Daily testing = no sleeping in on Viking cruise vacation?

[voyager23]

Reading on other posts, wondering if it varies by ship, but it is true with the current daily testing, you have to wake up before 8:30 to provide saliva samples? I know some people will say it's not a big deal because they are always up early, but doesn't seem like the best routine on a vacation, especially on sea days. Is there a reason why it's not done at night? 

[Heidi13]

The kits are delivered during the evening turn-down service and collected about 08:30-09:00. When you provide the sample is your choice.

 

You could provide the sample prior to retiring for the evening, provided you meet the requirements, and leave on the deck outside the cabin, for the cabin steward to pick up in the morning.

[TayanaLorna]

37 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

The kits are delivered during the evening turn-down service and collected about 08:30-09:00. When you provide the sample is your choice.

 

You could provide the sample prior to retiring for the evening, provided you meet the requirements, and leave on the deck outside the cabin, for the cabin steward to pick up in the morning.

Many people did this.  We are early risers and saw numerous packages outside doors when we went for coffee.

[StuLaurie]

Not sure if it is ship specific but we are just off if the Sea and brought magnetic clips to leave our samples outside our door and our cabin attendant said that they no longer let you leave them outside your door. They had to be hand delivered to her. We were 12 nights in the Caribbean and it mean early days for us every day. This was the perfect itinerary to sleep in but no, knock at the door between 7:30 to 8 every day. 

[Twitchly]

4 hours ago, StuLaurie said:

Not sure if it is ship specific but we are just off if the Sea and brought magnetic clips to leave our samples outside our door and our cabin attendant said that they no longer let you leave them outside your door. They had to be hand delivered to her. We were 12 nights in the Caribbean and it mean early days for us every day. This was the perfect itinerary to sleep in but no, knock at the door between 7:30 to 8 every day. 

Yeah, I saw this on another cruise discussion group, too. They couldn’t leave their samples outside their cabin overnight anymore. 
 

So the answer apparently is: yes, that’s correct, you cannot sleep in while on vacation with Viking.

Edited March 23, 2022 by Twitchly

[fudgbug]

If you can't leave your sample out at night, Viking will have to pay us to take a cruise.  We're on vacation and like to sleep in on sea days.

[Blackduck59]

23 minutes ago, fudgbug said:

If you can't leave your sample out at night, Viking will have to pay us to take a cruise.  We're on vacation and like to sleep in on sea days.

 

Since we get up at 5:00 AM for work, 8:00 AM is luxury. I don't think daily testing is going to stay much longer. The wording already says "up to" daily testing. 

[Heidi13]

16 minutes ago, Blackduck59 said:

 

Since we get up at 5:00 AM for work, 8:00 AM is luxury. I don't think daily testing is going to stay much longer. The wording already says "up to" daily testing. 

 

I can relate. Been retired almost 10 yrs and am still up by 05:00, except weekends when the UK football often starts at 04:00 to 04:30.

 

On sea days I am usually up on deck by 05:30 -  05:45 getting my daily laps completed. I figure 08:30 is almost lunch time.😁

[eylarson]

We are currently leaving them outside after we return to the room and have not eaten or had anything to drink for an hour or so.  No complaints so far 

[voyager23]

Thanks for the confirmations. The lack of consistency between each ships policies is confusing, but hopefully it all starts to get phased out eventually.

 

It does seem odd they don't test at night? Because if someone submits a sample in the morning, then goes to breakfast, then sits in the explorers lounge, goes on an excursion, comes back for lunch and then finds out they are positive, and had just exposed everyone in all those spaces? When it could have been prevented by collecting at night, and having results by the time they wake up in the morning? Just an observation, but I'm guessing Viking must have some logic for their process at this point? But would be nice to have the option sleep in on vacation, especially on sea days.

 

 

Edited March 24, 2022 by voyager23

[Jim Avery]

I heard they don't collect before bed due to the excessive martini consumption on the WC.  Sterilizes the spit don't you know.......🍸

[KBs mum]

Seems odd to still test everyday when the cruise (eg British Isles) involves countries that don't require testing, and in the case of the UK, covid isn't notifiable anymore, and while quarantining and mask wearing is encouraged it is not mandatory

[Cadodge]

On 3/22/2022 at 11:15 PM, voyager23 said:

Reading on other posts, wondering if it varies by ship, but it is true with the current daily testing, you have to wake up before 8:30 to provide saliva samples? I know some people will say it's not a big deal because they are always up early, but doesn't seem like the best routine on a vacation, especially on sea days. Is there a reason why it's not done at night? 

On the Orion now. We were told if we want to sleep in to fill the vile when we could before 9 and leave outside the door and go back to sleep. Early morning toilet trip and spit and back to bed for both of us did the trick. When we left the cabin at 10:45 all had been taken care of. 

[voyager23]

 

8 hours ago, Cadodge said:

On the Orion now. We were told if we want to sleep in to fill the vile when we could before 9 and leave outside the door and go back to sleep. Early morning toilet trip and spit and back to bed for both of us did the trick. When we left the cabin at 10:45 all had been taken care of. 

 

Good to know, seems like most ships are offering some flexibility.

 

Perhaps if Viking is going to continue this process for the foreseeable future they can install those drive-thru bank teller tubes in each cabin so you don't even have to leave your bed....

 

 

Edited March 25, 2022 by voyager23

[uktog]

On Venus sample had to be in the room according to the attendant. They knocked around 0830 so we got in the habit of putting the do not disturb sign up but by 9 they’d ignore that. It was an issue for us the morning after an excursion that returned at 2 am

[SteelCity Cruiser]

Also on the Orion.  Our cabin attendant said that if we want to sleep in, put the samples on the floor just inside the door and put the "do not disturb" sign on the door.  She said she would just open our door quietly and far enough to retrieve the samples in the morning.  Seemed like a very reasonable idea to me.

[uktog]

I’ve got to be honest, the morning testing did impact on our cruising enjoyment.  
In normal times, I’d have a cup of coffee made by DH, take my painkiller meds with that, they kick in about 30 minutes later and then up I get.

Not on this cruise, I found it impossible to provide the required “amount” without waking about an hour before I should have, get a glass of water then an hour later, provide the sample. Only then could I have the painkillers. 
I would not have minded if testing was every second day or whatever, but if you take day 1/2 we had a test at our expense to meet their boarding requirements, a test on embarkation and a morning test so three tests in 36 hours and two within 12 hours - it’s overkill if we are living with covid.

Unlike other lines where there is transparency Viking tell you nothing about level of cases onboard- don’t assume no news is good news. We know there were cases onboard but no official statement 

[sleepybobo]

8 hours ago, uktog said:

I’ve got to be honest, the morning testing did impact on our cruising enjoyment.  
In normal times, I’d have a cup of coffee made by DH, take my painkiller meds with that, they kick in about 30 minutes later and then up I get.

Not on this cruise, I found it impossible to provide the required “amount” without waking about an hour before I should have, get a glass of water then an hour later, provide the sample. Only then could I have the painkillers. 
I would not have minded if testing was every second day or whatever, but if you take day 1/2 we had a test at our expense to meet their boarding requirements, a test on embarkation and a morning test so three tests in 36 hours and two within 12 hours - it’s overkill if we are living with covid.

Unlike other lines where there is transparency Viking tell you nothing about level of cases onboard- don’t assume no news is good news. We know there were cases onboard but no official statement 

I hear you.  Daily test did affect our enjoyment when we cruised in December.  While I had no problem in producing enough saliva, it's a challenge for my mom.  Poor mommy struggled every morning to fill up to the first line.  Yet, she did it to her best every morning.  It's not the most relaxing way to start your day.

 

I appreciate this safety measure.  But it's a double-edge sword.  

 

I don't want to sail on Viking again until the daily testing is ended.  To us, a Viking cruise is a splurge. We want to get the most out of it.  It's hard to enjoy fully when we constantly worried about the test results.  My heart skipped a beat whenever the stateroom phone rang or when someone knocked the door.

Edited March 25, 2022 by sleepybobo
typo

[voyager23]

15 hours ago, sleepybobo said:

I hear you.  Daily test did affect our enjoyment when we cruised in December.  While I had no problem in producing enough saliva, it's a challenge for my mom.  Poor mommy struggled every morning to fill up to the first line.  Yet, she did it to her best every morning.  It's not the most relaxing way to start your day.

 

I appreciate this safety measure.  But it's a double-edge sword.  

 

I don't want to sail on Viking again until the daily testing is ended.  To us, a Viking cruise is a splurge. We want to get the most out of it.  It's hard to enjoy fully when we constantly worried about the test results.  My heart skipped a beat whenever the stateroom phone rang or when someone knocked the door.

 

I wish Viking management would see statements like this to encourage them to rethink their protocols sooner than later. It's not for easy for everyone, and the daily anxiety caused by them is making people pause future cruises or seek alternatives. 

[longterm]

On 3/22/2022 at 11:15 PM, voyager23 said:

Reading on other posts, wondering if it varies by ship, but it is true with the current daily testing, you have to wake up before 8:30 to provide saliva samples? I know some people will say it's not a big deal because they are always up early, but doesn't seem like the best routine on a vacation, especially on sea days. Is there a reason why it's not done at night? 

Do your saliva test the night before and leave them out your door; that's what we did on our trip that ended last week, and we got no pushback from anyone on the ship.

Edited March 26, 2022 by longterm

[uktog]

1 hour ago, longterm said:

Do your saliva test the night before and leave them out your door; that's what we did on our trip that ended last week, and we got no pushback from anyone on the ship.

We were told not to leave them outside. Also you can’t eat or drink an hour before doing the sample and as we like a nightcap that wouldn’t have worked. 
I absolutely agree with sleepybobo the phone ringing absolutely caused a stomach lurch every time it happened. You do spend your time a little on edge. You feel absolutely fine in yourself but you still have a nagging doubt 

[longterm]

26 minutes ago, uktog said:

We were told not to leave them outside. Also you can’t eat or drink an hour before doing the sample and as we like a nightcap that wouldn’t have worked. 
I absolutely agree with sleepybobo the phone ringing absolutely caused a stomach lurch every time it happened. You do spend your time a little on edge. You feel absolutely fine in yourself but you still have a nagging doubt 

To each his own I suppose. We never worried about the phone ringing with a positive test result; we ended our trip three days ago and are healthy and happy after 24 days on our trip.

 

They said not to drink an hour before taking the test, but it didn’t seem to matter when I accidentally had a half a cup of coffee before I remembered I had not done the saliva test yet.

 

Some folks will always find something to complain about on a cruise; given the nature of this pandemic, we were thrilled to be able to spend almost 4 weeks  on a wonderful trip. Doing a three minute saliva test once a day was a nothing burger. 

Edited March 26, 2022 by longterm

[Twitchly]

54 minutes ago, longterm said:

Some folks will always find something to complain about on a cruise; given the nature of this pandemic, we were thrilled to be able to spend almost 4 weeks  on a wonderful trip. Doing a three minute saliva test once a day was a nothing burger. 

Dismissing others’ fears of getting kicked off the ship as just looking for “something to complain about” seems a bit cavalier. 
 

I am genuinely happy for you that you had four enjoyable weeks on your cruise. Others have not been as fortunate. 
 

 

Edited March 26, 2022 by Twitchly

[Blackduck59]

3 minutes ago, Twitchly said:

Dismissing others’ fears of getting kicked off the ship as just looking for “something to complain about” seems a bit cavalier. 
 

 

 

Well put, everyone has a different threshold. I'm wondering whether the daily testing will soon start being a deterrent for some. Some have been unhappy with the concept of their "Vacation" late morning routine being interrupted. Many (including me) don't find that a problem. I think that the idea of testing positive while having no symptoms is a concern of many; let alone those who unwittingly get caught by the tracing device who may have come in contact with someone with a positive test. There are several threads asking "what happens if I test positive while on my Viking cruise?" and apparently there are no proper answers. Our upcoming cruise is only 9 days and very close to home so our situation is not hat stressful with regard to Covid. We are actually cutting our cruise by a day because the ship actually stops in our home town.

[Jim Avery]

Actually it is a deterrent for us.  We simply will not start every day (or end every evening) spitting in a tube for 4+ months.  Besides being disgusting there is the issue of testing positive while being totally asymptomatic.  Just not our idea of a "high end" World Cruise.  No one else puts their passengers in such a situation.  Hoping for a quick end to this.