Viking Burgundy River Cruise - Burgundy and Provence France
March 19 - April 9, 2008
Patricia Blackstock, Myrtle Beach, SC
Although I had heard of Viking River Cruises, I never gave much thought to them until I received an e-mail from my sister-in-law, Paula. She and two friends from Ft. Worth were planning a Viking Burgundy cruise through the wine country of France. Would I like to go along? I hesitated about 5 seconds before saying "Of course!" Although I had been to Paris several times, the wine country would be new to me, and I started making plans. I couldn't find a lot about this particular cruise on the Internet, so most of my questions were answered by calling Viking's toll-free number.
The Boat: Viking Burgundy is well organized. They are obviously used to clueless passengers arriving on their ship, and they excel in organization. With all outside cabins and a maximum occupancy of 154 passengers, the Viking Burgundy (built in 2000) offers an intimate way to cruise. Rooms have air conditioning, telephone, TV, hairdryer, safe and bathroom with shower. Passenger capacity is 154.
Our room was very cramped. Even with one bed folded into the wall and the other made into a couch, the room was simply too small. Every day we juggled suitcases from spot to spot in order to open drawers. The shower was so little that there was barely enough room to turn around. In case you're wondering, neither Paula or I are overweight. The shower was simply a stall. There were no shelves for soap, shampoo, conditioner or even a razor.
The promenade on the upper deck allows for sightseeing as the ship sails from port to port,. This area was spacious and offered an outstanding view of tohe countryside. The ship's bar and lounge provide areas for socializing between stops. I am a non-smoker, and I’m happy to report that I never smelled smoke inside the boat. I did notice that ashtrays had been provided outside on the deck.
The Included Tours: Paula, my sister-in-law, brought her pedometer to check how far we walked each day, and she came up with an average of 4-5 miles per day. This is a lot of walking, and keeping up with the group or a tour guide is not for people with major walking problems. Most of the day trips were too fast. If I wandered far from the group to take a picture or stick my head in a store, I had to keep an eye on where my group was headed, and usually I had to run to catch up. If I were asked for a suggestion about the tours, I would ask for fewer stops, and more quality time spent in the places we visited.
Food: The food was good, and since the ship served 3 meals a day I don't think anyone went hungry. The breakfast and "quick lunch" were served buffet style. If you preferred, a sit-down lunch was also available. My friends and I chose the “quick lunch” every day but one. It usually offered a small salad bar, sandwiches, a hot dish, soup, fruit cheeses and dessert. The problem with eating in the lounge was the lack of space on the very small tables. The tables are a nice size for 1 or 2 people at most with room for a very small plate and a glass. At times it got so crowded that we were placing food or glasses on the floor or window sill to make room for other people. The dinner menus consisted of several choices of Hors D'oeuvre, soup, entrée, and dessert selections. International selections of cheeses were also available for dinner. All meals were served at set times. If the dinner choices did not appeal, there was always a note on the printed daily menu stating that grilled chicken breast, grilled rump steak and Ceaser’s Salade were always available by request.
Emergencies: I was very impressed with the way the Viking Burgundy handled an emergency concerning one of the passengers who fell while on an excursion alone. Because of her identifying pinned tag, the people who witnessed the fall immediately called the ship. They contacted a member of the Burgundy staff who was already in the area, and the staff member accompanied the fallen passenger to the hospital. The passenger later reported that she was taken care of immediately. She praised the hospital as well as the caring attitude of Viking Burgundy personnel involved. After she he was given stitches, the employee of the Burgundy then accompanied her back to the ship.
Drinks: The Viking Burgundy has a bar in the lounge, where you can get ice for your room, order alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, as well as a "cocktail of the day." Prices are comparable with any local bar or café. Paula and I often bought wine locally and brought it back to the ship. If you have a bottle opener and a glass, you can bring your own wine into the dining area for dinner. Otherwise you can pay a corkage fee or order the suggested wines on the ship’s menu.
Satellite is not Wi-Fi: As I mentioned above, most of my pre-trip information was obtained through Viking's toll-free number. The first time I called, I spoke with Ty who gave me his extension for future questions. My first two calls concerned the ship's Internet connections. This was important to me because of my work. I was told that Wi-Fi was available on the ship, and that the ship provided computers in the lounge. I still have my pre-trip notes saying that if I brought my own computer, I could access the Wi-Fi from my room and the cost would be less than the charge for connections through the computers on the ship. This cost, by the way, was 6 Euros per hour. It's an exorbitant amount and something that should be included in the price of the cruise. An average Internet session for me is normally 2 hours and includes uploading web pages and photos - tasks handled quickly and efficiently with my laptop and a Wi-Fi connection.
Even though I had brought my own laptop, imagine my surprise when I observed that the ship had only one computer located in the lounge, and as you can imagine, it was occupied almost constantly. My next surprise was learning that the connection offered by the ship is Satellite, not Wi-Fi. I also discovered quickly that I could not connect from anywhere except the lounge, and the connection itself was excruciatingly slow. I would spend expensive moments waiting for a screen to load, and in many instances the connection was so slow that it timed out and e-mail was not delivered. When the ship left port, it also lost connections. Uploading or downloading pictures was an impossibility. I met another couple from Brazil who voiced the same frustrations. They mentioned that they too were told the same story...Wi-Fi available with connections from anywhere on the ship, and less expensive if you brought your own computer.
This was so upsetting to me that I complained to Thomas, the Burgundy ship manager. Thomas is the stereotype of the cold and haughty hotel managers that one may be forced to deal with in any large city. Unlike other staff members on the ship, Thomas came across as condescending, bordering on impolite. His response to my Internet question was “Madam, you were misinformed.” That was all he had to say, and I had to agree it was true. But how much better it would have been had he said “I can understand your frustration. I will personally see to it that the people who handle toll-free calls are made aware of your situation so that hopefully it will not happen again.” In my book, customer service is still what it’s all about. There was another instance that directly involved Thomas and supported my above conclusion, but I won’t go into it here.
Documents: My final documents for this trip were mailed to my sister-in-law in Dallas. I have no idea how this happened, since I live in Myrtle Beach and Viking had all my contact information. They mailed me several brochures after I booked this trip, so I know they had my correct mailing address. Due to this mistake on Viking’s part, Paula had to overnight my documents at the cost of $16.75. It should not have happened, but I don’t know whose fault it was, why it happened, or what could be done in the future to prevent it.
Thanks for reading this review. Remember that it is only one person's opinion, and things that are important to me may not mean much to someone else. This was my first Viking cruise.
View my Viking Burgundy pictures
Contact me: (Copy and paste the address below into your e-mail program)
patrish@funbeaches.com