Peregrina651

Me, neither. In fact, we ask the steward to remove it so I can have a storage shelf that I can actually reach. One of the other reasons we don't use the machine in the room is that having free espresso made in a real espresso machine is a treat for me. I stop by the Living Room bar before heading up to the World Cafe for breakfast because even the machines in the buffet won't do.

Follow the Viking Sea as well.

There are independent vendors even in the smaller ports. Besides the roll calls, which have been rather sparse of late, try the following: ~ Cruise Critic Ports of Call forum -- for a bigger audience ~ Trip Advisor-- at least you can see names of companies and read reviews ~ Viator -- third part tour booking ~ ToursbyLocals is also frequently mentioned in this forum

Thank you! I knew it was something with two U's.

Yes, there is Viking Expeditions itinerary -- that includes Greenland and Northwest Passage. R/T Nunavuut, I think.

Mobile usage while cruising is not a simple conversation. There are so many variables. Who is your cell provider? Which model phone do you have? Etc. Check out Cruising Technology here on Cruise Critic (lots of tech savvy folks hang out there). There is nothing about cell service on the Viking website because other than free internet that you may be able to use to make calls, Viking is not a cell service provider. Internet at sea is a complicated issue in itself; it is not like sitting in your den and it is not guaranteed to be seamless -- no matter which cruise line you are sailing with. The place to start is with your cell provider. Two questions to ask: 1) what are your international plans and 2) do your offer calling over wi-fi & do I have it available on my device? There are tons of solutions but I always want to keep it simple. I do not want to mess with sim cards or even eSims. We have wi-fi calling on our phone for texting and calling family. We have a daily plan on our phone service for international calls made aboard (which I have used maybe once or twice in the past few years). GPS service does not need data to function. Download the maps you want to use before you leave home and you can navigate (but not much more).

I'm looking forward to hearing your review. I am hoping to do this or else the Reykjavik to Bergen eventually and would like to do it in late summer.

Well, we don't have too long to wait for those reviews to start coming in!

E, my sister, who disembarked the day you embarked, was wondering if you got into Iceland and is a bit jealous that you got to Newfoundland. One of the ice pilots did say that this is the worst they have seen in 30 years. Her feeling was she preferred her early June sailing to the crowds of the summer months. Ditto. I wonder if increased rudeness correlates to increased disappointment in missed ports or other anticipated changes (coupled with the entitlement mentality and lack of "doing one's homework"). In any case, glad to hear that you two had a great time.

Book it on the ship, maybe even when you arrive at the hotel for the couple of days in Cairo. Talk with your group leader. There are plenty of balloons and plenty of water taxis to get you there.

I'm assuming that one of those disappointments was Abu Simbel. Customer service can't make two seats on the plane to Abu Simbel magically appear, no matter how hard they try. Viking only charters one plane and when it is full, it is full. At this point, the best she can do is 1) book her own flights or a private tour to Abu Simbel or 2) keep checking the website in hopes of a cancellation. And she can do the same for the other tour that she was too late to book. You are so right. Do your homework! And don't be like the man who didn't read any of the information sent to him for his Russian river cruise -- because his eyes were too weak. He expected some to tell him everything he needed to know. When he got to the airport, he did not have the required visa for the trip. He didn't even make to TSA before his trip was over. No visa. No boarding pass. No refund. Not covered by insurance. Adios thousands of dollars. No sympathy from CC members as he attempted to shift blame to everybody else.

To be honest, I can't remember having to pay for any toilets while on tour with Viking in Iceland. Hopefully, someone will confirm my recollections (because trips and bathroom are all starting to run together!).

One thing I have found about Viking is that on board everyone is treated as if they were traveling in the Owner's Suite. There are no restricted public spaces, no suites-only lounges or restaurants. The only time your cabin category matters is pre-cruise booking of shore excursions and specialty restaurants.

The important number is when the cancellation penalties kick in -- and it differs by cruise length, so read the terms & conditions.

I believe that one of the driving forces in the redesign was to add more space to the engine room, hence all of the addition length is aft of the aft elevators. No additional PSJs because it would muck up the orderly arrangement of sliders and balconies?

Natural Treasures lunch may not be described as a two course meal but my recollection from 2021 is that it was a sit down meal and they usually are two courses. However, if you don't want lunch, there is an ice cream stand on the property -- if they are still taking you to the same place and if the stand is still open, that is.

I don't think they can make the V/DV cabins any narrower, so I think that we will see the difference in the door to balcony measurement.

Floating out means that all of the work that has to be done in the drydock has been completely and the ship is ready to be floated out of the drydock to another dock where the rest of construction will be completed. Viking Vela was floated out months ago and is nearing completion. She is due to be handed over to Viking in a few months. Viking Vesta was floated of drydock just the other day. She is headed to another part of the shipyard for the rest of the work that needs to be done before she is ready to handed over to Viking in the summer of 2025. There are 34 addition cabins on the new ships, which are longer and wider. You will learn more if you follow the link in the first post and read the article. There is additional information if you follow the link in the article. If you want more information, there are a couple of old threads about the new ships. Use the search function to find them.

Note that coffee on board the ship is free 24/7 -- brewed, espresso, latte, cappuccino. Alcohol in your coffee is an added charge however. If you don't want to mess with the machine in you cabin, room service delivers and there us no charge for room service. Where's the coffee: most of the bars have an espresso machine (Living Room bar, deck 1 dispenses the most coffee). World Cafe has self-serve machines available 24/7. Prefer your creamer fresh? Ask your steward for a pitcher of milk/half-and-half/soy milk for the mini-bar.

You can't depend on this experience to predict what will happen on an ocean ship. They are different animals even if they are bother operated by the same company. Ocean ships operate under very different protocols than river vessels because the challenges are different. Boarding protocols can differ from port to port for ocean ships. Local regs may prevent them from board arriving pax until departing guests have cleared the ship. River boats can be lot more laid back than cruise ships; they have fewer passengers and more leeway to play things by ear. Moreover, so much has changed over the years, especially since the pandemic --and continues to change.

No. All ten ships of the first class of Viking ships have been built and are in service. The first ship of the second class of ships, Viking Vela is due to join the fleet later in the year. Viking Vesta is the second ship of this class and is due to join the fleet summer, 2025. Current word is that there will be 10 Vela class ships built.

Make sure you inform the ship of lactose intolerance and confirm when you board that your file is so marked, especially if you plan on eating in the sit-down service restaurants.

Agreed but they probably have a long term contract with the jewelry purveyor.

No, but the Opera House is just an easy block away. We were there for three nights in May. Lovely hotel and well situated for using the train station and evening strolls on level ground.

I will save you a call. Transfers are available only from the airport to the ship on boarding day except if you are on a Viking pre-cruise extension. Arriving early without a pre-cruise extension is called a "deviation" and in that case there are no transfers. IMHO, a deviation is worth it even if I have to arrange transportation from the hotel to the ship just so that I get a day or two to get over the travel and the jetlag.