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Totally worth it! The tours in Oslo were great. The train ride was amazing! It was first class. Ours included  a meal from the cafe car, beer/wine and the most amazing views. There was a Viking representative with us and Viking had the entire car reserved. It was a wonderful beginning to our Viking Homelands cruise.

We totally changed our minds! We rebooked (2nd time) the same ocean cruise, Trade Routes of the Middle Ages, for April, 2023, with our 2nd 125% voucher. We thought about 2022, but don’t trust that the European countries will all have their act together by then, and this cruise visits multiple countries. Tough decision, but the best for us. We thought about using our no-fault trip insurance to just get a refund but we’re taking a gamble that Viking will be in good financial shape a while longer.

On 2/20/2021 at 4:34 PM, Peregrina651 said:

 

I think you may be confused about how this all works.

 

The only future cruise credit that comes in a cancellation notice these days is the future cruise credit for 125% -- but that is yours only if you don't take a refund. In other words, your choice is one or the other, either 125% future cruise credit or 100% refund of the cash used to pay for the booking.

 

The cash refund is after any voucher used to pay for the cruise have been subtracted out. The new 125% future cruise voucher that you are being offered is figured on the cash balance after the old vouchers have been subtracted out. There is no 25% bonus offered on existing vouchers; they return to your account at their face value --whether they are 100% FCVs or 125% FCVs.

 

Since you say that you have used a voucher to pay for this cruise, that is not eligible for a refund for another two years. Moreover, it is my understanding that if you do wait and ask for a refund two years from now that it will be less any 25% bonus, because the bonus is available to you only if you use it to pay for a cruise.

 

Finally, there is a firm deadline for requesting a cash refund. You must contact Viking by February 26, 2021.

 

 Nope, sorry Peregrina651, we will be getting a refund sooner for the original amount we paid in 2019. We also had no fault trip cancellation insurance. We will get back all of the original $$ either way. We would not expect to receive the extra 25% as we did not pay that, it was a gift from Viking. Also, our future cruise credit was a complete separate email,  not predicated on rebooking now, verified by our AAA travel agent. We totally understand the 125% voucher offer specs as this is our second go round! We’re bailing while the company is still solvent.

Viking has had our $$ since December, 2019. Our original cruise was supposed to be April, 2020 then rebooked (125% offer) for April, 2021. We feel they have used our funds long enough! Time to get a refund. Our cancellation email also had a nice added bonus at the bottom. Viking included a good-sized future cruise credit that is good until 02/17/2023. Hopefully, if they are still in business, we will use!

1 hour ago, Homerody said:

Has anyone impacted by this round of cancellations received email notification from either Viking or TA about cancellation of cruises?

Received our official cancellation email yesterday, Fe. 17th,  for our April Trade Routes of the Middle Ages. They offered another 125% rebook but we rebooked last April and don’t want Viking to keep our money another year. We’re “jumping ship” this time. Europe’s health is just too iffy. I applaud Viking for installing testing onboard, considering requiring vaccinations, etc. But, seriously, who wants to take a vacation under those conditions? We’re just not ready to commit again. We’ve traveled extensively, some with Viking,  and can just wait until we’re comfortable.

Looking forward to more travel in the future!

Got our official notice from Viking that our April Trade Routes of the Middle Ages ocean cruise has been cancelled. All cruises through May 31, 2021 have been cancelled. They are offering the same 125% to rebook on top of the previous 125% if you rebooked in 2020, which we did. However, we are “jumping ship” and asking for a full refund. Things are just too iffy and they have already had our $$ for over a year. No matter how many safety procedures Viking installs, we’re just not willing to gamble. Plus most European countries are still experiencing severe illness/death. 

Hopefully, we will be able to return to cruising in the future.
 

Got our official notice from Viking that our April Trade Routes of the Middle Ages ocean cruise has been cancelled. All cruises through May 31, 2021 have been cancelled. They are offering the same 125% to rebook on top of the previous 125% if you rebooked in 2020, which we did. However, we are “jumping ship” and asking for a full refund. Things are just too iffy and they have already had our $$ for over a year.
 

Hopefully we will be able to return to cruising in the future.

Squawkman—we only did 2 optional excursions in St. Petersburg. The first day we took the all-day included tour, which exceeded our expectations. It included some bus touring, the Hermitage, unbelievable lunch at a local restaurant in the heart of downtown, a canal cruise, touring Petrovsky Park, fort, cathedral, and much more. That night we chose an optional musical show of folklore singing & dancing. It was in a huge auditorium and had lots of rules, but enjoyable. No taking pictures unless you paid a fee! Lots of security, but that was the norm everywhere. Day 2 we took an optional excursion out of town to Catherine Palace. It was a bus ride about 45 minutes from the ship. It was stunning! We were even allowed to wander the grounds alone after a great tour of the palace. That afternoon we took another great included tour to other in-town locations and a Russian Orthodox cathedral. All guides were excellent. We were told the Peterhof Palace tour was also good. Just an aside...the ship docks in a section of old St. Petersburg near the ugly, grey communist block apartment buildings that are still used...then a short drive to decadent, colorful buildings!

We took the Viking Homeland cruise in 2019, our first Viking Ocean cruise. We are hooked and will probably never cruise any other cruise line again. (after many Princess, Norwegian, etc.) Can’t say enough good things about this cruise and Viking! The itinerary is wonderful. We added on the pre-cruise train ride from Oslo to Bergen, which we would do again in a heartbeat. The scenery was breathtaking. 
 

As to St. Petersburg, you cannot go out on your own without a pre-arranged visa, therefore Viking offers fantastic 2-day included excursions plus many other excursions to purchase. We did both! The Hermitage is enormous and a few hours is devoted to touring on the included tour. Longer tours are offered for a fee, but still no wandering on your own. A guide must accompany you everywhere. Once the excursions are posted on your MyVikingJourney.com page you can plan how you want to spend your time. We enjoyed every port on this cruise. Hope you do too!

We are also booked (actually rebooked from 2020) on the Early April Trade Routes of the Middle Ages. Email today from our AAA travel agent indicated that all Viking cruises through end of March were cancelled a few days ago. He anticipates the April cruises will be cancelled any day now. Last week Carnival and Royal Caribbean cancelled all cruises until October, 2021. Hopeful for another 125% windfall from Viking!
 

Patiently waiting!

We are booked on an early April Trade Routes of the Middle Ages ocean cruise with pre/post extensions. This is a rebook of a 2020 cancellation. The 125% rebook funds afforded us some upgrades and a nice balance of on-board vouchers. We do not want to use the insurance and just cancel. Would like to see what will be offered this time because there is no way we will be allowed to sail. Patiently waiting to hear!

Viking seems to be taking the Coronavirus outbreak seriously. We received this email today for our April Trade Routes of the Middle Ages Cruise.....
 

Dear Viking Guest,

Thank you for choosing Viking for your upcoming voyage.

As you may be aware, an outbreak of coronavirus, that causes respiratory illness, was detected in the city of Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. We are monitoring the situation closely and are heeding travel guidelines from the U.S. Department of State, the Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization.

Please know the safety and security of our guests and crew is always our top priority. While your journey may not be in the general vicinity of the outbreak, as a precautionary measure, we have implemented enhanced health screenings (via a health care questionnaire) for all guests boarding our vessels within the next 90 days. Additionally, any guests who have traveled from or through mainland China within 14 days of the beginning of their trip with us, will not be permitted to embark the ship. 

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your upcoming sailing, or have recently visited China within 14 days of your itinerary, please contact Reservations at 1-855-300-3970, Monday through Friday, 4:00 AM to 9:00 PM, and Saturday to Sunday, 5:00 AM to 7:00 PM, PT.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

We are trying to arrange a private tour while we are in Berlin. We will be taking the train that Viking arranges from the Viking Sea (in August of this year) to get back and forth. Please tell me the approximate times the train arrives in, and departs from, Berlin. It would also be helpful to know the name of the station.

 

Thank you for your kind assistance.

We will be on the Homelands Cruise this month. One of our roll call members emailed Viking and was given the following information about Berlin:

The train to Berlin leaves approx. 6:45am and arrives in Berlin at approx. 10:00am. There will be a 1.5 hour panoramic drive through Berlin, after which, you’ll be dropped off at Gendarmenmarkt around 11:30am for approx. 4 hours of free time. Pick-up is 3:30pm at the same location. The return trip to the ship will be approx. 2.5 hours. The arrival train station in Berlin is Ostbahnhof. The departure station is Berlin Gesundbrunnen.

I hope this helps with your planning. Enjoy your cruise!

Thank you, everyone, for the “tips!” Much appreciated!

I think this is what you are asking: NO matter where you are, the currency for all transactions that take place on the ship is the US dollar. All transactions will be charged to your ship board account which you then pay in full before disembarking either in cash or by credit card. Personal and travelers checks are not accepted.

I am aware of onboard $$ procedures and practices, but thank you.

We are traveling in May on the Viking Sea Homeland Cruise. In a few of our ports we will not have time to get to a shore ATM for small tip $$ for guides and drivers prior to our excursions leaving the ship. Does the ship change currency with each different country? US banks that I have checked will not sell small quantities of currency.

Does anyone know which station the included excursion train arrives at in Berlin and if it is the same station it departs from?

I was planning on just doing my own thing and assumed that the train would arrive and depart from the main station but perhaps this is incorrect.

Sandytiger

 

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So glad you asked this question! We are still considering our touring options in Berlin on our May, 2018 Homelands Viking Sea Cruise.

Does anyone remember approximately what time the included train trip arrives and departs?

This will be our first cruise on Viking Ocean lines. Our previous stateroom bed experience on Celebrity, Princess and Carnival was good but often required asking our steward for an eggcrate topper for comfort. We understand our Viking bed will be a king! Happy for that!

Opinions, please, on the comfort of Viking Sea beds. Do they offer or even need extra toppers?

It may come down to the ship not even stopping in Russia and you will enjoy some more civil ports. If things continue the way they are going no American may be allowed to go there in the near future.

Given the current tension, you may be right. Hopefully, Americans won’t have issues with immigration in St. Petersburg. We are closely watching the international situation.

Given the current expulsions, closures, tension, etc. between Russia and the UK & US, is anyone else worried that we might not be allowed to dock and/or disembark in St. Petersburg? Have been looking forward to this port and hope we don’t feel uncomfortable. 😃

I am hoping to hear from you all who have done the Homelands Cruise already and who bought the Ultimate 2 day St Petersburg through VIKING. Would you recommend it? What were the highlights and low lights?

 

I know a lot of you use the private tour companies but I would really like to hear about the experience through the Viking Shorex.

 

Thanks.

We are booked on the Homeland tour in May. Very disappointed that the Ultimate 2 Day tour is not even an option on our Viking excursions. Not sure why, but wish it was! What month is your cruise? We’ve chosen a few separate excursions to fill up the 2 days in port. We’re not usually fans of trusting independent tour companies, especially in certain countries. Have been on a few cruises where independent tours were late and missed the sail away.

Has anyone done the Viking Village of Gudvangen as an excursion from Eidfjord? It sounds like it could be fun and informative or kind of cheesy ;p. Anyone done this or is it a new option for Viking?

 

What were your favorite Viking provided Homelands (included or fee based) excursions?

I’m also anxious to hear comments of this excursion since we have it booked! Trip Advisor reviews are very good! We also booked A Day In The Life of A Viking from Aalborg.

Thank you, everyone, for the great info!

This will be our first experience with Viking, having previously cruised on Princess, Celebrity and Carnival. For our May 2018 Viking Homeland cruise on the Viking Sea, we will begin our journey with the pre-Oslo and Bergen Railway package. This includes Oslo and Bergen tours, 2 hotel nights, all transfers, a few meals and the Bergen Railway from Oslo to Bergen before embarkation. We have read that the scenery on the train trip is beautiful.

Has anyone experienced this pre-cruise package? Are the hotels (Hotel Bristol and Radisson Blu Royal) nice? Any tips or advice?

Thanks much!