Why I’m Not Raving About My Recent Cruise
My husband and I recently returned from a 15-day Viking cruise called Ancient Adriatic Treasures. There was so much to love about the trip, so why am I not raving about our experience?
We had finally succumbed to the weekly onslaught of glossy Viking brochures with their enticing variety of voyages. This one in particular caught my eye because it offered the opportunity to visit four countries and stop in 12 different places along the Adriatic Sea. I had never dreamed I would get to islands and cities in Greece or Turkiye, or walled towns in Croatia. And I’d barely heard of Montenegro, much less the seaside town of Kotor. I didn’t know about the ruins of Ephesus either, but friends raved about how beautiful they are. Even though my husband and I are not comfortable sailing on the ocean, we were excited about being able to see so many places in such a convenient way, something we didn’t imagine ourselves doing on our own. We reasoned that the Adriatic would be calmer than, say, the north Atlantic, and we would bring along a variety of seasick remedies, just in case. The sales agent also assured me that our room on the third deck would be more stable than those on higher decks.
I have no complaints about Viking. Our stateroom was very comfortable, one step above the lowest room offered, but with many amenities and a delightful, courteous, and friendly cleaning duo. The ship itself was lovely, with understated Scandinavian decor, blond wood and contemporary furnishings. We only had to unpack once, which is a welcome advantage to cruising.
There were plenty of dining options on board, including the casual World Cafe with its varied buffet, as well as fine dining, an Italian restaurant and The Chef’s Table with an international menu. The second day we discovered a small area that served Chinese food. There was truly something for every palate. The wait staff was professional and friendly. Oddly, I did not find the other passengers very friendly except on a few occasions. If we had a conversation with some people, we rarely saw them again given the number of people on board.
Ahead of our departure, we booked the one included excursion in each port town. Most of these were walking tours, but some included bus rides to ancient ruins or to another town. The provided headsets are an absolute necessity because the groups include 35 to 40 people. You can be in these big groups and still hear the guide who doesn’t have to yell. In fact, they can almost whisper. Each bus had a number which matched the number on the guide’s sign and was written on our ticket for the excursion. The tours were incredibly well organized. In every port, Viking not only has very knowledgeable, enthusiastic local guides, but many other locals who help guide you to the buses.
As I said earlier, I have no criticism of Viking. They manage to efficiently move 900 passengers on and off buses every day for a variety of excursions at a variety of times. They even offer shuttles back to the ship in some places in case you want to stay on for a while to eat lunch or shop.
I’ve decided there are several reasons I’m not raving about this cruise or this way of traveling. The trip lacked any experiences; it was all sightseeing in a large group and being talked at through a headset. We did learn a lot of the local history from the guides, but there was little or no interaction with a guide or with other passengers. Driving through a large city like Athens or Istanbul on a big bus while a guide points out landmark buildings that quickly fly by gets boring and frustrating, mostly because of the reflections on the windows which make it difficult to see. The port cities are loaded with tourists and shops geared to tourists that are mostly filled with the same trinkets, so there’s not much opportunity for meaningful exchanges with the locals.
I missed being able to interact with the locals or visit shops and places not aimed at tourists. I realize that a lot of this was inevitable and “just the way it is now.” My older son thinks cruise ships are doing serious damage to many places in our world, and I can see how that is happening. On the other hand, these places have found that tourism is a decent way to make a living and they have become dependent on it.
After this experience, I ask myself, what do I want from my next trip? Here are a few of the things I am considering. My husband and I love traveling with each other, but it would be nice to be with some other people. That means I need to seek out a company that offers trips with small groups, say 20 or fewer. I don’t want to be in a big bus all the time and will look for trips using smaller vehicles, like Sprinters. If I were to forgo the group idea, it could be fun to just “live” in a neighborhood in, say London, and use it as a base to travel around. We’ve done it in Paris and in San Miguel de Allende, but we were younger then. Right now, as I research our next trip, these are the considerations that are flooding my brain when I roam the internet in search of options that will make me happy.
Laurie Vander Velde and her husband live in a retirement community close to downtown Santa Fe. They are always planning another trip to somewhere they haven't been yet.
