60s Wombat

At 7Seas and Rapister - You are spot on about expensive ingredients being badly abused - just back from our curtailed World Cruise - and whilst the menu's don't repeat on Viking they absolutely crucify prime quality ingredients into 'American Bland' at every opportunity. Hot food is served warm often on cold plates, cold food is served at room temperature often on hot plates. Vegetables are steamed to oblivion. I think the logistics and throughput of hundreds of people dining within a couple of hours mean that it can only ever be a mass catering gig at any meal time. From what I can gather, however talented the chefs, most of whom come from Asia or Indian subcontinent and do have spice handling built into their DNA, they have to follow the recipes laid down by the US office (most of the pax on Viking are US). Menu's are built specifically for 'older' Americans - so not a lot of texture or spice - easy to chew and easy to digest. The servers will happily bring a side plate of dried chilli flakes if one wishes for any heat in a dish - but that sort of misses the point - gravy with chilli flakes added - doesn't magically make a curry!. The gelato on Viking is epic and the fried eggs at breakfast cooked to order are good. Every dish though is served up with a smile and a kind word which is just fabulous. Not many dishes - even in the Chefs Table speciality den - get much in the way of spice added. All that said, on a WC you don't have to shop, cook or wash up yourself for months!. The hardest task of the day is choosing off an extensive menu. Ah life's all about trade off's. Remember also to treat every port as a culinary opportunity and you can happily eat your way around the globe. Suggest you add into your WC budget a good whack of cash for on shore dining, do your research of good restaurants and book ahead - and view it as an excursion opportunity.

That would be a pity. I'm enjoying a number of the Neptune's WC blogs including Floater69. Different people have differing perspectives - doesn't mean any of 'em are wrong!. It's surely up to the reader to pick the bones out of all. I skip on by a number of blogs that concentrate on things that have no personal interest to me, such as the more golf centric ones, but appreciate that all the writers will have taken time and trouble to share their views and that their posts may be of great interest to others.

Thanks Jim - its definitely got a face!. Probably that only a mother could love - but great vid.

Your photos are amazing - thank you so much for posting them. I loved the photo of the dragon - but out of interest to the WC bloggers generally - are the photos taken with a zoom lens or can you really see the animals with the naked eye so to speak?. I tend to only feel I've had a great view of a creature if I can see its face without needing a telephoto lens the length of a small child. Cheers.

Thanks Juggler - unfortunately Viking don't offer insurance for their UK customers. If only..........

Many thanks - I'll have a look on the P & O board you suggest. Unfortunately the 'free' travel insurance with bank account won't cover the duration or the itinerary for the Viking WC. Have spoken with over 40 brokers / insurers and I'm still looking!.

Hi - I am struggling to find travel insurance for the 140 night World Cruise (Viking 2023/24) from any of the insurance brokers/companies in the UK. The policy 'must haves' are cover for medical and repatriation costs, cruise interruption and cancellation costs of £48,000 per person. We are a couple in our early 60's, have no significant health issues, and have never had any travel insurance claims in the past. Surely there must be a lot of experienced Brit World Cruisers out there who can give me a few signposts?. The biggest problem seems to be getting cancellation cover of anything near the cost of the cruise. Thank you.

Hello chaps, interesting to read your thoughts re Viking Travel Insurance. Can anyone tell me whether this is only available to US customers or is it open to UK customers as well please?. Thankyou.