Azulann

IMO , Azamara which has only three ships and run by a hedge fund group, might give more flexibility to their Captain. They also have smaller ships. I have no problem when a port is canceled due to weather. It happens. I hate port fees, which need to be added to cost of a cruise on other lines, here looking you Celebrity, for the grand total. I like the way Viking prices the cruise up front. When I book with Viking , the price is the price for the number of days of the cruise. I do know that there have been occasions when Viking did credit passengers with some credit due to special circumstances. I've never been on one of those cruises. But then I am only been of Thee Viking Ocean cruises.

You need to go to your roll call for this cruise. My friends are on board and having a great time. The roll call for this particular cruise on celebrity is very active. Good luck . Go to main page of CC and scroll down to Roll Call :Celebrity ships.... and follow the links. Welcome to Cruise Critic.

Thank you for your detailed review. Now you know why I and many others love Viking Cruise ships. I had two sets of friends that were on same cruise with you. They also love the ship, Mamsen, the lectures and most of all the outstanding service from cabin attendants, guest relation and wait staff. Glad you booked another cruise while on board. It does help with the on board discount one gets.

Clay, thanks so much for your wonderful trip report. Looks like your were really busy while you were in port. Love your pictures. Enjoy your sea days back to Vancouver.

Many times at the port terminal they have a kiosk or table with tourist information. If they have a map of the town, I pick it up. I definitely like paper maps over using my iPhone map, it always gets wonky on me.

I always book my most important optional excursion first then go pay for it , then return to MJV list of excursion and book the next most important excursions for me and then the included ones. But if they are full , check back before your cruise on MVJ may times they open up. If all else fails ,go to guest relation on first day on board, book any you missed or get on a wait list. I have always gotten the ones I wanted in the end. Enjoy your cruise. It sounds wonderful , 17 days !

I have been on the Constellation three times many years ago. Love the M class ships. ing I am think about a cruise on her out of Tampa this winter. I am excited for you both. Enjoy Rome and have a relaxing TA across the ocean. Look forward to your live report.

Look forward to your trip report. Hope once you are on the plane you can relax, you had a very full week! Have friends on the Eclipse right now. They voted by mail in AZ before they left. Other friends will be on Viking doing a Panama cruise on election day . They also voted by mail already in MN.

Always feel like I am looking at an Ikea instruction guide when looking at the symbols posted in laundry room. I did get a room steward who was nearby in hall to teach me the meaning various symbols. it was the water temp and drying temp symbol I had trouble with deciphering. I love that they have iron and ironing board, because I wear lots of cotton and linen.

Great answers from other Viking Cruisers above . I love the resident historian lectures and round-table discussions. Also on the Itinerary listing on Viking web site there is a Resource category . It included a curated reading list and film list to read and view for the individual sailing. Viking treats their guest as educated adults who love to learn and explore first and foremost. Their offerings of excursions vary. I chose the ones I want based on all my research and what I definitely want to visit or explore at each port. Some of the included excursions walking tours are just fine if you have a good guide. Also having time to just explore the port town after your tour is an option. Viking did have free shuttles at Spanish ports we visited in the past. I am looking forward to my 4th Viking Cruise next June " Scenic Scandinavia" on the Viking Jupiter

Thank you for your very detailed review. I too absolutely loved the ships . For me, the openness, comfortable elegant Scandinavian furniture, and the ability to see the sky and sea from most of the common areas keeps me sailing Viking. I had sailed on Celebrity before and cannot believe how dark some their lounges are and overly glitzy most of the common areas are compared to a Viking ship. Glad you gave tried Viking now you can move on to another cruise line based on your criteria. Thank you again for posting your review and sharing your experiences. My friend just arrived home after doing the same itinerary on the Viking Mars. As a first time cruiser , she had a fabulous time and plan to host a French dinner that she learned to cook form taking the Viking Cooking class with the Chef while on board. It is good there are a variety of cruise lines for folks who love to cruise.

Thank. you ever so much for your wonderful, detailed review and pictures. I felt like I was with you on your excursions and lovely lunches. Great descriptions.

Front page of our local paper today , St Paul Pioneer Press: Viking Mississippi has canceled all upper Miss cruises for the season, due to orders from Coast Guard. Water level too low in various channels. They will still do the Lower Miss. river cruises from New Orleans to Memphis the rest of the year. It turned out Viking Miss River cruises was beset by various factors that was a disaster for most of the folks who had booked this first year of sailing, years ago. I hope we see the Viking ship in St. Paul come early summer of 2023, the ice should out by then and hopefully no major flooding of the river.

ROWSE, And that is why we booked our flights to Europe for June 2023 cruise, directly with the airline. In our case it is Delta /KLM. We did not use the air offered by our cruise line. Do not need any stress right before our flights leave. next summer. Gook luck to you, and once on board I hope you have a wonderful cruise.

Is Mamsen open on arrival day? I do not remember . I always ate in World Cafe and sat outside for lunch.

Currently there is an extreme drought in most of MN, the source of the Miss. Don't know about the rainfall in the other states along the river. Barges are stuck in many places andArmy Corp of Engineers are dredging the channels to ge the barges moving. Meanwhile , lots of barges on the upper river are empty waiting too e filled with soybean harvest and some corn. Climate change comes in all forms ... This was not the best year to start the Viking Miss River for various reasons. But those who did make the voyage loved it for the most part.

Enjoy your cruise! Again, good to know that once on board, one can still get a reservation for Madrid and chef table and some excursions. That has always been my experience too. October is a the best time to sail the Med. IMO.

Mikey B , thank you for the clarification about the number of days. I was wrong. I do remember the cruise consultant saying we could get the benefit even if we did not book on the last night of our cruise. We used a TA . It was not needed ,he could fit us into the last night schedule at 8:30 pm.

Thank you for your trip report. I think maybe Viking needs to step up the menu for Manfredi's, and give a newer version to Chef table. Your idea to have two choices would help. I cannot believe that the Chef cannot twist the dish a little. I do understand they should be some consistency across the line, but at the same time some tweaking a recipe might just be the difference between ok dinner and an outstanding dinner. I will be cruising for the 4th time on Viking next June. I will have been waiting a year and a half! You can still get the on board discount for the next 30 days, if you see something you like and want to book it.

Where did the Viking Jupiter dock in Stockholm.? Was it close? We will be departing from Stockholm in June 2023 on the Jupiter, after three days on our own pre - cruise. Glad you liked Mamsen , it is one of my favorites for breakfast or lunch. The Explorer lounge is such a wonderful space with views of sea and sky always.

Dr.Koob, loved your experience in Barcelona. I have been there three times, using local private guides who were all outstanding. I have so enjoyed your live trip report, and your observations about Viking ship, service and food. I am looking forward to my 4th Viking cruise in June 2023 , Scenic Scandinavia on board the Viking Jupiter. Thank you again for taking time out of your vacation for this thread.

Clay so glad you are doing this blog on CC. I see you are now flying to Seattle in first Class. Good for for you. Never been on a Holland ship so will be interesting to hear what you and Mike think of your cruise . I will follow you form the Viking Explorer lounge. 😀

Thank you for your trip review. 😍So sorry you sprained your knee on this cruise. I appreciate your thoughts about overview bus excursions. I am not as spry as 12 years ago when I could walk all over cobblestone streets and up stairs with no problem for hours on walking tours. Hope you are planning your next cruise.

Thank you for taking time to post this live review. Love your pictures of Marseilles. .

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/regions/north-america-river-cruises/ Here is a well written review. I found it on CC under Members Review: North America River cruise review.