So-so: Viking Sky (River) Cruise Review by ve7dcg
Viking Sky (River)
0
Viking Sky. We booked directly with Viking. The staff were courteous and efficient and communication was good.
After a hellish experience with Lufthansa, things went well from the airport to the ship. As expected, our cabin was smaller than one gets on an ocean cruiser, but was adequate.
Water in the bathroom was inconsistent. On hot it sometimes ran cold, and on cold it was often scalding hot. This made taking a shower hazardous
The dining room was fine, but not the workers therein. It was evident that the wait staff were recruited from the part of Europe which had suffered Soviet control and so some of them had little idea of civility. Three of them were appallingly rude or offhand. Some passengers complained to the hotel manager about one of them.
The staff were not used to the idea that westerners like coffee and were reluctant to offer it.
The better staff kept us plied with free wine at dinner, so we were happy.
Breakfast More was adequate, the same every day. Main features were cold scrambled egg, hash brown patties cooked so hard as to be unchewable, brittle bacon. But there was porridge and lots of fruity-salady stuff.
Lunch and dinner were ho-hum, but one cannot expect an extensive menu from the kitchen of a small boat.
Shore excursions were walking tours, buses used only to take us to some of the sites. In such cold weather this proved to be too strenuous for us geriatrics, so we missed quite a bit. It would be helpful if the program staff would give some indication of the difficulty of the excursions (as does Holland America).
Value for money -- with the free air fare and off-season prices -- one could not do better.
Answering the criticisms would improve things greatly and not cost Viking anything. Less
Published 12/05/10
ve7dcg
Member Since 2010
Overall Member Rating
So-so
Sail Date:
November 2010
Destination: Europe - Western Mediterranean
Embarkation: Budapest
Destination: Europe - Western Mediterranean
Embarkation: Budapest
After a hellish experience with Lufthansa, things went well from the airport to the ship. As expected, our cabin was smaller than one gets on an ocean cruiser, but was adequate.
Water in the bathroom was inconsistent. On hot it sometimes ran cold, and on cold it was often scalding hot. This made taking a shower hazardous
The dining room was fine, but not the workers therein. It was evident that the wait staff were recruited from the part of Europe which had suffered Soviet control and so some of them had little idea of civility. Three of them were appallingly rude or offhand. Some passengers complained to the hotel manager about one of them.
The staff were not used to the idea that westerners like coffee and were reluctant to offer it.
The better staff kept us plied with free wine at dinner, so we were happy.
Breakfast More was adequate, the same every day. Main features were cold scrambled egg, hash brown patties cooked so hard as to be unchewable, brittle bacon. But there was porridge and lots of fruity-salady stuff.
Lunch and dinner were ho-hum, but one cannot expect an extensive menu from the kitchen of a small boat.
Shore excursions were walking tours, buses used only to take us to some of the sites. In such cold weather this proved to be too strenuous for us geriatrics, so we missed quite a bit. It would be helpful if the program staff would give some indication of the difficulty of the excursions (as does Holland America).
Value for money -- with the free air fare and off-season prices -- one could not do better.
Answering the criticisms would improve things greatly and not cost Viking anything. Less
Published 12/05/10
Cabin review: D111 Deluxe Outside Stateroom with half-height window
Adequate
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ve7dcg
Member Since 2010
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