Clay Clayton

Welcome to Viking! Where in NC are ya?  Raleighite here

If Fjords are the focus then only 2 & 4 will really satisfy that.   #3 will a fjord to/from Eidford. Not familiar with that port but can’t imagine it will come close to 2 or 4. 
 

As a first time Viking cruiser, your final payment date will be at least 12 months prior to embarkation (some have reported 18 months).  If you know someone who has sailed Viking (River, Ocean, Expedition) they can “refer” you and you’ll get $100 off per person. Additionally, if you find a travel agent who kickback the max Viking allows-you would get $300 per person which is enough to cover daily gratuities or other onboard purchases. 
 

Unless you want to take the excursions that have very limited numbers, you shouldn’t have any issue getting excursions. The biggest thing to keep in mind is you may not get them for the time you prefer. 
 

You may want to take a look at this thread, it has lots of tips and advice for making the most of your first Viking cruise: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2416372-tips-for-new-viking-ocean-cruisers/page/62/#comment-62141739

10 hours ago, Breckski said:

What should I wear to the pool then?  

Ladies: bathing suit & a coverup (lots of sarongs on our last cruise)

Gentlemen: bathing suit & tshirt

1 hour ago, Jim Avery said:

Had a big fat guy with long bushy beard wear bib overalls most days on the last World Cruise. If you can think it, it’s probably been worn.😱

#NeptuneGetsEverything

14 hours ago, 1sttimerrt said:

I read all 4 pages of the post that you referenced.  I only saw the word "Mocktail" mentioned once.  I am not referring to non-alcoholic beer or liquor but to mixed drinks that are referred to as Mocktails.  So my question still stands. 

My recollection is that most bartenders will make any cocktail you want whether on the menu or not. 

1 hour ago, Bxianesq said:

These responses are great- thank you! On the Kindle issue, I load mine up with tons of books via my  library’s Libby app before a cruise. However, I’m never sure how good the Wi-Fi will be on board. I also bring several books to trade when I am on HAL and am glad that this appears to be an option on Viking. I will check out the other thread. I still check the “HAL for newbies” thread before every HAL cruise (being sure to mark where I left off) because things change over time. 

There is also a section to leave a book/take a book.  This is in The Living Room, starboard side, across from the computers 

3 hours ago, Bxianesq said:

Hi-we are trying out one of Viking's ocean cruises for the first time.  We booked a 2026 cruise that circumnavigates Australia with a few stops in Indonesia. We've added another Viking Cruise that sails from Auckland to Sydney on the same ship immediately prior to the Australia cruise.  We chose Viking because of the variety of ports available on the Australia/Indonesia portions of the cruise.  We have not been on any of their river cruises. 

 

We've been on the following cruise lines:

Holland America.  We just earned 4 star Mariner status.  We like HAL's interesting ports of call and food.  The entertainment (shows) have been subpar for the most part, although we loved the pianist Hyperion Knight and one of the Spanish guitar performers on a recent Panama Canal full transit. We enjoy the Rolling Stone lounge and lament the departure of BB King's and Lincoln Center. We've enjoyed meeting lots of well-traveled people on some of HAL's longer cruises.  We're looking forward to our unlimited free laundry!

Oceania-We've been one one Oceania cruise.  We loved the afternoon tea, the food, wine and cocktail selections, and the more upscale feel of the lounge areas.  However, we skipped one port (literally as we were pulling up to the dock), and there were flies coming into an open door of the more casual dining venue. 

Celebrity. We've been on one cruise through several of the Greek islands. We thought that the food was boring, although we had a lovely wine pairing dinner (albeit with a hefty additional cost and a hefty Daniel Boulud cookbook to lug home). I didn't like the restaurant separations (i.e., you can only eat here if you book a spa cabin or a suite).  I also got tired of the constant "Attention Celebrity Infinity" overhead announcements. Their excursions were very good. We also liked their casual dining seating placement-unlike HAL's. 

Royal Caribbean-Our first cruise.  I almost didn't get my husband on another cruise ship after that experience....way too many people crammed into their atrium. 

 

I understand that Viking does not charge extra for specialty dining or certain excursions.  I have a few questions:

1.  How is the food in the main dining room and in the specialty restaurants?  Do the MDR menus change daily?

2. Is laundry included, and is it sent out by your cabin steward or do your own?

3.  Is there a library, and are there a decent number of up to date books?

4  Are there any food or wine themed walking tours included?  We're not really big on being cooped up on a bus for hours on end. On a recent coffee plantation tour in Guatemala, my husband commented that we spent 3 hours on a bus to get...a cup of coffee. We are foodies and love exploring local food markets and restaurants.  They don't need to be pricey.

5.  Do they have an interesting wine selection on board? Is there anywhere that I could take a look at their wine list?

6.  Is it easy to go off the ship and do your own thing? 

7.  Is there entertainment on board?

Many thanks for any input.  I realize that the cruise is far off in time and that things can always change. For reference, we'll be on the Viking Orion. 

 

You’ve gotten good answers to your questions.  You ought to check out this thread which is full of advice and hints to make the most of your Viking cruise:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2416372-tips-for-new-viking-ocean-cruisers/page/62/#comment-62141739

1 hour ago, JF - retired RRT said:

Do you have to go back to Manfredi's or will the MDR or buffet heat it up for you?

1 hour ago, cutinacaroline said:

As for the bistecca, I am honestly not sure, as I read from another person’s post (can’t remember where) that they had their leftover steak reheated the next day. If you have the bistecca and can’t finish it, just tell the server to keep the leftover for you and then have it reheated. 

Never heard about having leftovers-seems side to order the half portion that is mentioned on thr menu. 

4 hours ago, Lenbro1944 said:

Any tips how your mother in law was able to negotiate the 150% single supplement on the second cruise? Has anyone else been able to negotiate a solo single supplement pricing?

Negotiate was the wrong word.   Asked is what I should have written.  In both cases Viking was offering promos and she was traveling with others. 

10 hours ago, Jim Avery said:

If you are on a WC they will put liter bottles of your choice of spirits in your cabin.  Or just buy a bottle at the next port and lug it home to the ship>

Jim

if this was a possibility on the 2024 WC aboard Sky it was kept very quiet…at least for those of us in DVs 

https://www.viking.com/promotions/us/en/river/EL7/20240717/pharaohs-and-pyramids.html?cid=EML|AJO|999|Email+-+240717_vrc_el7&utm_source=email&utm_medium=AJO&utm_content=Email+-+240717_vrc_el7&correlationId=51073cef-33b2-4e1d-a412-c2ed42384616-0

Just one more data point as you consider your options. It’s unclear how long your cruise is but the amount Viking allows a TA to reimburse is based on the length of the cruise. $250 per person isn’t the max allowed for any of the lengths so I suspect the TA you’ve gotten that offer from is holding at least $50/pp back. 
 

To maximize your value, you may want to find a travel agent that provides the maximum kickback of their commission that Viking allows-$150pp on cruises up to 7 nights, $300pp on 8-14 night cruises, and $500pp on cruises of 15 nights or more.

Like others have mentioned, some agents like the one we use provide this as refundable onboard credits-whatever we don’t use, we get in a check from Viking about two weeks after the cruise. 

4 hours ago, Lenbro1944 said:

We oared scheduled on a Viking cruise to Iceland next summer that lists a disembark time in Reykjavik as 5 AM. How early and how quickly can you get off ship with your luggage in order to make a morning airline flight?

Unless the processes at the airport have changed since 2021, leave yourself plenty of time to checkin and get through security.  We had Delta’s first flight back to JFK (11ish?) and spent three-four hours getting from the ship (prearranged taxi) to the gate and only had a few minutes to catch our breath before boarding. Not sure why but can’t seem to find the photo looking the other way, but this was the head of the line at the ticket counter and it extended at leave 150 people the other way.  Luckily we were able to use the Priority line so only took us about 30 minutes.  I suspect if we had been in the regular line it would have been at least twice as long. 
 

Hopefully, they have improved things since then-this was just after the world started to open up after the pandemic and I know everyone was short staffed. 

43 minutes ago, Baron Barracuda said:

If you haven't booked yet you might consider waiting.  We were on this sailing last November.  Originally booked a pv3 for $17.5k, later repriced for $14k, cancelled and rebooked (forfeiting Tripmate premium) for $12k.  Later met folks who booked dv's last minute for $4k.  Ship sailed 84% full.  Just not enough customers to fill all those 18 and 33 day LA sailings.  It was a great cruise though, slid through just before start of rainy season.

Don’t you think a lot of that price drop was driven by people canceling after the unrest in the Mideast?  Hopefully by the time of the eclipse, things will have calmed down?

12 hours ago, FLORIDA FLOUNDER said:

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We looked at booking this but the 5 days in Cairo are about 4 too many for us.  The only thing that wanted us to make it back was to see the new Museun which maybe will be open by then. But we decided that we didn’t want to spend four other days there. 

1 hour ago, farmecologist said:

 

Thanks Clay.  Any change you can post the link?  Or is it tailored to your account?

28 minutes ago, Sammy2001 said:

Clay, Would you please email me the link at aditmanson@gmail.com?  I haven't been able to find the 4-Day sale, only specials that expire on July 31 that don't include Silver Spirits.  Would be much appreciated!  

Here is the link:

https://www.viking.com/promotions/us/en/portal/LM7.html?cid=EML|AJO|999|Email+-+240712_multiproduct_LM7&utm_source=email&utm_medium=AJO&utm_content=Email+-+240712_multiproduct_LM7&correlationId=c35311c0-4947-4003-aaf2-3472f6c6f006-0

2 hours ago, farmecologist said:

 

Ok..dumb question.  Is there a way to search on the Viking site for all cruises eligible for a specific code ( in this case, LM7 )?

 

Not that I know of, but when I click on the link it takes me to ones that are eligible.  But I don’t know how to copy the email into this thread.  I believe others have said though that sometimes the code will work for cruises not specifically listed. 

Sale is offered on various River, Ocean, and Expedition cruises

FYI

36 minutes ago, Dukefan said:

I don't think any of the cabins width well change.  They will probably increase the depth of each Cabin.  

I’m hoping by increasing the space between the closet and the bed by a foot or so. 

3 hours ago, rjp50 said:

As we are now winding up this same itinerary on the Saturn, I thought I would add my commentary to this excellent report.  First and foremost I have to agree 100 percent about the crew’s willingness to go above and beyond to make sure you are happy.  Below are my other observations.

 

Embarkation - unfortunately this was not as smooth as was experienced by DrKoob.  The initial paperwork process was extremely smooth.  However we then had to use UberBoats to shuttle to the ship in Greenwhich.  This involved standing in the very hot sun for about a half hour or more before a shuttle showed up (we had arrived at the check in at the appointed time of 11:00).  Then, once on board the shuttle, we waited for another half hour while they waited to fill up the boat.  
 

Food - for the most part this was very good.  I was impressed with number of times that premium items like lamb chops, beef tenderloin, lobster, etc. were on one of the menus.  However, now that the trip is drawing to a close, I must admit that it is all starting to become somewhat repetitive.  They could improve the food experience by doing more creative things with their menus.  One thing that was very impressive was that if the grilled items in the WC were not cooked to your liking they were more than willing do a custom batch for you.  One area that I was not impressed with was the deserts.  While the variety in the WC was quite good, nothing really wowed me.  Finally, by far the worst food category was the bread and rolls.  Even in the specialty restaurants they were mediocre.  We can buy better things in our local supermarket.

 

Specialty Restaurants - I agree whole heartedly with DrKoob about Manfreddies.  It is the weakest part of the entire dining experience.  The food ranged anywhere from bad to acceptable but nothing that was exceptional.  Compared with specialty restaurants on Celebrity, Holland America and Royal Caribbean it is a complete fail.  Of course there is no extra charge on Viking, but sometimes you get what you paid for.  I will add one positive thing about it and it relates to exceptional customer service.  My wife who cooks great Italian cuisine talked to the chef and asked him if it was possible to modify the recipe for ravioli.  Given 24 hour advanced notice he was more than happy to comply and the result was superb.

Chef’s Table was good if you can deal with the fact that there is no choice on the menu.

 

Restaurant versus World Cafe - while there may be spots in the Restaurant that are noisy, we were able to find a quiet location.  On the other hand, the WC, with its open kitchen is quite chaotic with the constant sound of clattering dishes. On the positive side there is a lot of variety, but on the negative side, with the need to keep getting up to serve yourself it doesn’t lend itself to a “fine dining” experience.  We tend to choose which one to eat at based on mood and menu.

 

Itinerary and excursions - if you were to be guaranteed good weather I can’t imagine a better itinerary. The main reason I chose this trip was to see the Lofoton Islands.  When I first saw photographs of this area I knew I had to visit.  I arranged a tour with another company that would provide 5 or 6 hours to do this area right.  Unfortunately, the weather was a complete washout with rain and low hanging clouds that made good photography impossible.  

 

My second most important stop was to be Geiranger.  We are currently headed there but the forecast does not look good with high probability of rain all day.  Ironically, today is a sea day and it is bright sunshine and I am sitting on our veranda getting a tan.  
 

The included excursions are adequate but nothing exceptional.  We have done one optional ship excursion and it was better than the included ones.  The best experience that we have had from an excursion perspective was the three third party excursions that we opted for.

 

Entertainment - from my reading of Viking reviews I was not expecting much in the area of entertainment.  I was pleasantly surprised that I was wrong.  True, the entertainment in the Star Theater is not what you would see on the big cruise lines in terms of grandeur but it is very entertaining.  The thing that I enjoyed was the smaller acts that were spread around the ship.  In particular, James the guitarist plays a wonderful variety of music that is great to listen to and sing along with.  We find ourselves building our schedule around where he is playing.  
 

The thing that blew me away was the 4th of July party that was up on the pool deck.  We got out there around 7:45 and the band and various singers were already playing and went nonstop until 10 PM.  Everyone was dancing and having a great time.  I can’t imagine how the drummer’s arms felt after keeping that up for so long.  Included in the “various singers” category mentioned above was both cruise director and his assistant.  Both had excellent voices.  I’m not sure if this is a requirement by Viking to become a cruise director, but it was a nice addition to the entertainment variety on our ship.

 

Summary - this is our first foray into small ship cruising having been primarily Celebrity customers, but also a number of other mass market lines.  My overall impression is very positive.  I think I will reserve final judgement on the value proposition until I have had a few weeks to reflect on it.  If Viking were priced equal to the mass market ships there is no question that it would blow them away.  However, as we all know, there is a significant price premium for Viking.  We have future cruises scheduled for Windstar and Oceania.  After those we will see if we want to become loyalists to any particular cruise lines.

Great objective review!   Wanted to suggest that as you ponder the cruise over the next few weeks that you also consider the total cost of the cruise to determine if you still believe there is a “significant price premium”.  
 

We tend to book relatively last minute (6 months or so pre embarkation) and have found that with the promos offered and after taking into account the amenities Viking includes versus what we typically use on a non-Viking cruise that the cost difference can be as low as $15 per person per day which to us is worth it for the smaller crew and no kids. That calculation was done on a transatlantic in 2019 comparing Viking to Royal Carribean on a spring TA. The per person per day savings isn’t as good on a cruise with more ports or their more popular cruise.  Of course the calculation is impacted by the amount of onboard credit Viking allows, on other cruise lines our travel agent doesn’t provide enough to cover the gratuities but on Viking they do so that is a big impact. 

11 hours ago, CharTrav said:

What is an "azipod"? 🤔

rather than fixed propellers and a rudder that moves to steer the ship, the propellers swing to direct the ship in different directions. Here is a video about them: https://youtu.be/pYT5D9bfgEE

I also wish (and have suggested) that the recordings of the poet talks be available on MVJ or Viking TV.  They would need lots of caveats but it would still give folks a better idea of what is coming than the paragraph or two of your description we get now. 

I also hadn’t realized that the new ships were going to have azipods unlike their older smaller sisters. 

On 7/3/2024 at 7:25 PM, Mich3554 said:

The last few cruises we have been on, some of the port talks have been 2 days before that day in port rather than the day before.  We usually watch the recorded versions of port talks rather than go to the Star.  

This was the case on the World Cruise on Sky this past winter/spring.