Which World Cruise do you recommend?

[At7Seas]

13 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

Personally, we prefer a single quality and comfortable experience over two cheaper experiences.

 

Okay, I’m not BVILady. But I for my part would describe it as two quality and comfortable experiences instead of one single cruise with perhaps a few marginal better aspects.

 

[BVILady]

10 hours ago, islandwoman said:

So if I read this correctly, Viking's OBC and the cost of flights accounted for the small differential in the two (Princess and Viking) World Cruise daily costs?

So the cost of flights would be a large amount of money I would give to Viking without any reason to me. I get my flights on my airline/credit card points, only had to pay for one flight on my 2023 cruise because it was effected by Holiday black-out dates for reward tickets due to my departure airport. I usually take day-flights Premium Economy and if available night-flights lay-flat business class. Got plenty of points right now for my 2 long distance trips in 2025 to be most probably covered. I also have booked quite a few excursions not with the cruise-line but individually because they were more attractive  Usually I do prefer to book with the cruise line but sometimes something better comes along. Both times when I was in Manila (HAL and Costa) I was very happy I did so, watching the traffic in Manila.  I also did notice that an excursion I had booked with Costa being much more reasonable priced then one I saw on an itinerary on Oceania (same excursion - port-agents do contract with local tour-companies)  So again I do not see why I would pay about $ 60.000 more to Viking then I pay as total for a more main stream cruise line (everything included)  and Costa Deliziosa is not a Mega-ship with less then 2600 passengers, so quite acceptable to me. So if someone tells me that in the end Viking is a better deal, I cannot agree to that. But everyone to his/her own. Gail and Marty if you are comfortable on HAL, go for it. I do like HAL, have been on several cruises with them and currently booked for March 2025 Japan/South Korea - looking forward to it. And can't wait for my Cunard Med-cruise also in 2025. I don't think I will do another World Cruise, have been in to many ports already several times and now picking shorter cruises with at least a few ports I have not been to yet and do land-stay's in between. Can't wait to finalize all my bookings later in 2024 with accommodations and flights for 2025. Keeping my fingers crossed that I will be able to live the nomad life for a few more years. And that the world is not messing up my plans again - like with Covid. 

Edited November 24, 2023 by BVILady
forgot something

[Heidi13]

6 hours ago, At7Seas said:

 

I shouldn’t believe the media or the Italian courts that got to the same conclusion again and again in all decisions taken during long trials? I should believe you that an accident with dozens of fatalities couldn’t happen with a Viking ship because of their safety culture? An accident as the one when the Viking Sigyn, while turning, overran the Hableány, which sunk in no time? The trial is still ongoing, but at least the port authorities declared the manoeuvre had not their permission and the captain declared not having seen the other ship. But I should not believe the media and the 28 dead tourists are still alive.

 

Personally, I don't get my information from the media or the court system, I prefer to read and study formal investigation reports from the relevant Flag State authority. In addition, having worked in the industry, I am also privy to information not in the public domain.

 

Can't comment on river incidents, as I have never worked in that environment, so have no knowledge or experience of those operations, regulations or procedures. I only provide comments and/or opinion in the areas of the industry, where I have the required knowledge and/or experience.

[Heidi13]

15 hours ago, islandwoman said:

So if I read this correctly, Viking's OBC and the cost of flights accounted for the small differential in the two (Princess and Viking) World Cruise daily costs?

 

I'll try to expand on my previous post to better explain the cost differences we experienced.

 

The following per person number are from memory, so are approximate:

 - 2015 Princess WC R/T Sydney - $35,000

 - 2020 Viking WC L/A to London - $64,000

 

Cabin category was both a balcony midships on a lower deck.

 

Pre/Post Cruise 

The Princess fare included nothing, except crew gratuities, which are included in the base fare in Australia. Just getting to/from and onboard added considerable costs to the Princess fare. Again, these are approx from memory:

 - Port Fees: $2,500

 - Flights: $15,000

 - Visas: $500

 - Transfers to/from port: $200

 - Hotel: $300

 

With Viking, all costs listed above were included in the base fare, however we did opt to spend a few days in L/A pre-cruise, so did incur hotel costs.

 

Cruise Expenses

On Princess, with the exception of meals in the basic restaurants, everything costs extra, settling your shipboard account at the end of each segment. Since we had "Elite" status with Princess, we did not incur laundry or internet fees, and at the beginning of each segment received a few individual bottles of drink in the mini-bar.

 

Travelling with our son for so many years, who also work for Princess, we got so used to receiving comp shore-ex tickets in most ports, so out of habit booked Shore-ex in many ports. Therefore, our total onboard spend at the end of the cruise was over $15,000. We also had additional spend on private tours and incidentals ashore, but couldn't hazard a guess as to those numbers.

 

On Viking, almost everything onboard was included, which includes an complimentary shore-ex in each port. Pax also have the option of booking additional tours that cost extra. Over the years, I had visited 3/4 of the ports multiple times and have taken most of the tours at some point, however we still booked one or multiple tours in each port. We used both shore-ex and private tours. With respect to the included tours, we booked about 15 of them in the 50+ ports, normally when we could also fit in an additional shore-ex or private tour.  Our total onboard and tour spend per person was about $7,000, with Viking providing $5,500 OBC, so our additional spend was about $1,500 pp. Most of which was private tours and incidental spending ashore.

 

We disembarked the Viking vessel with no bill and did not have a bill to settle at any time during the cruise.

 

Unfortunately, I lost my spreadsheets when my last laptop crashed, so these numbers are all from memory. However, I do recall posting detailed numbers a couple of years ago on a thread in the World Cruise Board. You may be able to locate that post by searching.

 

As I have said many times, these are the numbers that worked for us. Other pax will have different results based on preferences. The big cost factor on the 2015 cruise was flights, so anyone that wants to fly economy for 20 hrs would have saved about $8 -10 K.

 

 

[At7Seas]

1 hour ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Personally, I don't get my information from the media or the court system, I prefer to read and study formal investigation reports from the relevant Flag State authority. In addition, having worked in the industry, I am also privy to information not in the public domain.

 

Can't comment on river incidents, as I have never worked in that environment, so have no knowledge or experience of those operations, regulations or procedures. I only provide comments and/or opinion in the areas of the industry, where I have the required knowledge and/or experience.

 

I understand. Viking ocean liners are extremely safe because of the company’s safety culture and other Viking vessels remain beyond of consideration of safety. A five year sentence in the first instance for neglecting safety rules is not relevant. But indeed captain Chaplinsky did not run away, but gave command to another officer after the crash.

[RFerrington]

I have scanned (but not read, thoroughly) the past 7 pages and didn't note any discussion regarding Regent 7 Seas.  We have never sailed on Regent but are interested in the itins for both the 2025 and 2026 WC.  Does anyone have any experience or opinion on Regent ?

[Heidi13]

25 minutes ago, At7Seas said:

 

I understand. Viking ocean liners are extremely safe because of the company’s safety culture and other Viking vessels remain beyond of consideration of safety. A five year sentence in the first instance for neglecting safety rules is not relevant. But indeed captain Chaplinsky did not run away, but gave command to another officer after the crash.

 

It really is time to stop discussing a subject you clearly have very limited knowledge.

 

Yes, Viking, as do many other cruise lines, have an exceptional safety culture, but that doesn't eliminate accidents. Classic example is the 2019 Viking Sky incident, where the vessel lost all propulsion and almost grounded. You also have the 2022 incident on Viking Polaris, where the vessel allegedly impacted a rogue wave. Neither incident has had the final report published, so the true facts are not known.

 

I also note that convictions of Mariner are common place. I spent almost 30 yrs in command knowing that if any other vessel, including private sailboats hit my vessel, I could be charged and convicted, even though I followed the regulations and company procedures. Rule 2 of the International Collision Regulations is the classic example of why the Master will be at fault in any collision, as it requires Master to NOT follow the Collision Regulation Regulations. Classic Catch-22 situation.

 

Before discussing marine convictions, may I suggest you conduct some research into the Acts and pursuant  Regulations that Masters operate under. Reading investigation reports will also provide you with information of what actually happened and the causes.

 

[islandwoman]

1 hour ago, Heidi13 said:

With respect to the included tours, we booked about 15 of them in the 50+ ports, normally when we could also fit in an additional shore-ex or private tour. 

Thank you for once again taking the time and thought to post a detailed explanation of your comparison of Viking vs. Princess World Cruises.

I would like to ask you for your opinion of Viking's included wine and shore excursions.  I have not sailed on Viking's Ocean ships, but I did take a cruise on one of their river boats.  We didn't like the wine, but perhaps that was because Viking was serving local (Eastern European) wines.  As for the included shore excursions, we signed up for all of them, since we had already paid for them (included in the cruise price).  I got really tired of riding for hours on busses and I don't think that traveling in such confined spaces is particularly healthful.

So from your experience, what do you think of Viking's included wines?

What do you think of Viking's included shore excursions?

[At7Seas]

53 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

It really is time to stop discussing

 

Yes, this discussion started from no money for safety led to the Concordia disaster, not the totally wrong decision of the captain. A case wherein a Viking captain caused a comparable loss of human lives by again neglecting all safety rules was just bad luck. Indeed no need to continue reading your strange ideas.

[Heidi13]

11 minutes ago, islandwoman said:

Thank you for once again taking the time and thought to post a detailed explanation of your comparison of Viking vs. Princess World Cruises.

I would like to ask you for your opinion of Viking's included wine and shore excursions.  I have not sailed on Viking's Ocean ships, but I did take a cruise on one of their river boats.  We didn't like the wine, but perhaps that was because Viking was serving local (Eastern European) wines.  As for the included shore excursions, we signed up for all of them, since we had already paid for them (included in the cruise price).  I got really tired of riding for hours on busses and I don't think that traveling in such confined spaces is particularly healthful.

So from your experience, what do you think of Viking's included wines?

What do you think of Viking's included shore excursions?

 

The greatest majority of the included shore-ex are the basic "Panorama" aka bus tour, or a guided walking tour. These are the basic tours that most cruise lines offer and provide a quick overview of the local area. However, in some ports Viking do offer a couple of Included options, of which you select one or the other, not both. In some ports the Included shore-ex is excellent - Komodo Island being the classic example, as they include the guided walk around the island. In Safaga, the included was a 10 hr tour to Luxor.

 

As with all cruise lines, the actual tour quality is highly dependent on the guide and Viking is no different. The quality of the tour in any port can depend on which bus and guide you were assigned.

 

In comparison to Princess, who had exceptional, detailed shore-ex descriptions, Viking tour descriptions are very basic. Any tour we considered, I researched thoroughly, actually plotting stops and attractions in Google Maps. On the previous WC, I recall a pax complaining about a tour in Wellington that included 4+ hours on a bus with 1 to 1.5 hrs at attractions. This tour was of interest to us in 2020, but once I plotted everything into Google Maps and saw the distances involved, we had no desire to sit on a bus that long.

 

Most of the optional tours were good to excellent. We often would book both the included and an optional or private tour in a single port. We were very happy with the Viking onboard shore-ex team and were also happy with the Princess shore-ex team. The included tours are complimentary and you also receive substantial OBC, which pays for many, if not all optional shore-ex you book. Since everything onboard is included, with the OBC, you are basically purchasing shore-ex in the base fare.

 

The included wines are certainly cheaper options, but we found a number of them that we enjoyed. Crew members were excellent in suggesting alternatives you may enjoy based on naming wines you liked. We are certainly not wine snobs, so the included wines worked for us, while others with more discerning tastes may not agree.

 

I am however a craft beer snob and am very particular with the type of beer I drink. Viking had an IPA, Stout and Amber Ale that I enjoyed. They also purchased other local beers in various ports.

[SargassoPirate]

This discussion is much like asking "which car would you recommend?"

 

I have done some 50 cruises on various lines and am Elite on Princess and Diamond Plus on RCI.  I booked each for the itinerary and the price point at the time. I have enjoyed every cruise, except for the 7 days I spent on the prison ship NCL Epic.

 

Each line and each ship has its cheerleaders and it's detractors.  

 

I booked a world cruise first to circumnavigate the globe. Second was a line I was familiar with. Third was the price point.  

 

I don't eat in specialty restaurants, don't drink much, and don't feel compelled to get off the ship in every port.  Give me somewhere to get something to eat when I'm hungry, a real promenade to enjoy being at sea, a wee dram of a good scotch in the evening, some pleasant music (not over amplified)  in the evening and I'm good.

 

 

 

 

[At7Seas]

11 hours ago, SargassoPirate said:

This discussion is much like asking "which car would you recommend?"

 

I agree! Islandwoman often enough also asked for reasons, which could have resulted in more than “great service staff” or “financial reasons to buy a Ferrari”.

 

11 hours ago, SargassoPirate said:

I booked a world cruise first to circumnavigate the globe.

 

Sure, you don’t book a world cruise if you don’t want one. Since circumnavigating the globe was on my bucket list as well we very easily can agree about this. Of course also the itinerary is important. Cunard - which I’d definitely use - disappointed me by offering a too short world cruise, I want to see the world, not only to go around as fast as possible. I don’t want to downgrade HAL, but they concentrate for my taste too much on European ports. For me as European it simply makes much more sense to visit on a world cruise mainly ports not close to my front door.

 

11 hours ago, SargassoPirate said:

Second was a line I was familiar with.

 

Using a cruise line you know makes a lot of sense to me. Last year I booked a short cruise just to test a cruise line that offers a quite unique itinerary I am interested in doing one of the following years.

 

11 hours ago, SargassoPirate said:

Third was the price point. 

 

And yes, the price. I think all of us want to get the best out of our money. Sure, all of us have different expectations. In the end the question is, whether someone is willing to pay more for a larger bathroom and if so how much. I had the choice between classic and premium cabins and took the latter, because they are in the less noisy part of the ship and I happily pay for being far away from engines, kitchen, bars or restaurants. My needs, my choice.

 

But there is more! Calculations including business class flights to the most remote available starting point of a world cruise used as perfect example don’t make sense, because extremes distort suitability as example. Travel expenses at roughly 40 times more than I pay (a price that BVILady contested including long haul flights without compromising comfort) are simply not representative. This shows that one should do own research about costs involved regarding personal needs instead of believing statements that sound strange.

 

11 hours ago, SargassoPirate said:

I don't eat in specialty restaurants, don't drink much, and don't feel compelled to get off the ship in every port.  Give me somewhere to get something to eat when I'm hungry, a real promenade to enjoy being at sea, a wee dram of a good scotch in the evening, some pleasant music (not over amplified)  in the evening and I'm good.

 

Perhaps I am a bit more demanding, but nothing wrong with your approach, if it’s your style of cruising. For example my problem with NCL is that I feel pushed into the extra charged restaurants for getting a decent meal. The included restaurants I regard as not really bad, but very far from being good as well. In opposite to this: where I paid for I got excellent food. No limit at all, since NCL doesn’t offer world cruises. Basically I want well-prepared food. I am not snobbish, so not the price of products used count, but the taste. And yes, once in a while I spoil myself with something special. I am afraid a drink is available on each and every cruise that doesn’t call Saudi Arabia, while quality and quantity of entertainment can be very different on cruises. Regarding the point of leaving the ship in every port we have different views again. On all my cruises I skipped two ports ever, once I was simply too sick and the other time I had not the wish to enter that country.

Edited November 25, 2023 by At7Seas
typo led to confusing content

[At7Seas]

 

For those who are interested how generous Viking really is I looked what their offer for their world cruise starting in 2025 is, while it is actually not an around the globe cruise. I used the part from Los Angeles to London in 121 days. One can stay another segment aboard and go further to New York or add the earlier segment from Ft Lauderdale to Los Angeles, just the time involved would distort comparability too much. Fact is that Viking has a policy of inclusions, but also that some expensive inclusions are only offered to guests booking in a limited number of countries.
 
And now let’s compare this to Costa’s pricing for the around the world cruise starting in November 2025 from Trieste to Trieste in 128 days. The approach is different, Costa makes you paying for things you actually decide to book. Flights you pay for only if you fly with Costa, not like Viking including flights for bookings from specified countries. Since aboard prices are not available yet I take those from the first 2024 world cruise prices I am on, there are hardly any differences in itinerary, where prices went up since booking I used the most recent prices. Costa has depending on legal circumstances different prices, in Germany the service charge is included, but this makes the fare more expensive. When I booked in all countries where pricing was in Euro the world cruise was the same after adding these components, differences I found in included add-ons during a sale.

Viking	Costa
Business class flights, but only from four countries including those two where the cruise starts and ends.	Travel expenses not included, flights can be booked with Costa from quite a number of airports.
Transfers to and from the ship	Transfer from Venice airport to the ship in Trieste one way 19 € with individually booked transport. Included if flights are booked with Costa.
Service charge	Service charge included (prices mentioned from German website, following a legal requirement Costa adds up basic fare and service charge for pricing on the German website, can be different in other countries)
Full beverage package	Beverages during meals are included, upgrade to full beverage package 18 € per night
Visa service with limitations	Visa not included, my costs were 40 US$, of course not every passport is the same
Luggage shipping, but only for US customers	No luggage shipping included, for EU guests available at 73.50 € per suitcase (up to 32 kg each) and direction.
One excursion in each port, Viking chooses which one, all the others are paid for	15 included excursions, Costa chooses which one. My average costs for excursions are 91.25 € per port, price can fluctuate lightly regarding different currencies to be paid in.
WiFi under technical restrictions	WiFi full package for unlimited use on one device 998.50 €, using phone as hotspot is possible. Very recently upgraded system to avoid the formerly usual problems with the signal in some remote areas. Cheaper packages available to fit needs.
Alternative dining	Alternative dining against a fee, pizzeria maximum 13 € per pizza, sushi maximum 23 € (all you can eat), fine dining restaurant Archipelago 59 € per five-course dinner, discounted package one all you can eat sushi plus one dinner in Archipelago 63 €.
Access to spa	Cabins with direct spa connection have unlimited access to the spa included in the fare, alternatively entrance against a fee.
Self service laundrette	Laundry packages, 25 pieces for 0.80 € per piece, no self service but washing, ironing, folding service
Port taxes included	All taxes included for EU bookings (legal requirement, can be different in other countries)
1,000 US$ general use OBC plus 1,000 US$ OBC for excursions only	No OBC included in the fare
Starting price 54,995 US$ per person based on double occupancy for 121 days from Los Angeles to London	Starting price 17,399 € per person based on double occupancy for 128 days from Trieste to Trieste
Single occupancy prices not mentioned.	Single occupancy prices are starting at 26,099 €, this is a 50% supplement only.

 

 Now everybody may start calculating…

[BVILady]

On 11/24/2023 at 6:02 PM, SargassoPirate said:

This discussion is much like asking "which car would you recommend?"

 

I have done some 50 cruises on various lines and am Elite on Princess and Diamond Plus on RCI.  I booked each for the itinerary and the price point at the time. I have enjoyed every cruise, except for the 7 days I spent on the prison ship NCL Epic.

 

Each line and each ship has its cheerleaders and it's detractors.  

 

I booked a world cruise first to circumnavigate the globe. Second was a line I was familiar with. Third was the price point.  

 

I don't eat in specialty restaurants, don't drink much, and don't feel compelled to get off the ship in every port.  Give me somewhere to get something to eat when I'm hungry, a real promenade to enjoy being at sea, a wee dram of a good scotch in the evening, some pleasant music (not over amplified)  in the evening and I'm good.

 

 

 

 

lol, not really "which car would you recommend" - I see it what do you want to spend and what do you expect to be covered. I am not like you, I will definitely be on shore in every port, since my reason to go on a World Cruise is to see the world. 

I am still swallowing on the price I had been quoted for single-occupancy by Viking, which had been around $ 100,000. So when you look at  Heidi 13 calculations I would have been charged about $ 30.000 for business-class airfare. Corresponding with other people on another board, calculating their business class flight to Japan might be $ 8000 p.p. - but now is late in the year to compare price for 2024 to the date they will need it for 2025. Early booking it might be less anyhow. When it comes to the OBC, how much would I have gotten? Also drink-package, I hardly drink anything, wine with dinner, most of the time not even with lunch - and lunch would only be on seadays anyhow. And now learning that the better wine is not included, so I wouldn't even have been able to select that! Got on HAL the HIA package (early booking perk) which includes 2 dinners in a Specialty restaurant which I really don't need and booking in advance being solo-cruiser will be difficult. Just read on Facebook how people compliment the quality of HAL food in the Main-Dining Room these days. My main-factor selecting a cruise is the itinerary, date and price - so that is why I am not loyal to any line. Looking forward to all the cruises I have currently booked. Hope you enjoy your Princess cruise!

[islandwoman]

20 minutes ago, BVILady said:

So when you look at  Heidi 13 calculations I would have been charged about $ 30.000 for business-class airfare. Corresponding with other people on another board, calculating their business class flight to Japan might be $ 8000 p.p. -

Sometimes you can get better airfare through the cruise lines.  We did very well with Princess EZAir from South America to Colorado pre-pandemic.  This year Holland America's Flight Ease from Florida to San Diego and return from Vancouver was not a good deal, so we booked our own flights using frequent flier miles that we earned mostly by credit card spending. 

[At7Seas]

1 hour ago, BVILady said:

So when you look at  Heidi 13 calculations...

 

In 2017 I made a wonderful grand voyage that I booked for less than 50 € per day. I know that it was a very lucky exception, not a rule and I wouldn‘t present it as such.
 
Also Heidi‘s calculations can‘t be generalised. Heidi flew to her Princess cruise to Australia and back home again. Her Viking cruise was exactly the one I looked up for 2025 (see above), from Los Angeles to London. If you take Vancouver as base already these very different distances were causing huge differences in costs. And it is for us impossible to tell how her spending habits were. You wrote that you did two overland tours on your 2023 world cruise. Without knowing the prices you were charged I can tell you that doing these tours had a significant impact on your board account. If you do so on one cruise and don‘t on a second both grand totals aren‘t comparable any more.
 
In 2025 Viking includes 2,000 US$ OBC, 1,000 you only may spend on shore excursions, the other 1,000 as you like. Why Heidi got 11,000 OBC I don‘t know, but if you read her statements above you know that she spent it. While she stated that she only had a small amount to pay things would look quite different with the OBC offered today, perhaps like this:

 

[Heidi13]

4 hours ago, BVILady said:

 

I am still swallowing on the price I had been quoted for single-occupancy by Viking, which had been around $ 100,000. So when you look at  Heidi 13 calculations I would have been charged about $ 30.000 for business-class airfare. 

 

I believe you previously posted that your preference is for an Inside Cabin. Since the only inside cabins on Viking are crew cabins, comparing prices you paid Costa to Viking is not comparing apples to apples. The base level Viking cabin is a 270 sq feet balcony. I believe the base inside cabins on Costa are about 1/2 the size, at 155 sq feet.

 

My calculations are based on 2 pax and will not be applicable to solo cruisers. As a solo cruiser you are impacted by the single supplement, which tends to vary with supply and demand. On the 23 Viking WC we booked, the entire ship was fully booked for the entire cruise (no segments) within 6 months and they increase prices by about $12,000. Therefore Viking had no incentive to provide discounts to single pax. Even after numerous cancellations, they filled the ship at the higher price point.

 

In 2024 they have 2 ships sailing a World Cruise and the price is now $20K pp more than we booked in 2023. Compared to when the cruises were first published, I believe the cabins have increased about $8K. One ship has 2 cabins left and the other has about a dozen cabins remaining, which will be late cancellations. With this level of sales, they again have no incentive to provide solo pax discounts.

 

The only cruises Viking tend to offer solo pax discounts are repositioning cruises, which are often discounted to fill the ship. Other cruises can be fully sold out 1 year before departure, so again, no incentive to offer discounts.

 

Since I am Canadian, I quote all costs in CAN$, so if you work in US $, in addition to addressing cabin categories, I hope you also factored in exchange rates, when calculating your $30K airfare. At least my comparison, based on our actual experience of completing 2 World Cruises, used the same currency and similar cabin categories. My numbers are also based on the real costs for both cruises, not quotes from 1 cruise line and actual costs for the other.

[At7Seas]

10 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

I believe you previously posted that your preference is for an Inside Cabin.

 

True, but where does this change anything? BVILady’s inside cabin went on the same cruise as the other cabins aboard the ship she was on. It is simply a fact that you can book for 2025 a world cruise for the price I stated above. If you don’t want inside you pay exactly 3,000 € more based on double occupation, here 50% single supplement as well. Balcony doubles the difference compared to inside for double occupation to 6,000. For solo cruisers this category has even slightly less than 50% supplement (all for 2025). Fact is as well that the single supplement is variable, but when cruises are published it always starts with about 50% on Costa. Truth is that Viking prices are so extremely high that all these differences don’t matter. What is completely neglected by you is the fact that wind makes inside the cabin the much quieter place to sleep. In fact I personally regard this as an argument to avoid Viking.

 

10 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

Therefore Viking had no incentive to provide discounts to single pax.

 

“The price is what a fool pays for it” (Dutch saying). Besides the rules of a free market the single supplement is also about the question how to treat passengers. The costs are a mixture of many different factors. Some costs are related to the entire ship, some to the cabin and others to the individual passengers. Simply said I don’t eat for two, but the fuel needed remains the same, whether I am occupying a cabin alone or not. In fact all prices are a mixture of expected costs and desired profit. The single supplement goes towards covering costs and profit, paying single supplement is definitely not getting a discount! Truth is that Viking tries punishing me for being widowed - but I am not the proverbial fool!

 

10 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

I believe the base inside cabins on Costa are about 1/2 the size

 

I already wrote about the “more space” question. Do I really need it and if so do I want to pay so much more for it? Do I really need a cabin larger than my bedroom at home? Neither bedroom nor cabin are the places I spend my days in. Would I sleep better in a larger bedroom / cabin?

 

10 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

the entire ship was fully booked for the entire cruise (no segments)

 

Regarding segments in 2025 the situation is different, Viking offers segments and combinations of segments between Ft. Lauderdale and New York, Costa doesn’t. The latter offers segments late and only if cabins don’t sell fast enough or for those cabins free again after voyages have been cancelled late. My 2024 cruise had been sold out nearly one year before starting, right now are a few cabins available again, also for segments. The second world cruise Costa offers later in 2024 is not segmented yet.

[SargassoPirate]

On 11/26/2023 at 11:45 AM, BVILady said:

lol, not really "which car would you recommend" - I see it what do you want to spend and what do you expect to be covered. I am not like you, I will definitely be on shore in every port, since my reason to go on a World Cruise is to see the world. 

I am still swallowing on the price I had been quoted for single-occupancy by Viking, which had been around $ 100,000. So when you look at  Heidi 13 calculations I would have been charged about $ 30.000 for business-class airfare. Corresponding with other people on another board, calculating their business class flight to Japan might be $ 8000 p.p. - but now is late in the year to compare price for 2024 to the date they will need it for 2025. Early booking it might be less anyhow. When it comes to the OBC, how much would I have gotten? Also drink-package, I hardly drink anything, wine with dinner, most of the time not even with lunch - and lunch would only be on seadays anyhow. And now learning that the better wine is not included, so I wouldn't even have been able to select that! Got on HAL the HIA package (early booking perk) which includes 2 dinners in a Specialty restaurant which I really don't need and booking in advance being solo-cruiser will be difficult. Just read on Facebook how people compliment the quality of HAL food in the Main-Dining Room these days. My main-factor selecting a cruise is the itinerary, date and price - so that is why I am not loyal to any line. Looking forward to all the cruises I have currently booked. Hope you enjoy your Princess cruise!

My world cruise on Princess, solo in a Luxury Inside Suite, is just under $37K .  Roundtrip first class airfare is around $800 (I refuse to fly steerage with the crying babies and seat kickers)  I'm going a la carte for tips, 1/2 price wifi, and for my wee dram in the evening and will end up around 1/2 of what the Plus would've cost me..  I've used some TA OBC to book excursions in ports where I haven't been before and will probably add a few viator excursions soon.  

 

I'm projecting that all told I will have spent under $45K by the time I get back home.  That's about 1/2 of what a new truck would cost if I were to replace my 20 year old one now with a similarly equipped diesel model.

 

The icing on the cake is a $2800 gift card from the warehouse TA.

 

Knowing my cruising style, this will suit me just fine.

[islandwoman]

I've narrowed my choice down to 3 cruise lines including Viking.  But never having been on a Viking ocean voyage, I'd like to take a one before making a decision. I'm trying to decide how soon I need to go. Can anyone tell me:

Do Viking world cruises typically sell out soon after they open for booking?

How far in advance of sailing are Viking world cruises usually posted?

Are Viking ocean cruise deposits refundable?

[Heidi13]

2 hours ago, islandwoman said:

I've narrowed my choice down to 3 cruise lines including Viking.  But never having been on a Viking ocean voyage, I'd like to take a one before making a decision. I'm trying to decide how soon I need to go. Can anyone tell me:

Do Viking world cruises typically sell out soon after they open for booking?

How far in advance of sailing are Viking world cruises usually posted?

Are Viking ocean cruise deposits refundable?

 

The 2023 WC we booked was published on 9th December 2021 and the 2020 WC was published in April 2018, so for a WC departing in Dec 2025/Jan 26, expect it to be published from within a few days to couple of months.

 

You can try a shorter Viking cruise, but from all of our research, they really step up the quality on a WC, so the shorter cruises may not give you a clear indication of what to expect.

 

If they revert to a single ship WC, expect it to sell out in a few months, but if they have 2 ships sailing WC's, it may take 6 -9 months to sell out both ships. Note - Viking have a history of increasing WC prices once the ships are almost sold out.

 

The T&C usually require a $1,000 pp cancellation fee, if cancelled more than 6-months before departure. That can often be covered by travel insurance, if you cancel for a covered reason.

[Mich3554]

On 12/15/2023 at 10:03 AM, Heidi13 said:

 

The 2023 WC we booked was published on 9th December 2021 and the 2020 WC was published in April 2018, so for a WC departing in Dec 2025/Jan 26, expect it to be published from within a few days to couple of months.

 

You can try a shorter Viking cruise, but from all of our research, they really step up the quality on a WC, so the shorter cruises may not give you a clear indication of what to expect.

 

If they revert to a single ship WC, expect it to sell out in a few months, but if they have 2 ships sailing WC's, it may take 6 -9 months to sell out both ships. Note - Viking have a history of increasing WC prices once the ships are almost sold out.

 

The T&C usually require a $1,000 pp cancellation fee, if cancelled more than 6-months before departure. That can often be covered by travel insurance, if you cancel for a covered reason.

As of this past Friday, Viking has not yet announced the 25-26 WC.  My Viking contact has said any day now.  If the itinerary changes any from the current one, we are going to jump again.  I don’t think we will do the Ft Lauderdale to NYC again though.  
 

I do concur that the expectations are a bit different from shorter cruises.  

[Guinness1000]

Lots of back and forth about which cruise line's WC is best. I've never been on a Viking cruise, but I'm pretty sure I would love it. However, looking at their 2026 WC it seems it starts in Los Angeles and ends in London. IMHO, that's not really an around the world cruise, so I would take that in consideration as well. I want to start and end in the same port, ideally.  🙂

[islandwoman]

3 hours ago, Guinness1000 said:

Lots of back and forth about which cruise line's WC is best. I've never been on a Viking cruise, but I'm pretty sure I would love it. However, looking at their 2026 WC it seems it starts in Los Angeles and ends in London. IMHO, that's not really an around the world cruise, so I would take that in consideration as well. I want to start and end in the same port, ideally.  🙂

I agree.  But they do have a "New! Viking World Voyage I"  that departs Ft. Lauderdale and ends in New York.  Since it starts and ends at the same latitude, I would consider that one a world cruise.

But we have decided against Viking for another reason.  In order to get a cabin that we would be happy with for 180 days, we would have to book a year or more in advance.  Anything can happen in that length of time, especially to people of our ages (old!) and I find Viking's cancellation penalty for long cruises unacceptable.  

[Heidi13]

15 hours ago, Guinness1000 said:

Lots of back and forth about which cruise line's WC is best. I've never been on a Viking cruise, but I'm pretty sure I would love it. However, looking at their 2026 WC it seems it starts in Los Angeles and ends in London. IMHO, that's not really an around the world cruise, so I would take that in consideration as well. I want to start and end in the same port, ideally.  🙂

 

Viking has 4 options for their World Cruise, with the L/A to London being the shortest at 121 days. With the port/sea day ratio and the number of overnights and double overnights in port, you can't sail around the entire World in 4-months.

 

For those wanting a true circumnavigation of the globe, the 180-day option is from Florida to New York.