Heidi13

I am happy to see that nobody on Cruise Critic is posting photos and describing any additional protection measures. Sadly, the same cannot be said for the site that can't be named. I guess some pax really don't care about their safety, as they find it necessary to provide photographic evidence of protection measures, to those interested in doing them harm. Those posts also provide advance warning that a cruise ship is coming through the area.

Having worked these waters for many years, if the itinerary and time in port is the same, my preference is a southbound, as it gets the transit between Vancouver Island and the mainland in daylight. Rather than the Rocky Mountaineer, may I suggest hiring a car, or small motorhome and setting your own schedule through the Rockies. Rather than flying home from Vancouver, you can drive through to Calgary and fly home from there.

Jim - another benefit is going on a World Cruise for 4-months as a pax, is not having to get up at Midnight or 04:00 every day to go to work.😁 Mind you, I do miss the hopped beverages with breakfast, after working the 4-8. When I met Judi on SS Oriana, she just couldn't understand enjoying a few beers at 08:00.

Affirmative, the QM2 is most definitely the best and most extensive library at sea.

I've been to most of the World's ports before, some of them many times. With respect to Sydney, in the past 45 years, I have probably spent about 30 days in Sydney, but still find new places to discover and enjoy visiting old haunts. If I didn't return to the same ports, I would never cruise again.

Based on our experience on the smaller Viking ships, this is not entirely accurate. Yes, Viking doesn't have any casino, nor do they hold bingo sessions. However, they do have shops, but unlike mega ships the Shoppies don't have tables set up in alleyways peddling inches of chain, cheap watches, etc. They also have a full spa suite. Viking probably have one of the best libraries at sea, with almost 2,000 books distributed throughout the ship in various lounges and cabins. They also have bridge tables, various games and a jigsaw in the Atrium, and have shuffleboard, table tennis and mini golf on the outer decks.

I concur, Victoria was never great for Chinese. When our head office was on Fort Street, we used to go to J&J Wonton House for lunch. I've been retired for 10 yrs and the office moved before then, so it has been almost 15 yrs since I had lunch there. It was good, but certainly not comparable to where we go in Richmond for our regular reunions. In Victoria, we often use the Irish Times for lunch, as they have live football. We have also been to the Shine Cafe a few times for breakfast/brunch. Another breakfast/brunch place we enjoy is John's place on Pandoro.

I suggest starting with the World Cruise Desk, who should have sent an introductory email with contact details.

Saga is 50+ and P&O UK also has 2 or 3 ships that are adult only.

Viking will certainly meet many of the criteria you are looking for, since they have zero kids (minimum age is 18) and no casino onboard. Since they sell many of the cruises out a year, or more in advance, they have no incentive to offer deals on single occupancy. Single occupancy deals are generally only available on repositioning Trans-Atlantics, which may not sail at capacity. Although the base fare on Viking is more expensive, you need to compare what each cruise line offers. When I compared the true overall price of our 2015 World Cruise on Princess to the 2020 World Cruise on Viking, the daily cost was virtually identical, but Viking's base price was almost double. The other factor with Viking that we find impressive, is they treat pax as responsible adults. They have no restrictions on what can be brought aboard and do not charge corkage fees. You can bring aboard nice bottles of wine from a visit ashore and they will open them and serve them to you in the restaurants. In addition to excellent lecturers, they have an extensive onboard library, which operates on the honour system. No having to wait for the library to open and sign out a book, as they are all available 24/7. Many of the islands you mentioned in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans are not well frequented by cruise lines, but you can find cruises that visit them. Personally, I have been to most of the South Pacific islands multiple times, having completed 4-months of Australian cruising and 2 World Cruises. However, I have yet to visit most of the Atlantic/Indian Ocean islands, as I never worked those areas. Viking did have one of their World Cruises in 2019 visit some of them. I concur with finding a travel agent with experience in the luxury, premium and expedition markets. For the South Pacific you can check out Paul Gaugin, who operate in the region year round. You can also check out world cruises and segments.

Based on our experience on ocean passages 1). For the Hawaiian Sojourn, I believe Viking is allowing 6-days for the ocean passage. In addition to the regular shows from the resident singers, they will probably have 2 guest entertainers, who will perform 2 separate shows each. The guest entertainers may change in Hawaii, as I rarely see them remaining onboard for 17 days. 2). Enforcement of the dress code resides with the Restaurant Manager and the host, however Viking's intent is No Jeans period. We have seen the host respectfully request pax return to the cabin to change, or use the World Cafe.

Affirmative, in a number of ports, I have experienced us not knowing the berth until the pilot boarded and have seen it change even after the pilot is aboard.

Affirmative, and in addition, the 3rd party website also don't handle crossing the International Date Line. I find once the ship crosses the IDL, the date in port is wrong for the remainder of the cruise.

I'll suggest that whatever device you use the most is the easiest, regardless if it is a cell phone or camera. Although I haven't had a cell phone since I retired, DW has an iphone and I find it terrible to use for taking photos. I have used cameras for about 50 years, so find either of my full frame cameras are much easier than a phone.

Other posters use 3rd party website, such as cruisemapper, but I only use cruise line websites and the actual port websites. I find the 3rd party website have frequent errors.

One of your previous posts where you outlined the training and standards required for genuine guide dogs got me thinking how to include these in a code of conduct/standards that is acceptable under the ADA and other national equivalents. I recall you posted the guide dog must go outside on demand and to hold at all other times, so I have figured how cruise lines can incorporate this requirement. During an emergency situation, the Master sounds the General Emergency Signal, at which time pax muster in the Assembly Stations. Based on Viking Sky and the Star Princess, this can be for many hours. While in the Assembly Stations, pax should not leave, unless accompanied by a crew member, to assist selecting safe routes. The crew are busy with numerous tasks, so cannot be expected to take dogs outside, at any time. I'll suggest, in these circumstances, it is reasonable to expect that the dogs can wait until a crew member is available, and then all dogs would go outside and do their business on demand. Genuine guide dogs are trained to this standard, so should have no problems with compliance. The pets onboard Viking Star, probably not so much.

This thread is most informative, especially posts from the Chief with respect to the US ADA requirements and Sunflower & Scientist regarding the training requirements for a genuine service dog and also the handler. Since no business can request proof of training, or request the dog demonstrate the required tasks, when the ships sail in US Waters, and fall under the jurisdiction of the ADA, I suggest Viking need to develop a detailed service dog code of conduct. This could be developed with the assistance of a National Guide Dog Association, with the standards based on the training provided to, and the conduct of a genuine guide dog. Any pax requesting to bring a "Service" animal should be provided with a copy of the code of conduct. The pax should provide Viking an attestation that they have read and understand the requirements, and that their "Service" animal meets the code of conduct. Once aboard, failure of the handler and/or service animal to comply will result with removal from the ship at the next port of call. The Code of Conduct should also clearly state that in the event the vessel is evacuated, no animals will be permitted in the Survival Craft. This alone may dissuade some from bringing their pets aboard. With respect to the mut shown in the photo posted. I just noted, in addition to being on a seat, the dog is not properly leashed. Yes, it has a leash attached to the dog, but the handler is not holding the leash. Another post indicted the same mut was alone by the pool, while the handler was in the pool. Again, the dog is not properly leashed. Both these infractions should be grounds for removing the handler and mut from the ship. Once a few pets are subjected to involuntary disembarkation, word will quickly spread and the current problem will be quickly solved. Just requires the Master and GM to have some intestinal fortitude, something I find is increasingly lacking in modern managers/supervisors. As a Master, I had no problem dealing with these issues, but that is probably why it was time for me to retire.😁

The Chief is a better resource than me when it comes to US Regulations. When in port, in addition to compliance with Flag State requirements, a number of local regulations are applicable. As the Chief noted previously, the US ADA applies to foreign flag cruise ships operating in US waters. If Silversea are operating in US waters and not following the ADA, they may be challenged.

I can relate to your Colon experience, as this was my very first foreign port, way back in 1975. We stopped in Colon for bunkers before heading through the Canal. Prior to arrival, we were advised to go ashore in groups of at least 6 cadets. When my group cleared the port gates, we spotted a couple of locals on a balcony across the street staring at us. One was playing with a gun and the other sharpening a knife. Since our police aren't armed, this was our first experience seeing a gun. We did an about-face, returning to the ship. Never gone ashore again in Colon.

Having zero wind over the decks is possible, but the wind has to be from directly astern at the same speed as the ship. I experienced this a number of times. However, when I checked the AIS earlier today, the ship was steaming 070 T at 17.3 kts. The true wind was from 070 at 11 kts, which is normal for the trade winds at these latitudes. Therefore, the wind over the deck was 28.3 kts, or 32 mph from dead ahead. The windy.com forecast showed similar wind info to what the AIS was broadcasting. At present the wind has backed to NE at 054 T at 13 kts and the ship is steaming 068 at 17.5 kts. At an estimate, the present apparent wind is fine on the port bow at about 28 - 29 kts. With the advent of AIS, those of us ashore have access to much of the same information, as those on the ship. If anyone is interested, you can check the AIS info at Marine Traffic. Select the ship, then vessel details and scroll down. Note - Marine Traffic's free service only receives AIS signals from ground stations, so if ships are out of range, you can track the ship, but the details are not available.

Princess & Viking

I attended a Cunard interview way back in the 70's, before going to sea. Although they offered me a position as Navigating Cadet, I opted for the same offer from P&O. Similar to P&O, Cunard were purchased by Carnival, who implemented the Carnivalisation process of reducing the standards. Although a fraction of the standards prior to the 70's, I'll suggest that the Cunard standards are still superior to those of my old company P&O. However, both Cunard and P&O are operated under the same Carnival banner and at least the Masters and Officer are all crewed from the same office. A number of P&O Masters and Officers, I sailed with, were assigned to Cunard, but most have now retired. For an ocean passage, as an ocean liner, QM2 is by far the best ship for comfort when the seas get lumpy. I believe the onboard standards are superior to any of the other mainstream mega ships, but you need to be accepting some dining venues and lounges are reserved for higher paying pax and evenings are more formal. Not an issue for me, since I wore formal attire every night when at work. I also have a fondness for Cunard, as I recall as a young lad in the 60's, seeing the QE2 being built at Clydebank.

A classic example of how the expectations of segmenters and World Cruisers are divergent and often don't mix. How the cruise line deals with these issues can affect the result. Clearly Princess didn't manage it well, as your cruise was most likely not an original segment. Probably just added more pax to fill the ship. On our Princess Cruise departing Sydney, we had about 600 pax sailing to Melbourne (2 days) and Freemantle (about 7 days). In addition, the ones getting off in Melbourne were replaced with pax going to Freemantle. Therefore, we had World Cruisers, Segmenters and Coasties all with different expectations.

The QM2 is by far the most comfortable ship to cross the open ocean these days. Although I haven't sailed on her, I do know some of the senior officers from when I worked for P&O. One thing you do need to consider with QM2 is the Class system, as certain lounges and dining venues are restricted to those in more expensive accommodations. The QM2 is also more formal than most other cruise lines. Personally, since I used to be in formal attire every evening, it is not an issue for me, but it is for some. Cunard/P&O UK have lots of World Cruise experience, having been completing them for over 50 years. Enjoy the cruise.

Having completed World Cruises on both Princess and Viking, I can confirm that Viking is more all-inclusive than Princess. The biggest difference, is the difference in business models, where mega ship owners require significant onboard spend. With Viking, the base cost is significantly more expensive, but by the end of the cruise, the true daily spend can be very close. Although, everyone has different usage and styles, this is our experience. Princess - 2015 WC R/T from Sydney, 104 nights Viking - 2020 WC L/A to Greenwich, 120 nights The base cost of the Viking cruise was close to double the base cost of the Princess cruise. The cabins were both balcony, midships on a lower deck. The Viking cabin was approx 25% bigger than the Princess cabin. At the end of the cruise, once all costs were included, the actual daily cost was virtually identical. However, the standards on Viking were vastly superior. Another factor to consider with World Cruises, is segments. Most cruise lines can't fill an entire ship for 100+ days, so must create multiple segments to fill the ship. With Princess, < 25% of pax joined for the full World Cruise, so 75% of the pax changed every segment. This completely changed the ship's vibe and our experience was a series of B2B's, not a World Cruise. Viking routinely fill the World Cruise ship, so once the ship departs all pax are on for the duration. Starting next year, they are scheduling 2 ships for World cruises and may fill both of them, such is the demand.