OneSixtyToOne

I believe MVJ chat is only available during certain business hours. It’s not 24/7

You can really do the palace on your own. Tickets are easy to buy in advance. Make sure you buy the Secret Itineraries tour of the Doge’s Palace. It’s incredible. You’ll see the cell where Casanova was imprisoned and walk across the Bridge of Sighs as well as other sights not seen on the general tour. Right in San Marcos Plaza is the Florian, one of the oldest cafe’s in Europe. Splurge and have a dessert there.

It's right near the Aquavit bar area on the port side. Last year on the Sky there was only a storage area, holding racks of glassware. My prior cruise was on the Jupiter so when I went back to see what was being served there, it surprised me.

The planetariums programs were not implemented correctly and I consider it a major failure for Viking, not to mention an expensive underused asset. We were on the 2nd sailing of the Jupiter and the planetarium was showing something similar to an IMAX dome presentation, but no planetarium shows. There was an astronomer guest lecturer aboard so I approached him and asked if he could give a presentation in the planetarium. He researched it and two days later he announced a presentation and printed out a limited number of tickets. He did an hour on various stars, planets, and cosmology. It was very enjoyable and informative. I have a feeling that Viking's vision was an automated movie theater without the need or cost of a presenter. IMO a big fail.

A new Viking river itinerary for 2025, Nuremberg to Basel. https://www.vikingrivercruises.com/cruise-destinations/europe/rhine-and-main-explorer/2025-nuremberg-basel/index.html

That is a combination of Italian Sojourn and Venice, The Adriatic, and Greece, hence a B2B.

I believe that almost all of the Viking Cruises that dock in Venice are part of a B2B. There are Rome to Venice and Venice to Athens legs that are sold separately.

That’s all folks!

Sounds like one of the circles of hell

That information is in your email prior to boarding. Although not as detailed as the port talk, you do have ample time to see all that is available. After boarding you can ask questions about any of them and get a full rundown. You don’t have to wait until the port talk. I find the port talks really geared for those doing it on their own (the opening of the talk) and those going on specific excursions (the 2nd part of the talk).

You ordered drinks over the $18 limit (champagne?).

As discussed on this board multiple times, it is the middle day of a back to back cruise (two or more separate cruises and you are on one that has been bundled together to create one with a new name). People are departing and arriving which is a very busy time for the staff. For some reason, Viking doesn’t release an excursion schedule for those passengers staying on the ship. Possibly it’s to prevent newly boarding passengers from scheduling an excursion on the day they arrive. It’s also possible that their software can’t handle the circumstances. In any event, you will be notified of available excursions (if any) once you are onboard.

Search for Sagrada Familia Official

We also passed at midnight

Here is a relevant posting in another thread: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2416372-tips-for-new-viking-ocean-cruisers/?do=findComment&comment=67098523

Here you go. It was an amazing cruise.

The app is excellent. For example it explains that the different colored columns are different density stone with the densest being used for the main tower, which has not been constructed yet. Other tours we have had guides tell us they were not allowed to do guided tours inside and instead they did it on the QT. BTW be sure to visit the basement area and the schoolhouse built by Gaudi to teach the children of the workers.

Inside is self guided via the LSG phone app. Since COVID the church no longer hands out headphones or listening devices so be sure to bring something compatible to listen with your phone. BTW you can download the LSG app anytime and listen to the tour. It may be better to do that ahead of time to be aware of what you are seeing.

Is the “Noodle Bar” at the pool new or just for the WC? I don’t recall ever seeing that before.

Normal dinner time for all 3 venues is 6:00-9:00 PM Afternoon tea is 4:00-5:00 PM in the Wintergarden, but not available on embarkation day. Mamsen’s has snacks, soup, and dessert until Midnight. World Cafe and Pool Grill open for lunch at 11:00 AM. The Pool Grill will serve until around 3:00, but the World Cafe starts closing down around 1:30 PM. Closing times may vary depending on special events (pool area often has something going on).

You should really try and see the Bayeux Tapestry. It's amazing,

You might want to consider Rome / Florence / Venice by train as part of your land excursion. We did a 10 day trip a few years ago and it was fantastic. 2 days in Venice is more than enough. Spend as much time in Florence as possible.

In our last Med cruise, there was an insert in the first Viking daily stating they were piloting a new program of “gentle walkers” included tours, similar to what was available on VR. Looks like they may have implemented it fleet wide.

They go into detail of every excursion whether filled or not. It lets you know what to expect, pickup spots, if any, difficulty, schedule, and other useful information. I have never interpreted it as a sales pitch, subtle or otherwise. To the OP, many times the lecturers will bring up something relevant to your port of calls. I’ve discovered many useful things by attending the nightly lectures as well as the port talks. This was especially true before we visited Pompeii and Herculean. The lecturer on the Roman Empire pointed out things we should look for.

The Olympics in Paris is messing with their sailings. I noticed the Cities of Light cruise is offering extensions in Brussels, Bruges, and Oxford instead of Paris. There are many other modifications too.