Heidi13

Haven't boarded a ship without binoculars in about 45 yrs. Also agree with having 1 pair per person. You will find lots of topics and great information on which binoculars to bring.

When reviewing longer cruises, which are often called World Cruise or Grand Voyages, you cannot pick any port on the itinerary to embark and another to disembark. However, most cruise lines also sell multiple pre-determined cruises within the longer cruise that are referred to as segments. Based on your residence and request for a Northern Hemisphere summer cruise, I assume you are probably looking at the annual Princess World Cruise. We completed that cruise in 2015 on Sea Princess, but I believe they now use Coral Princess. May I suggest going to the Princess website and selecting World Cruise and the months you are considering. It will provide you with a list of the available segments.

I suggest the best way is to complete a similar exercise to what I did after we stopped using Princess and looked for a new preferred cruise line. Started with developing a Statement of Requirements (SoR) to list what you must receive and then also others that are preferences. Using web searches and this website, I determined how each cruise line met our SoR. This is a key step, as every cruise line provides something different, and the higher priced ones may include perks that are of no interest. For our situation, I narrowed it down to Viking and Oceania, then thoroughly researched both, opting for Viking. BTW - Viking also includes a shore-ex in the price.

Thanks for the great review. We also favour the traditional dining model, so developed a work around for our last Viking cruise. Our preference is to have breakfast and lunch in the MDR (note breakfast menu doesn't change there either), where we experience a number of different waiters/waitresses. They are all great, but once we find one, we really like, we ask which table/section they are at for dinner. At the host/hostess desk, when providing our cabin number, we request a table in our preferred waiter/waitresses section. After a few days, they automatically assigned us to that section We spent almost 100 days on Viking Sun and sat at 1 of 2 tables every evening we used the MDR, with the same wait staff. They were brilliant. When we were down to only 8 pax, we invited the 3 of them + the host, to join us for dinner in Manfredi's. If we were planning to eat dinner elsewhere, we advised the host by lunch, so he didn't try to keep those tables open.

So true Jim. Back in my days on the floating gin palaces, we did cruise closer to shore, as we needed to see lighthouses, points of land, etc for visual bearings. Didn't have GPS in those days. Unless scenic cruising, the ships are so much further offshore these days. Since we were in virtually the same location as you, we also had the bunker barge just off the balcony in many ports.

Great post, so sorry you contracted COVID, even after taking all the precautions. We also took all the precautions and have avoided COVID, except when we had a friend for dinner, who was not symptomatic. His wife worked at Childrens Hospital, so was tested daily. She was also non-symptomatic, but tested positive at work the evening he had dinner with us. When he got tested, he was also positive. The N95 masks filter out 95% of pollutants (about 3 microns), but are only as effective as the seal around the face, therefore while they provide great protection, they are not infallible. Using the "Swiss Cheese Model" of risk mitigation, the N95/KN95's should be used with other techniques to enhance safety - social distancing, mask management, hand washing, etc. Unfortunately, on an aircraft, social distancing is impossible, so the risk of the mask being compromised is higher. To guarantee safety from COVID, we would require a 1/2 mask respirator. The 1/2 mask respirators require an appropriate cartridge, best guess is a HEPA filter, and you must ensure a complete face seal. We received annual testing where they sprayed our face with a bitter, vile smelling spray. If we could smell it, we didn't have a seal. If we couldn't attain a seal, we could not enter any hazardous environment. We also did a seal test prior to each use. Outside of a work environment that is IDLH, the N95 masks are more than adequate for protection, provided they are used properly and with other risk mitigation strategies. While we mostly use multi-layer cloth masks these days, in higher risk places we revert to medical grade or N95 masks, depending on the risk.

Although not readily available on the Viking website, CharTrav, one of our regular posters on the Viking Board, maintains an exceptional Excel spreadsheet of the entire Viking schedule. Her spreadsheet is updated as the schedule changes, or Viking add new cruises. You can easily query by specific ship, with minimal Excel skills. Here is a link to her spreadsheet thread. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2651194-viking-ocean-combined-cruise-schedule/page/13/#comment-63611193

Affirmative, we were forced off a ship in 2008, after self-quarantine on board. Although we were on a B2B, the Chinese authorities forced us to disembark, along with many other pax. Having travelled the World for 45 years, I have experienced many types of hotels and this one wasn't even 1*. Having worked on cruise ships, I am well aware of cruise crud and the increase in coughing, even before COVID. However, if anyone is displaying symptoms, they should be tested and follow the isolation guidelines, if positive. If you wish to travel during a pandemic, you should be accepting of this fact.

Best to ask Viking the question, as it varies based on the availability of shore staff for embarkation and also the requirements of the local authorities.

Congratulation on having and displaying a sense of responsibility, after reading through this thread of other's experiences, it was most refreshing to read your post. While Viking may not require pax displaying symptoms to take a test and the medical staff probably don't have that authority either, the Master most definitely does have that authority. Even if Viking doesn't address the issue in their Safety Management System, the ISM Code Section 5.2 provides the Master with overriding authority and responsibility to make decisions with respect to safety. The UN addresses the management of infectious diseases, as a safety issue, so the Master has the overriding authority, and I'll suggest most importantly the responsibility to ensure that everyone displaying symptoms is tested and quarantined, if positive. Isolation has always been considered the first defense against managing an infectious disease outbreak. This has been in place for many years when dealing with infectious diseases, why should it be any different for COVID. Yes, we all need to accept this disease is still present and based on our risk tolerance, whether we are comfortable in cruising at this time. I will also state that those that do elect to cruise should accept the fact that if they display symptoms, the ship has the right to test them, and they must quarantine, if positive. When displaying clear symptoms, you should not have the right to infect others.

Most of the year that is correct, as the time difference is normally 8-hrs. However, in the Pacific Time Zone (Z-8) we change our clox to daylight savings (Z-7) about 2 weeks before UK does, which gives a 7-hour time difference. During this period, at the end March, the booking window should be opening at 19:00. In the Autumn, UK goes back to normal time (GMT) about a week earlier than we do, so again in early November you only have a 7 hr difference, so it will also be 19:00.

For those only concerned about themselves, sadly I must agree with you. However, from personal experience, when we had a communicable disease onboard a ship, it was an easy decision, once we had symptoms, to self-quarantine in the cabin and advise the medical centre of our actions. It may have cost us a night in a dump of a Chinese quarantine hotel, with army guards armed with machine guns on each floor, but we have no qualms or regrets about our decision. Would we make the same decision again - most definitely yes. So clearly, for many of us, the perspective does NOT change when it happens to us.

Nope, not missing the point. The point was that Viking don't publish ETA/ETD's, which for me isn't an issue, as I make preliminary bookings. For me, this works better than researching websites. Might not work for you, but it does for me

Thats exactly how we book. We provide our TA with our preferred and minimum outcomes that will convince us to book, and she does the negotiations. One cruise, it took her a month of calling repeatedly to get an agent who would meet our minimum expectations.

Different strokes for different folks, especially since I won't use an online TA.

The "Inside Passage" runs through mostly sheltered waters from Olympia up to Skagway, so technically you are seeing a miniscule portion of the Inside Passage. Having worked 2 entire seasons in Alaska and many additional cruises as a pax, I'll provide some experiences for your consideration. In addition, after leaving cruise ships, I worked the BC Coast for 35 yrs. NCL are very much a new cruise line in Alaska, compared to Princess & HAL. Their ships are leaving Alaska by the 2nd/3rd week of September. This is for a number of good reasons: - Weather: Alaska is unpredictable at the best of times, but storms normally start rolling in by mid-September. I experienced a 70 kt storm on both my Alaska seasons in Sept. Last year, they had a huge storm in the Pacific that required the late season ships to seek shelter. - Daylight: daylight is significantly reduced from June - Facilities: many stores and tour group have already closed for the season The Seattle ships must sail up/down the Pacific Ocean, which at that time of year has an increased propensity for being lumpy. Victoria's Ogden Point Terminal is also very open and susceptible to winds. When the wind hits 25 to 30 kts, ships are unable to dock. A positive is the number of hours ashore in both Ketchikan and Victoria. However, how much of Ketchikan will be open ? You will most likely be the only ship in port.

When researching ports, I use both the UK & Canadian Foreign & Commonwealth Office websites, I'm sure the US has similar resources to assist their citizens. These often state the requirement/restrictions for prescription & OTC medications. When travelling to foreign countries, you have 2 issues to consider - the countries regulations and the border officers that enforce them. Many will advise they have travelled for many years, as I have, and had no issues with being stopped. However, if the regulation require original pill containers and a doctor's note, only you can determine whether you comply, or not, based on your level of risk tolerance. It only takes 1 border officer who has a bad day to enforce the regulations. I was also shocked to read, "Only bring enough". Even pre-COVID we brought at least an extra week or two depending on the length of the holiday. In these times of airline chaos, we would increase the extra supply.

Negative, the 4 cruises prior to Ft Lauderdale are re-positioning the ship from the shipyard to the start of the World Cruise.

Having completed a World Cruise that had some segments, those of us on the full cruise did receive earlier booking opportunities than those on the segments. Further to Peregrina651's reply, I spent a number of months contacting vendors in Australia for private tours. Many of the vendors I used in previous years have retired or shut down the business. Those that survived are trying to re-establish sufficient resources and are starting with tours for locals, before re-establishing the international/cruise tourist side of the business. I have no doubt Viking will experience the same issue I did when arranging shore-ex, so I suspect some patience may be required, as Viking may not meet their deadlines.

When docked overnight, in most ports, at least 1 gangway is open 24/7. In the unlikely event the local authorities close the access, it will be noted in the Viking Daily. In tender ports, the tender schedule during the night will be posted in the Viking Daily. It again depends on the local authorities approving use of the tenders 24/7.

Personally, I find the Viking model way easier for my research. Takes a few minutes to make a dummy booking and Viking send you the Pax Statement that has everything list on 1 to 3 pages. Way easier than researching on some cruise line websites. If I want to book, I let the option lapse and have my TA call them to commence the negotiations prior to a booking.

I have also held back, as I believe Viking can really up their game with the shore-ex descriptions. When they were newly formed, I can accept the generic descriptions, but Viking Ocean has been operational now for over 7-years, so long past the time for them to expand these details. They should consider descriptions similar to many of the Princess shore-ex, where they include the length of walk on each portion of the tour, the type of surface and the number of stairs climbed or descended. Easy, Moderate and demanding are interpreted differently by pax with different fitness levels and physical limitations, either through illness or injury. Most of us have a reasonable knowledge of our abilities and more importantly limitations, so if Viking provide the details, we can make informed decisions. An excellent example is one of our shore-ex in Tahiti, which was designated "Moderate". It was a 4x4 Land Rover type vehicle, where we sat in benches in the back. It left the main road and headed inland. We made a number of stops, climbed down and could check out the area. They provided good steps to get in/out of the vehicle and minimal walking was required at each stop. This should have been designated easy, with the proviso it wasn't suitable for those with bad backs.

Clay - Since we had to cancel our cruises, we receive daily promos from Viking; however, they are often repeated after a few days, so it isn't a new promo every day. With respect to price changes, most Viking pax are well travelled and while some are on their first Viking cruise, few are taking their first ever cruise. Supply & demand pricing in the entire travel industry is common, not only the cruise industry, but also the airlines, hotels, etc. I have no doubt that most, if not all Viking pax are aware that the price they paid, could change. The timing of when you book a cruise depends on your personal circumstances and priorities. Personally, since DW has motion issues, we book early, provided the price is acceptable. Since location is a priority, by booking early, we accept the price could decrease. An example is the Trans-Atlantic we booked even before it was published, so we could get the same cabin as the WC. I expected this cruise to reduce in price. Note - it is already about $700 pp cheaper. Had we wanted those prices, we should have held off and booked later, when less cabins were available. We booked that cruise early to have our choice of cabin, personally I don't consider it fair if we benefit from getting our preferred cabin, but then also expect to benefit from the lower fares. Since we negotiated a price and agreed a contract, I expect both parties to adhere to the terms & conditions. If we expect Viking to provide lower prices, then I suggest it is reasonable for them to charge more when the cruise sells quickly, and they increase prices. Personally, I suggest Viking and pax should adhere to the contract we signed, as if prices drop, we do have the option of cancelling and re-booking, provided the reward is worth the time and risk.

Wow, thanks for clarifying. On Princess we were Elite, which gets free laundry, free internet, drinks in the fridge, etc. Even those benefits can't entice us to sail again with Princess, so MSC aren't even in the running, with those meagre benefits for their top tier.

Quick question for this topic. If Viking were to make future discounts available to those who have already booked and agreed a contract, is it reasonable to expect that when prices increase, Viking have the right to charge extra to those who booked at the lower rates. Our cabin on the recently cancelled WC increased by $12,000 a few months after we booked. If we don't wish to pay that increase, is it reasonable for us to expect money back, if the price dropped?