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We have completed many ocean and river Viking Cruises. Service has always been excellent. We enjoy the variety of food, including the spicy entrees and the salads in the buffet. If we order something from the grill at the pool, we always split the item, such as hamburger or hot dog. We have not purchased the Silver Beverage plan. On Viking the mini refrig in the Penthouse & above are stocked with soft drink and mini bottles of rum, gin, etc. I normally check the wine offered at lunch and dinner. I have sampled the offered wine. If I did not care for the wine, the waiter has always asked why and brought a different wine for me to try. Both O and V have "free" launderettes now. I wonder if I can exchange my O laundry tokes for OBC? On Viking in PH and higher cabins there is "free" laundry no limit on number of bags or items. On Oceania the PH free laundry is limited to 3 bags of 20 items. I have always asked and received a delay in final payment. If you want a Casino or Big shows, Viking is not for you. At this time I would cruise with either O or V. The itinerary is the deciding factor.

Can you take the House select beverage package amenity and then upgrade before boarding. Also is the Select Beverage package only available during lunch and dinner? If you have the Select Beverage package, do you order off the bar menu at dinner? Thanks for all the info and help.

We were opting for the $600 OBC, but TA added our O Club member numbers. We were then eligible for the O Club member discount of 10% off cruise fare which isa better deal for us. Agree, you have to do the math.

Is possible to upgrade the beverage package before you board? Also that brands for beer are available on the Select Beverage package?

I have a cruise booking on "hold" The cruise is part of Oceania's 20th Anniversary Special Offering. 20th Anniversary Sale Celebrate 20 years of Oceania Cruises with a free $600 Shipboard Credit plus OLife Choice offer with 2 for 1 Cruise Fares, Free Roundtrip Airfare with Airport Transfers,* and choose one free amenity: FREE - 6 Shore Excursions FREE - Beverage Package FREE - $600 Shipboard Credit Amenities are per stateroom The invoice shows the beverage package and a Past Guest SBC of $50 per person. The $600 SBC for the 20th Anniversary Sale is NOT shown on the invoice. I expected to find the $600 SBC listed on the invoice.

What are the beverage packages available on Oceania. Also If I choose the "Select" "Free" beverage package amenity can I upgrade to a better package when on board the ship? What is the current cost or the beverage packages?

Thanks for all the replies. It has been about 10 years since I last cruised with Oceania. Just trying to find out what to expect.

Are wine and beer included with lunch and dinner or must you purchase a beverage package?

From the FAQ dated: August 2020 "We have now increased the limit to 6 bottles per stateroom. The exception being the world cruises Any wine consumed in the dining room or a public area will be subject to a corkage fee of $25.00 per bottle." Could we carry glass of wine into the dining room? That is very high. We often cruise with Viking and have never had a corkage fee for Wine we bought on shore and carried to the dining room.

Reading fine print "Free Internet" is for 1 login. Does this mean only 1 device per stateroom receives the "free" internet connection and you must pay extra for other devices? We usually cruise with Viking has are limited to 2 devices in use at a time. WE both have cell phones and carry a small laptop computer. Usually have the computer and 1 of the cell phones logged into Viking internet service with no problems. We use the cell phone to send an receive a few messages from family not to play games or download movies or TV shows. Use computer to backup our photos and check emails daily. Thanks for info on Oceania internet service and cost.

The Viking Longships are on most of the European Rivers. The ships on the Douro, Elbe, and maybe the Seine are different. Look at what is in the space below your cabin or above your cabin. We book a Veranda Suite on the Longship. The shower is much larger and you can easily use a shower stool in that bath. The other benefit are a great bonus for us, but we book for the shower size.

Good memories of our river cruise from Budapest. We arrive early to tour Budapest and surrounding area before our river cruise. World Cup "football" games were being played. We stopped at a sidewalk cafe for lunch. Heard a group of young German men asking about the winners of some games. They were very surprised my husband could answer their question. Had a fun lunch eating great food and discussing "football" with Germans & British tourist in Budapest.

Is Viking showing the Premier League games be shown? WE watch Premier League games, not NFL.

What is the cost to use Starlink on a RCCL ship? Do you pay your cell phone provider? Is there any cost on board the ship?

We really enjoyed the "Mary Rose" museum in Portsmouth, England. The ship was England's newest and most "modern" ship the sunk in it's first battle in 159?. The ship was raised and placed in a special built museum during the 1980's. WE were guided by a museum guide that really told the story of life on the "battleship". We also enjoyed the Tulip Bulb farm in the Amsterdam area. Enjoy your cruise.

In Amsterdam we took the Tulip Farm tour. We had been to the gardens before this cruise. The Tulip Farm was very informative. The farm produces tulip bulbs to ship worldwide. I agree that the travel time to and from Paris makes the bus drive very long (2 1/2 hrs) each way. Trip to the Mary Rose (ship) tour in Portsmouth, England was excellent. Not only did we tour the museum with a museum guide we also visited other sites in the city. The Scenic Tour of Flanders was a disappointment. In Bergen (our 2nd visit) we choose the WWII bunker tour. This took us out of Bergen. Enjoy your cruise.

I talk to our cabin steward and tell them we want the ice bucket filled 2X each day. I have on occasion called room service for a bucket of ice. Very quickly delivered

We are considering taking a cruise on the American Countess Louisville to Pittsburgh. What are the assigned dining times? Is there a buffet open for the evening meal?

We have sailed in the DV, PV, and PS. We found the DV to be a little small for the longer cruises. For us having the closet across from the bath door is a definite plus. One of the major perks for us in the PS is the larger shower. The PS shower will easily accommodate a shower stool wiith plenty of "leg room". Free laundry is nice. We also take several "Command" hooks for jackets & Hats.

Having stayed in DV and PV cabins, we prefer the PV because of the extra space in the cabin. Also my husband does use the PV beverages 1 or 2 times each day. Viking does not limit guest bring their prefer beverage on board. We will ofter purchase wine and/or local beers when in port to drink while on board. Enjoy your cruise.

If you are using the self serve laundry, bring fabric softener dryer sheets to place in dryer. The dryer sheets really help to reduce the wrinkles.

Thanks for the replies. Think we will look at doing a Wine Tour transfer from Ship to Airport. I will contact tour company after Jan1.

We have used the complementary laundry. I would fix the laundry before going to bed or before we left for breakfast. Our cabin steward would turn in our laundry. Many time laundry was returned late afternoon or early evening. items were folded or on a hanger. If we were not in the cabin, folded laundry was placed on the bed and hanging items were in the closet. One of the perks we really used.

We will have an 11 PM flight out of Santiago, Chile on Feb 24. Any suggestions for a good tour/transfer from Ship to airport. I really do not want to be waiting in the airport for 12-14 hours. Thanks for all the great info.

Thanks to all for the replies, especially UWDawg for all the pics and menus. I will have several menus to help with making CT reservations Can you still make your reservation with the Viking phone app or on the TV screen when you board the ship? Thanks again for all the answers Looking forward to our Feb 2023 South American cruise.