We had not been on a Viking Cruise before and had heard great things about Viking. We wanted to spend some time in Scandinavia so we felt this itinerary would be ideal.We went to Stockholm two days early and made our own arrangements on line. They were considerably less expensive than what Viking wanted, even adding the taxi cost from the airport to our hotel and from that hotel to the ship. Embarkation and Disembarkation went very smoothly. The food, the service, the ambiance, and the ship were all top notch. We felt that most of the included excursions could have been longer. It's a three hour train ride from the ship to Berlin and three hours back. The train lacked air conditioning and it was a VERY hot day. Some people stood up by the open windows to get fresh air. We felt the optional excursion in Berlin was a bit pricey, so we went on line and found a great local tour guide who took three couples on a walking tour. Because of the heat that day in Berlin, she included a subway ride, and a van ride, to get from one location to another. Back on the ship we used the gym on one occasion and it was very clean with professional equipment. The common areas around the ship included many places to read or play board games. The complementary wine and beer with lunch and dinner were excellent. We did not require alcohol at other times, so the cost was irrelevant. We would definitely travel on Viking in the future.