Is a Veranda Stateroom REALLY Worth it on a Viking River Cruise? 

Just returned from a Viking River cruise and loved the balcony. We would sit out with a drink and watch the scenery go by at night and also coffee in the morning.

It is always worth it if one has the money, I would never have that spare cash hanging around. Any extra cash would go towards another trip. The cabins on the lowest deck with the high window is fine. Our shore excursions were included. Viking is more budget in their river ships than their ocean ships. Thx a lot.

When I travel, I like to pick a lower grade room in the best hotel I can afford because the quality of the property and location determines my enjoyment. The same can be said for river cruise cabin. Your enjoyment is derived from the itinerary, food and ship common areas, not the room. While on an ocean cruise I will always want a balcony, on a river cruise I can pass. You have no sea days and you spend very few waking hours in your cabin. With river cruises often rafting up in ports, you might wake up to find your balcony is a foot or two from the neighboring boat. Unless there is an upgrade promotion, I’ll take a standard room on any river cruise especially when compared to a French balcony that offers less space for more money.

We enjoyed our French balcony room. It left us the ability to purchase extra excursion offered by Viking. I do agree the standard room on the lower deck isn't designed well. Our friends had a standard room.

We were in cabin 214 which has a French balcony. It paid for itself the first night when I was awakened by a squeaking sound. I opened the drapes to be faced with a wall of wet concrete. I opened the sliding door and was able to both touch the wall and poke my head out. We were in a lock! Such a memorable experience.

I am a Viking Ocean fan…..hands down. The cabins on the river ship are minuscule. For river cruises, AMA can’t be beat for cabin luxury and size.

We had a veranda…loved it. It “extends “ the room….it might be psychological, but it made room feel much larger. We would do it again.

We love Viking. After taking many cruses with others over years, this is now our only one. We are up to 14 Viking cruses (river & ocean). We started in a Verandas (which is the minimum I would do), but now we are always buying a suite. (no we are not snobs), Advantages of a suite: much more space, 2 rooms the rear suites have a huge deck fully stocked refrigerator (including wine & beer), refreshed daily free fruit delivered daily free laundry we get room service breakfast most days free the on-board drink package

We’ve booked seven river cruises on Viking, always going with a veranda. We splurged on Douro cruise with a veranda suite. And once we’ve been upgraded to Explorer suite. If we were to travel in colder seasons, we would probably go with a French balcony. Yes, there are times when our veranda has been unusable due to ships being booked together in docks, and that is a bummer. But being able to enjoy the scenery from our veranda while sailing, or enjoying a nice wine in late afternoon is so worth the extra cost. I understand that many folks are budget conscious. But the extra $500 per person on an 8day trip is an ok amount for us. The extra privacy on the small river ships is another factor.

The price for a balcony room is ridiculous. Several thousand dollars for a very tiny balcony is not worth it. We also don’t like when docked , usually so close to another ship , that it feels uncomfortable having others just feet away. We would rather spend the extra money on shore excursions where we can see and do more things.

Also…the veranda bathroom was great. The swing-in shower door was clever….it made the room larger, and since the floor material was the same throughout the room and shower……it made the room larger.

2 things you didn't say, that would be very useful: you talk about the main deck, and deck 2, etc... then you show the ship with the little portholes at water level, then a deck with big windows above that, and another deck with big windows above that -- so, which of these 3 levels is "main deck", which is "deck 2", etc? You also mention "veranda" vs "French", but you don't say what the difference is, which one is considered better than the other, etc... can you clarify these points? Great video, thx!

The long desk area was very nice….also made room feel larger, and always a place to put something on.

I have been on Emerald Waterways, in a window cabin, and also on Uniworld Boutique in a French Balcony and they are similar in size to yours. All the ships are similar in that regard, unless, like you say, one is in a suite. I am a larger person and had no problem space wise. It is very North American to expect more space. If the cabins were larger, the ship would have less of them so the price would be higher. Thx.

We found two outlets near the balcony door handle: one 110 and one 220.

My travel companion and I need to have twin beds. I can't imagine how cramped the standard or French veranda would be then! For our upcoming cruise in March we are very excited to have a suite!

Enjoy your videos. You do have an unusual halting cadence in your speech though that took some time getting used to.😀

We upgraded to a balcony since it was only $100 more during the sail. You really don't need a balcony. I think k we were out their two times. When the boats dock beside you, you can't enjoy the scenery always. I would like a window but a balcony is not necessary.

Can the beds be split into two separate beds?

On a port-intensive itinerary, the benefit of a balcony is negligible.

Tips for restaurant waiter for 7 day cruise, for couple is 300 eur.

When we go ashore to explore villages, will we need Euros? Or will the shops and restaurants take AMEX?

but what about the food experience?

Beware the sun deck was closed completely for five days recently because the river was running too high so we were glad to have our balcony

Do you know if there are wheelchair accessible rooms? Because I'm not seeing it here

I've watched this video twice - some parts three times - and had to find different RU-vid videos to see the comparison that I think you are talking about. You appear to compare two different staterooms - a Standard Stateroom on Deck One with only two smallish windows, to the Verandah Staterooms that you cruised in, on Decks Two and Three, with floor-to-ceiling glass. I just came off an Emerald river cruise in France. One of the couples on board said they were going crazy in the dark and smaller-feeling Standard Stateroom, below the waterline on Deck One. They upgraded to the much brighter Verandah Stateroom and were considerably more content. In Riverboat Cruising, I don't believe that you can do a length times width comparison of Staterooms. Ocean and Riverboat Cruising are apples and oranges. Looking out a Balcony cabin into the vast expanse of nothingness on the Atlantic or Caribbean cannot be compared to watching people fish, cycle or camp on the riverbank, a fifty yards away. And, to me, that's what makes the Verandah Stateroom worth upgrading to, over the smaller and darker, though more economical, Standard Stateroom... which you didn't show. Or did I misunderstand?

No. River cruises are overpriced.