As expected the service from Viking was excellent except for one major problem. The Viking representatives at the hotel in Venice had NO CLUE what was going on. When asked about transportation around Venice they only suggested water taxi and looked down their noses when I inquired about public transportation (vaporetto). They told us we could buy tickets at the front desk of the hotel where we were informed that the ticket machine had been broken for several weeks - clueless !!! They had no idea that the once on the ship we could use a free shuttle back into Venice to continue our sightseeing. We discovered the shuttle after the museums were closed. One couple paid 30 euros each to take a water taxi back back to the ship. I had the feeling that the Viking representatives at the hotel only wanted us gone from the hotel and had no interest or information about anything on the ship.

Prior to this trip we had taken two river cruises and the china trip with Viking had had come to expect exceptional service. The hotel staff was a total disappointment and we have warned some friends of ours who will take the same trip in September of 2020 to expect the same poor service at the hotel.

Once the ship left Venice we experienced the usual excellent service from all Viking employees including cabin stewards, wait staff, bartenders, food service employees, and all the guides we met during the trip. If you are a fan of Greek history, gods, legends and rulers then this is the trip for you as I can't think of any we missed. Strongly recommend the extension in Athens as you get a day to explore on your own and the Acropolis and Tomb of the Unknown Soldier are not to be missed. The staff at the Athens Hilton was absolutely incredible to include both the tour guide and the people at the hotel (George) giving dinner recommendations, transportation guidance, how to find things we wanted to see and getting up at dark to make sure we all made our flights home on time. Read more