What to do on sea days---Southern Atlantic Crossing

[The Other Tom]

My wife and I took a Panama Canal cruise on Princess, and, due to weather, missed a port.  This made us have 3 sea days in a row.  There's only so much trivia, piano bar, etc things we can stomach.

We are considering the Southern Atlantic Crossing which also has 3 sea days in a row, followed by a port, then 4 sea days in a row, another port, then 2 more sea days, another port, then 2 more sea days.  Nine sea days in total, 10 if you count one day cruising in the Mediterranean. That's a lot of sea days.  I've read that Viking has pretty good lectures, but after one or two hours of that, then what?  We're not into "spa days".

Edited December 27, 2020 by The Other Tom

[Mich3554]

We had a lot of sea days on the South America cruise.  Both of us learned how to play bridge....or at least the basics of it.  I wish I had more time on the cruise to practice it more.
 

We like sea days and don’t get bored, so this has never been a problem for us.  We are on the Southern Atlantic Crossing Nov. 2021 for exactly that reason.  I guess if I didn’t like sea days, I’d gravitate to different cruises instead.

[Heidi13]

Lots of options for sea days, as we had over 30 continuous sea days between Bali & Gibraltar and were never bored. So much to do that we were happy to get extra rest when cloxs went back.😀

[Strangford]

 

If you search back to January 11th you'll find a thread by Mibele entitled 'In search of the Northern 

Lights'. They uploaded the Viking Daily.  Not the same cruise but they will give you a flavour of life on board.

[Turtles06]

We love sea days.  A two week cruise to nowhere in the middle of an ocean would be wonderful.  I can just stare at the water for hours; it's the most relaxed I ever am.   I suspect that if one has to wonder what to do on a sea day, or thinks several sea days in a row may be too many, perhaps that's not the best itinerary for that person.  We're all different.  

[photopro2]

We did the San Juan to Barcelona TA in 2018 with 6 consecutive sea days and had no difficulty filling our time, in fact the problem was fitting everything in.

 

Here is a sample of our schedule:

9 am breakfast in world café 

10 am lecture in star theatre “Marine life to look out for on voyage”

11 am coffee and pastries in Atrium followed by “long” walk around promenade deck 

1 pm lunch on pool deck

2 pm roundtable discussion with resident historian “Sea dogs - Queen Elizabeth 1st and the privateer pirates” in Torshavn

4 pm trivia quiz in star theatre 

Quick tea and cake in Mamsen’s then back to theatre for 5 pm lecture “Trade roots yesterday, today and tomorrow”

5.45 – 6.30 pm snooze then shower and change for dinner 

7.15 pm Caribbean buffet night followed by first taste of aquavit on the Terrace 

9:30 pm “Ratpack” show in star theatre 

10:15 pm cocktails and conversation in explorers lounge followed by more cocktails and dancing in Torshavn 

Midnight - Return to cabin (remembering to put the clock forward 1 hour) and so to bed at 1:30 am!

 

I have attached the Viking Daily for a different day to give an idea of some of the other options that were available. 

 

It might be worth pointing out that we took this trip precisely because we enjoyed the ship so much on our first Viking cruise that we just wanted to spend more time onboard rather than onshore.

 

Therefore, I am not sure that I would recommend jumping straight in with the Southern Atlantic Crossing. Maybe better to sample a shorter cruise first to be sure the Viking style of doing things suits you. Then if it does, as I suspect it will, you will be able to confidently look forward to lovely long sea days on a subsequent TA. 

Edited December 27, 2020 by photopro2
small correction to schedule

[jimdee3636]

OP:

 

You've answered your own question. All the reasons in the world that sea days are great---some have been stated here and, having done six transatlantics, I could give you others----won't change your attitude. Multiple sea-day cruises aren't for everyone. Save your money. Yes, you could be pleasantly surprised, but more likely you'd be miserable.

[The Other Tom]

Thanks for the replies

[orchestrapal]

18 hours ago, The Other Tom said:

Thanks for the replies

Maybe you might consider another cruise line.

Reading for many of us fills hours every day. We did not enjoy most of the lectures on Viking.

In our opinion the best lectures are on QM2 but we disliked the very mass market ship experience and the stuffy atmosphere. Crystal had the perfect combination for us with very, very good and plentiful lectures and the best food and service we have experienced at sea.

[Heidi13]

1 hour ago, orchestrapal said:

Maybe you might consider another cruise line.

Reading for many of us fills hours every day. We did not enjoy most of the lectures on Viking.

In our opinion the best lectures are on QM2 but we disliked the very mass market ship experience and the stuffy atmosphere. Crystal had the perfect combination for us with very, very good and plentiful lectures and the best food and service we have experienced at sea.

 

In suggesting Crystal Cruises, I suggest a key issue, especially during the current pandemic, should be highlighted.

 

The original owners (NYK Line) sold Crystal in 2015 to Genting, a Hong Kong holding company with cruise ship, shipyard and resort interests. In August 2020, to preserve cash, they ceased making payments to all creditors.

 

While they are making some refund payments to cruise pax, last I read, many were not getting refunds with the stated goal of 90 days.

 

Compare this to Viking, with a post this morning stating a refund was received in 3 days.

 

Genting also owns the German shipyards that are building their new ships, with the yard receiving Euro 200M aid from the German Govt to keep the doors open until March 21. They actually requested almost 3 times the aid provided. Therefore, no guarantee the shipyards will survive and the new ships will be completed.

 

While Crystal was a top notch cruise line, at least when owned by NYK Line, with the current owners in financial difficulties and pax experiencing lengthy delays in receiving refunds, we certainly would not consider Crystal at this time. 

 

 

 

 

[vslparis]

1 hour ago, Heidi13 said:

 

In suggesting Crystal Cruises, I suggest a key issue, especially during the current pandemic, should be highlighted.

 

The original owners (NYK Line) sold Crystal in 2015 to Genting, a Hong Kong holding company with cruise ship, shipyard and resort interests. In August 2020, to preserve cash, they ceased making payments to all creditors.

 

While they are making some refund payments to cruise pax, last I read, many were not getting refunds with the stated goal of 90 days.

 

Compare this to Viking, with a post this morning stating a refund was received in 3 days.

 

Genting also owns the German shipyards that are building their new ships, with the yard receiving Euro 200M aid from the German Govt to keep the doors open until March 21. They actually requested almost 3 times the aid provided. Therefore, no guarantee the shipyards will survive and the new ships will be completed.

 

While Crystal was a top notch cruise line, at least when owned by NYK Line, with the current owners in financial difficulties and pax experiencing lengthy delays in receiving refunds, we certainly would not consider Crystal at this time. 

 

 

 

 

Yes indeed, Viking has been the most timely in refunds and credits, Royal Caribbean the most communicative but with tons of mistakes ( which were corrected but required a lot of tenacity )   and Crystal the least communicative and least timely . The lack of communication from them has been a bit scary for those of us in the travel industry . They are working on methods of getting the refunds out ( including tapping into a trust fund and working out some sort of deal with a credit card company ) ,but when a company stops paying on debts, that is cause for concern to me. Hopefully they ,along with the other cruise lines that have been so adversely affected by the Covid situation,  will begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel soon. Remember, the light at the end of this tunnel is not a freight train 😉 

[orchestrapal]

I was not referring to the financial position  of ANY cruise line but rather about pre-COVID experiences.

Hopefully things will approve across the board as I have no dog in this race.

 

[vslparis]

7 hours ago, orchestrapal said:

I was not referring to the financial position  of ANY cruise line but rather about pre-COVID experiences.

Hopefully things will approve across the board as I have no dog in this race.

 

For sure they will improve.  I think that days at sea are personal, however I know from personal experience that it  become less important about what you are doing on those days versus just enjoying doing whatever intrigues  you or not on those days. Should you go to a lecture, should you  have a 2 hour lunch, should you find an intriguing book in a book nook , it doesn't matter . If you can not be comfortable with  the idea of  trying something outside your comfort zone , take a trip with less days at sea. However, if you decide that maybe you should give  a shot for something outside that comfort zone,  come and join us on Viking just once. 

[faith trev]

Anyone for Mahjongg? I would love to play it on sea days.