ScottC4746

My DH and I have been on Princess, RCCL, Holland, and Celebrity. We are thinking of taking our first Viking cruise. My concern is if we will fit in. Both of us are blue collar workers in customer service. We don't have the fanciest car or home. We are apartment dwellers in So Cal and our clothes are not the fanciest. I do like what I see on the website as what Viking offers on board, we both have brains and think and like visiting different cultures not boozing it up. Currently I am 58 and he is 51. Are we too young?

I know, but what I was getting at was the quality was vastly different from concierge lunch to dinner that evening, thankfully. I was a bit worried at the lunch.

I guess I didn't explain it well enough, I meant throughout the cruise, not just embarkation day.

They do in Concierge class. We did that September 2022 and considering that was the first meal for the first time on X, it was not a very good example of the food to come, thankfully. Pleased to say main dining room food was much better. Not sure if we we try it again on the Edge in May next year.

I just looked on my app for the above cruise and it looks like none of the main dining rooms offer lunch forcing us to the buffet or hamburgers, hotdogs, and pizza. Is this correct or is it just because we are about 8 - 9 months away and everything hasn't been uploaded to the app yet? I know on board entertainment and activities have not, yet.

I am on the Edge in Alaska on 31 May in a C1 or C2 Concierge Class. Unfortunately, it comes with a virtual verandah. I am thinking of splurging and doing a CS Celebrity Suite instead. I have never stayed in a suite and this will be my second cruise on X. Pros-Cons of the CS catagory vs what we have now?

Actually I found my answer via Youtube.

After our first X cruise on Solstice last year, after about the second day we started taking breakfast, lunch and dinner in the main dining room. I just read that the Edge has four main dining rooms. This leaves me with some questions: 1. Do they only operate one per day? 2. What are the differences between them? 3. Are the main dining rooms open for all three meals? Any other information would be appreciated.

Did that last year on Solstice and it was wonderful. They have a day and time you just go an check in with a staff member at your muster station but no crowds like you did before.

We too are going our second time at the other end of the season to hopefully get more snow and ice.

You are lucky at their age they want to spend time with the family and not the kids clubs. X is a couple of notches above RCCL, yet the same company in my opinion. I call X entry level luxury. As others pointed out, if they are anti-kids club, X may not be the option. There is no floating theme park as on some RCCL ships or NCL. Just simple classic cruise ship design.

It must be an X thing. Last year in Alaska on the Solstice, same thing.

Does anyone have any experience with RCL vs Celebrity vs NCL vs Princess for a cruise to Alaska? - We did X in September last year on Solstice. -What's the best way to go about choosing a cruise to Alaska for July or August 2024? Speak with a travel specialist. -Is July vs August a better time to go? You are going at the height of the season. We went at the end last year and are going at the beginning next year. -The ships we are considering are: Ovation of the Seas (we've been on Anthem), NCL Bliss (we've been on Getaway), Celebrity Edge or Discovery Princess Edge is new this season for the round trip Whats the difference in doing roundtrip from Seattle vs one-way from Seattle vs one-way from Vancouver? Would we end up seeing a bunch more on a one way trip? Is there any advantage from leaving from Vancouver vs Seattle? In MOHO the downside to one ways is depending on your departure city it is painfully expensive and time consuming getting to/from the Alaskan Airport. The upside to using the same airport for arrival and departure for the Seattle round trip is it is easier to keep the same airline and some airlines will ding you for "open jaw" reservations. Would appreciate any info for the best possible Alaska experience while also having a great cruise. As I have not done Alaska in the summer, nor will I, I can only speak for September. It was starting to get cold. We couldn't really swim, but as adults there was the solarium. For the ends of the season it is important to have a light weight jacket for onboard the ship and a heavier one for the ports. X has great service and little touches mean a lot. A couple of our ports in September were cold and wet. When we reboarded they have a vat of homemade chicken broth to sip on to warm up. DO take the train in Skagway. So worth it.

Emergency number should be in your cruise documents or from Celebrity Cruises website: For all Celebrity ships:• Dial: 1-877-266-1020(applicable country code)+1-321-953-9002 (outside the United States)• Dial the appropriate number above. • The caller will be asked to enter the credit card number and expiration date. • The system obtains a real-time hold for $79.50 ($7.95 x 10 minutes) and initiates the call to the ship. The $79.50 hold is the maximum that will be held. Actual charges will be calculated based on the number of minutes used on the call. • A voice prompt directs the caller to the specific ship. • The call is connected to the ship. • The call rings through to the designated department onboard (Radio Station or Purser Desk). The call is then routed to the guest's stateroom. • The PBX monitors the call. If there is no answer, the call will ring back at the designated department onboard (Radio Station or Purser Desk) and a written message is taken for delivery to the guest's stateroom.

Last September we were on the Solstice and tried it. Really fun when you have a group to sit in the pods of chairs. One night I was there solo and so I sat at the ice top bar. I accidently bumped my glass and a little martini ran down the stem to the base. Just about never got the glass off the ice after that, took some doing. I was afraid of breaking the glass.

Sounds like my doctor and my weight. He told me to watch what I eat and I told him I always watch what I eat...I watch it go right in.

Went into New Private Window and no problems. Regular browser still froze up.

I have a cruise for 31 May 2024 on Edge that still doesn't show activities, dining, or bar information. When do they usually upload that?

I think their might also be a shaver only plug in the bathroom.

It all depends on how quicking the stateroom attendant has cleaned from the previous cruise. You are able to go to drop of your carry ons and change to swim wear if you wish and they will notify you via the app (or they did last year) when you room is officially available.

I have been trying all mornign to get on X's website and it keeps freezing. I have no issues with any other website. As we all know, this is nothing new. Anyone else having problems this morning?

Standard rule of thumb is no, unless you are lucky to have a priest traveling on the cruise, but they are on vacation and may not want to preside over a mass. Some ports such as Ketchikan there is a local parish Holy Name Catholic that has a Port to Pew program that states: "We have a Port to Pew van that will pick up cruise passengers and bring them to Holy Name and back to port throughout the season. If you gather at the Visitors Center by the Rain Gauge and look for our tan or blue Holy Name minivans at 8:30AM Sunday mornings or 4:45PM Saturday you can ride for free (donations are accepted). We will make several trips if needed between port and the church. We also have a beautiful Mary Garden you can enjoy if you arrive early for mass. Please call or email the office for more information or to let us know when you are arriving! 907-225-2570 churchoffice@holynamektn.org" I don't know if they will return you to port after Mass or make you go back to port on your own.

We get there before our scheduled time so we are amongst the first to board. As our larger cases are handled by the cruise line, we are left with carry on baggage. We take those to the stateroom straightaway and then either do the Concierge lunch if we qualify or buffet. We then stroll the ship until we are notified our stateroom is ready for us to relax in. Since you have children, I would opt only for the buffet and when you go to drop your bags in the room, do a very quick change to swimwear but don't forget coverups. Males have to have a shirt and women with a covering.

I think it comes down to where am I cruising. IF I were going to the hot and humid tropics and the Caribbean, I would probably think about it, but after reading this thread, I won't book one again.

We too were blown away by X having been on HAL and RCCL and Princess. The others I had to remind them I was paying for the rum, not the cola. My old fashioned on X I could tell they pack the drinks.