Viking cruise

That’s a lot of money! Sorry that you won’t be able to go on the cruise you’d planned, but does the insurance that you apparently bought provide some kind of reimbursement for a cancellation? Does Norwegian have terms and conditions in writing that indicate you are not entitled to any amount of refund?

Question: it's unclear who the 'agent' was. Did you book your cruise directly through Viking's official website/phone # or an independent travel agency found on the internet?

I booked the cruise through Viking with a Viking agent

My experience has been that when booking directly with Viking the deposit has only been $25. The agent also indicated that insurance which is optional can be purchased anytime before the cost of the tour is paid. The agent did state that once purchased insurance is not refundable after a certain period. Are you able to receive credit for another cruise with them? Very sorry that this situation has happened to you.

At no time during booking did he say I was buying insurance and did not mention the deposit was 25.00 per person and the rest was for insurance. I truly thought I was making a deposit.

Did you book through the Viking US site or another country's website? Did you not receive an email confirming your original booking?

First, $8,169.22 is a huge amount of money for travel insurance. I booked a tour a year or so ago for a 2 1/2 week Egypt and Jordan tour, and the travel insurance for that (a cancel-for-any-reason policy) was only $1,000.

I received no policy or receipt of buying insurance.

That is difficult to believe. I don't think any reputable company can charge you for travel insurance then not send a policy out. There should be something in your account online with all the documents that are there. I would also check emails - do a search in there for it. And lastly, I would request a copy of that policy from Viking, which they should have. If they can't or won't send it to you (and I don't believe that would happen), you might want to consult an attorney, since that could be fraudulent behavior.

But honestly I really find it hard to believe that Viking did not send you those documents. They are not a fly-by-night organization and the risk of liability is too great for them to ignore this.

Are you absolutely positive you talked ot someone from Viking? How did you get the number? It almost sounds like a situation where you call a phone number that is allegedly the company but it turns out to be a scam.

I am absolutely positive that I booked this cruise online with the real Viking Site and the agent for Viking. I have called their direct line and also when I called the direct line I give them the agents number to be connected to him. I have his name. I have talked to customer service and the front office to no avail. I received no policy and I now believe they self insure. Customer service would not send anything. Through all of this my husband passed away,my daughter in law passed away and I had opened heart surgery. I’m not using any of this as an excuse,all I want are answers. I have the cancellation email but I don’t have the original paperwork. I ask for them to send copies and also let me listen to the recording that says I knew I was buying insurance they declined both.

I agree with others that you should check back on all of the emails that you have received. I have been on 2 Viking river cruises,
and immediately after booking, I received a confirmation email showing everything that had been paid for.

It sounds like you are going through a very stressful time on top of dealing with the loss of a significant amount of money.

Have you logged into your Viking tour account online and looked at your documents there, to see if there's anything that might help you?

Also, were you close to your departure date when you canceled? When I booked my Viking cruise in 2023, you could be refunded at least a portion of your fare up to a certain number of days out.

When I booked my cruise I only paid a $25 deposit. I didn't reserve it with a live person but did it online, so I declined their insurance and bought my own. I too received immediate emails with all the documents attached.

There is a group called Elliott Report which has a whole website with how to deal with travel related customer service issues like yours. Here is the link to the Viking page on their site: https://www.elliott.org/company-contacts/viking-line-customer-service-contacts/

I know Elliott Report takes on individual cases to look into, so you might want to poke around on their website and look into that.

But first, please check your Viking account online and download and save any document that is there.

While insurance is regulated state by state, and a few Travel Insurances might state that they "are not insurance", the failure to send you your policy sounds like a violation of likely state insurance rules. You might try writing to your state's Attorney General, or the head of the insurance regulation agency.

It occurs to me that it's unclear whether a cruise booked a year later, on the cruise line's own Travel Insurance product, actually includes a SECOND insurance policy! In this case, it has been stated that only, at most, $25 was paid for "travel", there is not much to give-back in a re-booking in the distant future.

I share the impression that the OP may have booked with a scammer. The 1-star Flame review just does not add up. My internet browser tries to fill in the rest of a URL that I start to type, if I have "been there before", and has a huge "History" memory that is NOT regularly deleted. I suggest that the OP learn how to use these features, and determine where he was sent, even if an ititial email (??) has long been deleted.

Edit: No experience with Viking Ocean, but I just remembered that many proprietary (i.e. NOT third-party provided) cancellation coverages are not, legally, insurance. Especially when they are not redeemable in cash, but only in a cruise next year.

For those who think I booked with a scammer I’ll be happy to give you their phone number and the agent I have been talking with. I have been on many many cruises and have been on 4 around the world cruises ( not bragging) just saying this isn’t my first trip. Let’s face it Viking ripped me off period. They keep saying I said I wanted insurance on a recorded line but won’t let me listen because it’s confidential. So it’s my word against theirs

The bottom line is they are very deceitful and I’m out a lot of money. Usually it would cost 100.00 dollars per person when you book this early.

So you say you have booked other cruises, and you knew that the deposit should have been no more than $100, yet you paid a "deposit" of over $8k. Why in the world did you do that without questioning it and not understanding and having in writing a cancellation / refund policy?

Good luck, but something is out of whack with your story. Sounds like you got scammed big time...

For those who think I booked with a scammer I’ll be happy to give you their phone number and the agent I have been talking with.

That's not going to solve anything. It was just a suggestion as that has been known to happen to others.

However, what I suggested and what many others here have also reiterated is that you should be going online to your Viking account to see the records that are there. There should be records of payment and what those payments were for, and there should be copies of documents (including a copy of the insurance policy that was allegedly purchased). If you don't remember the password, you should be able to reset it.

Please do that and let us know what you find out. It's hard to help you without having more information. I understand your frustration, especially coupled with your personal losses, but that is the easiest and best way for us to find out what is going on.

Just booked a Viking cruise today. $25 deposit and travel insurance for the 11 day cruise was $1450 for the two of us (medical, evacuation, and cancellation). I don't think acas9228 was speaking to a real Viking rep. Did you get a booking number? If so, call Viking back (1-866-788-4546) and ask if they have a record of the booking and if there is a possible mistake.

Viking Cruises uses Trip Mate, a part of Generali Global Assistance & Insurance Services. A Google search shows that there are many issues with Trip Mate and Generali. If you've called both Trip Mate and Generali (and written down the names of the people with whom you've spoken), I would then contact the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR). Like anything nowadays, there are good and bad reviews of their experiences with OIR. But it's a next step.

I'm sorry for your losses.

Kim

OP, I see that your departure is for next May. Viking's T&Cs provide for a full fare refund this far out. It does sound to me like the $8K was for all or part of the cruise and you should have received something as a refund.

How many people did you book for?

Here are Viking's current T&Cs: https://docs.vikingcruises.com/pdf/2-240101_BookingAndSaleTermsAndConditions.pdf
Their cancellation and refund policy is on p. 3

And if you did pay for insurance, it's very possible it includes a Cancel for Any Reason provision. Here's Viking's page on their Travel Protection Plan: https://www.vikingcruises.com/oceans/my-trip/travel-protection/index.html#noscroll

I know that if I had recently lost two family members and had to cancel a cruise, I would not be thinking clearly. Then I would be beside myself if I thought I was also out more than $8K. It's possible that there's some misunderstanding somewhere.

There are some very experienced travelers on this board. Ignore the scolds, see if you can find your travel documents, confirm that your payment was in fact to Viking and not some third party, and let us help you figure it out.

For the person who thinks the deposit was 100.00 it was not. That was a cancellation fee. And yes I have my paperwork and yes it says I paid for insurance and I’m saying I did not ask for insurance and in fact thought I was putting a deposit down on a 23 day trip in the most expensive state room for two people. And the policy is part of the contract. I’m back to I DID NOT BUY INSURANCE although my contract says I did,that is why I want to hear the recording

This all sounds so very sad for loss of your loved ones and now this cruise cancelation drama! I have been on 4 Viking cruises. One booking thru cruise website and 3 with a local TA. This whole thing sounds so oddly scam-like!?. We have had several different deposit fee amounts. Depending on their currant sale deals, amount of advance booking etc. But this would have been a large deposit! Its also a rather high fee for insurance when I compare stateroom prices for 23 day itinerary.. Others have noticed that also. I have checked Viking website for a 23 day cruise sailing. Just so confused how they tell you its only an insurance payment…and you not able to get more answers or help. I have no knowledge of Echeck…. Like a debit card? Oh dear. I think you could pursue legal travel assistance. Some of our knowledgeable and experienced forum members could maybe help with that. This is hard!

Any chance you could transfer the cruise to someone else? If you can't resolve the refund maybe you could at least let a family member or friend use it. I know RC and NCL will allow transfers so maybe this is an option to soften the blow.

Under Clause C2.3 of their (UK) contract you can transfer the cruise if you choose to. If this was the Viking Ocean 23 day Tokyo to Vancouver cruise did you include airfare in the deal?, in which case the deposit may have been greater than normal.

And that airfare would be subject to airline cancellation policies though I'm a bit surprised that airfare could have been issued so far out.

I don't know how much US travel insurance costs, but if you did buy it for some reason, might it have cost $8,000 on a $55,000 cruise?

To me, there is enough money at stake to justify a brief consultation with an attorney who specializes in consumer law.

Good luck to you.

It sounds like a case for the New York Times travel writer, Seth Kugel, who helps people with refunds from travel industry companies trying to avoid accountability. He's almost always successful as he aims to help travelers resolve their thorniest and most upsetting travel disasters.

https://www.nytimes.com/column/tripped-up/

As an example after contacting a lawyer specializing in consumer law he was successfu; in getting the traveler a full refund because their terms and conditions on their website were different in Spanish than in English or French. It is a principle of consumer law that confusing or contradictory contracts are interpreted in favor of the consumer.

Our OP has not responded to recent replies. Hope they get resolution. Curious!?

No resolution yet