millybess

I'm not sure what the issue is in the USA, but in Canada the Brazilian government has an issue with our reciprocity in visa exemptions. Whereas, my issue is we can't board the ship in San Juan without a visa for Brazil.

Yes, as I've said since this became an issue, that seems to be the consensus of people I've talked to. Fingers crossed!!

I have no idea why your gratuities increased in price, however, I do recall some posters on CC having their Silver Spirits Beverage Package prices increase upon receiving their final invoice -- after having paid for said package at an earlier time. As far as enjoying alcoholic beverages in public spaces, we have enjoyed their beverages and our own beverages in all sorts of public spaces on the ship, so I think that is erroneous information. We have never been charged a corkage fee and until now, I have never heard of that on Viking. If that is the case, we do carry our own corkscrews -- in fact, a couple of them. If you don't like the answers you are getting via chat or telephone, chat or call back until you do. Such are the workings of the LA office. No worries, IMO.

NP ropomo. We were hoping that the same would happen here and we would just be able to go to the Brazilian Consulate and get our visa. I think that with their new rules, one has to get an e-visa and apply online and unfortunately they aren't set up for that at the moment. Our problem is that we are departing Toronto on January 18th and their new rules come into effect on January 10th. It really doesn't give us much time. Thanks for your input.

That's really interesting. So you have a new visa for 2024?

The latest from our consulate. I just received this email today. Dear Madam, Visitor visas for Canadians are not yet available to the public. The Government is working on the online platform that will be used by applicants to request electronic visitor visas. The visa will be issued electronically, with no need to attend the Consulate. We suggest visiting the visa section of our website in early December for updates on the availability of the new platform. https://www.gov.br/mre/pt-br/consulado-toronto/visas Best regards / Cordialmente, Consulate General of Brazil in Toronto Consulado-Geral do Brasil em Toronto http://toronto.itamaraty.gov.br

The latest from our consulate. I just received this email today. Dear Madam, Visitor visas for Canadians are not yet available to the public. The Government is working on the online platform that will be used by applicants to request electronic visitor visas. The visa will be issued electronically, with no need to attend the Consulate. We suggest visiting the visa section of our website in early December for updates on the availability of the new platform. https://www.gov.br/mre/pt-br/consulado-toronto/visas Best regards / Cordialmente, Consulate General of Brazil in Toronto Consulado-Geral do Brasil em Toronto http://toronto.itamaraty.gov.br

That sounds like a very nice trip. Several of our roll call members will be spending a few days in Hong Kong and you will be enjoying the Viking Orion for 2 weeks before we board.

Same at YYZ the last time we were through, which was in June.

?

Yes, it’s a difficult call. We signed up for the Grand Explorer and then decided it was too long a cruise for us (homesickness on my part - lol). So for this particular cruise we would have to do it in segments. 2024 is Hong Kong to Vancouver. 2025 is Auckland to Bali (possibly Bangkok - both are booked) I like dining at Manfredis, but I agree, not at 8:30. Dining reservations are not important to us. Experiencing as much as possible in the country we’re in is very important to us. Being on the back end of this cruise just means we have to be more prepared. As I said above, we like most of the excursions Viking is offering, especially in Japan. So we will have to find private tours. I enjoy doing research, so I think we will be able to find comparable tours — possibly more comprehensive and maybe less expensive! I may be mistaken, but I think you were looking for a cabin on this particular cruise some time ago?

I think you are on the same cruise as CurlerRob and his DW and me and my DH. The 4 of us join the cruise in Hong Kong.

Thanks @DrKoob. Yes, this is helpful.

Thanks @CurlerRob for the info. We usually do a mixture of private and Viking excursions, so I think, in this case, we will be looking at more private tours. We like many of the tours Viking is offering for this cruise, but I should start looking for alternatives. We're very much looking forward to April!

If you have Viking cruises booked, try using a different email address than the one you have used for your booking(s). That has worked for us.

We will be cruising with Viking for the last 5 weeks of a 90+ day cruise. A question for anyone who has had experience with a Viking segmented cruise, does Viking hold back reservations for excursions, etc. for the later segments?

Our TA is in Vancouver. She provides refundable OBC which we can see credited to our account once we embark. No, it’s not geo-restricted.

That is very odd. The same SNUBA excursion has been offered as included on our cruise and it sold out yesterday. As soon as it sold out, it then showed as $142 per person, but still sold out. It has always been shown as included, not optional, since the day the shore excursions were posted.

Sorry to disagree with you @MikeyB. We always book through Viking. We immediately inform our TA via email what we have booked with the booking number so that she can transfer the booking. Viking always informs us that our final payment is due via email. We phone Viking directly with the e-cheque information in order to get the discount. They are always happy to take our payment and that's when the LA office is most efficient. 😊

Who did you tip to get that?

You are exactly right and that is very good advice for @Crestawave

JMO, Manfredi's is good, but not it's not worth upgrading your cabin.

Right. This is Viking we're talking about. There are posts here on CC about people who have had the price of the previously paid SSBP package changed on their final invoice!

You are right, it does state $25 per night. This is obviously a typo. Given currency fluctuations, it should state $25 USD per night. On the same page it gives you the total amount, and that is in $CDN. However, when the rep told you "....but when on MVJ, the prices are quoted in USD", that is false. The shore excursions and the total SSBP price are clearly in $CDN.

There are loungers there. I’m not certain they are exactly in the smokers’ area, but close enough that you could certainly move one there. And yes, you will be able to see the water from there. Enjoy!