Viking River Cruises
Reviews and Complaints

My clients, Paul and Barbara Oppenheim, were unable to use their vouchers worth over $20,000 due to Barbara's frail health. They paid original money in 2019, but Viking canceled them 3 times. They had to cancel the last time due to Barbara being ill. They called in May letting me know that Barbara who is 80 had been in ER 3 times in Mar each time having been admitted to hospital. Her health will not allow her to travel again. Her doctor at Loyola Medical Center

has written a note to that effect. They are asking Viking for a refund of monies they paid toward their trips. Some money is not due back as Viking gave them bonuses for rebooking each time they did. This is an unusual situation as they did very much want to take this cruise as kept rebooking, but fate intervened.

Viking says they can not refund any money as vouchers are non-refundable, but they do have their money and we feel under the circumstances consideration should be given to this very unfortunate situation. Last booking number with Viking was 6250532.

Best, Joyce Stockholm, travel agent

I was told Viking reads reviews and if any issues reaches out to consumers. Well mine has gone unanswered. Booked best room on boat but no one bothered to mention the extreme vibration which woke my wife and me almost every night of our cruise. It was the most horrible sleep I ever experienced. So far no one has even reached out to apologize for this issue. In fact I looked at every other river cruise we passed & none of them had a room in back of boat above engines. If I had known this would have occurred would never have booked the Explorer room. Why does Viking have the best rooms in worse spot! Can anyone ger back to me at [protected]@gmail.com.

Within 10 minutes of the opening time for booking excursions more than half of our group's choices were deleted due to being sold out. As you had to pay to be confirmed you had to go back and forth between picking and then paying. By time I went back in to just choose the 'free' excursions, they were all full. The only excursions left were not interesting and pricey . TEN minutes! And people that paid more for their rooms got first choice on an obvious limited number of excursions. Disgusting. We're a group of 6 travellers- our first time on Viking- never again. Oh yeah, no waiting list either and they tell you there are other tour guides in ports but won't give out names.

I am a travel agent who is very distressed with Viking. Clients, reservation

6250532, had to cancel because of ill health of Barbara. Viking had canceled them 3 times before and each time they accepted the vouchers in good faith as wanted very much to take this cruise. As time passed Barbara did not get any better. She had 3 ER visits to hospital in Mar 2023 and each time was admitted to hospital. My client notified me as to the present circumstances. She will not be able to ever travel again...she is too fragile and in her 80,'s.

Viking is holding thousands of dollars of theirs somewhere which they say they cannot refund. I know what the vouchers say, Management filled my ears for forty-five minutes. But these are good people and have traveled with you in the past. Had same cruise of Elbe canceled on them some years ago due to water levels. These are people in distress and need help not a lot of voucher talk. I'm asking for an exception to vouchers. I'm asking for a refund of some of the thousands they

have tied up in Viking River Cruises. Thank you for listening to me and hope you understand and find a way to help. Best, Joyce Stockholm

My wife and I purchased/booked a 13-day Mediterranean cruise. When we received the initial air itinerary, we were very pleased. The flights were from Baltimore, MD to Atlanta, Ga, and then direct to Venice arriving the following morning (Day 1).

We just recently received an updated itinerary and are not pleased at all, in fact, very disappointed. The new flights are from Baltimore, MD to Atlanta, GA, to Paris, France, to Venice arriving the following evening (end of Day 1, 20 hours travel time. This flight option knocks one whole day off the duration of the cruise so we would now have a 12-day cruise rather than the 13-day cruise we paid for.

Given this, we went to the Viking website to look at alternate flights, but Viking wants an additional $480 per person to change to new flights that get us to Venice in the morning.

We then called Viking air and they offered us other options that were either out of other cities or much longer duration with additional stops.

I would ask that Viking either reduce our fare given that it is now only a 12-day cruise or change our flights at no cost so that we can enjoy the full 13-day cruise that we purchased.

We did a 2 week river cruise last year with viking and then 4 more weeks this year doing a mediterranian cruise. We weren't happy with some aspects of the cruise and advised them of this. Now, a week after we disembarked, we find they have taken from our mastercard $110 and on enquiring about this were told it's for a missing plastic tumbler. We know nothing about a missing tumbler. We left everything as we found it. Is this how they treat customers who have spent over $50,000 with them and who would have continued to travel with them. $110 for a $2 plastic tumbler.

I purchased a Rhine River cruise for my husband and me to be used in the fall of 2022. Due to our underlying health, we did not get the COVID vaccination so we were denied our trip. I had purchased the insurance and the seemingly best option at the time was to hope for a future trip so Viking still holds my money. Recently I contacted them to say that my husband has cancer now and the chances of being able to use the trip are slim. After much back and forth, their final recommendation was that I transfer the trip to someone else. That still doesn't return my money. I find their continued vaccine policy to be extremely uninformed and outdated since it has been proven to not prevent the illness, and their refund practices to be extremely unfriendly and unfair since COVID was not our fault to not be able to cruise.

Called to request information on application of a cruise voucher.

Voucher numbers RSK3-C 1999396 and RSK3-C1999384

We have not utilized nor cruised utilizing these vouchers. We did have a river cruise booked but unfortunately my husband had to return to chemotherapy and we could not travel and we had to cancel this fantastic journey. Now I am told these vouchers are invalid due to being applied to another cruise which is a cruise we did not take! ( due to health)

Why are we being punished due to my husband’s health? Why is viking refusing to stand by their vouchers? Is this a way to balance your books and not pay what I feel is rightfully mine? I am so hurt!

Please revisit and respond.

Phone [protected]

E mail [protected]@att.net

Please help!

When we signed up for a river cruise, we expected a leisurely trip down the river in Portugal. Unfortunately, we learned several lessons in taking this cruise which were not good. We hope that Viking will take steps to correct some of the issues we think should be addressed and I have listed the points below:

Point 1. The end of this April 2023 we went on a river cruise in Portugal. We ended the trip and upon returning home tested positive for Covid along with many of our friends. We believe we caught it due to the many passengers that were becoming ill and spreading coughs and illnesses on the long bus rides we were subjected to. Not once did our guide or driver from Viking expressed concern about the conditions on our bus, especially the last two days. I really hope Viking does a better job to monitor illnesses on its cruises. Of all the things we wanted to bring back, Covid was not one of them.

Point 2. We signed up for a river cruise and what we got were long bus trips, some over 2/12 hours long one way. We were very disappointed in this! No where in the excursions (when we signed up for this trip) were long motor coach rides listed for each and every day. We also have very limited time at each location due to the long trip back. Our ship had to move to the next docking area while we were on our excursions, thus increasing the bus times. What little time we did get to enjoy the cruise on the river and in towns was wonderful. Our local guides were very good. The scenery was beautiful. The ship was very small and compact, especially the bathrooms. It was very clean and had a nice sundeck which I wish we could have used more. We were also docked next to other ships each night as we could not sail in the evenings. The food was delicious and the crew were very helpful and friendly. Most stops were at a dock not a town which did not give us any time to explore on our own. The ship was the best part of the trip.

Point 3. We also had many issues with Viking Air and the constant changing of air flights. Coming home while feeling sick, we had a 6 hour layover in Newark in order to get home. That after leaving Portugal at 9am to fly to Newark NJ. I really feel now that you are better off arranging flights on your own with the help of a travel agent. We did not receive a lot of help from Viking air staff.

Point 4. Viking provided incorrect airline contact numbers, incorrect flight codes, long delays between flights, no help in correcting these problems and almost, what appeared to be, an indifference, once Viking got our money. Customers seemed to be required to find information which should have been provided. Once the trip started, Viking did not even provide customers access to their own information. Simply put, information which should have been provided and correct, wasn't.

Point 5. There appears to be a lack of coordination between Viking and travel agents. The final documents were not received by us until a couple of days before our departure. When trying to get the information I was told by Viking this was the travel agents responsibility, when I contacted the travel agent I was told it was Viking's responsibility.

Last issue, check when holidays are in the country you are going to visit. Museums, restaurants and shops are closed and it gets very crowded, especially in the cities. We did not realize we were traveling doing a holiday in Portugal and missed out on a few things. We were so looking forward to our first river cruise and I have to admit now we would really think twice about booking another one. We learned a lot of lessons from this trip, not all good. In our opinion, while the shipboard experience, what little of it, was good. The long Viking bus trip was not good. And I feel, Viking Air ranked lower than that.

I booked a Viking "Great Lakes Explorer" Cruise about 2/17/23 and paid in full the $14,855.38 by 24 March 2023. This cruise is to take place 6/30/23 thru 7/7/2023. Viking Booking number 7303218.

On about 5/8/23, I requested to change the name of the person going with me and was told I would have to pay an additional $3,797.50 and now after escalating the issue, it will cost $5,696.25 to simply make a name change.

At this point in time (about 7 weeks prior to cruise), the change requested should be a simple data base change, not an unreasonable or uncommon change and easy to affect. Why Viking insists on charging almost $6,000 seems very unreasonable.

FACTS:

1. Ocean cruise Secrets of Southeast Asia under reservation #6881172 on Orion with sail date of 18 March 2023 to 1 April 2023.

2. Booked pre and post extensions in Bali and Singapore. Pre extension was for 2 nights from 16 to 18 March 2023. Post extension was for 2 nights from 1-3 Apr 2023.

3. Viking Air as a Viking entity is a disaster/nightmare. Flights scheduled was supposed to be Harrisburg, PA (MDT) to Dallas (DFW) to Seoul Korea (ICN) to Bali (DPS). Flights actually flown was MDT to Chicago (ORD) to London UK (LHR) to Bangkok (BKK) to Bali (DPS). Total flight time = 57 hours.

4. Missed one+ days of pre-extension time on Bali to include scheduled tor and one day of post-extension time in Singapore. Arrived Bali on 17 March so late in the day (1600) that the entire second day was also missed, not 16 March as scheduled. Departure from Singapore was on 2 April, not 3 April.

4. Upon arrival at DPS, no Viking representative was present to provide transfer services to the hotel (Laguna). Had to take a taxi (which was reimbursed).

DISCUSSION:

1. The flight nightmare started when we stepped into the local airport, and we were denied boarding by American Airlines because they said we did not have a QR code for Bali and their system would not allow for printing of boarding passes or baggage tags. Called emergency Viking telephone, where I was told by Viking that no QR code was required. Here we are stuck in catch 22. This is an issue Viking air should have been aware of that American Airlines required this code. At no time did Viking advise me a QR code was required to fly. Result, the plane took off without us on board. By the time 3 airline personnel and ourselves were able to find the correct Indonesian website and in English, it took us over an hour and a half to finally get this code. Then airline said we had 10 minutes to get on a flight to Chicago and Viking emergency personnel said they would have a ticket in Chicago waiting on us for Korean air to Seoul. Then we got handwritten boarding passes and handwritten baggage tags for the luggage. We were last people on the plane as they were waiting for us to get through security. We got to Chicago and made our way to Korean air and showed them our new ticket. Again, we were denied boarding because they would not accept the Viking ticket number given to us and Korean air also said it was a standby ticket, we would miss the connection and have to leave the following day and by the way, do you have a visa for Korea since we would be required to overnight if we had gotten on. Then, back to Viking emergency with the issues. Finally, we were told to go to United to fly on the route flown. Next issue was where was our luggage. It took us 5 hours to find the luggage with back and forth between Korean air and American air, who had the luggage. American air finally found the luggage in their dead luggage room because of the handwritten baggage tags from MDT that the machines could not read. Finally, we got everything sorted out but ended up missing the first day of our pre-extension stay in Bali.

2. There were several other hiccups with the cruise in general:

a. The issue of no Viking representatives at final destination to meet us and provide the expected transportation. Again, Viking air knew of our new route and arrival time, yet no one forwarded that information to Bali Viking representatives.

b. As part of the Viking boarding process, I downloaded the boarding pass from the Viking website. It was never looked at or used. However, they did want to see our Vietnam visa. At no time did any Viking representative say to us that this was a required document for ship boarding. I had a visa, but it was in my packed luggage and not available for boarding. It was in my luggage because we were not going to Viet Nam for many days.

c. I had to personally check various details for our activities because of incorrect information being used by various Viking personnel, especially the shore personnel in Singapore with the hotel check in and transfer operation to the airport. Also, the bookkeeping required while aboard ship was overwhelming as we seemed to spend more time at guest relations filling out forms, etc. then enjoying the ship; especially when Viking already had our passenger information.

d. The itinerary for Secrets of Southeast Asia needs revising. The arrival in Viet Nam in the middle of the day and leaving in the middle of the day wastes a whole day plus in being able to tour the country. The free tours offered by Viking did not occur every day, so it was already booked up with no chance for passengers to participate in this activity. 4 days in Viet Nam was too long, 3 Max morning to night and schedule the additional day in Thailand, where we only had about 6 hours to tour the area instead of a full day. Routing of this trip from Bali to Semarang to Singapore to Ho Chi Minh City to Bangkok would seem to be a better route with less sea days (Semarang seemed to be a port stopped at so the ship could reprovision rather than for passenger interest.

e. As a first time Viking Passenger, Viking Ocean needs to step up your game to match the river cruise experience. The main thing I enjoyed on Viking Ocean was the smaller ship size so one can actually meet the other passengers. You might say Viking is #1 in your commercials, but I think Viking has a way to go to improve the ocean experience versus other cruise lines.

f. Viking ship personnel were very active and visible compared to NCL which I went on prior and after this Viking cruise. The General Manager was everywhere and quite personable. On the spot recommendations for this ship were made to him. One of the suggestions made was to add into the ship's daily activity was a lady's craft get-together dedicated place and time. The NCL Jade had this activity where my wife enjoyed meeting other knitters/sewers on board. Also, the military get-together should be held more than once.

g. This website page is very unclear regarding the number of characters for each section.

Upcoming July 2023 ocean cruise. I bought an Explorer suite and a Veranda suite with one guest per cabin. I was charged for a second guest in each cabin

totaling $37,000

Today I found out I could only make a single reservation for each category even though I paid for two in my cabin class. I was told because my guest was in a different cabin class he could only reserve for himself and would have to wait to make reservations which are a month out.

Suggestion from a supervisor:" you could wait til you get on the ship and see if a table is available or whether you need to share with others."

There was no offer or even an attempt to the solve the issue.

Apparently they haven't enough people who can make a decision and not read off a script.

If this is what they call customer service, the Norwegians should be ashamed of themselves

I booked a trip with family members and when we received our flight information we are not flighting together. The air plus was never explained to me so I had no idea I needed to pay extra to travel with family. Three of my family members received their flights and are flight directly to the destination. Myself and my friend where booked on three different flights and would have been traveling for about 24 hours between airports layovers and changing planes.

I have always thought of Viking as being an elite company and we payed a lot of money for this trip. I do not think having to take 3 different flight to get to the destination is an elite way to travel when there was a direct flight.

When I contacted the person who we booked with she told me I had to contact the Viking Air department. After being on the phone with the Viking Air department for over 2 hours we finally got flights that have only one stop. I understand that the flight the rest of my family is on has increased the price but I should have been booked on that flight when they where booked on the flight.

I am very disappointed in Viking and feel that this should never have happened. At this point I'm disappointed and frustrated. Please don't claim to be an elite company if you are not going to treat your customers in an elite way. I feel like since this was your mistake the company should have done something to make it right. My time is worth something and to spend over 2 hours on the phone to try and solve a problem your company created is wrong.

I am ok with the flights I have now but am disappointed in the effort I had to put into this to make it ok.

Thank you for your time

Lisa Nicholson

[protected]@me.com

Booking Number: 7058275

We were so looking forward to a wonderful Rhone River cruise on the Viking Hermod until we received an email two days ago that Viking would be significantly altering our itinerary due to labor strikes in France.

As with other reviews you'll read, Viking's model is to retain your money at any risk to customer satisfaction. Their position - You signed up for, granting them total control of your $10,000 spend when you booked the trip. The trip we booked encompassed a 7-night cruise from Avignon to Lyon. The trip they are now offering is a three-day voyage from Avignon to Avignon, with one stop on the second day. The balance of the trip will be spent on buses (for several hours at a time) and in hotels for two nights. There is no commitment on school bus vs luxury coach or Motel 6 vs 4/5-star hotel. Viking touts a luxury experience, but we will not have the opportunity to enjoy the amenities promised offered on the Hermod for four out of the seven days booked. We are hoping for a functioning toilet on the bus and not to have to share a bathroom with other guests in the hotel. When we requested a refund in advance of boarding, the answer was a flat-out NO.

This sleazy approach has put such a bad taste in our mouth that we have canceled a fall cruise and will now focus our travel spending on land-based trips. It is amazing what you can get for $500-1000/day vs the coin toss you should expect from Viking. Very unfortunate given Viking promotes their brand as best in the cruise industry.
Don't buy the hype.
Viking needs to do the right thing - refund money when unable to deliver the product they committed.

My husband and I have taken several Viking River Cruises and always had a great time and never had any issues.

My husband and I had a cruise scheduled when Covid arrived and Viking gave us vouchers to put toward another cruise which we did, unfortunately we had a family emergency and had to cancel. Our Trip to Egypt was scheduled for Oct 2023, however, my husband died Nov 12, 2022, I was told no refund but I could reschedule, but I would pay double for a single person traveling!

I was told by several Viking reps that I could book another trip but no refund.

Res # 7389978 river cruise

I made this purchase for a 5/13/2023 cruise. The booking person filled in the basic info on the Customer Info form. When we gained access to the form to complete it, My wife's name was not correct. It was stated as Chris, rather than her passport/ air ticket requirement of full name ( Christine Marie ) For two days, (Mon/ Tue) about 4 hours of phone time and more hours figuring out how to address this after every failure, I spoke with numerous air agents from Viking that seemed to be offshore. Sound quality and competence was poor. Knowing the ticket name and ID have to match, I attempted to get this resolved. Each agent until the last one did not listen to me and began reciting outlandish fee schedules/differential fees I would pay to make this change. Numbers like $350 to change the name, $750 ea to re ticket. After considerable engagement with the last agent on a call that lasted 1.3 hours, I had finally made them understand it was a Viking error. Rebooking on different flights was put up as a resolution. I said don't ticket until I understand what flights we were moving to. It was ticketed anyway.

I was a minute from cancellation due to frustration. The flights came in and are barely ok.

I also wanted the end of cruise extension, but could not get that either.

You defeated me...

So much for my introduction to Viking. The very reason I was booking last minute was a long frustrating booking follow thru with Vantage cruise lines that the trip was cancelled 9 days prior to embarking. After speaking with friends, I went with their recommendation of Viking. I can only hope this relationship gets better. Feel free to contact me .

We just returned from our second Viking Cruise (Njord 3/20-3/28)It Excellent service from arrival to airport departure. I have absolutely no complaints.

Towards the end of the trip several people became sick (cold like symptoms). We returned home yesterday, and to be on the safe side my husband took a COVID test - positive.

I notified a few people that we had contact info for, then posted on Viking site to let others know. I guess that is not acceptable as my post was removed.

My name is Linda Cline. My booking number is 6291725 for the Viking Mississippi Cruise. My cruise departs 4/1//23.

We booked this cruise in 3/2021. We were told that we would have to pay the full amount by 12/31/21, which we did. I paid $15,301.50. I bought insurance thinking that if my husband was unable to take the cruise, the insurance would cover it.

In October 2022 I was forced to cancel Eric off the booking as he has dementia. When I canceled Eric off the cruise I was told by the agents with Viking that I would have to pay another $100 as a cancel penalty. I was also told that the insurance would cover a voucher for a later travel date. Really? If my husband cannot travel now due to this mental illness, would he suddenly recover from dementia to take a later cruise? No.

I realize that what I paid was based on a double room occupancy. I could not find another guest suitable who was covid vaccinated, so I chose to go forward with our plans, without my husband.

I was told by 2 customer service representatives that I would receive the price of Eric's air back as a refund. I agreed to that. Then I was told I would not receive his airfare back $699 because the cost of the cruise had increased That is not my problem. I paid 13 months ahead of my cruise date.

My complaint is simple: I want to be reimbursed for his airfare. My friend, Nanci Cooper used her credit card to pay for our trip and I reinbursed her.

This being our first cruise we were very disappointed at what Viking was trying to remedy, the French Strike. Taking bus after bus to get us to and from the Buri, to sitting at a dock in the middle of nowhere, is not exactly a cruise I am so sad that what was going to be a river cruise turned into a bus trip. In addition, I am slightly handicapped and sitting on busses was very uncomfortable, sometimes painful. I asked other passengers if Viking had provided this re-direction before and said yes, but that Viking was very good at compensating for the disappearance of a "cruise" I'm not sure I would go with Viking again. It will be interesting to see how you handle this as you had a boat load of very unhappy customers.

Sincerely

Dorene McLaughlin

[protected]@yahoo.com

[protected]

mailing address PO Box 1446, Midway, Utah, 84049 USA