JeriGail

59 minutes ago, Baron Barracuda said:

Just booked a river cruise with Viking for next July and planned to call VAR tomorrow.  There's only one daily non-stop from EWR to AMS and two decent flights back from BUD so need to lock flights in.  We used VAR once before and while rep was helpful and flights showed in my UAL ff account all along someone screwed up and we weren't ticketed until 2 weeks before sailing.  At that point couldn't even upgrade to premium economy.  This sailing includes free air so we're committed to VAR.  Concern is I need extra leg room and don't know what upgrades will be available at the 60 day mark.  

Even though Viking quotes that 60 day mark, most on our cruise were able to book flights way before that.  I paid for Air Plus and was able to book my flights 8 months before our cruise.

1 minute ago, rbslos18 said:

The challenge for us is we depart on a Monday. It is very difficult to find PCR tests over the weekend. We even had to take an earlier flight to meet the 72 hour requirement.

Viking Guest services has told others on our Viking Sea cruise that only those who arrive MORE than 3 days before their cruise need the 2nd test.

4 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

none of the Walgreens, CVS's, or other pharmacies provide antigen tests.  And there is apparently a limited supply. 

Sorry to hear that.  I searched for COVID test sites and found this state of California site that says tests are available in San Luis Obispo, but I didn't go any further to see what tests they offer.

Testing - Coronavirus COVID-19 Response (ca.gov)

3 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Proof of negative COVID-19 NAAT/PCR or antigen test, taken no more than two (2) days prior to boarding your ship.

Aren't quick antigen tests available?  Walgreens has quick antigen tests with results the same day.

13 hours ago, seaquay said:

Just received a message in My Journey that shore excursions were open for us to book today, but no shore excursions showing.  As this is our first time sailing with Viking is this normal or perhaps a sign that without travellers from the USA our early January cruise in search of the northern lights is a non starter?

Don't worry - that happened for our cruise too.  Viking did not have the excursions confirmed when the first booking windows opened.

After reading this, I need to take some ginger pills.

1 hour ago, Jim Avery said:

Another useful info tool is the search bar at the top of the page.  Use it like Google for Cruise Critic and you will be amazed at the tonnage of info you can find.  Most of your questions are the same as we all had and discussed so click away.  You will be amazed at how much better Viking does it than your previous cruises.🍸

Some tips for using the CC search - 

Go to the Tips for New Viking Cruisers thread - 

Click in the search area in the blue bar, select "This forum" and click on "all of my search words."

The cabin category also influences when you can book excursions and alternative restaurants - suites first, then PV, then DV, and then V.  However, the V category can not book alternative restaurants before boarding.

Check out Viking's page on what they are and what they are not to make sure the Viking style of cruising is for you.

The Viking Difference (vikingcruises.com)

Also check out YouTube for video tours of the ships.

30 minutes ago, deec said:

We used Viking Air for  our new cruises because although we DID eventually get all of our self  booked DELTA flights ( there were 3)  reimbursed once Covid set in, it was a nightmare!!!   But using Viking Air we have NOT been able to get business class to SA!!  Still working on it!

That's one of the main reasons I wanted to use Viking - no worries about cancellations.

I must have one of the few Air Plus success stories.  I have not traveled much recently so I don't have airlines points or miles.  Plus, I've never been to Europe, so I wanted Viking to arrange my flights.  My cruise had free airfare so I added Air plus.  I live in Cedar Rapids, IA, so I don't have many flight options.  First go around, I got my first pick.  When American canceled the flight to Barcelona, the computer generated route had connections that were too tight for me, so I emailed my TA with the routing I wanted and Viking changed to that one.  I have seats in the location I asked for and was able to upgrade to economy plus (no premium economy on that flight).  I'm happy.

Our cruise on the Sea at the end of November is sold out, with the exception of the cabins reserved for quarantines, so I'm not surprised to hear that there are no PVs on your cruise.  Cancellations do happen, so keep checking.

15 minutes ago, lackcreativity said:

Am I missing out on things I should be informed about, or can I wait until the new year to start paying attention to that side of things? 

As we get closer to the end of this year or start the new year, check out the Viking forums for "Live" threads - cruisers will be posting about the actual conditions and how or if Viking is changing any of their travel rules.

The resource area for our November 29th Barcelona to San Juan cruise now says that independent travelers (those not using the Viking pre-extension hotel) need a negative PCR test 72 hours before boarding the ship, which means we need to find a test in Barcelona.  I emailed our hotel and found out we can get a test there! 

2 hours ago, Azulann said:

The last charter flight  on LF from Newark to Malta leaves on Monday evening.  

 Got a nice email from Viking  with an emergency number to use if we have any problems with traveling   for this cruise. Nice touch. 

On the  last Welcome back cruise from home port of Malta. We end in Barcelona.

 

 

I've been reading rumors of Viking using a different port for Barcelona, so I'll be interested to see if you actually end in Barcelona.

I remember reading a post about this that stated that Viking's ships have a larger door for loading supplies on the starboard side.

2 hours ago, greydog said:

BTW: will it show in 'air' section of MVJ when air has been ticketed (get ticket #) or do I have to separately check the airline locator codes to see if ticketed. I'm 65 days out from trip.

Mine showed as ticketed on MVJ first and then on the airlines site.

10 hours ago, Eggtuary said:

Do we know if things are more normal recently, in terms of those with higher cabin categories getting to book earlier?  I just upgraded to PV, mostly to give myself a good chance of getting the optional excursions we want. I hate to sound selfish, but my wife and I won’t likely be able to cruise again for 5 years after the one we’ve booked, and this is our first time to Europe. 

I'm in a PV for the Sea's 11/29/2021 cruise from Barcelona.  Viking didn't have our excursions up in time for the Suite guests to book, but they were available for PV and up about 3 days later then the PV published date.  There was no preview time though, so we had to decide and book quickly.  The good news is that all cabins have been able to book excursions, but only one is sold out.

23 hours ago, les37b said:

No problem..... Knew they would be of help to someone.

Thanks so much for the dailies - I'm on the Sea at the end of November (TA), so they offered me a bit of a preview for what we might expect on our many sea days.

A couple of questions for you - 

Did passengers need reservations to use the gym?

Was it difficult to get reservations for the spa (hot/cold pools)?

Were you able to explore ports on your own?

Our PV was originally more forward, but I decided I wanted to be more aft.  The PV that was available has a door, so I chose that one.  I've read that some prefer the door because the view from the couch is better, but I'm sure I would have been happy no matter which one I had. 🙂 

10 hours ago, les37b said:

 

Oh my days..  . What a brain freeze! 

 

I was so happy to get the chore of scanning them all out of the way, I just wanted to get them uploaded.

Thanks so much for posting these.  We're on the Sea for its Barcelona to San Juan TA at the end of November, so I checked out the dailies with sea days to see what kind of programming was offered.

2 hours ago, Janet&David said:

I know these cruises are a bit pricey, but I assume this is a typo. 13 days in Tromso/Svalbard for £99,999.

Definitely better to book in dollars!  🙂  Only $13,995!

Find A Cruise | Viking Expeditions® (vikingcruises.com)

Airfare shows as $999, so maybe that was copied instead of the cruise fare.

1 hour ago, millybess said:

This site might have what you're looking for:

https://pacsafe.com

We have purchased a few things from pacsafe over the years and we think they're pretty high quality.

Thanks - I was looking for something like a safer camera bag too and looked at the cross body bags.  One of these might work for a camera:

Crossbody Bags – Pacsafe

1 hour ago, Twitchly said:

Our cruise is 3 months away, and MVJ still says “shore excursions are not available at this time, we are working with our local operators, etc.” Since our cruise includes Israel and Israel is currently closed, I’m guessing that’s the main holdup here. 
 

For those of you who did finally get to preview excursions for your cruise, how far in advance did they show up? Weeks? Months?

The excursions for the November 2021 Viking Sea TA opened at 75 days.

16 minutes ago, millybess said:

That is good news that the booking time is earlier.  I just looked at our invoices for our two upcoming -- but still too far in the future -- cruises and they said 8:00pm Pacific.  Definitely an improvement!

Our Viking Sea TA opened specialty dining for DV cabins today, supposedly at 8PM Pacific, but it actually opened at 6AM Atlantic time.

48 minutes ago, jjunnila said:

Now I know we are both at a "disadvantage" since we won't partake in the included wine/beer with lunch/dinner.  I am assuming that soft drinks and specialty coffees are charged al a carte outside of dinner. Does anyone have any idea what this costs? On Celebrity there is a non-alcoholic drinks package but I don't see this for Viking.

 

Any experience from those that have been on Viking and don't drink alcohol?

 

Thanks

The only specialty coffees that have a charge are those with alcohol in them, so you should be good for lattes, espressos, etc.  The Living Room bar is open most of the day and can supply the non-alcoholic specialty coffees.

1 hour ago, Australia08 said:

Thanks for posting this. I’m having trouble finding anything specific about Coverages for Covid specific interruptions, such as coverage of quarantine hotel costs. I used a different insurance over the summer that spelled out how they covered for everything Covid related. Am I missing something?

The FAQ mentions quarantine, medical, and repatriation expenses.  Neither the link above nor the link from Tripmate's site works for me.  They both say, "Something went wrong."