friendlyfifer

We have a holiday home in the Murcia region and have been to both cities. With limited available time, my advice would be to stay in Barcelona. There is so much to see both within the city and also the surrounding area. Having said that I never tire of Madrid. It is just so Spanish (I hope that doesn’t sound stupid). The food is amazing, the people lovely and there is a myriad of buildings and museums to visit. You can also tour the Royal Palace if the royal family are not in residence.

It’s good to know you speak for all Viking passengers when they visit Mumbai. Taj is a large chain of hotels in India and abroad so perhaps the magnificent Taj Mahal deserves its proper name.

Apologies when Clay said ‘the Taj’ I didn’t assume he was talking about the Taj Mahal.

Apologies, I have not read all the pages in this thread. The Taj Mahal is magical but is 650 miles away. There is a lot to see and do in and around Mumbai. Travel is never easy in India and it would be simpler to visit the Taj Mahal from Delhi perhaps on another visit to the country.

When people are in Mumbai and talk about the Taj they are referring to the hotel. You know what I mean? The Taj Mahal is 650 miles away.

Taj is an international chain of hotels with its most renowned property in Mumbai. There is only one Taj Mahal.

I take it you mean the Taj Hotel at the waterfront in Mumbai. We stayed there some years ago and were very disappointed. It was very busy with a business like feel to it. The room was poorly appointed and the food nothing special. If you mean the Taj Mahal, I wonder how you are to get there and back before the ship sails. Anyway we are very jealous of your WC plans. I’m sure you’ll have a fantastic time.

We love a cocktail or perhaps two before dinner. I would be interested to hear from well travelled cruisers which cruise line you believe has the best cocktail menu. I know specific requests can be made of the bar staff but it’s the printed menu that I’m focusing on. Also do the cocktails kick a punch or are they more sweet, flavoured water? Cheers 🍸🍹

Read the Viking dress code and comply with it. Also remember your manners and no caps/hats at the dinner table. Lastly, I don’t mean to be offensive to the whole nation but, could some Americans please turn down the volume and speak more quietly when around other passengers?

Wear what you want during the day but please abide by Viking’s dress code in the evening. Shorts and t-shirts are just not appropriate.

Take details of any medications prescribed by your doctor. The list will be helpful if you require medical attention in the UK. When visiting Scotland come to St Andrews. We have thousands of students from the USA studying at our university. There will always be someone here to translate for you, if needed, 🤣

I agree wholeheartedly with your views. We aim to eat at The Chef’s Table each time there is a menu change. Good Italian food is readily available in the UK so Viking have to pull out all the stops in this, what is now, mediocre restaurant.

Don’t let my negative comments put you off. You will love Viking and the crew will cater for any dietary wishes you have.

I agree, the food is of a high quality in the restaurant. Manfredi’s is a speciality restaurant that now falls short of ‘special’.

My post was specifically about cheapening the menu in Manfredi’s.

My post was about the old versus the new menu in Manfredi’s not about what is or is not available in other dining venues,

Apologies I must have been having a sensitive moment.

No, it’s saying Viking have perhaps cheapened the menu too much for me and perhaps for others.

I have been an advocate for menu changes for some time. My wish has been granted but I am left disappointed by the new menu. It is clearly a cheaper menu to produce with lobster, crab and salmon all missing. My next Viking cruise is later this year and I will be deciding whether or not to try another luxury cruise line.

Unfortunately the Success Cake has been the only gluten-free offering at Mamsen’s for years. Surely a change is long overdue. If you don’t already know, afternoon tea can be provided gluten-free. No need to pre-book, just turn up and advise your waiter.

The ABBA and Beatles shows need to be thrown overboard and n attempt made to rescue them. I remember both groups first time round. I like their music but I don’t want it on every Viking cruise for evermore.

That would explain the lack of EU passengers on board ocean sailings. I enjoy meeting passengers from around the world but have found that 80% of passengers on recent sailings have been from the US.

Thanks for the advice. Recife will be self-guided and we will book excursions in the other two cities. It is strange you should mention jacaranda trees. We have a house in Spain and we love being there when the jacaranda are at their best.

Many thanks for your prompt response. Your comments are most helpful. We are fit and able so will walk around Recife on our own and carefully consider, which tour, if any, we should take in the other two cities.

We will be on the Southern Atlantic Crossing in November and want to make the best use of our time in the above ports. If you have been to the cities before I would welcome your comments on the included Viking excursions. Should we arrange our own tours, simply walk off the ship and around the cities ourselves or take either an included or payable excursion with Viking? We are taking the post-cruise extension in Buenos Aires.