prodoc

I am thrilled to report that the excursions for my April 11, 2024 Holland and Belgium cruise have opened!  Very excited to get these selected.  No email from Viking yet but I am sure that will happen soon.  Happy excursion selecting everyone.  🙂

Penny

Yes we all do that, it just gave me a chuckle.  We live in the Midwest and with all the holidays and snow days, I am lucky to know what day of the week it is, much less the month. Enjoy your upcoming cruise and  thanks again for replying. 

Thanks for encouragement that the excursions will show after yours were delayed also—although I think you meant to type Jan 10th for the email rather than Feb. 😊 I can assure you we have been checking MVJ daily on my phone app and on my computer, refreshing each time.  I have heard from others that the email is normally days after they actually come available so I am not waiting for that notification. I am looking forward to this cruise as it is my 5th Viking River cruise and just impatient I guess. I never have had to wait so long to book excursions before.

Viking River used to put in writing that their excursions will normally come open 180 days before a cruise but they have changed that now to there is no set deadline for opening excursions for booking. All of the Belgium and Holland cruises for 2024 still have not had excursions posted and the first of the cruises leave mid March. My cruise leaves April 11 and no excursions yet. All of us have contacted Viking and have been told they will get posted and to wait for an email. My question is—and it is just curiosity mind you as there is nothing to do or even complain about—are other Viking 2024 river cruises also having delays of opening up excursions from what you have experienced previously?  Knowing this info won’t open our excursions any faster, just may be somewhat comforting to know it is not just our cruise itinerary. 
Penny

Thought I would give some hope to those waiting on passports being renewed.  I just received my new (renewed) passport today literally one month from when I mailed it.  My husband's passport, which was mailed in on the same day, is showing "in process" on the passport website so he should be receiving his soon also.  We did normal processing but mailed it in by priority mail and paid extra on the passport renewal site for express return delivery.  It obviously paid off for us doing it that way.  Glad we didn't pay for expedited processing which doubles the price.  We renewed our passport way before we had to so we didn't have any stress with a tight deadline.  I remain the optimist that someday I will get to return to cruising.  We have 4 cruises booked in 2022 and I really want to be on them.

Ship - Serenade of the Seas

Deck - 7

Stateroom # - 7500

Stateroom Category – Oceanview 2M

Starboard or Port Side -  All the way at the front of the ship, facing forward

Quiet Stateroom? (With comments on problems) – NO!  Most of the time it was quiet as far as no noise from other cabins.  Unfortunately, below us was a crew break room and they had a metal door that led to the outside of the ship on the heliport deck.  That door would bang every time they went through it and that could happen at all times of the day and night.  Many times I would be awoken about 5 am due to someone going through that door and letting it slam.

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - No

Balcony View - Not applicable but it did have a great view of the front of the ship and people on the heliport.  Loved looking through the window on where the ship was going and watching the sun set.

Balcony Size? - Not applicable

Was wind a problem? - Not applicable

If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - Not applicable

Any specific problems with this cabin? - We were on the ship and in this cabin for 21 days as we were on b2b cruises.  It definitely had its pros and cons.  The room was a little longer than normal for this type due to the position it was on the ship.  Facing the front of the ship, it had a great window you could even crawl into and sit in for sightseeing.  I loved the extra size and the window seat.  I did not like the banging created by the metal door one deck below.  I did bring it to the attention of guest services and they sent security to check out the situation.  The noise did quiet down for a few days but it gradually built up again but I just learned to live with it.  You get a lot of extra steps in going back and forth to this room which is not a bad thing, just something you need to be prepared for.  Would I get this room again--no due to the banging of the metal door.  Would I book the same room up a deck or two--something I would strongly consider due to the size of the room and the window.

We did an Alaska Cruisetour in August with RCI and loved it.  We cruised first (Vancouver to Seward) and then did the land portion.  Very comfortable buses and train rides to transport us to different cities.  Great tour guide and bus driver and good hotels.  Well taken care of as the luggage is put on the bus and transported INTO your next hotel room each move, all we had to do is put it outside our door in the morning.  I would recommend it highly.

Penny

We were on the Radiance for an Alaska cruise in August and yes there are hair dryers in the rooms.  It is still a great ship with wonderful staff.  Have a wonderful cruise.

Penny

Good reminder about extension cords themselves not being allowed.  I have used several outlet expanders without any problems in the past so I think JudiB123 the example you showed should be okay.  

Penny

Also for someone new to cruising, be sure to find all the hidden cabinets.  At the desk area, there are usually cabinets behind the side mirrors.  Also cabinets in the bathroom behind the side mirrors.  It is also helpful to know that there are only a few plugs in your cabin but you cannot bring surge protector extension cords.  If you decide to bring extra plugs, make sure the staff can determine they are also not surge protectors or they will be confiscated and returned to you at the end of the cruise.

Enjoy your first cruise, you will get hooked.

Penny

We did an Alaskan cruisetour in August with the land portion after the cruise.  RCI took excellent care of us on our land portion.  We had a tour guide with us for the entire land portion that coordinated all the luggage, rooms and excursions.  As mentioned, each stop they unloaded the luggage from the bus and put it into our rooms for us.  Then the next morning we put our luggage outside our doors and they picked them up and loaded them onto the bus and onto the next stop.  Very easy travel.  We loved the Alaska cruise and the land portion.  Enjoy your trip.

Penny

Oh yes--their creme brûlée is the best!  One of my favorite desserts in the MDR.

This is making me hungry.

My daughter got a sinus infection while on a RCI cruise.  She was well treated and professionally taken care of but I would advise taking medication with you if possible for chronic health problems.  They charged her about $10 per pill for the antibiotic that they prescribed.  So add the medical visit plus prescription cost her more than she expected.  Since she gets frequent sinus infections, she now gets a prescription filled from her doctor before cruising for "just in case" as the doctor knows she won't take it unless necessary.

Trucruising, we were on the Radiance of the Seas in August for an Alaska cruise.  We were in cabin 8672 which would have been two cabins to the right of you and down one deck.  See the picture below of my sister and her husband on the deck of cabin 8670.  They look like regular balcony rooms but have great views out of the back of the ship.  Well worth the price as you have wonderful views whenever you are in your cabin.  No extra movement at all and the views.....  I think I have mentioned that already.  🙂  I would book it again in a heartbeat.  We had 2 loungers and a table on the deck.  Bring a small squeegee to help keep the glass clean for better viewing as the glass gets wet.  I used one of the small hand towels from the room to dry the top of the glass to stay dry when leaning on it.  

My personal opinion is a balcony is worth it on the Alaska cruise if you can get the aft facing ones.  We had great views from the back of the ship and I would do it again.  The first time we cruised Alaska we did an inside cabin and that was fine too, just spent more time out in the areas where I could see the scenery better.  There were many sights we would have missed if we hadn't had the balcony in the early mornings and throughout the day whenever we went to our room for a moment.  

We were on the Radiance of the Seas which is a sister ship to the Serenade in August, 2018 for Alaska.  We had aft balcony rooms 8672 (us), 8670 (Sis) and 8168 (SIL).   They were wonderful cabins to be able to see all the scenery from our balconies.  No noise problems or any extra movement.  Yes you have to walk a long way to the elevators but that was a good trade off for the views.  If we were booking again, we would definitely go with 8672 and 8670 or another one in the middle.  Cabin 8168 was at the end of the row so had more of a side view and a little bigger balcony than the other two so it was good too, we just liked being in the middle personally.  The only thing I would do differently is to bring a small squeegee.  The glass on the back balconies get wet and it would be have been nice to do a quick clean in the mornings.  As it was I used one of the hand towels and dried off the top of the balcony to make it easier to lean on.  

Here is a picture of my sister and her husband in cabin 8670.  Our cabin was 8672 just to the left of them.  Plenty of room for two chairs and a table.  The cabin to the right of them was a suite with a wrap around balcony.  The inside of the room looked like any other balcony cabin.  Hope this helps.  You made a good choice getting an aft balcony.

16 hours ago, vacation4two said:

 

I always ask my room attendant if they are staying on for the next cruise.  If so, I always give them the turnaround day as a day off from cleaning my room.  We get extra towels from them the night before and I tell them I will have my Do Not Disturb sign out all day so they can skip my room.  It is such a busy day for them and they always appreciate it so much.  

That is very nice of you.  I had certainly not thought about that as an option but you have given me something to consider.   I had been concerned about them possibly leaving my cabin door open as that is what they do on disembarkation days.  Putting the do not disturb sign out would certainly keep that from happening.   

Penny

Bob,

Thanks for the information about the seapass picture.  Is the new seapass delivered to our cabin?

Penny

When we transition to the second cruise, will we need to take a new picture for our seapass ID or will they just issue new ones for the second cruise with the picture they previously took since it is already in their computer?  Also, is there anything special we need to do with our cabin after the end of the first cruise since we won't be leaving?  I assume if we are going to give people extra tips we should do that as normal at the end of the first cruise in case the staff changes?  Thoughts anyone?

Penny

It is interesting reading that Sunnyside Up had noise on deck 8 on the forward side but those on deck 7 front cabins did not.  Makes sense though that those on the side might get more theater noise as it puts them closer to the theater.  I think we will be okay.  But I always have the white noise app on my phone if I need to use it.

Penny

3 hours ago, NanaOak1 said:

We recently spent 14 nights in 7000 on Jewel of the Seas and loved the cabin! Yes, it is longer than other oceanview cabins and some balcony cabins. There were a set of shelves at the bed end of the vanity/cupboard area (does that make sense?) that we used for lots of stuff, and wonder how we will do without them on our next cruises. We did feel a fair amount of motion when the ship was moving at a good speed, but it was not enough to bother us. The only negative was that the bathroom door kept closing when my husband was trying to keep it open so it wouldn't steam up during his shower before he shaved. The motion of the ship just naturally kept closing the door. That was a very minor negative. We would definitely book a cabin in the front again! When we tried for our cruises next year, those cabins were all booked, so we have one along the side close to the front (7508). It is also a "spacious oceanview cabin," but when we looked in that room when the door was open on the last morning, I don't think it is as long. I don't think it had those extra shelves we loved. Hope this helps!

Thanks for the additional information NanaOak1.   It is so helpful hearing that others loved staying in those front facing cabins.  Thanks for the reminder that there will be motion since it is at the front of the ship.  My husband wears a patch when he cruises and that seems to take care of things for him.  Hopefully we will have calm seas for our cruises.  I am looking forward to having the extra space you mentioned.

Penny

Ginny, that picture with your husband really shows how deep the window space is.  Now I am getting excited about the room with what you have shared.  I have been second guessing our decision for weeks but now I feel so much better.  We really don't spend a lot of time in our room normally but our last cruise was in August doing an Alaskan cruisetour with RCI.  We had a balcony room facing the back of the ship and LOVED it for all the scenery and we did spend a lot of time on the balcony whale watching and just enjoying the beautiful scenery go by.  So I guess I am going through withdrawal but this has helped.

Thanks again,

Penny

Ginny,

Thanks so much for the pictures and information as I wondered what was under us other than the theater.  We felt like the rooms would be further out than the theater but knew there had to be something in that space.  Now we know.  🙂  Was the room a little longer than the normal ocean view rooms?  Your picture didn't show a slopped ceiling by the window so wondered about that since it looks angled on the outside of the ship.  I had wanted a balcony and my husband would have been happy with an inside room (we have had both) so we compromised on the window for these b2b cruises.  Were there rules on when you could have your curtains open?  I feel like I read somewhere that forward facing cabins were required to close their curtains when it got dark.

Penny

My husband and I will be cruising in cabin #7500 on Serenade of the Seas which is listed as a forward spacious ocean view.  We have cruised on a aft facing balcony before (perfect for an Alaska cruise) but this is our first time having a cabin that is totally at the front of the ship with just a window.  I cannot find any reviews or pictures for this cabin on the Serenade or one of its sister ships (Radiance, Jewel, Brilliance?).  Since this will be a b2b cruise for us in the same cabin on both cruises, I would love to hear from people who have stayed in this cabin before.  I know on some ships this is a family cabin but that is not the case with this one.  

Thank you,

Penny

Thanks LeeW for the additional information about the bus stop by the cruise.  The more I know, the easier it is getting around.  I think the Copenhagen Card sounds like the right thing for us too.  Trying to decide whether to order it ahead of time and pick up at the airport.  May have to ask that general question on Cruise Critic to find out if it makes it quicker or not. Did you just buy yours at the Tour Information Office or did you order and pay for it ahead of time to be picked up there?

Penny