BC Eddie

I find just going to Google and typing e.g.,  "time now in London England", "time now in Paris France" is very useful.

Actually I think it depends on the level of stateroom you have.  The higher the level the earlier you can see the excursions (and also book in Manfredi's and Chefs table) 

Learn something new everyday. First time I've heard of the Viking mobile app. Very cool!

 

 

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There is also a Viking Art Guide app you can download separately although it is now included in the Voyager app. This provides information on the art that is displayed around the ship.

We are sailing on Viking sea this December Caribbean to Amazon ( first time cruisers )

We are looking forward to this holiday I certainly hope this itinerary is not pulled as we had booked and payed for our airfares as we are flying from Australia.

I have read a review from Viking sky from the last trip in February and they loved it they have shared 21 photos and gave it 5 stars.

Yes I have been following all the threads and decided there are over 900 people on each cruises that have sailed already to the Amazon and only a hand full people have been disappointed so that’s why we have decided not to cancel.

So the count down starts for us! ��

It is true that it is easily possible to get a distorted view of things based on just a few negative or positive posts. However we were on the first Amazon cruise back in December 2017 and it was far from perfect. We are big fans of Viking (and are booked on our future sixth Viking river/Oceans cruise) but they dropped the ball badly with this itinerary. I expect them to put a lot of effort into improving things (excursions need a lot of attention).

While on the cruise I made a point of asking others what they thought about this specific cruise (not about Viking, the ship or the crew - all of these were great). I only found one couple who had a positive experience. At least ten other couples were in the range of "so-so" to "never take Viking again".

I see you are first time cruisers. Be forewarned that this part of Brazil has suffered badly from their political and economic crisis. You can see evidence of past greatness but you also see a lot more decay. This is not something one generally expects on a Viking cruise.

As the year progresses I hope you see more positive reactions on Cruisecritic to future Amazon cruises. However, I think at this point you will easily see more negative than positive reactions to the past Amazon Viking cruises

I don't recall it actually being a light at the bottom of the door but the door having a large gap at the bottom. So I think maybe the switch by the bed turns the bathroom light on and it shines out the bottom of the door. Probably a minor point ;)

It is true you cannot please all the people all the time and for some people you can never please. However we were on the December Amazon sailing and after speaking with about fifteen other couples on board we only found one who said they enjoyed the cruise, all others were very disappointed and several said they would never sail Viking Oceans again. This was our second Viking Ocean and we have been on three V river cruises and we are still fans of Viking but this cruise (and many associated excursions) were badly done and, after speaking to Viking and hearing their response, Viking agrees. I do believe Viking appreciates honest feedback and takes these comments seriously and I would expect big improvements on future iterations of this Amazon cruise.

As to the luck of seeing nature on an excursion; it is true it is a matter of luck and being in the right place at the right time. However, if you are in a long line of people stomping through the jungle the odds are that you will not see much. We would have loved to have seen a sloth. The most we saw were the big ants and a possible sighting of a bat.

I have question for those of you who have done the San Juan to San Juan West Indies Explorer. I know there is a welcome aboard dinner and usually a farewell dinner. What nights are these on? I've also heard lobster mentioned - this would interest me greatly :D

 

I'm also wondering about the excursions that involve a beach stop. Did you wear your bathing suit under your clothes? Was there a place to change after?

 

Probably have more questions, but those were ones on the top of my head!

My answers may not be totally relevant but as nobody else has responded... we were on the San Juan to San Juan Amazon (21 night) cruise in December. There were welcome/farewell nights but I don't recall them being anything special except for the speeches and crew introductions at the farewell reception in the Atrium. There was lobster at least one night (maybe two).

Depending on the excursion you chose they advised to either wear bathing suits under regular clothing or change when you got to destination. This depended on whether or not the destination had adequate change facilities. For example, for the catamaran cruise the boat's bathroom was rather small so some people might finding changing in it difficult.

There were a couple optional tours with Viking on My Viking Journey -in Santarem and Manaus - tours that took place outside of these cities in the forests/jungle. There are also private official tour companies in Manaus that have well documented reviews on both CC and TripAdvisor as well as backing by the Brazil Tourism Board that I know did a good job on this trip for some passengers.....it would be great to hear feedback from those who took the Viking tours that I am referring to.

On the Viking Dec-Jan 2018 Amazon cruise we took the optional Santa Lucia Nature Walk in Santarem and were disappointed. It started out with about a 30-45 minute bus ride out of town. On the way there was little commentary as there is not much to see as the town appears quite depressed. (Saw on the sidewalk what looked like a dead dog with a flock of buzzards waiting around it). When we got to the site we were given an introduction to the property owner, a glass of local liquor, shown samples of wood in the area and directed to washrooms. Then the tour started.

For what seemed like two hours we wandered single file in a group of about 25 through a meandering trail. Our bus guide was at the front who spoke English and one at the back who would provide detail info (in Portuguese) to our bus guide who then explained to us. Most of the info pertained to the different types of trees that grew there. Some info dealt with the animals but we saw none. Highlight was when guide disturbed an ant nest and what looked like two inch long ants went scurrying about. Near the end of tour someone spotted a bat in a tree. There was the odd flying bug but no more than you see in a North American forest. (Some people came covered head to toe in bug mesh and looked a bit out of place. There was also one woman in shorts and flipflops - to each their own.)

Because you could hear the other tour groups it became apparent early on that our tour was just one of several in the area wandering adjacent trails so any wildlife would be long gone. The info on the different trees was interesting but because the trails were confining it had to be explained/shown to a few of us at a time.

We heard that the people who just went on the included tour of Santarem in the town saw more wildlife and also saw several interesting demonstrations of local culture.

This post is a duplicate from this thread

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2368586&page=34

My wife and I were on this recent Amazon cruise and I thought I would add our comments to this thread.

We have been on three Viking River cruises and one Viking Oceans back in 2015 from Barcelona to Istanbul. So we were Viking fans and had looked forward to this cruise for over a year due to the opportunity to experience the Amazon.

Overall, our experience was negative and I would advise that anyone considering this cruise wait until you hear that Viking has worked out all the kinks.

PROS

We enjoyed most of the Caribbean destinations and most of the tours we took seemed well planned and provided a reasonable snapshot of each island. We particularly like the optional catamaran swimming tour on St Lucia with the included plantation tour. The included sightseeing tours in San Juan and in St Thomas and the optional snorkeling/Nylon Pool tour on Tobago were all very enjoyable.

Most of the Viking staff try very, very hard to please and seem to sincerely want you to have a great time. However, it does seem that Viking might be expanding a little too quickly and may not be training new staff as much as they should. There were a number of times when it took far too long to get a wine refresh or we were served the wrong dish. We never encountered this on prior Viking trips.

The Viking Ocean ships continue to be very pleasing in their scale, facilities, decor and staterooms.

The entertainers varied in abilities but we particularly liked the male and female singers (Jenifer & Vince) who were often in Torshaven. They also put on a great New Year’s Party.

The guest lecturers were also very enjoyable, especially Jill Eyers the Geologist.

Overall food quality and variety were generally very good but I found myself relying on the standard “left-side” of the menu choices more often that I recall on prior voyages.

CONS

Almost all of the ports on the Amazon portion of the cruise ranged between just disappointing to, in the case of Belem, disgusting. Viking has failed to do its research to determine suitable points of interest for travellers. There was little of interest to see, or if there was something of note it was closed while we were there(e.g, the Opera house in Manuas). The one notable exception was the very enjoyable included Boi Bomba performance in Parintins. However,aside from the performance, there was not a lot to see in Parintins especially as everything was closed on Christmas Day.

The quality of the excursions overall was also very poor. It appears as if Viking “took whatever it could find” in terms of excursions. Our optional Santa Lucia Nature Walk in Santarem was nothing more than a three hour wander in the forest. The most any of us saw was a few very large ants and the possible sighting of a bat. The people who opted for the included Panoramic Santarem tour saw much more wildlife in addition to numerous cultural demonstrations. Of course, nature being nature, Viking cannot guarantee that we will see wildlife but if you have a hundred or so people loudly stomping through a small path in a small area it is pretty well guaranteed that you will not see wildlife.

The tour of Belem and the city itself was the low of the cruise. Our guide sprinted off with about twenty of us trying to keep up. My wife and myself are in good shape and were OK but I could see others falling further behind. Of most concern was that the city sidewalks had numerous unprotected deep holes that anyone could easily fall in, especially if your focus is trying to keep the guide in sight. I ran up to our guide and told him he had to slow down or there would be serious accidents. He complied but it is not something you should have to say to an experienced guide. The portion of the town on our tour was incredibly unpleasant with garbage everywhere, blasting noise from numerus music sources, public urination and a strong stench everywhere. This unpleasant experience was compounded when there was no organization at the tender station and so many people were crowded into a small area that several people collapsed, worsened by the heat and humidity. It started to get ugly with passengers shoving and shouting as more people crowded into the station.

Our welcoming view of Manaus was watching the local workers dredge the harbour of all the floating garbage. Our included tour was to a rubber baron’s mansion and the legendary Opera House. Our guide told us that neither of these were open to us and we only got to tour the outside and as there was nothing left to see spent the balance of our tour time sitting in a square waiting to return to the ship. However several other guests told us later they went out on their own and at both sites were allowed in and were even given free local tours.

We did not get to stop at French Guiana and see the Devils Island prison due to loss of time having to wait for a food shipment. This was especially disappointing as we had both opted for the risky (and not inexpensive) Yellow Fever vaccination because FG insisted on it. Food planning problems showed up later in shortages of such things as butter, sugar, and other items other guests could not find.

In summary, we still had an enjoyable cruise but this was despite of the Amazon rather than because of it. We have traveled to several South American countries before on Celebrity and were excited to visit again. Unfortunately this Viking cruise has only highlighted the problems of the region with very little opportunity to view its positive features.

Eventually we booked a pickup with Ltransferts (http://www.ltransferts.com) and had excellent service.

Would not hesitate to recommend.

http://www.vikingrivercruisescanada.com/my-trip/about-my-cruise/current-sailings.html

https://gcaptain.com/two-officers-killed-after-viking-river-cruises-hits-bridge-in-germany/

Can anyone recommend a good shuttle service to take four adults with luggage from the Gare du Nord Eurostar station to Le Pecq (about 20 kilometers to the west of Paris)

I know we could take the RER but two of our travelling companions much prefer a shuttle.

I had a reference for a service called "INTER SERVICE PRESTIGE" but so far they have not answered my last three emails.

TIA,

Ed

Celebrity dropped the requirement to pay the tips I had of time with select dining a while ago so your question is really moot. Your gratuities will be taken care of no matter which dining option you choose

Thanks so much!

From some older posts I saw that with Select dining you must prepay gratuities due to having multiple servers over the course of the cruise. Is this still true?

Celebrity has a promotion on where you can opt for certain included "freebies", one of them being "prepaid tips". Can anyone tell me if this will cover the prepaid Select gratuities?

I understand that, for exceptional service, additional tipping is appreciated.

TIA

We are on our final day of our 8/8 cruise and are thinking about tips. We have found a waiter we like and have requested his table multiple times. We intend to give him a tip in addition to the ships obligatory amount . In chatting with him, he said that this was his third cruise company and by far the best. They pay him a salary (from the obligatory pool I assume) which he liked, and based on the attitudes of the other staff, I think is it fair to say that our designated tip money makes its way to the designated recipients. We also intend to give a tip to our room steward. We have leftover currencies from several countries that we will not use again, but the crew can, so we intend to give that in the form of tips. Win win. Service on Star has been just outstanding.

Good info and suggestion re. leftover currency - thanks for sharing

I should have read the small print but I was surprised to learn that if you have a beverage that is not included in the classic package you pay the full amount. For example, I wanted to try a glass of wine that was not in our package and later learned I was billed the full $15 for the glass not just the difference between it and the package cap ($9 I think). Apparently with the Premium you only pay the difference.

To their credit the severs twice made it clear that what I was ordering was off-package.

We just were on the Infinity two weeks ago for the SA cruise and had a fantastic time. However this was our first ocean cruise so, other than a Viking river cruise (Fantastic!) had nothing to compare it too. However the ship was obviously not new but for the most part was in good repair with only a few signs of wear. We found the service excellent ( Joaquim & Kadak in the MDR were superb)and the food to be more than acceptable.

The itinerary was the highlight though (we also took the Machu Picchu and Iguazu falls pre/post tours) and we will have great memories of all locations.

There were only a handful of children on-board our sailing (Jan 18- Feb 1).

HTH

We were in 9120 just two weeks ago and heard very little noise above us. Only once or twice on the whole trip I heard what sounded like chairs being dragged across the floor above. But this lasted only for seconds.

Is there any flexibility on the price of Viking ocean cruises? When we booked our 2015 Viking Ocean cruise our TA could only book us at the published (2 for 1) book rate.

If possible, I would like to shop around if any other TAs can provide a more competitive price.

We are looking at the May 15, 2016 Viking Homelands, penthouse category, two people.

Does anyone have any advice for me?

Thanks,

Ed

We have been booked on a September, 2015 sailing of the Viking Star since last June and we have paid in full back in December. However we did not receive the email about the coin. So I contacted Viking and asked who was going to receive it and this was their reply.

"The limited coin is being created for customers who booked and paid for their reservation in full by December 31, 2013. We make(sic) decide to produce another coin that will be sold on the ship, however we have no details on that."

In a follow-up mail they told me we would be receiving the coin. I was told the reason we did not get the email notice was because they did not have our email address on file.

Thanks Kathy9 and TERRIER1 for the reply.

We have been booked since June, 2013 but maybe Viking is only contacting the early sailings passengers ("our maiden season's passengers") - may not have any coins left by the time they get to September sailings :(

Are you folks on the maiden cruise or a later one? We are fully paid on the Sept 15 cruise but have not seen such an email?

Viking's brochure says pax in minimum rate cabins can't make specialty restaurant reservations. Does anybody understand what that means? No access at all? Availability at the last minute on a space available basis?

Seems beyond bizarre to have a balcony cabin on a premium ship and be treated as an untermensch.

From this chart I have to assume you can still dine in the specialty restaurants - just no priority or guaranteed reservations. Of course, depending on how popular they are, this may mean you will probably have to wait in line - which is no fun.

This is just an easy way for Viking to make the higher price cabins more attractive.

Curiously, the illustration for "The Restaurant" shows a long banquette that seems to allow tables to be positioned as 2-tops, but it's not reflected in the deck plan of the restaurant, so who knows?

 

Good catch Bear_Music! The Viking deck plans show nothing that matches this table configuration.

The deck plans on the Viking Sky site do not show and tables for two. On the Viking riverboat we were on the deck plan was pretty close to the actual seating but that may not be the case with the sky.

There are certainly times when it is nice to "get away from the crowd" but for my wife and myself, while we are not huge socializers, certainly one of the highlights of our one and only river cruise was the great connections we made over dinner with our travelling companions.

Of course, fully understand if that is your preference and, again from the brochure, "free 24 hour room service" is included.