FlyerTalker

3 hours ago, island lady said:

Once again, please rest assured I am very happy with my selection.  Thank you for being so concerned with my flight itinerary and choices...it means a lot to me.  😉 

Sorry to break this to you, but not really concerned at all about you or your plans.  In any case, you seem happy with whatever you may have.

What I AM concerned about is getting accurate information to the other folks who, just possibly, are reading this thread.  It is, after all, a public resource, and about more than just your specific trip.

1 hour ago, TRIPACIAN said:

Sorry I could not read the other pages on my computer.

Suggestion.....save the images to your computer. Then use an image program, such as XNView, where you can rotate the images, as well as view them.  IMO, always far easier to deal with separate images than trying to read within web pages.

7 hours ago, History&Wine said:

Here are the proposed changes…

I am going to assume that after Rio, the ship will make a few other Brazil stops before Ilheus.  Are they talking Buzios and Vitoria?  Both are delightful stops IMO.  (Nothing on the pics for March 6-8)

Thanks.

1 hour ago, island lady said:

The seats filling up were in first class (pod seats).  There is limited availability in those, and especially with 17 plus hour flights...pax seem to book early.  Makes sense.

Not sure how you are finding first class seats on United long-haul.  Were you talking about business class, which is significantly different from first?

Also, your "limited availabilty" is interesting.  UA has 48 biz seats on the 789 from LAX to SYD, and 60 seats on the 773 from SFO.

1 hour ago, island lady said:

 And even then...half of the seats were already booked. Was worried about that with the longer flight.  

If you are getting this information from a seat map, know that those do NOT show actual inventory.  Many times, seats are either unassigned OR are blocked but not associated with actual tickets.  So can be highly inaccurate.

11 hours ago, Mountain Traveler said:

I do not want to wait until 120 days before the cruise to confirm flights and seats.  Often, the business class seats on the most desirable routes will be full by then. 

Are you talking about the seats available to Viking, or all of the seats on the flight?

It's relatively easy to know actual overall inventory.

3 hours ago, CJANDH said:

Does anyone know which airlines Viking does have contracts with?

And even past contracts are no guarantee of the existence of both a) a current contract, and b) inventory available for your particular travels.

Suggest a look at this thread for some good posts (and maybe one or two of mine):

8 hours ago, Jim Avery said:

Will I be disappointed??🥃

In the case of most IPOs, unless you are are one of the investors now going public.....

Appx 3 miles. Less than 10 minutes drive.  No big issue getting from A to B.

That's an easy connect there.  Though you have SQ/UA connects available in HKG as well.  Along with non-stops from SIN to both LAX and SFO.

And at LAX, you will go straight to immigration and customs.  Lounge access will depend on travel class and if you are connecting past LAX.  Not for just arrival at LAX.

1 hour ago, ctjon said:

Also while in Egypt we were always surrounded  by armed guards and weren't allowed to wonder off by ourselves in Cairo or the pyramids, A shame since that area is filled with historic sites you greatly want to see. 

Egyptair has a daily non-stop from JFK to Cairo.  Anyone that wants to wander on their own can easily get there any time they want.

24 minutes ago, Zach1213 said:

Technically a third party 😉 Airline = Party 1, Customer = Party 2, Mediocre Travel Agent = Party 3. 

In WAY too many cases, "Mediocre Travel Agent" is internally redundant.

Quality, knowledgeable agents are rare.  Way too many order-takers out there.

And as for guessing what's going to happen....I remember how so many here said that Symphony would "have to go around Africa".

Maybe CC needs to set up a prediction market?  I'd happily invest.

1 hour ago, reposado said:

Thats great advice Flyertalker and something I'll definitely consider. Fairly late is 5pm.

Definitely plan on the Flybus from Reykjavik to KEF.  Take the 2pm bus, arrive at 2:45p, plenty of time to check-in, go through immigration and security, do some duty-free shopping and relax.

Should give you at least 4+ hours in town - if you are inclined, check to see if they have a tour of the Harpa concert hall available. Bunches of other things to do in walking distance.

https://www.re.is/tour/flybus/

And to note, Montreal (YUL) is another AC TATL gateway.  In my research, I've found (and flown) AC connections through there to various spots in Europe.  IMO, if you have a choice of connecting at YYZ or YUL, there is one preferred option (oui, oui).

My two kopeks:

I don't believe that any decision has been made, one way or the other.  This is a significant question, and one that, once made, will likely "stick".

IMO, Crystal is merely putting a halt to any new bookings on the ATH-AUH segment.  Call it a way to freeze the quantity of passenger adjustments that may be necessitated.  If and when there need to be itinerary changes, it will be limited to those already on the books.

1 hour ago, reposado said:

Hello our flight out of Reykjavik is fairly late so we wont be in a rush to leave the ship(Venture). What is generally a later time we can disembark(trying to figure out taxi pickup time)?

You don't give specifics as to what is "fairly late", so this is just general advice.

If you don't have a flight until late afternoon/evening, my plan would be to do the following.

1) Take a taxi from the port to the BSI bus terminal.

2) Store my luggage at the facility there

3) Spend the day in downtown Reykjavik, browsing as you wish

4) Return to the bus terminal, get your bags, then take the Flybus directly to KEF

This has a number of advantages.  First, you aren't sitting around the airport for hours.  It gives you time to wander through town on your own.  And the local taxi + Flybus cost will be significantly less than a taxi all the way from the port to KEF.

You might also be able to get Flybus+ service from the port itself.  I would check with Flybus to see if this option is available.  That way, your port to terminal cost gets blended into your Flybus fare.

5 hours ago, CannyScotTor said:

Interesting, we just booked flights for our September cruise. Viking proposed Toronto to Vienna on KLM via Amsterdam with a five hour layover. We preferred Air Canada nonstop, which cost us $600 pp extra.

And just what is "interesting"?  That a contracted ticket is being offered at a lower price than what is likely to be a spot-market ticket?  What were you expecting - and more importantly, why?  (For the purpose of helping the knowledge of everyone reading)

1 hour ago, Zach1213 said:

 

The thing is...I want to like JAL. I want to take JAL. I do occasionally end up on their metal longhaul because it's my only option. Their service is great, their food is really good. But I just find myself unable to get too comfortable on their planes.

I've actually been able to get them to turn it down a bit....a smile, a polite request.  A couple of degrees, but at least something.

OTOH, it gives me an excuse to enjoy a cold beverage -- the onboard Japanese whiskeys have been superb.

17 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

It’s interesting that none of the major transatlantic carriers based in Europe offer them and the Big 3 US carriers do.

UA and AA are only on a very few routes, and DL gives nothing.

I find it amusing that JAL loans you a sweater, considering how warm their cabins usually are.  (About 75F on my last JAL flight).

So...the OP wants the free air.  Thus, they will only get what Viking is offering for that promotion.

Much of this discussion seems to involve when you are buying your air through Viking, which is a completely different situation.

Beg to differ.  In my experience, if the cruise is being offered with "Free Air", you do not get a reduction in price if you don't take the air provided by Viking.  Seems the OP is getting a "Free Air" promotion.

If this has changed, please let me know.

www.timeanddate.com

45 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Sounds like making some of the routes seasonal, to me.

Actually, some are already seasonal, just ending earlier than originally planned.  Athens, Barcelona and Venice for example.

AA has announced that they are reducing/ending schedules for a number of long-haul destinations this fall.  If you have AA booked flights listed below, you might want to work on alternatives.  Or if you were planning on these.

JFK-Rome  Down to one flight daily eff Aug 5

JFK-Athens   Ends Sept 3

JFK-Barcelona  Ends Sept 3

JFK-Buenos Aires  Down to one flight daily eff Oct 27

PHL-Venice   Ends Oct 5

ORD-Paris   Ends Sept 3

DFW-Dublin   Ends Oct 26

DFW-Rome   Ends Oct 26

MIA-Rio   Reduced to 10x weekly