Cruise lines similar to Viking but less expensive

[njhorseman]

1 hour ago, Aquahound said:

 

Yeah, it took a little bit to find it.  Here's a link to their Celebrity description:

 

Celebrity Cruise Line | CLIA (cruising.org)

That reads like was written Celebrity's PR staff or advertising agency. I don't believe for one minute that it's an independent evaluation written by CLIA. 

 

Keep in mind that CLIA is a trade association whose sole purpose is to serve the needs of its member cruise lines, and its member cruise lines only, not an independent cruise industry rating organization.

Edited November 7, 2022 by njhorseman

[ilikeanswers]

6 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Again, your (and my) opinion pale in comparison to professional critiques. 

 

I personally have always found eating food that I enjoy to be a much more pleasurable experience than eating food that others may like but I am not as fond of. Call me crazy if you like but if the choice is there I would always chose my own taste buds preferences over another person's opinion😜. 

Edited November 7, 2022 by ilikeanswers

[Flatbush Flyer]

2 minutes ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

I personally have always found eating food that I enjoy to be a much more pleasurable experience than eating food that others may like but I am not as fond of. This may sound crazy to you but if the choice is there I would always chose my own taste buds preferences over another person's opinion😜. 

Of course, personal taste should be a major consideration in choosing a dining venue. But, the value of considering the opinions of well-respected food critics/publications and organizations lies in the breadth and depth of their experience, expertise and recommendations when you’re investigating dining opportunities in an unfamiliar location or from among an extensive list of possibilities beyond your capacity to try them all.

[Mary229]

7 hours ago, LHT28 said:

What is heavy food??

 

I tend to eat broiled/grilled fish and occasionally beef and chicken. I eat soups, salads, fruit desserts. Crème brûlée is my one exception and what I was served on Oceania was not very good.  I rarely eat pastas, pastries, heavy sauces, potato’s, breads. I do agree with @Charles4515that the HAL coffee is awful.  

Edited November 7, 2022 by Mary229

[LHT28]

3 hours ago, Mary229 said:

I tend to eat broiled/grilled fish and occasionally beef and chicken. I eat soups, salads, fruit desserts. Crème brûlée is my one exception and what I was served on Oceania was not very good. 

that is  interesting

Usually  the  fish on O is good 

I usually get the Always Available  salmon in the  GDR  but  grilled not poached

 

HAL  on our  last 2 cruises had a lot of pasta  dishes on offer

The one good thing on HAL  was the food arrived HOT to the table

Yes coffee on the main stream lines is an acquired taste  🙂

 

Good thing  there is a cruise line to suit everyone ..you just need to find the one that works for you

[Hlitner]

4 hours ago, Mary229 said:

I tend to eat broiled/grilled fish and occasionally beef and chicken. I eat soups, salads, fruit desserts. Crème brûlée is my one exception and what I was served on Oceania was not very good.  I rarely eat pastas, pastries, heavy sauces, potato’s, breads. I do agree with @Charles4515that the HAL coffee is awful.  

Now you are speaking my language when you talk about awful coffee.  I like a full flavored stronger coffee and, most mornings at home, I start off with a large mug of a triple shot of expresso turned into cappuccino.  Yes, the coffee on HAL is truly awful (like flavored dish water) which always drove me to Explorations for something better.  But it is not just on HAL as the coffee is awful on most cruise lines.  There are a few exceptions such as on Seabourn where one can request a "French Press" of coffee (often down in their Colonnade lido) which is far superior than the normal coffee.  MSC actually has pretty good coffee in their Yacht Club restaurant (we have never dined in their regular MDRs) but this is not surprising when one considers that MSC serves many European customers (even with their Caribbean cruises) who generally prefer a stronger full flavored brew.

 

The worst coffee I have ever had (EVER) was when Princess used some kind of strange coffee syrup to fuel their huge Lido coffee urns.  That stuff was truly gross!  Eventually, Princess moved to better machines that are fueled by real coffee grounds.  But Princess has always made a big deal out of the fact that the coffee at their International Cafe (open 24/7) is "small batch" and among the best coffee at sea.  But this coffee does cost extra unless one has a coffee card or drink package.

 

Hank

[Mary229]

@HlitnerI am not known for buying beverages but the exception is my morning Americano with a double shot of espresso, black as God meant it to be enjoyed.  🙂

Edited November 7, 2022 by Mary229

[Hlitner]

10 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

@HlitnerI am not known for buying beverages but the exception is my morning Americano with a double shot of espresso, black as God meant it to be enjoyed.  🙂

I learned to enjoy Americano when traveling in Italy.  My home machine does make that brew (and I only feed that machine with Lavazza beans) but a very strong cappucino is my current preference.  In a few months I might switch to Americano since variety is fun, be it with coffee, cruise lines, or itineraries.

 

Hank

[LHT28]

19 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

I learned to enjoy Americano when traveling in Italy.  My home machine does make that brew (and I only feed that machine with Lavazza beans) but a very strong cappucino is my current preference.  In a few months I might switch to Americano since variety is fun, be it with coffee, cruise lines, or itineraries.

 

Hank

sorry  off topic  but

if you like  a bold coffee flavour

see if you can get  Kicking Horse  brand  where you live

 

[jsn55]

13 hours ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

I personally have always found eating food that I enjoy to be a much more pleasurable experience than eating food that others may like but I am not as fond of. Call me crazy if you like but if the choice is there I would always chose my own taste buds preferences over another person's opinion😜. 

This a great post!  How anyone can count on the opinions of organizations, famous chefs, or glossy travel magazine polls for dining information is beyond me.  None of the above have much relevance to real travellers.  

[Hlitner]

3 hours ago, LHT28 said:

sorry  off topic  but

if you like  a bold coffee flavour

see if you can get  Kicking Horse  brand  where you live

 

We do enjoy some Canadian wines but have honesty never thought about Canadian coffee other than the usual (and pretty decent) Tim Hortons.  You got my interest and did a little online research.  It does not look like anyone in our part of the East Coast, USA carries that brand.  But I also noticed it is possible to get it via mail order.  I actually buy Lavazza mail order (by the case) so perhaps someday in a weak moment (after a bottle of Canadian wine) ...... :).

 

Hank

[LHT28]

40 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

We do enjoy some Canadian wines but have honesty never thought about Canadian coffee other than the usual (and pretty decent) Tim Hortons.  You got my interest and did a little online research.  It does not look like anyone in our part of the East Coast, USA carries that brand.  But I also noticed it is possible to get it via mail order.  I actually buy Lavazza mail order (by the case) so perhaps someday in a weak moment (after a bottle of Canadian wine) ...... :).

 

Hank

You drink Canadian wine  🤔

 Maybe in your travels 

I see Whole foods & even Target carry it in some areas 

Near Hershey check Giant Foods

https://www.kickinghorsecoffee.com/where-to-buy?DEFCTRY=1&DEFLANG=1

 

Ok  back to the  topic  sorry to hijack

[Charles4515]

5 hours ago, LHT28 said:

sorry  off topic  but

if you like  a bold coffee flavour

see if you can get  Kicking Horse  brand  where you live

 

Is it grown in Canada? 

 

I only buy coffee beans that are freshly roasted which pretty much from local roasters. There are some roasters not local that mail out beans that arrive a few days after roasting. Does Kicking Horse do that? I will check the Target across the street for but if it has not been roasted in the last 7 days it will be a no go.

[LHT28]

58 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

Is it grown in Canada? 

 

 

Of course not

[Hlitner]

2 hours ago, LHT28 said:

You drink Canadian wine  🤔

 Maybe in your travels 

I see Whole foods & even Target carry it in some areas 

Near Hershey check Giant Foods

https://www.kickinghorsecoffee.com/where-to-buy?DEFCTRY=1&DEFLANG=1

 

Ok  back to the  topic  sorry to hijack

Ok, so here is the secret (shhh).  We actually like Canada, and until your government told us to stay out (due to COVID) we would take an annual trek to Niagara on the Lake for the purpose of spending several days wine tasting in the region.  We always have a lot of fun, and find some surprisingly decent wines in Ontario.  We usually go home with a couple of cases of mixed bottles and our border/customs folks just wave us through (we declare every bottle).  

 

Hank

Sorry to continue the hijacked topic 🙂

[Charles4515]

21 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

Of course not

That was a joke. 

[LHT28]

50 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Ok, so here is the secret (shhh).  We actually like Canada, and until your government told us to stay out (due to COVID) we would take an annual trek to Niagara on the Lake for the purpose of spending several days wine tasting in the region.  We always have a lot of fun, and find some surprisingly decent wines in Ontario.  We usually go home with a couple of cases of mixed bottles and our border/customs folks just wave us through (we declare every bottle).  

 

Hank

Sorry to continue the hijacked topic 🙂

A lot of Americans make fun of Canadian wines 

Glad you found some you like 

Venture  further into Ontario  & you might be surprised 😉

 

[CPT Trips]

Try an Obama coffee blend, Kenyan and Kona. 😉

[BruceMuzz]

I’m looking for a car like a Ferrari, but less expensive.

Maybe you can help me??

[cruisemom42]

On 11/5/2022 at 7:29 PM, Steerpike58 said:

n addition to stuff like coffee maker and mini bar (which we didn't use - much better coffee available in the cafes and restaurants!), 'DV' gets one reservation at each specialty restaurant (which we could have lived without), and you get earlier access to excursions (still sold out though!).

 

Just when I start thinking I want to save up my pennies and book with Viking, I get reminded of this silly game they play with the shore excursions. It just makes me not want to cruise with them -- if I don't use their excursions (and I've heard that many of the included ones are not all that great...) then I'll feel like I'm paying a premium for something I'm not using. If I do use them, I'll feel annoyed at being last in line and likely to not get whichever excursion(s) sound best.

 

[Essiesmom]

1 hour ago, BruceMuzz said:

I’m looking for a car like a Ferrari, but less expensive.

Maybe you can help me??

I don’t think they make Yugos any more. EM

[Heidi13]

On 11/6/2022 at 11:15 AM, pilot123texas said:

 we generally book either one of the Premium lines (we like HAL but we also do Celebrity and Princess) or one of the Luxury lines, like Regent.

 

Princess Cruise were a "Premium" cruise line back in the 70's & 80's, but have since been Carnivalised. Sorry, but Princess are no longer in the "Premium" category.

[Heidi13]

On 11/6/2022 at 2:55 PM, Steerpike58 said:

Funny you should mention this. I don't know how big our bathroom was on the Viking ship, in our 'DV' balcony cabin, but - it was a lovely, functional bathroom. It didn't have a tub (which we don't want or need) but the shower itself was as good as any shower I've ever used.

 

The shower had two controls - one for 'flow', and one for 'temperature'.  It's almost impossible to find that these days in any hotel - just about everywhere has gone with the horrible 'single control' design that basically doesn't let you control temperature independent of flow. And the shower head - it was absolutely perfect - no gimmicky 'massage' settings, just a perfect delivery of water! 

 

But having said that - I didn't like the room 'climate control' as much.  The climate control was one of those 'single dial' affairs, which means you can just 'increase' or 'decrease' temperature, which may or may not mean, AC vs heating.  Why I don't like this - at the end of the day, I like to basically turn the heating/cooling 'off' so as to avoid the noise of the blower while sleeping. If there's no 'off' setting, I will set mode to 'heat' and then select a low temperature on the assumption that the room will never drop that low (or, set 'cool' mode, and then a high temperature on the assumption that the room will never get that hot, if it's summer). But if you only have a single 'dial', and you adjust it up or down, the heating / cooling kicks in immediately, defeating the purpose. I ended up wearing earplugs anyway for other reasons, so this wasn't a major issue but I was disappointed by the thermostat! 

 

I wouldn't choose a cruise line based on these items, but they did influence the overall enjoyment!

 

 

On modern cruise ships you cannot turn off the supply air, as it is required to maintain a small positive pressure in the cabin. This is a safety feature to restrict the ingress of smoke into the cabin during a fire.

[jsn55]

I find this policy of Viking's regarding Shore Ex to be borderline offensive.  "Pay more and you get better choices"?  Just because they're too lazy to figure it all out and make sure there are enough Shore Ex to accommodate most of the pax?  UGH.  

[Heidi13]

50 minutes ago, jsn55 said:

I find this policy of Viking's regarding Shore Ex to be borderline offensive.  "Pay more and you get better choices"?  Just because they're too lazy to figure it all out and make sure there are enough Shore Ex to accommodate most of the pax?  UGH.  

 

I would be very interested in reading the facts to substantiate your statement that Viking don't provide sufficient shore-ex to accommodate most of the pax. Since you didn't specify online booking pre-cruise, which post-COVID has issues, what percentage of pax at the end of the cruise did not get the specific shore-ex that they wanted?

 

Having spent 4 months on a Viking ship the shore-ex staff were not "Lazy" as they worked numerous late nights, ensuring the pax got the tours they wanted, even with multiple port changes. We met and got to know many of the pax over the 4 months and am not aware of any that couldn't get a specific tour, as it was full. Might not get your preferred time, but you could book an alternative time.

 

On all of our Viking tours, none of the buses or vans was booked to capacity, as they tend to leave seats available for last minute changes. These seats are filled by the onboard shore-ex staff and are also available to any pax who requests to join a tour on the dock. When booking multiple tours on any day, the system requires a minimum gap between tours. Due to the required gap, we have been unable to book an afternoon tour after an AM tour, but on return to the dock, have asked the shore-ex staff if spots are available for the PM tour. Always managed to get a seat.

 

If I can join a tour on the dock on more than 1 occasion,  just prior to departure , how can Viking not be ensuring the supply is sufficient for most pax?

 

My other consideration is if the cruise line doesn't provide shore-ex, it is incentive for pax to book cheaper, smaller group and more customisable private tours.