Other than cruise line tours

[Heidi13]

5 hours ago, KBs mum said:

Are Viator not a 3rd party reseller? 

 

Affirmative, Viator are a reseller, they sell tours for other vendors, taking a percentage of the revenue.

[shmabbies]

On 8/26/2022 at 6:23 PM, lackcreativity said:

We don't mind the 25/30 size groups on the Viking tours, since the Quiet Vox headphones allow you to wander a bit away from the guide to take pictures etc. without missing what is being said.

lackcreativity,   Can you verify that the Quiet Vox are used on Viking Ocean?  DH needs them desperately (hearing aids can only do so much in a group setting with ambient noise) and on our 2018 Viking Ocean (Bergen to Barcelona), there were no headphones on any of the tours, and I was under the impression (hopefully incorrectly) that there still were none on Ocean.  This makes me tend to book private tours more than maybe I would like, so if Quiet Vox are now on Ocean cruises, that would be very, very helpful.  I'd be willing to pay just to get him to be able to hear the dialogue.  Thanks!

[longterm]

4 minutes ago, shmabbies said:

lackcreativity,   Can you verify that the Quiet Vox are used on Viking Ocean?  DH needs them desperately (hearing aids can only do so much in a group setting with ambient noise) and on our 2018 Viking Ocean (Bergen to Barcelona), there were no headphones on any of the tours, and I was under the impression (hopefully incorrectly) that there still were none on Ocean.  This makes me tend to book private tours more than maybe I would like, so if Quiet Vox are now on Ocean cruises, that would be very, very helpful.  I'd be willing to pay just to get him to be able to hear the dialogue.  Thanks!

Yes, QuietVox are used on ocean cruise excursions. 

[janetcbl]

9 minutes ago, shmabbies said:

lackcreativity,   Can you verify that the Quiet Vox are used on Viking Ocean?  DH needs them desperately (hearing aids can only do so much in a group setting with ambient noise) and on our 2018 Viking Ocean (Bergen to Barcelona), there were no headphones on any of the tours, and I was under the impression (hopefully incorrectly) that there still were none on Ocean.  This makes me tend to book private tours more than maybe I would like, so if Quiet Vox are now on Ocean cruises, that would be very, very helpful.  I'd be willing to pay just to get him to be able to hear the dialogue.  Thanks!

They were used on every excursion, except the bus panoramas where the guide used the bus mic.

[shmabbies]

Super news!!  Thanks for the info!!  I'm so happy for him!  Wonder when the change was made?

[lackcreativity]

4 hours ago, shmabbies said:

Super news!!  Thanks for the info!!  I'm so happy for him!  Wonder when the change was made?

Shmabbies, 

I am glad that others were here to answer your question while I was at work! I am surprised that you had one cruise without use of the Quiet Vox devices. I don't know what happened in your case, but we have had use of them on all our cruises, both river and ocean. We used them as recently as April this year.  

[shmabbies]

One more question for those who had Quiet Vox on Ocean - my memory is getting vaguer and vaguer about what things were like BC ( Before Covid) but I seem to remember the headsets/earphones being in the cabin on River but having to pick up the receiver thingie at the desk before each tour departure (I may be remembering a different cruise line).  Where did you find your "equipment" on Ocean?  It still seems so odd to hear that our Ocean had no Quiet Vox on tours, and, if I think about it, I don't remember seeing anyone else with headsets/earphones and that's why I must have assumed it was "normal."  I don't mean to beat this topic to death, but I can't tell you how excited we are to hear that going forward DH can look forward to this!

[UWDawg]

19 minutes ago, shmabbies said:

One more question for those who had Quiet Vox on Ocean - my memory is getting vaguer and vaguer about what things were like BC ( Before Covid) but I seem to remember the headsets/earphones being in the cabin on River but having to pick up the receiver thingie at the desk before each tour departure (I may be remembering a different cruise line).  Where did you find your "equipment" on Ocean?  It still seems so odd to hear that our Ocean had no Quiet Vox on tours, and, if I think about it, I don't remember seeing anyone else with headsets/earphones and that's why I must have assumed it was "normal."  I don't mean to beat this topic to death, but I can't tell you how excited we are to hear that going forward DH can look forward to this!

I was on the Viking Star for the 21/22 World Cruise.  QuietVox systems were located in each stateroom on the desk, where they could be charged nightly.  Each came with a new earphone which utilized as standard 3.5mm jack.  If either the headset or QV didn't work, you could get a replacement at the Explorer's Desk on deck 1.  At the start of each excursion the guide was supposed to check to make sure everyone had a functional QV that was tuned to the correct channel.  In most cases that channel matched the tour bus number... the guide was supposed to set his/her transmitter to the match the bus number.  If you forgot your QV or if it wasn't working, the guide could then get one from the Viking coordinators at dockside, so you didn't have to rush back to your cabin and delay the excursion.  Because it utilized a standard 3.5mm jack, I was able to use my iPhone earbuds instead of the supplied "headset."  That allowed me to listen through both ears and the quality of sound was much better than the standard supplied headset.  These QV systems worked great and the battery in a fully-charged system would last the duration of the excursion.  These QV systems seemed to be an upgrade from those we had when we cruised the Danube with Viking in 2018. 

[vegasjandk]

We are new to Viking Ocean, having done one river cruise a few years ago.  My question is related shore excursions.  We are booked on the Classic Panama Canal for December.  In looking at the shore excursions, I am a bit concerned about the suitability for DH, who has mobility issues.  He walks with a cane and may have trouble keeping up with a group.  Getting into and out of a small boat for some of the excursions might also be a challenge.  We'd be happy to DIY at some ports, esp. with others on our cruise.  As of now, there is little to no activity on our roll call.  We've been looking forward to cruising with Viking Ocean, but maybe this is not the best itinerary for us?  Payment is due in days, so any advice would be appreciated. 

[Fieldofdreams]

On 8/26/2022 at 5:31 PM, DrKoob said:

I agree with all the folks who have posted. Just wanted to say that we have used ToursByLocals and they are outstanding. We got two great guides in Iceland. Another superb one in Amsterdam. We are on Viking Sky next week from Athens to Barcelona and we are using TBL the day before the cruise in Athens and the day after in Barcelona.

 

Jim

Jim - Thanks this is very helpful. We have a few Viking cruises coming up and will look at ToursByLocals. Always nice when a seasoned traveler passes along info like this.

 

Don

[dizzlepop]

On 8/26/2022 at 3:31 PM, DrKoob said:

I agree with all the folks who have posted. Just wanted to say that we have used ToursByLocals and they are outstanding. We got two great guides in Iceland. Another superb one in Amsterdam. We are on Viking Sky next week from Athens to Barcelona and we are using TBL the day before the cruise in Athens and the day after in Barcelona.

 

Jim

Thank you for this! Will be checking TBL for our upcoming cruise (on Jupiter), same itinerary.