Viking Orion Cruise Review by Ricey
Trip Details
- Sail Date: September 2019
- Destination: Asia
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.
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.
Ricey’s Full Rating Summary
Enrichment Activities
Value For Money
Embarkation
Dining
Public Rooms
Entertainment
Cabin
Fitness & Recreation
Shore Excursions
Service
Onboard Experience
Cabin Review
Cabin
Our cabin was lovely with lots of room. We couldn't fault it. The service by the Attendants was meticulous every day. A special shout out to Fernando for his special care of our cabin.
Port & Shore Excursion Reviews
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BeijingExcellent guide but it seemed like a very long way to go for a reasonably short time - we went to the Old Town in TianjinView All 91 Beijing Cruise Port Reviews
View Cruise Critic's Beijing Cruise Port Review -
XiamenWe had a very inexperienced guide and the itinerary was not the best - too much free time in the very hot sun - some mix up with the busses which caused delaysView All 1 Xiamen Cruise Port Reviews
View Cruise Critic's Xiamen Cruise Port Review