Heidi13

We were on the 2020 WC, which ended in Dubai due to COVID. The Dubai Govt required all pax to leave the country on their national airline, but they ceased operations with still about 90 Canadian & US citizens onboard. Viking arranged a charter flight to Newark, then onward flights for all, but the US Govt refused to let the 8 Canadian land to then catch flights home. The 8 of us got the best deal, having the ship to ourselves, with a full crew. I did daily posts on our blog, so check it out. We were treated like royalty.

Affirmative, they gave each couple one of the Explorer Suites. Nice, but to be honest, we would never book one. We could ask for any dish, and it was available the next day. Great times.

Recommended magnification for marine environments is 7x or 8x. This is the first number on binocular specs. The 2nd number dictates the amount of light, so larger is better. However, x50, which are an excellent choice are also much bigger and heavier than lower 2nd numbers, which let in less light. Field of View should also be a consideration, with 350-370' being what I prefer. Next choice is price, with Swarovski making some of the best and virtually indestructible binoculars, but at astronomical price. If money was no option, Swarovski would be my choice. However, I am accepting that travel and life aboard ship are tough on binocular optics, so I prefer cheaper options which I replace, as required. Having spent 40+ yrs on ship's bridges, we mostly had Bushnells. Definitely not the quality of Swarovski, but based on price and performance, they are hard to beat. My preference would be 7x50 Marine Binocular or 8x50 Marine Binocular. If they have Perma-focus that is a worthwhile option, as they have a huge depth of field, so are focused from a few feet to infinity. https://www.amazon.com/Bushnell-Marine-7x50-Waterproof-Binocular/dp/B0000A0ADQ/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=bushnell+permafocus&qid=1661354824&refinements=p_89%3ABushnell&rnid=2528832011&s=electronics&sr=1-5 Here is a review for them https://www.bestbinocularsreviews.com/Bushnell7x50Marine-19.htm

You can also contact the World Cruise Desk or "Tellus" pre-cruise requesting it be removed, so the Cabin Steward removes it while making up the cabins.

The last 3 weeks were amazing, 8 pax and about 460 crew. Although we also had crew name badges and we all shared the ship.

In addition to Peregrina's reply, I also note that bikes are one of the supply chain issues and are hard to find, at least locally. We just sold 3 bikes in a couple of hours with multiple offers on each bike.

Although you always have supply chain issues these days, I'll suggest the ship is in an advanced state of construction, having floated out in June. I believe the first revenue cruise is currently May 2nd from Civitavecchia, so they have lots of time, since this is a well-known design, being ship # 10. The ship could be complete by Feb/Mar. Rather than delays, I expect Viking may add additional sailings similar to what they did with Neptune. Once the delivery date is finalised, we may see 1 or 2 additional sailings from closer to the shipyard, unless Viking has a major promotional sailing planned for TA's and/or media.

We booked the 22/23 WC the day it was published, but unfortunately had to cancel a couple of weeks ago. Here is another blog from MonaLiza from the 22/23 WC https://lowestravels.com/

If you want an idea of how Viking responds to challenges, we were on the 2020 World Cruise, better known as the Magical Mystery Tour. I completed daily blog posts. Feel free to check it out www.AndyandJudi.com Here is another blog from the 21/22 World Cruise https://roseandtedsexcellentadventure.com/

If you are happy only seeing what was close, then not having binoculars clearly works for you. However, there is an abundance of wildlife out there, especially in Alaska, which is not readily visible to the naked eye. Unfortunately, without binoculars or long reach lenses, you aren't aware of what you are missing. Personally, I use good Perma-Focus binoculars to identify distant wildlife and then use 1 of the 2 DSLR/mirrorless cameras I normally carry. Don't have any problems using multiple cameras and binoculars.

Affirmative, Viking Australia and Viking UK have different terms & conditions.

Welcome to Cruise Critic. A couple of points to consider: - If taking a 1-way cruise, regardless if N'bd or S'bd, it must start/end in Vancouver. US Cabotage Laws do not permit foreign flag ships carrying pax between 2 US ports. - N'bd or S'bd has a number of factors to consider. One of the most scenic areas is the sheltered waters between Vancouver Island and the Mainland. N'bd this area is transited at night, while S'bd it is during the last day. Also check the itinerary, as Princess used to visit Prince William Sound/College Glacier N'bd, but not S'bd. College fjord is spectacular. - While we will never sail with Princess again, between them and HAL, they are probably the best mainstream cruise lines in Alaska. - Grand v's Sapphire - both are the same class of ship, actually the best class of ship Princess have ever built. Grand was the first of the class. Sapphire was 1 of the 2 ships built in Japan, which are significantly better built than the Italian ships. If the itinerary is equal, I would opt for Sapphire. With respect to Viking, who are now our preferred cruise line, after both working for and cruising with Princess for 40 yrs. The Viking cruises are 10-days, as compared to Princess 7-days. Viking also include much more than Princess and have a significantly higher standard of onboard service. Our 2020 Viking World Cruise was almost double the cost of our 2015 Princess World Cruise, but at the end, the total daily cost was virtually identical. The will not apply to everyone, as it depends on how many extra cost items you use on Princess. Viking also include a shore-ex in every port.

I suspect this was tongue in cheek, but to clarify, this isn't how the industry works. You can't use short term operational funds on deposit, for a capital project. Once they start building a ship, Viking must have stable capital funding available to pay the progress payments to the shipyard. They are making the operational funds work for them, but it isn't subsidising the new tonnage. The work around for early payment, of a first cruise, is to hold off booking, provided cabins are available, or wait until PIF date. Around PIF date, many cabins tend to open up on many cruises. Classic example is the 22/23 WC, which was sold out for about 18 months, but since PIF, has at least 30 cabins available.

Can't comment on RCCL, but our preferred cruise line does provide them in almost all cabins, but I always bring my own.

When dealing with luggage for a cruise, hiring a car and taking the ferry is probably your most convenient and easiest option. However, I would definitely recommend making a reservation, as 2 to 3 sailing waits are common during the summer months. We came over to Victoria yesterday afternoon and it was a 2-sailing wait at 17:00 for those that didn't have a reservation. You can make reservations online on the BC Ferries website. Vancouver traffic can be busy, especially around the Massey Tunnel from about 14:30 to 18:30. From the airport you can make the ferry terminal in 20-25 minutes, but I would allow 45 mins to 1 hr. With a reservation, you must arrive no earlier than 1 hr before departure and no later than 1/2 hr before departure. Onboard services are still minimal, with only the cafeteria open. The buffet and quiet lounge are still closed. The ferry arrives in Swartz Bay, which is about 20 miles from downtown. Allow about 1/2 hr once off the ferry.

I read an article about a month ago that Turkish Airlines have now attain the highest 7-star rating for safety.

Haha!! Clay - you need to enjoy more lamb chops and less pistachio rolls during the 26 days.😁

I have spent much of the past 6 months arranging private tours in Australia and New Zealand for the upcoming World Cruise. All vendors I have used before have either gone out of business permanently or shut down temporarily. The vendor in Sydney, finally accepted bookings, but were unable to accept funds at this time. In the past 2 weeks, I have heard from 2 other vendors that are starting to re-start their businesses. I expect the cruise lines, including Viking are dealing with similar issues, so I expect it unlikely Viking will promulgate a full suite of shore-ex, on time. The only private tour I was able to book in any of those ports was the Blue Mountain Tour with Anderson in Sydney.

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Based on my experience using binoculars on ship's bridges for too many years, and also understanding the theory, I have written a number of posts on binoculars, in the Alaska Board. I always recommend 7x or 8x for novice users at sea, and further recommend that you should not go above 10x. With higher magnification the images are blurred due to ship movement and vibration. Not sure why anyone would recommend the binoculars in the link you posted.

Unfortunately, these were a poor choice of binocular for use at sea. The prisms and FoV are good, but at 12X they are way too high power, especially for inexperienced users. There is a very good reason that most Bridges I worked on had 7x50 binoculars. You can safely go 8x or even 10x, but 12x was a very poor choice.

The Polaris returned to the shipyard after sea trials on July 2nd, continuing with final fitting out. Since it is built in Norway, it shows as Norwegian Flag, so we won't see the Flag change as she is transferred to owners. She is scheduled to depart from Amsterdam on Sept 29th.

If this was the singers with the band, then affirmative it is Paula & Sammy. This is them on Viking Sun

I chatted with the GM regarding options for alternatives for the bottles of water, not from the perspective of removing single use plastic, but from a cost perspective. I asked why Viking didn't provide re-usable water bottles with Viking logos. He mentioned it had been considered, but the logistics and most importantly ensuring health & safety requirements and the associated liability were challenges. Some potential issues were - sterilising between cruises noting TAR day is already extremely busy for the crew, requirement to have additional stock on board to ensure every cabin had 2 at embarkation as these would probably leave the ship in large quantities, and most importantly they would need to have crew filling the containers to prevent the potential for cross contamination.

Clay, Great point, unfortunately having never completed a short cruise with Viking, I have nothing to compare. However, I always consider the crew, and how they are led, as being the primary factors in the quality of service we as pax receive. I'm sure that the pax on Viking Sun prior to the World Cruise received the same great service we did, as it was mostly the same crew. They wouldn't get the same level of personalisation, such as drinks already at the table when you arrive for dinner, as it takes quite a few days for the crew to get to know the pax. We are also creatures of habit, sitting at the same table, ordering the same wine and for beers I had the stout or IPA. Sometimes they would bring 1 can of each. Pax that don't request the same table and enjoy sampling different wines, just can't experience the level of service we received. However, based on the reports I've read, I'll suggest that Viking do step up the quality of the victuals for the World Cruises, especially things like Tomahawk Steaks, etc. I believe we also have more special events, as the galley has more time available, with increased number of sea days.