NeilP57

3 minutes ago, Clay Clayton said:

In Barcelona we have stayed at Hotel Rec which is located near the Arc d’Triomph. It has small rooms but a great rooftop bar/breakfast room and small dipping pool. 

Thank you Clay for educating me. I thought there was only Arc and that was the one is Paris. I had to google it to check and of course you are correct there is one in Barcelona as well.

It is always good to learn something new each day.

3 minutes ago, mcjyl said:

To apply for the Pre-registration for Visiting Iceland,  is there any form that we have to fill in order to receive that security code  I read the whole " visit.covid.is website", it tells you what you need and to do but not no form to fill in order to apply for the security code for entrance to Iceland.

 

Jim

https://docs.vikingcruises.com/pdf/14-210722a-RestartPreCruiseRequirement-Iceland-US-UK-FINAL.pdf

This gives a detailed list of how to go through the Icelandic registration process. It is lifted from the resources tab on the Icelandic cruise page on the main Viking website. 

El Convento is my choice for SJ. Stayed there 2 nights independently ahead of a Viking Caribbean cruise and it was fabulously authentic in a great location. 
 

There maybe better generic hotels in other locations but for me this was the place to stay and we will stay again if ever in SJ. 

3 minutes ago, Staffordshirecruiser said:

Intriguing?  The fact Star is returning to Iceland at speed is interesting. Do we know when the other two ships are next in Rejkavik?  Did we ever find out what the deliveries were as that might provide a clue?  Could it just be engine testing in certain sea conditions?

 

Sky will have left Reykjavik earlier this evening and will not be due back until early on Saturday July 31

Jupiter will be arriving into Reykjavik early on Tuesday July 27 before departing on the evening of Wednesday July 28. 
 

Not sure when Star is due to arrive off Reykjavik but is due back in the UK to commence some UK domestic cruisrs on Saturday August 7th, so probably plenty of time to drop off another couple of parcels. 

24 minutes ago, Tom.in.nc said:

Have any of you pioneers tried the “check-in” on My Viking Journey?

 

Tom

I did it this morning for our July 31 departure on Viking Sky. Very easy, just really involved uploading a head and shoulder picture of each passenger on the booking. 
 

However from what I think I read previously it is not necessary as Viking repeat the process when we check in at either the ship or at the museum if we are an early arrival. 
 

There is no requirement to add credit card details that will be used for on board sundries. 
 

Hope this helps. 

Don’t forget you can order tea from room service, morning, noon and night. 
 

We preferred to order our early morning breakfast tea when we first woke up and also as soon as we got back to our stateroom after getting back from an excursion. 
 

Never had to wait very long for either. 
 

There are obviously self service stations in various places around the ship as well as good coffee from the Living Room on level 1. 
 

Thanks for trying. 
 

I will probably resist phoning Viking as I will end up saying Grrrr myself after the call. Sometimes they will talk to me, other times they say I need to call my TA who will ask them the same question but with less understanding. 
 

I am going to rely on my passport as prove of residency. Unless somebody else points out the form I need to complete or the certificate I need to provide. 
 

I will update those of you following whether all this works ( or not!)

1 hour ago, Jay23 said:

A "valid residency visa" is a form Viking provides on line on MVJ my husband tells me Neil. J

I have scoured MVJ for any mention of this form but alas to no success.

I will rely on my British Passport which says I have the right of abode in the UK.

1 hour ago, Jay23 said:

Hi Neil.  Please tell us on here how you , as a UK traveller, and our neighbour (!), get on when you make your journey to Iceland.    I would be so grateful. We have the Icelandic website as you do and it is a bit different from the of the one for the US passengers.   Also I would love to know all about the cruise from your point of view.  Many thanks..

Hi Neighbour

Indeed I will. Although I will likely post comments on either the General thread or the Live thread as appropriate.

A question for UK passengers on their way to Iceland.

Whilst we were all distracted with the question whether an Antigen test was acceptable to Viking and/or Iceland earlier this week, Viking added another requirement onto their document which sets out all the steps before arriving into Iceland.

Not only do they state we need a valid passport (with 6 months unexpired term after we return) but they have also said they require us to have a "valid residency visa"

Does anybody from the UK know what this may be or have asked Viking this question?

I have the normal UK passport but nothing additional to this having been born in the UK and always lived in the UK, in 61 years I have never had to provide a "valid residency visa"

Perhaps it may have something to do with those who have settled status in the UK following Brexit but this is only a guess. 

Any thoughts?

41 minutes ago, royallondon said:

Hi, does anyone know if there are plans to extend the UK cruises beyond the current schedule (the last being 21 August)?

It appears that for UK cruisers, obtaining travel insurance for cruises to other Countries is currently prohibitive.  This makes taking any other Viking cruise from Malta, Iceland etc, an impossibility till the Government lifts further restrictions.

 

Regards

There has been some speculation in the cruising trade press that the current FCO “advice” against international cruising could be revised from as early as July 31. 
 

It is unclear whether this will be a complete removal of any advice against cruising or just to permit say the departure from a UK port, visiting international ports of call and then a return to the UK. 
 

Hopefully it will all be clearer over the coming week(s)

Having travelled in both a PV (Venice to Istanbul) and a V ( Caribbean) with Viking  they are both great staterooms. We have decided to take the smaller stateroom  (V and DV are the same size) and spend the savings on optional excursions and the drinks package if it is not offered as a promotion. 
 

Whether you need many optional excursions really does depend on your itinerary. Some have many great independent excursion opportunities which will always be cheaper than a cruise line excursion. 

With Viking the better category stateroom the earlier you can book speciality restaurants (no extra charge) and shore excursions but I have not experienced any issues with these even if in the lowest V category. 
 

Obviously these comments apply to normal non Covid times. 

Hope this helps. 

7 minutes ago, LindaS272 said:

Visit.Covid.is

 It is the outcome of completing the process of the pre-registration with the Icelandic authorities. You will get further detail from Viking ahead of your August 21 departure.

Further information can be found under the resources tab on the Welcome Back Icelandic cruise page on the main Viking website.

7 minutes ago, Camden lady said:

Is everyone using Verifly app?  If you don't do that can you take care of all that once you are there to embark.?  I really don't want to go that route and hope Viking takes care of all the embarking procedures.

My understanding is that Viking are using the VeriFLY process to validate your vaccination status and therefore they are requiring all passengers to go through the VeriFLY process.

I don’t expect that you can just turn up at the ship with your vaccination certificate in hand. 
 

In addition, some airlines may require it also. 

Can you help me to understand what cruise you are on and when. 
 

I am not sure any of the Welcome Back cruises are touching Italy. 
 

If you are not cruising until later this year or early next year, you are better off waiting to much nearer the time to ask such questions as the situations are changing very quickly at the moment. 

3 minutes ago, ShropshireCritic said:

Hence we appear to have both reached the same conclusion.

I genuinely believe we have applied ourselves more to this issue than Viking have, and I am not sure we are getting much acknowledgement from Viking of the grief they have caused.

If I add this to the fiasco we had when they overcharged us by over £1000 when we booked our excursions because somebody  couldn't convert dollars in pounds correctly. I do think they should comp' us the drinks package. 

Maybe that will be my challenge for next week before I depart on the 31/7.

It will be interesting to see how many UK customers have stayed the course to travel on these cruise at this time. It certainly takes some will power and perseverance.

Perhaps you could post a couple of comments on the live thread on how you get on next week.

2 hours ago, geffric said:

Iceland requires a negative PCR test  taken 72 hours prior to departure.

 Iceland are happy with both a negative PCR or Antigen test providing you can provide evidence of full vaccination.

In some territories Viking have added an additional burden by stating that only a negative PCR test will suffice. This maybe being cautious but it is not what the Icelandic Authorities website is saying.

Viking in the UK have finally said that a negative antigen test will be acceptable.

No doubt we will all do what we think is best.

I am sticking by what the Icelandic website says and the slightly confusing communication received from Viking UK that despite what it says in the section title and summary, it does say an Antigen test is acceptable for vaccinated passengers. 

So it’s an antigen test for me and not a PCR test. 
 

I am confident that British Airways who are flying me and Icelandic Border officials who will check all my paperwork on arrival will be fine with a negative antigen test and a vaccination certificate. I will have a PCR test on arrival at the ship and then head straight to the Explorers Bar for a large G&T, followed by perhaps an IPA. I will be tempted to say charge them to Viking for the stress they are causing! 
 

It is also doesn't come a great surprise that the link in the document that they sent out was to an old out of date document dated June 24th instead of the new one on the website dated July 21st.

This is where I have got to with my TA and Viking as at close of play on Thursday.

My TA called me back to say that Viking have repeated the statement that a PCR test is required. They explained that differing parts of the Icelandic websites say different things and in their view in such circumstances it is better to be cautious and therefore a PCR was recommended. I was told that I would receive something shortly from Viking. I looked at the website page that Viking had offered up as being at odds with the main site that says PCR or Antigen and it was far from conclusive that it was dealing with the post 26 July situation. However, they said Viking would be writing to me, via my TA shortly.

This has now been received as is reproduced in full. Please note that this is from Viking in the UK.

22JUL2021

For completeness this is what the visit.covid.is site is currently saying for arrivals from July 27th

https://visit.covid.is/registration/

Valid from 27.07.2021

Per Icelandic regulations all travellers arriving in Iceland, after more than a 24 hour stay in the last 14 days in risk areas defined by the Chief Epidemiologist, are subject to certain measures at the border due to COVID-19:

• See also covid.is including a web chat for questions.

Travellers born 2004 and earlier:

• All travellers are required to fill out this pre-registration before arrival, which includes their contact information, confirmation of presenting a negative test taken before departure, any additional certificates, address during quarantine and a declaration of health.
• Travellers can be denied boarding by airline if they have not pre-registered or they do not have the appropriate certificates.
• All travellers  are required to present a negative test, that is not more than 72 hours old at boarding.
  • If a traveller is arriving on a connecting flight then the 72 hours are counted from boarding of the first flight. This can be demonstrated with the boarding pass from the first leg.
• Travellers who reside in Iceland or have a social network in Iceland are encouraged to undergo a PCR-test immediately upon arrival and to follow rules of quarantine until results are received. A PCR-test can be obtained at Keflavik airport upon arrival if it is ordered beforehand on heilsuvera.is (you need to have Icelandic electronic ID). Others can get a test at Sudurlandsbraut 34 in Reykjavik or at other locations with the primary health care service. Note if there is a high demand for testing at the airport passengers will be directed to Reykjavik/the primary health care service.
• Travellers who present a valid certificate of full vaccination or previous infection:
  • Need to present a negative PCR-or antigen test upon arrival that is not more than 72 hours old at boarding.
  • Travellers who do not present a negative test upon arrival will be required to take a PCR-test at the border and to follow rules of quarantine until results are received.
  • Travellers who present a negative test upon arrival do not need to undergo a PCR-test at the border and are exempt from quarantine.
  • If less than 14 days have passed from completion of vaccination then the traveller will be required to undergo one PCR-test at the border and to follow rules of quarantine until results are received.

Hopefully Viking will clarify quickly what they are doing and why they have added an additional burden to some of their most loyal customers.

25 minutes ago, NeilP57 said:

Linda

 

This is very helpful in that it originates from Viking. 

 

Can you point me in the correct direction on the website where I can find this document because the requirement for a PCR test rather than an antigen test (Lateral Flow) does not match what has been said by the Icelandic Authorities.

 

I would like to query this with Viking in the UK but it would be good to know where on the website I can find that document.

 I have now found the document in the Resources section on the main website.

I think it is better that further discussion be done on the specific Covid Testing post 26 July thread.

Just now, miaf said:

Definitively looks like a discrepancy.  Did you reach out to Viking?

 I have just spoken to my TA who will contact Viking here in the UK.

However, I fear they will just repeat to my TA what they have just published in their document.

I will update when I get a response.

This has just been posted on the Live Thread from Viking.

https://docs.vikingcruises.com/pdf/14-210721-RestartPreCruiseRequirement-Iceland-US-UK FINAL.pdf

It states that we need a PCR test to travel.

This does not accord with what the Iceland.is site states from the Icelandic Authorities which says that an antigen test is acceptable.

The following quote is a straight copy from the Iceland.is site

https://island.is/en/p/entry

NOTE: From 27 July 2021 vaccinated passengers (and those with a prior infection) born in 2004 or earlier, must present a negative PCR or antigen test (not older than 72 hours) prior to boarding a vessel to Iceland.

I have just booked my supervised Lateral Flow (Antigen) test for my 31 July departure and now I am unsure of what is correct.  Will British Airways allow me on the plane? Will the Icelandic Authorities allow me into the country?

Is this just Viking being over cautious?

Hopefully we can find out the answers over the coming day or two.

29 minutes ago, LindaS272 said:

Here’s your updated pre-Cruise advice from Viking:

https://docs.vikingcruises.com/pdf/14-210721-RestartPreCruiseRequirement-Iceland-US-UK FINAL.pdf
 

 

Linda

This is very helpful in that it originates from Viking. 

Can you point me in the correct direction on the website where I can find this document because the requirement for a PCR test rather than an antigen test (Lateral Flow) does not match what has been said by the Icelandic Authorities.

I would like to query this with Viking in the UK but it would be good to know where on the website I can find that document.

The following quote is a straight copy from the Iceland.is site

https://island.is/en/p/entry

NOTE: From 27 July 2021 vaccinated passengers (and those with a prior infection) born in 2004 or earlier, must present a negative PCR or antigen test (not older than 72 hours) prior to boarding a vessel to Iceland.