New Med Sailings - Any Thoughts?

[gordylad]

3 hours ago, TourDeCruise said:

The new Med 2026 cruises are not supposed to be available for booking to those of us in the US until the week of November 5th. Is it the same for those of you in the UK too?

yes.......so far only received an email with upcoming sailings 

[MamaFej]

AmaWaterways also does cruises on the Nile. Those looking at Viking may wish to compare Ama's offerings. 

[TourDeCruise]

5 hours ago, gordylad said:

yes.......so far only received an email with upcoming sailings 

 

Does the email say when you will be able to book? The deployment schedule I saw said week of November 5th. We want to book one of the Best of Greece itineraries that has 3 new ports for us and a few more good repeat ports from which we can go to different archaeology sites from the ones we visited on previous cruises.

[NMTraveller]

5 hours ago, MamaFej said:

AmaWaterways also does cruises on the Nile. Those looking at Viking may wish to compare Ama's offerings. 

AmaWaterways is better IMHO ...

[Pushka]

2 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

AmaWaterways is better IMHO ...

Have you been on Viking Nile cruise to compare? Friends preferred Scenic.  

[gordylad]

6 hours ago, TourDeCruise said:

 

Does the email say when you will be able to book? The deployment schedule I saw said week of November 5th. We want to book one of the Best of Greece itineraries that has 3 new ports for us and a few more good repeat ports from which we can go to different archaeology sites from the ones we visited on previous cruises.

I only know from 5 Nov

[Jeremiah1212]

On 10/21/2024 at 5:35 PM, Lena11033 said:

I would be interested to see what xcel has.

 

 

Xcel will do shorter cruises from Barcelona and Athens.

 

7 night Spain: Barcelona; France: Provence (Marseille); Italy: Portofino; Italy: Florence/Pisa (La Spezia); Italy: Rome (Civitavecchia); Italy: Naples; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

7 night Spain: Barcelona; At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Greece: Santorini; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Athens (Piraeus)

 

7 night Greece: Athens (Piraeus); Greece: Santorini; Greece: Mykonos; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

7night Spain: Barcelona; France: Nice (Villefranche); Italy: Florence/Pisa (La Spezia); Italy: Santa Margherita; Italy: Rome (Civitavecchia); Italy: Naples; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

7 night Greece: Athens (Piraeus); Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Santorini; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); At Sea; Italy: Sicily (Messina); At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

8 night Spain: Barcelona; At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); Greece: Rhodes; Greece: Santorini; Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Athens (Piraeus)

 

8 night Greece: Athens (Piraeus); Greece: Santorini; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Rhodes; At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

11 night Barcelona; At Sea; Spain: Seville (Cadiz); Portugal: Lisbon; At Sea; Portugal: Madeira (Funchal); Portugal: Madeira (Funchal); At Sea; Morocco: Tangier; At Sea; Spain: Palma De

Mallorca; Spain: Barcelona

 

10 night Spain: Barcelona; At Sea; Italy: Naples; Italy: Sicily (Messina); At Sea; Italy: Rome (Civitavecchia); Italy: Portofino; Italy: Florence/Pisa (La Spezia); France: Nice (Villefranche); At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

16 night Spain: Barcelona; Spain: Cartagena; Spain: Malaga; United Kingdom: Gibraltar; Spain: Seville 16 (Cadiz); At Sea; Portugal: Madeira (Funchal); At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; Bermuda: Royal Naval Dockyard; At Sea; At Sea; Florida

[little britain]

So places on the map which tempt and tease are not ports.. Bar, Brindisi, Volos? 

[Jeremiah1212]

28 minutes ago, little britain said:

So places on the map which tempt and tease are not ports.. Bar, Brindisi, Volos? 

 

All three of those ports are available in 2025. Bar is available in 2026. 

[little britain]

26 minutes ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

All three of those ports are available in 2025. Bar is available in 2026. 

Thought this was meant to be about new ‘26 itineraries?

I have found Bar now but not Napflio. 

[Jeremiah1212]

12 minutes ago, little britain said:

Thought this was meant to be about new ‘26 itineraries?

I have found Bar now but not Napflio. 

 

I don't think the map graphic is updated to show only the ports in the most recent deployment. Napflio was bookable in 2023 and early 2024. 

[billc23]

18 hours ago, MamaFej said:

AmaWaterways also does cruises on the Nile. Those looking at Viking may wish to compare Ama's offerings. 

Uniworld too. Viking does have the largest advertising budget though if that is important. The problem with a river cruise is what the company does when there is an issue with the water levels. Viking often turns the trip into a partial bus trip. 

[mahdnc]

3 hours ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

Xcel will do shorter cruises from Barcelona and Athens.

 

7 night Spain: Barcelona; France: Provence (Marseille); Italy: Portofino; Italy: Florence/Pisa (La Spezia); Italy: Rome (Civitavecchia); Italy: Naples; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

7 night Spain: Barcelona; At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Greece: Santorini; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Athens (Piraeus)

 

7 night Greece: Athens (Piraeus); Greece: Santorini; Greece: Mykonos; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

7night Spain: Barcelona; France: Nice (Villefranche); Italy: Florence/Pisa (La Spezia); Italy: Santa Margherita; Italy: Rome (Civitavecchia); Italy: Naples; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

7 night Greece: Athens (Piraeus); Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Santorini; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); At Sea; Italy: Sicily (Messina); At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

8 night Spain: Barcelona; At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); Greece: Rhodes; Greece: Santorini; Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Athens (Piraeus)

 

8 night Greece: Athens (Piraeus); Greece: Santorini; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Rhodes; At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

11 night Barcelona; At Sea; Spain: Seville (Cadiz); Portugal: Lisbon; At Sea; Portugal: Madeira (Funchal); Portugal: Madeira (Funchal); At Sea; Morocco: Tangier; At Sea; Spain: Palma De

Mallorca; Spain: Barcelona

 

10 night Spain: Barcelona; At Sea; Italy: Naples; Italy: Sicily (Messina); At Sea; Italy: Rome (Civitavecchia); Italy: Portofino; Italy: Florence/Pisa (La Spezia); France: Nice (Villefranche); At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

16 night Spain: Barcelona; Spain: Cartagena; Spain: Malaga; United Kingdom: Gibraltar; Spain: Seville 16 (Cadiz); At Sea; Portugal: Madeira (Funchal); At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; Bermuda: Royal Naval Dockyard; At Sea; At Sea; Florida

 

Do you know what the sail date is for the 11 nighter?

[Jeremiah1212]

34 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

 

Do you know what the sail date is for the 11 nighter?

 

It looks like the 10 night is Oct 2, 11 night is Oct 12, and TA begins on Oct 23.

 

There's room for another 11 night itinerary between Sept 21 and Oct 2 also, with a 10 day proceeding that one departing Sept 13. 

Edited Wednesday at 06:23 PM by Jeremiah1212

[Ex-Airbalancer]

3 hours ago, billc23 said:

The problem with a river cruise is what the company does when there is an issue with the water levels. Viking often turns the trip into a partial bus trip. 

That shouldn’t be a problem on the Nile 😁

[mahdnc]

4 minutes ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

That shouldn’t be a problem on the Nile 😁

Not a problem--yet.

[FBrew]

5 hours ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

Xcel will do shorter cruises from Barcelona and Athens.

 

7 night Spain: Barcelona; France: Provence (Marseille); Italy: Portofino; Italy: Florence/Pisa (La Spezia); Italy: Rome (Civitavecchia); Italy: Naples; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

7 night Spain: Barcelona; At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Greece: Santorini; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Athens (Piraeus)

 

7 night Greece: Athens (Piraeus); Greece: Santorini; Greece: Mykonos; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

7night Spain: Barcelona; France: Nice (Villefranche); Italy: Florence/Pisa (La Spezia); Italy: Santa Margherita; Italy: Rome (Civitavecchia); Italy: Naples; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

7 night Greece: Athens (Piraeus); Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Santorini; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); At Sea; Italy: Sicily (Messina); At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

8 night Spain: Barcelona; At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); Greece: Rhodes; Greece: Santorini; Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Athens (Piraeus)

 

8 night Greece: Athens (Piraeus); Greece: Santorini; Turkey: Ephesus (Kusadasi); Greece: Mykonos; Greece: Rhodes; At Sea; Malta: Valletta; At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

11 night Barcelona; At Sea; Spain: Seville (Cadiz); Portugal: Lisbon; At Sea; Portugal: Madeira (Funchal); Portugal: Madeira (Funchal); At Sea; Morocco: Tangier; At Sea; Spain: Palma De

Mallorca; Spain: Barcelona

 

10 night Spain: Barcelona; At Sea; Italy: Naples; Italy: Sicily (Messina); At Sea; Italy: Rome (Civitavecchia); Italy: Portofino; Italy: Florence/Pisa (La Spezia); France: Nice (Villefranche); At Sea; Spain: Barcelona

 

16 night Spain: Barcelona; Spain: Cartagena; Spain: Malaga; United Kingdom: Gibraltar; Spain: Seville 16 (Cadiz); At Sea; Portugal: Madeira (Funchal); At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; At Sea; Bermuda: Royal Naval Dockyard; At Sea; At Sea; Florida

Do you know the date of the 16 night transatlantic? Thank you

[billc23]

31 minutes ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

That shouldn’t be a problem on the Nile 😁

No... but after seeing how friends were treated when there was a problem... and stuff happens...

I would rather choose a different provider with better service failure resolutions. 

[Jeremiah1212]

52 minutes ago, FBrew said:

Do you know the date of the 16 night transatlantic? Thank you

 

With the info available right now it would start on Oct 23rd from Barcelona. 

[TourDeCruise]

5 hours ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

I don't think the map graphic is updated to show only the ports in the most recent deployment. Napflio was bookable in 2023 and early 2024. 

 

Nafplio, Hydra, Volos, and Heraklion are on the Infinity 2025 itineraries. Also, Nafplio and Heraklion are on the Infinity February/March 2026 itineraries. But I do not see these ports for new 2026 Ascent or Infinity itineraries, except for Hydra. Ascent does have Chania (Souda) Crete on the new 2026 itineraries, and Infinity has Hydra.

[Pushka]

7 hours ago, billc23 said:

Viking often turns the trip into a partial bus trip. 

Absolutely this. It’s what happened to our Christmas markets cruise last December. Cruised just 2 days then it was buses.  And worse is that they knew well before we boarded that this would happen and didn’t tell us. 

[NMTraveller]

8 hours ago, billc23 said:

Uniworld too. Viking does have the largest advertising budget though if that is important. The problem with a river cruise is what the company does when there is an issue with the water levels. Viking often turns the trip into a partial bus trip. 

AMA will likely bus you to another boat.  We almost had this happen on the Danube, if the weather did not clear...

Edited Thursday at 12:53 AM by NMTraveller

[billc23]

11 hours ago, Pushka said:

Absolutely this. It’s what happened to our Christmas markets cruise last December. Cruised just 2 days then it was buses.  And worse is that they knew well before we boarded that this would happen and didn’t tell us. 

That is terrible. Sorry it happened to you. I certainly would not support a company that treats passengers poorly. 

[billc23]

10 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

AMA will likely bus you to another boat.  We almost had this happen on the Danube, if the weather did not clear...

Excellent plan from AMA and logistically they planned for that in the way they have positioned their ships.

 

The big problem with Viking turning the River Cruise into a bus tour is that it is a poor bus tour. They will transport you to the same cities that are on the river, but... they need to book last minute hotels for a large group of people and, usually, the location of the Hotels are not close to the city or anything else of interest or of the nicest quality!  A nice thing about a river cruise is being to walk off the ship right into a beautiful city to explore. Buyer beware.

[Pushka]

9 hours ago, billc23 said:

That is terrible. Sorry it happened to you. I certainly would not support a company that treats passengers poorly. 

Probably the most irritating part is that whilst on the boat we were told that we would be compensated by Viking once we got off at the end of the trip. Of course there was no response from Viking once we'd left. Our Aus consumer protection legislation protects us from such known events (not the events that start once on the trip so much) and so eventually we did get some. The Americans onboard were angry if they had their 'cancel for any reason' because had they been told before they boarded, they would have been refunded in full. The Americans I kept in contact with received no compensation at all. And the Viking Fan bois said tough luck.