Viking Line

Travelled from Helsinki to Stockholm on the Gabriella, which is about 17h cruise.
We had a double bed room cabin with a balcony on the captain’s deck 11^th floor.
The room as the ship is really dated (80’s much) and as someone mentioned it, there is this constant musty, old smell in the cabin and the bathroom that makes it very difficult to bare.
The double was so uncomfortable that I didn’t sleep at all but the good thing is that I could watch the sunrise over the sea.
The food buffet looked good but didn’t taste good. The breakfast buffet was overcrowded and it didn’t feel very welcoming as it seemed that the entire ship was having breakfast at the same time with screaming kids and buffets competitors.
The 2 stars are for the shopping center which offers decent choices and pleasant prices.

Went on a cruise on Cinderella for Valentines, we had a restaurant dinner at Seaview Dining in the evening, it was expensive but quite fancy, the food was really nice. The next day we had the buffet in the morning and then lunch at the Viking Buffet, there was a good range of things to select from. The lunch included free drinks!

On reflection, the dining service on Viking Ocean Cruise Line never settled to an acceptable level. Wait service in the dining room was either very good or the waiters did not show up and provide service. The food was ok but the wait staff was totally inconsistent.

It’s difficult to give an adequate and accurate review for an entire ferry company, when the ships and prices vary so vastly.
My partner and I travelled to Turku, Finland, from Stockholm, spent a couple of days there, and then took a different ferry back, so we had two different ship experiences.
We had very specific dates which worked for us, so the price ended up being about 1200 SEK for the trip there and home. I’m under the impression that you can get much cheaper prices if you are flexible — and I’ve heard that it can be cheaper to book two separate party cruises (23 hours usually) and then just don’t go back on the cruise; stay in Finland. That can be cheaper than buying ‘regular route traffic’.
Anyways, for the price we got the cheapest cabins available which had private bathrooms. On the way there we took Amorella. It seemed fine, though it was a bit older of a ship. Our cabin was on Deck 2, the lowest deck for guests, below the car decks. This means it is only accessible by elevator and sometimes the wait can be long due to crowds.
Our cabin was technically for 4 people, with four fold-​out beds. But we like it cosy, and the single beds were still wide enough that my partner and I were able to cuddle and share one bed comfortably. The bathroom and shower were teeny tiny, as expected, but fine.
We paid the 10 euro for the breakfast buffet in the morning, which was delicious and definitely worth it if you plan on hitting the town all day like we did. The buffet consists of fresh bread, scrambled eggs, bacon, meatballs, sausage, Finnish rice cakes, croissants, brie, jam, fruit, yogurt, juice, coffee, and more. We weren’t even hungry for lunch after!
On the way back from Finland we took the M/​S Viking Grace, a much newer ship. And what a difference! We didn’t mind Amorella, but Grace was much better. They have rearranged things so that the lowest cabins are deck 8 — no more waiting for the elevator and hiding out below the cardeck! We had an inner cabin so we still didn’t have any window, but the cabins with windows looked amazing (we got a peek). The ship is new and clean and has modern décor, and the cabins feel nice. The beds were slightly smaller than on Amorella — we struggled to squish into one — but one of the beds is also a couch, and there’s a TV with Finnish and Swedish channels, so it’s definitely still an upgrade.
There is a wide variety of restaurants and cafes onboard, everything from a 40 euro buffet to 9 euro pasta dishes in the ‘casual dining’ section. I haven’t tried the spa, but entrance was 24 euros, which seems reasonable. There are also clubs, and on the Grace there was live music in several locations on the ship — even on Sunday night.
We didn’t pay for breakfast on the way back to Sweden, but I’m imagining it’s just as good or even better than on Amorella, as everything was.
I would say that the Amorella was a 3-​star experience, and Grace was 4. It could be cheaper but it was fine for two people.
In short, if you are travelling within Scandinavia and want to cross the Baltic, I highly recommend taking a cruise instead of flying. But whether or not you get a good deal and whether or not it feels worth it is totally dependent on your flexibility and the cabin and dates and ship you choose.

Took overnight cruise on «Mariella» from Stockholm to Helsinki. Had some high hopes for this place after taking a similar vessel from Copenhagen to Oslo. Sadly, my expectations were not met. This is ship is also quite old and rickety.
Rooms: Not in very good condition. It wasn’t especially dirty, but the bathroom was really off-​putting. The stench when I first opened the bathroom door nearly made me lose my lunch! The smell never went away and others I traveled with (in separate rooms) also expressed complaints. It was so bad that the majority of us actually used the public restrooms instead. Unacceptable.
Food: Food looked worthy of 5 stars, but tasted less than 2 stars. Everyone in our large group was disappointed and by the food. Our favorites from dinner and breakfast were fries and oatmeal (respectively). Pretty sad.
Service: Restaurant staff had unpleasant demeanor and seemed annoyed. Nightclub staff were friendly.
Entertainment:
Casino: Machines seem old and outdated — did not use.
Nightclub: +1 star. Live band played great music and there was a good group of people dancing until midnight. Mix of USA chart toppers and Latin music. Apparently, there was another band after midnight, but didn’t stay to find out.
Bar: Live singer playing country-​ish tunes. No dancers, but many people sitting around drinking beers. Didn’t care for the scene.
Duty Free Shop: Motley selection of clothes, but good some good chocolates and (cheap) liquor options. Would recommend shopping for mainly the latter.
Bottom Line: Ghetto and outdated. Stinky bathrooms, subpar food, and unpleasant staff. Night club is only reason this place got 2 stars. May have enjoyed more if I didn’t have another overnight cruise to compare to. Recommend taking alternate vessel.

Did the 24 hour cruise and had a good time overall. The views from the top deck of Stockholm and the islands on the way out to sea is the best part of this trip. They need more restaurants on the ship in my opinion. The entertainment was good and the DJ on the back of the ship had some jamming mixes. Getting on and off the ship required some patience. I would recommend a longer trip on a bigger ship for the best cruise experience. For the money, this is a great value!

I would recommend this for the views, the experience of a cruise without being locked into a multi day adventure, the food and for the shopping. If you do not like children or tourists then take a quick plane ride. We travelled from Stockholm to Turku, Finland. We were traveling with our small dachshund. The Amorella is a tired ship with very well maintained accomodations and excellent variety of food vendors and quality of food. The shopping is comprehensive and plentiful in the duty free shop. The areas outside were very wet with standing water from the wet weather and the toileting facilities for the dogs were two 1.5m x 1.5m sand boxes. Our dog was very uncomfortable as she is accustomed to grass or the usual outside. However the staff is professional and the restaurant we ate in was excellent. The breakfast buffet was comprehensive and varied, very generous with good layout. Again, the ship was older but in good condition. The pet accommodations were reasonably bad and uncomfortable.

The Viking Line was my first experience on a cruise ship. In truth, I wasn’t expecting it. My friend kept talking about the ferry from Stockholm to Helsinki, and ferries out here are smaller little boats that just have seats. No rooms, maybe one dining area but no real restaurants, and certainly no clubs.
The trip was memorable, and the views were amazing. I would definitely recommend getting a room for the night, though they do have a «sleeping room» for those who just book as passengers. Watch out ladies, guys may try to get fresh with you in there.
What stood out the most was the amazing buffet on board. It isn’t cheap, but you definitely get what you pay for. Plate after plate of delicious fish, fruit, tapas, desserts, and as much wine as you can drink within the 2 hour window.
This experience is a must for travelers making their way between Stockholm and Helsinki.

Für die Überfahrt Stockholm-​Helsinki gibt es zwei Möglichkeiten, Silja und Viking. Natürlich recherchiert man heute im Internet, welche Fährgesellschaft nun «besser» ist — aber der Erkenntnisgewinn ist mager. Meist sind die Posts schon einige Jahre alt und der Gesamteindruck war für mich folgender:
— Früher (vor 5J) war Silja sehr gut und Viking eher schlecht.
— Seit Silja einen neuen Eigentümer hat sinkt der Standard.
— Viking bemüht sich, den Standard zu heben.
— Viking ist mehr die Partyroute, Silja eher für gesetztere Personen.
Nun war es aber so, dass Silja (inklusive der Mahlzeiten) zu unserem Termin knapp 40% teurer war als Viking. Ausserdem hatteich versucht, bei Silja eine Frage telefonisch zu klären und hatte nach 15 Minuten Hotline-​Warteschleife einen ahnungslosen Menschen dran, der mir sagte, ich solle meine Frage doch mailen…
Im Gegensatz dazu verlief die Kommunikation mit Viking sehr schnell und sehr persönlich — da war ich sehr zufrieden.
Und nun, Hin– und Rückfahrt liegt hinter uns, kann ich nur sagen, dass ich Viking jederzeit wieder benutzen würde und uneingeschränkt weiterempfehlen. Das Essen war überraschend gut, die Servicemitarbeiter alle SEHR freundlich und es hat uns auch kein Krakeele irgendwelcher Schnapsleichen gestört. Wir hatten eine schöné und ruhige Überfahrt, beide Male.
Warum dann keine 5 Sterne? Naja, die Schiffe sind beide nicht mehr ganz neu und ich muss mir ja noch Potential nach oben offenhalten für meine Bewertung der Kiel-​Göteborg-​Fähre (die allerdings auch VIEL teurer war).

the perfect 36 hr trip to visit Helsinki !
The 4 hrs trip through the 1000 islands outside Stockholm is breathtakingly beautiful and alone already worth the trip esp if you have good weather !
If you want to see Karaōke singing, heavily drunk Finns, Estonian and Swedish truckers — thats the place !! Its great fun, doesnt cost too much for an outside cabin, you get enough time to get a good impression of Helsinki (most people would say you are done with those 7 – 8 hrs…) and back the same evening on the boat and by morning you are in Stockholm.