Viking Air Plus Seat Upgrades

[rbslos18]

How does one upgrade their seats on flights arranged through Viking? I assume this can be done when the ticket is issued. Are upgrades arranged through Viking or directly with the airline or either one? Can points be used? 

Thanks 

 

 

Edited May 28, 2021 by rbslos18

[molymoo]

6 minutes ago, rbslos18 said:

How does one upgrade their seats on flights arranged through Viking? I assume this can be done when the ticket is issued. Are upgrades arranged through Viking or directly with the airline or either one? Can points be used? 

Thanks 

 

 

We go directly to the airline site and using the confirmation # log in and most of the time you can choose your seats there.  This works with the major carriers (American, United, Delta, etc,) but you might have some difficulty with smaller ones (Iceland Air, Brussels Air, etc.)  If you have opted for air plus with Viking then I would call them and ask that they assist you with assigning seats.  It's always nice to pick your seats if you can.

[FlyerTalker]

Remember that not all tickets can be upgraded.  It completely depends on the fare basis for your ticket, which you likely won't know until you are ticketed.

[Heidi13]

3 hours ago, rbslos18 said:

How does one upgrade their seats on flights arranged through Viking? I assume this can be done when the ticket is issued. Are upgrades arranged through Viking or directly with the airline or either one? Can points be used? 

Thanks 

 

 

 

A few years ago Viking would upgrade the Class using points/miles, if you paid for Air+. However, when we tried this last year, they advised this option is no longer available.

 

Our options were to pay Viking to book First/Business flights, hope that they booked tickets that were upgradeable and seats were available that we could upgrade, or book with points on our own.

[Azulann]

I was bumped by Delta from the flight from ATL to BDA . I had purchased Viking air. Had not been ticketed yet two weeks ago. Just had a confirmation #. The Delta flight ,I learned ,was 20 passengers overbooked. So Viking Air resolution team  got me flights on United. Flying in a day early to EWR , being put up at a hotel and fliying to BDA on July 13. I even get in 30 mintues before the orignal Delta flight.

Bravo to Viking air team.

I am now ticketed. I went into United site and upgraded my seat  for $39.00 to preferred seat in row 11 window seat.

On a previous Viking Air flight  in 2018 coming back from Barcelona , I upgraded to Comfort plus for a fee. 

 

[BQEC]

3 hours ago, rbslos18 said:

How does one upgrade their seats on flights arranged through Viking? I assume this can be done when the ticket is issued. Are upgrades arranged through Viking or directly with the airline or either one? Can points be used? 

Thanks 

 

 

Call Viking Air Dept. Your "up grade" Economy to Premium Economy or Business needs to be made before ticketing, 55-75 days before sail date. Viking will give you their contract schedules times and air carriers. If you want to do air on points, you need to book that yourself with the airline. If it's seat selection, you are asking about, they may assign the seat and you can log into the airline website and change it i you wish within the class of travel. Hope that this is helpful.

[greydog]

On 5/28/2021 at 8:08 AM, rbslos18 said:

How does one upgrade their seats on flights arranged through Viking? I assume this can be done when the ticket is issued. Thanks 

 

 

Hi - recommend pay the $50 ea to take control - select carrier, preferred flight times, seats etc. For comparison,  Oceania charges $200 ea for 'air plus' custom features. Plus, V offers low-fee city stopovers, deviations to give you added flexibility.

 

If you are pre-paid in full (or via FCC) you can pick preferred flights months ahead of V's standard ticketing window. This is important if you are selecting 'premium economy' seating since fewer seats on plane, especially couples 2x4x2 seating.  BTW, V's "Prem Econ" upgrade applies only to international flight segment.  OTOH, they offered P-Econ upgrade for just our return segment (since we used transatl cruise over to Europe)

For Delta, with Air+, you can ask Air+ agent what $ to upgrade to Comfort+ and decide Y/No. Your ticket class in my experience will not allow adding upgrade like Comfort+ later.  

 

In summary - research your preferred flight, know what optional upcharge to expect, identify your preferred seats so you can tell the Air+ agent. 

BTW, I have run into unexpected restrictions that are itinerary specific.

i.e. can't fly from Athens earlier than 8am departure due to disembarkation/transfer time schedule OR flight arrive before 3pm to get met by transfer agent.

HAPPY CRUISING

[CCWineLover]

Some additional points for this COVID era.  This is in place now, likely through all of 2021 and may continue into 2022.  As explained to me by actually 2 different Viking reps just recently, this is due to the uncertainly in cruises actually going, fluctuations in the airlines contracts Viking utilizes, as well as Airlines themselves massively changing schedules, planes, routes, and itineraries.

-The most likely ticketing dates for Viking Air and Air+ is just 55 days ahead of flights, to get closer to certainty of things happening.   Note:  I was told that sometimes on some itineraries, if you have elite status with an airline, the airline may allow Viking to ticket you earlier than 55 days.

-Ramifications are:  even if Biz or Prem Econ is offered on the contract, it may not be available at 55 days out if regular passengers grab them.   Plus, you wouldn't be able to use miles to upgrade unless there was availability at 55 days out, since upgrades cannot be done until after ticketing.

-Seat assignments also are not changeable and not final until after ticketing, which means even in economy, you are at risk until the ticketing.

-Many itineraries that did offer Biz and Prem Econ (like to Europe from USA) are now not offering it due to the airlines pulling them back (so they get full paying customers maybe?).   That could change as the summer wears on however, and more flights are added.

-Many itineraries which allowed "deviations" now do not allow it (that is the airline dictating to Viking) - such as spending the $100pp to come in early, leave later, or fly in/out of a different city than the cruise port.

-And as said before, there are itinerary specific restrictions on flights that, while always there in the past, may have increased due to COVID times (i.e. adding more hours from time of disembarking until you are allowed to take a flight)

-As some have stated, in this COVID world, Viking Air+ is great for "picking" your flights but understand you may likely have to consider it for Economy only.

-If you want a guaranteed Prem Econ or Biz class, you are likely better off doing your own fare due to the 55 day ticketing guidelines and airline contracts in place right now.  That again, could change as things open up more.

Edited May 29, 2021 by CCWineLover

[rbslos18]

40 minutes ago, CCWineLover said:

-The most likely ticketing dates for Viking Air and Air+ is just 55 days ahead of flights, to get closer to certainty of things happening.   Note:  I was told that sometimes on some itineraries, if you have elite status with an airline, the airline may allow Viking to ticket you earlier than 55 days.

Thanks for the insights. I was told the very same thing regarding 55 days.

 

My options are not great. Most of our travel is included in the cruisefare. Aside from American Airlines, the other airline options were surprisingly expensive. I am sure there will be a lot of flight changes so this process has four months to go. Pre-COVID, these would have been non-stop flights to FLL and from LAX to Louisville.  Now we have a stop each way. We are going a day early to prevent possible problems. In truth this would be a piece of cake if I were traveling as a package with UPS!
RB

[Jake40]

I've had mixed results upgrading with the airline after purchasing coach seats through Viking Air+.  I was able to get a paid business class upgrade a flight from Newark to Bejing and from Germany to the US.  On the return flight from Honk Kong to the US - the only upgrade available was to comfort plus.  In each case the amount I paid to upgrade when combined with the original coach fare - exceeded what I would have paid if I booked business class directly with the airline.

Edited May 29, 2021 by Jake40

[CCWineLover]

2 hours ago, rbslos18 said:

Thanks for the insights. I was told the very same thing regarding 55 days.

 

My options are not great. Most of our travel is included in the cruisefare. Aside from American Airlines, the other airline options were surprisingly expensive. I am sure there will be a lot of flight changes so this process has four months to go. Pre-COVID, these would have been non-stop flights to FLL and from LAX to Louisville.  Now we have a stop each way. We are going a day early to prevent possible problems. In truth this would be a piece of cake if I were traveling as a package with UPS!
RB

RB - from your itinerary, are you on the first leg of the World Cruise FFL-LAX?  2021-22?

We are on the 2022-23 first leg on the Viking Neptune (supposedly).  Were scheduled to go last December but something called COVID came along.  Have always wanted to do the Canal...

Will enjoy hearing from you on how it goes!

[rbslos18]

1 hour ago, CCWineLover said:

RB - from your itinerary, are you on the first leg of the World Cruise FFL-LAX?  2021-22?

We are on the 2022-23 first leg on the Viking Neptune (supposedly).  Were scheduled to go last December but something called COVID came along.  Have always wanted to do the Canal...

Will enjoy hearing from you on how it goes!

Yes. First leg of the world cruise. We were also supposed to go last December. The Canal is a thrill. It is one of our favorite cruises with the sea days. I suggest you read McCullough’s The Path Between the Seas on the building of the canal. It is an amazing accomplishment. We are looking forward to doing it with Viking. The Viking Air has been a minor challenge. 

[FlyerTalker]

You might want to research options at ITA Matrix.  Plus, consider options of MIA vs FLL and CVG or IND vs SDF.

 

http://matrix.itasoftware.com/

 

[rbslos18]

10 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

You might want to research options at ITA Matrix.  Plus, consider options of MIA vs FLL and CVG or IND vs SDF.

 

http://matrix.itasoftware.com/

 

Wise advice! That is my "go-to" website with Kayak. Matrix/Google Flights are certainly more robust! My dilemna is American has just a flights a day from Louisville but uses Charlotte. Delta has more flights for us but uses Atlanta and with Viking Air Plus surprisingly costs a lot more!? I just rechecked and there are three flights after the one we were assigned and we are going a day earlier. We should be fine even in the winter.

Edited May 30, 2021 by rbslos18

[shadowlover]

I have a cruise booked  with included viking air for December 2022 but our final payment is due the end of June 2021... Do I need to specify and pay for air plus as well as deviation before final payment?  Don't really want to give additional money to viking ahead of time if I don't have to but I also definitely want to have control over my flight and am also hoping to be able to deviate at that time.

[greydog]

16 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Some additional points for this COVID era.  This is in place now, likely through all of 2021 and may continue into 2022.  As explained to me by actually 2 different Viking reps just recently, this is due to the uncertainly in cruises actually going, fluctuations in the airlines contracts Viking utilizes, as well as Airlines themselves massively changing schedules, planes, routes, and itineraries.

-The most likely ticketing dates for Viking Air and Air+ is just 55 days ahead of flights, to get closer to certainty of things happening.   Note:  I was told that sometimes on some itineraries, if you have elite status with an airline, the airline may allow Viking to ticket you earlier than 55 days.

-Ramifications are:  even if Biz or Prem Econ is offered on the contract, it may not be available at 55 days out if regular passengers grab them.  

Thanks CCwinelover for your additional info contribution.  I can appreciate in Covid era that a lot of things are in flux and the usual is unusual.

 

I can only report that Air+ booked me two weeks ago for ATL-ATH with my Prem-E seats assigned for Dec. 2021 trip.  Got the locator code (involves Lufthansa and Brit Air).  I realize final 'ticketing' may happen closer to departure under V-air contracts. By that timeframe, equipment and schedules can change and are more likely to given variables of post-Covid reopening. 

 

In any event, I feel better, months in advance, having my Prem-E itinerary with locator code in hand.

 

Maybe Air+ process itself has changed since my booking but seems preferable to me to be proactive and get preferred itinerary early vs. be at end of the queue with leftovers. I still recommend, if already fully paid, to do advance air reservation and contact Air+.

GOOD LUCK to all in these challenging times.

 

 

[greydog]

1 hour ago, shadowlover said:

I have a cruise booked  with included viking air for December 2022 but our final payment is due the end of June 2021... Do I need to specify and pay for air plus as well as deviation before final payment?  

 

I'd send this ques. to V agent for official answer but here's what I have learned (from 1 agent).  If you have paid Air+ fee ($50 ea.) you can pursue your preferred itinerary with Air+ agents.  The agent told me you can add air upgrade later and the $ fee holds to its amount at time of your original booking.  

 

Given your Dec. 2022 timeline, since air can't be booked until Feb. 2022, you would know then if cruising has recovered financially to be ok with paying additional $.  HOWEVER, it appears Viking has a limited number of air upgrades to offer at their contract rate.  Waiting until Feb. 2022 could impact availability. I think the deviation fee would be assessed at time of air reservation, not prior.

 

I'd shoot these ques. to your Viking agent to confirm. Hopefully paying just $50 Air+ fee each now gets you the air flexibility later.  GOOD LUCK

[CCWineLover]

12 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

You might want to research options at ITA Matrix.  Plus, consider options of MIA vs FLL and CVG or IND vs SDF.

 

http://matrix.itasoftware.com/

 

Thanks so much, FlyerTalker - I had not seen this one.  I will add it to my Google/Kayak searches.  By the number of posts you have, you no doubt are a VERY seasoned traveler.  Will appreciate your future posts and responses that help us considerably!

[CCWineLover]

33 minutes ago, greydog said:

 

I'd send this ques. to V agent for official answer but here's what I have learned (from 1 agent).  If you have paid Air+ fee ($50 ea.) you can pursue your preferred itinerary with Air+ agents.  The agent told me you can add air upgrade later and the $ fee holds to its amount at time of your original booking.  

 

Given your Dec. 2022 timeline, since air can't be booked until Feb. 2022, you would know then if cruising has recovered financially to be ok with paying additional $.  HOWEVER, it appears Viking has a limited number of air upgrades to offer at their contract rate.  Waiting until Feb. 2022 could impact availability. I think the deviation fee would be assessed at time of air reservation, not prior.

 

I'd shoot these ques. to your Viking agent to confirm. Hopefully paying just $50 Air+ fee each now gets you the air flexibility later.  GOOD LUCK

Thank you greydog for the great info.

We also have a Dec 2022 Cruise (Panama Canal) and have wondered how/when we should approach the air reservations.  This gives us some thoughts and ideas.

I'll contact Viking Air directly with my specific situation then.  The only issue I have is that I often seem to get completely different answers from different agents on the same day!   (example: 1- we don't offer custom class Biz or PremEcon on that itinerary and then an hour later 2-yes we offer that and here are the prices).  Not sure how that can be.

[FlyerTalker]

52 minutes ago, greydog said:

I can only report that Air+ booked me two weeks ago for ATL-ATH with my Prem-E seats assigned for Dec. 2021 trip.  Got the locator code (involves Lufthansa and Brit Air).  I realize final 'ticketing' may happen closer to departure under V-air contracts. By that timeframe, equipment and schedules can change and are more likely to given variables of post-Covid reopening. 

 

In any event, I feel better, months in advance, having my Prem-E itinerary with locator code in hand.

 

A couple of points:

 

First, having a locator only means that you have a reservation.  Without an actual 13-digit ticket number, you are still in an area of unticketed limbo.

 

Next, I would be quite unhappy with a BA-LH combination.  They are airlines in separate alliances, and although they likely have an interline baggage agreement, it won't be the easiest of travels.  Going from ATL to Heathrow, you will arrive at T5 and have to switch over to T2 for LH.  Then, you'll be having another connect in either Frankfurt or Munich.  Not an easy day.  And if they have just cobbled this together with separate tickets, you might have to exit the secure area at LHR to collect baggage and recheck to LH.  Passing through UK immigration along the way.

 

I also wonder about your seat assignments on BA, given that they charge for advance assignments.  Was that also included in your pricing?

[greydog]

1 minute ago, CCWineLover said:

The only issue I have is that I often seem to get completely different answers from different agents on the same day!   (example: 1- we don't offer custom class Biz or PremEcon on that itinerary and then an hour later 2-yes we offer that and here are the prices).  Not sure how that can be.

Hi again - also seen different answers based on agents.  My Air+ said can't book ATH departure flight before 8am but another Ccer said they got a 7am flight booked (was Dec. vs Feb. dates, so maybe date specific)  Also, getting Prem-E might involve more flight connections. Delta had lots of flights ATL - CDG but only 1-2 airplanes have Prem-E seating.

 

If you do advance home flight research, you see what upgrade choices are offered, connections, times, etc. Then inform Air+ you want specific flflight # and seat categories, and preferred seat #s.  So with me, Air+ has looked up what I have selected in advance.  Sometimes, V contracts limit choices and you have to adjust preferences.  Good Luck

[greydog]

13 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

A couple of points:

 

First, having a locator only means that you have a reservation.  Without an actual 13-digit ticket number, you are still in an area of unticketed limbo.

 

I also wonder about your seat assignments on BA, given that they charge for advance assignments.  Was that also included in your pricing?

Hi again, thanks - I feel having an advance reservation with locator code and seat assignment is preferred over facing fewer options/choices at 60-days from embarkation.  I understand the ticket is not issued until later within Viking contract process.

 

My current reserved itinerary is all Lufthansa to ATH, all BA return (because of limited choices of equipment with Prem-E seating).  I appreciate the reminder about potential terminal complications if mixing carriers.  I got Prem-E BA seat thru Air+  with no $ extra fee (but understand the ATH-LHR connection economy seat is not locked in. 

[Australia08]

47 minutes ago, greydog said:

Hi again, thanks - I feel having an advance reservation with locator code and seat assignment is preferred over facing fewer options/choices at 60-days from embarkation.  I understand the ticket is not issued until later within Viking contract process.

 

 

Don’t assume that a seat is yours until fully ticketed. We had AirPlus and carefully chose our preferred seats (as Delta Medallion) but since Viking hadn’t actually ticketed them yet, we lost those seats. When I became aware of it, VikingAir said they couldn’t do anything about it because by then they were ticketed. I called Delta and because of our status they helped us arrange some better seats, even though the plane appeared fully booked to us. But they weren’t the preferred seats we had originally chosen, but at least we were no longer in the back of the plane. 
Now I watch my AirPlus tickets daily. And for my present trip, Delta made a change on my outbound flight because of a time change problem but for some reason Viking Air changed my inbound which wasn’t necessary. I had to call a supervisor to get my inbound reinstated.

[C-sea]

On 5/28/2021 at 11:53 AM, Azulann said:

I was bumped by Delta from the flight from ATL to BDA . I had purchased Viking air. Had not been ticketed yet two weeks ago. Just had a confirmation #. The Delta flight ,I learned ,was 20 passengers overbooked. So Viking Air resolution team  got me flights on United. Flying in a day early to EWR , being put up at a hotel and fliying to BDA on July 13. I even get in 30 mintues before the orignal Delta flight.

Bravo to Viking air team.

I am now ticketed. I went into United site and upgraded my seat  for $39.00 to preferred seat in row 11 window seat.

On a previous Viking Air flight  in 2018 coming back from Barcelona , I upgraded to Comfort plus for a fee. 

 

 Viking Air did a good job! Did they cover the cost of the hotel? was the quality ok?

[Azulann]

13 minutes ago, C-sea said:

 Viking Air did a good job! Did they cover the cost of the hotel? was the quality ok?

Yes they will pay for  my hotel. It is the Marriott at Newark airport. . But I do not leave till July 12 . I am on the Bermuda sailing July 13 to July 20.