We have been on 9 river cruises, 6 with Viking. Since we were running out of rivers the Baltic Homelands Cruise offered an itinerary that appealed and we had always been happy with our previous cruises with Viking. We were not sure if we would like the differences entailed in Ocean Cruising but were extremely pleased with this trip. The first thing that impressed us was the comfortable feeling one had on the ship. All the public spaces were well done and you never felt uncomfortable or crowded. It was hard to believe there were over 900 people on the ship. Our stateroom was very comfortable and quiet and the staff did an excellent job of attending to our needs. We had easy access to the Explorer’s Lounge and by the second day the bartender greeted us by name and remembered our drink orders. The eating choices were great and we were able to experience them all. It was great to have room service some mornings to expedite getting ready for an early excursion. We enjoyed the speciality restaurants but loved the World Cafe for lunch and The Restaurant for dinner. Again, the staff was excellent.
As great as the ship was, the best thing about this trip were the shore excursions. Except for the last day in Bergen the tours and guides were great. We were especially pleased with our 2 days in St. Petersburg. The Ultimate St. Petersburg tour was well worth the expenditure. The guide was exceptional and the ability to see so much in such a short period of time was great. This was truly the highlight of the trip for us. All in all a great trip and we are sold on Viking Ocean Cruises and have booked our next two trips with Viking.
The cabin was very comfortable. It had a couch and two chairs in a very nice sitting area. There was a blackout curtain to provide great light blockout which aided a great night’s sleep and there was plenty of room to enjoy a room service breakfast on the mornings we chose to do so. We especially liked the width of the room as it made it very comfortable to move around. The bathroom was great with double sinks and a comfortable shower and of course a nice warm floor in the morning was not hard to take. Again the service was great.