Tim and Anne’s Review: Viking River Cruise in Southern France on the Rhone
by Tim Larison, CLIA Certified Master Cruise Counselor
with comments by Anne Larison, Family Travel Gurus Travel Consultant
Our May 2018 river cruise on the Viking Heimdal was one of our best! In this report we’ll give a day by day review of our cruise, highlighting the ship’s features and the wonderful shore excursions we took.
Day 1 – Airport Arrival and Embarkation
Our over night flight on Lufthansa from Denver, Colorado to Lyon, France (with a connecting stop in Munich) was a smooth one. As we landed in Lyon I wondered “where will we meet our Viking transfers to the ship?” No worries! The Viking representative was there to meet us right outside baggage claim. After marking our names off on the manifest we waited a few minutes for some other passengers and then we were off to our Viking Heimdal ship. The bus driver gave us a short tour of Lyon on the way. We would have a much more extensive tour of Lyon the next day.
Our stateroom was ready for us when we arrived at our ship. The checkin process was quick and efficient. We were escorted to our room – french balcony stateroom 200. Not as big as staterooms we have had on ocean cruises but certainly adequate for our needs. I liked the large sliding door window with great views to the Rhone river.
We relaxed onboard for a few hours and then attended the Welcome Briefing in the ship’s lounge. Our cruise director would give a briefing like this each night, telling us what to expect the next day in terms of excursions, onboard dining, and entertainment. I thought these briefings were excellent! After the briefing dinner was served in the ship’s restaurant. Open seating allowed us to get to know our fellow travelers. With about 120 passengers (a much smaller number than the large ocean ships we’ve sailed on) we sat with different people each night and by the end of the cruise had met most people onboard.
Anne says:
On this itinerary we were able to arrive from the U.S. on the same date the cruise started. The ship, however, didn’t depart because it overnights in Lyon. Knowing that we wouldn’t miss embarkation, made our travel from the U.S. relatively stress-free.
Day 2 – Lyon, France
The highlights of our cruise were the many varied and interesting excursions. Viking did an excellent job of organizing it all. As we exited the ship we were given a group number. Outside our guide was waiting for us with our group number sign (in this case 2A).
Our stateroom came equipped with a listening device for each of us. When meeting our tour guide we tapped our listening device to the group number sign, and then put in our earphones to hear the guide talk during the tour. This system worked extremely well as we could always hear our guide’s detailed narration even if we were not in close proximity to her.
The first of many magnificent cathedrals we saw on this trip – Lyon’s Basilica of Notre Dame.
Inside the cathedral was equally impressive.
I liked the overview we had of Lyon from the grounds of the cathedral.
Afterwards we had some free time to explore the streets of Lyon. Here we sampled a French speciality – crepes!
And now for something completely different! After touring the large city of Lyon, in the afternoon we were transported by bus to Pérouges, a medieval walled village in the French countryside.
We strolled through stroll cobblestone streets of one of the the most beautiful villages in France. This town of stone has been the setting of period films, including The Three Musketeers.
Anne says:
As Tim indicated, the listening device is easy to carry around. The cruise staff will remind you to take it on shore excursions; but remember to place it in the home port when you return so that it is charged for the next excursion!
Day 3 – Beaujolais Wine Country & Sailing to Vienne
A buffet breakfast was offered on each morning of our cruise. I especially liked the made to order egg and omelet station – I had an omelet every morning.
Anne says:
Every day we enjoyed the view of the river and the French countryside as we ate each meal. I enjoyed all of our meals on the ship and Viking offers complimentary house wines, beers and soft drinks with onboard lunches and dinners.
For our excursion of the day, we were transported from our dock in Lyon to Beaujolais Wine Country for a 5 hour morning tour.
Viewing the vineyards and the French countryside were wonderful sights to see.
We stopped at a small museum to learn about the art of winemaking and then descended into one of Beaujolais’s famous cellars to enjoy a tasting with a wine expert.
Anne says:
The whole area is beautiful and many guests on the tour picked up a few bottles of the local wine to bring home.
In the afternoon we set sail for Vienne.
One feature we enjoy on river cruises, and this river cruise was no exception, is relaxing on the top deck to watch the scenery go by.
On sailing days Viking featured guest lecturers in the ship’s lounge in the afternoon. I found this lecture on the French Resistance in World War II very interesting.
Anne says:
Food is always at the top of my list, and there were opportunities for French Teatime and cooking demonstrations. One afternoon it was Chocolate Lava Cake that was the subject of the lesson. Of course there were free samples for everyone.
Day 4 – Vienne
On a morning walking tour of Vienne we saw the enormous Gothic Cathedral of St. Maurice, built over almost 500 years.
Here we saw the Roman Temple of Augustus & Livia, a well preserved 1st-century structure.
One of the highlights of this day was our immersion in a Saturday open air French market. We really got a sense of the French culture as we mingled with local citizens browsing the various vendor displays.
Another highlight was this amazing view overlooking the city. The amphitheater built into the hillside is one of France’s best preserved Roman theaters.
Day 5 – Tournon, sailing, Viviers
Our tour on the morning of day 5 reminded us of our Colorado Rockies scenic train rides back home. We rode on Train de l’Ardèche, a meter-gauge steam train and engine into the Doux Valley. This area is inaccessible by road – the views were incredible!
Back on board the Viking Heimdal, I enjoyed the lunch buffet, especially the cooked to order pasta station!
We sailed in the afternoon and early evening, arriving in Viviers at 8 pm. An after dark tour of this tranquil town in the cool of the evening was one of the most unique excursions we took on this trip. We sailed to Avignon overnight.
Anne says:
There are 12 locks on the Rhone River and we went through many of those on our cruise. It is fascinating to watch the ship navigate through these locks. It is a unique part of many river cruises.
Day 6 – Avignon
Here we toured the enormous Popes Palace. The papacy was relocated here from Rome, to great controversy, from 1309 to 1377. It was interesting to see how the Popes lived in that era. Afterwards we did some shopping in the town of Avignon.
Day 7 – Aries
Did you know there are Roman Colosseum like structures in France? I didn’t! This smaller version of Rome’s Colosseum, better preserved, is still used for bull fights today.
Our host, one of the many excellent Viking arranged tour guides we had, explained to us the history of the place and the bull fights that still occur there today.
In Aries we also saw Espace Van Gogh, the local hospital that treated the artist and today serves as a cultural center. As you can see from one of Van Gogh’s paintings above the grounds still look like they did back in the artist’s time.
Anne says:
There are many sites in this area that Van Gogh used as subjects of his paintings. Art lovers and fans of Van Gogh would appreciate this area with all the connections to the artist.
Summary
W really enjoyed our Viking Heimdal cruise on the Rhone in Southern France. It was different than our past river cruises in that there was less sailing time with many excellent and varied excursions. All of the excursions above, except for the one in Pérouges, were included in the cost of the cruise. The Pérouges excursion, and some others we didn’t take, were available for an additional cost.
For a first time river cruiser perhaps a cruise on the Danube or the Rhine rivers would be best to get more sailing time (click on our Danube and Rhine links to read our reviews of cruises on those rivers). This Rhone cruise is good for the experienced river cruiser who wants to try something different.
Anne says:
France is a beautiful and diverse country and we are grateful that we got to experience areas that we hadn’t seen before. Viking takes good care of all the passengers and we experienced good service, good food and accommodations. We also met friendly people from around the world and appreciate the time we had on this amazing river.
Would you like to book a river cruise of your own? We can help! Whether it be this Rhone itinerary on Viking Cruise Line or something else, we can provide you with different options. Contact us for more details.
Thanks for such a specific detailed review of your trip.
Thank you for such an informative review!
We will be taking this river cruise in June 2024. Although we have been on ocean cruises before (with two other cruise lines), this will be our first river cruise, and our first Viking cruise. It is ironic that we don’t particularly care for the “cruise” portion of a cruise, so it is good to know this river cruise spends a lot of time in port for shore excursions and cruises between ports primarily at night.
I think you will enjoy your river cruise. We have several clients who only have done ocean cruises, who then tried a river cruise, and they really liked it! That was true for my wife and I too. I’m glad you found our review helpful.
We will also be taking this cruise in June 2024- leaving from Lyon on the 23rd in the Hermod. This will be our 3rd Viking river cruise. We will be on a Viking cruise from Iceland to Norway next month(July 28, 2024.
Maybe we will see you next June!
We are traveling from south to north, ending in Lyon. So we will be going in the opposite direction from you. LOL