Viking River Cruises has just revealed it will be adding active choices on several European itineraries in 2018 and 2019, including canoeing, biking and electronic-biking tours.
Among the new excursions are wetlands canoeing on the Elbe, Danube (near Vienna), Moselle and Normandy (on a tributary of the Seine) rivers, as well as bike and e-bike tours in Austria’s Wachau Valley and around the windmills of Kinderdijk.
In the Black Forest, one tour will allow passengers to bike through vineyards, then visit a home for coffee and cake.
The active excursions will have an extra fee and Viking will not carry bikes or canoes onboard; the equipment is provided for the passengers when the ship is in port.
Viking’s CEO, Tor Hagen, has long said that his river cruises are about the core experience centring on destinations, cabin choice and thoughtful inclusions like Wi-Fi and drinks at lunch and dinner: not extras like bikes, fitness rooms and spas (although concierges onboard will help passengers who want to work out or get a massage find places in port).
The river line are now making a change in light of its major expansion of shore excursions this year, building a portfolio of optional tours around several pillars: Local Life, Working World and Privileged Access.
Passengers can still take the included excursion, which is usually a coach or walking tour, but there are now a lot more choices available in almost every port.
Additionally, Viking now boast the online portal MyVikingJourney.com, making it easier for the company to offer a wider range of activities, including those that would require advance booking (such as anything with equipment, like bikes and canoes), as well as activities that might be available only on certain days or times of the year.
What do you think of the news today? Are you pleased Viking is bringing more activities like canoeing and bike-riding? Which would you choose? Leave us your comments…
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