jiminyC_fan

We always travel with proper cords to attach my iPad to TV's in Mexico. Unfortunately, we had to watch the movies that I had downloaded prior to the cruise on my iPad in our stateroom on Viking. We couldn't connect to the TV.

I truly hope that you contact Viking and give them a chance to explain. There are so many factors that goes into docking in ports some if not most of the cancellations are beyond their control. Please comeback here afterwards so we all know the truth rather than the speculation of bait and switch.

We also were less enthusiastic about Manfredi's. Perhaps it was just our super high expectations based on what we had heard in advance. We do plan to go again during our second ocean cruise this fall, and try something different on the menu.

 

We did enjoy our two meals in the Chef's Table very much. And our meals in The Restaurant. And the World Cafe. Hmmm, I think I see a pattern.

LOL, I see it, too.

You always have such good advice.

You are a wealth of info. Someday I want to grow up and be like you!:D

 

Thanks to you we found that to be true. Tallinn was very much enjoyable after everyone else had left. Great advice!

 

One word of advice to people, the ports did have shuttles. We never had issues with them until we hit Copenhagen. A Viking rep was standing at the pick up point and we didn't pay attention to the sign ON the bus. Long story short we boarded the bus and got taken to a different cruise line dock. We attempted to walk to Viking as we could actually see it but gave up because of dead ends. We walked back to the drop off point. I forgot which line it was but they were very accommodating and hailed us a taxi. Moral of the story is to check and recheck before you get on the bus.

We personally loved the Chef's Table. My husband is a meat and potato type guy and I was a bit nervous on how he would react. I was pleasantly surprised that he enjoyed it so we made other reservations. If a hearty meal is what you want and expect don't go but don't bash the place. It just isn't your cup of tea. Personally, we didn't enjoy Manfredi's but we never said a thing to anyone up until now. We quietly didn't make another reservation. It is up to every guest to form their own opinion and not go in with a preconceived idea that someone didn't like it. We know that everyone has different wants,expectations and taste.

I guess what is truly bothering me is that the OP stated he/she toughed it out for 1 1/2 meals and to me that means he left in the middle of a meal. It shocks me that someone would do that. If anything, go grab a bite to eat at the World Cafe afterwards.

I use a Travelon messenger bag. The straps can't be cut plus it has the protection for credit card chips.

I agree with moatenote. We enjoyed Berlin and the Historic Berlin. I'm very happy that we took the time and money to go.

Woo Hoo! Awesome!

We used Alla in St Petersburg and it was an excellent tour. We had a small group of 6. We all were sad that we didn't book them in other ports. We tried while we were there but they couldn't arrange it in such a short time.

Interesting. Viking Jupiter!

We, also, took the Rodne tour on our own. It was extremely easy to do and much cheaper. Eidfjord was our favorite day and we did not take a Viking tour at all. We took a walk on our own that Eidfjord advertises.

I guess I will sound like a prude but I hope I never encounter that.

We were on the Star. It was definitely decent. I was able to do whatever I needed to. Of course, we didn't stream or download anything. But surfing and emails were just fine.

No connecting staterooms on a Viking ship. I've never read that there has been any noisy locations on the ship. We were on deck 4, (4087) and loved it.

Mark Twain: "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime."

In my mind, travel these days is more than a luxury or a hobby. Managing crowds is important, but true learning about other cultures cannot happen just from a book or a movie. Those of us who are lucky enough to experience other countries and the people who live there may be the last, best hope of this world. And I mean that most sincerely.

Both your words and the words of Mark Twain are beautiful.

We arrived at the ship around 11 in Stockholm. Dropped off all our luggage and immediately set off by foot to see the things we didn't see the two days prior.

The first post in this thread announcing the change to the itinerary was dated Dec. 15, 2017. Just one week earlier, protests by thousands of people broke out in the streets in several cities in Tunisia after the US announced its support for Jerusalem as the capital of Isreal.

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-israel-tunisia/thousands-of-tunisians-protest-against-trumps-jerusalem-decision-idUSKBN1E1300

 

This means that in the course of a week, Viking evaluated the situation, made the decision to cancel the stops in Tunis and Algiers, and scheduled a revised itinerary with Naples and Palma de Mallorca. To me, that seems like a quite reasonable and even prompt response on the part of Viking.

Thank you for taking the time to research. I found it very interesting. It was peaceful but when a huge group starts protesting things can go south rapidly. I applaud Viking for their quick response.

I for one don’t pay thousands of dollars to stay on board the ship. I want to mingle with people from other countries and go into their shops and support their businesses. I’ve been to the Oakley Islands and the Shetland Islands and to Edinburgh. And honestly, I was thrilled to visits these and other beautiful cities even with the crowds.

Here, here. Exactly my thoughts. St Petersburg was definitely a highlight. If I stayed on the ship I would have missed my 2nd favorite port on the VH tour. You don't experience a port by staying on a ship.

I'm in the camp that wine tastes the same whether in stemware or stemless. It is now the "IN" thing to serve in the stemless.

I most certainly would be thanking Viking for taking our lives into consideration when skipping a port. Passenger safety is their number one concern, and should be! If someone is upset then perhaps booking a separate land vacation would be in order.

I wish I could agree with the OP. We were on the Viking Sky on the cruise just before his, 12/17-12/24. We have been sailing on Crystal for several years, and although we had many great experiences, we were becoming tired of their menus, which seemed to be recycled every few weeks. The one week Viking Caribbean cruise seemed to be an ideal one to share with our adult children, who could not take off for more than one week.

 

I agree that the Viking Sky is a beautiful ship. The staterooms and the public areas are fantastic. The beds are very comfortable. The elevators seem to arrive in seconds. The in-room televisions are amazing, although they were non-functional for one day.

 

Unfortunately, that is where the positives end. Problems started at embarkation. All of us received paperwork indicating that we would embark at Miami Cruise Terminal J. No, the ship was actually at cruise terminal F, where the signage indicated that it was the Viking Sea. Check in was very smooth and efficient, although one of the porters hit my son up for a tip, indicating that it was required. My son had never been on a cruise ship, and gave him a generous tip. Not Viking's fault? Possibly, but a cruise line often using this terminal should have some control over the conduct of the port staff.

 

After boarding, we went to the bar and, as suggested by a Cruise Critic posting, asked to compare the included wines with those in the Silver Beverage Package before we decided to purchase the package. "Sorry, the included wines are only available in the dining room."

 

 

Our children (age 30 and 36) had not been permitted to make specialty restaurant reservations, because they were in a Deluxe Veranda stateroom, and we made our reservations on short notice. We were in a Veranda Penthouse and made the restaurant reservations for the two of us a month before the cruise. After embarkation, we promptly went to the World Cafe to change our reservations to a table for four. Although it was a busy embarkation day, only one of the two computer terminals there was staffed, and we were forced to wait in line for a half hour before being told that none of the early reservation times were available for a group of four. Bad start.

 

We had dinner that evening at the Chef's Table. The food was underwhelming, at best. The entree was called "Peking duck", but it was so dry that it tasted like cardboard. The "paired wines" were of poor quality, as were all the wines we tried, even with the Silver Beverage package." We are not wine connoisseurs, but these wines were just so disappointing. Some research reveled that they were available ashore for $5-$6 a bottle.In every restaurant, it seemed to take forever, first to find the wine steward (If thereare any trained sommeliers, we never encountered one.), place our order, and then wait for the wine steward to find the bottle. I timed it one time, 25 minutes from being seated to receiving our beverages. It was that way every evening.

 

Service in the dining room was mechanical, at best. We sat down, received menus, and then were asked to order, even if we had not had the opportunity to order our wine, much less sample it. We were expected to order our dessert when ordering our entrees, which seemed strange. We were served by multiple wait-staff at each meal and found it difficult to find any staff if there were issues during the meal. Requests for smaller portions or multiple appetizers were often ignored. On one occasion. my son said he would like to order several appetizers for the table to share. He was told no, each person had to order his own appetizer. Some food was served luke warm or cold. Lamb was ordered medium-rare, and it arrived well done. Steaks were tough. I could go on and on.

 

Room service was no better. Eggs were served without salt or pepper on one occasion. When we received them, salt shakers were always clogged, so that one could only obtain salt by removing the filler plug at the bottom. Orders were often incorrectly filled. On one occasion, pancakes and eggs were ordered.Only the eggs arrived. Another time, boiled eggs that were never ordered arrived with our breakfast.

 

Beverage service at the pool was non-existent. In one week, I was never asked if I wished to order a drink at poolside. At the bars, service was slow. I do not expect to wait ten minutes or longer at the bar before my order is taken.

 

We had toured a Viking ship recently when we were on another cruise line, and were docked next to the Viking ship. We were so impressed with the appearance of the like new ship that we planned to schedule all of our future vacations with Viking. After our this cruise, however, we would never consider another Viking vacation. It is really a shame, because they seem to have so much potential.

I'm sorry to hear of your disappointment. My friend was on the same cruise and ship and didn't encounter any problems that you listed.

I have a friend that works on a Viking ship. She stays with the ship no matter what the itinerary. I am at a loss why people are finding it different between the two. I truly wonder if it isn't the guests themselves. I get the bugs in the other areas but not in the service. For me anyway, I have a hard time believing it.

I was actually reading another CC dress code thread for another cruise line. A European popped in and said that they always laugh when they hear the Americans state that the Europeans don't wear jeans. They added "what do they think we wear"?

Let me be more clear. I HAD been thinking about trying Viking. Track suits at dinner for $600 pppd? I'll look elsewhere.

We were on for two weeks. Not once did we see "track suits" at dinner. I'm sorry that you feel the need not to try Viking because of one dress code thread. Every cruise line has this type of argument. There will always be the fashion police on Cruise Critic. I do know not to be alarmed.

Okay, Jiminy and Stretch, you're still on the hook for at least four rounds of included drinks.

Heck, I'll get them for the entire cruise. I'm generous in that way.