Viking Kirov or land tour?
 

So I'm trying to decide between a Russia-Siberia land tour and a Russian river/canal cruise on the Viking Kirov. The Viking Kirov package sounds reasonable, but I'm seeing a lot of negativity on this forum wrt Viking River Cruises. What's the real deal? I've enjoyed everything from Crystal to Holland America, but I don't want to disappoint my sister who's a first-time cruiser. Is this Viking Kirov cruise an OK deal?

We are scheduled to cruise Russia next week.

We have been cruising for over 30 years and found Viking to be one of the best.

We book our cruises thru DB tours, 803-781-7866, and saved a bundle on all our cruises. They have been in business since 1945.

We saved over $2000 on our China cruise several months ago.

Their price on travel insurance cannot be beat. :D

Hope this helps.

Thanks, cruisematey1. I hope you had a good trip. Please tell us about it when you get back.

Since my original post, we have signed up for a Grand Waterways of the Czars river cruise next July. We were recently "upgraded" from the Viking Kirov to the Viking Peterhof. As far as I can tell, the two ships have the same configuration, although the Peterhof is recently refurbished. Since the change affects our entire tour group, it's not like we have a choice.

I'm especially interested in hearing details about this or any other Viking river boat from those with recent experience. Are the lower category cabin beds simple cots? Are the toilets disfunctional? Does the food range from just mediocre to downright unsafe? It's sometimes hard to differentiate between biased accounts and objective reporting. Thanks!

We returned last night from Russia.

Changing to the Peterhof was the best thing you could have done. This boat was recently upgraded and the rooms are larger.

The regular size rooms on the Kirvo are almost unbearable. The bathrooms are ~3' X 5' and the sink facuet is your shower head!

Everything else was GREAT, including food, tours, service, etc.

Our Tour Company, DB tours, had explained everything it detail prior to the trip. The saved us big bucks and knew every detail of the trip. Where to buy items and how to negotiate.

let us know if we can answer any other questions.

Thanks,

Viking Kirov
 

We just returned from a Viking Kirov (9/22/07) sailing and are very dissapointed.
Day 1: Sewer gas leak in our cabin bathroom
Day 2: Crew claims to fix sewer gas leak.
Day 3: Sewer gas leak contiues and we move ourselves (no assistance from staff) to a new cabin.
Day 4: New cabin has no cold water and we are unable to take shower until dinner time when problem is finally fixed.
Every wood surface in both cabins utilized on Kirov were chipped and missing wood veneer...the Kirov is in serious need of a complete make-over.
We have sailed on Avalon and Windstar in the past and Viking is a poor imitation. Resaurant staff poorly trained and clearly overwhelmed. Breakfast and lunch met expectations but dinner was poorly prepared.
On the positive side, guides were very knowledgable and informative and this made the time off-ship a real pleasure.
I have not sailed with Viking on any other venue but the Kirov is not worthy of your time or money. :(

Opinions seem to vary about food and service. It may be more of an adventure than a luxury cruise, but that's OK. One of the reasons we signed with Viking and this particular tour was to see the total eclipse on August 1st. This will be my seventh eclipse cruise and 22nd total eclipse in all. Each has been a little different and memorable in its own way.

I'll never forget my first cruise on the Canberra in '73. We were six college students crossing the North Atlantic in rough seas. Our sleeping accommodations consisted of three double deck bunk beds in a cabin under the water line and so close to the engine room, the vibrations shook everything off the table and the motion kept every door swinging back and forth most of the voyage. I managed to avoid seasickness, but the dreadful English galley didn't encourage the appetite. Still I look back on that trip with fond memories. :)

Ready to go!
 

With less than three weeks to departure, I'm really primed to go! After many cruises with many different lines, I realized that I'm primarily an adventure cruiser [although I do admit a weakness for the amenities on a luxury line like Crystal]. I enjoy experiencing exotic wonders both natural and cultural, and this trip offers the best of both.

Russia has so many unique historical and artistic treasures. With planned excursions to Moscow's Metro, the Bolshoi and the Kremlin; religious sites like the Church of St. Dmitry, Church of the Epiphany, Belozersky Monastery, Preobranzhenskaya; palaces like Catherine's, St. Petersburg's summer and winter palaces and the Peterhof water palace, performances of the ballet, circus and opera - I feel like I'm sampling the best of the best. I took a Black Sea cruise a few years ago and saw the highlights of Odessa and Yalta, but it was nothing like this. Add to that a glimpse of modern Russia with a total eclipse in Novosibirsk, and I really feel like I've found a winner. Who cares if the cabin is cramped and the food is so-so? I survived with a water and bucket shower in Indonesia and wild game for dinner in Africa. This will be another adventure!

Re: Viking Kirov
 

Dear TJtraveler,

We are sorry to hear of your displeasure with Viking Kirov. Though some time has passed since your trip, we hope you will still consider contacting us directly at TellUs@vikingrivercruises.com so that we can try to address your concerns.

Sincerely,



Viking River Cruises