No activity on March 20, 2023 Northern lights on Venus

[oskidunker]

There are almost 200 posts on other Northern Lights dates . I wonder if this cruise is not fully booked.any thoughts?  Also any ship tours you did not like ifbyou have done this cruise? 

[johneb2]

Maybe, they are not doing it on this date as it was a memorable date on that day in 2019, as those of us who were on the Viking Sky can attest to.  JohnEB

[Frenchberet]

4 hours ago, oskidunker said:

There are almost 200 posts on other Northern Lights dates . I wonder if this cruise is not fully booked.any thoughts?  Also any ship tours you did not like ifbyou have done this cruise? 

 
I checked your date on the Viking site and it looks like it’s selling pretty well.  Unfortunately, many of your fellow cruisers aren’t aware of Cruise Critic and the helpful info they could learn and share here!  
 

We did the Northern Lights cruise in February 2019.  All of the included excursions were fine.  Some of the optional excursions were great, others we wouldn’t want to repeat.  Great - Lifestyle of the Sami, Arctic Landscape by Husky, and Griegs House & Recital.  Ok - Pulpit Rock (we got a nice photo with a Viking).  Not great - Experience the Arctic Circle, Sommaroy Island, and Searching for the Aurora Borealis (big bus, too many people, not enough time).
 

Sadly, we did not see the Northern Lights.  If we were to do this cruise again, we’d book some private mini van tours to chase the lights.  Good luck to you!  

[oskidunker]

Thanks

[johneb2]

We did get to see the Northern Lights on the March 2019 cruise but you need to be aware geographic location can make a significant difference as the weather changes within a few miles of each other at times.  We utilized the Viking provided excursions on the cruise and were generally satisfied, but we know some pax opted for a private "husky" adventure and raved about it.  Sorry, I don't have all the details on it.  Remember to be dressed appropriately as it will be cold, and you will be outside for a substantial amount of time.  Despite our unfortunate incident, we enjoyed the cruise and would still recommend it!   JohnEB

[Haworth]

I echo Johneb2's sentiments, we booked a private tour in Alta with Nord Ekspedisjon, they were excellent and we got several good sightings, they picked us up and dropped us back at the ship.

Its a great trip, if you go to Stavanger have a look at the oil and gas museum, its excellent, we were planning to visit again but never got that far

[SoBaycruiser]

14 hours ago, Haworth said:

I echo Johneb2's sentiments, we booked a private tour in Alta with Nord Ekspedisjon, they were excellent and we got several good sightings, they picked us up and dropped us back at the ship.

Its a great trip, if you go to Stavanger have a look at the oil and gas museum, its excellent, we were planning to visit again but never got that far

May I ask a delicate question?  I understand the private chasing tours usually have no toilet facilities.  Do people just find a tree to step behind.. and what do women do?    Finally, do the people have to stand around when not traveling around in a vehicle?  Is there any place to sit?  We have very small foldable camp seats that fit in a backpack.  We’d rather not bring them, but our back starts talking to us after we’ve been standing for a while.

[Haworth]

As I recall no facilities, we planned accordingly and minimised fluid intake before going out, it would be very cold to “ go behind a tree” 

We were in a mini bus and they offered hot chocolate etc at various intervals and you had the opportunity to sit in the bus and relax/warm up.

It’s all fairly well organised, towards the end of the evening more people were sat in the bus, we were still outside and actually saw the lights forming, it was magical 

[oskidunker]

22 hours ago, Haworth said:

I echo Johneb2's sentiments, we booked a private tour in Alta with Nord Ekspedisjon, they were excellent and we got several good sightings, they picked us up and dropped us back at the ship.

Its a great trip, if you go to Stavanger have a look at the oil and gas museum, its excellent, we were planning to visit again but never got that far

$858.00 for a four hour excursion for one person? Is that right?  Seems double what the ship is charging, if I did the conversion right. 

[Haworth]

1 hour ago, oskidunker said:

$858.00 for a four hour excursion for one person? Is that right?  Seems double what the ship is charging, if I did the conversion right. 

I would have thought around £150.00 or around $180.00 per person would be right, based on 1750 Krone 

[oskidunker]

Being quoted 8,500 k

[Moonlion]

7 minutes ago, oskidunker said:

Being quoted 8,500 k

Is that for 1 person or the entire tour (for example, 8,500 k for up to 6 to 8 people)?  I'm looking at several private tours for our upcoming BIE cruise and many private operators charge by the entire tour. 

[The Other Tom]

2 hours ago, oskidunker said:

Being quoted 8,500 k

More than likely that's for the whole bus.  

[Haworth]

34 minutes ago, The Other Tom said:

More than likely that's for the whole bus.  

Agree

[oskidunker]

Some excursions already sold out. I cant book until next Thursday. Will be interesting to see what we can get from Viking. 

[johneb2]

On 1/15/2023 at 2:39 AM, SoBaycruiser said:

May I ask a delicate question?  I understand the private chasing tours usually have no toilet facilities.  Do people just find a tree to step behind.. and what do women do?    Finally, do the people have to stand around when not traveling around in a vehicle?  Is there any place to sit?  We have very small foldable camp seats that fit in a backpack.  We’d rather not bring them, but our back starts talking to us after we’ve been standing for a while.

As I mentioned we took the Viking excursions, and they all had facilities available, or made stops for them.  The pax I spoke with for the private excursions indicated they also had facilities made available to them.  I would suggest asking when you are making reservations.   JohnEB

[SoBaycruiser]

1 hour ago, johneb2 said:

As I mentioned we took the Viking excursions, and they all had facilities available, or made stops for them.  The pax I spoke with for the private excursions indicated they also had facilities made available to them.  I would suggest asking when you are making reservations.   JohnEB

I did ask a couple private ones and they said depending where they went to find the lights, there may or may not be facilities.

[The Other Tom]

On 1/15/2023 at 2:39 AM, SoBaycruiser said:

May I ask a delicate question?  I understand the private chasing tours usually have no toilet facilities.  Do people just find a tree to step behind.. and what do women do?    Finally, do the people have to stand around when not traveling around in a vehicle?  Is there any place to sit?  We have very small foldable camp seats that fit in a backpack.  We’d rather not bring them, but our back starts talking to us after we’ve been standing for a while.

This company advertises they have restrooms on board their bus.

Northern Lights Big Bus Chase | Chasing Lights