Heidi13

Certainly won't dispute the wave heights, but that close to the coast, with very little fetch, 50' waves are highly unusual. In that area of the Meddy, I believe Storm Gloria in early 2020 had the largest recorded significant wave height, at about 28 feet. I recall this violent storm from the news, as we were on a World Cruise in the South Pacific. Rough seas and the effect on ships are more than just wave height, as any swell, confused seas, wave period and direction all play a role in ship movement.

Assuming you are not on a cruise that requires Visa applications, if the cruise isn't sold out they are keeping the maximum cabin categories open for any late bookings. Had the cruise been sold out, you would probably have a cabin assignment already. Yes, with a guarantee cabin then can delay the assignments until check-in at the pier, which we have experienced more than once. A couple of times we sailed with our son, we didn't have a cabin assigned until after departure, so our bags were sent to our son's cabin.

Just looked at Seabourn's cabins and the base cabin on most of them is an oceanview cabin of 295 sq feet that doesn't even have a balcony. On other ships, the base cabin is a Veranda Suite of about 355 sq feet. The comparable Viking cabins are DV & V (270 sq feet) for the oceanview and a PV (338 sq feet) for the Veranda Suite. Hardly much smaller than the equivalent cabins on Seabourn ships, as the DV & V cabins are 20 sq feet smaller and the PV is 17 sq feet smaller. I note Carnival (Seabourn) even refers to the "Oceanview" cabin as a "Suite", sorry but a 295 sq foot cabin with no balcony is hardly a suite. Reading the blogs from the current World Cruisers, I seem to recall the port talks are at 18:30, but they are also recorded and available to watch at your convenience in the cabin. You mentioned lack of entertainment or activities - I'm not certain which Viking you researched, as on our cruise we were glad to have experienced a couple of dozen 24.5 hr or 25 hr days, as we needed the additional time to sleep after all the activities. While Viking will provide all the arrangements, this is certainly not our reason for Viking being our current preferred cruise line, as I am more than capable of making our own arrangements, subject to risk and respective costs. Viking is all about the thinking person's cruise, with numerous exceptional lectures and low key entertainment.

We also have other reasons than accepting children for not considering Seabourn, primary being they are owned by Carnival, the cruise line that invented "Carnivalisation", a process that has decimated at least 3, once great cruises lines, one of which I worked for. Their treatment of pax in Antarctica was also a disgrace, when their new expedition ship damaged a stabiliser and they continued to operate across the Drake Passage. Sadly, that is the standards we experienced on Carnival brands and why we no longer sail on any of their brands.

It's acceptable to post the names of guides and tour companies that you have used.

OMG Jim, I can see a pie, washed down with a few pints, but Mickey D is really stooping to the low end. Even food on Princess would be gourmet after suffering Mickey D.😁

Although we avoid getting that close to the shoreline, I have multiple similar experiences in the Atlantic, Bay of Biscay and Western Approaches.

This is boiler plate text that is included in the Terms & Conditions of every cruise we have taken. Fuel is the largest cost for cruise lines, so they have to protect themselves against significant price increases. I have never experienced a bunker surcharge in over 45 yrs of cruising.

Food is highly subjective, but on World Cruises, Viking tend to ramp up the standards. I suggest checking out any of the current travel blogs from the Neptune, the live thread from the current World Cruise and the live thread from the 21/22 World cruise on Star. Going back to 2020 WC, you can also check out our daily posts from the Sun - www.AndyandJudi.com

CruiseMapper is not a reliable source. The quote has at least 2 significant errors: - The bar is not open 24 hrs per day. Hours are posted in the Viking Daily, with normal times being 06:00 to 23:59. It may open earlier for early arrivals. - The Atrium covers 3 decks, not 2.

Yes, but similar information is available from any of the met offices and has been for many years. Windy.com is just an easy resource to find.

Rob, I heard this about 6 months ago, that Viking can't sell Canadians Tripmate. However, for those of us with existing policies, they still honour the policy and pay out claims.

..... or 2😁

Sadly, my favourite ship is long gone - SS Oriana Of current ships, any of the Viking Ocean tonnage, as they are virtually identical.

Even for World Cruises of > 120 days, we only pack sufficient clothes for a week, or the longest stretch of port days in a row. On a TA, you don't have many ports days, so we would pack for about 1 week. Higher level cabins on Viking have included laundry, while the others have access to the complimentary laundry facilities on each deck. Viking also includes the laundry soap. Most decks have 4 washers & driers in each laundry room, with an ironing board and iron. If you want additional info check out the Viking Board https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/689-viking-ocean/

The projections on Windy.com are based on forecasts and computer models, so those that are 7-days out, are no more accurate than you get from the local weather office. Windy.com is a great resource for current conditions and possibly the next 24/48 hrs, but a week out is about as accurate as using a crystal ball, especially mid-ocean. While they have satellites, lots of the mid-ocean raw meteorological information is still provided by mariners on ships completing reports every 6 hours.

It will assist receiving suggestions if we know which country you reside.

Haha!! too busy taking star sights at nautical twilight😁

Our TA can give us the pro-forma policy the agency uses, but once we are over 60 and must complete forms we must deal with a licenced insurance professional to receive a quote. When all local and online brokers declined to accept the risk of our World Cruise, due to length of time and cost, she advise her agency does have a policy, but we would have to complete the forms and contact the underwriter for a quote. TA's must comply with the terms of their licence, as failure to do so can result in removal of the licence and the resultant loss of employment.

Negative, clocks are not normally included in ship cabins because of the frequent time changes. It would be another task for the cabin stewards. Clocks on ships are normally connected to the master clock system, to simplify time changes and ensure they are reasonably correct.

You may find that arrangement in the US, but in Canada, both travel agents and insurance agents are regulated, so they must be registered and licenced. Therefore, highly unlikely that CDNPolar and I would find a travel agent that is also licenced to sell insurance.

Most likely, although when I lived in UK the bachelorette was known as a "Hen Party"

One of the benefits of a World Cruise is included gratuities. Yes, they are included in the base fare you pay, so pre-paying gratuities is not applicable.

From dusk to dawn, although it only really affects the Bridge team's night vision when it is almost fully dark.

Affirmative, I haven't found a Canadian bank/credit union that will accept notes from any of the Scottish banks that issue them, only Bank of England.