Peregrina651

Happy to confirm everything you just said. Each cruise has its own unpredictable vibe.

Would someone who is on board now be willing to photograph and post the shorex pricelist?? There should be one in your cabin, just a list ot the tours and their cost. TIA

What you see on the Viking website are potential tours. Not all the tours shown are offered on every cruise for varying reasons (out of season, site closed the day you are there, etc.) The tours for your sailing along with prices will be available for viewing on MyVikingJourney.com about 120 days before departure.

Now that sounds like a project for this forum: a survey of launderettes fleet-wide.

The answer to this one is "yes." Each cruise has its own vibe, so there is really no such thing as "usually" to describe things that are passenger-driven. This includes: how full the MDR and buffet are at any given time of the evening, how long the line to be seated in the MDR is when it opens and how many people are choosing to sit down at 8pm, which tours fill up first and how many people are using the launderette at any given time. It has taken us a long time to learn how to pack for travel, and we still are learning. One thing that we have learned is that it depends on how many days before and after the cruise we will be traveling to determine how many outfits we need. Usually we pack clothing for 5 days and we make use of the laundry service for everything except sox and undies (which we each do in the shower using shampoo as detergent). I use the launderette sparingly, especially on a trip with no sea days. I'm on vacation; I do not want to spend time doing laundry and/or ironing. We plan on one outfit per day as opposed to two. Everything we take can be worn day or evening (except for jeans which are not permitted in the MDR, Manfredi's or Chef's Table). Fortunately, there are no formal nights on board, so DH does not pack a sports coat or a tie -- even if we have theater/concert tickets.

It is best that you confirm your issues with the restaurant staff when you board just to make sure that it has been duly noted.

If you haven't seen them already, check out these two threads: ORION -Noisy cabins ? 6072-6094 Viking Ship Juniper - Are rooms above the restaurant noisy? This thread drifted a bit and talks about cabins under Aquavit

Andy, your announcement is crushing. For you, to have been brought to this point. For those of us here, who have depended on your understanding of the industry for clear, reasonable explanations of the inner-workings and who have so enjoyed your blog. Your voice will be missed.

We were just discussing these cabins on another thread (which is not what you would expect from the title but that happens sometimes.) : Viking Ship Juniper - Are rooms above the restaurant noisy?

Three times now over the dining room and not a sound, not even the cleaning crew. We have two more sailings booked in the same vicinity. I have tried other locations but have decided that Deck 3 aft in a DV6 is my preference. Being over the dining room is a lot better than being under the buffet, where the sound of scraping chairs on bare deck is more apt to be transmitted to the deck below.

Keep checkinging. Ya never know.

Patience and perseverance!

At Skalanes Nature Reserve with a wonking powerful telephoto lens. We did Vigur Island as well but I got better shots at the nature center. BTW, my little point and shot had a high powered zoom lens on it. Instead of dealing with one body and multiple lenses, I use two different point and shoot cameras with different telephoto capabilities.

I wasn't a fan of the felt pouches but I do miss the cruise gifts, in particular, the mesh travel pouches in three sizes which are about the only travel gift that I actually continue to use.

Insider tips: Keep trying for sold out shore excursions. People change their minds and, given the demographic, people cancel at the last minute. Try again when you board the ship. Another trick is to e-mail Viking at tellus@vikingcruises.com. Tell them how every disappointed you are that thus and such shorex is sold out and ask them if they will be adding more buses to the tour. Just remember, lots of honey and no vinegar. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't -- but it can't hurt, especially if every booking in your party writes. We did this very same itinerary when Viking offered as one of the Welcome Back itineraries in 2021. It was an amazing adventure in spite of the limitations caused by Covid and all the pre-cruise hassles (like shorex not opening until just weeks before departure). Be patient. Viking will not inform anyone of changes in availability so you do have to keep checking for openings on MVJ. All advanced booking (shorex, spa, restaurants) will close 7 days prior to sailing. Here's a tease:

At least preCovid, never a doubt that I was communicating with the customer service gods of the company. I just did not know the complete significance of the name. Thanks, @photopro2 for doing the Google leg work.

Okay then, let's get you some answers -- or at least some suggestions of where to get answers. • Check out the Paris HOHO website. Someplace it should tell you the approximate time to do the loop without getting off the bus (although the Viking excursion does include a panoramic ride around). The website will also include a route map so that you can see how close it comes to the Viking drop off and meet-up points. (Download the HOHO route map to your mobile). • You need to find out the following directly from: 1) what the "panoramic bus tour" portion includes, what will they be driving you past; 2) if and where they will be making a pit stop upon arrival in Paris (there will be one on the road but hopefully there will also be one upon arrival; you can depart the tour here if it is near enough to the HOHO stop); 3) where the pick up point is and at approximately what time. Even so, this information should be confirmed as your journey gets closer and then again when you board the ship. as the details can change over time. Contact Viking at tellus@vikingcruises.com; don't bother with "chat" or the call center because they won't have the answers. Having been with Viking in Paris (but not all the way from Honfleur), I suspect that there will be a pit stop at Place de la Concorde upon arrival, before the panoramic tour begins (there will be a charge for the bathroom; euro coins will be helpful here) and that the pick up point at the end of the day will be at the Winston Churchill statue, by the Petit Palais and not far from the Place de la Concorde. Regardless, you must confirm the pick up point and time from your guide on the day of the tour. If you leave the tour before the panoramic drive around, let your guide know. Have a great time in Paris and don't over plan your day.

My worst nightmare. 😨

And even if you don't leave on your own, since there are some ports where the tour buses are on the other side of port security or no buses are involved at all. In most ports you must flash your room key to get through the gate. But no worries about forgetting your card since you cannot get off the ship without it, no exceptions. BTW, that includes leaving at disembarkation; you will have to present your keycard one last time in order to leave the ship. That is how they keep track of who is still on the ship.

And if you don't have a piece of plastic, a folded piece of paper will work. (Just make sure that it is big enough that you can get it out of the slot).

They haven't been marching so much as meandering through the planets; and, do you really thinking they are stopping with 9 ships? So, we still have time for Mercury and maybe Pluto before we have to start guessing where they are going from there. We have an Orion, so maybe back to constellations and stars?

I do the same downloading of important docs to both my phone and my tablet -- final e-docs, hotel reservations, flights, etc. They don't take up much space and at least for me, they are easier to access then fumbling around on the internet.

Thanks. You had way more patience than I did. 😉 However, It is not a roll call until it is moved to the Roll Call forum. @randibee, as thread starter, has two choices. This thread can be moved there (I think that the request has to be made by the person who started the thread) OR simply start a new thread in the roll call section (Viking Jupiter Roll Calls) using the same title as was used here. Personally, I suggest option 2 because it will get rid of our long explanations including where we say that this thread is not a roll call (which would only confuse people).

Good thought. I never thought of steps. I was thinking about space in the Viking tender for people and luggage.

C, normally, yes, that is the plan. Times are announced the day before and guests who are not using Viking transfers can depart at any time before the stated "you must be off the ship" time (usually, but not always, 10am based on my experiences). But Jerry asked about disembarking in Greenwich, where tendering is involved. So the big question for those who do not have Viking transfers is if they can depart at any time or are all pax assigned a departure time and expected to depart at that time. That's why I said it was a good question, because we don't know if there is a different procedure in Greenwich because of the tendering involved; I don't think I have seen it mentioned on CC. Hopefully someone with an independent transfer who has docked in Greenwich will speak up. The other question I would also be asking at this time, since we usually carry our own luggage off the ship, is if we are allowed to do this if we are using tenders (or must we put our luggage out for collection the evening before).