Boarding Ship in Paris

We will be on Viking Pride leaving Paris on October 4, 2015. We're flying in to Paris three days early and will be making our own way to the ship dock by taxi. I know that ships can be required to change where they dock. We experienced that in Germany, but were on a bus with a tour group.

Has anyone arrived at the dock in Paris by taxi to find the ship had been moved? How was that resolved?

You will want to make sure you know where the dock is. I have read some posts here that the Viking ships could be near downtown or they could be an hour or more away in the suburbs.

jc

Our cruise line (Avalon) sent the ship and Cruise Director's phone number to us as part of our pre-trip documentation. We asked our hotel front desk to call & confirm the dock before we took the taxi to the dock (not Paris, not Viking - but I have to guess you'll have some way to contact the ship)

Our cruise line (Avalon) sent the ship and Cruise Director's phone number to us as part of our pre-trip documentation. We asked our hotel front desk to call & confirm the dock before we took the taxi to the dock (not Paris, not Viking - but I have to guess you'll have some way to contact the ship)

Yes, we were given contact numbers. Since I don't have international calling on my phone asking the desk is a great idea.

Thank you for the advice Hoyaheel.

The docking address should be in your travel documents. I would google map it to check the distance. As mentioned, some Viking ships are docked an hour outside of Paris city center. That would be one expensive taxi ride.

Thanks Caviargal. We picked our hotel based on the fact that it was close to the Quai de Grenelle in Paris, where the boat is expected to be moored. However, when we were on our last river cruise they moved the boat from the spot we were told it should be to another location, so checking on the same day as we board is likely a good idea.

Thanks Caviargal. We picked our hotel based on the fact that it was close to the Quai de Grenelle in Paris, where the boat is expected to be moored. However, when we were on our last river cruise they moved the boat from the spot we were told it should be to another location, so checking on the same day as we board is likely a good idea.

Always. We had a major change last years 2 days before embarkation due to high water and had to get to a different city altogether. I believe it is important to be reachable.

We are on the Viking Spirit at the end of Sept. and just got our docs. They show the pier as Quai de Grenelle for the Pride and the Spirit, but the docs also say not to release the taxi until you see your ship. We will be coming directly to the ship from the airport via Viking transfer, so not an issue for us, but a good practice for those independent travelers. :)

Happy cruising!

Becki

We are in Paris and are preparing to head to Quai de Grenelle in a few hours to board Pride. I understand it is only the longships that have been docking elsewhere...the smaller boats can dock at Quai de Grenelle. I will update.

In Nov 2013, the Spirit could not get to Qual de Grenelle due to high water and had to dock in Con Flans. Viking had a rep at Qual de Grenelle and provided transportation to Con Flans for arriving cruisers.

It went exceedingly well. We had a wonderful Taxi driver who had no trouble finding Viking Pride. A staff member was waiting for us and we are now happily aboard.

It went exceedingly well. We had a wonderful Taxi driver who had no trouble finding Viking Pride. A staff member was waiting for us and we are now happily aboard.

Hope that is a great start to a wonderful cruise!