Viking River Cruises
Reviews and Complaints

I ordered a bottle of champagne for my 40th wedding anniversary and got a glass of lemonade instead! Our 'Romantic Cruise on the Danube' was a boring series of bus rides (as much as 3 and 5 hours a day) to look at another medieval ruin or church. Australians call this an ABC tour - another bloody church. I wanted to sail the Danube and get a view of Europe I had never seen without packing and unpacking for a week. In 6 nights I had to pack and unpack twice during the trip. It was also 92-95° the first four days, but I'm not blaming anyone but 'global heating' as my German guide called it.

But none of the above is my complaint. I bought trip insurance so I could canceled at any time for any reason - I would get full credit for a cruise in the future. Had I known the cruise would be replaced with a bus tour (we were on the water between two of six stops with one evening of viewing the countryside), I would have canceled. But Viking's website said there were "no alterations of our sailing". The day I got home they removed those words from their website. This had been going on for about two months. There were at least 10 Viking longboats stuck between Regensburg and Vienna so passengers would get bussed from one boat to a stuck boat, float for a day then get bussed to a hotel in Budapest (in our case). This was a simple case of fraud. They lied so I would take the trip despite the fact it would never turn out good.

This is a simple case of corporate fraud due to greed. Everyone in Europe during the trip bent over backwards to turn our lemons into lemonade and they did a reasonable job given the circumstances. But I paid for champagne and it was an expensive bottle at that!

We went for our anniversary July 2015 on a Viking Elbe cruise : Berlin to Prague.
THE GOOD: Boats are impeccable.Staff and food above reproach.

THE BAD: Viking convinced us to splurge for room with balcony, and also to pay extra for room away from engine.Well the water level on Elbe was low, and the " cruise" ended-up being a stay on a nice houseboat with frequent bus tour.
Boat could not move and we paid lots of money for a bus tour of East Germany

THE AWFUL, HORRIBLE AND Terrible: we found from boat staff, that no sailing had occurred in 3 weeks because of the low water levels, and therefore Viking knew about it 3 weeks before cruise departure.
They did NOT inform us till the evening before airplane departure, and it was too late for us to cancel and to get reimbursed from the insurance company[ insurance purchased through Viking !]

THE WORSE : Viking customer service basically laughed at us for asking for a partial refund.
Then a " senior" customer service rep called to offer a paltry $1000 voucher on a future cruise.
That would not ever cover the extra we paid for a room away from an engine that never fired.

These people are unprofessional, and basically it ended being a scam.

NEVER EVER GO ON VIKING: CROOKS AND THIEVES

In March 2014 we booked an "Elegant Elbe" Cruise starting July 4. On July 2 after we had arrived in Prague
we received an e-mail telling us about the low river and that our itinerary would be altered. This was a little late and I cannot believe that they did not know about that river until that time. (Rivers do not go up and down that quickly). This meant that we would be moved from one boat to another. This of course was another "pack up and unpack" deal.

All they have offered us is a $1000 voucher for each of us toward another cruise. Not sure that is going to happen as we are 78 and 80. Keep in mind that when we booked all we received was the 2 for 1 deal which really isn't a deal. Especially not now when I see what they are offering--Buy one, get one free plus $2000 toward air fare. We even paid extra so that we could have a veranda room to sit out on while we were cruising. It really wasn't worth sitting out and looking at the rock wall.

We would not have payed $12, 000 (-$1200 for insurance) for a bus tour. I think we are entitled to a larger sum than a $1000 voucher.

Please let me know if you need any other information.

Thank you,
Tom & Nancy Doherty

Viking's two low-draft ships have been grounded in the Elbe for months due to low water. Viking Cruise Lines is playing a deceptive game by not informing its clients. The 1-10 August "cruise" consisted of busing us about 300 miles total between the modified destinations. Some original destinations were eliminated. This is not what I paid for! They continue even into mid-August to subject passengers to this "bus cruise". I sent final payment in May, but was not informed until 2 days before we left for the trip on 27 July that the itinerary was now a bus tour. After talking to 3 customer relations people, it was learned that we could cancel for a full refund. But by then it was too late since all travel had been paid for. A "compensation" voucher, that amounts to enticement to spend more money with Viking, was offered. A letter to Torstein Hagen, CEO, rejecting the "good faith offer" and expressing our general satisfaction with the treatment rendered went unanswered. This shabby and deceitful behavior by Viking Cruise Lines should be condemned by travel agencies, and can be an alert for prospective Viking customers.

Francine and I cruised on Viking River Cruises this summer. We arrived in Paris on June 28th and were to meet our ship the Rinda at Ponte de Grenelle. This is almost under the Eifel Tower and walking distance to the city of Paris. Days before we were to arrive Viking contacted us to inform us they were not able to get dock assignment at the last minute and we were to arrive at our ship at the dock in Le Pecq 11 miles from the city of Paris. As we were leaving our ship, the next group informed us they had the same bad luck. At the last minute the ship had to dock outside of Paris. This is an inconvenience to the passengers hoping to visit the city. We also had a cabin room 237 which had a view of the underside of the dock for the two days before we left Paris on our cruise. When we returned for the last two nights, we had the same view of the underside of the wooden dock. If there are future cruises, we will get cabins above ground level. We paid a lot for this 8 day cruise and were disappointed that Viking docked outside of Paris at our cost. They docked blocking any view for those of us on our side of the ship below the 3rd floor. These are things to consider when booking a river cruise.

If I could provide 0 stars I would, based on Viking’s lack of customer service alone.

We were on the 15-Day Grand European Tour on Viking (Eisla ship) in March, 2015 from Budapest to Amsterdam. The staff in general was good, and the tours and food were definitely above average.
My extremely negative review centers around the consistent problems we had with our room, the double stacking of ships at docks (which left no view from our upgraded room and balcony), and the Hotel Manager’s personal problem.
We booked this trip with my parents 14 months in advance (with the paid cancellation policy), as my husband is in the military and never knows what his upcoming schedule will be. This was a “bucket list” trip with my 75 year old parents. We paid a lot of money (nearly $20, 000) for one of the suites with a nice balcony.
Unfortunately our room either had no air or no heat, depending upon the weather. Maintenance came in at least four times to fix it and nothing was ever settled. Our TV was completely non-functional in the bedroom for most of the trip. Our power outlets in the bathroom were not consistent with the hairdryers provided by Viking or any adapters we purchased (based upon what Viking suggested), so we had to get ready in our living room. Our bathroom smelled like stale urine the entire trip, even after it was cleaned each day. For approximately 40% of our trip, we had no view from our suite or balcony since other Viking ships were double stacked against us. I want to mention that we were told by several Viking staff that Viking saves money by double stacking so that they do not have to pay for extra docks. American Airlines did tell us that they have never been informed of this and was not aware that Viking was “double stacking”. Thus, if I wanted to enjoy our balcony or open our blinds, I was looking straight into someone else’s room. This completely ruined our trip to Budapest, Koblenz, Cologne, Bratislava, etc.
In addition, the Hotel Manager, who one would normally complain to, was unapproachable the entire cruise. All of the staff were complaining about him. My husband contacted Viking about this and their “executive team” contacted him for further information. They appeared to take this very seriously… at the time….
Boy, were we wrong. So, when we returned home, we contacted American Airline Cruises about our complaints, as this is who we booked the vacation through. American, as always, was very apologetic and willing to offer what they could as compensation (some miles). American has contacted Viking several times over the past two months and they have finally offered a discount on future cruises, even though we specifically requested for cash because my husband cannot plan months or years ahead for another cruise. And, after the horrible experience we had, why would we want to do another cruise with them? Again, my husband is in the military and can deploy or be transferred at any time. We were told Viking would not honor our request and indicated that military or not, we could easily book a future trip. It is very disturbing how uncaring they are about their military customers.
My husband has requested that American continue to deal with Viking cruises about this matter, but we have not heard a word in over four weeks from them. This is totally unacceptable and just shows how little they value their customers, especially those who are in the military.
Please, I urge everyone to not use Viking Cruises for the simple reasons that you will be overpaying for what you receive and that they have no customer service or concern for their customers. Please review them on BBB.org. They currently have an F from the Better Business Bureau due to their customer service.

Our 'Romantic Danube' cruise in May '15 was anything but! The last third was a cramped noisy coach trip due to high water. This evidently happens numerous times a year - so why build the barges so high? The advertized WiFi was non-existent, the advertized air conditioned cabins was non-existent, their staff internal communications was non-existent, their barges are constructed too high - resulting in abhorrent coach trips to scheduled ports-of-call due to barges being unable to pass under Danube bridges several times a year, communication between Viking staff on-board and shore staff is non-existent (hotel staff in Nuremberg had no clue cruise stopped several days earlier, incorrect information given resulting in cruise headsets being left behind,

This is not a complaint, I am amazed that friends of ours are getting a complete refund and 2K credit towards their next cruise. Their cruise was cancelled at the last minute, due to the ship being unable to leave dry dock. Way to take care of people Viking!

My husband and I traveled aboard the Idi on a recent Viking River cruise/May 1, 2015. I have already submitted a formal complaint. Please see below. Our travel agent is working with us hoping to recover some of the thousands of dollars we lost on this so called "cruise." However, the more I think about it even if Viking had delivered a cruise on the Rhine with amenities, etc. it would have fallen short. We have been on two other cruises and both were to Alaska. Our first experience was with the Celebrity cruise line. Now this is what I would call a superior experience. Every single detail was taken into full consideration. For example, on Viking a guest must fill his/her own ice bucket! Absolutely, absurd by my standards. I can do this at home. On Celebrity, I did not even carry my own tray when
dining at a lunch buffet. White gloved waiters were everywhere. Meals were lavish to say the least. One could choose a sit down meal at both lunch and dinner. Choices were extravagant to say the least. I particularly enjoyed the low calorie menu. In turn, I managed to complete the entire cruise without gaining a pound. And I might say, the entrees, desserts, etc. were excellent even without the extra calories. Also, our stateroom was spotless. If we ventured about, our room was given a spruce up before we returned. Such cruises carry hundreds of guests, but they are much better by far. In short, even if for free, I would have to think twice about vacationing with Viking! I truly do not understand why Viking has such a top of the line reputation! Although our travel experiences with cruising have been limited, I am vividly aware of what is acceptable vs. what is not. Last, but not least, I have always yearned to travel with Viking...and so I have. Our vacation was anything but a vacation. In addition, Viking does not care one bit about its guests and what they might think one way or the other. Rethink traveling with Viking!

I recently took my mother on a Viking river cruise from Basel to Amsterdam. This cruise was the 70th Birthday gift to my mother and was supposed to be very special. I did a lot of research before purchasing from Viking to ensure that the surroundings, program, activities and entertainment were superb, and certainly Viking US commercials did support this notion. My mother also was looking very much to this special occasion as she does not get out much and at her age the opportunities are becoming more and more limited.

Unfortunately this cruise was a complete failure. We only sailed two out of 8 days, missed at least a third of the planned attractions, and also had to switch ships after 5 days. While Viking on-board personnel did blame the weather and the rains, it is my strong opinion that the company should have been better prepared with the backup plans to avoid or minimize the disruptions. Viking has been in business for a long time and has beautiful commercials so anybody would expect that the company was well prepared for dealing with regular nature occurrences such as low water or high water. That proved not to be the case, however.

We were bussed to and from attractions most of the days always returning to the ship, spending very long hours on a bus “enjoying” highways views. While this did offer some sightseeing opportunities, it cannot compare to cruising on the river that we paid for. In fact there is a huge, several fold difference in price between cruise cost and analogous bus tour cost - it feels extremely unfair that we paid for the former one and got the latter one in return. In fact on a bus tour we would actually stay in different places, thus spending less time on the bus than we did on this so-called cruise.

The first three days the ship did not move from its updated location at Breisach where we were bussed on day 1. It was basically used as a floating hotel, far from attractions and requiring long bus rides. At least half of the time my balcony and big windows that I paid extra for were blocked by another ship. While we were on a bus on day 4, the ship moved from Breisach to Kehl.

On day 4 of the cruise the ship finally sailed with passengers from Kehl at midnight and moved for about 2-2.5 hours, stopping by the lock in the middle of nowhere.

Day 5 of the cruise we spent the entire day and night on the ship by the lock without any sightseeing. The Viking personnel kept talking about us coming through the lock “any hour” and continuing our journey but it never materialized. In the end the ship (Idi) went back to our original dock in Kehl where we spent the night and then were bussed to the second ship (Qvasir). We should have done this at least a day earlier to avoid skipping attractions but instead the time was wasted.

On day 7 we skipped more attractions because now the ship had to cruise non-stop to make it in time to Amsterdam – thus we “enjoyed” the industrial views with stacks and plants that were supposed to be cruised during the night. That was our second cruising day.

I would also like to comment on the attitude of on-board Viking personnel. Understandably the passengers had a lot of questions about backup plans so that they could manage their disappointment and expectations better. The personnel did not handle the inquiries well, in my opinion. I witnessed one passenger trying (very politely) to ask her question twice with no answer from Viking and having her microphone taken from her in the end. Apparently the captain was eager to talk about ship specifications and engine power but was not prepared to talk about when and how we would be sailing.

I can go on and on about our cruise but I think the points above describe the situation reasonably well. In summary this was a very disappointing experience for me and my mother who had such high hopes, and many other passengers of Idi. Viking did offer 25% discount toward FUTURE cruise with Viking but in my opinion this is not an adequate compensation for our already occurred and failed cruise. It presumes that we would actually chose another cruise with Viking which is highly questionable considering the very poor experience. Perhaps the company counts on that?

My advise to anybody thinking of going on a Viking river cruise - read more reviews before making a non-refundable payment and do not think that this is a rare occurrence that would never happen to you. It is not that rare and does happen regularly. I am hoping that this information will help my fellow travelers to make informed decisions not clouded by colorful commercials of Viking and manage their expectations well.

My husband & I looked forward towards the Rhine Getaway aboard Viking...May 1, 2015. Their advertisements, etc. portrayed their vacations as not to be surpassed. We have been on many vacations, but consider this so called vacation a nightmare. After a long & tiring trip from our home in northeast pa., we were greeted by Viking in Basel. We were immediately hustled on a tour bus & told we would miss our first port because the Rhine was too high for cruising. We boarded the Idi in Breisach and soon learned we would be stuck there and I do mean stuck. In order to visit any of ports outlined in our itinerary, we were subjected to endless hours on tour buses. Of course, this meant that we had very little time to visit Strasbourg, for example. Most of our photos have been taken through the windows of buses. In addition, we were subjected to repeated briefings which left us all in the dark. We were urged to ask questions, but those asking were either ridiculed or ignored. To add insult to injury, we actually had to pack up and board another ship. I was injured during the move! Overall, I have never experienced such incompetency. From what I have learned, Viking calls such instances a rarity, but they are common. Towards the end of our "cruise, " we were told we would be called individually. As yet, we have heard from no one. I have tried to call Viking without any success. I would not recommend Viking to my worst enemy. We have been on two other cruises...both to Alaska. We have traveled with Celebrity and Princess. They were each exceptional down to every last detail. Most likely, I would not have believed any of these negative reviews before we vacationed with Viking, but I urge you to reconsider. All of these complaints are valid. Their cruises, management, etc. is substandard...wi fi is complimentary, but just try using it!i can go on and on, but you get the picture. Please, beware. Stay clear of Viking!

My husband surprised me in 2013 by booking the "France's Finest" river cruise, departing in September of 2014, to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary. He used funds we had been saving for a special trip for years. When we booked our trip they tried to sell us travel insurance, which we declined because the cost was ridiculous - $5, 000.00. We did not foresee anything that would prohibit us from travelling.

In July, 2014 our 39 year old son suffered a stroke. He was in the neuro intensive care unit for three months. As it became apparent my son was too ill for us to leave town, we contacted them on several occasions asking what we could do to cancel our trip. They continued to send us to a customer service rep and refused to escalate to anyone higher. My son's neuro team wrote a summary of his illness and advised that because he was on a respirator there was no way we could leave town. In following up with them, they said they were sorry about my circumstances but there was nothing they could do. I never requested a refund, but merely wanted to be able to rebook the trip we had paid for
($22, 000+) at a discount. They told us that would not be possible. My son died of complications from a brain tumor in October of 2014 and we were, and are, devastated.

Viking collected $22, 000+, never spent a dime on us and refused to let us rebook at any discount. We recently sold our business and plan to do extensive cruising. Needless to say, it will not be with Viking. Several of our friends have cancelled their cruises as well in light of this company's total lack of compassion or empathy. Who tells a mother who is about to lose their son - sorry, nothing we can do? I think it's deplorable.

My husband and I are still in recovery mode from a November 2013 Viking River Cities of Light Tour. We arrived in Paris after a red-eye flight out of Newark with our tour group on Friday morning. Per arrangements made by Viking, exhausted, we proceeded to our seedy hotel room replete with stained rugs and chair. In addition, our room was directly across from an after hours club that opened at 3 AM. The loud noise was incredibly disruptive to our ability to sleep. The hotel staff were rude and unattentive. Oh boy, what next! We left early Sunday morning by bus and traveled to Luxembourg where we spent a few hours. We got back on the bus for a very long, exhausting bus ride to the Viking Prestige. When we arrived at our room, we were shocked to open our suitcases and find wet clothes. Our stewardess was wonderful and laundered our clothes the following day. She was one of the few positives we encountered throughout the trip. Due to high water, we sat in Bernkastel from Sunday to Wednesday. Passengers boarded busses during the day and the boat traveled through the night to ply catch up. So much for sitting on the boat while viewing the scenery. If you enjoy looking out a bus window, you will love this trip. It was a BUS TOUR! We arrived in Prague, the final destination to stay at the Hilton Hotel. The hotel was quite nice but was in a tenderloin area that was not near anything of interest. Why did we not stay at the Hilton in Old Town where we would have been able to walk around and take in the sights! I can honestly say that this was the worst trip of my entire life. It was my husband's first trip to Europe and his disappointment was palpable. I spent time trying to contact Viking reps and was finally told we would be given a 15 percent discount on our next Viking cruise. Are you kidding me! This trip was not worth the cost, the money demanded and tied up for the trip many months in advance, our time, and on and on.

We booked a cruise with Viking Criuses the expensive European Criuise a year in advance paid in full. We also paid to extend our trip to Amsterdam at the beginning and Prague at the end in first class 5 star hotels . 11, Months before our trip I get an email with no phone numbers to call from someone in Viking saying that our Hilton 5 star hotel reservation in the center of the city of Prague is canceled and they are moving us to a 4 star hotel 5 km outside the city which only a train can be used to reach the city center. When I called they refused to put us back in the Hilton where are contract says we are to stay.
I am shocked that almost a year out I am getting these surprises. I am canceling my reservations and trip this company writes one thing in your contract then switches it
Steer clear of Viking this trip was costing me over 20.0000.00 dollars USD for customer service that is sorely lacking.
I think they just hit cheaper rates in the Corinthian hotel whic is 30, minutes outside the city so they figured why pay the Hilton rates in the center of the city. This whole thing sucks I was really looking forward to this trip of a lifetime but Viking has proven itself not reliable and I will never ever ever pay that much money to any company ever again. They want to break my contract for a hotel listed in the contract to send me to a cheaper hotel and this is happening 11 months before the trip.
I do not trust this Viking cruise line now who knows what other surprises they would have in store for clients that book with them if they are moving us to hotels of inferior quality which are not listed on my contract. Buyer beware

On Friday September 5, 2014 I made a reservation for the "Romantic Danube Cruise" with Viking River Cruises. Air
fare between Tampa, Fl and Budapest, Hungary was to be provided by Viking.

On Saturday September 6, 2014 I received the flight itinerary. When I called for seat assignments I was advised by the airlines, and then confirmed by Viking, that in order to guarantee that my wife and I could sit together we would have an additional charge of approximately $30-$50 per person for each of the 5 legs of the flight. I requested cancellation of the reservations I made the day before and was told that I would be charged $1, 710.88 cancellation fee even though the airline tickets had not been issued.

We have saved for this trip and are unable to absorb a loss of $1, 700 +. We only hope that when we get to the ship that we will not have to pay a fee to be in the same cabin!

While Viking has done nothing illegal, we should have been told that it was possible that the tickets they provided might not be together.

This will be my last tour with Viking and I would advise others considering Viking Cruises to not be influenced with their offers of
inexpensive airfares. On my previous cruise with Viking I found out that when you use their air services you do not get frequent flyer miles or the miles are greatly reduced from actual miles flown.

When you remove the "special" airfares offered by Viking you will find that other higher rated River Cruise Lines offer better
deals on their river tours.

Viking River Cruises

On Friday September 5, 2014 I made a reservation for the "Romantic Danube Cruise" with Viking River Cruises. Air fare between Tampa, Fl and Budapest, Hungary was to be provided by Viking.

On Saturday September 6, 2014 I received the flight itinerary. When I called for seat assignments I was advised by the airlines, and then confirmed by Viking, that in order to guarantee that my wife and I could sit together we would have an additional charge of
approximately $30-$50 per person for each of the 5 legs of the flight. I requested cancellation of the reservations I made the day before and was told that I would be charged $1, 710.88 cancellation fee even though the airline tickets had not been issued.

We have saved for this trip and are unable to absorb a loss of $1, 700 +. We only hope that when we get to the ship that we will not have to pay a fee to be in the same cabin!

While Viking has done nothing illegal, we should have been told that it was possible that the tickets they provided might not be together.

This will be my last tour with Viking and I would advise others considering Viking Cruises to not be influenced with their offers of
inexpensive airfares. On my previous cruise with Viking I found out that when you use their air services you do not get frequent flyer miles or the miles are greatly reduced from actual miles flown.

When you remove the "special" airfares offered by Viking you will find that other higher rated River Cruise Lines offer better deals on their river tours.

I Have like many of your complainants been less than impressed by Viking River Cruises customer services. Last Autumn I booked a Danube cruise starting 31 August 2014. This is a long period of advance booking and things happen . It appeared that we might have to cancel and when the time came for final payment it was clear that my wife and I could not proceed so we wrote to terminate asking if we could in fact move the booking to 26 October this year. However they claimed I fell outside the 70 days required(52). and were unwilling to change the dates even though they admitted availability. Instead of trying to facilitate a customer all persons approached were only concerned with confiscating my deposit claiming they would lose money on flights, tours etc. many of which would not even have been booked yet.
I find this behaviour incomprehensible and speaks volumes for their customer services. We can be sure that they will sell this on through booking agents but as far as their customer services are concerned this deserves a zero.

Our experience was tainted by the absolute lack of problem
solving by Viking, caused by their limited customer service agents.

Viking accepts NO responsibility for their mistakes, even
when called, asked a question and their people give wrong or non-answers.

DO NOT book directly with Viking. They get the discounted airfares but will not
help with any travel problems, like a travel agent will. Even knowing where lost baggage is can be a
problem for them. There are NO refunds
for any cancelled travel. There are NO
refunds for delayed travel due to airline mechanical problems. Miss your boat? Too bad.

DO NOT buy their travel insurance. Not only were we overcharged for the
insurance, which they received a commission for selling, but it is a limited
policy which protects the cruiseline, not you the customer.

If there are any problems or disputes, they consult their
employees and will not permit you, the customer, to see what was said so their
employees may alter the facts to protect their jobs.

And they are very good at non-apologies. Mr. Hagen and his daughter have no idea since
letters sent directly to them are never read by them and other people intercept
them. If they do read them, then it does
not say much for the Hagens.

Viking River Cruise, Chateaux, Rivers and Wine, May 31, 2014 departure from Bordeaux, France. 7 day River Cruise turned out to be almost 6 days in dock in Bordeaux, with bus trips each day to the nearby wine regions, all just a few hours away. The trip included only two wine tasting, and two days at similar farmer's markets, as well as 4 trips in Bordeaux itself. They had the nerve to charge us $100 per person for an optional wine tasting and lunch. We were unfortunate in that our standard room with a high window was below the water line, and when docked, all we could see was the cement wall and the garbage going by on the river. We were not told by Avoya Travel that the cabin wad below the water line. The food was the only really positive, as it was quite good. We complained half way in the cruise and were told that this was a new cruise, first season, and they had bugs to work out, and that they would get back to us which they DID NOT. Upon returning home, we filed a claim with Viking and was offered a $500 CREDIT each, then upped it to $650 each. Since we spent almost $9000 for the air and cruise, as well as hotels, trains from Paris, etc. we felt they were not treating us right. We certainly would not spend the total amount again with $650 credit! BTW, we have taken 23 cruises and feel we know when we are being taken. We would not have travelled on Viking if we knew it was not going to be a "River Cruise", but a hotel on the water in Bordeaux. We could have stayed at the Grand Hotel in Bordeaux and taken bus trips daily without a Viking Cruise ship. Beware of the Viking Itinerary for Bordeaux trips!