Our opinions are our own, and have not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by our advertising partners. We will never try Viking again! Plus Ups are excluded. We booked a river cruise with Viking which we cancelled due to Covid and received travel vouchers from Viking for the amount of the trip. It was too windy and not safe so decided not to try to use their tender. Vikings' policy allows no refund under the circumstances (i.e. . As a matter of policy, BBB does not endorse any product, service or business. Published on May 21, 2021. Yazmin Hope and Libby Gallagher Booking number: *******. These hotels are Marriott and hilton properties that have such rooms. Get $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection bookings, which requires a minimum two-night stay, through American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card. "They disembark in the morning, they go on the shore excursion, and they come back on the other side on the sister ship. Viking offered us to support the company and not get a refund if we accepted a voucher of 125% The cruise line announced the return of select itineraries in Portugal, France and . Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum Card, Platinum x Kehinde Wiley, or Platinum x Julie Mehretu. They offered us a 150 dollar non refundable credit to be used onboard. Taking over the Hilton in Taupo NZ, they were obnoxious. 2023 Trustpilot, Inc. All rights reserved. On 12/20/20 Viking cancelled this cruise. For cruise news, reviews and tips, sign up for TPGs cruise newsletter. Companies can ask for reviews via automatic invitations. This they This allowed Viking to retain the majority of our payment since We booked a cruise in 2019 to sail early in 2020. It was not a condition of completing this trip. South America & the Chilean Fjords - Ocean Cruise Dates & Pricing South America & the Chilean Fjords From $5,999 | 18 Days | 8 Guided Tours | 4 Countries Itinerary Dates & Pricing Resources For current fares, please call a Viking Expert: 1-866-984-5464 or Request a Quote today. Should you have any lingering questions ahead of your voyage, we welcome you to call our Service Specialists at [protected] where we would be happy to assist where possible. I used my airline mile and hotel points to travel well and cheap. Use down arrow key to expand the menu and up arrow key to collapse the menu and hit enter to select the link, Change your cruise date up to 14 days prior to departure, The ultimate flexibility: You have 24 months to select your new cruise date, Combinable with all other Viking offers. We rebooked yet again and we're told that we had to have the vaccine before we would be able to take our trip. This is due to the cruise line planning on new summer UK domestic cruises for UK vaccinated residents only. "We will not cancel any cruises," said Shreiner. Pharaohs & Pyramids. After many failed conversations with Viking Cruise customer service reps to obtain reassurance that we will automatically receive Booking number 7141933 Instead, in the most extreme cases, AmaWaterways will create a new itinerary. Read full review of Viking River Cruises In the end, you will have a fantastic vacation and you will get a future cruise credit according to what you miss., He added: Its better than canceling and sitting at home and not doing anything.. Passengers from across the country say they've. In June, there were places along the Po that completely dried up. Very disappointing. Service representative escalated our complaint that we were misinformed, tricked, lied to, defrauded - because we cannot sail on that date, we are not healthy and can't sail in the fall or 2023! An apology is not good enough. Applies primarily to to bookings with the following content. It would seem to be a reasonable and simple request. Due to Covid pandemic our cruise got cancelled. After an They refuse. It, along with the Viking Sky, is classified as a small ship, with 465 staterooms, capable of carrying 930 guests. We used these to book on cruise OJUXXXXXX Booking Number XXXXXXX. The Rhine River in general is not that deep. I specifically mentioned this scenario when I used the voucher and we were told as long as it was 120 days before departure we could rebook using our voucher. I ask if I could have the number to her managers boss she said no. Bookings with more than 30 persons Conference bookings made by Customers Service and Sales Department Bookings paid by invoice by companies Companies with annual agreements Bookings with more than 5 hotel rooms The specific conditions that apply to your booking can be found in your . Jan. 17, 2022. See details. In the same cabin. While we may have to make changes to some of our itineraries and have had to cancel a few voyages, impacted guests and travel partners have and will receive transparent updates and the opportunity to re-book onto another sailing, shared Ellen Bettridge, president and CEO of Uniworld, in an email to TPG. A place on the excursion I tried to book. Do not book with Viking Cruises ,they turned my cancelled trip into vouchers with expiration dates that I never knew about. In fact, how a business responds to customer complaints is one of the most significant components of the BBB Business Rating. Cruise delayed because of COVID. 2. Obviously a 2 week notice was impossible in our situation. With this terrible On November 26, 2021 when speaking with VRC representative we were informed that out ********* is in the form of a voucher and has no cash value and cannot be refunded. Other viking customers from ******* on the same cruise were also booked the same flight. The US gov has basically declared the "plandemic" over and all other mandates have been drop but Viking still won't change their policy. The first thing that I noticed when I boarded is that all river ships are built to similar dimensions. Do not book with Viking Cruises ,they turned my cancelled trip into vouchers with expiration dates that I never knew about. I had insurance and filed a claim. That's exactly the case with the Amex Platinum card. 1. In fact, everything we have come to expect from Viking exceptthere were apparently a few cases of a GI infection . BBB Business Profiles are provided solely to assist you in exercising your own best judgment. See what a point or mile is worth with our appraisals of a loyalty programs currency, based on redemption values. Viking Ocean and River is currently operating all upcoming scheduled itineraries. Viking has cancelled all 2022 departures of its Russian river cruise itineraries and ceased all operations in the country for the remainder of the year. I complained initially that I was not given a direct flight. Please DO NOT add attachments that contain your or other peoples personal information, if you dont want it to be visible to the public. Start with these stories: The credit card offers that appear on the website are from credit card companies from which ThePointsGuy.com receives compensation. We rebooked for 2022 on 11/30/2020. Viking booked the hotels for these excursions. I thought that Viking was reputable, so I put too much faith in them. RHINE GETAWAY. To date we have sent a certified *** ****** ***** letter to VRC and had no response. Think 3 times before booking with Viking!!! Europe is now seeing the same kind of climate change conditions that are affecting the Western United States. the Lufthansa person told me I need to fill out the form required for returning Americans to USA and she was not helpful .I missed my flight and had to stay overnight to a dingy hotel in tears in a French country who doesn't really want to help you . Unfortunately, there are still cruises being cancelled in 2022 due to Covid-19 and the uncertainty surrounding it. This years summer drought in Europe could affect your upcoming river cruise, but its highly unlikely your cruise will be canceled outright. Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. River flows are never static and are subject to fluctuations that are unpredictable. Desired outcome: Outside of the current welcome bonus, youre only earning higher rewards on specific airfare and hotel purchases, so its not a great card for other spending categories. Plus, your own feed of TPG content. Customer Reviews are not used in the calculation of BBB Rating, My husband and I took an Antarctica cruise with Viking Octantis Dec 25 to Jan 7' as an all inclusive trip, all airfares and transportations were included . You dont know a week or 10 days in advance what will happen with the water levels. A *** incentive ********** was offered and accepted by us to use toward future booking. They have a working relationship with Lufthansa but insist the flight has nothing to do with them, That is a strong cop out. If you have a question or would like to make a press inquiry, please contact: Scott Mackenzie The other typical plan is to put the passengers on buses to get around the affected areas. But due to a serious health issue we along with our Drs said that it was not feasible for us to go. Passengers wait to board the luxury cruise ship Viking Mississippi, berthed at Lambert's Landing in St. Paul, on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022. Card Rating is based on the opinion of TPGs editors and is not influenced by the card issuer. In the case of low water, the crew can dump the ballast water and reduce the freshwater to 60 tons (two days worth), and just refill as needed. Subscribe to RSS Guests have the option to transfer their reservation to 2022; receive a 100% future cruise credit . If, however, we forfeit the ******* spent in anticipation of this vacation, Viking would loose us as customers, but as a sophisticated internet user, my wife will use her homebound time posting this saga on as many travel sites as possible. For Further Assistance If you have any questions or need further information please contact Reservations at 1-877-523-0579 or email customerrelations@vikingcruises.com, Monday - Friday, 6:00 AM - 6:00 PM; Saturday and Sunday, 7:30 AM - 4:00 PM, PT. Viking Ocean Cruises has sailings listed for June, 2021. 05 Aug 2022. At best, youll do a ship swap mid-cruise, a slight inconvenience that will allow you to follow your planned itinerary. That trip was cancelled do to covid, and we were assured by Viking that everything was fine and we rebooked for Jan 2022. 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. Viking's treatment of it's customers makes no sense.they combined two of my trips (without asking) into one "butterfly trip" which meant when I had to cancel the first, it cancelled the 2nd. Expires March 31, 2023. Thank you. **** called finally, apologized and said that he 'misread the rules', misunderstood the rules and this isn't a big deal (his attitude). Unfortunately, my husband unexpectedly passed away last month. Italy is in the worst drought in over 70 years. On July 10th, 2022 my husband called Viking to inquire when the schedule becomes available. I told a member of staff about this and was directed to use a toilet on the top deck. When considering complaint information, please take into account the company's size and volume of transactions, and understand that the nature of complaints and a firm's responses to them are often more important than the number of complaints. . 2022. Does anyone know if Trip Mate customers have or are considering a class action suit against the company for fraud? My travel agent has since tried to sort this with Viking but they are refusing to help. 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. We accepted and paid an additional insurance premium. My experience with Viking River Cruises is that if they cancel, they will either refund your money or . Do your homework and always make informed decisions. This account has been claimed by Viking River Cruises customer service / representatives through our verification process. Viking Mississippi is one of Viking's largest river ships, measuring 450 feet (137 meters) long and weighing approximately 5,000 gross tons. Instead, in the most extreme cases, AmaWaterways will create a new itinerary. Viking, which operates both ocean and river cruises, has canceled all 2022 departures from its Kyiv, Black Sea and Bucharest itinerary . Telling us that a voucher has no cash value is a shoddy business practice at best. Note that complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Regent Seven Seas Cruises was the cruise line forced to change the most stops planned for Russia, which included visits to the Solovetsky Islands, Arkhangelsk, Murmansk and St. Petersburg, as well as Odessa, Ukraine. Received most monies back but they held $1400 back which had to be used by 4/22.Just booked a $25000 trip with them and ask them to extend $1400 to July which they refused. Learn more. Bad cruise experience, shore excursions, bad weather bad handling, cold food, etc. 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. At no point when we rebooked using our vouchers, were we told the vouchers were not covered under the insurance plan. On top of that, they are asking for me to pay additional same $ 9,000. amount for me to go on this journey alone! She is scheduled to start ************ this week. They said they did not think we could get a refund as our money had been converted to a voucher and vouchers were not refundable with our insurance. Because of the positive test result as well as his need for further dr evaluation, we had no choice but to cancel the trip. The 5 most desirable cabin locations on any cruise ship, A beginners guide to picking a cruise line, The 8 worst cabin locations on any cruise ship, A quick guide to the most popular cruise lines, 21 tips and tricks that will make your cruise go smoothly, 12 best cruises for people who never want to grow up, The ultimate guide to what to pack for a cruise, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. I have had the cruise booked for probably a year but only now would the allow me the opportunity to purchase the spoils. Viking refused to admit to us that we were misinformed, and did not apologize, but their policy will not change. Should your cruise be canceled, the cruise line will also offer compensation. Feb 1, 2023. For every day that is altered, AmaWaterways guests will get 50% of the daily rate they paid as a future cruise credit. What? Viking Cruises has cancelled all 2022 departures on its Kiev, Black Sea & Bucharest itinerary in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Oceania officials said Russian and Ukrainian ports would be removed from 2022 itineraries, while Viking River Cruises canceled . We have taken note of your feedback. Another section of river that can be negatively affected by low water levels is the Danube, past the last lock in Slovakia heading downriver toward Hungary. Winston Folkers. Now I see all this advertisement that waives ar fares , deposits and other things we paid for Horrible company in terms of customer service. As a result, river levels are falling to critical levels. Information provided by various external sources. We would much rather be able to post how considerate Viking has been (as well as how much we enjoyed the cruise!) My family of 4 has booked a Viking cruise with a pre and post cruise excursion. But all was not lost. The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customers satisfaction. Weve been cruising since March with no issues until August, said Schreiner. 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. That is all it took, I was hooked. Just as with ocean sailings, theres always a risk that weather and river/sea conditions can impact that itinerary, and cruisers must accept that itineraries cannot be set in stone. 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. I purchased two of each of the following through ACH: You can see why people are worried. This card comes with a long list of benefits, including access to Centurion Lounges, complimentary elite status with Hilton and Marriott, at least $500 in assorted annual statement credits and so much more. That is why Viking is offering a limited-time offerthe most flexible of any cruise lineso that you can plan your voyage with peace of mind. It is getting harder and harder to book excursions on Viking cruises, so I would advise anyone planning a cruise with them to think twice, if excursions are important to them. Really, what is a big deal here? 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. Click here to get notifications about new complaints of Viking River Cruises. In May, Viking canceled that cruise. We booked a cruise, paid the full booking amount. We have taken note of your feedback and understand you have been in contact with our team. Expected weather conditions during the cruise. Anybody got any idea what do I do? Other than the hassle of packing up in the middle of the cruise, travelers still get the full Rhine experience they paid for. SPRING SALE Special Fares Reduced Airfare Dates: Availability: Anyone can write a Trustpilot review. An insult! "You might see some cities you might not have expected to see and you might miss some you wanted to see. Booked a trip just before covid hit which had to be canceled for obvious reasons. In this case, you will receive a full refund of your cruise fare. It turns out that during the second half of the cruise, we were in a heat wave, experiencing very hot temperatures. We didn't get to see Honduras as Viking tried to use their own tender to get to shore. Wouldnt that booking choice make it clear to Viking that pre and post excursion bookings would also require separate beds? Tauck says it deals with compensation on a case-by-case basis. We paid some #10,000 for premium air. 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. Viking have done this every year since 2012, knowing they are unable to dock there but still taking Port Tax from every passenger. Most all other cruise lines have dropped this mandate. "The safety and security of our guests and crew is always our top priority," a Viking representative told Travel Market Report. Why didn't Viking pay to dock? How the Coronavirus Might Impact My Upcoming Viking River Cruise, Update: My Viking River Cruise And Their Coronavirus Response, Reivew: Nile River Cruise on the Grand Princess Amwaj. There are critical points, like the one on the Rhine River, right in the Rhine Gorge, Schreiner explained. "We are currently evaluating itineraries that call. Viking Mississippi - As of January 23, 2023 Due to damage from substantial river debris to the Viking Mississippi 's propulsion system, the ship will undergo repairs requiring the cancellation of upcoming departures. Not one thing but some flowers in the rain and unsafe steps and more Booking number 7141933 Viking Cruises cancelled all 2022 departures on its Kiev (Kyiv, Ukraine), Black Sea & Bucharest itinerary in response to Russia's conflict with Ukraine. Not enough for the money hungry cruise line. He will call us immediately - he said. If the level is too low, the vessel may run aground or need an alternative docking arrangement. scott@travelcodex.com, For updates: 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. Royal Caribbean International | Travel Requirements & Safety Protocols. Only Viking can make the appropriate reservation. All other passages from ******* for the same Antarctica cruise with Viking Octantis got their boarding passes with no problem. Compare the cost in points or miles to cash, and see which option is best. Booking your first river cruise? Booking XXXXXXX. The trip was more expensive so we paid with our vouchers as well as cash. Please view our advertising policy page for more information. We booked a river cruise (Danube) for March 2022. 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. 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. These levels can swing widely both up and down. We then Our Viking cruise embarkation was delayed by 2 days, shortening our trip from 12 to 10 days. It is February 1st today and I went online to book excursions for a trip almost 3 months from now. Or, you might have a few port stops changed out for new ones, or spend more time than you prefer in busses or hotels, possibly with shorter visits to destinations that now require longer bus rides. Viking River Cruises Viking Rolf (Photo: Viking River Cruises) 1. The cruise was cancelled due the pandemic ($11,367.50) Viking offered us to support the company and not get a refund if we accepted a voucher of 125% We said yes. If you are booked on a river cruise for later this year, do not make any snap decisions. Simply make the simple changes to the hotel reservations so that one of the rooms includes two beds. However, the same problems do not affect river cruise ships. We have since then tried to book a trip two times, and the required medical of a vaccine status made us cancel again. My husband and I were excited about our long awaited cruise next May. I hope this is something you can help with. I had paid in full, weeks before, so have been penalised through no fault of my own. NEVER BUY A VIKING CRUISE VOUCHERWe will be sailing with a different cruise line and will not be back to Viking. 2022 is now cancelled and will be replaced with new roundtrip voyages from Southampton to the Caribbean via the Canary Islands and New York. Passes which had been canceled since BA flight had been late. Why? The departure flight from ******* was delayed due to the storm. Call us at 800-454-0927 to speak to a Cruise Concierge today. We also ensure all reviews are published without moderation. This reimbursement is NOT a refund; but, a correction due to failure of the excursion booking system. He replied "absolutely no way both medically and because ************ weakens her immune system!" Because Viking issued a voucher , insurance denied the claim as the voucher was considered a refund Their luggage has been moved over automatically so by the time they arrive on the ship they have their luggage, and then they sail on the other ship back to the destination.. Heres what you need to know. Utter and total joke. In November 2020, we rebooked, the Cities of Antiquity and Holy Land Cruise, scheduled for Nov-Dec 2022, paying the additional fare. Refund on premium air payments that we did not receive in premiumservice. We booked a 14 day cruise with extra days upon arrival in ****** and departure in **** in ****.
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