Home > Compare River Cruise Companies > Avalon River Cruises vs Viking River Cruises
Avalon River Cruises vs Viking River Cruises
Compare the travel styles, pricing, destinations and popularity of Avalon River Cruises and Viking River Cruises.The Low Down
Not as well known locally as APT or Scenic, Avalon Waterways have nevertheless been cruising the rivers of Europe and Asia since 2004. Featuring modern luxury ships, with floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors, our clients love Avalon, and some of their river itineraries are our biggest sellers. Avalon don't usually include Fly Offers, so you'll need to book flights separately, but consequently their cruise prices are cheaper than the other luxury Operators and they offer some great Earlybird discounts. Part of the Globus Family group of Brands, means you can secure further discounts the next time you decide to travel by coach with either Globus or Cosmos. 
Cruising down the rivers of Europe you are sure to pass a Viking Longship on your travels. Viking boasts the most extensive fleet of river cruises vessels in Europe, and while their core market is the US, there are many clients from Australia that choose to cruise with them each year. In 2017 Viking launched their range of mid-sized ocean cruises - with just 930 guests this gives their ships greater maneuverability, allowing them to dock where the mega-liners cannot. Stats
No. of Trips
172
No. of Departures
1,876
Avg. Trip Length
11 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$422
Fleet Size
16 Ships
Known For
Panorama Suites
Ship Styles River Cruises
No. of Trips
74
No. of Departures
6,566
Avg. Trip Length
11 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$362
Fleet Size
82 Ships
Known For
Scandinavian Design
Ship Styles River Cruises
In Their Own Words We asked the travel companies themselves why you should travel with them
One of our favourite sayings that describes Avalon Waterways is ‘the possibilities are as wide open as the views’. From Europe to the Galapagos and Asia, you can cruise in relaxed luxury with Avalon Waterways, with choices as unique as you. Avalon offers you a range of choices from excursions, dining options, activities that help you tailor your experience.
Just imagine gliding away down the world’s most spectacular rivers, all while enjoying a unique vantage point from your own private oasis. Our floor-to-ceiling panoramic windows in our suites blur the line between where the world ends, and your suite begins; allowing you to experience the world less seen from the comfort of your bed. This is river cruising from a unique point of view.
A Viking river cruise is the discerning traveller’s dream. Whether you choose to visit Egypt, Asia, Europe or the Mississippi, our itineraries are designed to immerse you in the history and culture of each destination. With us, you could be exploring a local food market with our head chef one day and experiencing an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of a world-famous museum the next.
Our state-of-the-art ships take you right into the heart of each destination, and you won’t find any kids or ‘nickel and diming’ on board. In fact, our fares include everything you need - from meals, beverages and Wi-Fi to a culturally enriching shore excursion at every port of call. This unique combination of features has become affectionately known as ‘the Viking difference’.
Viking has 70 award-winning river ships sailing all over the world, and we can’t wait to welcome you on board to discover the Viking difference for yourself.
Recent Reviews
4.7
As a solo traveller and first time cruiser, I had my hesitations about a 14 day cruise. But it was wonderful in every respect - my room, the ship, the extraordinary Tour Director, the friendly staff and the company of interesting and friendly travel companions. It was a joy.
A great cruise from Amsterdam to Basel. The Avalon experience is perfect for a relaxing time or being adventurous with the local tours on offer every day. October weather is a little cooler but perfect as there are fewer crowds and not too hot. We did encounter high water levels on the Moselle which required a ship transfer by bus from Koblenz up ...read more to Trier with a stop at Cochem on the way. Avalon made it easy and the rest of the tour went as expected. We spent 2 extra days in Basel which is well worth seeing. Booking was easy as usual through Global Journeys.
We absolutely loved our Avalon cruise from Prague to Budapest and the accomodation arranged for us at hotels in both Prague and Budapest by Global Journeys we’re fantastic. Everything went smoothly with on the holiday. The cabin on the Avalon cruise was perfect with floor to ceiling windows and the staff on the ship were great. It was our first river ...read more cruise and we would be keen to travel this way again in the future. The flights arranged for us with Emirates were well timed. I would gladly recommend Global Journeys and Avalon to others. The weather was very hot in August, so next time I would travel in September/October.
The cruise with Avalon was lovely. All personnel on board were great. Food and cabin great as well as optional excursions. However the optional excursion to Little Venice would not recommend had done a similar one the day before which was included in the trip.
The cruise along the Rhine beautiful and travelled through many locks.
The cruise along the Rhine beautiful and travelled through many locks.
Avalon were exceptional. Our cabin on the top floor and closer to front is important as too near the back is more noisy and fumes.
Our biggest disappointment was that we were totally unaware that the first day we were staying at a hotel and not on the boat. Also there was available an additional staying after in Prague which again we were not aware ...read more of.
Our biggest disappointment was that we were totally unaware that the first day we were staying at a hotel and not on the boat. Also there was available an additional staying after in Prague which again we were not aware ...read more of.
The highlights for me included experiencing an organised bike tour for 3 hours during blocked Parisian streets before the Olympics, the Unusual Gardens of Etratat, historic Joan of Arc town of Rouen, and walking the path of Vincent van Gough. This is the second Avalon cruise I have done as I was able to avoid the solo supplement. I love the meals on ...read more board which are a contrast from my daily pre-packed dinners! I have already booked another Avalon cruise in France for 2025 with Hannah of Global Journeys who is always efficient and informative. (GJ: Great photo Alick!)
4.6
Firstly, I would like to commend Hannah on her outstanding support before, during and after my booking. She was very responsive, very informative and addressed every question I had, even making suggestions for some of my queries. I would be looking for her to handle any of my future tours again.
Having sailed on an Avalon river cruise before, it ...read more was difficult not to compare that experience with this European Christmas markets river cruise with Viking. Overall, I would prefer Avalon over Viking with the caveat that I sailed Avalon just before Covid and I don't know what their standard is like today. I will know soon as I'm already booked for another Avalon river cruise next Aug.
We found the Viking crew not as proactive in engaging with passengers, especially when there is an expectation that we be well informed of pertinent details to do with docking and departure times for each day of sailing. While most of what we needed to know was available somewhere, it took effort on our part to hunt down information. A number of passengers also mentioned the same observation.
Our cabin was also smaller than the Avalon equivalent making movement quite restrictive. Certainly the in-room TV channels were inferior in terms of variety with mainly news channels dominating. As far as meals go, again they were lacking in standard and variety with very few standout dishes compared to what we remember getting from Avalon. Another area of disappointment for us was the absence of two-seater dining tables for occasions when we wanted a quiet dinner by ourselves, in contrast with what Avalon offered, though not sure if this ship's dining room was configured differently to other Viking ships.
When it came to shore excursions, the crew was mostly disorganised and caused confusion among the travellers as to which group or bus they should be on. This happened a lot during our journey. That aside, the holiday was great outside the ship and I managed to tick this cruise off my bucket list. If you've never experienced an European Christmas markets tour, this itinerary could be the one.
Having sailed on an Avalon river cruise before, it ...read more was difficult not to compare that experience with this European Christmas markets river cruise with Viking. Overall, I would prefer Avalon over Viking with the caveat that I sailed Avalon just before Covid and I don't know what their standard is like today. I will know soon as I'm already booked for another Avalon river cruise next Aug.
We found the Viking crew not as proactive in engaging with passengers, especially when there is an expectation that we be well informed of pertinent details to do with docking and departure times for each day of sailing. While most of what we needed to know was available somewhere, it took effort on our part to hunt down information. A number of passengers also mentioned the same observation.
Our cabin was also smaller than the Avalon equivalent making movement quite restrictive. Certainly the in-room TV channels were inferior in terms of variety with mainly news channels dominating. As far as meals go, again they were lacking in standard and variety with very few standout dishes compared to what we remember getting from Avalon. Another area of disappointment for us was the absence of two-seater dining tables for occasions when we wanted a quiet dinner by ourselves, in contrast with what Avalon offered, though not sure if this ship's dining room was configured differently to other Viking ships.
When it came to shore excursions, the crew was mostly disorganised and caused confusion among the travellers as to which group or bus they should be on. This happened a lot during our journey. That aside, the holiday was great outside the ship and I managed to tick this cruise off my bucket list. If you've never experienced an European Christmas markets tour, this itinerary could be the one.
Eastern Europe Viking River Cruise on Viking Ullur in October. First time on a Viking River cruise and we were disappointed. Good ship layout and cabin, however food was average. The Viking Ullur is a 'silent ship' which means there are no commentaries while you are sailing and no announcements of anything at all. The 7-day cruise was at times a ...read more little boring as there was not much to see. Years earlier we sailed on a Scenic River Cruise which we enjoyed much more. Personally, we would not sail on a Viking River Cruise again. We have used Global Journeys services for several trips and Hannah has been excellent. We would highly recommend Global Journeys.
We loved the land and river cruise portions of the trip. 5 star accommodation and excellent ship. Crew and Tour Directors were all fantastic. And the food was great too.
Having previously sailed with Viking Cruises we were looking forward to this very much. The service on Viking ships is wonderful, the staff excellent and the food just much too good to resist but that’s okay you are on holiday after all! This was a lovely relaxing cruise down the Danube and the onboard entertainment was very nice especially the two ...read more young dancers who taught us how to waltz!
Compared to our previous Rhine and Rhone cruises we did find the optional tours seemed to take precedence over the included tours which in the main where mostly walking tours near the ship and the post extension in Budapest while being a lovely two days, included a tour that was basically a half hour walk round the hotel. We were also disappointed with the airport transfer as the Viking host did not turn up at the airport and even after being paged didn’t show so we checked in ourselves not a big deal except we were both unwell with a virus and this didn’t help.
All in all this cruise was very enjoyable and we met some lovely people and couldn’t fault the staff on the Viking Tor but would still put the Rhine and Rhone cruises first.
Compared to our previous Rhine and Rhone cruises we did find the optional tours seemed to take precedence over the included tours which in the main where mostly walking tours near the ship and the post extension in Budapest while being a lovely two days, included a tour that was basically a half hour walk round the hotel. We were also disappointed with the airport transfer as the Viking host did not turn up at the airport and even after being paged didn’t show so we checked in ourselves not a big deal except we were both unwell with a virus and this didn’t help.
All in all this cruise was very enjoyable and we met some lovely people and couldn’t fault the staff on the Viking Tor but would still put the Rhine and Rhone cruises first.
Had an amazing time on our river cruise. We were apprehensive as southern Germany had floods and a lot of ships were stranded or even cancelled. Viking were very good explaining to us the options and even though we had to change ships at Nuremburg it was relatively stress free. The crew on both ships were fantastic. You certainly won't go hungry as ...read more the food is amazing. We visited some amazing towns and cities and wish we had more free time to explore. I suggest skipping some tours and explore on your own, eat as a local and drink the local beer or sample the wine. We met a lot of wonderful people from other countries and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.
Didn't select the drinks package as we didn't think we would meet the price they charge and we made the right decision as you get beer and wine with lunch and dinner. Only let down is the lack of laundry facilities on a cruise this long. We spent over 300 euro getting laundry done and ironed over the 15 days. Apart from that we wouldn't hesitate doing another Viking river cruise.
Didn't select the drinks package as we didn't think we would meet the price they charge and we made the right decision as you get beer and wine with lunch and dinner. Only let down is the lack of laundry facilities on a cruise this long. We spent over 300 euro getting laundry done and ironed over the 15 days. Apart from that we wouldn't hesitate doing another Viking river cruise.
The organisation from our travel adviser and Viking was clear and timely; the boat was as good as the pictures, the catering was a highlight; the city excursions were interesting and well organised; all the staff were top class in their work, especially our stateroom attendant, the tours organiser and the chef, cooks and waiters, (and no doubt the ...read more crew and engineers, etc). We were delighted with the holiday, especially as the weather was good for May.
Two points. Our embarkation place in Amsterdam was not clearly enough described. Our taxi took us to the Viking Office; we had a km walk with cases to the actual docking points. More advice about finding the right spot would help.
Secondly, the staff would not provide any assistance in obtaining some extra pain relief medicines that became necessary - quoting company policies. We received kind help from some American fellow passengers who were much better prepared, (until we reached a port on a week day where we could find an apothotek.) More explicit advice to bring your own range of medicine supplies to address all eventualities would be helpful. Some European countries are quite restricted in what can be sold over the counter.
Two points. Our embarkation place in Amsterdam was not clearly enough described. Our taxi took us to the Viking Office; we had a km walk with cases to the actual docking points. More advice about finding the right spot would help.
Secondly, the staff would not provide any assistance in obtaining some extra pain relief medicines that became necessary - quoting company policies. We received kind help from some American fellow passengers who were much better prepared, (until we reached a port on a week day where we could find an apothotek.) More explicit advice to bring your own range of medicine supplies to address all eventualities would be helpful. Some European countries are quite restricted in what can be sold over the counter.
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