CurlerRob

Thx for the confirmation. The "price tag" for doing it that way is that you have to listen to the elevator music that plays on the camera channel when there are no announcements 🤢 🍺🥌

If my memory serves from 2019, they can be heard on the bow cam channel (or I’ve confused it with a different ship 😬 ). 🍺🥌

Quite possibly - that phrase is beloved by corp. lawyers, and usually translates as "the rules are what we say they are at the time you ask". 😈 I'm not slagging Viking here. When we accepted a grossed-up voucher in lieu of cash for a cancelled past voyage, I was clearly aware that we were assuming a degree of risk. I just find it interesting that the risk manifested itself in a way I never anticipated (no voucher for down payment), nor would have thought to ask about. But, that's why it's called risk 😢! 🍺🥌

Thanks, I was aware of that - but the document comes from the TripMate CFAR optional insurance coverage. It certainly applies to vouchers generated under that plan. My reference (perhaps unclear) was to the Viking RFG - the program that was introduced during the post-Covid restart and generated a separate set of vouchers. I have not found any documentation similar to the TripMate language that is associated with the RFG or in Viking's T&C document - and I wouldn't accept contractual terms from separate contract that I didn't sign. 🍺🥌

Please see @Heidi13's post in #8 - Viking has offered to subdivide large vouchers in the past, but each individual voucher has to be fully used on a single trip. Regarding voucher use for a down payment, my personal experience is that the entire industry fights tooth and nail against allowing us to use a voucher as a down-payment, but it appears to be an industry practice versus a written T&C. I challenged Viking to point me to the documentation on this, and they were unable to do so. The RFG language is very opaque - "Voucher can be used on any new Viking cruise and will be applied at booking" - really leaves the down payment question open. 🍺🥌

Hi Dee - I'm 6 1" as well, so the shower was like a wet coffin 👿. Internet is included, but it blocks streaming sites like YouTube - for that you have to pay extra. You only get 1 login at a time unless you purchase an additional at notable cost - we had 4 devices, so constantly had to kick one off to activate another (this is similar to how HAL does it, Viking is much better, even when the service is poor). The pool deck is permanently open - no retractable roof - good/bad depending on the weather. Gym was equivalent to Viking, can't speak to the spa, as we didn't use it and actually have not done so on our single Viking trip earlier - may change that next June! Cheers! 🍺🥌

Impossible to compete with @Clay Clayton's thread on HAL 😁, but for anyone interested, we just completed an initial trip with Oceania. I posted a number of my observations on their main board - the link is below. 🍺🥌

We just completed our first trip with Oceania – Insignia, from Montreal to Miami. We decided to post our impressions as data points for other people considering a first O cruise. By way of background, we are experienced cruisers, sailing previously with HAL (their older ships) and Viking. Booking / Embarkation We found the booking and pricing information more complex than necessary. OLife with airfare was contrasted with cruise-only pricing but does not clearly identify the actual OLife cost. While the math can be done, why make it so obtuse? And, quoting astronomical “brochure fares” is utterly pointless. The timeliness of information regarding requirements (vax, travel authorizations, country entry requirements) prior to the cruise was poor. Requirements were only finalized shortly before the cruise – although the various country requirements were available from country websites much earlier. As well, there were numerous discrepancies between the various documents on the O website – consistency is critical. Embarkation itself was well handled and quick - only 1/2-hour in total. Our cabin was ready by 1 pm. It was a nice touch to have our steward’s name up on the TV screen upon arrival. Overall rating B. The Ship Insignia is a smaller ship, which very much suits our preference. We found her clean and well maintained. Getting oriented was very easy – this may have been due to the very similar layout to the older HAL ships. The decor is more the traditional style, as opposed to Viking’s contemporary approach. A strong plus was the great forward lounge (Horizons) that has copious seating all along the windows with quality views forward and abeam. Regretfully, I was unable to find any exterior spot with an unobstructed view forward for pictures, unlike HAL or Viking. The lack of a full, covered promenade deck was a minus for us as walkers. In order to walk a complete lap, one had to go up to the fitness track on Deck 10, which is completely open to the elements and was closed on occasion due to winds. Overall rating A. Cabin We chose a ‘Concierge’ cabin, with a balcony. It was advertised as 216 square feet, which was somewhat smaller than the ~270 square feet on our comparative lines. In general, we found the cabin itself quite adequate, with more than ample storage. An oddity was that our one large suitcase would not fit under the bed, as it usually does, but it did fit nicely into the closet. The bed was very comfortable. The pillows were feather, which is not our preference but we did not request a change. The toiletries provided were highly scented, but scent-free versions were available from the cabin steward. The balcony was quite standard in our experience – a sliding door opened to two chairs and a small table – worked fine for two people. The bathroom was VERY small - to the point that the commode lacked the necessary legroom. Worse was the shower - it’s tiny and a strange trapezoidal shape, with maximum dimensions of about 22” by 34”. It was extremely difficult to use and would be dangerous in a seaway as there is simply not enough room to brace oneself. It was pretty clear where the sacrifice was made regarding the lower square footage. There’s obviously nothing to be done about the configuration, but new pax should be aware. Our rating would have been an A but the bathroom was so awkward to use that it dragged it down to a C. Dining / Drinks Oceania says they have the “finest cuisine at sea”. Not having sailed on every line, I can’t confirm or deny that statement. I can say that their food was, in general, every bit as good, and frequently a notch above our previous experiences. There were usually five choices for each part of the meal, with good variety. Meats, fish and poultry were all cooked perfectly to order. The soups were uniformly excellent. There were a few failures (baked Parmesan-crusted chicken, I’m looking at you), but not a significant number. The Grand Dining Room was, in our view, the least distinguished from our other experiences – we’d be hard pressed to identify much that was different. Seating was reasonably prompt, other than on the first night crush. The tables are well-spaced so you can enjoy some privacy from your neighbours. The Terrace Cafe was a delight, not only for the variety and quality of the food, but especially for the large seating area on the stern - partly covered with nearly all tables protected from the wind. We ate there even on quite cold days, for the view and alfresco experience. We also appreciated that food service is done by the staff – apart from the improved hygiene, we find that provides more opportunity to interact with them. The Waves poolside grill had excellent hot dogs, burgers and sandwiches, with quick service even at peak times. We found the two specialty restaurants quite different. Polo Grill was as good as many shoreside steak houses we’ve been to. The Italian offering, Toscana, was average at best - across its service, food quality and ambiance. Unfortunate, as we love Italian food. One oddity we encountered was that coffee was not routinely offered after meals in any of the restaurants. We learned to order it with our dessert. Oceania’s selection of wines by the glass and beer was by far the best we’ve encountered - lots of choices and good quality at reasonable prices. As well, Oceania permits a single pax to purchase or upgrade their beverage package, rather than requiring everyone in the cabin to do so. A very classy move that was greatly appreciated by us. Oceania provided two aluminum drink bottles (that you can keep), which could be refilled with the ship’s special bottled water. Very helpful touch. Rated A. Service We have never found a ship’s crew to be other than very friendly and accommodating. This continued on Insignia – fine service across the board. Any minor errors were acknowledged and fixed immediately. We did experience some inconsistency at times, which had the appearance of staff shortages / new staff. This was our first cruise post-Covid, so our observation may apply across all lines. Rated A. ShoreEx We generally prefer independent excursions, which was fortunate, as we found Oceania’s performance in this area completely unacceptable. First, the prices. We are quite used to the cruise lines’ normal markups but found O’s to be simply ridiculous - often 400% versus a DIY tour. An example - the Newport cliff walk and Breakers tour was $300 for a couple. We replicated the tour for $73. Even if one wanted multiple ship tours and leveraged the O discounts available when selecting the OLife excursion option, prices still would show more than a 3X markup. The second issue was the degree of change to excursions, and lack of communication regarding those changes. We chose only one ship excursion, taken in NYC. Once on the tour, we discovered that the harbour cruise portion promised had morphed into a bus ride. We later discovered that the shore-ex brochure left in the cabin (which looks identical to every other excursion sales brochure we’ve ever seen) identified alterations to many excursions. There was no announcement, no ‘flag’ to be sure to closely review the brochure and no prior emails. The predictable result was a large number of upset pax. Excursion changes are normal, but we have never seen a cruise line who expects pax to ferret out changes without any notification. This was a total failure - rated F. Internet We include thoughts on the internet service as it’s a “hot topic” on nearly every line. We had the standard internet package. Overall, it was similar to but slightly less functional than other lines, which is to say, usually slow and wildly inconsistent regarding reliability of service. We were annoyed that only one device could be active at a time - much switching required unless one wanted to pony up the high costs for a second login. Interestingly, when the service was behaving, we were able to have a few Skype video calls, even without the “streaming” upgrade, so that was a bonus. Rated C. (We have yet to find a cruise line that rated anywhere near an A). Entertainment We are not partial to shipboard entertainment, didn’t attend any shows, so have no opinion to offer. There appeared to be a decent set of the standard activities and shows. Our only poor experience was when the show band played in the forward lounge one evening. They were so loud that most pax left within minutes. Summary The ultimate question for us was “would we cruise with Oceania again”? Our answer was “yes”. Critiques aside, we felt that we received appropriate value on the trip. For us, choosing O again would be a function of the itinerary and time of year – we would enjoy experiencing the ship with more time in warmer climes, as it seemed particularly suited to better weather. If we were to undertake a longer voyage, we would have to give careful consideration to a cabin upgrade to escape the bathroom purgatory – that would increase the cost by about 1/3 and would strain O’s competitiveness. Hopefully, these observations and the logic behind them will be of use to other potential pax. Happy sailing! 🍺🥌

As @janetcbl says, the Norway in a Nutshell is great and can also be done as one day. For Bergen itself - a walking tour of Brygge; funicular to Mt. Floyen; tour the Fishmarket; Rodne fjord cruise below which leaves from the wharf right downtown, about 20 minute walk from the ship. 🍺🥌 https://rodne.no/en/fjordcruise/fjord-cruise-to-mostraumen/

I know you asked your question in good faith - but may I suggest setting arbitrary time limits will lead to the same problems. One persons' 30 minutes begets the next persons' hour, etc... FWIW, I use a different approach. If I'm using a chair, that's an "activity". If I then decide to do something different, such as a meal, or a walk around the deck, or ... I set the chair free. It's not the elapsed time in my view, it's my decision to change activities. To your original question, no-one should object to pax grabbing a drink and returning immediately, or a washroom break - but I also have the habit of getting my coffee/food on the way to my spot. 🍺🥌

Saturn, according to MarineTraffic.com. 🍺🥌

Wrong thread?? 🍺🥌

Enjoy your TA! Love you screen name. How is the cat doing? 😈 🍺🥌

Regarding your intention to look elsewhere - a word of caution. My personal experience is that it is an industry practice to not accept vouchers in place of down payments - I had exactly that happen on a different line, who insisted that a new cash deposit was required before applying my voucher. I was astonished but got nowhere, even though this does not seem to be a written condition anywhere that I could find. Regarding your other points, I'm afraid I'm in the 'limited sympathy' camp. When we accepted vouchers from several lines, it was very clear what the risks we were assuming in exchange for the increased value of the FCVs. I don't hold the lines responsible for my assumptions regarding the length of the pandemic, my ability to use the FCVs or the decisions I made to accept them. 🍺🥌

This is a wonderful pic, Clay. I'm curious as to where it was taken - and what is the peak in the background? Looks like the Big Island, but I could be totally wrong. Glad you enjoyed the HAL experience - relax and rest up from a long haul day! 🍺🥌

I applied about 4 weeks prior to our Insignia trip, received confirmation immediately and was charged a few days later. After hearing nothing, I called 2 weeks prior to our start date. The agent would not process my application at that point (others had a different outcome) but advised that they were now "more automated" and I would see the TA a week prior to our sailing. We received both TAs today for our October 31 sailing - just as she indicated. Their system appears to be working well, but it does cause some stress as embarkation (or not!) gets nearer! 🍺🥌

Your statement's cleverness sparked my curiosity - which led me to the following article: https://www.thekitchn.com/the-english-muffin-is-not-english-at-all-234056 On reading the reference to "toaster crumpets", I think my vote would be for "failed crumpet". I also think I desperately need a real life ... 🍺🥌

A number of experiences are near the end of the Insignia Oct 31 Roll Call. Contact by phone appears to be dependent on which agent you speak to ... 🍺🥌

Don't stress over it. I once saw a gent with a Halloween pumpkin pin. Not sure it matched his outfit, but his heart was in the right place 😈. 🍺🥌

Absolutely no requirement at all, but if you have something, even a small item, wearing it is a sign of respect for the Dutch - the association with the colour is linked to the Royal family, originating with William of Orange, who was crowned Prince of Orange in 1544. With his leadership, the colour orange became a symbol of the Dutch Royal family. 🍺🥌

Possibly my layman's vernacular, Chief. Fuel cells may be different than fuel? There was an earlier thread that touched on this - with an article that referenced the use of hydrogen fuel cells. Andy flagged you at one point in the discussion, but I don't think you ever saw or commented on it. Granted it's a ways out: 2026-28 plans. In any event, the discussion point was around the pressure for low to zero emissions being an increasing hurdle for all cruises in Norway. 🍺🥌

From other reading, they hate all cruise ships. There are similar ones all over the world. As a different poster mentioned, a fringe group. Norway is home to significant levels of environmental activism, regardless of ship origin. Multiple moves afoot to restrict cruising with any emissions in the major fjords and Svallbard. Possibly one of the reasons that several of the new Viking ships apparently will be hydrogen fueled. 🍺🥌

One of the July articles that covered the protests is here ... 🍺🥌 https://www.cruisehive.com/protests-in-norway-over-environmental-damage-caused-by-cruise-ships/76922

Is it possible that you posted the wrong document? While the opening paragraph acknowledges industry involvement, it doesn't read as an industry-sponsored initiative: "The Eastern Seaboard and Western Australian Cruise Protocols are the primary document outlining Governments’ expectations for cruise lines operating in Australia (domestic and international). They were developed on the instruction of National Cabinet, are informed by industry, and have been approved by Governments across the Eastern Seaboard and in Western Australia. As national COVID-19 settings change, state Governments will consider and advise industry of any changes to the Protocols." I found it contradictory, but perhaps the Government appropriated the industry suggestions (wouldn't be the first time ...)? 🍺🥌

Several stories, none of which are likely appropriate here 😈 ... 🍺🥌