LeRenardrouge

Even a PV will suffice!

Perfect!

We have been upgraded twice to the Explorer Suite on river cruise and have to admit that was delightful. We purchased the AA Veranda Suite on our recent Portugal cruise and it was even nicer than the Explorer Suite on the regular longships.

OK, Upgrade Fairy, I'm waving my hands to get your attention for our upcoming Med Odyssey cruise. Not asking for Owner's Suite but PV would be nice. Of course if would be nice to get before excursion booking window.

YO! Hey!! <hands waving frantically> Upgrade Fairy! Over here! Please!! Over here!! Please!!

Congrats, baycruising. :D

Laughing out loud! Hubby and I just commented we would not know what to do with so much room.

On the Sky we saw a clearly posted placard that spelled out the dress requirements for the dining room. It was displayed at the entrance where there wasn't much chance of missing it.

 

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Was the placard also displayed at the World Cafe? This seems to be where there is so much uncertainty regarding jeans.

This has really gotten to the point of absurdity!

Look in almost any catalog for classy women's apparel and you will see white jeans with fancy tops as elegant casual attire.

Even some outfits are also showing denim" jeans with dressy tops. And some designer expensive jeans boast holes in the thigh or knee area. So who on earth at Viking is going to be the fashion police/judge?

I think the most annoying issue is their statement that jeans are not allowed in ALL dining venues after 6 pm.

Then we stumble on something someone has seen which excludes the World Cafe from the no jeans guidance.

It seems to me there should be one venue which is casual enough that clean decent jeans are allowed with clean, collared polo/golf type shirt. I do not like seeing no collared T shirts and sloppy attire so I may be drawing a line that someone else would not agree with.

For sure, Viking needs to get this clarified once and for all.

I've been searching for Lofoten options because of the brief included tour. Please tell me more about your. Do you have contact info for tour company? Thank you. Jeanne

See posting #37 in this thread for contact info for Lofoten Lights. We worked with Claudia.

We were in the Hilton Canopy last July on the post extension. We were there Sun, Mon, Tues nights.

We heard that it can be noisy because of location on weekend nights so that Viking put people in the Hilton Nordica if the extension included weekend nights. Not sure if that is fact or not.

Hilton Canopy is "funky" but very convenient location.

Roothy, how often did you find that you needed local currency and approximately how much did you get/use from the ATM?

I csn't speak for Roothy but we got the equavalent of $200 in local currency (conversion worked out to about 1,566 Krone/NOK) at the ATM in Tromso and that was all we got for the whole time in Norway. Almost everywhere will take credit cards or debit cards. We have a special small balance account with a debit card for use overseas.

We carry very little cash. ATMs are everywhere and we try to use only ones associated with a bank.

We did fhe included panoramic tour of Tromso which covered areas you would not be able to walk, then afterwards walked around town which was very walkable from where ship was docked.

I think the walk over across the water to fhe Arctic Cathedral that Roothy mentions would be a fair hike. However, we stooped there on fhe included tour.

There are some nice waterfront areas near the ship. There is also a bank/ATM close to where we were docked.

Which private tour company did you use for Lofoten?

We booked with Lofoten Lights and our contact and guide was Claudia.

Be sure she knows you dock at Leknes as she will customize a tour going South and west toward the Atlantic for stunning beach scenes Also, Viking does not always stay in port the same number of hours.

We did one that lasted about 6 hours. If was 950 NOK per person and max number of pax is 7 (we bad 6).

We wenf fo Nusfjord, FLakstad, Ramburg, Sakrisoy (also squeezed in Reine on return), and A with the little "o" over it. I think fhe beach areas were near Haukland and Uttakleiv.

They have good reviews on TripAdvisor but we booked indeoendently with them on their website. Also contact email is:

contact_us@lofotenlights.com

We paid at the end with credit card.

The July 1, 2017 cruise departed Greenwich at 7:30 pm.

We are in the process of booking our fourth Viking Ocean cruise for May 2019. We received a $200 credit off the price of our second cruise (scheduled for May, 2018), and that same amount for trips 3 (October 2018) and 4 (booking now for July 2019). Does Viking ever increase the amount you get for previous cruises??? Thanks for any information.

Recently booked number eleven--same $200 pp returning cruiser discount.

I hope the following helps.

Day 1. Arrived in Barcelona on Thursday 8 March. The Barcelona port authorities offered a shuttle bus from the cruise terminal (Moll Adossat Terminal B) to the World Trade Centre near Las Ramblas. Service started at 7.30am, the last bus returning 11.30pm. It ran every 10 to 15 mins. The cost was 3Euros one way and 4Euros return. These details were printed in the Viking Daily. There are also taxis available at the port.

Day 2. Friday, a full day in city. Viking did offer a complimentary shuttle bus to town centre starting at 9.00am last one returning at 3.45pm. I don't know how often but I guess maybe every 30 minutes.

Day 3 Marseille we docked at the main terminal at approx. 8am. The shuttle buses were offered from the pier to Virage Vaudoyer in the Old Port of Marseille. Starting 9.00am last one returning 5.00pm. Again every 30 minutes.

Day 4 Monaco, yes we docked, no need for a tender.

Day 5 Livorno, for Florence & Pisa. Shuttle bus was offered from 7.30am with last one returning 7.00pm. This was operated by local company and details were in Viking Daily regarding tickets, however if was complimentary.

Day 6 Civitavecchia for Rome. Shuttle bus from pier to main drop off points Varco Vespucci and Varco Fortezza, every 15 mins. Last bus returning 10.00pm

Day 7 Naples. No mention of shuttle bus being offered in the Viking Daily.

Day 8 Sea day

Day 9 Corfu. Shuttle bus was offered. First bus 9.00am last one returning 5.00pm.

Day 10 Split. No bus was offered and the ship docks near town centre.

Day 11 Dubrovnik. First bus 8.00am last one returning from Old Town 1.30pm.

Day 12 Venice. Shuttle boat Service. From the ship to Cornnoldi Pier, along the Riva degli Schiavoni on the Venice water front. This drop off is about 10 mins walk to St Marks Square.

 

We had rain and windy weather so the Captain took the decision to swap days 10 and 11 around. Visiting Split first then sailing south to Dubrovnik then on to Venice. We docked about 3 hours later in Venice again because of the weather. These little changes didn't really spoil the cruise for us, however because we docked late in Venice because of the weather a few of the day time tours were retimed or cancelled. I know that all the evening gondola ride were cancelled. Shame, but we have no control over the weather.

 

I think the Meet & Mingle was indeed on day 3, Marseille.

 

Regarding the Chef's Table Restaurant menus. We dined there 3 times there, it's our favourite restaurant. The food and the service is very good. The menus we tried were the Carnival, The Scandi and the Gastromonies Through Time. All three menus were lovely. There was an Chinese and another menu but can't remember the description.

 

I hope this helps with planning your holidays.

Another thank you, Northumbrialass. I have done a screen shot of your info and filed it with other tips.

We are getting closer but not fast enough. Got so antsy to sail again I slipped in a river cruise.

I am using my iPad without issues.

Hummmm. Really odd.

I tried clearing history and website data, turned off fhe iPad and restarted. Problem persists.

Then tried Chrome (which I also have insfalled on the iPad) and same issue there.

Don't know what is going on but don't want keep this thread going if no one else has a problem.

Thanks all.

What cruise are you doing?

Mediterranean Odyssey. But, I checked several of the Med cruises, several of the Baltic cruises. Same problem. Even checked River cruises and sure enough, same issue there.

Checked repeatedly over several hours. At least it works on Firefox so I suspect it is a browser problem.

I usually check this on my iPad (Safari browser) when casually checking and comparing excursions and it has always worked until today. Now, I experience the same issue of showing no itineraries, no Day to Day info and no excursions. Odd.

I did just check on my regular desktop computer and using Firefox, it works.

Apparently, something seems to have gone wrong with compatibility as far as Safari browser is concerned.

Thanks for checking to see if it worked for you. Guess no more casual searching relaxing in front of boring TV programs.

I will keep checking to see if it will work later on the iPad.

I went to the Viking Ocean website as I normally do to check the itineraries and possible excursions to be offered for an upcoming cruise.

They seem to all be missing now. Has anyone else noticed that? Is it just my browser issue or is Viking doing a total revamp of their website and itineraries and excursions?

Thank you so much' date=' sounds like Geiranger is the vest.[/quote']

 

We did the kayaking excursion in Geiranger in July 2017.

 

Although the description said you would walk to the kayaking launch site, we met our guide at the main dock in Geiranger and were bused to where we would launch.

 

A pretty rustic site but there is a small trailer where you can leave things such as backpacks, purses, etc.

 

You are provided with special kayaking vests and "skirts."

 

You will be using double kayaks and will launch from a dock. Although the waters are likely to be mostly very calm, there is a current so it was a bit more strenuous than we anticipated. But then, we were somewhat older than most of the other participants so we had trouble keeping up but did "finish the course."

 

Be sure and use the bathroom before leaving the dock area. I think the guys made out at the trailer but nothing for women. The restrooms in the dock area had long lines and about half of them were out of order.

 

VIking normally anchors at Geiranger and you tender to port. Be sure if you schedule an excursion in the morning you have enough time. We had less than 30 minutes between our morning excursion and kayaking excursion so we ate something at the port and also had taken a change of clothes which they recommended with us on our morning excursion. Thankfully, we did not need that change of clothing. :D

 

It was fun.

I agree that there's no need to fear not getting back to the ship on time. And yes, generally you can find a tour that costs less than what Viking (and just about any other cruise line) is offering. If a third party (i.e. off ship) tour sounds expensive just for you and traveling companions, maybe you can get a couple other people to share. It's great to be able to more or less plan your day or afternoon, and to have more flexibility.

 

Yes, Norway is definitely expensive, and the excursions often reflect that.

 

In Geiranger, the included tour offered by Viking was actually a little more comprehensive than a popular coach tour offered by the well-known vendor there. So if you only want to go to a few places for views by coach, don't pay the vendor for the excursion, just take Viking's included excursion.

 

In the Orkney Islands, we used Experience Orkney Tours (Ann Marwick, +447798886078, annmarwick@btinternet.com) to (mostly) tour Skara Brae. All 4 of us thought it was a great afternoon. That left a little time for me to explore the town of Kirkwall on my own in the morning.

We also used Ann Marwick for an all day tour with one other couple. She is very professional and passionate and knowledgeable about Orkney--especially its archeology. The only fault I found at all was that is was a little hard to hear her sitting behind her. We covered all the territory in our one day tour that was included in three different tours done by Viking and also saw a few things none of theirs went to. With just four of us on the tour, we could move much more rapidly than a large tour bus group.

Check out Lofoten Lights website:

http://lofotenlights.com/?lang=en

We used them last year. Claudia was good to work with. She customized our tour to maximize what we saw in time in port.

Be sure she knows where the ship will be docking. We docked at Leknes but some of Viking ships have tendered there. They live in Solvaer and some of their tours have been geared to start there but it was no problem for them to customize the trip beginning in Leknes.

We paid with CC at end of the tour. I can't recall if we paid a deposit at time of booking or not (don't think so).

There were 6 of us in our group.

Do you need to carry all of these over-the-counter meds in your carry on, in a ziplock bag? Or can these items and other common over the counter meds/supplements just go in your regular checked-in baggage?

Nan,

There is no restriction against putting your meds in either checked or carryon. The reason it is recommended that you put your meds in carryon is that your checked bags may not make it to your destination. I have had my luggage lost several times. Going to Russia, my luggage did not make it for three days.

We were on the Viking Sky, starting in London July 1, 2017. We had quite good weather especially temperaturewise. Rain all day in Edinburgh. Light rain to start the morning in Orkney. Geirangerfjord morning was very gray and overcast in the morning which really impacted our optional Cruise called "Breathtaking Fjords." But by afternoon, bright sun and about 70 degrees for the kayaking excursion.

Even at the North Cape, if was almost 70 degrees and sunny. I took a lightweight packable down jacket, a fleece jacket, and a waterproof Columbia Arcadia jacket and was able to layer as needed.

Iceland was much colder. Last day there it was 46 with driving rain and 45 mph winds. We rode along for the Blue Lagoon excursion to see the countryside but skipped a dip in the thermal waters. Our extension was a four night extension (I don't think they offer it now) with an extra night in Bergen which gave us a full day in Bergen after disembarking. We were in a hotel very close to where the ship was docked so easy walking distance to see lots of Bergen. We chose our excursions for the regular day in Bergen for the cruise to places farther away and then did the wharf areas on our own. We flew out very early from Bergen with flight to Oslow then to Reykjavic. We were in Reykjavic by noon, dropped our luggage at the hotel (Hilton Canopy) and took off to see the city on foot.

Non-Drowsy natural Dramamine is 1000 mg Ginger. Dose recommended is 2 capsules.

We are doing this cruise in July and would like some advice on excursions. We want to see as much of the fjords as possible. We are considering the The Trollfjord by Traditional Wooden Boat in the port of Lofoten. Has anyone done this tour and if so would you recommend it? Did anyone do an excursion that you loved and recommend? Thank you for your input!

 

 

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I heard several expressions of disappointment about the Trolifjord boat excursion. The Lofoten islands is more about the beautiful beaches, fishing industry and lovely scenic fishing villages and bays rather than fjords.

The included excursion (at least on our cruise) was only 2 hours long and with so many hours in port, there was so much more to see.

We ended up scheduling a private group tour of six of us who met on CC for the full day.

In the Orkney Islands, the most popular excursion was the Orkney's Stone age. It sold out before we could book so we again did a private tour for the day with one other couple we also did the Lofoten private tour. Skara Brae was very interesting.

This is a great itinerary and it really is hard to narrow down your choices of what to do. We did a couple of excursions on several days and that tended to be cutting it a bit close getting back to the ship, getting something to eat and then ready to leave on next excursion.

In Geirangerfjord, Viking usually tenders so we did not even try to go back to the ship after the morning tour and got something to eat before meeting up with our kayaking excursion in port. We would definifely not have made if back to the ship.

Char Trav, when are you scheduled to come back to Miami? I just looked at the Port of Miami on marinetraffic.com and there are quite a lot of ships there today (Saturday) but not any Viking ships. A Regent ship is at terminal J, and Celebrity, MSC, 2 Carnivals and a Norwegian ship are on the other side. If you come back tomorrow, maybe I'll take a peek on the port webcam.

 

Yes, there will be plenty of cabs. They find each ship.

 

I imagine the chip in the key card is wherever they point the scanner when you leave (middle of card?) For people wanting to use a lanyard, I'd just let the staff punch the keycard, just to be safe. People can also use a name tag type holder, where the keycard simply slides in - no punching needed, and can be transferred to a pocket or wallet if needed.

I saw some pictures posted by someone yesterday who had just returned from one of the Cruises and they had on bright blue lanyards which had "Viking Cruises" written in white on the fabric part and clear plastic cases where the key card goes. This is exactly what I used last year but I used a lanyard from another venue I had been on.

Karine had noticed some of us had them on on and seemed very interested. Maybe they are now providing them for cruisers.

Oh, a word of caution. DO not punch a hole in the card yourself. A few people on our cruise did and it made their card not work and also messed up their spouse's card (not punched). If you want it punched, get some one in the staff to do it. Some of them at the service desks will know how.

So, do the gratuities added to your account include all staff on board? Where do you typically still tip? I am guessing excursion hosts, Viking transfer drivers, who else do you tip separately?

 

 

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When you receive your cruise documents, usually a few weeks before cruise, there will be guidelines about onboard gratuities amounts recommended for tour guides and bus drivers. We always leave nice amount for our room stewards as they are the ones who we interact with most and do so much for us. We are not drinkers so do not have to worry about bartenders.