We had high expectations for the Grand European Cruise, all of which were met and exceeded.

The selected docking cities and villages were well-chosen, the local guides ranged from very good to incredible, the range of options available every day was comprehensive, tailored to physical capabilities and interests of the folks on board. And the service was superb. My husband accidentally left his glasses on a bus that transported us into town (and then went off to serve other customers)--and the Program Director tracked them down, that afternoon. We've been on a number of big-ship cruises, and never experienced anything like the level of friendliness, attention and care we got from the Viking staff.

There were many little unanticipated perks--genever and cheese tastings, art lectures, special folk musicians, an amuse bouche at every dinner--as well as the flexibility to eat with different guests each evening, or choose a simpler, bar-food meal for two if we wanted a bit of private conversation. The food was uniformly excellent, at all meals, and the unlimited beer and wine a major plus. Read more