Frenchberet

I used the same email last week with a question about a river cruise.  They responded two days later.  Good luck!
 

tellus@vikingcruises.com

We did a cruise Aug 2023 that ended in Reykjavik.  We left after breakfast and spent a few days on our own.  Not a problem to carry your luggage off the ship and disembark.  
 

Fyi, we did a very nice full-day tour of the Golden Circle, Blue Lagoon & Kerid Volcano with Nice Travel, highly recommend.  

54 minutes ago, chirk said:

@Ktwofish Thank you! Was your impression people got to kayak as much as they wanted or was it always packed? 

I read somewhere you could only sign up for one excursion per day? We would want to kayak and go on shore if possible (weather permitting). What was your experience?

(Awaiting acceptance by the FB group. 😁)

We did this cruise on Octantis in Feb 2023.  When we signed up for the excursions, we were only able to “express interest” but not actually schedule anything.  Once onboard everything fell into place and we were able to do everything we wanted to do.  On some days we did multiple activities, such as landing and special ops boat.  We spoke to one couple who got dressed, went downstairs, and waited to fill the spots for people who didn’t show up for their assigned time. Great idea.  
 

We didn’t kayak but it appeared that things ran smoothly.  The entire excursion process worked very well and we were busy every day.  Loved the expedition ship and everything about the trip. It was a wonderful experience!

We did the NL cruise in Feb 2019.  Nice itinerary but we didn’t see the lights ☹️.  We did an optional excursion with Viking (Alta) but there were several busses filled with too many people going to one location.  If we were to do it again, we’d absolutely arrange to do one or more small private tours.  Loved “Lifestyle of the Sami” and “Arctic Landscapes by Husky” excursions.

We were booked on the Arctic Adventure expedition on Polaris in August 2022.  The itinerary began and ended in Tromso and spent 8 nights exploring Svalbard and the Jan Mayen Islands.  As discussed above, Polaris wasn’t ready to sail so the cruise was cancelled.

We visited Antarctica on Octantis in February 2023, and finally got to Svalbard as part of Iceland and Norway’s Arctic Explorer on Saturn in August 2023.  I don’t think the expedition ships ever made it to Svalbard.

We’ve talked about doing another Viking expedition cruise to Antarctica… loved it so much the first time (Feb 23) but wonder if doing the same trip again would measure up!  

We also enjoyed In Search of the Northern Lights but didn’t see the lights (so disappointing).  No guarantees we’d see them on a second cruise (that would be really disappointing!).

Sign in to My Viking Journey and the date and time for booking reservations should pop up.

18 minutes ago, AroundWithMAPTravels said:

Again , ditto!

our next two trips are river and expedition and we too will miss CT (however, we do love the expedition version of WC… not the same “experience “ but still makes us 😀

Totally agree!  We sailed Octantis to Antarctica in 2023 and decided it was just about the perfect ship.  Loved the expanded WC and Grill.  We’re on Octantis again in 2025 to do “Into the Northwest Passage”.  

2 hours ago, AroundWithMAPTravels said:

Ditto!
there are one or two menus that we avoid but overall love the journey and the “new” experiences.   I am usually not very adventurous but I know the preparation will be right so have tried many things I would otherwise walk away from.

Dining at CT is always a highlight of any VO trip for us.

Absolutely!  We are not “foodies” by any means but we love the Chef’s Table.  It is such a nice experience.  Our upcoming cruises are river and expedition where there’s no Chef’s Table.  We’ll miss it!

12 minutes ago, SantaFe1 said:

Probably closer to venison. 

Agreed.  We had reindeer stew several times in Norway and it was very good.  Best was the meal on the optional excursion Lifestyle of the Sami on the Northern Lights cruise.

On 8/5/2024 at 2:19 PM, deec said:

When we were on the Octantis we were taken to a table in the Dining Room.  We did not just wander in and look for an open table.

We haven’t seen wandering in or table saving in ANY Viking restaurant.  In my opinion, bizarre behavior for a Viking cruise.  Hope it’s not the new norm.

2025?

We did a tour of the Golden Circle, Blue Lagoon & Kerid Volcano with NiceTravel.  Our guide was a geologist and shared a lot of interesting information. Highly recommend.

5 hours ago, Redtravel said:

I checked private tours.  None.  Looks like there isn’t much to see.  I signed up for the included excursion, a Viking site. I will check with excursion crew on the ship.  If that’s the only tour, there will likely be lots of folks who cannot handle a “demanding” pace.  
Had a similar experience on Viking Grand European. Included tour in Koblenz was a visit to Marksburg Castle.  It was listed as demanding. Looked it up on web. From the photos, I knew that it would be too rigorous for us. We skipped it. We needed a break from touring. Took ourselves into town.  There were several people from our boat there. One man, in good shape,  went on that tour and died. I now notice that the included tour in Koblenz is a walk in town.  

• Redtravel, you need to be more specific in order to get better responses.  Which cruise, which port, which excursion are you asking about?  What time of year?

4 hours ago, OnTheJourney said:

Wow! Sounds awesome. I believe I've heard this from someone else also. We have no problem with eating in WC! Actually, on our Mississippi cruise, after maybe a week or so in the dining room, we wound up eating upstairs at the buffet and really enjoyed it. For one thing, much better views on both sides of the ship. Restaurant started to feel a bit 'stuffy' especially with one particular couple plunking down a wine bottle an hour or so before dinner so as to always reserve the window seat. I and another couple were sort of put off by that, plus on some evenings the service was a bit slow if they were busy. Thanks for the info....

What?!  A couple plunking down a wine bottle to reserve a window seat?  How did they bypass the maitre d’?  I’ve never seen this happen but if it was an issue for me, I’d report it to the Restaurant Manager and/or Guest Services.

1 hour ago, KarNog said:

Thank you! I think I'll take bits from various forms and have my doc sign it. I'd hate to pay for the excursion and get refused at the point, but worse yet I would miss out on another tempting excursion. Who doesn't want to go cave tubing?

 

It sounds like a specific form and medical information is required.  Rather than just making something up, I’d email Viking to inquire.
 

Tellus@vikingcruises.com

We did this cruise (Rome to Istanbul) in February.  In Bari, we did the option excursion “Puglia’s White Cities”; in Kotor, the optional “Highlights of Montenegro”; and in Corfu, the included “Panoramic Corfu & Old Town Walking Tour”.  We did the Krka Waterfalls from Split (shorter bus ride).  We enjoyed all of the excursions in this very beautiful part of the world.  Great cruise!  Enjoy your trip!

11 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Wow - I'd like to know who did that for you as they were in violation.

 

I specifically asked that our last cruise (even though I knew what the likely answer would be).

NO - they will NOT save food and reheat it for you I was told.  It is not per their operational procedures, due to health concerns and is a violation if caught.  Totally understandable.

We’ve learned to order half portions at Manfredi’s.  This gives us the opportunity to sample different menu items and no food wasted.

32 minutes ago, Safari-Wom said:

Thank you for this information.  I really appreciate  it.   Are they going to have a Viking rep meet you at the BA airport?  I haven’t yet made a firm decision regarding cruise lines.  However, regarding your comment about Viking Air, I read a number of horrible stories about dealing with them so I’m leary about trusting them with this task.  I’ll reconsider that as well.  I’m on the other coast from New York, so I won’t find a non-stop flight and I’d be nervous handing over the logistics of planning this with lay-over time etc. to Viking.  I hope you have a wonderful trip!  And I love your dog picture…..

We've used Viking Air several times and haven't encountered any problems.  We did the Antarctica cruise on Octantis in February 2023.  Octantis and Polaris are sister ships and (in my opinion) the most beautiful ships in Viking's fleet.  We rated the Antarctica cruise at 5 stars - it was a wonderful experience from start to finish.  Viking met us at the airport in Buenos Aires and transported us to the hotel.  The next morning they bussed us to the airport for the charter flight to Ushuaia.  The cruise was terrific.  Following the cruise we did the Patagonia extension and again Viking arranged all the transportation.  Can't say enough good things about Viking or about the cruise to Antarctica.  Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

3 hours ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

 

On our last VO cruise there was a singles meet and greet early on in the Wintergarden. Viking probably arranges some sort of event depending on the number of singles aboard.

We’ve seen this too.  Check with Guest Services when you board.  

I’ve found the temps to be comfortable on board but I always pack a sweater just in case.

Ponant advertises Antarctica cruises with kids.

We did the Viking Antarctic Explorer cruise in Feb 2023.  I guess we were lucky as we had a decent Drake crossing and landed 4 times in Antarctica.  Another day the seas were too choppy to land but we were able to take the zodiacs out to get up close and personal with a pod of whales.  It was a wonderful, transformational trip.  Do it.

Delete

No jeans except in the World Cafe.  
 

Here’s the Viking Dress Code:

During the day, dress is casual including shorts (if the season is warm), slacks or jeans and comfortable shoes for walking tours. Swimsuits, swim shorts, cover-ups and exercise attire should be reserved for the Fitness Center, pool areas and Sports Deck. There are no “formal nights” in the evening; evening dress is “elegant casual” for all dining venues, performances and special events. On these occasions, required attire for ladies includes a dress, skirt or slacks with a sweater or blouse; for gentlemen, trousers and a collared shirt. A tie and jacket are optional; jeans are not permitted. The evening dress excludes World Café where the dress remains casual after 6:00 PM. 

Some shore excursions visit religious sites that require modesty of dress. To avoid being denied entry, we recommend men wear long pants and refrain from sleeveless shirts; and for women, clothing that covers the knees and tops that are not sleeveless or too revealing.