From beginning to end we had a wonderful cruise. Friends have gone on river cruises and raved about them and we were anxious to try one. We chose southern France and it was beyond what we had expected. The Rhone is very beautiful to cruise and the ports of call are very interesting and we enjoyed the wine tastings. We met the nicest people and yet enjoyed solitude as well. Shared a drink with new friends, read a book or had lunch on the terrace at the front of the boat or took a nap on the upper deck.

The staff was nothing short of the best we've ever met--the program director was very, very personable, knowledgeable and did all he could to accommodate our needs. From front desk to housekeepers--everyone was friendly and professional. Nothing lacking here. There was a pianist every day/evening. He was a personable young man with great talent.

We have ONE big issue with how docking is managed. When we pulled in to Avignon, another Viking ship was already docked and we pulled up next to it. Soooooooooo for the duration we had to keep our drapes drawn because our view was into the cabin of the ship next to us. We felt claustrophobic and couldn't use the veranda for which we paid extra. It wasn't a big deal to us that we had to cross over through the other ship to disembark when "double docked". We, as others on starboard, shared this major complaint with the captain, front desk personnel, program director and we hope they will report the concern with management. Viking has called us to say this is port authority decision-making, etc. This is the biggest issue we have with river cruising.