Cher98

Me:  “That was a plus!”

Of course, it is nice to not be crowded, but I hope that all is back to normal in travel and all aspects of life for the sake of everyone.

13 hours ago, Twitchly said:

That’s the excursion we were hoping to see! So strange that they dropped it. 

I wonder if in part it’s due to cruise cancellations in some way. We had a couple of excursions cancelled not too long before our trip so we chose other ones.  I thought then that those cancellations were due to a lack of interest and not enough people signing up, but I think that Rome excursion was/is popular so I don’t think that would be the case. It was full although as time passed, folks cancelled their entire trips/excursions. During the cruise, Viking did switch our times on some excursions to fill out groups and even doubled up two groups on one of them. The ship was about half full.  There weren’t crowds on the ship nor on land.  That was def a plus!

On 12/2/2021 at 12:47 AM, donaldsc said:

 

Drove by the Coliseum and the Circus Maximus and apparently did not stop.  Besides the Vatican, where did you stop.  Do I have it right?  Doesn't sound like a great tour to me.

 

DON

No Don, it was fabulous!  I was trying to convey that it was not perfect due to Covid protocols, including our excursion being cut short by two hours,  but I was still so happy we went. Below is the description of the excursion. We didn’t stop to see the monuments. If that would be unsatisfactory to you or if you cannot roll w/the punches, you shouldn’t travel now. 

No one was able to plan their own non-Viking excursions. 

10 hours ago, Twitchly said:

Has anyone been to Rome with Viking lately? We’re taking the Antiquities & Holy Land cruise in mid-January, which starts in Rome. After a long wait, we were finally able to book excursions in Rome this week — but only 3 are offered. Nothing in Vatican City. No Sistine Chapel. Just an included “panoramic” bus tour and a couple ($200) mixed tours of mostly ancient sites. 
 

When I talked with a Viking staff person a couple of weeks ago about another issue, she said Rome had “some travel challenges” or words to that effect.
 

Anyone have experience with traveling in Rome with Viking lately? Were you able to get into the Sistine chapel or the Vatican? This is our first visit and we’re really hoping to see these. 

We went on the “Sistine Chapel and Vatican City” excursion on October 23rd. We were mostly w/Viking folks. We were able to shop for about a half hour alone at St. Peter’s Square.  As we left on the bus, we drove by the Coliseum, Circus Maximus, the temple, etc. It’s a pretty long tour (10 hrs) and ours was cut a little short (maybe 2 hrs) without explanation.  
 

It was a spectacular tour!

1 hour ago, Shorex said:

Thanks much!

 

Sorry, I missed it. Lots of nice helpful folks to catch errors though. : )

29 minutes ago, Shorex said:

Is it possible to pre-order distilled water for a CPAP machine, or should we just request it (along with an extension cord) onboard? Thanks for any help in this area.

Hi. I’m a newbie but can offer that Distilled water is listed under My Viking Journal, Onboard Experience, Preferences, Stateroom Preferences. You may check it off there as a preference though you may need to request extra.  Also under MVJ Onboard Experience is Stateroom, Electrical Outlets & Adapters.  There is information and a list of prohibited items. Extension cords are not prohibited.  That’s as far as my knowledge goes but others will likely have more to offer. 

https://viking-cruises-cabin-guide.blogspot.com/p/6020-ada.html

On 8/8/2021 at 11:57 AM, Ballerina Sweetie Pie said:

Hoping that people continue to post their quarantine experiences on Iceland sailings. It is very helpful to me to hear what is currently happening onboard. Viking has not been forthcoming in relaying such information. I have been told  their policy of not requiring quarantine of negative testing passengers three times yet I’ve read where several have missed days of their cruise by contact tracing w/negative testing. I still have 2 weeks to decide whether to postpone or forge ahead. Thanks, Susan

Regarding pax that test negative but yet may get caught up in quarantine through contact tracing, I too would like to hear onboard experiences of all cruises. Of course, Viking must follow host country regulations but they have their own policies too like daily testing. 

I actually told Viking a couple of days ago about the mistake and it’s still not changed. There have also been cabin cancellations w/ES and PJS now available on our cruise. We are on waiting list for PJS.  Not the most encouraging signs.  
 

I did start at the beginning of this thread and it’s really great, very helpful and informative, so thanks to the many posters.  

28 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Affirmative, a port intensive Meddy cruise with long tours booked every day can definitely be rather tiring, especially if it is during the hot summer months. Little easier in the Autumn months when it is cooler.

 

The website will not permit booking a 2nd tour on any day, if it conflicts with the first tour. They generally require 45 min to 1 hr between tours, although I did find a port where I could book with only 1/2 hr between them.

 

Viking Shore-ex can be cancelled online up to 7-days before departure for a full refund. Once you get onboard, none of the tours booked on the first 2 days are refundable. After that, most tours can be cancelled 2 days prior to the port. The cancellation limit is noted in the Viking daily and if memory is correct, on each ticket. I have seen some tours with a longer cancellation period, so best to confirm.

Thank you. We are traveling this October (hopefully). We booked one tour each day, all Viking, since we aren’t sure we can book other local tours. We stay busy when we travel so hopefully we can keep up but it’s nice to know we can cancel with a refund if we get over-tired. 
 

We start in Barcelona and coincidental to what is not refundable (first 2 days), we were unable to book any excursion there because there are no Barcelona excursions, but France ones instead on Day 2.  I did call Viking and I am guessing they received a lot of calls. 

This is my first cruise (Mediterranean Odyssey) and first trip to Europe too. I reserved shore-x (correct?) everyday except for two - one was a sea day.  I wonder if that is overambitious with some excursions 8 to 10 hours.  Without any experience, I was at a loss as to which ones are the best ones and how many to choose. We can cancel w/a 2 day notice, correct?

26 minutes ago, KD34 said:

I apologize as this may have already been mentioned.   We are set to go on Sky 7/30.  I know they(Viking) test passengers on arrival and prior to departure.  Was this a random testing midway through the trip?  

Has anyone on Sky posted what the rest of their voyage was like after the positive case?  

 

Thank you.  KD

I think testing is daily right now but that is not Viking’s stated policy:
 

Quick and easy PCR tests will be conducted prior to embarkation and on an ongoing, regular basis throughout an itinerary, dependent on prevalence levels from both our guests’ country of origin and the destinations to which we will sail.

Check out their Health and Safety Plan Q&A. 

https://www.vikingcruises.com/oceans/my-trip/health-and-safety/health-and-safety-faq.html

Thanks for the heads up. 

Iceland

Entry requirements 

People with documentation of vaccination or previous infection do not have to undergo a test upon, or before, arrival. They just need to show their vaccine “passport” and 14 days have to have passed from the second dose (or 14 days from a Janssen/Johnson & Johnson dose) for a certificate to be valid.

https://www.nytimes.com/article/travel-to-europe.html#link-514e62b3

On 7/6/2021 at 10:19 AM, Cher98 said:

Thanks Tanya!  I was able to change my flights this morning. My connection times are between 2.5 to 3 hrs. and I feel a lot better now!

Excuse my misspell, Tayana. 
 

I called around 10 am EST and waited approx. 40 minutes to get through. I was a little uncomfortable calling since our cruise is in Oct. but the agent was kind enough not to mention it. I would have been more uncomfortable not having made the call!

On 7/4/2021 at 9:08 PM, TayanaLorna said:

My minimum is 2.5 hours connection.  I don't walk fast and I don't want to be stressed.  If I have to change terminals I like an even longer layover but that's me.

Thanks Tanya!  I was able to change my flights this morning. My connection times are between 2.5 to 3 hrs. and I feel a lot better now!

On 7/2/2021 at 4:24 PM, TayanaLorna said:

Best time i found to call air plus is 6 am Pacific time on a Sunday.  Then its a less then 10 minute wait.  I ignored the 60 day wait request and called recently for a November cruise.  Glad i did because they could not book my first choice because it was not within the Viking contract with that airline - at this time.  They wanted to put us on a flight with a 1 hour 30 minute connection time which was not any choice of ours.  So i had them reserve my 2nd choice for now.  They can reserve you seats but they are not guaranteed until Viking tickets which won't be soon.

We were scheduled a flight by Viking w/a 1 hr 30 min connection time, TYS to ATL (1 1/2 hr.) to Barcelona, and have been worried about it.  So you would not accept that?  
 

If you wouldn’t, what would your minimum time be?  Thanks!

Thank you!  Very nice tour!