We have previously taken two Viking river cruises in Europe and chose this cruise because it would not involve a long round-trip flight to Europe before beginning our cruise. Also, we wanted to try one of Viking's ocean ships to see how similar it is to the river experience.

Too many "included" shore excursions all looked alike. You pile onto a small van/bus, run up and down mountains and then get stuck in traffic either going or returning to the ship. And, of course, not all those vans are properly air conditioned. To top it all off, the destinations all started to look alike every day. You are on a Caribbean island, they take you to the top of a mountain or along a docking area, and you walk around, drink some rum punch, take pictures and get back on the bus. If you don't specifically ask, they will schedule them all very early in the morning, and on vacation I don't want to have to get up early!!

The entertainment falls into the same quandary: One group of young singers did two major shows, and that was it, along with the cruise director and his assistant doing the singing on other nights. The entertainment needs more variety. How about a magician? Or a comedian? SOMETHING besides millennials trying to pretend they know the music of the 60s and 70s. Read more