Viking Serenade

[Shel]

My husband and I are thinking about taking this ship on a 5day cruise. I haven't read much about this ship and was wondering if anyone is fond of it- or what? Any reviews anywhere that are worth reading. The cruisemates review of RC doesn't sound very promising... but my other choice is Carnival.... ugh!

Let me know!

hi!

i am taking my mom on her first cruise.... viking serenade 2-16-01, less than 2 weeks away.... this will be her first and my 8th... (2nd on which is rccl)....
i haven't found ANYONE who has cruised on the viking...
i hear though... it will be retiring in november....
will let you know, what ship is like.
princessforhire@yahoo.com

[bev]

What do you mean Ugh about the Carnival Line? I've cruised on 3 of their ships and have always been very happy. Did you have a bad experince?

I have not read the CM review of the Serenade, but I am sure that it is similar to their review of the Holiday and I am equally sure that I would agree with both.

Beginning mid-May, Carnival has positioned the Ecstasy to take over the Holiday's itinerary. I would HIGHLY recommend this over the Serenade, which I cruised on in 1998 (Holiday 1995 and 1997). The Ecstacy is twice as large as both of them and twice as new. RCCL plans to replace the Serenade in the future. Please see Kuki's review of the Ecstacy.

If you cannot wait until Mid-may, book the Carnival Holiday over the Viking Serenade. The Holiday was refurbished two years ago (it entered service in 1986 vs. 1991 for the Serenade) and the cabins are a lot larger (outside cabins have large windows vs portholes). Compared to the newer cruise ships, neither are on par.

If you are looking for a mexican riveria cruise, I highly recommend the CCL Elation (same size as Ecstacy, 1997) over the RCCL Rasphody of the Seas. I hear rumors that a new player will enter the market Fall of 2001 (Princess).

Shel-VS was the very first ship we cruised on 9 years ago, and we have been on her 4 or 5 times since then. She truly is old and worn and the rooms are tiny, but we always have such a good time! The ship's crew is happy and you are treated like royalty. It is inexpensive and a wonderful getaway!
True, she does not compare to the newer ships. We have not been on Carnival Holiday. I'm sure the cabins are larger, but it does not go to 3 ports as VS does. Holiday only goes to Catalina and Ensenada on the 4-day cruise.
VS is the better value in my opinion.
Whatever you decide, you can't hardly go wrong with a cruise!!!
Mrs. G.
PS- We will be sailing on her for the last time this July with our daughter and her family! I can't wait!

[Vickie]

Shel,

My husband and I took this cruise as our first cruise on February 19, 2001. We had an absolute blast! The boat is old, there's no doubt about it, but the crew was fabulous. We thought they were very well organized. The boat is smaller than most, but at no time did we ever imagine there were 1,700 on board.

We'd take the cruise again!

Vickie Miller
Anchorage, Alaska