For context we are a couple in our mid forties who have taken many ocean cruises. We took the "France's Finest" trip which is two 1 week itineraries combined. This is a review of Portraits of Southern France on the Viking Heimdal.

Viking handled the transfer between Paris and Chalone sur Saone to get us from the Viking Neptune to the Heimdal. It was handled very smoothly. The lunch stop in Dijon included a brief city tour by foot and a small amount of time for shopping. It is a long journey on the bus but it isn't too bad. Upon arrival at the Heimdal we were shown straight to our cabin.

Our stateroom was a good size. It seemed smaller than our room on the Neptune but the ship is obviously fairly new and everything was in very good shape. The bathroom was large and modern and had heated floor and glass door shower. There was ample hot water and good water pressure. We had ample storage space. We were happy we hadn't paid for a balcony because the way the ship docked most days (right up against the pier or tethered to another ship) there would have been few opportunities to comfortably use it. We did have a french balcony and it was nice to be able to open the door for fresh air. The cabin had many outlets, both north american and european as well as a USB port. The bed was large and comfortable. There was a mini fridge in the room. The supplied toiletries had a very strong citrus scent. They provide a hair dryer and face cloths. The room did not have black out curtains. The ship was very stable and there was little noise in the room. Read more