person, huge balcony table for size of balcony. Cabin staff brilliant no problems, pity they did not have better cabin to look after,very poor design. Restaurants were ok, food was very good, service was very good once you got to know staff. On some days only Windows buffet open for lunch not enough tables for everyone, people wandering about with plates of food and nowhere to sit, twice we gave up and left,that really annoyed us, and a lot of other guests. Entertainment was terrible Cabaret lounge is not a suitable venue for type of shows we went to, unless sitting in front three or four rows not much could be seen. The Den had a pianist in the centre of the room whilst being excellent, he was so loud and played all evening we could not hold a conversation with friends so we had to look for somewhere else to sit. Tours were ok apart from a couple, boats returning in the dark with no lights, and people having to wade out in the sea up to their waist to get aboard boats on return trips, health and safety risks in both cases I would think. Places visited were ok, but why take us through the slum area of Manila in a horse drawn carriage I can not understand, there must be more attractive parts of the city to see and hear about. One of the few plus sides was the quality and variety of the cuisine, it was excellent, served by wonderful crew in Discoveries dinning room Titiana and Ferdie they were brilliant. The service on board was very good, the crew being friendly and helpful at all times. There was a lack of knowledge on the management side, Windows and Discoveries restaurants should have both been open for lunch to cater for the numbers on board. Show organised to suit the venue, volume of piano in Den set suitable for the size of room. Certainly this cruise was not five star more like two, I will stick to MSC, superior cabins, superior entertainment, cuisine almost as good, no complaints like we experienced with Azamara. Would I cruise with Azamara again probably not. I thought it was to be a luxury cruise, how wrong can one be sometimes!! Read Less

We choose this cruise because we had not been to China before. We were keen to do another Ocean Cruise after doing a Viking River Cruise the year before. The embarkation process was very smooth and we were on the ship in no time. These ships are really beautiful - very spacious and hard to believe there was about 800 people on board. There are so many places to go to it is easy to get lost in the first few days. We found the food on board to be of a very high standard. Sometimes when we read other reviews we find it hard to believe we were on the same ship! There were so many different places to eat and you could have any thing that you wanted, especially in the World Café. The BBQ meals on the pool deck were very good with different themes on sea days. Breakfasts always good and lots of variety for both lunch and dinner. We enjoyed both Manfredis and The Chef's Table - they were great places to eat. The crew were all amazing! It wasn't long before they knew our names and they were so efficient in their roles. We had a lot of fun with some of the bar staff especially Gary 1 and Gary 2 at the Atrium bar. Nothing was too much trouble for the crew. We went to a few of the entertainment evenings and we enjoyed them very much. Service everywhere was excellent. We enjoyed the ports we visited with some better than others. There was not a lot to see In Ishigaki but we enjoyed Okinawa and had a great guide to show us the site of the Battle of Okinawa. Shanghai was amazing - we had such a good time there. We enjoyed Qingdao although it was very busy as it was the 70th Celebrations in China. Dalian was a lovely place and we had a great tour there. The standard of tourist guides in some ports was not very good. We had one day when we walked for a very long way before the guide realised we were walking tin the wrong direction. Overall, this was a lovely cruise but we did have some issues with the time it took to get off the ship due to the Chinese immigration requirements, not Viking's fault though. Read Less

was a wonderful trip, only had one problem and that was with having the bar in our suite stocked. If Viking would ask your liquor preference before the trip the problem would have been avoided. Cabin was very large and well appointed. The excursions were wonderful and always on time. Our cabin steward was great as well as the dining room staff. The specialty dining was very good and different from other Viking cruises we have been on. The ship was nicely appointed and the spa area was beautiful. Viking does not allow children on their cruises and they do not have casinos on their ships so if that is what you are looking for you would have to look at different cruise lines. There is really no entertainment on Viking other than lectures on the areas that you are visiting. I think the entertainment is the excursions. The buses that we took to the excursions were mostly newer and equipped with seatbelts Read Less

Our holiday was for myself, my husband and my three sons (17, 22 and 25) in two parts booked through cruise.co.uk. The first part was a 10 day, all inclusive tour around China. Our second part of the holiday was a seven day cruise aboard the Voyager of the Seas which we boarded at Hong Kong. I have cruised many times with Royal Caribbean and have, in fact, been on this actual ship. All previous cruises have been excellent and of an equally great standard that I have come to expect from Royal Caribbean. On this part of the holiday we were joined by my parents who had travelled separately to Hong Kong in order to enjoy the cruise with my family. At no time were we informed that this ship was about to go into dry dock for a major refurbishment and serious repairs STATE ROOMS When booking this holiday with cruise.co.uk, we explained that while we were happy for my three sons to share a room, they were adults and, putting it bluntly, quite large! Adam understood our requirements and sold us a balcony grade cabin for myself and my husband and a panoramic suite that could sleep 6 for my three sons to share. At the time of booking Adam explained that he could not get a room number for the panoramic suite although he guided us to the ‘deck plans’ and explained it would either be state room number 1804 or 1814 on deck 12, just a few doors down from our state room. He explained that although room 1814 was officially a disabled cabin, it had much larger floor space so would accommodate my three sons. On our invoice, we were never provided with a room number for this room. We paid more for this room as it was so much larger. Upon arrival on the ship, my sons were allocated room 1852 which while panoramic, was not a suite that slept 6. The staff told me it could sleep 4 although we soon found out that with only two beds and one small sofa that could only be converted into a single bed, it only could sleep 3. The floor space was exactly the same size as our balcony grade cabin. The staff were very unhelpful explaining that there were no other rooms available as the ship was full to capacity. We later found out that there were actually 400 rooms unallocated on that ship that week. We believe we were miss sold this room under the pretence it was bigger than the balcony grade cabin and could sleep 6 people. We most definitely paid more money than our balcony grade cabin which was the same size. We expect to be reimbursed for this. LIFTS We were on the 12th deck so obviously lifts were a necessity. On day one, all of the panoramic central view lifts were suddenly covered in a green netting that stretched from the top deck to the bottom. We were informed that they were being repaired. We established, by talking to the engineers and taking photos and videos that these lifts were NOT under repair but were actually being ripped out in readiness for the ship to go into dry dock in a week’s time. Two of the other lifts didn’t work at all and one of those broke down completely within a couple of days. One lift wouldn’t go passed deck 10. Being on deck 12, I’m sure you can understand the inconvenience this caused not to mention the sight and noise of workmen carrying out a complete rip out right in the middle of your holiday FOOD - Windjammer There are many areas where food can be obtained and the Windjammer Restaurant is the self service restaurant on deck 11. The food looked plentiful and nicely presented however, it was nearly all cold and on occasions, undercooked. We were told that hot plates were no longer working and some of the ovens were soon to be replaced. This response did not help us in any way at all. My husband was continually frustrated to get a plate full of food, find a seat to sit and eat it, only to find it cold and disgusting. It was then that we noticed the lack of staff in the restaurant. Plates were not getting cleared away from tables, spillages were having warning signs placed over them but not getting cleared up and the water/tea station was continually unmanned. FOOD - Johnny Rockets We decided the only way to get a decent hot meal would be to pay the additional price in order to visit one of the 4 speciality restaurants on board. Unfortunately, this was also a disaster! We visited Johnny Rockets - a burger bar restaurant with a $10 surcharge. The place had few customers, the waitress spoke very little English and the chef was busy fussing over one beef burger when we walked in. We sat at the counter and tried to order - the waitress could not understand why we would want our fries WITH our burger - surely we would want them as a starter? We looked around and could see other guests munching on just chips and overheard them all complaining about when their burger was going to be served. This restaurant was advertised as an authentic, American burger joint yet the staff had absolutely no idea how burger and fries were meant to be served and consumed! We waited 25 minutes for the chef to cook the burger - we watched as he used his spatular to scoop up a raw chicken breast, slap it on the griddle next to our burger and then proceed to turn our burger with the same spatular. I don’t think any more needs to be said about Johnny Rockets other than it was a total let down. Again, staffing seemed to be the issue. FOOD - Sapphire Restaurant We had booked my time dining. This means that you can reserve a table the day before. This is a practice that I have often used and has always worked efficiently in the passed. On this cruise however, the queues of guests outside the restaurant all waiting to be taken to their pre-booked table was ridiculous!. You expect queues outside the other restaurants when there are allotted seated times - often a hundred or more guests would be waiting for the 6pm sitting and would then all be let in at once. But you do not expect this in the ‘my time’ dining room. Yet again, lack of staff was the issue. Once shown to our table we again experienced a lack of staff - no wine waiter or water waiter. I got up twice to get my own water. The one waiter we had was very over worked. When food arrived after a long wait it was often cold and inedible. We complained several times and eventually the restaurant manager, Ellen came to our table and listened carefully to our grievances. We told her we would be unable to risk eating in the restaurant again and would have to purchase the food package which enabled us to eat at the speciality restaurants at an additional surcharge. Ellen almost begged us to give her another chance to prove the restaurant was worth another visit so two days later we tried again. Firstly, the seven of us were showed to a table that could only sit five people comfortably yet they had squeezed seven place settings on. We complained and were moved to a table that could comfortably seat 12 guests although was only partially laid up for eight. Again, we had to serve ourselves water and again the wine waiter had to be called and called and when he finally arrived asked US to write what we wanted on his pad as he couldn’t understand English!!! Our meal was late and the starters were cold. We complained again but was told this time there was a severe shortage of staff and that everyone was doing their best. This was really not acceptable and made our complete dining experience on the ship appalling. FOOD - CHOPS GRILLE As the food and service was so appalling on the ship, we had no option other than to pay (at a considerable cost of £380 - invoice enclosed) for a ‘food package’. This entitled us to eat at the three main speciality restaurants over three nights. Unfortunately it appeared that most guests had the same idea so Chops restaurant was so busy we were only able to book the whole family in for one of the nights. We wanted to book for our last night but they had already filled their books by day two of the cruise!. Our experience in Chops was what we would expect from Royal Caribbean - food was beautiful, staff attentive and service fast. What a shame the rest of the ship couldn’t be like this and what a shame they were so booked up that we couldn’t enjoy good food on our last night FOOD - IZUMI Another of the three specialist restaurants was Izumi, a Japanese restaurant. Food here was very good - we noticed most of the staff from the Captain’s Bridge were in there. Unfortunately service was appalling. It took ages to get a drink and even longer to get the food. We wouldn’t have eaten in there at all had we been able to get a table at Chops FOOD - GIOVANNI’S TABLE The last on the list of the three specialist restaurants. Menu seemed limited and again service was far too slow. Our booking was for 8.30pm but we were left standing for 15minutes while the maitre d took someone’s order. Again, short staffed. STAFFING After realising that most problems encountered on our ship were due to staffing, we decided to complain at the main desk. Queues here were always long but after a 30 minute wait we were finally seen. It was established that the ship was seriously understaffed due to another cruise liner enlisting the more experienced staff in order to ensure their maiden voyage did not receive any criticism! We were assured that the staffon board were qualified although some were new to their positions. When we started speaking to staff, it came to light that a large proportion of staff had originally been ‘cleaning staff’ who had been bumped up recently to fill in for the short fall in serving staff. This would account for the amount of staff unable to communicate with us due to their lack of English. It would also account for the poor service being received in every area of the ship. In the spa area there was only one hairdresser working and he informed us that he had originally been contracted to work until December but had only recently been told that the ship was going into dry dock so would be leaving his position then. He said that the other hairdressers and spa consultants (there was only one who could give pedicures) had all left the ship back in Hong Kong SHORE EXCURSIONS One of the most important aspects of a cruise is the shore excursions. These excursions are advertised a few weeks prior to the cruise departing via an online brochure. The information available is fairly minimal. It should be noted that most excursions were marked as ‘booked’ before we even boarded the ship. It was established, once on board, that this wasn’t the case but unfortunately led to unreasonably long queues of guests trying to book tours at the tour desk. As it was unclear which tours would be the best to choose, we decided to attend the one hour meeting held on the first day in the ship’s theatre. This meeting is normally held by the cruise director where they explain in detail the different tours available, show a video of passed tours and generally help sell the excursions. If you are unable to attend this meeting, there is always a video on loop on your state room television. Ufnfortuanlaty, our tv didn’t work at first and once it did there was absolutely no mention of any of the tours on any of the channels - we complained at guest services but they were unsure what we were talking about. I assumed that possibly cruising to Vietnam was quite a new thing for Royal Caribbean and they were yet to produce a promotional video (?). Whilst still unsure what tours to book, we decided to attend the meeting in the theatre - this was a total waste of time as the cruise director was not on board. As a replacement, we were presented on a stage with a gentleman that spoke very little English. He embarrassingly read through the information brochure we had been given and showed some photographs that were also already in the brochure. He could provide no additional information and was unable to sell any tours. We complained to guest services who explained that the main tour manager was not on board the ship. All of the tours were very expensive so we wanted to choose the right ones. There were five of us (seven including my parents) so this could prove to be a costly mistake. We queued at the ‘shore excursions desk’ but was greeted with another member of staff, who while friendly, really didn’t have a clue about the difference between the excursions. It was quite apparent that Royal Caribbean were also using the cheap option when it came to docking the ship and rather than dock at the more expensive ports, were docking at the cheaper more industrial sites. This in turn pushed the price of the tours up as buses had to be taken with at least a two hour journey to get to any destination. To add salt to the wound, on our final day at sea, once we had sailed well away from Vietnam, the tv in our state room started to show videos of the trips we could have gone on! It was such unnecessary incompetence and due totally to a lack of staff CLEANLINESS OF THE SHIP When a ship docks and guests disembark for a day’s tour, it is normal practise to clean the boat and carry out necessary repairs whilst all is fairly quiet on board. This did not happen once during our whole cruise. It became quite obvious that no one gave a damn about the condition the boat was in or the cleanliness of the boat. Windows were left filthy and rust was evident everywhere. The ceilings in the main dining room were damp and stained and gave a general impression of a very unhygienic area to eat. Plates, cups and old food was constantly being left lying around and tables were rarely wiped. As well as the lifts being out of action there was also a problem with the air conditioning and constantly we would be tripping over portable air conditioning units placed around the ship. The outside of the ship was a total mess too and not once was the pully system lowered to clean the outside windows or ship. It was also very noticeable, as a previous guest with Royal Caribbean, that no effort was being made on the ship. No speciality events were on offer or any of the little extras that are normally available to guests. Small things like changing the ‘day of the week’ plate within the lifts was never done - each lift had a different day in it! It was made so very apparent that all the staff just couldn’t wait to get off the ship as they were feeling very overworked and harassed. We frequently heard guests being rude to bar staff simply out of frustration at not getting served. We had purchased the drinks package at a total cost of £1200 but it was useless trying to get a drink within half an hour. Where a bar would normally have at least four or five working, there would be only one. All the above is understandable for a ship about to go into dry dock but totally unacceptable to guests on board who have paid full price and expect the best attention, top quality food and comfortable and beautiful surroundings. What was most certainly not expected nor acceptable was shabby, poorly maintained surroundings, substandard food and poorly trained, inattentive staff. I ensured that I followed the complaints procedure and at every chance made my grievances known. A member of Royal Caribbean staff, on my very last day of cruising, offered to send me and my family a voucher off a future cruise. This offer was declined as I felt it was insufficient compensation. Regardless, the vouchers have been sent through to my email address and I, in turn, have returned the email rejecting these vouchers. I find the offer of the vouchers particularly insulting as one of them was for £1. I believe I did not receive the holiday I paid for so I have made an official complaint. I am seeking full compensation for loss of enjoyment, inconvenience, disappointment, loss of value and out of pocket expenses. I included photographic and video evidence in support of my claim and also some of the receipts for out of pocket expenses. I am hoping they respond within 7 days....we shall see Read Less

I was attracted by the destinations and the hype surrounding Viking Ocean Cruises. The ship is beautifully equipped with all modern facilities. Like a beautiful woman until the true character is exposed. The Ship lacked Soul. Furnishings were like Ikea on steroids. There were few activities apart from some excellent speakers and an outstanding performance by 4 dancers and singers. appearing only 3 times in 15 days. Another evening a Kabuki dance by locals was fascinating. People just hung out in corners of the ship reading and relaxing. They were entertained by 2 violinists and at other times by a pianist. Some passengers looked like they had passed away. Nothing much else to do. Excursions were disappointing. The one we looked so forward to going on was cancelled due to low support and the others didn't flow particularly smoothly. Food was the redeeming feature. It was excellent. Service was friendly and almost efficient. Our cabin attendant was very good. Embarkation was smooth and well organised. It would appear that Viking may be growing too quickly since there was what appeared to be inefficient administration processes. On one of our excursions we were instructed in the Newsletter to present in the Theatre for re-direction to our Buses. We had to meet by 1.45pm. Some 50 passengers turned up. But at 2pm when our Bus was due to leave, no staff appeared. A passenger then rang Guest Services to see what was going on and was then told we were supposed to meet on the Pier. No one told us!!! Read Less

We have cruised on numerous ocean cruises over the past ten years including Princess, Regent, Oceania, and National Geographic. Viking Ocean will now be our "go to" cruise line unless we are seeking an expedition cruise. Everyone's cruising style is different, but Viking is perfect for us. Our reasons include what they don't have, no children, no casino, no Vegas style shows, no butlers, and no formal nights, to what they do have - sleek, Scandinavian design with room for everyone, focus on educational lectures, focus on classical music, the most amazing spa and fitness center at sea, fabulous food with no charge speciality restaurants, and wine and beer with lunch and dinner. We had a penthouse veranda and it was wonderful. Maybe a bit more closet space would have been nice. The bathroom was our favorite ever with it's roomy shower and heated floor. I would chose the same cabin when we cruise with them again. As mentioned by others, Viking needs to work on their shore excursions. We were on a new itinerary so maybe that was part of the problem. They definitely need to invest in new listening devices. But overall, we have found our new favorite cruise line and can't wait to sail with Viking again. Read Less

Special birthday, new destinations, somewhere we have wanted to go for many years, a cruise seemed a good way to do it. Orion is a fabulous ship, the crew, facilities and comfort are first class. Travel arrangements were well organised and transfers were good. Stateroom is well appointed and very comfortable and has everything you could possibly want. All restaurants are exceptional, good choice and superb quality. House wines very good. Entertainment and enrichment talks very good. Unfortunately our cruise dates clashed with golden week/installation of the new Emperor, the whole of Japan was on holiday for the duration of time there. This did cause problems with a number of shore excursions and curtailed some time in port. This was the first time Viking had done this itinerary, we felt we were guinea pigs, and we were dissapointed with some of the content of the tours offered. The quiet boxes did not work very well, the guides difficult to understand. Some of the additional excursions are very expensive for what is offered, whilst we would definitely do another cruise (and are) with Viking we would be more cautious on how we spent our money. Read Less

I am writing this review after a 3 day pre-cruise itinerary in Hong Kong and first full day, while fresh in my mind. I will add further updates. The airport pickup and transfer well, even though they were not prepared for 4 people with 2 pieces of luggage with carryons each (although that is what we told them we would have). The Langham Hotel was excellent in all aspects - location, rooms, breakfast provided. The first day tour was just hotel transfer to the hotel, but we booked our own private tour which was great. Day 2 with Regent was really sub-par, made worse by rainy, cloudy weather. Nevertheless, we stuck to the itinerary of a train trip to the top of Victoria Peak for the (non)view (we went to the top to re-board our bus and spent no time there). Then on to our lunch at Stanley Market (which was a pretty poor example of a street market compared to the center of Kowloon). We ate at an authentic buffet lunch of —— German food in Hong Kong! Day 3 was a long trip to Po Lin Monastery (of course the cable car was closed) , a better than expected vegetarian lunch, then a visit to tourist trap Ngong Ping village. Pretty lame day - definitely best to explore on your own and set up private tours. The mid-cruise feedback form was filled with issues. We have not heard back from the crew - do not believe the “commitment to excellence.” They are committed to apologizing and being empathetic, as they have much practice from what I have heard from many other cruisers. More specifics: 1] The towels placed on the poolside chairs are changed once a day. If someone is lying on the towel and leaves, the towels are reused for the unsuspecting next poolside guest. 2] First day of the cruise (we paid plenty extra for alcohol included, but no Riesling wine (they did find one bottle for the 12 day cruise) and no Pina Colada mix ( after 9 days they did get off the ship to get more mix, but ran out after 1 day). 3] Salad poolside is served warm - not kept on ice or refrigerated. The salad plates are hot, also not kept in a cooler. Who really wants warm salad? 4] Same for the sodas. Warm Coke cans are opened - so they are not carbonated well. Poured over ice results in flat, diluted soda. I’ll stick to water, but it is warm if you want it from a bottle (or boxed water) - only water from the ship is cold (gee - wasn’t it brown water in my room)? Even refrigerator in room barely kept drinks cool. 5] Although I had expected great service due to a smaller ship with a high staff:passenger ratio, I felt that the service was really poor compared to Oceana. At the buffets, people were leaning over food and mis-handling the serving utensils (not very hygienic) similar to any Golden Corral in the U.S.)- as opposed to being served by gloved staff. It frequently took my asking servers multiple times to bring me drinks, bread, etc. Sometimes I just got up to do it myself. 6] The food menu is pretty extensive - which is good. The food is generally good (although I personally did not think it was uniformly good, but I did have alternative choices) - not as good as the restaurants I had experienced on Oceana but much better than Royal Carribean. Prime 7 is very good. The staff in the Italian buffet are understaffed and running around making it a hectic, not relaxing dinner, but better the second night. 7] When going on tours, only warm water is handed out when leaving the ship. Cold water is not routinely given out on the buses. Generally, the tour buses are good, the tours are pretty average to sub-par. 8] Now at day 10 after completing Bangkok “2 day“ visit. Rather than dock in Bangkok as was in the original itinerary, we docked 2.5 hours away in Laem Chabang. The excuse was low tide (we found out after boarding, others found out 1 week before). I am sure the real reason was it cheaper, as there were no other cruise ships in our port and other cruise ships were docked in Bangkok at the same time. The times of our docking did not change, so there was no way to reasonably go to Bangkok on day 1, with the “alternative offered was to go to Bangkok on day 1 (and at my own expense) book a hotel room and book my own tours to return on day 2 at 1:30 PM. On day 2 we left at 6 AM to have a very rushed visit to the Grand Palace, canal ride on the Chao Phraya river and a buffet lunch at a Sheraton hotel before returning at 1:30 PM - spent more time driving than touring - 2 days wasted in Thailand. I need to come back another time to actually visit the sites and see Bangkok! The entertainment has been better than expected. Staff are pleasant and very apologetic. When we explained our concerns personally to the ship General Manager, she was understanding and apologetic, offering a laughable $750 credit toward a future cruise, with no adjustment to the top dollar price of this cruise. With more protests, we were offered $750 each current cruise credit or $1500 eachfuture cruise credit. 9] The regular internet is very spotty, which I have found. To be fairly typical at sea. I paid for the upgrade to streaming internet, but became good friends with the internet guru with my daily visits due to inability to access the internet, and inability to stream (I tried to video stream a Peloton 45 minute exercise program, which worked for 12 minutes during my 45 minute exercise period). Other sites would not stream at all. Finally, I was told I would not be charged the $120 for the fast internet access I was not receiving). The good parts of this cruise: 1] The staff are friendly and try to be helpful, but are poorly trained (not their fault) and are limited with the ability to fix issues with a ship that should be taken out of service. The 10 day dry dock is not going to repair all the issues with the ship. They did try hard to address the many issues. 2] Bed is comfortable. The suite is comfortable (excluding the smell, toilet and brown sink water). High beds had plenty of storage underneath for big luggage. 3] Good quality entertainment. 4] Very good food and food choices. 5] We received a credit in order to book our own air travel, and were met in a timely fashion at the airport. Luggage transfers were seamless and done well. 6] Itinerary was good (better than the ports actually docked or the time allotted for touring). 7] Although it took great effort, we did receive $ credit. It did not make up for the lost time and aggravation of our vacation, but at least it was a token acknowledgement that there are major issues with the ship that were known beforehand but not publicized. We paid for a Ritz Carlton , and got a Motel 6 (sorry to Motel 6- as I am sure they have clean water in the bathroom Read Less

Just completed a 12 day cruise on the Navigator and was very disappointed. We had sailed on Regent before (although 20 years ago); our most recent trips had been mostly on Crystal, and our expectations were very high. First of all, the ship is very old....definitely at the end of its life in spite of a major refurbishment just three years ago. There is a musty/moldy smell in many areas of the ship (my wife is highly allergic to mold), and there are many signs of aging, including malfunctioning A/C in many of the cabins. Service was mostly perfunctory, at best. This may be, in part, due to the fact that this was a segment of their "World Cruise" (nearly half the ship as on for over 130 days), so non-World Cruisers were definitely second-class citizens. The staff would fawn over the World Travelers, but, other than our stewardess, no one seemed to know our names. Communication was extremely poor. The cruise director, Jamie, seemed to be mostly MIA. He was even absent for the opening meeting with all new guests...just a voice over the speaker. My experience on this ship has made me rethink ever cruising on Regent again. I don't know if was this ship, or whether Regent is in decline. Read Less

By Glyn May The waiter, sensing that our patience was wearing thin, dropped a bowl of hot chips (fries) and a bottle of tomato sauce at our table. “Chef’s compliments”, he said, “ dinner is going to be a bit late”. Classy cruising. Not. Two days earlier, a crewmember carrying a sharp-edged tray had accidentally slashed my wife’s arm badly when he bumped into her in the breakfast queue. And, as we approached our homeport, all power failed and the ship narrowly missed drifting into concrete bridge pylons. In 40-plus cruises over more than 35 years before and after that forgettable holiday, my wife and I in recent years have stepped up into the heady world of ultra luxury cruising –- a field that, despite the eye-watering cost, doesn’t always live up to its publicity. Until we joined the Seabourn Ovation on March 2, 2019 for a 14-night cruise from Hong Kong to Singapore. Our wallet took a AUD21,000 (USD15,000) hit, but for the first time on this new (launched in May 2O18) absolutely beautiful mid-sized 600- passenger all-suite ship, it was worth every dollar. Nothing is perfect, so give or take a couple of petty whinges (no self-serve steamed rice and very average congee (Asian soup) while sailing in Southeast Asia, and a frosty reception in The Grill restaurant) Seabourn Ovation went as close as ever we expect to get. As sometimes jaded, increasingly grumpy and always critical travellers, it was a joy for us to start our cruise by first running an eagle eye over suite 726 on our arrival Yes, you can assume that boarding was faultless. Not one photographer on the gangway, or anywhere for the entire cruise. These days we notice things that niggle experienced cruisers on: A wall safe comfortably at chest height (it beats sitting on the floor) in a spacious walk-in robe with three dozen clothes hangers. Plenty of mirrors, a seriously cold fridge stacked with soft drinks, beer and a real bottle of champagne; plus a list of ‘complimentary’ (paid for in the fare) good quality wines. If you can’t find anything to satisfy your taste buds from Chile, California, Australia, Spain or Italy, there’s a lonely bottle of Petrus 1995 Pomeroz Grand vin from Bordeaux waiting for you in the glass-walled wine rack in the elegant main dining room ‘The Restaurant’ for USD4,500.00 (AUD6,348.00). The label is a bit scruffy so maybe the Sommelier might do a deal. In our suite there’s a lounge long enough for a rack-stretched basketballer or a third guest, a generous, glass-topped round table for 24-hour room-service-with-a-flourish (starched linen and folded napkins) and a king-size bed with a choice of six pillows soft, firm, extra firm. The TV set is on a trolley for manoeuvrability and there are plenty of movies on demand. In-suite announcements from the bridge are restricted to an average two a day -- weather and brief entertainment updates, or shore excursion boarding. No electrical engineering degree is required to operate the lights. Just click and press for a range of illumination levels from dimmed romantic to the blinding glare in the interview/confession room down at my local police station. One of Seabourn Ovation’s most remarkable (unique?) assets is its ubiquitous South African Cruise Director Andre Potgieter who recently received the prestigious President’s Award for Leadership from Seabourn Cruise Line president Rick Meadows. Andre, a softy spoken, articulate young man, emerges like a breath of spring each day in a different tailored jacket and slacks and a new spectacular bow tie with matching pocket-handkerchief. Wherever he goes, goggle-eye grandmothers swamp him with cheek kisses and embarrassing hugs. Which probably explains why, when the ship is in port, Andre trains for his favourite sport, marathon running. Of the 575 passengers from 27 nationalities on board -- average age around 60 -- there were 266 from the U.S, 112 the U.K, 46 Autralians, 34 Canadians and 33 Germans. In two weeks they demolished 2,272 bottles of red wine, 1,435 white and 633 bottles of champagne. And although there were no children on board, 390 litres of ice cream. A total of 32,826 breadsticks mopped up 21lbs of caviar. Two popular spots on the ship are the Observation Bar on the deck 11 which features high tea for an hour from 4pm then a friendly circular bar open until midnight; and The Retreat on the top deck (12) an exclusive enclave with 15 private cabanas, lavish amenities and an oversized whirlpool spa. Evening entertainment in the Grand Salon, often starring one of the slickest teams of ships’ dancers and vocalists we have seen on a cruise ship and backed by Seabourn Ovation’s highly professional orchestra, featured a range of top-class acts from a comedian and to an opera singer. A tip: For an unobstructed view, find a seat away from the intrusive supporting pillars. A shore excursion with a difference on Seabourn’s Asian itineraries is the idyllic day spent on the company’s picture-postcard tree-fringed private beach, ‘The Den’ on the exclusive Thai island of Kood. On a clear sunny day more than 400 souls disembarked from Seabourn Ovation tenders to discover rows of deck chairs under shade trees, a feast of lobster, steaks and salads, champagne on ice and a full bar. All of this ferried ashore from daybreak and served by the ship’s crew and a group of local Thais. With only a few days left and most passengers staying on board for the cruise to Dubai, we were wondering whether they still threw stowaways in the brig. Read Less

We started as a cruise of a lifetime and ended as a demotivated disaster. This once great international liner is now a British floating holiday park, There is a ghost like senior management team only ever to be seen fraternising with Grills guests and drinking wine. With the distinct exception of Captain Wells who seems now to do the job of Cruise Director and Hotel Manager as well as his own. In 34 Nights I only saw 4 Shows and 2 bumpers involving the singers and dancers. The rest of the evenings were guest entertainers of which only 3 were of a standard expected of QM2 ,the rest were not even suitable for my local village hall. I suppose not surprising as the whole feel of the entertainment was that of a holiday park. Who is booking this holiday park drivvle. No entertainment outside the sailaway party was more of a wake than a party with the so called band finishing their set before the ship had gone anywhere. The cruise staff who were not even upto holiday park standard spent most of their time chatting to each other and photographers rather than guests.Once again no senior management to be seen ALL SAID THIS IS THE WORST CRUISE I HAVE EVER BEEN ON. This once great elegant liner is now Haven holidays at sea. Read Less

Chose this cruise as we had never been to the Asian region by ship. The Ovation was wonderful, the Staff and Crew were the best we have encountered on any cruise line .The food was beautifully presented and top quality. Handre is certainly the number 1 Cruise director.The Hotel Manager was Helmut Huber top guy and turned out to be a very funny man, actually hilarious!The Food and Beverage Manager was Ali who we have experienced previously he is just amazing he works very hard to please everyone. Our room attendant again was the best we have experienced Hayley was 1st Class. We have done many cruises on Seabourn and many other lines but Seabourn is outstanding, The special event on Ko Kood island was just an amazing experience we were so thrilled The Band know as Musical Society are fantastic and very personable, The deck parties are again outstanding and the ,say good bye ,to the crew on the deck is an emotional event most of the crew and Staff turn out to wave good bye while we drink and eat and have fun . Read Less

We are Platinum members and our last Seabourn Cruise was 2 years ago. We wanted to try their new larger ship and booked Hong Kong to Hong Kong, a BTB 28 day cruise. The ship is beautifully decorated. Our cabin was the same size as on the Sojourn and Odyssey. One problem was that the drawers in the furniture across from the bed were very hard to access and the space there has only enough room for one person to stand. The pool area was the same as the smaller ships and getting a place on sea days was difficult. The chairs are the same and not comfortable. Our one peeve was that now bartenders are instructed to measure out the amount of liquor for each drink. This on a ship that touts itself as all inclusive. We would have to tell them to pour doubles so we wouldn't have to come back. In the lounge outside The Keller Grill there was only one waitress and one bartender and it took 25 minutes for our drink to come. The comedians were all from Wales or UK and as Americans we could not understand them. Most of the musical shows were good and the singers and dancers were exceptionally good. The even sang opera at the pool and that was a real treat. We had a problem on one of the ship's excursions and it was not handled well. We were only told it would be reported and then never heard back. We agree with others that Seabourn, now having staff hired by Holland America, has gone downhill in service. Read Less

We chose this particular cruise because on my bucket list was SE Asia...Everyone spoke so highly of Viking we took a chance. This particular trip included air fare, a bonus for us. Viking made the arrangements and as we started to realize that we were losing two days of the trip (as of that time) we tried to change well ahead of the sail date. We were told it was too late unless we wanted to spend another $2000. That I could have done on my own. We get into port after having an extremely long flights to get to Hong Kong. The trip to the port got us on the ship about midnight. We had made an excursion for the next day. With jet lag, sleep was impossible so I was up all night and went on the excursion. BTW, if you are in a port more than one day...the so called included excursions are the same for all the days. Of course you can pay for another excursion. Trying to keep this as short as possible... The next night we went to our reserved Dine that had to be made way before we traveled. Our reservation was for 9:00 ...My boyfriend got a call at 8:15 if we had cancelled our reservation ..He said no and they told us they could take us earlier. This restaurant was supposed to highlight foods from the area visiting. That was so untrue. We were seated and immediately served the first couse. As an aside it was awful..We were served wine...Before we had an opportunity to "savor" the wine a second glass of a red was served, must breathe...We were so rushed through what was supposed to be fine dining experience, we actually asked them to slow down. They did not. They served dinner as if we were holding them up. Apparently we were as they started to clean up all the tables around us as we are trying to ascertain exactly what we were being served. I being very tired and frustrated started to cry and ran out. It was an experience...I give them that. I could go on forever, but every port was hours from towns that were not worth seeing and tours that were highly inflated in interest. We could not go to places we wanted to see as the drive time between the port distances and places of real interest would take more time to go and come than spend any time. Haikou and HaLong Bay were at best boring and out of range with travel to go to other places of interest. Of course these are our assessments, but reflect many of the other travelers we met. So on day three/four, I asked for the Viking guanantee as I could not make arrangements to get to where I wanted to go on the cruise. ...We spoke with General Manager who worked at finding us a way to take an excursion we found on Trip Advisor as opposed to another Viking tour. Of course he talked me out of taking the Viking Guanantee, knowing I would pay for my way as the guarantee spells out. I really could go on forever, but aside from losing two days of the actual trip, we also lost another day in Bangkok as the ship needed some repairs and we could not get back on in time to make our flights. Some of the tour guides went out of their way to make what was truly boring more enjoyable. I really could go on forever, but if you are not interested how the Chinese are making Sihanoukville, Cambodia into the next Macau for 2 days as they are exploiting the Cambodians...Do not take this trip...and I really could go on...and on...Oh one last thing, for those of us who needed to make flights they arranged a day room at the LeMeridan...and printed out the wrong address. We had to pay to make it to the right address..LeMeridian personel went out of their way to accoummodate us in Bangkok and for that we give them 5 Stars, LeMeridian that is! We had a total of 6 hours in Bankok...Also our trip was not 26 days..but theoretically..we spent a great deal of time going to no where places...I may not sit in the sun...So finding shaded areas was excruciating. I do have a letter of apology and/or disappointment from Viking. I will share that with them. Thanks for listening. Read Less

Pros: We chose Viking Ocean Cruises for their excellent rating and they did not disappoint. We chose the itinerary from Hong Kong to Bangkok due to the ability to really get to see that part of the world over the course of two weeks. Orion is a spectacular ship and the shore excursions provided us with an in-depth look at the real cities and real people. A perfect two weeks. Truly, everything was top notch. Rooms were spacious and beautiful and every single staff member was friendly and helpful. We felt very safe and taken care of on the excursions. Cons: Air travel. We used Viking Air to book the flights and mistakenly trusted their advice on connections and connection times. We flew from Newark, NJ to Beijing with a connecting flight to Hong Kong. Just as we feared, our incoming flight times were changed and the flight was late thus we missed the connection to Hong Kong. We were extremely tired and frustrated by the time we actually got on board the ship. Lesson learned. No connections unless absolutely necessary. And arrive 2 days before cruise departure! But would do a Viking Ocean Cruise again in a heartbeat. Read Less

I chose Viking for a cruise around New Zealand ending at Sydney, Australia because I wanted the experience that Viking provided. Viking caters to adults, does not have a casino and includes a number of things in the price of the cruise that are ala cartel on other cruise lines. Wi-fi, drinks with meals and one excursion in each port are all included. Unfortunately, the included excursions could not always be booked. There was some real confusion as to booking included excursions. In addition , many of the included excursions conflicted with other excursions or were simply not available. We were only able to actually book two "included " excursions. There were 7 port calls. Several of the other tours offered as alternative tours, for which Viking charged, were not of good quality. I did like a number of things about the cruise. First, Viking spends a reasonable amount of time in each port. Second, the staff is extremely helpful and nice. Service was excellent except in the dinning room on one or two occasions. Our cabin was also lovely. Viking is a very different experience from Princess and Norwegian. Much more upscale and not crowded. The enrichment lectures were also excellent. I am still trying to decide whether the extra money spent on the cruise with Viking was worth it. Princess has a similar cruise for about half the cost but it is a large ship. Overall, I am happy with the cruise. Read Less