In fact, how a business responds to customer complaints is one of the most significant components of the BBB Business Rating. Viking have done this every year since 2012, knowing they are unable to dock there but still taking Port Tax from every passenger. As a result, river levels are falling to critical levels. Holland America Cruise Line | Travel Requirements & Safety Protocols. It was too windy and not safe so decided not to try to use their tender. We want our money back since we will never met the requirements to sail and we never agree to those requirements, Our booking number is XXXXXXX and is associated with ********************* ********. 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. Trip value now ********** On 12 November 2020 we booked another cruise and added an additional ******** to bring our out of pocket total to ********** All transactions took place before before the rollout of a "vaccine", vaccine cards, a Presidential and CDC mandates. Premium Air. Thank you. Here are 8 tips for writing great reviews. Viking Ocean Cruises has sailings listed for June, 2021. It is a basic human right to be able to have access to flushing toilets and handwasting facilities. It is getting harder and harder to book excursions on Viking cruises, so I would advise anyone planning a cruise with them to think twice, if excursions are important to them. Crystal River Cruises has canceled its four remaining Crystal Ravel sailings this December. This made it impossible to catch the next flight from ***** to buenos Aries. ComplaintsBoard.com is a leading complaint resolution website on the Internet. We are not asking for anything other than our money back. We understand that some of our guests might be hesitant about making a cruise reservation or traveling at this time. 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. Like other river cruise lines, weve dealt successfully with low-water situations in the past, and we have a variety of strategies that we can deploy as necessary. . Because there was no time for a further delay, we paid the tickets to the airline. If have a river cruise planned for the end of the summer or the fall, should you be concerned? Viking Cruise recommends that their customers insure their travel & trip with Trip Mate Travel Insurance. That's our policy. This will surely increase the credibility of your complaint. Unfortunately, my husband unexpectedly passed away last month. At no point when we rebooked using our vouchers, were we told the vouchers were not covered under the insurance plan. Desired outcome: Bookings with more than 30 persons Conference bookings made by Customers Service and Sales Department Bookings paid by invoice by companies Companies with annual agreements Bookings with more than 5 hotel rooms The specific conditions that apply to your booking can be found in your . If anyone on our team wouldnt recommend it to a friend or a family member, we wouldnt recommend it on The Points Guy either. Because these problem spots are well known, river cruise lines can find ways to mitigate the issues with savvy itinerary planning. Published on May 21, 2021. Enrollment required. Desired outcome: Another section of river that can be negatively affected by low water levels is the Danube, past the last lock in Slovakia heading downriver toward Hungary. The key dimensions of the Avalon Vista are: River boats are built in such a way that for bridge clearance, the mast, pilot house, and sun shades can be lowered. Passengers wait to board the luxury cruise ship Viking Mississippi, berthed at Lambert's Landing in St. Paul, on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022. Viking Polaris Current cruise: 13 days, one-way from Buenos Aires to Valparaiso-Santiago Viking Expeditions Tracker Itineraries Deck plans Accidents Viking Neptune Current cruise: 137 days, one-way from Fort Lauderdale to London-Tilbury Viking Ocean Tracker Itineraries Deck plans Viking Mars Current cruise: 14 days, one-way from Sydney to Auckland We promise not to send you any unrelated messages, Click here if youd like to unsubscribe from notifications about new complaints of Viking River Cruises. This offer covers all Viking reservations that are made between November 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022 on any 2022 voyage. If you happen to be in the same position there is a group forming to file a class action law suit against Viking. I am truly an "out-of-the-box" traveler which has enriched my travel experiences. Enrollment required. All I want if a refund for our primary payment so we can sail on a ship that does not require the vaccine since we can not get it. 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. Dozens of cruises have been cancelled and some ports in the Caribbean and South America are turning ships away from making . Maybe 10 years from now we cruise the Danube and Rhine in January/February/March and we stop in the summertime because August is too hot and there are low water areas., We dont know what the future will bring, he continued. Viking River Cruises, Inc. | Complaints | Better Business Bureau Profile "We are currently evaluating itineraries that call. In times of high water, river boats can reduce their height by: Another aspect of river cruising is how much water does the ship draft? Viking Neptune is a new ship that will join the fleet in 2022. He replied "absolutely no way both medically and because ************ weakens her immune system!" Its infuriating and disrespectful. Card Rating is based on the opinion of TPGs editors and is not influenced by the card issuer. The cruise lines plan their itineraries to mitigate this risk. Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises have canceled several trips as the Omicron variant continues to wreak havoc with the cruise . On 11/22 we received an email from Trip Mate regarding the resolution of our claim. 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. Companies will need more ships to carry the same amount of cargo, increasing transportation costs all of which have a negative impact on the European economy. Royal Caribbean International | Travel Requirements & Safety Protocols. You dont know a week or 10 days in advance what will happen with the water levels. It is the standard architecture that gives the river boat some leeway with rising and falling river levels. I also booked this trip years ago when there was . We hope that the flexibility provided by this guarantee truly puts your mind at ease when it comes to the decision of whether or not to travel. Booking 6819824. We booked a river cruise with Viking which we cancelled due to Covid and received travel vouchers from Viking for the amount of the trip. All I got was 'you must pay in full for your trip before booking extras'. We have been waiting patiently for two years for a refund, relying on the We had planned a trip in 2021 and when Viking changed their requirements we chose to cancel our trip. Europe Is Reopening For Vaccinated Travelers: See It Via These Viking Anybody got any idea what do I do? On July 10th, 2022 my husband called Viking to inquire when the schedule becomes available. He made the commissions, we will not sail and lose 14,000 dollars. The good news is that there are not the mass cancellations we saw in 2020. We would appreciate any help you can provide in helping us to get the rest of our money back. Before you decide to. Their ad is wonderful but after all is said and done it is all crap. The trip was more expensive so we paid with our vouchers as well as cash. Like most cruise lines, Viking canceled all of its sailings during the pandemic. When I called to cancel they said we did not purchase the insurance. Viking cancels all Russian river cruise itineraries - TTG A drinks package at the original cost, when I first tried to book it. Not every river cruise line takes the same stance. A Vaccinated Passenger Tested Positive for COVID-19 on My Icelandic Viking Mississippi cancels some cruise passengers four days ahead of It will take of the expiring vouchers and the booking can be changed with no problem whatsoever once a schedule for 2024 becomes available. This would mean that river cruise lines could face severe disruptions . Refund or partial credit. Global warming is indeed having an effect on European rivers. However, BBB does not verify the accuracy of information provided by third parties, and does not guarantee the accuracy of any information in Business Profiles. One thing Amawaterways and many other river lines do is run two ships simultaneously on the same one-way itinerary, with one ship starting at one end and the other on the opposite end. By doing investigation on this subject and timeline of events revealed that we are not alone in this situation. We said yes. 12 reviews. What It's Like Aboard an 8-Day Cruise With Viking River Cruises See details. 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. The dream vacation I have waited for 8 years has gone down the drain. Airfares vary on other gateways & departures. Viking has responded to his passing by cancelling the nearly $9,000 I paid for my husbands share of the trip. Viking Cruises ceases operations in Russia for 2022 We paid for Travel Protection South America & the Chilean Fjords - Viking Cruises Confirmation attached. Viking Cruises chairman: 'COVID is really behind us' - Fortune The vaccinations mean nothing anyway. This card is also incredibly rewarding for travel purchases, helping you rack up a ton of Membership Rewards points for your next award trip. We are told now that change is not possible at all because vouchers have expired. South America & the Chilean Fjords - Ocean Cruise Dates & Pricing South America & the Chilean Fjords From $5,999 | 18 Days | 8 Guided Tours | 4 Countries Itinerary Dates & Pricing Resources For current fares, please call a Viking Expert: 1-866-984-5464 or Request a Quote today. Cruise Line Travel Requirements - Cruises.com Wouldnt that booking choice make it clear to Viking that pre and post excursion bookings would also require separate beds? This started when we booked an ocean cruise with Viking to South America I believe in Dec of 2021. Floriade River Cruise Guide 2022 | Cruise Critic 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. Beware of Viking excursion policies. On April 7, Virgin Voyages updated its advisory that all regular Scarlet Lady cruises are canceled through September 17, 2021. We had not received any response from Viking about 10 days. We did not see ANY of Spain. We booked a January 2021 cruise. Yazmin Hope and Libby Gallagher 05 Aug 2022. **** said he would monitor the schedule and will alert us the very day it comes out. My Trip - Updates on Current Sailings - Viking Cruises They said they did not think we could get a refund as our money had been converted to a voucher and vouchers were not refundable with our insurance. , 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! Start with these stories: The credit card offers that appear on the website are from credit card companies from which ThePointsGuy.com receives compensation. The cruise was cancelled due the pandemic ($11,367.50) At this time, we expect the ship will resume its scheduled operations on February 18, 2023. Water levels on the Rhine River are set to fall close to the point where the river cannot hold ships anymore. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. called Business since the middle seats were left vacant. we went to our connecting American Airlines flight with our Boarding Viking Cruises cancelled all 2022 departures on its Kiev (Kyiv, Ukraine), Black Sea & Bucharest itinerary in response to Russia's conflict with Ukraine. As a matter of policy, BBB does not endorse any product, service or business. Its not an American company so they feel like they can treat Americans any way they want. Special Cruise Savings | Viking Ocean Cruises NEW! Refund on premium air payments that we did not receive in premiumservice. We were never verbally informed when booking that the actual voucher would expire even if we rebooked again. AAA travel called Viking many times to rectify this and in December we were finally told that they would give us a $10,000 dollar credit toward another cruise and a $1,500 dollar shipboard credit. We have rescheduled 2x as we refuse to get the Covid vaccine and Viking will not allow boarding if you are not 100% vaccinated. Plus, your own feed of TPG content. 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. them to clean my clothes again and every night I am on the cruise, Read full review of Viking River Cruises and 1 comment, 16 years' experience in successful complaint resolution, Each complaint is handled individually by highly qualified experts, Last but not least, all our services are absolutely free. Yazmin Hope and Libby Gallagher 23. I had insurance and filed a claim. No one expects to have to cancel a cruise. This is our third time to book a trip, and in 2023, the medical requirement is still in place. We would never do a river cruise again, Paid for a cruise in Nov 2021 for an Oct 2022 cruise, 2 days before departure I broke both wrists, contacted Viking about a credit for for a future cruise - a very rude man said Viking would do nothing- they had my money for almost a year and basically told me "to bad". Labeled Verified, theyre about genuine experiences.Learn more about other kinds of reviews. ************************************* Cruises that was set to sail in April 2020. We were issued the vouchers that had an expiration date October 2022. Learn to how to find the cheapest awards. Due to my cancellations, Viking held onto $8,000 of my Funds for about two years. After 5 Viking 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. We booked a Viking River Cruise with AAA travel in August of 2019 for $14,497 for two people which excludes the insurance cost. return trip Munich to EWR They offered us a voucher for 125% or a cash refund. These two rivers are the most popular routes in European river cruising. To date we have sent a certified *** ****** ***** letter to VRC and had no response. It's also a classic cruise itinerary. Viking Cruises will test all guests and crew for COVID-19 with daily PCR testing when sailings resume, as part of the company's new Viking Health & Safety Program, the cruise line recently announced. The Viking Ocean Cruises 2022 Grand Polynesia Voyage has come to a triumphant completion in Los Angeles. In fact, we specifically asked their travel consultant if the vouchers would be reissued if we had to cancel again and we were told they would. Viking Cruises is a cruise line providing river and ocean cruises, with operations based in Basel, Switzerland. Heres what you need to know. Viking Cruises cancels 2022 Black Sea and Kiev (Ukraine) sailings Travel Codex is owned by Travel Codex, LLC. Viking refused to admit to us that we were misinformed, and did not apologize, but their policy will not change. We missed 2 ports of call and 1/3 of our sites to see the auroras. I have three times tried to contact Viking, by phone, email, and chat. We only wanted our money to be applied to another cruise in 2023. Not a problem for him at all. *Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. We again purchased Vikings trip insurance through Trip Mate to cover the cost of the trip. This also had the water turned off and was unable to flush. Any help to resolve this matter will be greatly appreciated. Only in very rare circumstances are the sailings canceled outright. Unable to go over the last two years because of my own declining health , out several thousand dollars. The difference between what they gave us as a credit for a 2023 cruise (which we booked so we didn't lose all of our money) and what we originally paid is $3,494 dollars. This was not the case. Risk-Free Guarantee Future Cruise Vouchers are transferable, so that you have the flexibility to gift them to a loved one. However, as everyone knows, predicting the weather is not an exact science. Another factor that should be considered is trip insurance. Please view our advertising policy page for more information. Our ships have a very low draftabout five feet, he explained. We appreciate you sharing your experience, Trevor, although we regret to hear of your disappointment. took the call and told us that schedule wouldn't be available most likely till January 2023. I contact Viking customer relations, and was first told that the flight tickets were paid by Viking already. When we arrived ************* to get our boarding pass, we were told that viking booked our tickets but did not pay for the tickets. #6339759. "We will not cancel any cruises," said Shreiner. But this is one American that will never sail with this awful company ever again. They have a working relationship with Lufthansa but insist the flight has nothing to do with them, That is a strong cop out. Viking Cruises | Cruise Ship List - Delta Skymiles Cruises Has Viking Cancelled Any 2022 Cruises - CruiseInfoClub.com Pharaohs & Pyramids. - Refusal to honor its cancellation policy, Viking trip shortened due to weather, no refund. For Further Assistance If you have any questions or need further information please contact Reservations at 1-877-523-0579 or email customerrelations@vikingcruises.com, Monday - Friday, 6:00 AM - 6:00 PM; Saturday and Sunday, 7:30 AM - 4:00 PM, PT. We used our voucher prior to the expiration of the voucher, to book a cruise for March of 2023. I specifically mentioned this scenario when I used the voucher and we were told as long as it was 120 days before departure we could rebook using our voucher. Really, what is a big deal here? Booking number: *******. Read full review of Viking River Cruises Booking XXXXXXX. The 5 most desirable cabin locations on any cruise ship, A beginners guide to picking a cruise line, 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, The ultimate guide to what to pack for a cruise, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. An insult! Viking cancellation policy - Viking Ocean - Cruise Critic Community 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 had paid in full, weeks before, so have been penalised through no fault of my own. With this terrible . I explain ship swapping in the section: . They refuse to let us rebook with the voucher and actually suggested if we want to rebook we would have to pay them all over again. The area is protected and thats where you have the low water issues. Which cruises have been cancelled in 2022? | Cruise.Blog Viking Ocean Ships Currently Sailing: Viking Jupiter Viking Orion Viking Mars Viking Neptune Viking Saturn Viking Sea Viking Sky Viking Star Viking Venus It is obvious to the casual observer that VRC is not in financial distress as they have added ships to their fleet and the CEO is listed a a billionaire. A longtime editor at Cruise Critic, Erica has also written for The Washington Post, Fodors and Lets Go travel guides, and numerous print and online cruise publications. That's exactly the case with the Amex Platinum card. Mind you, my cruise cost over $27,000. Compare the cost in points or miles to cash, and see which option is best. For cruise news, reviews and tips, sign up for TPGs cruise newsletter. 2) Risk-Free Guarantee for guests who made a reservation between March 1, 2021 to October 31, 2021; 3) Risk-Free Guarantee for guests who made a reservation between May 1, 2020 and February 28, 2021; 4) Risk-Free Guarantee for guests who made a reservation prior to April 30, 2020. Should you have any lingering questions ahead of your voyage, we welcome you to call our Service Specialists at [protected] where we would be happy to assist where possible. But due to a serious health issue we along with our Drs said that it was not feasible for us to go. If you choose to do business with this business, please let the business know that you contacted BBB for a BBB Business Profile. A river level that is too high or too low can affect an otherwise great cruising experience. You will be cruising, you will be enjoying," he said. On December 9, 2019 we booked********************************* and paid ********* March 11, 2020 that cruise canceled by Viking due to COVID. Cruise lines cancel Ukraine and Russia calls - Travel Weekly Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are the authors alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity mentioned herein. We booked a 14 day cruise with extra days upon arrival in ****** and departure in **** in ****. I have had the cruise booked for probably a year but only now would the allow me the opportunity to purchase the spoils. 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 will never try Viking again! Submit a complaint and get your issue resolved. Viking refusing to refund given COVID risks! - Review of Viking Cruises If the whole itinerary is changed, youll get to sail the new itinerary and receive a 100% future cruise credit to book another cruise. 2023 Trustpilot, Inc. All rights reserved. Viking Cruises - Ships and Itineraries 2023, 2024, 2025 - CruiseMapper