Very unhappy with service and food. Food was less than average and service was worse. Had one hot meal at dinner on a 16 day trip. Majority of staff unattentive and not well trained .Asked server at pool bar what types of beer were being offered and he replied, "I don't know." Got the same answer at one of the specialty restaurants. Neither server made an effort to find out. Cabin #6025 was spectacular. The ship is beautiful and state of the art. Attention to detail in decor was 100%.Toilet in our cabin leaked. It was fixed immediately. Shower did not work well. The problem was addressed and taken care of after two attempts. Enjoyed the excursions themselves but staff seemed very disorganized in getting them organized. Have been on two Viking river cruises. Enjoyed them very much. Food not much better on river cruises verses ocean. One night a cheese platter served with baguettes was ordered.Cheese was served with Ritz crackers! That is unacceptable! Wait staff uses hand held devices to order food. So impersonal and tacky, in my estimation. Spent a good sum of money for this trip...NOT a good value for what I spent. VERY disappointed.Came home and cancelled two future trips with Viking. I will go elsewhere. Read Less

Having experienced a Viking river cruise 2 years ago, we thought we would try an ocean cruise. We arrived at the departure city 10 days in advance to explore and enjoy - then went to the ship. Vueling Airlines (normally I would not name an airline - but this organization deserves to be mentioned) lost one of our bags and the folks at Viking went the extra distance (literally - from Monte Carlo to Nice) to recover the bag even though they were NOT part of the problem. Customer service was perseverant and excellent! Following the official christening a week prior, we were the first passengers to experience this brand new ship - and what a treat it was! These folks know what it costs to offer a 5 star trip and do not nickel and dime you along the way. Viking does not do anything on the 'cheap'. They truly make it a 5 star experience. Just prior to arrival, we were informed by e-mail that we had a complimentary upgrade to a Penthouse Veranda Stateroom (possibly because we had sailed with Viking in the past). Cabins are very comfortable and spacious with lots of storage within. Little things like a heated bathroom floor are abundant and well thought out. The cabin attendants are quick, thorough and very well trained. The ship graciously provides you with a list of the room's contents...and relative value should you decide to tuck something in your suitcase upon departure. You are free to bring whatever alcoholic beverages with you - unlike the other lines that depend on the 'booze packages' to top up their tills! Every palate is taken into account - from gourmet to buffet - the menus are fresh, innovative, varied and absolutely delicious. Evening menus featuring local cuisine, appropriate wines and attentive table service is spot on! For some reason, my wife and I expected an upper end IKEA atmosphere - instead, we got Neiman Marcus (on steroids). Each of Vikings ocean ships have their own unique venue within. In this case, it is an astrological domed theatre featuring well produced movies on space and the arctic experience. An intimate gathering with comfortable seating and about 6 projectors to generate a state of the art presentation. It is kept fairly cold so may want to bring a jacket - or the cashmere blanket from your stateroom! Every member of the staff from the Captain to the maintenance man looks you straight in the eye and says hello - and asks (sincerely) how your day is going. If a member of the staff is not working up to expectation - they seem to disappear for a day - then surface a day later with a broad smile, attitude adjustment and increased efficiency. They do not treat the passengers with an underlying distain that many cruise line staff seem to purvey. When asked "What's it like to work for Viking?" without fail, they are very complimentary about the personnel management policies, hours of work, perks and staff accommodation. The majority of the guides hired for the on-shore excursions are, educated, entertaining, enthusiastic, and experienced. Accents can be a bit of a challenge from time to time but Viking expects a report card at then end of the tour ensuring that the guide performed up to Viking expectations. Unfortunately the shipboard WiFi can be a little flakey if you are using your own laptop of cell phone. There is a bank of 6 hardwired computers on the main deck along with a printer should you happen to need one. In summation, we expected great - and got an 'over the top' experience. Viking deserves the accolades it receives from the various travel organizations. Would we spend this much again for a cruise? If it is with Viking, the answer is yes! Read Less

For us this cruise was chosen more for the ship and duration than destinations as we were already familiar with many of them. The Viking Star is a lovely ship and the public areas and lounges are really great with space always available to sit commfortably. Our cabin was all that we wished for and in our opinion anything of higher grade would not be worth the extra money. The cabin was kept immaculate by the charming crew and any requests were met very promptly. One day we returned during the cleaning and though the bed was made it was damp at the edges. When I queried this I was told that to remove any wrinkles they spray a little water. Just like home then? We found the dining in the restaurant was good though sometimes service was slow. Most food was really good though a couple of dishes were disappointing. The buffet was OK but anything cooked to order took a long time. The worst experience for us was when we ordered a premium wine and a wine glass could not be found so we drank from a tumbler. The much vaunted icecream didn't seem that special. The Chef's table concept didn't really appeal though the food was good as were the paired wines. Manfredi's was for us the best of all and we went several times and reservations were never a problem. Once there was a long wait to be seated and served. Lunch at the pool bar was good and service quick. Mamsen's was good for something different. We were really impressed by the quality and range of entertainment on offer both in the theatre and around the ship. The service must be one of the hgh points of this ship and most crew members were happy and helpful.Bar staff in particular were great fun and it was always a pleasure to see them. We took the drinks package and we think it paid off for us. Soft drinks seemed to be free during the day and wine and beer are included with meals but access to better wines was nice especially in the speciality restaurants. As stated the destinations were not a priority for us but those excursions we did take were pretty average. Catagena in particular was a waste of time as to reach the advertised Roman theatre there was a long ride and the theatre was actually 100m from the ship. With few exceptions the people we met were friendly and interesting and we would certainly consider further cruises with Viking. Read Less

I have always wanted to see the Fjords and I think the best way to do them is on a ship. But we had never cruised before as we didn’t fancy being on a large, glitzy ship. We saw Jane McDonalds programme on the Viking Sky and loved the decor. The vast majority of the passengers were American. Although I believe there were a few Brits on board, we never found them. The ship is beautifully light and spacious. It was easy to find quiet corners. The cabin was large and very well appointed, with an excellent shower room. The bed was extremely comfortable and the cabin was very quiet. The steward did a great job of cleaning. The restaurants were all excellent with a wide choice of menus. The staff throughout the ship were unfailingly friendly, helpful and professional. The optional (paid for) shore excursions were very expensive and not, in our opinion, good value for money. But I have one major complaint. The ship was freezing due to excessive air conditioning.For The first half of the cruise we had cold and very wet conditions and, having been on shore excursions and getting cold and wet, the last thing you want is to board a freezing cold ship. Even when the weather improved all the public areas were subject to blasts of extremely cold air. We complained to guest services, restaurant managers and anybody who would listen. All the passengers we chatted to agreed with us. Surely one doesn’t expect to have to wear outdoor jackets or warm sweaters in the restaurants? So, to sum up, a fabulous ship in every way apart from the temperature. It really spoiled our enjoyment. Read Less

From the moment you arrive on the Viking Orion you were treated like royalty. The embarkation process was quick and painless. As soon as you step onboard you are handed a glass of champagne by the friendly staff and directed to the dining room for lunch, The bags were portered up to the room by the time we finished lunch. Although there is no casino there are endless choices of things to do on the ship. We started with a relaxing dip in the heated spa pool which is more like a giant jacuzzi with all the bubbles you could want. In addition there is a main pool and an infinity pool inthe back of the ship. The ports of call were all very good, The included and optional tours were all very interesting. The food choices were numerous and good. The staff was very polite and the service was exceptional. Read Less

I travelled with my husband and we chose this ship because of the itinerary and the sterling reviews we found. We went on the pre-cruise Viking extension to Iceland and then boarded the Viking Sea in Bergen, Norway. We were in cabin 3021. We mainly had our meals in the World Cafe, although we did try out The Restaurant & The Chef Table. Thank you for the opportunity to share my opinion of this trip. -First of all, the Iceland extension was very interesting because Iceland is very unique. It is also a very expensive country. No fault of Viking-but be prepared to spend a lot of money for meals. Each day a very nice buffet breakfast is included. After that, with one lunch provided, you are on your own. The Hilton in which we were located is about a $25 cab ride away from the really fun part of Reykjavik, where it is easy to walk around to sites and restaurants. We found out that about 30 other Viking cruisers were staying there. We never got a choice! The tours were not optional, and we took one each day. Our favorite was to the Blue Lagoon..Iceland's gem of a thermal pool experience. Then, we had to take 2 flights to get to Bergen which was a rather long and chaotic event. However,I found out that there was a direct flight to Bergen, which some were on. Not sure, but maybe you had to buy premium air from Viking to get that. So, no more extension purchases from Viking. I will make my own way to the next ship. -Bergen was where we boarded the beautiful Viking Sea ship. It is a lovely ship with many interesting appointments. Our cabin class was the V1 which means very low. I had asked for DV-1 but my Viking advisor suggested I step down in the event an upgrade is available. Well, of course, no upgrade but I have to say ,the cabin was just fine. We normally don't spend much time in the cabin-but one problem I wasn't aware of is that you are last in line to pick optional excursions. My wish list was useless because all trip I wanted were sold out. Again, it all worked out because even though we got all afternoon included excursions, we like that we didn't have to rush out early or rush back for lunch. And, if I really pursued it, I could have added on some of those wish list items. Make sure you book your included tours, as those get filled up too. The same applies to choice of dining specialty restaurants. You could only reserve on ship, which I did without any problem. People are always cancelling and changing. -We had a pretty good itinerary going to the Norway fjords. Be prepared, as these are very remote areas, with rugged terrain. I saw many cruisers with sneakers, but I am ever so happy that I wore my hiking boots. We did have some wet & cold weather so I got very good use out of my coat which was wind/water repellent and had a fleece lining. We were scheduled for 3 At-Sea days. They morphed into 4 when we lost a port due to having to slow down in very rough North Sea waves. The Midnight Sun excursion was a blessing because we had clear weather. Imagine you are the farthest North in Europe and it was a nice day. But coming back down towards the UK we got into more rough seas. The captain did a great job keeping us safe. Our later stops were the Orkneys, Edinburgh and London. All good, but would have loved more time in Edinburgh but captain had to cut shore for some nautical reason. Again, he has our best interests in mind. -Embarkation in Bergen was nice and easy. Luggage in our room very quick. Even our low rated V status worked out because we didn't get out of the airport and to the ship until 3 PM -our scheduled time to board. Leaving from London was fine, it was a long bus ride through London traffic but we have plenty of time. Got to Heathrow with 3 hours to spare. -Would I go again on Viking? Well, they run a good cruise, have great staff and all the fun things like great food, nice comfortable leisure areas and lovely bars stand out. However, I found the fellow cruisers to be rather unfriendly. Someone pointed out that may have to do with the seating not being assigned at meals. Also, many folks seem to have connections from the River Cruises they have taken. The entertainment was pretty weak except for the lounges had nice live music. There were various lectures scheduled but again, very academic topics. The few food/wine events were additional $$$. The only group game was a Trivia contest. There were plenty of fun electronic board games and a great scrabble set. But not much to bring folks together. I assume that's probably what people want, but I like more social events. Read Less

After sailing with Celebrity for many years and reaching Elite Plus in the Captain's Club we decided to look for a new line to sail with. What were we looking for? Smaller ship, better food, less flash and better service. We received a brochure from Viking Ocean and it piqued our interest so we selected the "Into the Midnight Sun" 14-night cruise from Bergen, Norway to London, England in a Penthouse Junior Suite on Deck 7. This review is going to speak to those people looking to try VO, as we did, and what we loved and didn't love about the cruise and the ship offering some comparisons as well. [N.B. I wrote a "Live from..." on the VO CC Board that answered a lot of folks questions which you may find helpful as well.] Embarkation was easy and we were in our cabin in no time. First impressions: the ship is very Scandinavian in feel and looks exactly like all the pictures. Comfortable but not cozy, stylish without being overdone. Our JS was a nice size with plenty of closet and drawer space and the bathroom featured a large walk-in shower and double vanity. We REALLY liked our cabin, but not sure why there are 2 large flat screen TV's. The set up of the buffet, the World Cafe, is linear as opposed to islands on Celebrity which meant there were times when you had to wait in line. Not a big deal. The venue was well staffed with bar servers and Managers constantly circulating to make sure you had everything you needed. This was definitely a step-up from Celebrity. Until we got to Edinburgh the weather prevented us from eating outside, but when we finally could it was lovely. FYI - coffee is available 24 hours and self-serve espresso/cappuchino/latte machines were also available. Our JS also had a coffeemaker with pods, milk and sugar. The LIVnordic Spa and Fitness Center was wonderful, especially the Thermal Suite that is available to all guests complimentary, something that you have to pay for on Celebrity. The services offered are varied and priced somewhat less than Canyon Ranch/Steiner. We purchased the Silver Spirits package, which was significantly cheaper than the Premium Alcohol package on Celebrity. However, on Celebrity in the higher suites the package is usually included as a perk but we didn't mind paying. Bar service was great with the exception of the Pool Area - we usually had to flag down one of the bar servers at the Pool Grill or walk over to the Pool Bar ourselves. In the evening the three ship's entertainers (guitarist, pianist and trio) rotated to the various venues, we chose the Explorer's Lounge every night and enjoyed the music with a cocktail. No loud band banging away in the Atrium or having to deal with the performance at the Martini Bar like on Celebrity. The public spaces were fairly well used and spacious with artwork scattered about (using the Viking Art Guide app was a fun way to spend part of an afternoon). The Wintergarden was a conundrum for us: it was used for tea time every day and was packed, otherwise it sat empty - it's a beautiful space and Viking really needs to figure out how to use it more (trivia games? name that tune?). Again the seating was comfortable and many people enjoyed sitting and reading or just watching the scenery. Unlike Celebrity, where there's stuff going on all over (auctions, dance lessons, zumba, etc.) life on Viking is much more low key. Fellow passengers. Well, this is one area where Celebrity outshines Viking. The demographic on our cruise was 65-75 retirees, 99% caucasian, mostly from the South and Midwest. We were clearly some of the youngest people on the ship by at least 15 years. Why is that important? Well, getting on and off the ship, getting on and off the tour bus, getting around the ship in general sometimes took a great deal of time. The positive side of this is that most people ate dinner early, so getting a table at 8:15/8:30 was never an issue, even in Manfredi's and the Chef's Table. Very different from Celebrity where tables booked up and getting reservations is always a challenge. The food was consistently excellent and offered a wide variety of tastes and flavors. The Restaurant was fantastic and the Chef's Table equally so. While we heard positive comments from others about Manfredi's we thought it was a real letdown. The decor is kitschy and the menu completely uninspired. It was so bad that we cancelled our third night there. On Celebrity you have several places to choose from but they're not always good - in other words more isn't better. I don't need a LOT of different dining options, but the ones available need to be great. Despite our disappointment with Manfredi's Viking wins the food category hands down: everything was fresh, hot, flavorful, well seasoned and beautifully presented. Gluten-free was available as were sugar free desserts. The wine selection was great, with a nice selection of reds and whites to enjoy with dinner by the glass. Four shops (fragrances/cosmetics, sundries, fine jewelry and clothing) were available. We bought a bottle of cologne and probably paid more than we would have at home. Finally, and most importantly, the service on Viking was outstanding. I can think of not one staff member that didn't say hello and ask what they could do for me. Celebrity's service is equally good, quite honestly, but I felt that the staff on this cruise was much warmer and personable learning our names quickly without being pretentious. Members of the Senior staff were always at the gangplank as you left the ship each day. The CD and his assistant were always visible around the ship. The cruise itself was fantastic! If you want to experience Norway you should do it with a cruise line that IS Norway. The ports for the most part were terrific and the scenery is unparalleled. The whole “Midnight Sun” thing did take some getting used to, but with the blackout shades in the cabin it wasn’t a problem sleeping. We did have a couple days of fairly rough seas, but the North Sea in June? That’s what’s to be expected. You'll notice I didn't talk about the shows. We didn't go to a single one. Lectures? They had them. We didn't go. Trivia? Didn't go. Casino? They don't have one, thankfully, and it wasn't missed. Having said all this would I book Viking again? Absolutely: great staff, comfortable, clean and well appointed ship, great food and drink and a compelling itinerary. Would I go back to Celebrity? No. Too much wheeling and dealing, upselling and unnecessary stuff. The smaller ship feel was much more to our liking and time and again I found myself thinking "Viking has thought of everything". We booked a cruise for 2020, again on the Sea and in the exact same JS that we just were in. We're also taking a Viking River cruise in 2019. Stay tuned... Read Less

This was our first crucial and we did a lot of research before we picked it. We even went to the cruise show at the NEC. We wanted a small boat that was very informal and that is what we got. We loved it. We would go back and would certainly recommend Viking. The ship is very understated. The decor is Scandinavia chic. The cabins are small but have everything you need. What is a bonus is the verandah where you can sit and admire the sunsets. Everywhere is spotless. However there is always somewhere to sit and read quietly. The pool are does get busy and we found it can be harder there to find a place to sit than say in the Explorers lounge. The staff are amazing. Someone somewhere is always working with a smile, saying hello and can I help you? Food- we tried all the restaurants. There is plenty of food and the quality is good, service can be a bit slow depending on who is serving you. Chefs table- worth going once, set 5 course menu with different wines at each course. Food a bit too rich for us. Manfreidis - again worth going to, more choice but very loud and busy. Restaurant- more formal but fine didning, excellent food. Worlds cafe - ate there mostly as it is very informal no need to dress up. Fantastic buffet you could just have a bowl of soup or a 3 course meal. Afternoon tea was delicious Explorers lounge - lunch and cakes in the afternoon. Good quality Pool grill mainly beef burgers but again good quality for lunch You can have drinks with your meals some didn’t bother having the drinks package. Trips- we only paid for Florence which is definitely worth the money. Stunning. Pisa - seeing the leaning tower was good fun Monaco- loved it and you can get around so easily you don’t need the tour St tropez- don’t bother with the tour waste of time. Not much to see and you can do that on your own Marseilles- again loved it so much to see but I wouldn’t bother with the tour as a shuttle bus is run from the ship and it is so easy to do your own thing. Barcelona again I would do my own thing as the tour is mainly a coach trip and 30mins in the city. Fellow passengers aged from 20-80 but 95% are American. Criticism - the flights having to change at Amsterdam when we are only flying from England to Rome and from Barcelona. It took us 14 hours to get home door. It was quicker to get to the states. Read Less

We selected the Viking Homelands cruise because of the Baltic countries we wanted to visit.The ship is beautiful and exceptionally clean. Embarkation excellent and was on ship about 12:00 noon. Announced all cabins available about 1:30. Although we were in a veranda cabin, we ate in Manfredi's three times and twice at Chef's Table. Food was excellent in all dining venues. Didn't buy drink package. The complimentary wines at lunch and dinner were good quality table wines. If you want 90+ rated wines, buy the beverage package. Service in all dining venues was excellent. Loved the hot dogs and burgers at the sports grill. Gelato station was a favorite. The Restaurant offers a large selection that should satisfy any taste. The Cruise Director, Aaron, did an excellent job. The entertainment was good and targeted for a 60+ audience. The included shore excursions were average. We purchased three Viking optional excursions. They were more in depth and informative than the included tours. We also purchased two independent tours, an all day tour in Saint Petersburg and a Pulpit Rock tour in Stavanger. The included coach tours were our least favorite. They included a drive by of the city historical locations with a couple of 10 minute stops for photos. The included walking tours were much more enjoyable. They were concentrated on the historical centers of the cities and you could walk around a get a better feel for the city. Overall a wonderful vacation and we will definitely consider another Viking Cruise in the future. Read Less

Will not cover all areas of excellence, as they are too numerous to mention, and have been thoroughly reviewed by fellow passengers. One area which I did not see mentioned was security. My husband and I were quite impressed with the diligence of the security staff. This is often an area which we feel has been neglected on other ships. Not on Viking Sky — well done! Another area which earns high marks was embarkation and disembarkation. Both areas were handled extremely efficiently which is a huge plus for passengers. First and last impressions - very important! My only area of personal disappointment was the food. Compared to other cruise companies I felt it was rather ordinary fare, a bit lacking in quality and variety. I must admit though, that my husband did not agree. He thought it was quite adequate. I guess on holiday I prefer to be a bit more wowed. Read Less