Booking 6819824. Because these problem spots are well known, river cruise lines can find ways to mitigate the issues with savvy itinerary planning. One thing Amawaterways and many other river lines do is run two ships simultaneously on the same one-way itinerary, with one ship starting at one end and the other on the opposite end. Thu 13 Jan 2022 01.00 EST Last modified on Thu 13 Jan 2022 18.22 EST. Viking Mississippi is one of Viking's largest river ships, measuring 450 feet (137 meters) long and weighing approximately 5,000 gross tons. **** said he would monitor the schedule and will alert us the very day it comes out. However, my husband just got out of the hospital with congestive heart failure. Viking Chief Health Officer Dr. Raquel . It goes against our guidelines to offer incentives for reviews. We have one ship starting in Amsterdam and one ship starting in BaselIf they cannot pass Kaub [the critically low water point on the Rhine], then [the passengers] all disembark on either side," he explained. American Express has expanded The Centurion Network to include 40+ Centurion Lounge and Studio locations worldwide. Viking Ocean Ships Currently Sailing: Viking Jupiter Viking Orion Viking Mars Viking Neptune Viking Saturn Viking Sea Viking Sky Viking Star Viking Venus passengers asked if ports on the new itinerary may close and if there's a chance the cruise could be canceled while underway. Weve taken note of your feedback and while we understand you have already been in contact with our team, if you'd like discuss this matter further we welcome you to email TellUs@vikingcruises.com with your booking information. return trip Munich to EWR He was assertive and very confident, pushy and eager to make the booking. I want Viking to honour its Guest Cancellation Schedule and reimburse the $15,640.19 (Canadian) my husband and I paid for the Italian Sojourn cruise scheduled for May 15, 2023. Desired outcome: Schreiners advice is simple: Just go. Viking Cruise recommends that their customers insure their travel & trip with Trip Mate Travel Insurance. River cruise lines do have contingency plans for dealing with river flow problems. For that reason, the Rhine River is feeling greater effects of river flow and sooner than compared with the Danube. This offer covers all Viking reservations that are made between November 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022 on any 2022 voyage. This cruise has been sold out for weeks so if Viking reinstates the voucher, the cabin could be resold. The dream vacation I have waited for 8 years has gone down the drain. Telling us that a voucher has no cash value is a shoddy business practice at best. Due to Covid pandemic our cruise got cancelled. I believe this policy and practice is clearly unfair and rather reckless. It was not a condition of completing this trip. Viking Plans A Robust 2021 2022 Cruise Season Despite the canceled 2020 cruise season, Viking has high hopes for 2021 and beyond. We'll run a soft credit check to find special offers, but it wont affect your credit score. We paid for trip insurance assuming that it would cover this situation but buying trip insurance through Viking seems to cover much less than most trip insurance policies. The sailings. By the time I could ring Viking, the excursion was sold out and the drinks package price had increased. The current welcome offer on this card is quite lucrative. Coach would have been better. The typical characteristics of river boats regardless of cruise line are about the same. I contacted Viking and was told the vouchers were not refundable because we had not cancelled at least 2 weeks prior to departure. In a statement issued to the Star Tribune, Viking confirmed that some of the ship's first scheduled departures were canceled this summer, and that the luxury vessel is temporarily operating. If you are booked on a river cruise for later this year, do not make any snap decisions. All other passages from ******* for the same Antarctica cruise with Viking Octantis got their boarding passes with no problem. For the cabin on the cruise, we indicated separate beds for their cabin. We were never verbally informed when booking that the actual voucher would expire even if we rebooked again. This was not the case. If you choose to do business with this business, please let the business know that you contacted BBB for a BBB Business Profile. them to clean my clothes again and every night I am on the cruise, Read full review of Viking River Cruises and 1 comment, 16 years' experience in successful complaint resolution, Each complaint is handled individually by highly qualified experts, Last but not least, all our services are absolutely free. We then Our Viking cruise embarkation was delayed by 2 days, shortening our trip from 12 to 10 days. He lied. If water levels are low, cargo ships cannot carry their normal loads of freight. Recent updates have been made to cancellation schedules and refund guidelines for various cruise lines. I contact Viking customer relations, and was first told that the flight tickets were paid by Viking already. The food was awful , the service bad some waiters were very rude we were forced to do a lot of included tours or couldnt leave the ship . See details. The pandemic has not ended, and some sailings have been cancelled due to too many Covid-19 cases onboard. If you want to cancel a cruise right now in October because of low water, I will tell you, Sorry, we dont know if theres low water in October, said Schreiner. The line confirmed the steps to TTG on Wednesday (2 March) and said it was "deeply opposed" to the . Earn 5X Membership Rewards Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. London was on an older plane with 3 seats on the left and right. It's also a classic cruise itinerary. This allowed Viking to retain the majority of our payment since We booked a cruise in 2019 to sail early in 2020. Expires March 31, 2023. Desired outcome: With this terrible I won't be booking any future cruise with them. AAA travel called Viking many times to rectify this and in December we were finally told that they would give us a $10,000 dollar credit toward another cruise and a $1,500 dollar shipboard credit. "The safety and security of our guests and crew is always our top priority," a Viking representative told Travel Market Report. The cruise lines plan their itineraries to mitigate this risk. Guests will have 24 months to select their new date and use their Risk-Free Guarantee Future Cruise Voucher to make a new reservation on any river, ocean or expedition cruise. This was really I have had the cruise booked for probably a year but only now would the allow me the opportunity to purchase the spoils. This guarantee is combinable with all other Viking offers available. Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the authors alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Check with your cruise line on current cruising conditions and what you can expect from them. After a further communication with Viking, the second answer was because the flights were on a promotion deal, any delay or cancellation was not covered by Viking. They also issued non refundable vouchers for our port excursions. Sheila Davies is a retired gas industry professional based in Northumberland, England. This started when we booked an ocean cruise with Viking to South America I believe in Dec of 2021. Information provided by various external sources. These levels can swing widely both up and down. This is an awful company to deal with. Then when operations started again, we decided to book a cruise to sail November 2021 At the time we booked, vaccines were not a requirement. Viking allows those who book the most expensive rooms to book first. We were told that since we used vouchers we were not eligible for a refund per policy. Viking Cruises has ceased all operations in Russia this year in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. My husband surprised me with the explorer suite,the room was beautiful,the balcony was amazing. This will surely increase the credibility of your complaint. We opted for the voucher. At no point when we rebooked using our vouchers, were we told the vouchers were not covered under the insurance plan. Our longtime Cruise Specialists Voyage Host, Tom Mullen, shares his thoughts from the last few days of the voyage, which took place January 5 to February 6, 2022. I also booked this trip years ago when there was . Seems the generous cancellation risk free ended 30 June and despite booking direct with Viking no mention of the changes was made. Many passengers were distressed by the lack of fresh water. *In Canada, trademark(s) of the International Association of Better Business Bureaus, used under License. Reservation changes under the Risk-Free Guarantee will be reimbursed in the form of a Risk-Free Guarantee Future Cruise Voucher in the amount of 100% of all monies paid to Viking. BBB Business Profiles generally cover a three-year reporting period. $200 Uber Cash: Enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides or eats orders in the US annually. AMA Waterways | Travel Requirements & Safety Protocols. Why? Like most cruise lines, Viking canceled all of its sailings during the pandemic. Viking Ocean Cruises. Get up to $300 back per calendar year on the Equinox+ digital fitness app, or eligible Equinox club memberships when you pay with your Platinum Card. Viking Ocean Cruises has sailings listed for June, 2021. The plane returned to the gate and he was transported to the local hospital. It turns out that during the second half of the cruise, we were in a heat wave, experiencing very hot temperatures. This also had the water turned off and was unable to flush. The trip was for 2021 but was also cancelled and moved to September 22, 2022.On September 16,2022 *********************** and shattered his knee-cap and needed surgery. It closely resembles one of Viking's highest rated world cruises in the past, Chairman Torstein Hagen said in a live webinar Sunday when passengers were notified of the change. BBB asks third parties who publish complaints, reviews and/or responses on this website to affirm that the information provided is accurate. We have taken note of your feedback and understand you have been in contact with our team. The 766-mile Rhine is one of Europe's most important trade routes, with container ships plying their way around its looping bends. Feb 1, 2023. Only Viking can make the appropriate reservation. I also booked this trip years ago when there was not a vaccine mandate.They will not return my money of around $22000.00 They told me I did not need vaccinations for 2022 ,now I found out we do .We do not believe in the vaccinations and I told them that right out front. was 4 units wide . On 12/20/20 Viking cancelled this cruise. Taking over the Hilton in Taupo NZ, they were obnoxious. (Enrollment required for select benefits.). He made the commissions, we will not sail and lose 14,000 dollars. If you happen to be in the same position there is a group forming to file a class action law suit against Viking. "They disembark in the morning, they go on the shore excursion, and they come back on the other side on the sister ship. One of the most popular rivers, the Rhine has river levels falling fast. 2023, International Association of Better Business Bureaus, Inc., separately incorporated Better Business Bureau organizations in the US, Canada and Mexico and BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust, Inc. All rights reserved. Not every river cruise line takes the same stance. The difference between what they gave us as a credit for a 2023 cruise (which we booked so we didn't lose all of our money) and what we originally paid is $3,494 dollars. Viking Celebrates Start Of Inaugural Season In North America's Great Lakes Read More May 17, 2022 Newest Ocean Ship In Viking's Award-Winning Fleet Named By The Countess Of Carnarvon Of Highclere Castle Read More May 12, 2022 Viking Takes Delivery of Newest Ocean Ship Read More April 25, 2022 The first thing that I noticed when I boarded is that all river ships are built to similar dimensions. Cannot recommend whatsoever - there are better cruise lines who deliver & care about providing a decent level of customer experience - avoid them if you can. Cost includes $12.95 plus applicable local sales tax. Cruises beginning in 2009, this is not the first error and being loyal Desired outcome: Desired outcome: Karin Price Mueller | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. It is the standard architecture that gives the river boat some leeway with rising and falling river levels. An apology is not good enough. SA. In Europe, we dont cruise in January, February and into early March because its too cold, he explained. BBB is here to help. I have three times tried to contact Viking, by phone, email, and chat. SPRING SALE Special Fares Reduced Airfare Dates: Availability: Heres what you need to know about water levels on Europe rivers and what to expect if youre booked on a river cruise or considering booking one. But our plea was denied. We promise not to send you any unrelated messages, Click here if youd like to unsubscribe from notifications about new complaints of Viking River Cruises. A longtime editor at Cruise Critic, Erica has also written for The Washington Post, Fodors and Lets Go travel guides, and numerous print and online cruise publications. "We are currently evaluating itineraries that call. For information about your specific voyage, please log onto MyVikingJourney.com. over night stay we got back to Cincinnati the next day. I was told to claim on my travel insurance if I had any.I had to send three emails to receive a response and cancellation certificate from Viking Cruises. The trip was for September 2020 but was cancelled due to the pandemic. Another point that travelers should understand is that when the news reports low water levels, its not that an entire river has dried up and is impassable.