Having enjoyed previous river cruises with Viking and having decided that 2 weeks was too long this seemed an excellent opportunity to be in France without the bother, but somehow it failed to press our buttons. We weren't helped by the very high temperatures that made sitting on deck and watching the world go by an option and as most of the sailing was at night we were denied that pleasure. The morning expeditions were fine but going ashore in the afternoons was really demanding. The boat was frequently moored at inconvenient stations and we wondered if this too was to do with costs. We couldn't escape the feeling that Viking were cutting corners. The boat felt understaffed (there was never anyone a the Concierge desk) and the whole day excursions were hugely expensive at almost £200 per person per trip. The food seemed to be less exciting than we recall from last year although some of the staff, particularly the programme director and some of the waiters worked extremely hard to look after us. Given French patisserie the biscuits at the drinks station left much to be desired.

So did it reach expectations? Compared to previous cruises, sadly no.

We're fairly gregarious but this time often felt excluded by the many groups in the dining room. Read more