millybess

I agree with you. We often change our reserved time for one reason or another. I disagree about booking a higher level cabin in order to gain more restaurant reservations. I can't imagine paying thousands more $ so that I could eat in one of their specialty restaurants. I think that if one books a higher level cabin, it's probably because of square footage and location. I'm glad they posted this information on their website. It's not often Viking updates their website with relevant information, unfortunately.

We were fortunate enough to go to St. Petersburg with Viking. Nothing compares to the palaces in and around St. Petersburg. Even without that experience, the Madrid Royal Palace was underwhelming -- fairly drab and lots of stairs.

It really does vary by ship/chef. We had lobster tail and chateaubriand on Sea in January and it was incredibly delicious. I could have eaten that every night.

Yes, Corral de la Moreria. If you book directly on their website, you will get a better table. But if @Torquato has a recommendation, take that one over mine.

I think that's right. We often arrive and there are a lot of empty tables. I think they keep them open for those who weren't able to book online.

The OBC would pay, or at least contribute, to the gratuities at the end. Or you could splurge on a Viking jacket!

I can't find a "Dinner Reservation" thread to post this on so I'll post it here. I was just on MVJ and I noticed that they have now added this to the dinner reservation site: "In case reservations are fully booked, they can be made directly on board the ship." 🙂

Yes, as you know, we did the show/dinner also. No, definitely not Michelin Star, but fun. We did enjoy the Tuk Tuk tour. Did you get to the Palace? It's easy for us to get to Madrid from Toronto also. I just wish it was as easy for us to get to San Juan.

Thanks @SantaFe1 So that begs this question: If we have a dinner reservation on May 2nd, do we get to eat there twice? It's not important, but it is interesting to understand how the ship handles that.

It sounds like you might have had our table. I'm glad you were able to get in. It did make for good photos. I had read here previously that if you book it yourself on their website rather than through a tour you will get the best tables. Is that what you did?

I'm interested in why you wouldn't do Alaska again. Is it because there are too many cruise ships?

We're still interested in the answer -- does May 2nd happen twice? We thought @Heidi13 and/or @Jim Avery might know the answer. But if anyone else wants to chime in........

I agree, and thanks for starting it.

Yes, it was because of you and Lorna that we booked Carrington in Barbados. Had a great time with him and learned so much about the culture. We are very excited about our upcoming trip and we're very busy preparing for it. We'll post on @Peregrina651 Far East thread when we have a chance. We return mid-May. Enjoy your next adventure!!

I just looked at sailings in 2024 and there’s $4500 difference between a PV1 and a DV4, so it seems you got a deal.

That’s great! We’ve heard numerous complaints about him, so maybe he’s changed his tune.

You would need to give us more information. What is the itinerary and the length of the voyage? With a PV you have extra space Free pressing Earlier choices of excursions, dining and spa -- although that's neither here nor there. Are you comparing a PV1 to a DV6? Much more information is required.

This is just our opinion, but we have had Damien on 2 of our cruises and we feel he's just not up to the job. He pushes to be the "star of the show", whatever the show may be, to the exclusion of his staff. The last CD we had in January was Ryan, who really showcased some of the other entertainers and was genuinely interested in everything that was going on around him.

We were able to dock at Manaus. It sounds like your trip was really lovely. Can we expect one of your really great detailed reviews again? Have fun planning your Expedition cruise.

Now I see @Haqdeluxe previous post. Thanks!

So if someone was travelling with injectables for several weeks that needed to be refrigerated and it was specified that they couldn't be put back in the refrigerator after being at room temperature, what would one use?

The weather sounds perfect! Do you have anything planned? DH did the America's Cup Regatta and really enjoyed it.

We will be in Hong Kong for a couple of days before we board Orion. We're staying at the Shangri-la Kowloon which we booked independently, but happens to be the same hotel Viking uses for the pre-extension. The hotel overlooks the harbour and has many restaurants, which is what we were looking for. I'll let you know what it's like. We are travelling independently in Hong Kong. Here's an outline of our plan: Museum of History Kowloon Park Maritime Museum Avenue of Stars Signal Hill Garden Symphony of Lights on the Dukling Star Ferry to Pottinger Street The Escalators Mon Mo Temple Peak Tram Repulse Bay Stanley Market The day after we join the ship, we have reserved 2 Viking excursions: Kowloon Highlights Hong Kong by Vintage Tram

It sounds like you had a really great trip. I’m glad you enjoyed Krka Falls and that you were able to go back up the way you came down. That would make a huge difference. Did you end up going to Corral de la Moreria in Madrid for dinner and the flamenco show? Our Amazon trip was very good. We met a lot of new friends. The crew and food were amazing!! We had a laundry tour, a galley tour and a bridge tour. I showed the captain a photo of me sitting in his chair with a Viking helmut on and he told us a very funny story about a certain pilot who boards and always has to wear the Viking helmut. The captain and all the senior crew were always around, stopping to talk to the passengers. We met up with Ronnie Carrington in Barbados. He is quite a character with a wealth of knowledge and local stories. We’re glad he was recommended here on CC. He is doing another exhibition in Toronto this summer. Afterwards, we met up with friends who winter in Barbados. It was a very fun day. We were able to tender in French Guiana and walk around, but it was incredibly hot that day. Still, it was an insightful experience. On the ship the movie Papillon was shown, but many were disappointed that it wasn’t the original Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman version. We did the piranha fishing excursion which was a lot of fun and we had a really great guide. On that excursion we saw a few birds that we had never seen before. The Boi Bumba was colourful. There were many talented dancers, and we got some nice photos. We weren’t very fond of Manaus. We had a terrible guide. As you know, the ship overnights there and we talked to a couple of senior officers on the ship who said they worry about the crew getting off there for the evening. We could certainly see why. For the whole trip we saw 1 mosquito on the outside of our balcony door. But we did see some other weird-looking bugs. We are leaving on the 5th for Hong Kong, which is a trip we’ve been looking forward to for a long time. We’re doing many private tours in Japan and they are requiring a lot of preparation.

Do injectables have to travel in checked luggage on a flight, or can they be in your carryon?