JessM66

5 hours ago, biggerbearmom said:

I have wondered about this as well. I thought if I don’t get my results back in time for my flight, that I would self test to make sure I am negative when I leave, and then the results would arrive before embarkation.  We are traveling three days before embarkation so it gives us a little leeway. My instructions from Viking states 72 hours before outbound flight, it no longer mentions “first Viking activity”.

first Viking activity is still referenced under the FAQ section in Health and Safety, according to that you still need to test if travelling independently 

7 hours ago, jtwind said:

I'm back to wishing we could test, stay off the ship, and come back hours later.

 

Is there any indication that the quarantine time is less if you board late?  I'm pretty sure the tests don't take 4-6 hours to run, it's just a matter of getting in the queue.  So, if all of the tests have been run, it should just be 15-30 minutes.

It’s a PCR test, not an antigen, you will not get a result back in less than four hours no matter what time you board. 
 

12 hours ago, jtwind said:

Is a baggage drop at the terminal possible?  Test, then quarantine on shore instead of in cabin?

Quarantine on shore??  That’s the best one I’ve heard in a long time.

Does the communication specifically say they are dropping the daily testing, or are you saying the communication doesn’t mention daily testing so you are assuming it’s being dropped….a bit of a difference.

nationwide flex account for £13 a month, which if a joint account will cover both of you gives you worldwide cover. There are additional amounts to pay for medical issues. Then there is a premium to pay if your cruise is more than 30 days plus an additional premium if you want cancellation insurance to cover the cost of the world cruise.  We found if much cheaper than other Companies we got to quote. We are doing a World Cruise in 2023, but not with Viking 

We were booked into the Sheraton old San Juan mainly for its location. In the end we cancelled our trip and we got a full refund for our three night stay there no problem 

I am on the West Indies explorer over Xmas and New Year. The excursions are hellishly expensive, absolutely crazy price for what you get, really disappointed, just hope we will be able to do our own thing.

22 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Sounds like lots of in close social gathering.  Do you or anyone feel uncomfortable?  or is everyone indeed treating the cruise like 2019?   (Covid be d*mned!).  We leave for Italy in November, and not looking forward to it. (with Italy making Viking passengers stay in the bubble and do bus rides)

I did read on the book of faces, that someone tested positive for Covid on this cruise the day before disembarking. The post was from someone who was identified as a close contact. Fortunately they tested negative and were able to disembark and travel home as planned. No idea what happened with the passenger who tested positive but I guess they couldn’t fly home?

23 minutes ago, Tom.in.nc said:

I understand your frustration, but I seem to recollect quite a few UK-only Viking cruises while we were sitting home warming our bums.

Tom

I think the UK cruises were a Commercial decision on Vikings part, when they couldn’t sail anywhere else. 
 

2 hours ago, JohnCoffield said:

Hello. Has anyone from the UK been able to pre-book seats on the Air Malta flight leaving Heathrow at 10:50 on Oct 2nd? Can't seem to do this online.

Flew on this flight a couple of weeks ago, and was unable to do on line check in or pick seats. Viking advised that Air Malta were not allowing on line check in and everything had to be done at the airport. However I was able to check-in on line and pick seats for the return flight 24 hours before departure. I would recommend you try again on the outbound flight 24 hours before you are due to depart.

On 9/10/2021 at 12:22 PM, MikeD1000 said:

We are due to fly Air Malta from Heathrow to Valletta on 19 September.  We gather queues can be slow, mainly because of checking additional paperwork.  Other than this can anyone give us an idea of what Air Malta is like to travel on?  And anything on the very early flight back to London?

 

Thanks to people for some very full information on excursions and food on Viking Sea.

The air malta flight is a pretty standard flight on an economy airline. Prepare for the flight to be rammed and if you have a case as a carry on they will try and get you to check it in. I resisted this but was told they may take it off me at the gate, but they didn’t. The early morning return flight is at 7.15 and you leave the ship around 5.00am.  You do gain an hour on the final night though due to the time difference between Malta and Greece. Viking provide “breakfast” from 4.30am in the Viking bar, but this consisted of weak orange juice and a croissant, yogurt and banana.

On 8/20/2021 at 9:22 AM, les37b said:

 

You need to book it in advance to get on the flight. They are charging £43 for the privilege and their responses to the overflowing, unattended collection points is disgusting. If you don't get your test result back (because its lost / stolen), there would be no refund and you will no doubt still be required to produce a negative test result, which you no doubt will need to pay again. I think that will be an issue for most people and a little naive to think you've fulfilled your obligation because "they" lost yours. That is WHY I am not impressed with their behaviour and responses. I think we all agree its all a big money making con.

Yes def a big money making con. Also whilst you have to have the day 2 test booked before you get on the flight, is there any sort of check that you actually take the test or on what the results are. I appreciate if you paid for a test you are likely to take it, but if the test is then lost and you never get a result, would anyone know?

44 minutes ago, hutch1994 said:

You should see the pictures from the current Malta just about to finish.  People sitting around playing trivia, etc. sans masks.

Not all I hope…but a certain couple by any chance? How they haven’t got covid is just beyond me…a pact with the devil maybe, with the owners suite thrown in

8 hours ago, mancunian said:

We are on the Star in the UK at present.

 

Slightly disturbed by Viking’s attitude.  On a coach trip yesterday the guide began by spelling out Viking’s rules, face masks all the time on and off coach, and at our short stop for bathroom and photos of St Michael’s Mount we could not go into the shop or cafe.  At said stop she repeated it all.  A couple promptly set off purposely to the cafe or shop (next door to each other) and she had to race after them and persuade them to return or she had to report them.  Coming back the man sitting diagonally to us had his face mask round his chin.  Don’t know about others on the coach

 

My husband talked to the guide at the stop and sympathised with her.  She said it was awful and that the previous week one couple arrived ready to break all rules and though she hated doing so she had reported them. and they were confined to their cabins.  

 

We did not feel Viking should expect a tour guide to act as policeman.  If Viking want their rules obeyed they should put a crew member on the coach.  Actually on Silversea, Oceania and Holland America they always put a crew member on in any case.   It seems to me that with a crew member onboard the coach passengers may be a little deterred by the consequences but will have  even less respect for a guide.

 

Even more puzzled today, as yesterday seats had notices on them and we all had to sit in alternate rows with two rows clear between driver and guide row and passengers.  Today no social distancing and this was with a Viking person on the coach just at loading time, who said sit where you like and no notices on seats.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Easy answer…you have one more test to take on Friday morning, after then you are off the ship and no longer their concern, if you get infected today then by the time you test positive you are long gone

On 8/17/2021 at 7:38 PM, hehny said:

Simply being on a bus with a positive passenger does not mean quarantine in Iceland.  Both Sky and Jupiter had positive cases reported this past week. Only one ship required every bus passenger that toured with the positive person to quarantine regardless of status.  This was because the bus stopped for a long lunch indoors where social distancing was not possible.  Indeed, passengers reported being nearly on top of each other without masks.  Both Viking’s Chief Medical Officer and the Icelandic authorities agreed on quarantine.

 

 Keep in mind this was on Thursday and the cruise ended that Tuesday.   You need to have time to account for the transmission time before you test due to an exposure. There was a far greater likelihood of transmission under these circumstances than on the other ship’s bus ride where everyone was masked inside at all times. 

Not true, passengers on sky were also quarantined, then sent home early, it’s just Viking managed to keep the sky incident under wraps better than the Jupiter incident

6 hours ago, les37b said:

 

 

Well it appears my cynicism wasn't misguided.

 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9875721/Photos-expose-absolute-testing-mess-Covid-PCR-tests.html

 

Firm behind PCR travel testing collection bin fiasco has made £120m from Covid pandemic - as defiant bosses tell customers to pay EVEN MORE for a courier if they don't want to leave their test on the street
Randox boxes piled high outside London pharmacies as situation branded a farce as they are left overflowing

 

• Customers were too worried to drop off samples at the drop-off points because of number of tests there
• Families face paying hundreds of pounds extra to travel abroad this summer because of testing demands
• Health Secretary asks Competition and Markets Authority to investigated and  help cut huge costs 

 

The testing firm walloped by customers for their overflowing 'drop bins' today hit back and told them to pay for swabs to be couriered to their lab if they aren't happy to leave them piled up on the street as it was revealed it has made at least £120million during the pandemic.

Randox also denied claims that personal information was 'left for anyone to take' because of the piles of uncollected tests or that the 'absolute mess' outside pharmacies was the reason for any delayed test results. 

Gavin Marshall tweeted one of the photos from Sutton, south-west London and said: 'Forced to pay @RandoxOfficial over the odds for Day 2 PCR test, drive 30 mins to drop off sample because so few collection points only to find it over-flowing and insecure. Covid travel rip off'.

Replying to his tweet the company said: 'If these locations do not suit your needs then the onus is on the customer to arrange an alternative company'. A spokesman added: 'These sample kits do not include any customer personal information whatsoever'.

Northern Ireland-based Randox Health, the UK's largest Covid-19 PCR testing provider with a turnover of £118million-a-year, is one of the companies offering the service, with drop off points for samples in 100 locations.

And last September the business became responsible for a quarter of all community tests across the UK after winning a £133million contract in March 2020.  Before the pandemic it made most of its cash from tests created for cardiac risk, various cancers and diabetes.

The 'absolute mess' in Britain's 'rip off' PCR testing system was laid bare today in shocking pictures of uncollected £50-a-time samples piled high outside UK pharmacies.

Travel guru Paul Charles tweeted: 'What's the point of taking a Day 2 PCR test?', adding the photos were 'a symbol of the absolute mess that PCR testing has become. Samples left for anyone to take, and proof of private labs that aren't in any hurry to turn around the results. Let alone send them for genomic sequencing that Government isn't so interested in now'. 

The chaos at Randox drop-off boxes in London was revealed by angry customers who said they didn't dare leave their tests, branding them 'overflowing and insecure'. 

 

What a lovely company!

 

 

 

 

Hear what you say but for a day 2 test does it matter if it doesn’t come back in 24 hours, it’s one of the cheapest, sorry but I can’t see the downside , if I have done my test with a government approved supplier in the required timescale it’s no longer my issue

1 hour ago, les37b said:

Cheers guys. Looks like the Randox one is better one for me. They have a collection point about 4 miles from me. I really don't trust the Royal mail, so having their courier collect and have them in their possession is better IMHO.... Unless of course they then batch them all together and then use royal Mail so you've lost near enough a day in their collection point! lol

 

This is really turning me cynical! 🤣

 

 

You can get the randox one for £43 if you go though the link on the BA website and use the discount code. You don’t need to be flying with BA

14 hours ago, Eggtuary said:

Thanks so much for making a separate thread!  I’ve been wanting to ask a question about this, but didn’t want to add to the thread drift in some of the other threads.

 

So here’s my question:  What ultimately happens to the people who are quarantined on Viking ships but never come down with Covid?   Their travel insurance wouldn’t pay anything because they weren’t actually sick.  Doesn’t the contract with Viking say that they will refund the portion of the trip that the passenger was quarantined?  That’s how I read it, but it seems like certain people who were in this actual situation are still waiting to hear back from Viking as to whether they will be compensated. So now I’m feeling less sure. 
 

My wife and I have booked the Mediterranean Odyssey tour for March and I’m trying to understand the “worst case scenario.”  
 

Thanks!

In the UK you can take out an enhanced cruise insurance policy which will cover you for being confined to you cabin by the ships doctor. I assume quarantine would fall under this. The annual amount on my policy is an extra £40 and it covers £150 per 24 hour confined.

12 hours ago, les37b said:

That is insane.

 

I think I'd move in for a year at those prices.... Though the gangway on disembarkation may be a tight squeeze! lol!

 

I know they made a similar offer for people on the Seacations for these itineraries.

 

Glad it all worked out well.... Even more gutted I didn't get the opportunity.

 

 

 

 

 

The deal is still on, well apart from the onboard credit, we didn’t get that. We booked at the weekend. The prices aren’t quoted on the website, but just mention the special email Malta deals

I think there will be a number of solo travellers on these cruises, these deals don’t happen often so get snapped up. We have done a scenic shores cruise and whilst you would be at the younger end of the demographic, it certainly wasn’t a cruise full of oldies. I would say go for it…what have you got to lose?

2 hours ago, les37b said:

 

Indeed. That's my thought too. On my Adriatic cruise, that would account for a further £308 held that could have been avoided in the event it didn't sail. I calculate it will cost me £286 when boarding if all things remain constant, so a further reason to do so. Hopefully Viking don't decide to increase the price once on board, which obviously could happen.

Some cruise lines add a service charge usually around 15% when buying drinks packages onboard, but I don’t know if this is true for Viking 

13 hours ago, downsmead said:

The MVJ for the 7th shows scenic sailing instead of Tresco now. 
The last time I looked there seemed to still be a lot of cabins available. I had an email re the new Malta sailings stating from ~£1600 but when I looked the cabins were all £2000+. Probably just the one per sailing which sold early!

Booked for Malta yesterday at the prices in the email. The website does not reflect these reduced prices but they are still available to book, however be prepared to wait on the phone for an hour before a Viking agent answers

I think it’s $139 not £139

Ha ha, yes we did the Portland tour a couple of weeks ago, on a different cruise line, we told about the prison, and that Garry Glitter is in there!!  What section of the MDR were you in, or more importantly what was the name of the assistant head waiter, we will try and ask to be seated in her section, as she sounds like she knows her stuff.

36 minutes ago, philhar said:

Hi its 13 pounds a day before you board 16 pounds once on board

Thanks, do you know if they have a better selection of wines by the glass on the premium plus package, all the wine lists I have seen seem to quote wines by the glass that are below the £10 price, or by the bottle which I assume isn’t included or has an extra charge. Would be nice to have a bigger choice of wines with dinner but not sure how I could get an idea of what was on there