Full Payment Of A Viking Ocean Cruise 18 Months In Advance - Any Comments?

[Azulann]

4 minutes ago, Twitchly said:

I would be very interested to know why Viking requires this far-advance payment in the US but not in other countries.

Each  country has it own rules about booking a cruise or airline. UK has good consumer laws  that protect persons booking  cruise, airline etc, insurance is included in their fare.  AU/NZ and Canada have their own Viking  web site which includes the rules of booking and their prices which oftentimes are not the same as USA.

[Twitchly]

1 minute ago, Azulann said:

Each  country has it own rules about booking a cruise or airline. UK has good consumer laws  that protect persons booking  cruise, airline etc, insurance is included in their fare.  AU/NZ and Canada have their own Viking  web site which includes the rules of booking and their prices which oftentimes are not the same as USA.

 

I understand. What puzzles me is why Viking requires such advanced payment in the US, since they don’t require it elsewhere. I’d hate to think they’re taking advantage of our lesser consumer protection just because they can. That doesn’t square with my image of Viking.
 

I have zero experience booking a cruise with any other company, so I didn’t realize this far-advance payment program was unusual. Is it unique to Viking? 

 

 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

26 minutes ago, Twitchly said:

 

I understand. What puzzles me is why Viking requires such advanced payment in the US, since they don’t require it elsewhere. I’d hate to think they’re taking advantage of our lesser consumer protection just because they can. That doesn’t square with my image of Viking.
 

I have zero experience booking a cruise with any other company, so I didn’t realize this far-advance payment program was unusual. Is it unique to Viking? 

 

 

It's a business--I would presume they would in fact take whatever financial advantage they can.  And btw, the terms I believe are the same in Canada.

[Heidi13]

33 minutes ago, Twitchly said:

 

I understand. What puzzles me is why Viking requires such advanced payment in the US, since they don’t require it elsewhere. I’d hate to think they’re taking advantage of our lesser consumer protection just because they can. That doesn’t square with my image of Viking.
 

I have zero experience booking a cruise with any other company, so I didn’t realize this far-advance payment program was unusual. Is it unique to Viking? 

 

 

In Canada, we experience the same payment terms as the US, but have consumer protection legislation comparible to UK. Therefore, it can't be solely based on consumer laws.

 

Before finding Viking, we mostly had PIF at 3 months before the cruise, which is fairly standard for Mainstream Lines. Other Lines do have different terms, but I believe Viking's are furthest in advance of the cruise.

 

Probably the best explanation is supply & demand and what the market will bear. They extended the PIF dates in N/America and the ships continued sailing full, so no incentive to change.

 

In the UK market they may not wish to test the waters with changes. They are well aware of Carnival's experience, when they tried to introduce auto gratuities to the UK market, similar to the US Market. The pax revolted, with huge queues at the Purser's Desk removing the auto tips. After a few years, Carnival had to back down, removing the auto tips.

[duquephart]

1 hour ago, Twitchly said:

I would be very interested to know why Viking requires this far-advance payment in the US but not in other countries.

 

Because they get away with it. That simple.

[Hockeyump]

One benefit the US has is that they can cancel much nearer the date of travel.  In the UK we pay the balance much later but lose more for late cancellations.