Cabins on the Viking Europe
The 75 cabins on the Viking Europe were much nicer and larger than I had anticipated. They were spacious and decorated in restful blue and salmon colors. There was plenty of drawer and closet space. With the exception of 12 small category D cabins (120 square feet) on the lowest deck, all of the Viking Europe cabins (categories A-C) are the same size--154 square feet. The only difference is that the windows in cabins #200 - #215 do not open since they are right above the water. It was actually kind of fun to be so close to the water that occasionally waves would hit the glass when we were cruising! We were in cabin 201, and visited cabins on the 300 level, and found them to be identical except for the windows. The bathrooms were large enough, and the water pressure in the shower was good. Cabin 200, 201, 202 and 203 are underneath the dance floor in the lounge, so if you like to go to bed early and are a light sleeper, you might want to avoid these cabins. (We were bothered by the music the first night, but after that it was fine. I guess we either got used to it, recovered from the jet lag so we could go to sleep early, or just tired from all the sightseeing!)
You will need an electric adapter to plug in a curling iron, electric razor, or camera battery re-charger. We brought one from home and it worked fine. The room comes with a hair dryer. There is a television with movies, news, and a live "cruise cam" that allows you to see out the front of the ship.
Restaurant on the Viking Europe
Overall, the food was very good. The salads at lunchtime were outstanding, as were the soups. The desserts were also very good, and the serving sizes were "just right". I think I cleaned my plate every meal. All of the Viking River cruise ships serve the same menus at each meal. It cuts down on the cost, and helps with consistency. One night we docked next to the Viking Pride during dinner. While we were dining, the passengers through the windows on the ship next to us were eating exactly the same thing. It was like dining with a huge mirror next to us--except the faces looked different!
Breakfast was either buffet style or from the menu. The buffet included all of the usual--eggs, bacon and sausage, toast, and pastries. There was also cheese, cold cuts, and smoked salmon. (I got spoiled on smoked salmon and cream cheese on toast for breakfast!) I'm not a coffee drinker, but most everyone I ate with commented that the coffee was good, which is a little different story than what I've heard sometimes from other cruise lines. The chef buys the pastries and breads ashore rather than trying to bake on the small ship.
Lunch was a wonderful cold salad and sandwich buffet, along with soup, two choices for main courses and dessert. The lettuce and other salad ingredients, including the tomatoes, were fresh and delicious. The salad dressings were all interesting and varied. I loved the vinaigrette with fresh herbs. There were also delicious potato or pasta salads. We usually ate a huge salad and soup, and then tried unsuccessfully to skip the main course. (Dieting always sounds better than it works, and there always seemed to be something we wanted to "taste".) We never missed the dessert.
Dinner had a soup, appetizer, main course and dessert. Sometimes there were two main dishes, and other times only one. Passengers could always opt for a Caesar salad, grilled chicken or sirloin steak if none of the main course(s) appealed to them. We had the daily briefing from the cruise director each day at 6:45 pm, and almost everyone went on to dinner after that (about 7:00 pm). Dinner was open seating, with tables for 4-8 people. The meal was leisurely and we enjoyed the service and the camaraderie. We had a couple of "special" dinners where we dressed up. Most of the men wore sport coats, and the women nice pants suits or dresses. One night we had a "seaman's feast", and another we had traditional baked Alaska for dessert.
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