Phillygirl3

Just got our notice of April cancellation--got teary eyed because it's the 3rd cancellation we have had and two with Viking.  I'm totally bummed as travel for me is my happy place.

We are taking the refund and hope that it won't take almost 3 months like it did the last time.  Best of luck to all of my fellow cruisers regarding future travels.  I can't wrap my head around 2022, let alone 2023.  I glad that many of you are optimistic--we need to be!!

Just booked 2021 cruise to Egypt/Israel with a pre-cruise visit to Jordan.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed as I have already had two cruises cancelled in 2020!

Is it just me but has anyone else noticed that any new brochures that are mailed from cruise lines seem to reflect higher prices?  My TA told me that there would be many bargains as cruise lines need to get people back to cruising and fill their cabins.  Of course, maybe it's true for the mega ships who are cruising the Caribbean.  I have received brochures or offers via email from Regent, Silversea, Oceania, etc. and their fares seem to be higher even though they are saying that the fare is $1,000 less or that you are getting a credit.  It seems to me that some of the higher end cruises are increasing their fares, not reducing them.  I have a Viking cruise scheduled for 2021 and I do hope that it doesn't become the third cruise that I have had cancelled due to the pandemic.  I am so mourning the loss of the ability to travel.

We should be sailing on Regent next week but still have not received our initial deposit for this cruise which was cancelled in June.  My TA has been giving us feedback from Regent saying it was processing it in two weeks--that was almost a month ago.  Meanwhile, we continue to get brochures from Regent with upcoming cruise itineraries--wishful thinking on my part as many of the itineraries includes countries who may not be welcoming of foreign visitors.  However, I'm hopeful, but if Regent is having difficulty processing a deposit, I'm glad that I didn't pay in full.  Does anyone have an insight into what the situation is with Regent's delay in returning funds to their clients?  Thank you!

Silversea is promoting some offers that are very enticing but I'm reading some negative reviews of the ship and its service and in particular the itinerary from Aqaba to Mumbai.  Many are giving these ports low ratings and even used some not so great language to describe some of the ports.  I have always valued the feedback from my fellow cruisers to enlighten me on various topics over the years and I am counting on your input to determine whether or not I should continue to consider this ship and itinerary.  Thanking you in advance for your feedback!

Well, I never thought of myself as being a miser when it comes to spending on a cruise, river or ocean, but when I received the email regarding the Mississippi River cruises, I thought that they were rather pricey.  Some were more expensive than some 15 day cruises we have taken to Europe and we are talking about air inclusion, where I never saw anything in the information that indicated that air was included.  Love Viking, love my country but paying $10,000+ per person is something that I am not prepared to do unless reviews are outstanding once the cruises begin.

Can't wait to hear the feedback from cruisers who do decide to go with Viking on the Mississippi or any other river in the US.

To echo what has already been said, "You needn't be apologetic."  It appears as if you go out of your way to be thoughtful and respectful of your fellow cruise passengers.  It would be nice if everyone followed the behavior that you demonstrate.  I think back on my many cruises and still can picture people pushing to get on shore, into tenders, in line for food, etc.  Also, those who hold up excursions because they didn't meet the group on time or when they were inconsiderately shopping at the last minute, thereby holding up the return trip back to the ship.  And don't get me started on people who continue to drop their belongings on primo located deck chairs and leave their stuff there for hours, holding their place while they are eating lunch.    You can't imagine how many times I have been tempted to pick up their things and put them on the deck, but I can't be "one of those people," even if they are being "one of those people."  Life is too short to worry about someone's idea of who should or should not be cruising.  Those people who have no tolerance for people who have a physical disability, hopefully, won't find themselves in the same situation one day.  Will they find themselves a victim of the same thing about which they are currently complaining?  

If cruise lines deny people 70 and over to jump through hoops in order to be allowed to sail, they will be hurting themselves.  On cruise lines such as Seabourn, Regent, Silversea, Crystal, etc. probably the majority of the passengers are 70 and over-- so they would be losing an incredible amount of revenue by excluding this age demographic.  It would not bode well for them.

Hihandycap:

Thank you, so much, for this information, it is much appreciated.  We are, also, Chase members and I assumed that this would be their policy regarding cruise cancellations.  So for now, we will have to wait for our cruise line to cancel the cruise, which is, without a doubt, going to take place.

Wonderful idea to keep the memories coming!  Since my upcoming cruise will, most likely, be cancelled I find myself reading travel books and looking for films or videos that have a travel aspect to them.  I'm attaching a photo of the first thing we saw on our Rio to Barcelona cruise.  We loved Tenerife and best of all, we met two wonderful couples that we have kept in touch with and have even have had visits from, even though they live far away from me.  

Thanks, again for doing something to lift our spirits.  I love the saying that someone mentioned on our last cruise in December.  "We are travelers, not tourists."

Does anyone know if you paid for your cruise with a credit card that offers a certain amount of coverage for your trip, will reimburse you (credit back) for coronavirus?  I'm thinking "No" as this is something unusual that isn't normally covered in any type of travel insurance.  

Thanks for any feedback?

I'm sure that we will be getting more information or clarification, but what we have read says that travel from European countries will be banned into the US, not going to Europe.  However, this would impact people trying to get back to the US.  I guess we will wait and see what exactly is the truth!

Now they are saying they will funnel US citizens into 13 airports if they have visited the 26 countries that are most affected.  So, more clarification will be coming our way, I'm assuming.

Well, our visa arrived today and if we do not use them and decide to cancel, we will have to eat almost $600.  We are still sticking by "wait and see" as our travel agent said that the situation is "very fluid."  In addition, I'm still getting emails from Viking promoting the Kremlin Armory excursion, so who knows what to think.  However, I still believe that our country is bombarded us with so much information and scary statistics  (not that we shouldn't be concerned).  

If the iconic landmarks are closed in Russia, there is no reason for Viking to go there, but when I read this article, which I'm attaching in Pravada (Moscow's leading newspaper) it made me think that maybe, just maybe there is hope for all of us or at least some of us  to make the trip.  

Hoping for the best!

https://www.pravdareport.com/health/144382-russia_coronavirus/

If you haven't read this article, it is worthwhile, maybe even to skim it.  It is making the rounds but we will continue to listen to the hype, anxiety and panic that is taking place.  I don't want to diminish the seriousness of this virus, I think the media is compounded the issue with it's constant "doom and gloom" reporting.  Haven't heard one news station talk about the number of cases that have diminished in China and the closing of the "pop-up" hospital because it is no longer needed.  We are taking a "wait and see" approach.  Good luck to all of my fellow Cruise Critic members. 

https://www.worth.com/how-mass-hysteria-is-making-coronavirus-worse-than-it-actually-is/?fbclid=IwAR2SrDeNQDmuofhE86BMvAO_3Pys9r3wYUXBNRp-M9UDVs9ld4ngcV-tU7s

Thanks, everyone for your input.  Looked into getting a cabin on Deck 5 and they were the farthest front and back, so we decided to stay put with Deck 4 since the consensus was that it was not an issue.  Your feedback was so appreciated.

Thanks to all of my Cruise Critic posters for your feedback regarding Deck 4.  We had a cabin on Deck 5 5040 and it was fine.  So, I'm hearing the tenders are a small problem, so I'm assuming it's just when they are lowering or raising the boats.  We are in 4080 so we hope that it won't be an issue.  You are all so wonderful!

We have held a cabin on Deck 4 on a new Viking ship but assume the layout is the same as Viking Jupiter.  Has anyone stayed on this deck and had any issues with noise from atrium or being near the stairs?  

Thank you for your feedback

Has anyone done this itinerary on Viking?   There are a few places that we have already visited, but that's ok, because we loved Dublin and always welcome a stop in London.  I'm wondering if the other small ports in Scotland and Wales are worth doing.  As always, I always appreciate the valuable feedback that I receive from my fellow cruise critic members.

Thank you,

Didn't know that Viking could do it for us.  Our TA sent us the online contact that Viking uses.  We were not told that Viking can take care of it.  I'm not sure how Viking could do this considering the amount of information that is required.  We had to fill out an application online that is specially set up for Viking cruisers because the information to help you fill out the forms is designed for Viking passengers.  The information that is required is quite a bit more than visas that we have previously applied for.  They even ask you to list countries that you have visited and dates for the last ten years.  They require new passport/visa type photos that cannot be the same as your current passport photo--so we added that to the cost of the whole visa process.  The visa service that Viking uses is Genvisa.  You may want to just take a look at this.  They do offer what is called "White Glove Service for $59.00 per person to make the process easier, but, again, not sure how this would work as someone would have to ask you the zillion questions that are required on the forms.  

The total cost of the visas was $558 but we also checked the insurance box for another $18 in case something goes wrong and they compensate you up to $2,000.  Now add the $29 for new visa photos and it has become a pricey proposition.  We are just hoping that the trouble and expense will be worth it as we do look forward to visiting Moscow.

Best of luck, and I hope your process is much easier that doing it on your own.

thdave:  Glad to hear that you got this situation settled.  We are, also, on Waterway of the Tsars, which we booked from the beginning.  Just a warning--don't know when you are sailing, but applying for a Russian visa was quite a time-consuming and a pricey adventure, so you may want to get started on that process.

UUNetBill, you are probably correct in saying that excursions may vary from mediocre to great, depending on the port of call.  To answer your question--our itinerary is a TA crossing from Barcelona to Montreal.  We have been to Barcelona a couple of times and know what we want to do there as well as when we are in Malaga.  But the Azores are new for us and the offerings in Quebec (which we have, also, been to) are not so great as well as in Bermuda.  However, we will go with the flow and figure it out as we go.  Thanks for your feedback!

Have to disagree with Cruiser02.  Yes, the Explorer Suites are wonderful--so many more perks than other cabin categories.  However, the noise factor may be based on itinerary, river, water levels, etc.

We did the Zurich to Paris itinerary and while we loved our suite, it was noisey.  I read several reviews regarding the Explorer Suites after I booked ours and there were comments regarding the noise in the back of the ship, particularly at night when the speed of the ship is different than in the day (as we did not hear it while sailing during that time).  Going through the locks was particularly loud as I guess that's when the captain has to change speed.  We loved the suite, but if noise is problematic for you in order to sleep, then you may want to rethink it.  Again, noise depends on a lot of factors, which, unfortunately, we can't control.

Dear Cruise Critic Members:  I need some clarification regarding visas for visiting Russia on a river cruise (Waterways of the Tsars)  I last visited Russia over 17 years ago and needed to obtain a visa which allowed me to leave the ship and tour on my own.  Those who did all the tours with the ship were not required to obtain visas.  Applying for a visa is so confusing when looking at visa service that is recommended by Viking but it does state on the application that if passengers do tours through the cruise line, visas are not required.  We were told by a travel agent that everyone will need a visa.  

Wow the cost of $336 a person is a little pricey but we are willing to pay it if it allows us the ability to do some exploring on our own but after reading the reviews on Viking in Russia, I'm not sure what we would do on our own, particularly when I read that the ship docks far from the center of the major cities such as St. Petersburg and Moscow.  That would mean any exploration would involve getting transportation to and from the cities.  

I would appreciate it if anyone who has done this Russian itinerary on Viking,  provide feedback regarding visas and whether or not it would be worth it to secure a visa or even if you know that one is required regardless of whether we take the ship's tours or if we tour on our own.    

Thanks to everyone who can provide feedback.

After having sailed with Regent and enjoying their shore excursions, I was surprised to see that their offerings for my upcoming cruise seemed to have diminished in quality.   On several sailings, we were offered onshore experiences that were interesting and many included a meal.  Now it appears that many shore excursion offerings, even those that are quite lengthy, state that one can find places to have lunch during the free time that is offered during that particular excursion.  Also, it seems as though Regent may be going the way of other cruise lines that have "Included" excursions, which means that the excursion is an overview, by bus, of the port or surrounding area, with, perhaps, a few stops for photo ops.  Am I alone in this perception?

Thank you for your feedback.

Oh my gosh!  I just saw this message after reading one regarding Viking Jupiter.  Someone stayed in a cabin below The World Cafe and said it was awful--carts rolling around at 4 in the morning and after 10 pm.  Don't know if Viking Sky set up is the same as Jupiter, so I wish you luck.