My Viking Story: Just The Links

Posted onAuthorChris Owen3 Comments

As we sailed along with Viking River Cruises on the classic 15-day Grand European Tour, we engaged readers a number of ways to share the experience.  Here, we have just the links to what resolved as My Viking Story.

ChrisCruises- Posted before, during and after sailing

Flickr Photo Albums- just photos, no words: all the images we capture, unedited and free to share or use as you wish with attribution.

  1. Budapest On The River Danube– two days in a favorite place to begin a number of river cruise itineraries
  2. Sailing To Vienna- A day of scenic cruising on the way to the Austrian capital
  3. Demel Vienna– An excellent use of free time provided after your included Viking tour
  4. A Full Day In Vienna– Overnight In Austria’s Elegant Capital City
  5. The Viking Daily– The front page of the ship’s daily newsletter, helpful for planning the day
  6. Cafe Breakfast- The first place food is available every day on a Viking Longship and where early risers meet
  7. Budapest Ten Minute Walk- Where we went and what we saw within ten minutes from where our ship was docked- images via iPhone
  8. Viking Longship Ve Ship shots- Various photos of our ship in no apparent order. If they don’t fit anywhere else, they go here
  9. Welcome Toast To Guests- Usually held on the first full day of sailing, the ship’s program director introduces key department heads and everyone meets the Captain. Something that can be done on a ship of 190 passengers.  Also included, the photo of those same people posted in every Viking ship.
  10. Viking Crew- One of my favorite albums to compile as we travel with Viking, this one hopes to capture the spirit of one of the most seriously differentiating factors in the overall Viking experience.
  11. In the Restaurant- As the title would indicate, food photos, tablemates and other scenes captured in the ship’s restaurant
  12. The Library- Titles on hand for the reference and enjoyment of passengers
  13. Aquavit Dinner- An alternative to dining in the Restaurant
  14. In The Lounge- A sampling of onboard events that happen in the ship’s lounge, also the place for nightly briefings before dinner
  15. Labels- Beverages available at the time we sailed onboard as well as any beverages consumed ashore
  16. Going Through Locks- This itinerary has 67 of them, I have a sampling
  17. A Day In Melk– scenic cruising then a tour of Melk Abbey before we get lost on the way back
  18. Other Viking Ships– seen as we sailed, other Viking Longships
  19. Sailing The Wachau Valley- images of our day scenic cruising through the UNESCO World Heritage Site
  20. Bamberg Germany with Viking River Cruises
  21. Sailing to Wurzburg- Scenic Cruising on the Main river
  22. Sailing To Nuremberg- Scenic cruising at sunset
  23. Nuremberg, Germany– Our day at the historic World War II site
  24. Regensburg, Germany– the sausage capital of the world (or so I think)
  25. Aquavit Lunch– a favorite on Viking Longships
  26. Wurzberg Germany with Viking River Cruises
  27. Wertheim Germany- a favorite place to visit any time of the year
  28. Wertheim In Ten Minutes– after docking and before tours, what we can see in ten minutes, round trip
  29. Sailing through Frankfurt At Dawn– The Program Director on our Viking Longship said we would pass by Frankfurt at 3:30 in the morning- it was well worth getting up for.
  30. Sailing To Koblenz- Scenic cruising through one of the most beautiful parts of the world.
  31. Sailing To Cologne- Scenic cruising was a big part of our tour- we loved every minute of it.
  32. Koblenz, Germany- a favorite place any time of the year, Koblenz takes on a unique character of its own in the summer.
  33. Sailing to Braubach- It’s the place where Viking Travelers get off the ship to see one of the stars of the show: Marksburg Castle.
  34. Marksburg Castle– one of the few untouched by bombing of World War II
  35. Castles Lecture– Fun facts about all the castles we have seen along the way.
  36. Taste Of Germany– A themed night in the dining room and on the Aquavit Terrace where Viking travelers have a grand old German time and the ship’s executive chef features fabulous German cuisine.
  37. Cologne– The included tour of Cologne Germany
  38. Top of Cologne- An optional tour that proved to be one of the best ever travel experiences.
  39. River Sunrise- Not as dominant in a day on the river as on an ocean cruise, but a wonderful time of the day nonetheless
  40. Sailing To Kinderdjik– Scenic cruising on the Rhine
  41. Kinderdjik 2017– a favorite place in Holland, revisited

Facebook Photo Albums- much like Flickr Photo Albums, the Facebook version features a story and select photos that illustrate the topic, tour or onboard event.

 

Instagram Photos- A recap of our daily postings on Instagram

 

We’re on our way to travel with Viking River Cruises on a 15-day Grand European Tour. From Charlotte we fly across the pond to London then on to Budapest. Significant here, the distinct difference between “traveling” with Viking and “sailing” with someone else. Don’t get me wrong, ‘sailing’, by river or ocean, is a safe, secure way to see much of the world that commonly stacks up nicely compared to land vacations. We get that. This is different. This is travel with a spirit of adventure and exploration ,albeit without the backpack, in comfort. I don’t think we have fully profiled that element of what Viking does yet and it’s about time. As Vikings celebrate their 20th year of exploring the world, this is their time and we’re hoping to bring you more of a feel for what to expect than ever before. In the morning as we are crossing the Atlantic a new post will publish on our website charting a course for our journey. Stick around, this will be best.

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It’s interesting to me, the reasons we do what we do. In any given situation, people react in ways unique to them and only them or go with the flow of the crowd. Filtered by our beliefs, the paths our lives have taken, dreams realized or alignment with the thoughts of others, paths can go in and many directions. How very unique then when like minded travelers come together to experience something perhaps predetermined by the itinerary of their lives. Such was the scene last night when Viking River Cruises showcased the stunningly beautiful splendor of Budapest. The first place visited on a two-week travel event, we’re looking forward to what is yet to come. I hope you’ll come along with us as we share #MyVikingStory

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Arriving in Vienna in the afternoon after a lovely day of scenic cruising along the Danube with Viking River Cruises, the stage was set for a perfect first day in Austria….actually, let me explain: in the afternoon we also sailed through the history of how the European Union was created with a Viking short film. Stop right there and we would have been briefed on how the Euro works, border control and more. But the topic continued throughout the day as we discussed a number of related topics with other passengers of similar backgrounds to ours and crew who are from many of the member nations. I think that I advertised element of the Viking experience is one of our favorite parts. Later the ships program director briefed us on the life of Mozart, appropriately just before most passengers left the ship for a wonderful concert we have enjoyed on previous travels with Viking. That was just before dinner which featured Austrian personal favorite Wiener Schnitzel. End it with a lovely sunset, reflective of our full day in Vienna tomorrow. Man, this is traveling

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After a guided tour of Vienna, we had the rest of the day to spend as we pleased in the Austrian capital city. While I had stopped in at the iconic Demel bakery before, this was a first visit to for Lisa so we hurried there before the crowds. When asked what we would like to have I simply told them “She’s never been here before- dazzle her!”. I don’t imagine they get many requests of that sort. The face of the nice lady who was helping us lit up with child-like excitement on Christmas morning as she proudly shared her favorites from the world-famous menu. I think we need more of that sort of thing to happen in the world and plan on creating as many moments like that as I possibly can with the time I have here. I hope you will too. Many thanks to Viking Cruises for the time to make this small moment happen.

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It’s official, we have had nothing but great weather for the entire 15 days of our Grand European Tour with Viking River Cruises. Still, even if it rained every day we would have had a wonderful time. So many new friends on our Viking Longship Ve. Interestingly, we will probably see them again. We’ve seen what it is like to live and work at the places we explored along the way too. As we sailed from Budapest to our last full day of the tour here in Holland, the dining options have changed along the way, Those carefully curated recipes were supported by flexible onboard programming. That focused effort proved to be a nice supplement to the preparation we did in advance. Many thanks to the crew of our Viking Longship for a flawless travel experience.

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It’s one of our favorite parts of river cruising and we got plenty of it on Viking River Cruises Grand European Tour last week. Scenic cruising from one place to another reminds us of what a beautiful part of the world Europe can be. We pass farms and little towns not all that different from where we grew up in the Midwest United States. While other river cruise lines may sail more at night as travelers sleep, Viking mixes it up, staying late or overnight in places of particular interest that have a particularly interesting nightlife. Need to be one place at high Noon for the best experience? That happens. Sundown a stellar time to be at another place? That’s the plan on that particular day as well. Add it al up? a flawless travel experience.

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