Viking Alsvin River Cruises Reviews

We had a wonderful trip. Our Viking River cruise was one of our best cruises ever. We did a pre-extension in Paris and a post-extension in Zurich. The pre and the post took the trip from "very good" to "best ever". 

Trip was wonderful. Food great, they catered to all my needs.

Karen did a great job coordinating this wonderful trip from Miami to Zurich .we flow many airlines before, but Swiss Air is the best. Cruise was great , staff was very courteous , helpful and attentive to our needs. . Will try Viking in the future.

David has been exceptional in assisting us with our travel needs.

It's unfortunate that excursions and Silver Spirits beverage package cost more if booked on the ship. If booked early, the cost is in dollars. If booked on the ship, the cost is in Euros (15+ percent higher). Onboard credits provided by Travel Agent are not available until boarding so the credits are not worth as much as anticipated. When calling Viking to ask about cost of booking excursions after boarding, I was told we would not pay more than the early booking cost. Viking agent said we would pay in Euros but the price would be adjusted for the exchange rate so it would cost the same as booking early in dollars. We learned this was incorrect information after boarding. We were also told we could use onboard credits for tips. This contradicts Viking literature so not sure if that is really the case. We booked our trip only two months ahead so some optional excursions were full. Viking agent told us there likely would be space available on the full excursions when we started our trip. We were told to check myvikingjourney.com 3 days ahead of departure because there may be cancellations. We learned bookings cannot be made online this close to departure so not sure why were given this advice. We were also told to check with the Program Director upon arrival because they keep a few slots open. This also was not the case.

The cruise was wonderful, but I was surprised how much time we spent on buses. The tours and guides we're great. I just felt like I hadn't read the fine print to know that the included tours all required bus transport, which took time away from cruising on the ship. I envisioned stepping on and off the ship and walking around some towns and villages on our own, but it was usually required to go with the bus trip if we wanted to see anything. The entire package was a classy trip, but it was different than I thought it would be.

Overall the booking experience, patience that our agent had with our relentless questions, was excellent. River cruise with Viking outstanding. The only problem we had was on the return flight. (not the problem of affordable tours) Our 11:00 AM booked flight from Zurich to Amsterdam was cancelled. Had to stand in line over 3 hours at KLM. Couldn't take next day flight which was offered due to work-business commitment that I needed to get back for - so flew that night to London - had to sleep in airport overnight - catch early morning flight back to states. Put a damper on what was an outstanding vacation.

This was an awesome river cruise. Highly recommend.

This was our first time with Viking and on a river cruise. After taking over 10 ocean cruises, we will NEVER go back to the ocean cruises. On the river, there is always something to see, and with the small group of people, you get to know and you are not lost in a sea of 1000 passengers. The views from the river cruise were so much better, up close, and in view. Not miles away. The food was so good, and having wine with meals at no extra charge were so very nice. Tours were included too. No extra money every time you turn around. The staff were so well-organized, you never had to worry about anything. Everyone was very welcoming and friendly. Top notch staff all the way around. We will be taking another RIVER cruise soon!! Thank you!