This was our second Viking River cruise. The first was unfavorable due to a missing luggage issue and there was absolutely no help from the ships hotel or cruise directors getting it back to us in 10 days despite the fact it was at the airport one hour after we arrived. The Tulips and Windmills cruise, absent this luggage and uncaring staff problem was very good so we thought we would try China using Viking.

We booked a suite at a $3000 premium and that was a big mistake. As you might have seen in other reviews this ship is not up to any western or Viking standard at all. The suites are on deck five and to start the floor and walls are very uneven. The steel deck plates are sloping and have uneven places where they overlap and / or were welded. The bedroom sloped 2" just in the space of the king beds headboard (6 feet) and we "fell" downhill from the door to the window. My guess is that there was a 6 to 8 inch drop in the length of the room. We asked for and received another room which was not quite as bad but still had a slope issue (the bed was more level than in room 508). The hall was in the middle of the ship and even there you could feel the welds and deck-plate waviness under the carpet. Most people had trouble walking, especially after cocktail hour.

The shower in our "better" room (511) was so uneven that the water did not flow to the drain, it stood in a big puddle in the back of the shower where you had to step out. The shower door rolled downhill and had to be engaged just so to keep it in place. Generally poor construction quality and with no use of levels or plumb-bobs in the construction process. Gaps, saw cuts in the woodwork to repair issues and other poor fit and finish items were commonplace. The deck five suites are a mess. Read more