Embarking in one week - What's not to miss?

My daughter (18) and I will be on Viking Ocean for the first time one week from today - yikes! We just learned last night that specialty coffees are free on board. That made me wonder what else we do not know. Please give us your "must-do" tips - from activities to favorite ship spaces to don't-miss foods. Any and all ideas appreciated ... I'm taking notes! TIA

My daughter (18) and I will be on Viking Ocean for the first time one week from today - yikes! We just learned last night that specialty coffees are free on board. That made me wonder what else we do not know. Please give us your "must-do" tips - from activities to favorite ship spaces to don't-miss foods. Any and all ideas appreciated ... I'm taking notes! TIA

Not all specialty coffees; those made with spirits will cost you. The best coffee on the ship comes from the bars where they use a real espresso machine to make the coffee (not those pod things that are used in the buffet). I always go to the Living Room on Deck 1 and I haven't paid attention to which of the other bars are equipped with a proper machine. The snack food in Mamsen's and the Living Room bars is also free and Mamsen's split-pea soup has been mentioned as a favored bedtime snack.

For tips, read the FAQ on the Viking website and the information in the booklet that came with your docs package before you leave home. There is lots of helpful information in both of those places. Also, take a gander at the list of amenities for your stateroom category (on the Viking website, click on SHIPS, choose any of them and then scroll down the page until you see the staterooms).

My favorite spot on the ship are the bow facing seats in the Explorer's Lounge on Decks 7 and 8. If there are no seats on 7, go up the stairs right there to deck 8. While you are up there on Deck 8 check out the display in the library. On the Sea, it is dedicated to the Amundsen and the Arctic explorers. I don't know if it repeated on each of the ships or if each ship has a unique display.

Many people like the spa and the facilities (pools, saunas, etc.) are open to all passengers without charge. There are changing rooms and lockers in the spa, so you don't have to go walking through the ship in your bathing suit if you don't want to.

And so much more.

Timely thread! Like KentuckyKat, we too are starting our first cruise shortly (3 weeks from today!) and I can hardly think about anything else. (But you all knew that already from my many posts here ... thanks for your patience, everyone!)

Love reading the tips here, and glad to hear that specialty coffees without booze are free. Can’t quite imagine having pea soup as a bedtime snack, but who knows? I’m up for anything!

Oh, I don't forget to read the thread with tips for first timers. Lots of good information there.

Timely thread! Like KentuckyKat, we too are starting our first cruise shortly (3 weeks from today!) and I can hardly think about anything else. (But you all knew that already from my many posts here ... thanks for your patience, everyone!)

 

Love reading the tips here, and glad to hear that specialty coffees without booze are free. Can’t quite imagine having pea soup as a bedtime snack, but who knows? I’m up for anything!

Twitchly, please post your impressions of the Trade Routes. We are going after you and I will closely follow your posts.

What excursions you take and like/don’t like, what about ship, food, cabin, drinks ( from wine to spirits), etc.

I wish you a fantastic trip! :)

We also leave a week from today!

What time are the shows and do they have a daily program paper put in the room each day like other cruise lines so we know what’s happening each night? We are getting excited!

Thanks!

We also leave a week from today!

What time are the shows and do they have a daily program paper put in the room each day like other cruise lines so we know what’s happening each night? We are getting excited!

Thanks!

The cruise daily will be delivered to your room each evening with the next day's schedule. The main show is nightly at 9:15, usually in the Star theater but sometimes at the pool. The guitarist, the pianist and the classical trio rotate among the smaller venues from 4 pm until late evening. There are also movies and opera under the stars, at the pool (all announced in the dailies) and music and dancing each night in Torshavn.

Take some time early on to discover all the information available on your cabin TV - also on the interactive screens throughout the ship.

Be sure to check out all the individual/small group entertainers early on, as they rotate around the ship and you'll likely want to "follow" your favorites. The classical/flamenco guitarist on the Sky was excellent and great to listen to.

Second Mamsen's and Living Room bar for snacks and the Explorer Lounge and Living Room bar for drinks.

And, if you're a drinker, the drink package is a steal!!

Twitchly, please post your impressions of the Trade Routes. We are going after you and I will closely follow your posts.

What excursions you take and like/don’t like, what about ship, food, cabin, drinks ( from wine to spirits), etc.

 

I wish you a fantastic trip! :)

And we are on the one after you, so I will follow you both! I appreciate all the information I find on this site.

Kentucky Kat,

Make sure to read the Viking Daily that you will receive in your cabin every evening. It is full of useful information. Also, I suggest you attend the port talks for each stop, but if the timing is not convenient, they are available on Viking TV.

Hope you enjoy Viking as much as we do!

Read all the comments in this forum. Never ever be afraid to Ask a crew member when you do not know or understand. That includes the Captain. When all else fails walk to the Customer Service desk. It is "manned" 24 hours a day. They are the ones with most of the answers or know where to get the answer. We found Viking Ocean to be easy on the mind, peaceful on the soul.

The cruise daily will be delivered to your room each evening with the next day's schedule. The main show is nightly at 9:15, usually in the Star theater but sometimes at the pool. The guitarist, the pianist and the classical trio rotate among the smaller venues from 4 pm until late evening. There are also movies and opera under the stars, at the pool (all announced in the dailies) and music and dancing each night in Torshavn.

Thank you for the info!

We have been on many cruises on various cruise lines with production shows, comedians etc. we usually work dinner around show time. We have always enjoyed most shows/entertainment.

Do they have production type shows AND is it worth planning dinner to make sure we don’t miss shows?

Thank you for the info!

We have been on many cruises on various cruise lines with production shows, comedians etc. we usually work dinner around show time. We have always enjoyed most shows/entertainment.

Do they have production type shows AND is it worth planning dinner to make sure we don’t miss shows?

I wouldn't call them production shows, which makes me think of glitzy Las Vegas shows, but more like a night club act or cabaret. With just a half dozen performers, I find the shows a bit more intimate than I found the last time I sailed Celebrity.

In any case, the show starts nightly at 9:15 and features mostly music from the 50s (Rat Pack), 60s (Beatles) and 70s (ABBA).

I wouldn't call them production shows, which makes me think of glitzy Las Vegas shows, but more like a night club act or cabaret. With just a half dozen performers, I find the shows a bit more intimate than I found the last time I sailed Celebrity.

 

 

 

In any case, the show starts nightly at 9:15 and features mostly music from the 50s (Rat Pack), 60s (Beatles) and 70s (ABBA).

Oh my. Well, there’s always the televised opera by the pool. We didn’t pick Viking for its evening entertainment anyway.

When are the lectures usually done?

Oh my. Well, there’s always the televised opera by the pool. We didn’t pick Viking for its evening entertainment anyway.

 

When are the lectures usually done?

The opera is the MET production of La Boheme. It has been shown once on each of our last cruises (maybe twice on the last one because it was really a B2B).

The lectures are late afternoon, early evening on port days. Not sure about sea days. The lectures are repeated on the TV.

Download the Viking Art guide and the Viking Voyager app on you phone. Lots of art on board the ship and it's nice to understand what you're looking at.

I wouldn't call them production shows, which makes me think of glitzy Las Vegas shows, but more like a night club act or cabaret. With just a half dozen performers, I find the shows a bit more intimate than I found the last time I sailed Celebrity.

 

In any case, the show starts nightly at 9:15 and features mostly music from the 50s (Rat Pack), 60s (Beatles) and 70s (ABBA).

We enjoy most type of talent entertainment and I’m sure we enjoy the performances.

Again- thank you

Don’t miss all the little details that give the ship personality and make it feel like home. Pillows, throws in the theater and other seating areas. The troll children peeking out from behind the trees in the elevator shaft. The piped in birds and crickets. And I second the Viking Art guide.

Take the ship tour offered at several times during the embarkation day. It hits all the highlights and we learned a few things my research didn’t turn up.

No need to juggle food plates and drinks in the World Cafe. They will bring them for you and sometimes carry your plate as well.

There is limited but yummy food available in the Living Room bar in the atrium pretty much all day. The serve small plates of tasty pre-dinner treats.

There is a lot of paperwork/homework. They give you evaluation forms for everything. I’m going to suggest they make them available online. I hate writing [emoji16]. Do fill them out, though. They use them to improve the experience.

Lots of lovely little touches around the ship - plants, little cactus groupings, pillows, books, games, artwork, sculptures, hand washing stations in addition to the sanitizers.

Excursions were well organized and mostly interesting. We have taken a lot of excursions with other cruise lines and one of the things I noticed on our Viking ones was safety. Each tour we did started with a safety briefing about the vehicle. If we got food on the tour, there was hand sanitizer and a reminder to use it. There were lots of tongs or someone serving on one boat tour, the person ahead of me asked for a smaller portion of one of the items. The guy tossed the extra overboard - feeding the fish [emoji16]. I have a feeling that all of these things were Viking ordered requirements.

Trying to retain all of this as our cruise ends. We are sitting in the Living Room waiting for our group to be called. We have a late flight, so we have the last group. I’m sure I’ll think of more. Feel free to ask questions.

You can ask your steward for a top sheet and extra pillows, though the pillows were wonderful IMO.

The musicians that rotate venues around the ship are fabulous. We had a great guitarist, a pianist, a classical trio, and the fantastic Viking Band.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

So glad you had a fantastic voyage CyberKat. You mentioned on a different thread that you booked another cruise while on board. I am wondering what the advantages were that you saw in doing so?

Take the ship tour offered at several times during the embarkation day. It hits all the highlights and we learned a few things my research didn’t turn up.

 

No need to juggle food plates and drinks in the World Cafe. They will bring them for you and sometimes carry your plate as well.

 

There is limited but yummy food available in the Living Room bar in the atrium pretty much all day. The serve small plates of tasty pre-dinner treats.

 

There is a lot of paperwork/homework. They give you evaluation forms for everything. I’m going to suggest they make them available online. I hate writing [emoji16]. Do fill them out, though. They use them to improve the experience.

 

Lots of lovely little touches around the ship - plants, little cactus groupings, pillows, books, games, artwork, sculptures, hand washing stations in addition to the sanitizers.

 

Excursions were well organized and mostly interesting. We have taken a lot of excursions with other cruise lines and one of the things I noticed on our Viking ones was safety. Each tour we did started with a safety briefing about the vehicle. If we got food on the tour, there was hand sanitizer and a reminder to use it. There were lots of tongs or someone serving on one boat tour, the person ahead of me asked for a smaller portion of one of the items. The guy tossed the extra overboard - feeding the fish [emoji16]. I have a feeling that all of these things were Viking ordered requirements.

 

Trying to retain all of this as our cruise ends. We are sitting in the Living Room waiting for our group to be called. We have a late flight, so we have the last group. I’m sure I’ll think of more. Feel free to ask questions.

 

You can ask your steward for a top sheet and extra pillows, though the pillows were wonderful IMO.

 

The musicians that rotate venues around the ship are fabulous. We had a great guitarist, a pianist, a classical trio, and the fantastic Viking Band.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Well CyberKat,

I am now sitting the Living Room waiting for the muster drill. I'm just taking it all in...

The ship smells good and small touches to explore on ever deck.

Got the black leather chair with foot stool, g&t in hand while listening to the guitarist[emoji177]

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Speaking of the Living Room - another little detail not to miss: the lichen garden under the grand staircase! Would love to meet the person who’s responsible for the interior design.

Well CyberKat,

I am now sitting the Living Room waiting for the muster drill. I'm just taking it all in...

The ship smells good and small touches to explore on ever deck.

Got the black leather chair with foot stool, g&t in hand while listening to the guitarist[emoji177]

What brand of tonic do they have? There's a big thread on Azamara forum complaining about Royal Club being terrible.

What brand of tonic do they have? There's a big thread on Azamara forum complaining about Royal Club being terrible.

Will find out tomorrow and let you know. I was more interested in the brand of gin. Love tanguery(sp) which they have.

Could not get a piece of lime while in port of San Juan. Garnishment is not allowed till we leave port!

Sent from my iPad using Forums