(Dave Kettering/Telegraph Herald via AP). And now those same decisions are being revisited on Americas mightiest river. A Warner Bros. NEW! Among the rivers in Europe where Viking has a major presence are the Rhine, Main and Danube in Central Europe; the Seine, Rhone, Dordogne, Garonne and Gironde in France; the Douro in Portugal; the Moselle and Elbe in Germany; and the Dnieper in Ukraine. Viking cancels all Russian river cruise itineraries - TTG So today were proud to be a small part of a similar mission for Ukrainians who have tragically been displaced.". Viking River Cruises - Cancelation of cruises - ComplaintsBoard.com The Viking agent said that I would have to pay an extra $9,898. When asked what this was for, the reply was that I would get vouchers for future Viking cruises that were worth more than the extra payment, Andersen said. Find the right card for you. Viking has a particularly large footprint when it comes to European river itineraries, with a wide range of sailings on nearly every European river of any note, from the Douro in Portugal to (until recently) the Volga in Russia. This page contains the most up to date information on conditions that may affect your itinerary. NEVER BUY A VIKING CRUISE VOUCHER We will be sailing with a different cruise line and will not be back to Viking. The cruise line said guests have been notified of the issue, though they did not provide details on how many passengers have been affected. 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. Since we paid extra for Premium Class when we booked our flights with Viking Air, we are requesting a refund of Premium versus Economy Class seating. Members who are knowledgeable about this destination and volunteer their time to answer travelers' questions. Should you cruise again, even with another cruise line, do some investigation into possible flights with different airlines and see what might work best before committing to any flights. Those cruises took a hit. 3. They never promised to book you the most convenient or expedient flights. When Viking River Cruises canceled my cruise in 2021 for Covid, they gave me a cruise voucher for 125% and some optional packages as an incentive to rebook. began river trips on the Mississippi River, First look at Viking's stylish new Nile River ship, The ultimate guide to Viking ships and itineraries, The complete guide to Viking cabins and suites, The ultimate guide to Viking's loyalty program, added two new, 378-passenger expedition cruise vessels, The 5 most desirable cabin locations on any cruise ship, 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, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. (Courtesy Richard Andersen). Over in Southeast Asia, a new river ship, Viking Saigon, will cruise the Mekong. A short time later, passengers were informed that the cruise was canceled, Trovato said. Tips-- if you are not interested in details, get a very good travel agent who will triple check everything and hold your hand and can reach you easily with changes. Passengers wait to board the luxury cruise ship Viking Mississippi, berthed at Lambert's Landing in St. Paul, on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022. Do NOT book with Viking! (Updated 11:49 a..m. EDT) -- The Russia-Ukraine war has prompted a growing number of cruise lines to cancel itineraries that include stops in and around Russian ports of call, and to provide aid to Ukrainian refugees in the form of shelter aboard out-of-service cruise ships. These companies have contracts with the airlines for a specified number of seats. Winner of Travel + Leisure World's Best Awards 2022, Cond Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Awards 2021, and Cond Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Awards 2022. Trovato said about 300 passengers were on board and those that he talked to all had a good attitude about the situation. One thing that isn't clear to me is if you must use all of the voucher on a single cruise. "Guests will enjoy these unique and rarely visited destinations and immersive shore excursions to take in the rich cultures and breathtaking vistas of the Baltic.". Viking Cruises Reviews | Read Customer Service Reviews of - Trustpilot Eventually, the representative acknowledged it was a single supplement charge, emails show. Right now there are flights being cancelled daily (read some of the posts on the Air Travel forum) , largely due to staff shortages. Instead, the ship will sail itineraries in the Caribbean. Vikings Scandinavia and Northern Europe trips range widely in length from just seven nights to a whopping 28 nights. Cruise Lines Alter Russia Itineraries, Provide Aid Due to Ukraine Karin Price Mueller | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. They book the one that are cheapest for them. Thats notably different from most cruise lines. Additional stops include Kuzino, the site of a monastery dating to 1397, and Kizhi, the home of an open-air museum of architecture that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We booked a river cruise (Danube) for March 2022. I explained to her that we were going to miss our rebooked flight Delta0071 because of the long wait in the KLM Economy Class line. Viking Cruises Founder Loses 66% Of Wealth As Pandemic Hits - Forbes Believe me, the Sky Priority line was not much faster when we were in AMS and it was like a cattle call when it came to boarding the plane, as everyone with Sky Priority was mashed together and people were ignoring the placard saying which Sky Priority group was boarding (pre-board, BC, Military, Premium Select, and Comfort +). Uber Cash and Uber VIP status is available to Basic Card Member only. Select sailings will resume operation with sailings on May 22, May 29 and June 5, 2021 from Portsmouth, England. Plus Ups are excluded. ta.queueForLoad : function(f, g){document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', f);})(function(){ta.trackEventOnPage('postLinkInline', 'impression', 'postLinks-113577858', '');}, 'log_autolink_impression');cruise or something similar if they don't want to be bothered with paperwork, but you also sound like very naive travelers who expect everything to be perfect and have too much trust in the "system.". This is an outrageous amount and shows Viking's poor customer treatment. As for not getting your Premium seats, since it is a small cabin it is entirely possibly it was fully booked so you were given what seats were still available. Learn more. "Our company was founded in Rotterdam around the mission of helping immigrants find a better life. Just got the official email from Viking saying our cruise has been canceled with the details of the 125% future cruise voucher which must be used on a 2021 or 2022 cruise. Seldom travelers may not get enough value to warrant the cost. "We are notifying our guests and travel partners of this decision and our new plans to visit additional Scandinavian ports in its place. The sailings. Our flight to Frankfurt, LH1003 had been cancelled, but no one informed us. I don't think the flights she has are ones she would have necessarily booked herself, but they are the ones Viking is willing to provide w/o paying the Custom Air fee. The text appears: #1 on the oceans. The second ship in the series, Viking Polaris, has just joined its sister in Antarctica this year. When we asked while onboard the riverboat if we could change to a direct flight, we were told that it would cost each of us an additional $3,200.00. However, youll find Vikings seven ocean ships everywhere from North America to Asia and Australia. Published: Aug. 08, 2022, 9:30 a.m. Richard Andersen booked a fully-paid Viking cruise with his partner but it was canceled because of COVID. Cruise lines adjust itineraries after Russian invasion of Ukraine Andersen did some research. Fist leg of the flight I was not in Business class because it was a different aircraft, but I felt privileged to be on a flight because people had been stuck for 24 hours. over 30 years I have traveled most European Rivers and you always find the various company's will get you to your destination by the cheapest route be that making multiple transfers when you now you can get a direct flight and that is what I regularly do, be it costs me more money and more often than not a nights hotel both ways as well. Viking Ocean Ships Currently Sailing: Viking Jupiter Viking Orion Viking Mars Viking Neptune Viking Saturn Viking Sea Viking Sky Viking Star Viking Venus Vikings entire river fleet of over 75 ships is also actively sailing. The Mississippi River situation has played out in other parts of the world this year. Its most current report said almost 53% of the lower 48 US states are in a drought. Viking Oceans Cancellation and Refund Policy. Last week, the cruise line cancelled all 2022 departures on its Kiev, Black Sea & Bucharest itinerary and said it was evaluating 2022 sailing that call in Russia. I came across 1000's of people who were days late. When necessary changes are made, Viking Guest Services will notify all impacted guests and their travel agents.. Brand to Restart Cruising, Marella Cruises Reveals New 2021/22 Itineraries to the US, Caribbean and Asia, Royal Caribbean's Anthem of the Seas Cruise Ship to be Based in Southampton in 2021, Popular Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship To Homeport From Barbados For First Time, MSC Cruises Extends Seasons of MSC Virtuosa Cruise Ship in the UK, MSC Bellissima in Dubai, The 2022 Atlantic Hurricane Season is Here: What Cruisers Need to Know, Church of the Spilled Blood, St. Petersburg (Photo: Shutterstock). That's exactly the case with the Amex Platinum card. Perhaps in the future try booking you own flights, even if it costs a bit more (we did for our trip last month). The half hour airport transfer delay less the fifteen minutes later flight is a resultant fifteen minute overall timeline delay, frankly, big deal. Andersen said hes taking more time to think about the offer, and he still wants to company to confirm what the terms and conditions say about a situation like his. With many Christmas markets closed, river cruise lines cancel sailings 6 Russian stops on Viking's ocean itineraries will be modified, and impacted guests and travel advisors will be notified. Drought and abnormal dryness continue to develop and intensify from the Plains through the Mississippi River Basin, and have now extended further into the Midwest and Southeast. Viking is a newcomer to cruises to Antarctica, but the destination is a big growth area for . Have a credit card with sufficient funds to buy last-minute tickets if needed. A Viking spokesperson said that the safety and security of their guests and crew was always their top priority. Passengers from across the country say they've. We do not have any cruise cancellations because of the Omicron variant," Carnival spokesperson Roger Frizzell told USA TODAY on Wednesday. We proceeded to see a KLM agent in the Economy Class check-in area as instructed. appreciated. Cruise Critic contacted other cruise lines which have ships scheduled to call in at Russia ports this summer and we received the following statements: Saga Cruises: The U.K.-based line canceled the Black Sea cruise port of Odessa on a forthcoming cruise onboard Spirit of Adventure: "We are now looking at the impact of the latest developments on our Baltic cruises later this year which were due to call in at St Peterburg," a spokesperson said. More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23, Karin Price Mueller | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. 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. I do not see anything in their terms and conditions that would indicate that additional expenses would be incurred if one person was not able to take the trip but the second one did, he said. They just dont want to part with the cash, Andersen said. Itscruise that was scheduled to visit Vladivostok, Russia, will instead visit Busan, South Korea. Start with these stories: The credit card offers that appear on the website are from credit card companies from which ThePointsGuy.com receives compensation.