OnTheJourney

Seeing the NL or not is totally luck of the draw. Surely plan on hopefully seeing them since that's the point of going but conversely also good to consider the possibility of not having any sightings, since it happens. The cruise itself, and the ports up that way - Oslo (where ours started), Alta, Tromso in particular - are amazing. Seeing the lights yet is the icing on the cake.

We did the Viking Northern Lights in '19 - fantastic cruise. Unfortunately, ours ended prematurely - long story easily googled 3/23/19 Viking Sky. Except for that bizarre incident, we loved it - it had also been our first Viking experience. If Viking sailed out of Baltimore or Bayonne - two ports very close to us - I'd probably use Viking most of the time over RCL or X.

And yet - if eating in Blu is not all that important to you - unless you plan to make considerable use of the Persian Garden, I don't see it as a reason to pay all the extra $ for Aqua. I generally only go once, and this time was not quite as happy with Blu as the first time I did it, so have been thinking that why not just go back to regular Verandah room (or else maybe try Suite), and just pay for the single time I go to the Persian Garden.

Way too hot to swim in - at least the day we were in Bermuda. I had been in the Persian Garden and so thought I'd hit the solarium for a bit - WAY too hot. I was in for literally like 30 seconds and then left. On the flipside, others we talked to said that the main pools were ice cold. Very few people used them during the entire cruise.

We got one on our 5/6 sailing. Didn't bother going since we had done it several years ago. The other thing is - and I found this to be true the first time in Blu - many of the entree portions are a tad small. We just weren't near as impressed this time compared to 2019. Glad, though, that you're finding it to be as good as you say. Part of my reaction could be having just come off a Viking cruise a few months before the Summit. We enjoyed the food there but were disappointed that it was basically what I'd describe as 'warm' and so cools off quickly. Question for the OP - are you finding that they bring any sort of afternoon canapes to the room? We really enjoyed that the first time we did Aqua (this was only the second time). Also, they used to always bring really good iced tea to the room. Guess that went the way of the dodo after the post-pandemic restart. The lack of prior amenities is making us question whether we'll do aqua again or not. A good part of the time I ordered off the MDR menu anyway.

Suggestions for new itineraries? Anything that might go out of either Baltimore or Bayonne. Likely no room for another cruise line in either one anyway, but if Viking would show up there, that'd be terrific for us since we're only 2-2.5 hours from either.

Whew...glad we missed out on this. Just got off the ship on 5/15.

LOL. Not sure we want to try Suite or not - might at some point. Friend of mine who often does it said the prices shot up significantly. We were less impressed with Aqua this time and certain aspects of Blu, so not sure what the next step would be with room category. The Aqua class room size is not much different than regular verandah (what used to be called 2A and B, I think?) After being in the larger Viking rooms, it feels cramped for space. Get tired of the closet and bathroom doors nearly hitting each other. My favorite room is still the Grand Suite on RCL. The same friend who sails with X frequently, believes that the focus of best service and amenities, etc. is on the newer ships. I haven't been on anything other than Infinity and Summit, but from what he says there's little comparison with the Beyond and Edge. Both look really impressive.

works for me! But then, I enjoy doing the same thing on a sea day with X or RCL. It's all what people look for in a cruise. We don't do late night lounges or the various games / activities that are listed in the daily schedules. For us, it's about the itineraries primarily and just being out on the water, enjoying what there is to see, being part of the natural scene. When I'm out on the deck - even just looking at the water - I have little interest in what's going on in and around the ship, although we do enjoy when they show movies if it works out with our schedule. The lines waiting for the free daily jewelry charm gets old after awhile, although we can even get into that while onboard, and then once we get home though, DW realizes she really doesn't want to keep most of that stuff anyway! We were glad to see that X has abandoned sending ship photographers around in the dining room, etc. Have enough cruise pics from over the years. Viking doesn't do any of that either. We don't miss it. That whole formal night dress up thing seems to be fading, except for those who really enjoy it and like getting pictures. We were struck by the informality of the clothes we saw people wearing on "chic" nights. That's fine too...less (fancy) clothes to pack.

That's actually the part we love the most, being that we hardly do any of the scheduled social activities on either RCL or X. On sea days, I'm good with just spending time reading out on the room balcony along with some deck walks, and whatever else might interest us. One of the things we also like about Viking is how they have the port / destination talks, etc. available on the room tv. Oftentimes we'd get back late from excursions and so would otherwise miss the programs, but then found it most convenient to watch them in the evenings. Probably my favorite thing about Viking compared to X or RCL is how you can book a pre and post-extension, and so it makes it more like a combination land tour / cruise. This especially applies to overseas, since I really don't care to fly that far for less than two weeks, so if the cruise is only 8-9 days or so, can easily make it more worthwhile by extending on both ends. I realize this can be done with any cruise line by just doing independent travel before or after, but that involves more planning. Viking makes it super easy by taking care of the hotel, transfers, included tours, etc. And then there's Mamson's...love eating there! Also Chef's Table we find to be truly outstanding. Also really like that there are no kids on Viking. The ship feels quiet and relaxed. We DO like the shows and entertainment on X and RCL, but very honestly I don't miss it when I'm on a Viking cruise. The wonderful lecturers' presentations more than make up for it.

Not surprising to hear this. Thanks for mentioning though. I didn't plan on scheduling that Alaska cruise with them anytime in the immediate future. All the lines have cut back, as I mentioned previously. We were disappointed to not having received the same level of amenities in Aqua Class during our recent cruise that we had pre-pandemic. But, again, not surprising. I will say, however, that it appears X is primarily catering to suite level rather than any category below that.

We've only done one with them - Alaska, onboard the Veendam back in '06. Really enjoyed everything about it as I recall. At that time, though, it was only the 2nd cruise we'd ever done so had little to compare it to. I'd like to go again with HAL on the one Alaska itinerary they offer that is a 14-day roundtrip Vancouver.

Somehow I knew that might get attention after I posted it and thought about it later. As NM correctly alluded to, I was indeed trying to be positive. Food can be very good in taste and quality, but not necessarily as hot as I usually prefer it. Conversely, food can be piping hot and yet not taste all that good. The combination of really good taste, presentation, and at least medium hot, for me, impresses the most.

Good point, and good post! Frame of mind going into any experience, especially if it's a new one, is a vital part of what impressions we wind up coming away with. LOL on the charge for 3rd entree. I'm reminded of someone here on CC who posted something about how great the french onion soup is on X and mentioned that he typically orders like a half-dozen of them!!! I assume that is in place of appetizer and also possibly a separate entree...and maybe even dessert! I tend to eat too much bread before the meal, but that's ok since the portions in Blu sometimes are not all that big.

True enough I suppose. I'm reminded of a line from the movie "Crossroads"....where the guys says "ain't nothin' ever as good as we want it to be", which I don't think applies in all cases cause some things far exceed our expectations. People watch and also read the fancy and glowing commercials and reviews on TV and elsewhere about what great experiences await on the whatever cruiseline, and then indeed maybe expect it to be more than it turns out to be?

Since you brought this up, I don't think cruising will ever be quite up to what it was pre-pandemic. Doesn't matter which line. Forgot to mention in my post above...orange juice in BLU was terrific!!! Among the best I've ever tasted anywhere.

That's interesting and surely either speaks exceptionally well of X or else less than complimentary for Cunard. We've done two Viking ocean cruises right before the recent Summit cruise, and, sorry to say, but food on Celebrity - across the board - did not measure up to Viking. That said, we love RCL and X for the convenience since we have around 2 hours drive to sail with either. No flying needed. And, both RCL and X have a great product that we'll continue to enjoy going forward.

Definitely do! We were quite impressed with the food offerings and quality in the buffet - did it mostly for lunch. Didn't try it for dinner this time.

Agree completely.... Your quote...."So many times when someone just wants to vent or talk about an unpleasant experience they had, they are met with a slurry of "go to a different cruise line then..." kinds of responses. " For sure...or otherwise snarky replies. Happens all the time on CC.

Yep....including my thread relative to the early opening of Blu on my recent Summit cruise. 😁 Now I understand why you expressed some of the thoughts that you did. There are many great things about Celebrity, and I elaborated on as many of them as I could think of on the post-cruise survey, but having lukewarm food in Blu just about every night didn't impress me. Getting locked in a bathroom stall right before disembarkation - a problem I was told the staff was informed about early in the cruise but apparently didn't address - didn't impress me. Flip side (which is what you're looking for) is that the food was, for the most part, very good to excellent in Blu. Having just come from a Viking cruise, I was perhaps expecting a bit more. So, ok, let's see....good things.....excellent service from all staff and crew, room in great condition and always well cleaned, ship in still beautiful shape (should be since revolutionized not all that long ago), terrific itinerary and ports, great production shows, enjoyed the rooftop terrace movie the one day, enjoyed the smooth, effective, and helpful service during the two tender operations, loved the food in the oceanview cafe for lunch (and a few breakfasts), and more that I can't think of offhand. Hopefully that'll help to balance out what was perceived as negativity during my "Blu" thread.

OR the rocks along the coast of Hustadvika in the case of the Viking Sky incident 😳

You're absolutely right....I was going to and then found it hard to resist jumping back in. Just adding fuel to a fire that probably should have never started. 6 pages and 143 posts on this rather inconsequential issue (in the general scheme of things) is a bit ridiculous. Time for it to end.

Interesting. Yeah...people want alot of things nowadays and are often impatient (or far worse) when they don't get what they want when they want it. Talk about "entitlement", which, somewhat unexpectedly, is what I'm being accused of as well. Thanks for your post. Glad to hear that, from your experiences, they're not opening early. That's simply the wrong thing to do IMHO.

Possibly - actually likely if they're bent on getting a window seat - however, it wouldn't happen so early. We got tired of feeling like we have to get down there by 4:45. THAT is the part that wouldn't happen. If the line started forming by 5:15 for the 5:30 opening, that's fine. I fail to understand why it has not been understood that my main point is not so much that the window seats are already filled by 5:10, but that they're simply not sticking to the schedule of opening at 5:30.

I see, so it's a case of others getting deliberately defensive in response to my appearing overly (and truly unintentionally) offensive. Got it. CC used to be a friendly place where such things were unlikely to happen. As I said previously, I think I 'stepped on some toes' here and yet really didn't mean to. In either case, I surrender and yield back.