Risk-Free Guarantee Future Cruise Vouchers are transferable, so that you have the flexibility to gift them to a loved one. He he tried to take the trip solo, he was charged. Not a problem for him at all. Jan 26, 2023 01:33pm. Customers should not be treated this way. Only Viking can make the appropriate reservation. At this time, we expect the ship will resume its scheduled operations on February 18, 2023. If you search Viking the risk free still pops up you have to read the fine print to realise its all over so be aware. Desired outcome: Rather than focusing on the number of complaints, BBB considers how frequently and effectively those complaints are resolved. Why? Published on May 21, 2021. Booking # XXXXXXX Do not book with Viking Cruises ,they turned my cancelled trip into vouchers with expiration dates that I never knew about. **** called finally, apologized and said that he 'misread the rules', misunderstood the rules and this isn't a big deal (his attitude). 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. NEW! See what a point or mile is worth with our appraisals of a loyalty programs currency, based on redemption values. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Any comments Viking? Viking offered us to support the company and not get a refund if we accepted a voucher of 125% Why didn't Viking pay to dock? I advised Viking that my wife and I could not get the vaccine ever and asked for a refund of our primary payment. Well guide you through the process. 05 Aug 2022. Disembark on May 1 2023 they required us to pay us in full in August 2022 which we did. Cost includes $12.95 plus applicable local sales tax. Scheduled and rescheduled elder family care and pet sitting services. The first example of river distress is the Po River in Northern Italy. If ships have to lighten their loads to cross shallow water, fewer goods can be transported at once. Viking changed our flight schedule at very short notice. I was sailing aboard the Avalon Vista two months ago on a cruise from Amsterdam to Basel, Switzerland along the Rhine River. Some years, low water levels caused disruptions as early as June and some years as late as October. $200 Uber Cash: Enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides or eats orders in the US annually. Viking Cruise recommends that their customers insure their travel & trip with Trip Mate Travel Insurance. The draft is the amount of vessel that is below the water line. , I am out the $3500 no matter what) and a friend who will take my place must pay her full share of the room as well! On 12/20/20 Viking cancelled this cruise. This content has not been approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Viking Neptune is a new ship that will join the fleet in 2022. At 104 days out before final payment was due, we had to either lose our entire deposit of $2K+ or get a voucher. Ive asked that one room in the hotels have two separate beds for our two adult children who do not want to share a bed. We rebooked our trip but Viking canceled it again and another voucher was issued. London was on an older plane with 3 seats on the left and right. Oceania officials said Russian and Ukrainian ports would be removed from 2022 itineraries, while Viking River Cruises canceled . I want Viking to honour its Guest Cancellation Schedule and reimburse the $15,640.19 (Canadian) my husband and I paid for the We appreciate you sharing your experience, Sandy JJ, although we regret to hear of the events you've described here. Maximum capacities of 164 passengers and 47 crew. A drinks package at the original cost, when I first tried to book it. . We feel we should get the $3,494 dollars refunded to us. Viking is bringing back river cruises to Europe in July. Our opinions are our own, and have not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by our advertising partners. I also booked this trip years ago when there was . MVJ is locked for this specific cruise , and if you try to book the cruise (UK website) the first available Fjords cruise in now April 2022. 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. I believe this policy and practice is clearly unfair and rather reckless. by Steve CaseLast updated September 6, 2022. Anybody got any idea what do I do? Note that complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Breeze through security with CLEAR lanes available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues and get up to $189 back per calendar year on your membership when you use your Card. Compare the cost in points or miles to cash, and see which option is best. Another factor that should be considered is trip insurance. Where the European rivers have locks and dams to control water levels, ships can still sail problem-free. BBB Business Profiles may not be reproduced for sales or promotional purposes. I told a member of staff about this and was directed to use a toilet on the top deck. If you want to cancel a cruise right now in October because of low water, I will tell you, Sorry, we dont know if theres low water in October, said Schreiner. Thank you. All other passages from ******* for the same Antarctica cruise with Viking Octantis got their boarding passes with no problem. Other ships were docked at the pier. Cannot recommend whatsoever - there are better cruise lines who deliver & care about providing a decent level of customer experience - avoid them if you can. Viking's river cruises are aboard Viking Longships and have a maximum of 190 guests. This review was chosen algorithmically as the most valued customer feedback. At this time, we expect the ship will resume its scheduled operations on February 18, 2023. We rebooked the trip for 10/12-10/23/22. We rebooked for 2022 on 11/30/2020. An apology is not good enough. In order to catch the next flight from ************ to ******* to get to the cruise on time we had to pay the tickets ourselves. As compensation we have been offered a derisory 200 voucher towards a future cruise. The confirmation email said cancellation for any reason loss of deposit. However, the most important part of any cruise, for me is the excursion choice. 1. BBB Business Profiles are provided solely to assist you in exercising your own best judgment. 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. In 2021, the cruise line plans to launch their seventh ocean ship, Viking Venus. We are not asking for anything other than our money back. Sure we were free but that's no excuse. Learn to how to find the cheapest awards. We look forward to exploring the world with you, whenever and wherever you choose to sail with us. The dire news youre reading about low water levels in Europe now, especially along the Rhine River, mostly concerns the cargo shipping industry in Europe. Most river cruise lines do not allow guests to cancel pre-cruise without penalty except for in the most extreme circumstances. Then before the departure, Viking cancelled operations and offered us vouchers for future cruises. Viking river cruises have posted an advisory from Danube River cruises that ship swapping may occur. 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. We booked a Viking River Cruise with AAA travel in August of 2019 for $14,497 for two people which excludes the insurance cost. When we got this schedule yesterday, we asked her ********** if she could rearrange things to take this cruise. Refund or partial credit. 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. 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. He replied "absolutely no way both medically and because ************ weakens her immune system!" Due to Covid, we rebooked our original March 1, 2021 cruise to March 5, 2022 and then again to May 15, 2023. We would much rather be able to post how considerate Viking has been (as well as how much we enjoyed the cruise!) We paid for Travel Protection Other viking customers from ******* on the same cruise were also booked the same flight. Just return on our river cruise . The other typical plan is to put the passengers on buses to get around the affected areas. We were routed to resolution manager who was extremely obnoxious, rude, disrespectful, wasn't listening to the issue, saying 'yes, ok, sales rep make a mistake, mistakes do happen. Princess Cruises | Travel Requirements & Safety Protocols. . "The safety and security of our guests and crew is always our top priority," a Viking representative told Travel Market Report. We didn't get to see Honduras as Viking tried to use their own tender to get to shore. We have had to cancel our river cruise because of their ludicrous covid policy. Thank you. #1. I want Viking to honour its Guest Cancellation Schedule and reimburse the $15,640.19 (Canadian) my husband and I paid for the Italian Sojourn cruise scheduled for May 15, 2023. 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. (I doubt theyll get that right). Cailey Rizzo. The Viking Ocean Cruises 2022 Grand Polynesia Voyage has come to a triumphant completion in Los Angeles. Europe has many rivers where cruise lines operate. For every day that is altered, AmaWaterways guests will get 50% of the daily rate they paid as a future cruise credit. 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. Schreiners advice is simple: Just go. Bad cruise experience, shore excursions, bad weather bad handling, cold food, etc. TPG values it at $1,600. Viking Venus : cruise round Med and on to Israel.This was a wonderful itinerary , a beautiful ship , excellent food and service. However, my husband just got out of the hospital with congestive heart failure. 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. But there is nothing we can do, your vouchers have expired'. That' our policy,. Viking have done this every year since 2012, knowing they are unable to dock there but still taking Port Tax from every passenger. Because we were given a voucher, we can not get out money back. No one expects to have to cancel a cruise. Schreiner says that the last time Europe experienced extremely low water levels, in 2018, the economic impact was around 5.4 million euros ($5.4 million). Wanted us to travel with 3 flights via 2 countries, when we complained they hid behind T & Cs very sneaky & very poor customer service, they cited they couldnt absorb costs of a more direct flight routing. Very disappointing. Thanks for reaching out, M Mulmech., although we regret to learn of your disappointment with your hotel arrangements. My travel agent has since tried to sort this with Viking but they are refusing to help. 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. Story Update (September 5, 2022) Viking river cruises have posted an advisory from Danube River cruises that ship swapping may occur. Winston Folkers. Its infuriating and disrespectful. I appreciate the time. For more than 15 years we have helped nearly 50000 customers resolve their issues and will never stop striving to ensure further improvements on our platform for a better communication between companies and customers. We never sign or agree to sail with vaccines passport as requirement.No one respond our emails or our attorney except a woman name ******************************* that behaves like an iron wall to talk to anyone else. The cruise was cancelled due the pandemic ($11,367.50) Reservation changes under the Risk-Free Guarantee will be reimbursed in the form of a Risk-Free Guarantee Future Cruise Voucher in the amount of 100% of all monies paid to Viking. We have taken note of your feedback. Like most cruise lines, Viking canceled all of its sailings during the pandemic. Their ad is wonderful but after all is said and done it is all crap. Before you decide to. This meant I was unable to book any excursions or drinks package, despite trying as soon as they were released. A river level that is too high or too low can affect an otherwise great cruising experience. In exchange for the annual fee, you'll unlock access to the Amex Membership Rewards program that let you access airline and hotel transfer partners, along with new lifestyle and travel credits. called Business since the middle seats were left vacant. They said they did. We booked a Viking cruise from Venice to Athens in late 2020 for September 2021. Best card for premium perks while traveling, Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, The Business Platinum Card from American Express, The best places to see cherry blossoms around the US this spring, Looking back: How my points and miles strategy has changed over the years, The best increased card offers to sign up for this March. She really needs this positive experience to look forward to. Viking Ocean Cruises. ), We booked a cruise in 2019 to sail early in 2020. We rebooked yet again and we're told that we had to have the vaccine before we would be able to take our trip. "But its clear that river cruising is not going away anytime soon.". By. Please view our privacy policy for details about the information we share with our partners. Viking Ocean Ships Currently Sailing: Viking Jupiter Viking Orion Viking Mars Viking Neptune Viking Saturn Viking Sea Viking Sky Viking Star Viking Venus We only wanted our money to be applied to another cruise in 2023. The trip was for September 2020 but was cancelled due to the pandemic. Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the authors alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. We accepted and paid an additional insurance premium. That's our policy. This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers.