AmaWaterways vs Viking

Looking to sail on a European river cruise and not sure which line is best? Here at rivercruisecomparison.com we've brought you a head-to-head matchup of AmaWaterways vs Viking for you to review. So which line gets your knock out vote? Let us know in the comments below!

Round 1: Pricing & Booking Policies

For most cruises, Viking’s fares will come in lower than AmaWaterways. But AmaWaterways does offer limited time sales throughout the year that can drop their pricing to be competitive with Viking (and maybe even lower). Viking’s sales tend to focus more on reduced deposits or airfare promotions, while AmaWaterways offers sales that range from a percentage off the cruise fare, free cabin upgrades, prepaid gratuities, and airfare promotions.

Viking provides wine and alcohol with lunch and dinner, with drinks outside of these two windows coming at a price. AmaWaterways has the same offer, but each evening it also includes a one-hour, pre-dinner Sip & Sail cocktail event where guests can choose from a drink menu of select complimentary mixed drinks, wines, and beers.

Both Viking and AmaWaterways do not include gratuities of any type in their cruise fare, so they will all come out of pocket to the traveler.

Deposits for both lines are non-refundable. Viking typically requires a $500 deposit per cabin, though they often run a $25 per person deposit special. AmaWaterways typically requires a $800 deposit per cabin. The deadline for making final payment between these lines varies drastically, with AmaWaterways requiring full payment at 90 days prior to your sail date. With Viking, full payment is required much further out, typically at least a year or more prior to your sail date.

Traveling solo? If so, Viking rarely offers any sort of reduced solo supplement so you should expect to pay 100% single supplement on any of their cabins. AmaWaterways offers a reduced 50% (or less) single supplement on many cabins. On some ships they also offer at least a few cabins per sailing with no single supplement at all. Finally, AmaWaterways does have a few ships where special solo cabins (smaller rooms at 140 square feet) are sold at their own rate.

Looking to travel with kids under 18? Viking requires all travelers to be 18 years or older. On AmaWaterways, children 4 years and older are permitted onboard. Those under the age of 18 must be accompanied by, and share a cabin with, a parent, legal guardian or responsible adult over the age of 21.

Both cruise lines offer discounts for returning guests.

Verdict for this round of AmaWaterways vs Viking:

Choose AmaWaterways as the winner of this round if you aren’t price sensitive, have travelers under the age of 18, are travelling solo, value the additional hour of free drinks, and don’t want to make your final payment a year or more in advance.

Choose Viking as the winner if you are more price sensitive (and AmaWaterways isn’t running any sales to make them more competitive) and don’t mind paying the full cruise amount well in advance of your sailing.

Round 2: Cabins & Onboard Amenities

If design aesthetic is important to you, then you do have some differences between both of these cruise lines to consider. Viking presents a clean, light-filled Scandinavian-style interior with wood accents. Viking’s ships are designed uniformly, so you can expect the same look and feel across their fleet. AmaWaterways presents a more contemporary interior design with a luxurious, refined European elegance and a rich color palette. Their ships are not uniform in layout, but their design aesthetic is common across all of their European cruise ships.

Cabin sizes offered by each line can vary quite a bit, but the most common cabins on each line are very similar in square footage – 205 square feet for Viking and between 170 and 235 square feet for AmaWaterways. An outlier for AmaWaterways is the AmaMagna, which is almost double in width to the average river cruise ship. The extra space allows for larger cabins across the board (as well as more generous public spaces and additional bars and restaurants).

None of Viking’s ships have elevator access to the lowest deck for cabins, while some (not all) of AmaWaterways’ have elevator access to all cabin floors. Viking also does not offer any connecting rooms, while most of AmaWaterways’ ships do have some limited options for connecting rooms (not to mention, a few ships even have cabins that they state can hold 3 people – a rarity in the world of river cruising).

Onboard amenities are more basic with Viking than they are with AmaWaterways. Both have free Wi-Fi, but Viking lacks onboard bicycles (though they can arrange to have them available in port), a fitness room, a pool/hot tub/jacuzzi, hair salon, and massage services. AmaWaterways, for the most part, offers all of these amenities, though it can vary by ship.

AmaWaterways also has a Wellness Program on each of its ships, where a Wellness Host will lead morning and afternoon yoga, stretches, etc. The host will also lead any hiking and biking excursions.

Verdict for this round of AmaWaterways vs Viking:

Choose Viking if their clean, minimalist décor is appealing to you and onboard amenities mentioned above have little or no importance.

Choose AmaWaterways if their more contemporary décor is appealing to you and if at least some of the onboard amenities mentioned above are important. Also choose AmaWaterways if you are interested in booking their intro level cabins found on the bottom deck, and you require elevator access (though this is dependent on the specific ship).

Round 3: Excursions

Both Viking and AmaWaterways offer at least one free excursion in each port of call. But not all excursions are equal, with a distinct difference between these two cruise lines. Viking’s free excursions will likely be a city walking tour. They do offer other options, but these will come with an extra per person charge. AmaWaterways will offer a similar walking tour, but in many ports of call will also provide one or two extra excursions for you to consider at no extra charge. The extra options might include such things as a local bike ride, a visit to a museum, a concert, or other culturally immersive experiences.

Verdict for this round of AmaWaterways vs Viking:

The easy winner for this round is AmaWaterways.

Round 4: Dining Experience

Food is probably one of the most talked about comparisons when selecting a river cruise. The problem with this is that dining experiences are subjective, and mostly dependent on the execution by onboard staff (both front and back of the house). For every traveler that says they absolutely loved their food on either of these lines, you’ll find another who complains about the experience. So, comparisons are really about an overall impression on the consistency of service across each cruise line’s fleet.

Both Viking and AmaWaterways offer buffet-style dining for breakfast and lunch, though AmaWaterways also offers additional full-service ordering for both meals. Dinners on both lines are multi-course affairs with at least two or three options to choose from for each course. Special diet requests can be accommodated on either cruise line. Both lines market themselves as offering locally sourced ingredients, with dishes inspired by the places visited during the cruise. Neither cruise line offers room service.

AmaWaterways also offers a unique dining experience on each sailing - the Chef’s Table. This intimate, gastronomic experience allows guests to observe the chef cooking in an exhibition kitchen, and experience a multi-course tasting menu. It comes at no additional charge but is limited to one dining experience per sailing.

What do critics and travelers say? Food & Wine's Global Tastemakers list for 2024 has Viking in the number 8 spot (and AmaWaterways at number 10). Both lines were the only river cruise lines to make the list. In 2021, AmaWaterways became the first river cruise line to be inducted into Tables et Auberges de France, a French association that celebrates regional flavors and locally sourced ingredients. AmaWaterways has also been a member of La Confrérie de la Chaînedes Rôtisseurs since 2011.

Verdict for this round of AmaWaterways vs Viking:

AmaWaterways gets the (slight) winning decision for this round based on their Chef's Table. Though odds are likely you’ll also enjoy a quality dining experience on Viking.

The Verdict: Who Wins this Head-to-Head Matchup?

With several of the rounds close - or based on personal preferences - the winner of this head-to-head matchup seems to be decided by the decisive win in round 3 (excursions)...AmaWaterways!

Want to learn more about river cruising? Visit us at rivercruisecomparison.com where you can review our comparisons of the best river cruise lines that sail throughout Europe, learn more about the European rivers you can sail on, and browse our special offers to save a little money on your next sailing. And don't forget to take our one-of-a-kind quiz that will match you to the cruise line best suited to you and your preferences!