Are Additional Excursions (not just capacity) Added on Board? (the question is probably not what you think)

[shmabbies]

 

Last year, we booked the “Italy, the Adriatic, and Greece” itinerary as a two week cruise.  My fault – I never checked to see if this was in fact a true two week itinerary or two shorter itineraries cobbled together.  At the time, I actually did not know that Viking did this.  I will never make this mistake again. 

 

The cruise was marketed as having three days in Venice mid-cruise.  Arrival at 8am on Venice Day One, full day on Venice Day Two, and departure at 2pm on Venice Day Three.  I knew well in advance about the “Venice” issues and that we would not be docking in Venice – I didn’t care.  Our port just recently changed on MVJ to Chioggia.  Personally I was looking forward to Chioggia…

 

…Until I found out that Venice Day Two must be the “transition” day between the two cruises – and NO EXCURSIONS are offered.  I’m assuming this also means no shuttle even from ship into Chioggia?  I think this is entirely unfair to those who booked the two week version.  Bad enough when other passengers likely thought we were docked in “real” Venice the entire time, because that was the representation – but now that we will be docked in the more remote Chioggia, it’s now incumbent upon us to “get out of Dodge” on our own.  As of now, even Viator is offering NOTHING out of, or in, Chioggia that day.  I believe we are truly pretty much captive unless we want to DIY.

 

This leads me to the question – does Viking ever offer tours on board that were not previously offered on MVJ?  Or add tours to MVJ between excursion booking time and sail date?  This would, as my title implies, not just be adding capacity – it would be adding actual excursions to a previously excursion-less day.

 

Although, it’s gotten worse, because I drafted and saved the above two days ago and since then, our excursions have become available to book.  Included “Venice on Your Own,” on the only day it is available – Venice Day One – “sold” out immediately.  I’m going to rely on previous posters who have said that additional capacity on that will probably become available – but at this point, with three days “in” Venice advertised in the cruise marketing, DH and I are not actually going to “be in Venice” at all!  Yes, I did the cart checkout item by item as recommended, but frankly I did not think “Venice on Your Own” would be one that would have limited capacity, so I opted to check out a few other tours first.  Second mistake!

 

Thoughts anyone?  And thank you.

[cruisinchrissy]

In 2021 we had turn around day in Malta when we did two back to back cruises.  There was no excursion offered on MVJ but a couple of days before the turn around day Viking offered us a tour FOC which was excellent . No idea whether it’s different during Covid times as it was then and we were not allowed to do independent exploration .

[miami mama]

Defnitely keep checking back to see if something opens up. However, I would also write to tellus and voice your concerns. The change for most of Viking's "Venice" crusies to the Chioggia port was something I'm sure most people didn't expect when they reserved their cruises. Providing additional buses for "Venice on Your Own" would seem to be an easy and necessary fix. 

[lackcreativity]

We did the two back to backs from Barcelona to Venice back in April of this year. Rome was the turn around port ( well, actually Civitevecchia) and there were no excursions offered on MVJ. While on board, those of us continuing on were offered a panoramic tour of Rome, with a photo stop midway and an hour plus on our own at the Vatican. It was Easter Saturday, and that was an interesting time to wander around there. Since we had been to Rome before and it was a rather relaxing excursion between two tiring days, we were fine with that. If I had never been to Rome before I would have been disappointed. I cannot remember if they offered other choices for that day. 

 

On that same cruise, our intended port for Venice was Fusina, but Viking was notified midcruise that Fusina was closing for an environmental study. We were diverted to Ravenna, some distance further. Viking scrambled to arrange an excursion in Ravenna as well as revamping the ones to Venice. Having visited Venice several times before, we took the Ravenna option and were very happy to do so. First time visitors to Venice may have been disappointed by the shortened time there. 

[Peregrina651]

5 hours ago, shmabbies said:

…Until I found out that Venice Day Two must be the “transition” day between the two cruises – and NO EXCURSIONS are offered.  I’m assuming this also means no shuttle even from ship into Chioggia?

 

Ah, yes! Another one of Viking's well kept secrets. Why can't they just explain it on the invoice since this is how it works most of the time???

 

I thought no excursions as well, until we actually did one of these butterfly itineraries. We had our plans all made for changeover day -- DIY on local public transit to see the Etruscan necropolis (we were in Civitavecchia) -- and we were ready to go.

 

Once we boarded, we were handed a list of tours that were being offered only for continuing passengers so that we could make plans and book an excursion.  They don't put them on MVJ for booking because they are available only to continuing pax.

 

There is no need to keep watching MVJ as these excursions will never appear there and no need to contact "TellUs" because the shorex department is already working on it.

 

5 hours ago, shmabbies said:

Included “Venice on Your Own,” on the only day it is available – Venice Day One – “sold” out immediately. 

 

Definitely take a few minutes to contact Viking on this one, if nothing else, than to let off a bit of steam. While I am pretty sure that capacity will be added and available to book on board when you arrive, since the OYOs are very popular, I am not not going to tell you not to worry. Contact Viking and get answers from them directly. It might even make you feel better. 🥴

Edited January 3, 2023 by Peregrina651

[Jim Avery]

Short version, yes Viking does add/change excursions.  We once missed a great overland 4 day in Egypt because it wasn't offered when we booked excursions and we failed to go back and check.  Now we check all the time even if fully booked with excursions.  Viking does many things differently from other lines.  Many of the differences are what we all love about Viking.  Other differences are major frustrating.  Win some, lose some.  The point.....   Always keep checking and asking.🍹

[kctwinmommy]

Glad I read this as I'm still learning how Viking does their thing. We're deciding between a few Med cruises, and hopefully going to take the plunge and do the 22 day Athens to Barcelona one. But this is good to know. From what I'm reading, it's possible people do this 22 day cruise in separate parts, is that correct? So we may have the same kind of thing happen.

[Peregrina651]

4 minutes ago, kctwinmommy said:

Glad I read this as I'm still learning how Viking does their thing. We're deciding between a few Med cruises, and hopefully going to take the plunge and do the 22 day Athens to Barcelona one. But this is good to know. From what I'm reading, it's possible people do this 22 day cruise in separate parts, is that correct? So we may have the same kind of thing happen.

 

If you are doing the Med/Adriatic Itinerary, then your changeover days will be at Rome (which is an hour inland from the cruise port at Civitavecchia) and Venice (where Viking is expecting to dock in Chiaggo).

 

There are multiple named itineraries that will all be on board at the same time you are -- including ones that will be continuing on to Istanbul. Each named itinerary will probably have a separate roll call and since you will be on the ship at that time, you should at least follow all of the roll calls (because you never know where you will find helpful information and because those folks will also be on the ship with you). If Cruise Critic starts sponsoring "Meet & Mingles" again, there will be one for each segment and you are eligible to attend them all, if that is something you are interested in doing.

 

It seems a bit crazy with folks coming and going every week but in the end, everyone benefits, guests and cruise line. 

[longterm]

On 1/2/2023 at 3:00 PM, shmabbies said:

This leads me to the question – does Viking ever offer tours on board that were not previously offered on MVJ?  Or add tours to MVJ between excursion booking time and sail date?  This would, as my title implies, not just be adding capacity – it would be adding actual excursions to a previously excursion-less day.

We did that same Italy, Adriatic & Greece in March 2022; Italy at that time had a rule in place that dictated that cruise passengers couldn't venture out in Italian cities without tour guides, so while we were on the Viking cruise, we only did excursions with Viking guides.

 

However, we arrived in Rome 5 days early and hired local guides, walked on our own wherever we wanted, and that was great...

 

In Venice, we docked at Fusina the 1st night, and had an excursion that day. The next day was a Sunday, and we had booked an excursion that included St. Mark's Square and the cathedral. Without letting us know, out excursion just disappeared, and when I asked about it, I was told that the church didn't allow tours on Sundays. Why then, I asked, did they offer it in the first place? This wasn't a new rule--apparently they've NEVER allowed cruise tours on Sundays.

 

On the 1st night there, they moved the ship to another dock, whose name I forget now (but it wasn't Choggia); it was a little closer to the cruise terminal and outside the chemical plant at Fusina. On the 2nd night, they moved us BACK to Fusina again. Apparently, and I may be wrong, we were the 1st Viking ship back into Venice after the pandemic.
 

So after I complained, as did the dozen others who were on the same tour, they DID add another tour for us, a private tour of the Doge's Palace. We were picked up at the cruise terminal in private water taxis and taken to St. Mark's, where we did our private tour; afterwards, our guide took us on a walking tour of the city for a couple of hours, even granting us about 45 minutes on our own to walk around a bit. After that, we were returned to the cruise terminal in private water taxis again--it was a really nice way to fix a big mistake on someone's part.

 

A major mistake was fixed by Viking, and we ended up with a wonderful day. 

On the 3rd day, which was departure day, we didn't have an excursion, since I think we departed around 2pm or so (but I forget now). 

 

I had no problems with the trip essentially being 2 separate smaller tours combined into one; in fact, had we known, we might have added the previous leg, which left from Barcelona and went to Rome (but that wouldn't have allowed us 5 days in Rome, which was really great).

 

 

Edited January 3, 2023 by longterm

[Fieldofdreams]

4 hours ago, longterm said:

We did that same Italy, Adriatic & Greece in March 2022; Italy at that time had a rule in place that dictated that cruise passengers couldn't venture out in Italian cities without tour guides, so while we were on the Viking cruise, we only did excursions with Viking guides.

 

However, we arrived in Rome 5 days early and hired local guides, walked on our own wherever we wanted, and that was great...

 

In Venice, we docked at Fusina the 1st night, and had an excursion that day. The next day was a Sunday, and we had booked an excursion that included St. Mark's Square and the cathedral. Without letting us know, out excursion just disappeared, and when I asked about it, I was told that the church didn't allow tours on Sundays. Why then, I asked, did they offer it in the first place? This wasn't a new rule--apparently they've NEVER allowed cruise tours on Sundays.

 

On the 1st night there, they moved the ship to another dock, whose name I forget now (but it wasn't Choggia); it was a little closer to the cruise terminal and outside the chemical plant at Fusina. On the 2nd night, they moved us BACK to Fusina again. Apparently, and I may be wrong, we were the 1st Viking ship back into Venice after the pandemic.
 

So after I complained, as did the dozen others who were on the same tour, they DID add another tour for us, a private tour of the Doge's Palace. We were picked up at the cruise terminal in private water taxis and taken to St. Mark's, where we did our private tour; afterwards, our guide took us on a walking tour of the city for a couple of hours, even granting us about 45 minutes on our own to walk around a bit. After that, we were returned to the cruise terminal in private water taxis again--it was a really nice way to fix a big mistake on someone's part.

 

A major mistake was fixed by Viking, and we ended up with a wonderful day. 

On the 3rd day, which was departure day, we didn't have an excursion, since I think we departed around 2pm or so (but I forget now). 

 

I had no problems with the trip essentially being 2 separate smaller tours combined into one; in fact, had we known, we might have added the previous leg, which left from Barcelona and went to Rome (but that wouldn't have allowed us 5 days in Rome, which was really great).

 

 

First, thanks to everyone for sharing... very helpful. We are on the Italy, Adriatic and Greece tour September 2023 so interesting to hear specifics from others. So with the stop in Venice for two nights, do I understand that the ship will move from one port to another to take on passengers only doing the second half of the cruise. Also, right now the ship is scheduled to port at the new industrial port relatively close to Venice but still a vaporetto ride away, based upon others experiences and what I am reading is that likely to change? Also, is Fusina the original port in Venice? And is the rule that dictates that cruise passengers cannot venture out in Italian cities without tour guides still in place? Just trying to understand the lay of the land so any info helps. Still trying to navigate our Austrailia/New Zealand trip this February with all of the discussion regarding biofouling Viking Orion and other ships. Thanks!

[Peregrina651]

1 hour ago, Fieldofdreams said:

So with the stop in Venice for two nights, do I understand that the ship will move from one port to another to take on passengers only doing the second half of the cruise.

 

 One person described what he went through on one of the early calls at Venice over 8 months ago.  It was an exception not the rule and much has changed/improved(?) over the succeeding 8 months. What things will be like in another 8 months cannot be predicted.

 

 

 

2 hours ago, Fieldofdreams said:

Also, right now the ship is scheduled to port at the new industrial port relatively close to Venice but still a vaporetto ride away, based upon others experiences and what I am reading is that likely to change?

 

The safest bet at this point in time is to assume that everything is subject change. The industry continues to reel in the post pandemic and the road ahead continues to be a rough one -- not just where we dock but every aspect of pleasure cruising. It is going to be a while until things return to what was considered normal three years ago.

 

2 hours ago, Fieldofdreams said:

Also, is Fusina the original port in Venice?

 

Depends on what you mean by original. Prior to the pandemic and before Venice decided to ban cruise ships from its canals, Viking docked at Stazione Marittima, not far from the Venice train station if you look on a map. Now cruise ships must dock at Fusina, Marghera or Choggia. Docking is determined by the local harbor master and is subject to change.

 

2 hours ago, Fieldofdreams said:

And is the rule that dictates that cruise passengers cannot venture out in Italian cities without tour guides still in place?

 

No, this was dropped ages ago along with most of the other Covid motivated restrictions on travel in the EU countries you will be visiting.

For more information see: https://docs.vikingcruises.com/pdf/14-PreCruiseRequirement-All-US_CAN_UK_AU_NZ.pdf

 

 

[longterm]

10 hours ago, Fieldofdreams said:

So with the stop in Venice for two nights, do I understand that the ship will move from one port to another to take on passengers only doing the second half of the cruise.

I don't think so; in our case, there was another ship that had to dock at Fusina, so they moved us, and then when the ship left, they put us back there. Fusina is a chemical plant; we were given handouts telling us what to do in the case of an alarm that signaled a chemical leak (yikes); the views were... less than stellar...

 

My understanding is that vaporettos aren't allowed to pick up passengers from Fusina, so we had to take a bus to the cruise terminal, from which we then went on our excursions.

 

Lastly, the restriction on passengers going out on their own was lifted sometime after March (May perhaps), so you can go out on your own into the cities. It was really only restricting in Venice; we were in Rome on our own for 5 days, so we did what we wanted there, and then in other cities we really didn't have that much time left after excursions anyway--except for Venice, where we wish we'd had more time.

 

[Fieldofdreams]

9 hours ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

 One person described what he went through on one of the early calls at Venice over 8 months ago.  It was an exception not the rule and much has changed/improved(?) over the succeeding 8 months. What things will be like in another 8 months cannot be predicted.

 

 

 

 

The safest bet at this point in time is to assume that everything is subject change. The industry continues to reel in the post pandemic and the road ahead continues to be a rough one -- not just where we dock but every aspect of pleasure cruising. It is going to be a while until things return to what was considered normal three years ago.

 

 

Depends on what you mean by original. Prior to the pandemic and before Venice decided to ban cruise ships from its canals, Viking docked at Stazione Marittima, not far from the Venice train station if you look on a map. Now cruise ships must dock at Fusina, Marghera or Choggia. Docking is determined by the local harbor master and is subject to change.

 

 

No, this was dropped ages ago along with most of the other Covid motivated restrictions on travel in the EU countries you will be visiting.

For more information see: https://docs.vikingcruises.com/pdf/14-PreCruiseRequirement-All-US_CAN_UK_AU_NZ.pdf

 

 

Thanks Peregrina for addressing each of the questions, much appreciated

[Fieldofdreams]

1 hour ago, longterm said:

I don't think so; in our case, there was another ship that had to dock at Fusina, so they moved us, and then when the ship left, they put us back there. Fusina is a chemical plant; we were given handouts telling us what to do in the case of an alarm that signaled a chemical leak (yikes); the views were... less than stellar...

 

My understanding is that vaporettos aren't allowed to pick up passengers from Fusina, so we had to take a bus to the cruise terminal, from which we then went on our excursions.

 

Lastly, the restriction on passengers going out on their own was lifted sometime after March (May perhaps), so you can go out on your own into the cities. It was really only restricting in Venice; we were in Rome on our own for 5 days, so we did what we wanted there, and then in other cities we really didn't have that much time left after excursions anyway--except for Venice, where we wish we'd had more time.

 

Thank you Longterm for your feedback. Flexibility seems to be the key adage today.

[Peregrina651]

20 minutes ago, Fieldofdreams said:

Flexibility seems to be the key adage today.

 

That and "Hope for the best but plan for the worst."  😉

[shmabbies]

Thank you, thank you, thank you - you have all offered great insights and tips about how to handle this.  And it is SO reassuring to know that possibly Viking already has it on their radar to add some excursions on the changeover day.  I am definitely going to contact Viking on both issues.  BTW,  personally I really don't mind cruise combinations; I myself have done B2B cruises before, BUT I booked them that way.  What I don't like is not knowing about it AND having it influence excursion offerings.   I will definitely be more cognizant in the future.  Based on what you have all said, I'm confident this is all going to work out fine.  Thank you again and I'm glad others learned from this as well.

 

 

[kctwinmommy]

2 minutes ago, shmabbies said:

Thank you, thank you, thank you - you have all offered great insights and tips about how to handle this.  And it is SO reassuring to know that possibly Viking already has it on their radar to add some excursions on the changeover day.  I am definitely going to contact Viking on both issues.  BTW,  personally I really don't mind cruise combinations; I myself have done B2B cruises before, BUT I booked them that way.  What I don't like is not knowing about it AND having it influence excursion offerings.   I will definitely be more cognizant in the future.  Based on what you have all said, I'm confident this is all going to work out fine.  Thank you again and I'm glad others learned from this as well.

 

 

I'm glad I read this post as well. We're brand new to Viking, haven't booked it yet, still deciding, but this helps. Knowing that if we do the shorter cruise, it may have changes, is good to know. I had no idea that it was "legs" of a larger cruise, leading to these changes. We've mostly done the Caribbean, which is a standard cruise, no changes like this. I want to make sure we make our decision on which cruise with the best info. And all of this is pushing me more towards doing the 22 day one then. I'm thinking it would start in Istanbul, but then we'd get on in Athens, so we'd be on for most of it. Still trying to research it all though, then we'll call Viking to talk more.

[Peregrina651]

24 minutes ago, kctwinmommy said:

Still trying to research it all though, then we'll call Viking to talk more.

 

I think you will find that you have learned more by talking to folks who have actually sailed with Viking than from the folks answering the phone. They will have their areas of expertise  but not necessarily the hands on experience.

 

If after you talk with Viking, you still have questions or you are confused, come back and ask. We are always happy to talk ship.

[kctwinmommy]

53 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

I think you will find that you have learned more by talking to folks who have actually sailed with Viking than from the folks answering the phone. They will have their areas of expertise  but not necessarily the hands on experience.

 

If after you talk with Viking, you still have questions or you are confused, come back and ask. We are always happy to talk ship.

Oh for sure! I just meant when it comes to booking our cruise. Making sure we just get all our ducks in a row to start the process. I'm definitely learning more from here. If we had a good TA, I'd even work with them on this trip. It's going to be the most expensive one we've ever done. Once we're booked, I do plan on posting more to make sure we're on track. And the good thing is my parents have also traveled Viking, so I can bounce things off them.

 

Also, is it true that they can get some sort of credit for their upcoming cruise if we mention them when we book?

[CDR2001]

Yes, you get $100pp discount, and your parents get $100pp referral voucher credit, which may be applied to a currently booked cruise, as long as it’s not paid in full. ( True from our experience.)  We’ve received the credit often for referring friends. 

[longterm]

6 hours ago, kctwinmommy said:

I'm glad I read this post as well. We're brand new to Viking, haven't booked it yet, still deciding, but this helps. Knowing that if we do the shorter cruise, it may have changes, is good to know. I had no idea that it was "legs" of a larger cruise, leading to these changes. We've mostly done the Caribbean, which is a standard cruise, no changes like this. I want to make sure we make our decision on which cruise with the best info. And all of this is pushing me more towards doing the 22 day one then. I'm thinking it would start in Istanbul, but then we'd get on in Athens, so we'd be on for most of it. Still trying to research it all though, then we'll call Viking to talk more.

In the Med, Viking has 4 or 5 week-long cruises, and then they combine those in several combinations to make longer ones. For example, you can do Barcelona->Rome, or Barcelona->Rome->Venice, or Barcelona->Rome->Venice->Athens, or Barcelona->Rome->Venice->Athens->Istanbul, for 6 different journeys. In addition, there are other combos that start in Rome, so you can do just Rome->Venice, or Rome->Venice->Athens, for example. It gives Viking the ability to offer about a dozen different cruises, all using about 5 or 6 separate legs.

We started in Rome, so there were passengers who were already onboard from Barcelona; I seem to recall that excursions were available for them, but not for us since we were just getting on board. We both loved our cruise--so much that we'd probably do it again, maybe adding either more on the front or back end.

 

 

 

 

Edited January 5, 2023 by longterm

[flare3192]

thank you for this  we are also new to viking and did not realize when we booked it that it is three different segments and people will come on or leave in Athens and Venice. We have arranged a driver for Athens for the two days so not a big issue but the amount of time in Venice is something I do not look forward to. It is a ot of time and it does not appear you can book alternate excursions as the docking information is up in the air. Chiggia has no companies dong excursions. Someone has told me to plan a down day so that will probably be here. Lets hope Viking does something for people on for the long haus

[Fieldofdreams]

9 hours ago, longterm said:

I don't think so; in our case, there was another ship that had to dock at Fusina, so they moved us, and then when the ship left, they put us back there. Fusina is a chemical plant; we were given handouts telling us what to do in the case of an alarm that signaled a chemical leak (yikes); the views were... less than stellar...

 

My understanding is that vaporettos aren't allowed to pick up passengers from Fusina, so we had to take a bus to the cruise terminal, from which we then went on our excursions.

 

Lastly, the restriction on passengers going out on their own was lifted sometime after March (May perhaps), so you can go out on your own into the cities. It was really only restricting in Venice; we were in Rome on our own for 5 days, so we did what we wanted there, and then in other cities we really didn't have that much time left after excursions anyway--except for Venice, where we wish we'd had more time.

 

Thank you for the clarification

[bookbabe]

12 minutes ago, longterm said:

In the Med, Viking has 4 or 5 week-long cruises, and then they combine those in several combinations to make longer ones. For example, you can do Barcelona->Rome, or Barcelona->Rome->Venice, or Barcelona->Rome->Venice->Athens, or Barcelona->Rome->Venice->Athens->Istanbul, for 6 different journeys. In addition, there are other combos that start in Rome, so you can do just Rome->Venice, or Rome->Venice->Athens, for example. It gives Viking the ability to offer about a dozen different cruises, all using about 5 or 6 separate legs.

Thanks for spelling out the combos.  We’re booked on a B2B in March 2024, Istanbul to Barcelona, followed by Barcelona to Bergen.  It’s reassuring to know which days are the changeover ones for the first portion so I don’t worry about advance planning the excursions those days.  I’ll wait and see what we get offered once on board.  Thanks to everyone for all the info on this thread.  Very helpful.

[Peregrina651]

5 hours ago, kctwinmommy said:

Also, is it true that they can get some sort of credit for their upcoming cruise if we mention them when we book?

 

YES!!! We used to have guest numbers that we could give at time of booking. Hopefully it is sufficient to give a name and address. BUT it must be added at the time of booking. Just tell the agent that you want to use your parents as a referral and ask them what information they need.

 

If they say guest number, ask them where your parents should go to find out what their guest number is. I just looked at a current invoice and didn't see it on there.