alexk

@Pooch

Enjoyed your scopes, I agree with your assessment.And I hope you are enjoying married life.

Good news Wine, beer, and soda is free flowing at dinner and lunch on Viking. While the pre cruise package is pricey, we felt it was a good value since it included transfers and tours and good hotels plus the move your bags such. The one bad thing about Viking they require payment is full 30 days after booking, so it you book a 2018 cruise you have to pay in full now. We never purchased a mix drink but I think the price is reasonable. We went the last week in May and it was hot and crowded already, going in the Spring or Fall you will have a cheaper rate and less crowds. We loved Paris and the whole trip on the Seine. I am going to listen to the link, thanks for posting it.

Really too bad, something that was free now is an upcharge, the all-access tour takes 3 to 4 hours and a bridge tour was less than an hour. I agree with Billy loyalty perks are over rated. Taking away perks is never a good PR measure.

I have been on 4 river cruises - 3 Viking and 1 scenic. We enjoyed all the cruises. Scenic had two special dinners, one was for people staying on the third floor which was like a Chef's table and the other is a dinner serving the local flavor in our case it was French. Both can include air and transfers and one tour a day. Viking had some optional tours in the evening for a reasonable price. Scenic is truly all inclusive, Viking you pay for drinks outside of lunch and dinner. If you are doing Paris, Viking is not the line to use since their ships are too large to dock in Paris. Our May cruise was on Scenic and dock within walking distance of the Eiffel Tower. There were no children under 18 on either line. The service you get is similar to the suite experience on a RCCL cruise. The linens and towel are high end and cabin service is quick and discreet. River Cruise ship Cabins are tiny compared to Ocean Cruises. Getting a balcony is nice but often times river cruise ships are rafting meaning you are inches away from another ship making the balcony unusable. Sometimes the Veranda's include perks such as free or low cost airfare so you need to figure out what is important to you. That being said, we enjoyed Scenic, we won the cruise so we were spoiled, I do not think it would be worth double the cost compared to Viking. If I went on another Seine Cruise, I would not do Viking since they do not go to Paris. I would look at Scenic, AMA, Avalon, Vantage , Emerald ( the sister lower cost line of Scenic)all who were able to do the whole river and then choose the one with lower price.

We were on the IOS, my husband went down the final night to pay the bill. When we returned there was a $12.28 charge for mini bar, which we were told was for the water we drank. Problem is we did not drink the water and as D+ members we had 6 bottles delivered free. Personally I drink the tap water. So my husband called and they removed the charge only for $12.....it is a minor point, but this seems to be a common problem of RCCL billing for water that no one uses.

We go to a travel show each year. The US Passport services has a booth there manned by government officials, they suggest you do NOT bring a copy of your passport, since you are at greater risk of the passport being lost or stolen.

We enjoyed ordering the full dining room menu to our suite. Also having the luggage valet makes traveling easier. We a'so had a nice suite reception.

great review. We thought Kenzie was a very well behaved child.Glad you had a good time on the cruise.