Viking Akun Review

5.0 / 5.0
76 reviews

Worse Cruise EVER!

Review for Russia River Cruise on Viking Akun
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RubyandRunt
10+ Cruises • Age 60s

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Sail Date: Sep 2018
Cabin: Veranda Stateroom

This was our second cruise with Viking. The first cruise in China was very good. The ship was clean and looked newer. Our cabin was not overly spacious, but comfortable for the two of us. There were enrichment lectures that were informative, the entertainment was a singer and a man playing the piano every night. The service of most of the ship members was good, what you would expect, with the exception of the dining room. The excursions all seemed to include three churches, which got old. St Petersburg was nice, Moscow not so much. In between we stopped in small towns, toured the churches and looked at icons. But we did have one major problem. When we booked we let Viking know we have a special diet; for health reasons we don't eat meat or dairy products (vegan diet). They said it wouldn't be a problem and it wasn't last time so we were really looking forward to the cruise from St Petersburg, Russia to Moscow. We got on board and were encourage to buy future cruise credits. We signed up to buy four. At dinner the first night we asked to speak with the head waiter to let him know we were the passengers with the special diet. I told him that for us, enjoying good food really makes for a good cruise. I let him know instead of expensive meat and deserts, we like beans, black, pinto, kidney, tofu, steamed or grilled vegetables and potatos. He said oh, we have limited amounts of those. We were docked in St. Petersburg four days and a grocery store was within walking distance, if Viking would have cared to get these items. At our request, the head waiter would bring us the menu for the next day so we could see what we could eat and request additional items. Every night we would ask for some additional vegetables, rice, potatos or beans and almost every day we came to lunch and dinner and did not get any of these items. When we asked our server where are the vegetables we asked for, they would respond, the chef didn't make them. This went on day after day, until the ninth day. For lunch we were given a bowl of hot water with a few pieces of potato in it and a small bowl of rice. We asked for the vegetables we ordered and were told the chef did not make them. I left lunch hungry and it was six hours until dinner. At dinner I was so hungry, I called over the head waiter, raised my voice and told him what has been happening is unacceptable. Day after day we ask for inexpensive food that is easy to prepare and we come to the table and get nothing! How do you expect us to enjoy the curise when we are walking around hungry all the time? We have been on almost 20 cruises and have never had such poor food in quality or quanity. The last three days of the cruise, the food improved. The chef said at the beging of the cruise we would gain five pounds, I lost two pounds and had to tighten my belt a notch so my pants wouldn't fall down. UNBELIVABLE! Needless to say, we cancled purchasing future cruise credits. This was our second and last Viking cruise. At the conclusion of the cruise I filled out a survey and let Viking know about our unpleasent experience. We have been home well over a month now and Viking has not sent an email or called to explain the horrible service.

Cabin Review

Veranda Stateroom

Cabin AX

The cabin was fine and the cabin attendant was excellent!

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