Hanoj

Even the gluten free crust pizzas (I have a wheat allergy) at Waves were excellent!

Revenge travel spending impacted hotel/resort demand sooner than it did for cruising, no doubt in large part due to earlier relaxing of various COVID restrictions. Also, there’s a much broader range of options available, from low end to high end, among hotels/resorts and their amenities and inclusions than there is with cruises - Marriott alone has over 30 brands. Because of this I can tailor my land based travel more readily to suit my preferences and budget. We’ve cruised primarily to get an overview of the different regions we’ve sailed and have yet to do any repeats to a previously visited region. Cruising is more expensive for us since there are things we pay for that we don’t use (included alcohol and excursions are prime examples) and dining is the primary one. We are very utilitarian when it comes to eating and it is difficult to get cruise cuisine of the quality we are accustomed to at home (organic, locally sourced, pasture raised, grass fed beef, wild caught fish, etc.). That’s okay and we accept this when cruising. But I also have food allergies which are not easily avoided, which we deal with by preparing our own meals during land trips. We also lack culture because we would prefer to have a meal at ship’s buffet instead of a multi course meal at the MDR or a specialty restaurant - we may have set a least amount of time spent record in Red Ginger during our Vista cruise in August. We were very satisfied with the food, but it’s not a big deal for us. We also prefer to eat earlier than most, and than the time dining venues open. Prior to our May 2020 Viking cruise was cancelled (and we cancelled a July 2021cruise) we expected to cruise each year and were considering more than one a year. Through the shutdowns and after we became more independent in our travel experiences. We went nearly 4 1/2 years between cruises before sailing Vista in August 2023. While there were many things we enjoyed about the ship and the cruise, we realize we don’t particularly like being beholden to someone else’s schedule, whether it’s dealing with getting a tender ticket for independent exploration or when we can dine. Add this to the aforementioned “decline,” we undoubtedly cruise less frequently.

Decline seems widespread in the travel and hospitality industries, though it appears more acute with cruising since this form of travel/vacationing is more expensive compared to other modes, and the supply logistics are more problematic, thus affecting food quality (and quantities) in particular. It feels like cruise patrons (across different lines and luxury categories) must expect less (to match expectations with present realities) but pay more. Not a great recipe for business success for what most consumers consider as discretionary consumption. This discretionary spending will manifest differently as some will cruise less frequently, some not all, and others will select lower cabin categories, shorter cruise durations, and or sail with different lines. It appears the present challenges will be met by more crossovers (between cruise lines and between vacation modes - land based vs cruise, etc) and thus less brand loyalty. Hopefully this will temper fare increases. We are definitely in this camp, and will probably be favoring more resort destinations, travelled to by plane or automobile. We plan to do more “tours” on such trips, especially when visiting a new locale. The timing of Oceania’s new Simply More campaign, regarded by some as a thinly veiled price increase initiative, in the current cruise “decline” climate may not have been the most astute. But, then, there seem to be many company executives, both with publicly owned and privately held companies of all sizes, making inexplicably poor and myopic decisions. Who is John Galt?

I (the DH) did self service laundry once, relieving DW of this chore she does when home. It was enough to decide not to again while cruising as it is not how I want to spend my time. I did two loads, one delicate and one normal, and was careful to avoid leaving unattended when the cycles were done. I caught a break when the wash was over as all three dryers were unoccupied. Thus I split my laundry between the three dryers to speed things up. There was unattended complete wash in one machine, so I stayed in the laundry room with my Kindle in case the other guest showed up, in which case I would make one of the dryers available, though the other guest did not arrive before our laundry was finished. Overall, this was not a poor experience, but I suspect the dryers may not have completely dried the clothes in one cycle. This was aboard the Star in 2018. We have only sailed in PV staterooms. We considered moving up to PS for the extra space and included laundry service but decided the PV is very adequate and that the retractable room divider in the PS was not practical for our purposes. My wife goes to sleep much earlier than I and I’m a night owl, using my Kindle, a book light, or my iPad with earbuds (no tv on) without any cabin lights on. Trips to the bathroom we felt would be quieter than using the retractable room divider. Plus, the perceived (the mind makes it real) savings of the PV fare compared to PS makes paying for laundry service an easy decision for us. We would pay for laundry service (and perhaps pack lighter) if we decided to use a DV stateroom.

“Decline”understates these apparent trends. Devolution is more apt.

😪

So, as long as there is not a performance or special event in the Explorer's Lounge, explorers can wear shorts?

I spy an opportunity for Viking: they can eliminate TVs from their staterooms and add another “no” to their marketing campaigns. 😎

We were in 8015 when we sailed Vista in August. I heard no noise from adjacent staterooms and I have very acute hearing. Either we were surrounded by unusually quiet neighbors or the insulation between units is not uniform throughout the ship.

Simply More . . . noise from neighbors? Less time in ports for more time hearing "NO!" and "YES!" from opposite sides of your cabin. Who's world, who's way?

While this a hyperbolic truth, it seems Viking is missing an opportunity to add another “no” to their marketing campaign: no gratuities.

Perhaps Azamara can differentiate itself from its competitors by adopting a new tagline: “Damn the Torpedoes (err, Missiles) - Full Speed Ahead!”

Nothing for us aboard Vista in August 2023, celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary. Our TA said she submitted this information to Oceania. I don’t know if do anything for special occasions, or if there was communication gaffe for our situation.

Yesterday Viking announced altering their itineraries to avoid transiting the Red Sea on their current world cruises with the Sky and the Neptune. They will now sail around the Cape of Good Hope and along the west coast of Africa.

Any options being given guests with the altered itinerary?