It is time for Viking to do the same and act like a cruise line instead of a medical facility. Planning a cruise? Some years, low water levels caused disruptions as early as June and some years as late as October. She is scheduled to start ************ this week. Scenic. There are critical points, like the one on the Rhine River, right in the Rhine Gorge, Schreiner explained. by Steve CaseLast updated September 6, 2022. We were never verbally informed when booking that the actual voucher would expire even if we rebooked again. Refund on premium air payments that we did not receive in premiumservice. Instead, in the most extreme cases, AmaWaterways will create a new itinerary. It turns out that for the most part, if the ship sank, we would be high and dry standing on the sun deck. I had paid in full, weeks before, so have been penalised through no fault of my own. Due to my cancellations, Viking held onto $8,000 of my Funds for about two years. 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. Key West was on the itinerary but Viking told us 5 months before they would not be docking. 1. Only in very rare circumstances are the sailings canceled outright. 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. Applies primarily to to bookings with the following content. Heres what you need to know. Viking Cruises cancelled all 2022 departures on its Kiev (Kyiv, Ukraine), Black Sea & Bucharest itinerary in response to Russia's conflict with Ukraine. This river begins in the Alps near the Italy-French border and is fed by snowmelt. No materials from this website may be copied, reproduced, republished, uploaded, posted, transmitted, or distributed in any way. But this is one American that will never sail with this awful company ever again. We could not get a negative covid test in time for Just returned from Classis Panama Canal Cruise (11-21 February 2023) on the last day, running water for the shower, hand basins and toilets had been turned off from 5am to when we left the ship at 10.30am. 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. 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. I had insurance and filed a claim. After an Any comments Viking? By doing investigation on this subject and timeline of events revealed that we are not alone in this situation. We did not see ANY of Spain. Weve canceled one cruise on the Danube and have made a few mostly minor alterations to a small handful of cruises on the Rhine, a Tauck spokesman told TPG when asked about this years cruises. Note that complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. By March 2020 Viking announced cancellations due to covid, with an additional 25% for a future booking. At 104 days out before final payment was due, we had to either lose our entire deposit of $2K+ or get a voucher. Instead, in the most extreme cases, AmaWaterways will create a new itinerary. BBB Business Profiles are subject to change at any time. "Given recent developments and the developing conflict in Ukraine,. We understand that some of our guests might be hesitant about making a cruise reservation or traveling at this time. Then they said (under the Risk Free Guarantee) we could have a voucher, but it would be a combined voucher which could only be used for one future trip. The first example of river distress is the Po River in Northern Italy. Before you decide to. I advised Viking that my wife and I could not get the vaccine ever and asked for a refund of our primary payment. 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. Dozens of cruises have been cancelled and some ports in the Caribbean and South America are turning ships away from making . took the call and told us that schedule wouldn't be available most likely till January 2023. The trip was for September 2020 but was cancelled due to the pandemic. called Business since the middle seats were left vacant. TPG values it at $1,600. Sometimes it's worth a large investment to reap the benefits of a great credit card. We would much rather be able to post how considerate Viking has been (as well as how much we enjoyed the cruise!) Guests will have 24 months to select their new date and use their Risk-Free Guarantee Future Cruise Voucher to make a new reservation on any river, ocean or expedition cruise. Should your cruise be canceled, the cruise line will also offer compensation. Viking has refused. You could tear down the house and build a dam there, but that is not what is going to happen.. Viking will not honor this request. If water levels fall, riverboats can have trouble sailing all the way to Budapest. This complaint has been resolved automatically due to user's inactivity. When considering complaint information, please take into account the company's size and volume of transactions, and understand that the nature of complaints and a firm's responses to them are often more important than the number of complaints. Advertiser Disclosure: Some links to credit cards and other products on this website will earn an affiliate commission. On November 26, 2021 when speaking with VRC representative we were informed that out ********* is in the form of a voucher and has no cash value and cannot be refunded. The Risk-Free Guarantee allows guests to change their cruise date up until 14 days before their planned departureand Viking will waive any fees. 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. On July 10th, 2022 my husband called Viking to inquire when the schedule becomes available. Viking, which operates both ocean and river cruises, has canceled all 2022 departures from its Kyiv, Black Sea and Bucharest itinerary . Booking your first river cruise? I was told I would have to pay full retail fare in addition to what had already Viking made an error and owes me reimbursement for charges made on February 1. Share. In this case, you will receive a full refund of your cruise fare. Booking 6819824. Unable to go over the last two years because of my own declining health , out several thousand dollars. **** said he would monitor the schedule and will alert us the very day it comes out. Over in Southeast Asia, a new river ship, Viking Saigon, will cruise the Mekong. 2023, International Association of Better Business Bureaus, Inc., separately incorporated Better Business Bureau organizations in the US, Canada and Mexico and BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust, Inc. All rights reserved. Booked a trip just before covid hit which had to be canceled for obvious reasons. See details. 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. That's exactly the case with the Amex Platinum card. I won't be booking any future cruise with them. Holland America Cruise Line | Travel Requirements & Safety Protocols. At Viking, your experience means the world to us. Viking has responded to his passing by cancelling the nearly $9,000 I paid for my husbands share of the trip. Airfares vary on other gateways & departures. For that reason, the Rhine River is feeling greater effects of river flow and sooner than compared with the Danube. RHINE GETAWAY. There are no uniform river flows and water levels are unpredictable. We are not asking for anything other than our money back. 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. Royal Caribbean Group's Celebrity Cruises has canceled four sailings from March 26 through April 16 aboard the Celebrity Eclipse, which has yet to return to service, a spokesperson for the. We use dedicated people and clever technology to safeguard our platform. Fraud and deception! ******************************************************************************************************************************** We were looking for the same cruise we originally booked but for 2024. As a result, river levels are falling to critical levels. I have three times tried to contact Viking, by phone, email, and chat. That's our policy. If you voluntarily cancel your cruise you may only get a partial or no refund depending on how close to departure you cancel your cruise. The food was excellent. Thats because the weight of the cargo such vessels carry affects their draft (the distance between the ships bottom and the water line). Claire and Stanley Keyles planned a dream vacation for June 2020. Learn to how to find the cheapest awards. Call to book now: 1-800-207-7286. They are just taking the thousands of dollars we gave them from us and we are getting nothing in return. Utter and total joke. I was never informed that the vaccine would be required to sail and that our money would not be eligible for a refund. He was assertive and very confident, pushy and eager to make the booking. I never come across a big bunch of ignorant, geriatric, moronic a$$holes as this group I had came across today! The Po River flows 400 miles across the top of Italy from the Alps to the Adriatic Sea. BBB Business Profiles may not be reproduced for sales or promotional purposes. Viking is probably the most unsympathetic/unprofessional company I have ever experienced. Published on May 21, 2021. Rather than focusing on the number of complaints, BBB considers how frequently and effectively those complaints are resolved. 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. Confirmation attached. Thank you. 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. 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. 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. We have had to cancel our river cruise because of their ludicrous covid policy. One of the most popular rivers, the Rhine has river levels falling fast. My husband and I were excited about our long awaited cruise next May. Recent updates have been made to cancellation schedules and refund guidelines for various cruise lines. In fact, how a business responds to customer complaints is one of the most significant components of the BBB Business Rating. 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. This was not the case. The drought category in England has reached the most severe designation of severe drought. Viking Ocean Cruises. The Amex Platinum comes with access to a premium concierge service that can help you with everything from booking hard-to-get reservations to finding destination guides to help you plan out your next getaway.