Zippeedee

For those clinging to the standards of the past, time to move on. People are on vacation and want to relax. They don’t keep a separate wardrobe different than what they wear to work, if they still work. Viking is smart to evolve with their customers and not be left behind with an ever shrinking customer base.

The OBC for booking onboard is currently $100 per person. They automatically transfer the booking to your current travel agent unless you ask them not to. My TA added $200 more. 

24 minutes ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

Phone case with a card slot FTW

Yes! Mine has a wrist strap and a zippered back with room for cards and some cash. Kept my key card close by and kept my phone from sailing off my balcony when I was taking photos out there. Thanks Amazon!

1 hour ago, Mike07 said:

 

I've heard Disney still does envelopes, but I also have never sailed DCL.

DCL has automatic gratuities and gives out envelopes to encourage extra tips.

I so hate this topic but just for completeness… unless you are going to walk through the galley, laundry room and who knows where else handing out cash, just pay the auto gratuity and stop pretending you care about the crew. 
I absolutely despised the old method on other cruise lines of tip envelopes and the all the people who skipped the dining room on the final night to avoid tipping (and the obsequious maitre’d you never saw all week who stopped by your dinner table to make sure they didn’t miss out on their envelope).

Just one more opinion in a world of opinions.

5 minutes ago, Lizofwisconsin said:

Can you explain how you do that? When I chose our shore excursions, it seemed like the site automatically used the shipboard credits till they were gone before offering credit card option. Maybe I have to look closer next time!

 

for whatever reason, our travel agent SBC were nonrefundable. I called another TA, she said theirs would be nonrefundable also. I know forum rules don’t allow TA referrals. 
 

in good news, Viking did contact us with offer of voucher (which exceeded the value of the nonrefundable SBC) toward future travel since we missed 3 ports. I’m appreciative of that!

My TA credits are nonrefundable and only appear on my account on the first day aboard. For my next cruise I booked onboard so I do have credit from Viking on my account now. I’ll use most of it pre-paying my gratuities before I can choose shore excursions.

The easy answer is don’t pay for shore excursions with non-refundable credits. I just pay with my credit card or ACH. No worries about spending credits, though I never seem to have a problem using them. I would never pay $160 for a winter scarf, but I’m the happy owner of one thanks to my TA.

I just finished the reverse cruise from Seward to Vancouver. I’m currently on a Jet Blue red eye from Vancouver to Boston. If you fly from Anchorage to Vancouver it should be an easy connection to Boston. You should also be able to connect to a non-stop through Seattle. I used Viking Air plus and only paid for my seat upgrade.

I just disembarked in Vancouver this morning. I collected my luggage, went through customs and met the driver outside the terminal. The same process as Los Angeles last December. Simple and easy.

I sent my suitcase home from Los Angeles last December. Simple process at the port and it arrived a week earlier than promised during Christmas week. I’ll be using them again in two days to ship my bag home from Vancouver.

1 hour ago, lackcreativity said:

Sorry, not going to convince us to go somewhere with snow on purpose! The South American one is on my list of possibilities.

I’m in Juneau Alaska right now on the Orion. It is sunny and 70 degrees. Unless you go directly to a glacier there is no snow.

To answer your question, I went to Hawaii and French Polynesia on the Star last November and I just booked it again on the Neptune at the end of January 2025. I love sea days and tropical islands.

8 hours ago, Mich3554 said:

A UK 18 is about a US 16.  This is right at the cusp of plus sized clothing.  But thanks for your suggestions, as it’s a place to start if I’m ever in this situation again.
 

My point in all of this is that when you see someone dressed in something that doesn’t look right, don’t assume that there is much of a choice in the matter and have a bit of compassion about their situation.  

I’m in the US and wear a size26/28. Most of my clothes are from the Ulla Popken catalog which is based in Germany. I’m really looking forward to finding their store in Salzburg when I do a Christmas Markets tour in December.

On 7/20/2024 at 11:02 AM, Groovybusybee said:

Gosh, it takes real talent to home bake stuff that tastes factory made!! I was never 100% sure if the white sliced stuff at breakfast was supposed to be bread or cake……..so sweet!

 

 

If it’s not near the toaster it’s brioche. I learned the hard way that it’s not near the toaster because it burns very quickly. I thought it was delicious. I could live on bread and bakery items (though not for very long!) and I never found anything I didn’t like. I avoid bagels pretty much everywhere though.

The water in the sink isn’t filtered like the drinking water. 

Just a suggestion, coffee and tea will both taste better if you use the water provided in the carafes than the water from the bathroom sink. 

5 hours ago, CDNPolar said:

 

 

PRH says no guidance and Zippeedee says "classes"?

 

So is there guidance or classes, or just groups of guests coming together voluntarily?  

There were classes with a teacher and provided materials. The watercolor classes had a little art show near the end of the cruise. I think the other classes were macrame but I’m not certain. There was supposed to be a Zentangle class but the person teaching it had to leave due to an emergency.

We also had 21 sea days so there was plenty of time. 

On the Hawaii and French Polynesia cruise in November we had both craft corner in the Wintergarden and watercolor and other craft classes in another area.

There was a shared table option when I made my dinner reservations last month. I prefer to sit alone but the tables are so close together I make friends anyway.

5 hours ago, LindaS272 said:

Really surprised they didn’t close the thermal spa during rough seas. I have been on VO when they have drained the warm pool & the pool midships.

Our weather wasn’t dangerously bad. I never saw the seasick bags out at least. It was a weird bumpy ride, but apparently I was the only one trying to enjoy the spa pool.

5 hours ago, Patriot1791 said:

Star Feb14, 2024 - deck 5 midship - 40ft seas for 3 days going out and slightly less returning. We don't suffer sea sickness so we never missed a meal. The thermal spa was particularly invigorating and cresting a 40 ft swell, becoming weightless (floating in bed) was added enjoyment. Bottom line, we chose this cruise for the sea days and we enjoyed every one of then despite and due to the weather. Crew was great and entertainment top notch  🙂

This past November I found out why no one else was in the spa pool when we hit a huge swell and I got thrown into a wall. The sauna was much safer. It did feel at one point that we were bouncing to Bora Bora but I’d do it again anytime!

This is the Starlink coverage map. There is less coverage at the poles. This is interactive on the website so you can move to any part of the earth.

This is not the totality of products available on the Star but I do think they have their priorities in order. 

On 5/9/2024 at 7:30 PM, z111 said:

 

 

We're in NW Montana and up until literally today, it's been pretty wintry. 🙂 
We prefer cooler weather and don't do well in heat. (I've also wondered if the room would have some way to get cool air in but i guess with the balcony that's all good.)

My favorite weather is sunny, dry, 40°-70F (but sunny and dry might not happen either, but that's ok.)
 

The air conditioning works quite well. In Hawaii and Tahiti it was in the upper 80’s and very humid. My cabin was cool and comfortable all the time.

7 hours ago, CJANDH said:

As I cannot see yet what the included excursions are for my cruise, I was basing my "lame" comment on WanderingBrit's description: Many included excursions will be a bus ride to local sights, with commentary by a guide and stops for photos or exploration.

 

Glad that this may not be as lame as it sounds.

The opposite is also true. As one with mobility issues (the literal definition of “lame” I suppose) if the included excursion is a walking tour, I have to hope I can book an optional tour before they sell out. 

I’m booked on this cruise too. The gratuity is $289 per person.