[Worldtrippers home] [Crystal home]
Our current adventure includes lecturing on both Crystal and Viking, and many of you have asked for a comparison between the two cruise lines. We enjoyed both brands and would happily sail with either again. As far as our personal experiences, several factors are likely to bias our impressions:
With those caveats in mind, here goes…
The Crystal Symphony and Viking Sky are approximately the same size. Both ships were originally configured to hold 900+ guests. But Crystal recently refurbished Symphony, doubling stateroom sizes and reducing its capacity to 600 guests.
Crystal Symphony is 20 years older than Viking Sky. Symphony reflects the way ships were designed 30 years ago, with low ceilings and dark wood. Sky is less than 10 years old. It has a unique Scandinavian design, with light wood and lots of outside light. Aboard Symphony, you feel like you are in a luxury hotel. Aboard Sky, you feel like you are in someone’s home.
Crystal has several things that Viking simply does not have. These include:
Your preference may be decided if you specifically want or do not want any of these things.
While Viking’s food is good, Crystal’s food is extraordinary. We were blown away by both the presentation and taste of just about every dish aboard Symphony. Crystal’s Umi Uma specialty Japanese restaurant had the best food we have ever enjoyed aboard a cruise ship.
On our 10-day Crystal cruise, we were upgraded to a double-sized suite. We loved the extra space, but we have no idea if we would ever be given this upgrade again. The suite came with a personal butler, Greg, who was a complete gentleman. (We used Greg much less than we could have. Gail swears that he sits in a little cubicle all day long, just waiting for us to summon him.)
Gail has strong opinions about the bathrooms. Our Crystal bathroom was huge, with two sinks. But Gail thought the shower was too big – she had to walk across the stall to turn the water on, then walk back to get under the showerhead. And there were some Viking features she missed: the under-counter drawers, heated floor and no-fog mirror.
Viking offers one complementary excursion in every port. This is often just a “panoramic” bus ride, but at least it’s free. In our unscientific comparison, it looked like Crystal excursions can cost twice as much as Viking excursions. Crystal includes options such as “private driver and guide for your entire day in port.”
Crystal’s crew come mainly from Eastern Europe. Viking’s crew come mainly from Southeast Asia. This results in some cultural differences. Aboard Crystal, the servers are more impeccably professional. Aboard Viking, the servers are more warm and friendly.
Crystal’s tagline is “Exceptional at sea.” While Viking is classified as a four-star luxury cruise line, Crystal is classified as a five-star ultra-luxury cruise line. All drinks are included, all the time. (You can get a similar package aboard Viking called “silver spirits,” but it typically costs an extra daily surcharge.) For shoppers, Viking’s onboard options are very limited. Crystal has several different high-end stores.
Viking’s tagline is “The thinking person’s cruise.” The company prides itself on having the best enrichment program at sea. We had strong lecturers on both ships, but Viking curates content that is more directly related to the destinations. Crystal’s theater is designed for entertainers, sometimes at the expense of lecturers. Viking’s theater is designed for lecturers, sometimes at the expense of entertainers.
On Symphony, fewer guests regularly attended the lectures. On Sky – especially the world cruise – many guests had booked Viking specifically for its enrichment program.
We have had only one experience aboard Crystal, but we saw a contrast in the onboard culture. Crystal guests kept more to themselves. They were very friendly when we reached out, but people seemed like they were waiting for someone else to break the ice. Our consistent experience with Viking is that guests are there to meet other guests. In every public space we find Vikings sitting together, chatting, sharing a drink or sharing a meal.
This extended to the daily entertainment programs in the evenings. We felt that Crystal guests were there to see a good show. We felt that Vikings were there to share a social and interactive experience.
In short, the Crystal experience is more luxurious; the Viking experience is more intimate. At the end of the day, Crystal cruisers may feel they were treated to a top-of-the-line cruise, with all the amenities that come with it. Viking cruisers may feel they created a lasting memory, with family and friends they never knew they had before.
These are our opinions only. If you have had a different experience, please feel free to share your impressions with us!
