Overall this was a wonderful cruise and we had a great time. For me this cruise could have have been 5 stars if the embarkation was improved. First of all, having to go thru Vancouver definitely complicated matters. We had met all the pre-cruise Covid testing, but my wife was randomly selected for another Covid test by security in Vancouver; not a huge deal but a hassle none the less. We were spending no time in Vancouver other than getting on the boat, so the extra test seemed kind of pointless because we were tested daily on the Orion. The check in with the Viking staff at the Vancouver port can be improved as well. There were hundreds of people seated in a huge room waiting to get checked in. This process probably took 2 hours and it didn't seem there was enough Viking staff to get people checked in quickly.

Once on the boat things did improve dramatically. The staff was friendly and attentive. The food and amenities were top notch. We went on 3 paid excursions and really enjoyed 2 of the 3. The one we didn't enjoy was a trip to a fish camp that included a "seafood feast". It was far from a feast, just your typical low country boil. At this "feast" they sat us at crowded picnic tables, provided no plates of silverware and beverages didn't include beer and wine. Overall I would give this excursion a 1 out of 5 stars.