Viking River Cruise: The Great, The Bad & The Smelly (Honest Review)

We did a Viking river cruise on the Douro river. Our experience was pretty similar to yours (except the smell issue). The tours were excellent, but the rest was so so. Dining was a long, drawn out affair that began around 7 pm and often did not end until 9:30 pm. Food choices were limited. Entertainment was non existent except for one evening when some Spanish dancers were brought on board. Our days were very regimented, leaving no time to explore the towns on our own because they had to cruise during the day. Overall, I would give it 3.5 stars.

I’ve been on a few Viking river cruise in addition to Viking ocean cruises. I’ve never experienced anything but graciousness and a warm desire to be helpful.
But, of course, in everything, there can be exceptions. Perhaps there was a problem with the administrative staff or the officers involved with the staff and it affected the crew. Or something happened on a previous cruise.
My late wife and I had the suite. We appreciated the spaciousness. Plus the beverage package is included with it plus free laundry.

Thanks for your honest review. We have done 2 Viking River cruises. We stay in the swan room to save money and the room is larger than French balcony. I don’t mind a small buffet as I have the same breakfast every day (yogurt, granola, fruit) so bypass most of the food. How did you get onboard credit? Great that they refunded it. We have had awesome stuff and some not as friendly also. I do want to try other lines also. We are happy though with fewer excursions as we like to venture out by ourselves. You are right about lack of tables for 2, only 2 and they are in Aquavit terrace.

We have had cruises with Viking on their Grand European and Christmas market voyages. Service was great and the food was better than expected. Since then, we found AMA to offer more excursions and a better level of service. Viking did have better cookies and coffee in their lounge!

My first River cruise was the Viking cruise to Normandy. It was such a horrible experience from beginning to end I said I would never do another river cruise. However I relented and tried Avalon and have since been on 3 cruises with Avalon so far. First I was told if I wanted to fly on another airline other than the one they recommended it would cost me $50 extra to choose my preferred airline; however I was told they didn’t use that airline and was only offered another choice. When I called them on this, all of a sudden they could accommodate me. They booked my friend and I the last seat in front of the restroom which didn’t recline. When asked about our seats on the return flight we got no information. We called the airline and paid to get a good seat. We were told they docked in Paris only to learn they docked 45 minutes outside Paris. Once we found that out we asked how often their bus we went into and out of Paris and were told on the hour. Another lie the bus went in to Paris in the morning and returned to pick up guests at the end of the tour and at 5 pm
We booked a Paris after dark tour and as the bus was pulled away we were told the city wouldn’t be lit up when we got there. The tour was too early and only the Eiffel Tower was lit. As the bus headed back to the ship the lights went on. Meals were just so so and tour groups were much larger than those on Avalon. The cruise director was personable only he saw you outside of a group- then he walked by as if he didn’t see you. Our waiter was very sweet but didn’t know my friend was allergic to shellfish even though she wrote it down and she almost had a salad with shrimp in it. It wasn’t labeled on the buffet. We were offered a $300 credit on another cruise which we never planned on using. We also heard complaints from other passengers. I will say the tour guides were very good

Have had great service and made GREAT friends on Viking (one ocean and two rivers done). Tried Scenic for Christmas markets in 2024. Terrible ship (dingy and timeworn), but better choices of excursions on Scenic, I felt. Also, Scenic doesn’t “tip” you repeatedly (ask for tips for every excursion and at the end). Food was comparable. Spa service on Scenic was outstanding. My wife said she had the best facial of her life and the same person gave me the best therapeutic massage I’ve ever had. Going back to Viking in 2026 for their Portugal offering.

We were on the Rhine in The Fall and it was the first time on Viking. We were very disappointed. Our cabin smelled like sewage for the first 3-4 days of the cruise. The service was poor. We had three disappointing situations that necessitated calling customer service. Not sure we’ll do Viking again.

I just signed up for this cruise because Grand Circle did not have dates available. The service on GC was wonderful. The crew are treated well and are a very happy family. There is a real love for each other that shows and lots of laughter and camaraderie. Wonderful experience. 9 am tours which I prefer.. This Viking is showing 8:30 am tours which is too early for me and will make breakfast impossible. This does not sound promising.