Viking Cruise vs. Rick Steves' tour

I loved that tour and would do it again. I tried out oysters fresh from the sea, saw a castle being built with materials and methods from 13th Century, and visiting Normandy and Giverny were unforgettable. And, of course, time spent in Paris is always a treat. I learned to travel reading Rick's guides and my first tour was with his company, so I may be a bit prejudiced, but I love the combination of free time, bus time and tour time. I also travel independently, but this is my chance to relax and let someone else take responsibility for transportation and hotels.
I've also been on a Viking cruise and it just wasn't for me. It was a really older group, some members of the crew weren't friendly or helpful. However, I loved cruising down the rivers and going through the locks and my boat had a few single rooms and it was very nice. Also I was surprised such a small boat could provide such delicious meals. I'd take a river cruise again, just not with Viking. I do think though that river cruising is a very different experience than Rick's tours and hard to compare them.
For me it comes down to value for my money. I always feel I got good value from my 9 Rick tours, but I felt the Viking Cruise was expensive and I didn't get good value from the money spent.

Honestly, no one here can tell you how YOU will feel about going on a guided tour or cruise You will just have to give it a try.
My husband and I traveled independently, with me doing all the planning, but I have mostly done tours since his death. The plus of RS tours for me is that not every meal, or even day is completely planned, so I can do my own thing.

Here are my thoughts: I have many friends and acquaintances who have taken Viking River Cruises, and every one of them has said afterwards that they felt ripped off - not much like the commercials on PBS. I have personally known only 1 person who has taken a Rick Steves tour, and they absolutely loved it.

If those were my choices, I would pick the RS tour.

I think it would come down to how much you really want to experience the places you go, both with the group and on your own.

Even on a Rick Steves tour, it looks like there are plenty of options for free time, you are staying in the central area usually and can pop out for a walk, meals are in local restaurants, some are on your own, if you like nightlife, that is an option.

With a cruise, there are some options to explore on your own, but meals are on the boat, and depending where they dock, heading out for a stroll may be an effort. The food is certainly good, at least mimics regional cuisine often, the programs/tours get high marks, maybe a bit more luxury over a RS tour.

With the cruise, you certainly will see the places you go, maybe with the RS tour you could mold it to fit your style a bit more and experience the locations.

We’ve done 3 Viking cruises and 11 RS tours, although not the one you’re considering. Obviously we’ve decided that a RS tour works for us! We like the quality of his guides, both the tour guide and local guides, the central location of his hotels and, so far, we’ve never had a grump or high maintenance fellow traveler. However, we are not particular about hotel rooms (since it’s rarely more than a couple of nights) or meals. We actually prefer that with the tour we can choose our own style of dining on free days. The central hotel locations allow us to pop in and out as our stamina dictates.

We enjoyed the river cruises and as one of us has passed 80 they will be come more of our travel style. Only having to unpack once is a real perk. We feel the quality of the local guides has improved. The boat docking is dictated (obviously) by the location of the river and it isn’t always easy to pop off and on. The food has always been varied and delicious and you don’t have to eat every meal, but since you’ve paid for it and the cruise arrange the day around it, most people don’t eat locally.

I do think it comes down to the important pieces for you when traveling.

To me, your question says it all. Either tour or cruise you give up any flexibility to alter what you want to do or where to go and you are on a schedule. Even some places to eat a dictated.

The pros are you are sit back and go with the flow. If anything goes wrong, it’s up to the organizers to straighten out.

It comes down to personal taste.

You will just have to give it a try.

Yep! That's because you are considering apples or oranges. We've taken many cruises and many RS tours. The only two things they have in common is that a lot of the logistics are handled by them, and both of them have scheduled activities (which are optional) and free time to do things on your own.

Perhaps a RS "My Way" is worth considering. They handle all the big logistics (except flight) and you handle the rest. Just a thought.

"For those of you who have done the Rick Steves' tour, "Paris in the Heart of France", how did it feel to give over the control of planning out everything? Was it a breath of fresh air or were you uber critical of the tours/hotels/restaurants? Was it worth the cost?"

I've also done 11 RS tours. I have not done a cruise because that model of travel just doesn't seem like it would work for me. I am a solo traveler and I need to have some personal space which I can get on a Rick Steves tour. On a Rick Steves tour you do have to sign a statement saying you understand there will be "No Grumps" on the tour. If you have complaints, take them up with the guide but don't complain to others.

I have done the Paris and Heart of France tour and it was wonderful. LOTS of different experiences from the medieval castle at Guedelon to wine tasting to touring the DDay landings area with a fabulous local guide.

I will add that I am a tour person. To me, a tour is more about how much information I can get from the guide so the hotels and restaurants were not a big deal to me. I've also done 13 programs with Road Scholar (8 in Europe and 5 activity-based ones in the US) and I've done 6 with Seymour Travels, a small UK based company owned by Mark Seymour, a former Rick Steves Guide. Mark limits his tours to 10 people and there are usually 2 guides so you get a lot of personal time with the guides. I've even repeated his tours of Orkney and Shetland they were so good!

I'll also add that to me one of the negatives of a cruise is the time spent on land. I think one of the things that got me on that thought path was when I was in Bruges with a Rick Steves tour. Our assistant guide had been a Viking guide so all the Viking guides were greeting him. I realized we were going in a different direction than the Viking groups so I asked him where they were going. He looked at me and laughed and said...they are all headed back to the boat for lunch since it's already paid for. I was shocked that people would choose to leave a picturesque and historic town to have lunch back on a vessel. I'm NOT saying it's not possible to stay on your own in town, I'm just saying that whole approach to visiting a town is not for me. It does work for many people!

I may also totally have the wrong impression but based on the tour groups I've seen from some of the big companies going thru various towns, the Rick Steves (and Seymour) tours are possibly more strenuous. I am sure there are some cruise folks who seek out more strenuous days in port.

BTW, IF you do choose a land tour, plan to arrive a few days ahead of time, particularly Paris and the Heart of France. For that one, a few days after would not go amiss either....but I'm a Paris-lover so always want more time there!

I have done Paris and the Heart of France as well as a river cruise down the Danube with Gate 1 travel. Both were very enjoyable and both were very different experiences.

Paris and the Heart of France was my first RS tour that I took. In my mind and in my notes I labeled it “the experiment.” I wasn’t sure what being on a group tour would be like and if I would enjoy it. I did enjoy it and will be heading out on my 6th RS tour next week. The logistics on a RS tour are extremely well done. Activities are timed to be done efficiently and transportation is a non issue. There is enough independent time thrown in most days to allow for some flexibility in both sightseeing and dining. The groups have always been congenial and pleasant to travel with. Like all vacations, it is a sampler. You see some sights, you miss others. I enjoyed Paris and the Heart of France so much that I returned last fall on an independent vacation with my son and his wife and revisited many of the same locations. Dealing with the transportation on that trip reminded me how much I enjoy having that taken care of! If the tour itinerary sounds appealing to you, you should consider taking a tour and seeing if it is a travel approach that fits for you. That is really the only way to get a true answer to your question. Try a tour and then come back and let us know how you liked it.

River Cruises. First of all, let me tell you that Viking rates number one in its marketing to the American Market. So much so that the many other quality river cruise lines are ignored by many. If you choose to do a River cruise, do some research about the other brands as well. They have practically the same itineraries, similar ships, and tie up next to each other. You pay a premium for all that marketing………..

A River cruise allows your hotel to move with you which is extremely appealing to many. Ships generally tie up in the heart of a city or town allowing for easy exploration. You can either join a tour from the ship or venture out on your own. Meals are provided and excellent quality. Public spaces allow for different opportunities to view the scenery or to socialize if desired. The group is larger than a bus tour, but still small enough to get to know many others.

There are some quirks that you need to accept. River ships often “double park” meaning your view out your beautiful window may just be another ship while in port. Sometimes this happens, sometimes it doesn’t. River ships are also subject to fluctuating water levels which can impact navigation. The companies are excellent at finding creative solutions, but be aware this happens sometimes.

I did a combination bus tour/river cruise with Gate 1. This company owns it own fleet of ships. I had 3 nights in Prague that was hotel based/bus tour. Then we transferred to the ship at Regensburg. 7 days cruising the Danube to Budapest. This was followed by 5 days exploring Romania on a hotel based/bus tour. It was a great trip. You can choose to simply do the cruise portion or add to either the beginning or ending of the cruise. I paid roughly 1/2 of what a Viking River Cruise would have cost.

Like most things travel related, you have to try it before you make up your mind.

Hi, my husband & I took our first RS tour for our 25th anniversary after attending the tour guide weekend at Edmonds, near Seattle. We didn’t want to feel like we were trodding along following an umbrella & “stuck”- LOL! It was a wonderful experience! There’s lots of free time, the groups have always been fun people, and the guides are excellent. I have taken 5 RS tours.

I love independent travel, and we/I have taken many more (15) trips just with my own itineraries, but I still intersperse a few RS tours - have one coming up soon where I will add a few weeks afterwards on my own itinerary.

I haven’t taken a river cruise, and I won’t. A couple of hours on the Danube River was more than enough. “Here’s a castle”…but you don’t get to explore it. - ugh! This is my personality, but I really do not like needing to look at my watch on vacation. The thought that I would need to be back at the boat at a certain time in the evening sounds awful to me. I want to eat at the local restaurants, stroll in the evening, etc. And this is just my observation, but, I have seen a lot of groups following the Viking (or similar) tour guides in cities, and I never see anyone smiling, plus walking slower than I like to walk. The latest were in Malaga, Spain last month.

Generally I think people enjoy whatever method they’re using, so at the end of the day, have a great time in Europe however you’re choosing to travel! : )

Interesting and timey discussion for us. We are in our 70's. Have done 8 RS tours, loved them all, Two Viking Ocean Cruises, and two AMA river cruises. We also do a lot of do it ourselves touring, usually before or after a tour, or sometimes in the off season. We love Rick Steves and were an early follower buying his guides and getting his printed newsletter. At the time we did not feel we could afford a tour. That was that was 30+ years ago. One thing we do on our self touring is go to places that he does not cover in his tour guides. We have gone to Sardinia and Corsica for example. Then we may join a tour that is close by. Planning tours, with rental cars, internal flights and train trips is a fair amount of pleasant work.
Cruising with Viking or AMA is expensive. It can be somewhat mindless. But is easy. The guides are decent but it is not like a RS experience. The cruises keep you pretty much in hand, and if you want to do something on your own, there is always the threat that they might leave without you. The optional experiences are really expensive. On the other hand, staying in one room for the duration is very relaxing. Viking food at the specialty restaurants is excellent. Free wine isn't that good, but that just means that in a port, after the morning tour is over, we can seek out a great local lunch and a local shop selling local wines (Google Maps) The lure of an included lunch is not enough to get us back on board early. I can't imagine what it would be like to do a cruise on a large ship or go on big bus tour.

We are going on a Roads Scholar tour to South Africa next month. First one, curious how they might differ from RS? Maybe a more intellectual and energetic senior experience?