Port Departure Times

My Guest Statement from Viking says the time of the Port Arrival and the Port Departure times for each destination. Is the Port Departure time the time we need to be back to the ship, or is it the time the ship leaves the dock? If the ship departs at 6:00pm, then what time do they want us back to the ship? I'm a first time cruiser so I really thank you all for your informative posts. :)

They will post the latest time to board. I would be on board at least 1 1/2 hours before departure.

And check if it departs on ship time or local time. Seems like its always ship time.

For the ports that come after embarkation day (first day of cruise), based on past experience on two Viking Ocean cruises, the "back on board" time is likely to be a half hour before the scheduled itinerary time. However, as others have said, it's best to go by the time announced in the Viking Daily paper. I think onboard time is posted on electronic information boards around the ship. It's possible you may be required to be back on the ship (or in some cases, back at a tender location) earlier than a half hour, but for planning purposes, I would count on being back to the ship gangway or tender boat location 45 minutes earlier than the itinerary time, or a little more if you're afraid you might get lost getting back to where you need to be! Of course, traveling on the ocean from one port to another is always subject to some deviation due to weather, tides, docking assignment, etc., and the itinerary times are made up quite a long time before the actual cruise rolls around. Therefore, an open mind and flexibility are always needed.

On embarkation day when the ship is departing the same day, Viking will tell you when you must be on board the ship (hour and a half? two hours?). I think this info is also posted in the "Contract of Carriage" or other documents you receive from Viking, but I'm not sure. In any case, Viking and the local immigration authorities need time to make sure everything is OK before the ship departs, and often a safety drill (maybe lasting half an hour including gathering time) needs to be held that day as well, so they don't want people showing up at the last minute. On embarkation days when the ship stays overnight in port, the timing may be different, and I would simply check with Viking at the point where you show your passport, get your picture taken, get your ship key card, etc.

Once you check in on the first day of your cruise, you can normally go back out if you want to explore the city or port area. However, you should ask if you're required to be back by a particular time that day.

Some cruise lines DO use ship time (i.e., time doesn't change as you go from one part of the world to another) but on our two European (Med and Norway) cruises, Viking used local times for all ports. They announced time changes a couple days in advance in the Viking Daily and put announcement cards in our room the night before a change occurred.

Usually ship time IS local time. One exception, when at sea transiting between time zones.

Your onboard Viking Daily will tell you each day...

1. When you need to be back on board. Usually 30 minutes or more before Departure Time.

2. When the ship leaves the dock, known as planned Departure Time.

ALWAYS read your Viking Daily onboard

My iphone and fit bit had a some difficulty always keeping track of time (Barcelona/ Baltic and Beyond) in spite of me settings to auto ....I think I may bring traditional alarm clock and watch this time!

I had that same issue Deec with my Cell on another cruise between Turkey/Egypt/Greece. There were numerous time changes but my phone missed some ot them.....so if your itinerary involves multiple time changes, be sure to double check on your personal timepiece with the ships local time.....

Usually it is 30 minutes before departure if the ship is docked. It is usually 60 minutes if the ship is tendering. Always check what is published.

I had that same issue Deec with my Cell on another cruise between Turkey/Egypt/Greece. There were numerous time changes but my phone missed some ot them.....so if your itinerary involves multiple time changes, be sure to double check on your personal timepiece with the ships local time.....

Knowing that it will be a problem with Auto time I just added my ports and set an alarm to the port time I'm arriving. I deleted the port after leaving it.