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Started this topic as couldn’t easily find if there is a better place to post this. On our NL cruise we found that the closet doors would rattle abit at night and disturbed our sleep. My solution which solved the problem was to wedge the slippers in the track. They fit without pushing too much on the doors. Also needed to have the heated floor checked as wasn’t really getting warm. Don’t hesitate to ask your cabin steward if you think there are any issues. Wonderful immediate service.

Thank you. Looking forward to our trip.

I’ll be in Oslo mid March for a few days. Wondering how the streets will be for walking. Will my Goretex shoes be sufficient. I have heavier snow boots as backup. Trying to pack lighter and not planning to bring any more dressy style shoes.

Did Norway Iceland cruise August 2022 then 6days in Iceland. Yes, layers and be prepared for rain and wind. And as stated think about your activity level—light hiking on excursions no hiking at all etc. But what you buy may also be related to your budget and will you use again in future at home. We had rain poncho to wear over our jackets and older Goretex parkas at the waterfalls and glacier lagoon. Our Goretex parkas got wet at neck and cuffs (without rain poncho) when walking 30 minutes in Reykjavik in driving very windy rain. Had down vests, fleece 1/4zip, and wool sweaters. Some people prefer wool to fleece. Rainproof shoes (Goretex) essential. Got mine at REI on sale Salomonn ankle high Enjoy. You will see spectacular beauty were you are traveling.

Have cruised primarily on Oceania including past summer on new ship Vista but will be going soon on second Viking cruise. Food comparison — overall I would give Oceania a slight edge though last summer British Island cruise the night of the British menu was horrid—dry huge cold Yorkshire Pudding, tough roast beef and terrible sticky toffee pudding and spotted stick. Usually O desserts are wonderful. On Viking Iceland cruise the Iceland Menu I World Cafe was amazing. Oceania tea hour better (my personal opinion) Each cruise line has some misses and would agree with previous posts here. Mamsens for waffles soups and open face sandwiches Pool Grill for Ahi Tuna. Re staterooms Marina,Riviera Vista larger than O Rclass 670 passengers ships staterooms with small bathrooms but LOVE heated floors Viking. Also Viking ship areas easier to roam and feel more spacious. Also Viking spa though Vista spa and pool area looked great but too cold and windy to use on my cruise. Itinerary for me is most important but I have developed negative view of NCL (which is Norwegian, Oceania and Regent) after recent treatment to cruisers booked for Middle East cruises when conflict broke out past cancellation penalties and vastly amended itineraries. Read Oceania board.

Viking Mars cabin 5052 Port side feet facing forward. Had bump out which I never even noticed or was bothered by. Had to look at my cabin photo to recall.

Thank you for the information. Have worked through my travel agent with poor Oceania response. While I don’t have more than ten cruise experiences, I was shocked to find how little recourse one has once you sign the contract with changed itinerary cancellation policies. A cautionary tale for all especially now with penalties so far out from the sailing date. Further, my new understanding is that cancel for any reason trip insurance reimbursement may be 70%. Recourse for those who had to cancel due to the current political unrest could not use trip insurance as areas of concern were not classified as covered. Would be interested to hear how people who tried credit card disputes fared. I did get a deposit administrative fee back from Crystal pre Covid (old Crystal cruises) when itinerary dropped major port after calling and speaking with a manager. Got put through right away on the phone. I don’t expect perfection and am willing to assume some risks relative to making contracts and dealing with the conflict of personal vs corporate interests but my experience with O customer services has been beyond disappointing.

Could you post the names of the Oceania executives to write letters? I emailed many of the guest services and guest relations Vice Presidents as well as left phone messages. I never received a response. Are you suggesting mailing those letters to them at the Oceania address?

Thank you. It's the Novotel Tower Bridge near Fenchurch.

Seeking assistance with planning transit from London to Tilbury. We will be arriving LHR the day before our cruise at terminal 2 from USA. After reading several posts, I am looking at 3 options. One—stay at Heathrow and get I believe it’s called Bolt ride or Uber or taxi to London International Cruise Terminal Tilbury the next morning. Two— take Elizabeth line train to Liverpool street station , stay overnight at Novotel and take c2c line train from Fenchurch station to Grays taxi to dock. Three— take Elizabeth line train to Stratford stay overnight hotel there and take c2c train to Grays. Alternately we could take taxi/Bolt to Tilbury from either Novotel or Stratford to the docks. Please advise costs taxi from LHR to docks and how difficult trains will be with luggage (1 carryon size and 1 slightly larger). Are there lifts at Liverpool, Fenchurch, Stratford Grays? We do not want to haul luggage up a few flights of stairs.

We stayed at the WhiteStar Tavern for 3nights. Not sure of the previous post but we had a lovely quiet room (not the smallest) and breakfast was fantastic. See image. Had a not so good dinner the first night but found incredible Indian and Portuguese restaurants close. The staff was very helpful. We walked to the terminal from there for our cruise. Not a far walk but it was not raining. If anyone is staying longer, we took the ferry to Hythe and then did the Green route New Forest Bus . A very enjoyable day on the hop on hop off visiting a number of villages.

Thank you. I have been in contact with Alta taxi. It sounds that it is quite a walk to Alta Center and with snow ice better to taxi if there’s no bus from ship to central area.

Thank you. Good advice to check with tour operator as well as can go to guest services/excursions once on board for information. They were very helpful on our last cruise.

Thank you for your wonderful review and photos. We are booked on this cruise March 2024 and wondered about your experience in Alta. Our cruise shows tendered in Alta. It sounds like you were docked and was there a Viking shuttle to the main area? I would like to visit the Igloo Hotel via taxi as you reported and trying to figure the timing as the Finnmarkslopet is happening as well.

On my guest registration form, it lists tender in Alta. Does anyone have experience with being tendered and returning after midnight from a private excursion?

How much is Viking charging for the transfer to Heathrow? Is this from Tillbury port?

I apologize if this question has been answered recently. I will be arriving in the UK at Heathrow from the US around 7am in August. How long should I plan for it to take to claim baggage and go through customs/immigration? I am wondering if anyone has recent experience since the summer travel period has started. Thank you.

I currently am awaiting information from my TA in reference to when I would be able to select seats on my custom air request if I accept the proposal from Oceania. Do I have to wait until I make the final payment for the cruise before I can select seats? Can anyone advise me as to their experience with custom air? I have requested specific flights specific dates and realize the offer cost I received included the per person custom fee plus a fare differential. My question is, if I accept and pay the custom fee as required to secure these flights, will I then be able to request specific seats. O policy says the fare diffential will be added to my reservation as the amount due “final payment”.

Thank you. Your instructions are very helpful.

Appreciate the many comments particularly advice about Abu Dhabi routing. Yes, I am familiar and experienced with doing online search of the options and routes. Currently waiting to see what Oceania offers for my custom request of nonstop specific Emirates flights understanding that there will be probable additional cost from custom request fee (specific flights) as well as anything O may add as upcharge(“additional flight costs). For the Middle East cruise, booking our own airfare is quite a bit more expensive at this time even after deducting the air credit from our reservation. We may bite the bullet and just commit so we can have nonstop flights as my husband does not want connections and 24 hour plus travel. I’m still having some difficulty navigating with using Cruise Critic. Find it difficult to reply to someone without going through the whole topic thread as topic often doesn’t stay specific. 🤔

I’ll interested in hearing of experiences with air flights booked through Oceania. On all previous cruises I have booked my own air but am considering the packages offered through Oceania. Would appreciate previous experiences, especially in regards to Dubai and Abu Dhabi. I am booked on upcoming December cruise which includes airfare. Does Oceania ever book direct flight from SFO to Dubai? Or should I expect a connection and 23 hour transit time? I aware there are no direct flights from Abu Dhabi. I am also booked on a Vista cruise leaving from Southampton. I assume that flight would be direct to London.

I’m seeking some information about using the National Express coach from Heathrow to Southampton 2 days before my cruise departure. My flight is scheduled to arrive at 14:10. Do I need to purchase tickets for the 1615 coach ahead of time? Can that ticket then be used later if my flight is delayed or the next day? Can I purchase tickets at the Heathrow station?

Speaking from my past experiences of three Oceania cruises and with the caveat that I like fairly strong brewed coffee. Think Peets, Intellegensia, Starbucks bold only if nothing else available. Most European restaurants and hotel know how to brew coffee the way I like and I am not a fan either of many lower end Nespresso machines. Oceania MDR and buffet coffee is terrible. As previously mentioned, it is like brown water with no taste. Think watered down MacDonalds. . However, you can request (or go the the machine in the buffet area to get) a latte or cappuccino with an extra shot. This works for me for breakfast and lunch. The specialty coffees at Baristas is fine though not of the same caliber as PEETS or what you would at a cafe in Paris or Florence. This summer on my first Viking cruise, I found the coffee much better though their was still a difference in the Nespresso coffee you could brew in the cabin from the espresso and lattes in the restaurants and buffet. On Oceania I have a concierge cabin so can go the the lounge to get my cappuccino with an extra shot from the machine there or do an americano.

Reaching out for experiences with booking air through Oceania. I believe I remember that the air flights will be proposed around 90 days pre embarkation date (not actually ticketed til later) and you will have 48hours to approve or decline. Has anyone had experience with ticketing for San Francisco? I’m booked on a cruise from Southampton next year and am trying to figure out whether to do the air through Oceania. I have in the past preferred independent air so I could arrive early. I am abit nervous about arriving on embarkation day but the package of premium air plus transfer is appealing. If I ask for custom air, which can be booked 270 days out knowing there is at least a $175 fee plus any fare difference, I will also lose the transfer from Heathrow to Southampton. Anyone experienced out there to advise? Anyone experience delays? Missed embarkation? What happened then? Crazy flight connections? Anyone get direct nonstop flights?

Experience based on one Viking cruise just completed. Ship was really lovely. Lots of spacious seating areas. Yes modern clean Scandinavian. Design which you can see on website. Cabin had ample storage though would have liked drawers at desk and refrigerator under coffeemaker shelf. VERY minor. LOVED heated floor in bathroom and found bathroom spaces shower excellent. Surprisingly after reading posts I found bed a little softer than I would have liked. Very generous pours of wine beer at lunch and dinner. Bar prices about half compared to Oceania and Celebrity so quite reasonable. Included excursions very good to mediocre. In city it is a 2-3 hr bus tour but had truly fantastic tour in Geiranger. Food very good in general but found restaurant selection and choices more limited than on Oceania. Breads terrible and desserts often dry but Mamsens open face sandwiches and waffles a joy. World Cafe had terrible time keeping food warm and our room service breakfast was cold. Found restaurant food very reliable and good selections though some choices sounded great and didn’t deliver. Meat and fish dishes excellent. Coffee and lattes very good. Dress code comparable to Oceania which is casual not formal. After 3 Oceania cruises, I never found them stuffy. Though I saw a lot more VERY casually dressed on Viking., e.g. althletic shoes jeans in restaurant at dinner, even in specialty restaurant. Besides itinerary, one another thing I would consider is time in port. Viking seems to leave many ports rather earlier than I would have liked making excursion choices somewhat limited But then itinerary for me is my main focus. I will add as have many who returned to cruising this summer, my spouse was positive the evening after we disembarked. I too on return home a week later. This after masking on board except when eating. Only about 20% of passengers wore masks on excursions or throughout the ship. We did not socialize, attend any venues and had our 4th shot a month before boarding. This of course is the risk we decided to take to go on the cruise when Viking dropped its masking and testing requirement.