janetcbl

Exactly!

We are on the Mars now. The passengers seem a bit older than the usual crowd, and there are a lot more mobility devices (walkers, poles, etc.) than usual. Dress is very casual, lots of shorts, t-shirts, but this is a Panama Canal, warm weather trip, so I would expect it. No bathrobes in the Cafe or anything really absurd like that.

Historically I believe the North Sea tends to be more problematic in Fall, often due to hurricanes. Icebergs can be a problem in late Spring.Crowds anre much larger during the summer months in these areas. Answer: Who knows? No one can really predict, you just go when you can.

Closer to home, we were on the Great Lakes Viking cruise last summer with a day in Cleveland, and I took the optional excursion to the Cleveland Museum of Art….fantastic museum and a great docent for a guide!

The name of the museum is Ateneum and contains Finnish Art as well as some other temporary exhibitions. Kiiasma is the museum for contemporary art.

Helsinki: Fine art museum and modern architecture, (Kaisma). Market (outdoors and indoors) is fun and delicious. The “Rock Church” (Temppeliaukion) is amazing-go inside. The Sibelius Monument is in a lovely area. Then History Museum, if that interests you, can easily take a half day to explore. Many of these places may be closed now , check the websites closer to your journey. As you can tell, I really like this city!

You can remove them as GerryL 13 suggests, but I don’t…I kind of like to remember cruises when I see the cabin number tag. They do fall off eventually.

Exactly what we do, and so far it has worked out well. My husband is hard of hearing and as I am usually served first, I mention it to the flight attendant (once is all that is needed, they have remarkable memories!).

Goodness, I respectfully disagree with you. Except for the Hurtigruten line I don’t know of another cruise line that goes to as many stops in Norway as Viking. After all, the line is Norwegian owned. Viking is more expensive than some other lines, but remember, it includes one excursion in each port, free beer and wine with meals, all of your entertainment, no additional charge for the special restaurants, no “nickel and diming”, adults only, etc. Everyone looks for something different, we prefer Viking.

Ours was used first.

Is anyone blogging this cruise that can be followed by those of us traveling vicariously with you all? Last year I was able to follow an excellent one and really enjoyed “checking in”. Thanks!

We were on the third deck and I found it to be a perfect location. Easy to get to the upper part of the Aula, the Shelter and the Explorer’s Lounge. Nothing is far away on the ship.

Don’t know about the first part of your question, but we always keep a bottle of white wine in the refrigerator. We trade wine for liquor and soft drinks, so I am unsure if you could fit wine and liquor and soft drinks in the refrigerator.

All of the above posts make sense, but my feeling is….as long as I am on the ship, my cabin is fine….better than being left behind to face normal life instead of being pampered, meeting new people, seeing new sights, etc. Sounds kind of “Pollyannish(?), but that is how I feel.

Have you considered Viking Ocean Cruises? Scandinavia is “their” territory and they have excellent cruises in this area, especially Norway.

I was living for a year in Denmark when I had to get the prescription. I don’t know of anyone who has gone to Scandinavia to buy prescriptions.😁

The main reason for the high prices: everyone pays for many of the social services offered by the host country, from old age pension, to health insurance, etc. even though foreigners are not covered by it. There is some difference by countries, but I no longer remember details. Even tourists benefit from some of the taxes; medical prescriptions generally cost less than in the US, medical care, if you need it, is excellent and less expensive, etc.

There are a few tables for two at the very rear of the dining room that aren’t on top of the adjoining table. We had one many nights and we could actually hear each other speak. Other nights we were at window tables for two, with a four too right next to us and the evening was more “sociable”. We liked both setups.

Check a few days before the excursions are suppose to open as well as a few hours on the day they open. In the past they have sometimes (and I emphasize “sometimes”) opened early.

It was $49pp a couple of years ago; I think it has gone up since then.

I would do the Golden Circle, Geysir is intersting, especially if you have never seen a geysir,Gullifoss Falls are spectacular, but Thingvellir National Park is, IMO, the highlight. From a historical perspective, it is the home of the oldest parliament in the world and from a geological perspective, where else on earth can you walk between two tectonic plates. In Isafjordur try to get to Vigur Island. As usual, these are just my opinions….I have been fortunate to spend time all over Iceland and discover something new each time I travel there.

Flam: Flambana (train) up the mountain to Myrdal and back). Reservations usually necessary. Bergen: Floyen, up the mountain by funicular, lunch/ coffee on top. Funicular back down or an easy hike back down on a well marked path. Good museums: Bryggens, Kode (Art), Hanseatic ( may be closed), Troldhaugen (Composer Edvard Grieg’s home, studio and museum) and more.

We always ask to switch out the mini bottles for a bottle of white (Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio) and a bottle of red (Cabernet). When they are almost empty new bottles “magically” appear.

On the Mars a year ago, we went to the Restaurant the first night, got a great quiet table and a terrific waiter. He and we hit it off and managed to get the same table and waiter for the entire trip (we ate at Manfredis one night)…when management moved his station, he moved us with him. Probably will never happen again, but it was perfect for us!

We asked our cabin attendant when he introduced himself, as well as our request to exchange the soft drinks and liquor for bottles of wine. It was accomplished during the time we ate lunch, arranged for some onboard activities, enjoyed a cup of coffee, and wandered around the ship a bit.