2cruisecats

SYDNEY Tour Options

We were in Sydney 3 days on our own so covered a lot of the sites.  A tour of the Sydney Opera was one of our "must do's". Easy to book on your own but I think Viking also offers it as an excursion. There are stairs & more stairs but the Opera guide will direct you to elevator if needed.  After the Opera House tour, have a nice lunch or drink on the patio and watch the ships.  Then tour the botanical gardens "next door".  That whole area is very nice. We sat in the garden & watched the first sail in of a Virgin ship. (Helicopters were flying with it to film the sail in and then the ship got grounded in the harbour!) They got to dock at The Rocks while the Viking ship was in an industrial area.  Viking did provided a shuttle.

The Rocks is another great place to tour, esp on a weekend with the local artisans market. The larger cruise ships tend to dock here.

First full day on board I booked a massage and then added myself to the Included Panoramic Sydney tour that afternoon. It did go out of the city centre to a couple of good lookout spots and then on to Bondi Beach. Take it if you want to see Bondi Beach.  Otherwise I'm sure there are better excursions.

My DH did the full day optional Blue Mountain excursion which he said was great. 

8 minutes ago, BrendaEDH said:

Thank you @2cruisecats!  I will definitely contact First Light Travel for help with pre-cruise week in NZ.  

You could probably get assistance from them on yourAustralia  post-cruise too. We met a couple from Nova Scotia (actually, my University town!) at the Clay Cliffs in NZ who were doing a 5 week Australia/New Zealand Tour arranged by our First Light advisor!  They said they really enjoyed Tasmania and recommended spending a few days there.

On 4/28/2024 at 1:06 PM, new2cruise said:

This is such an excellent review.  We're going on this same cruise and I'd like to invite others that have gone on this cruise to please add their own insights on the Viking excursions or other options at each port.

Melbourne, Laneways & Alleys  -- Not a Viking excursion as it was sold out, so we did it on our own with a little help from CC Australian contacts. Starts about a 10 minute walk from shuttle drop off point (Melbourne Skydeck?). We had a great time following the map checking out the interesting sights (yes, do walk to the end of the Alleys. Great graffiti and mini gardens.).  Took a ton of pix, stopped for lunch and wandered some more before a final coffee stop next to a great chocolate shop.Lots of people watching that day.  Aussies love coffee & chocolate. So many interesting little shops and sights. Or if you want to visit the botanical gardens, it's about a 20 minute walk form the drop-off.    (Using our phone for direction assist did help on this tour.)

walk-arcades-lanes.pdf (melbourne.vic.gov.au)

Melbourne city street art and graffiti tour - Walking Maps

16 hours ago, BrendaEDH said:

By chance do you remember the name of the NZ travel group? We are booked on the Aus/NZ cruise in Feb. 2025 and are just starting to plan our pre-cruise week in NZ and 10-12 days post cruise in Australia.  

Yes, we used First Light Travel. They focus on Australia, New Zealand and nearby Islands. Our contact was Danielle.  Fantastic to deal with. We will be using this company again when we head back to Australia/NZ. We liked that they listen to what you want and not just "here's the top 10 things you must do in ..." unlike the first company we tried for our upcoming Iceland trip.  Enjoy your time down under.  If you want anymore info, let me know .... Linda 

(Check out their FB page. Lots of reviews & pix.  We submitted a review in January for the NZ portion of our trip)

3 hours ago, PasadenaDave said:

Like you, we stayed at BritoMart Hotel, which we found via airline points which we also used for Marriott in Sydney at the end of the cruise.

 

We like pre-cruise extensions for certain destinations such as Istanbul, but others not so much.  Examples of silliness:

• Departed ship in Sydney and took taxi to Sydney Marriott and checked in.  We left the hotel one hour later and the long line of Viking people waiting in line to check in.
• Spent pre-cruise at Chateau Frontenac in Quebec on a HAL cruise.  We saw the pre-cruise desk and inquired about transport to the ship.  $40ppCAN and need to be in lobby at 0900, when I said that 10:45 cab will get us to the ship prior to opportunity to board we were told that there won't be many taxis available.  No wait for taxi and it was ten bucks!
• Post cruise extension in Venice was worth the money spent for fabulous hotel and free water taxi to airport and no hassle with transfers with luggage in Venice.

Having said this, I do understand that many have challenges with understanding new places and if pre-excursions allow them to see these places despite it being very expensive that is good

 

BritoMart was a great location. We had several v good meals in nearby restaurants. Did you eat at Ghost Street  (off hotel alley & Asian Fusion) ?

$40 for a transfer from Chateau Frontenac to the ship? Heck, if it wasn't for luggage & all  those steps you could walk it. Quebec City is a fav place.  We got stranded there a number of times during winter storms when we were driving from Ottawa home to the Maritimes for Christmas. It is so pretty in the winter.

We too tend to do our own pre & post cruise arrangements, book our own trains in Norway and stay in a different hotel than is being used by the cruise line. It does take a bit more effort.  We just finalized our Iceland pre-cruise -- 2 weeks in the Westfjords.  Now, when we do our Expedition trip next year, we'll let Viking do those arrangements! 

On 5/13/2023 at 8:39 PM, PasadenaDave said:

Do you suggest doing a pre cruise in Auckland on your own?   It seems with a compact city and language similar to North American English that paying extra for a Viking pre cruise doesn’t seem necessary.

Yes, a self pre-cruise in Auckland is quite easy to do and a great way to get over that long flight.  Highly recommend it.  In November we did 3 weeks pre-cruise in NZ/AUstralia, starting with a few days in Auckland.  We stayed at the Britomart, a v short walk to where the cruise ships dock & the ferry terminal.  We wandered the city & discovered the Art Gallery -- a great place to visit on a rainy day.  Next day we "hiked" out to the War Memorial Museum.  Great exhibit on NZ history and the surrounding park is lovely.  The Museum is built on a dormant volcano.  Another day we booked a wine tour on Waiheke Island.  We took the ferry (about a 10 minute walk from our hotel) and were picked up on arrival by our guide -- 8 of us in a min-van.   We enjoyed the Island so much & plan to stay there for a few days when we head back to NZ in a few years. (Auckland seemed about a year behind us in Covid recovery. )  We then flew to Nelson on the South Island where we picked up a car for 2 weeks. We ended in Christchurch and flew to Sydney for a few days before starting our cruise. (Interesting note - everyday we were in Auckland we had rain at some point.  Coming back from a beautiful sunny day on Waiheke Island we sailed into the Auckland rain.  Crazy. Our time in NZ South Island was arranged with the help of a great NZ travel group.)

On 4/23/2024 at 12:19 PM, Jim Avery said:

I have never, in a long "career" sailing on cruise ships, ever seen any cruise line stay the same.  Unfortunately they seem to all fall into the "bigger is better" mantra and move away from what originally made them so successful.  In 8 years sailing Viking we have seen notable changes in food and service.  Still good but not the Wow! of the first voyages.  Our next two bookings are on Explora Journeys and Scenic Ocean.  Both new lines with good reviews mostly.  But then back to Viking for a couple of river cruises.  As has been said many times before, the only constant in life is change.  We just go with what works at the time.🍸

I think we'd all be very interested in hearing your thoughts on Explora and Scenic Ocean after your travels. We've an Ocean and 2 Expeditions booked but always interested in other options.

Two cruises ago, a gentleman sat beside us and I started coughing.  He said I should be isolating.  I should have told him to go and shower off his cologne.  Instead, I had my dh run to the cabin for my inhaler as a gasped and hacked and headed to the washroom.  Our kind waiter moved us & food & drink to another table away from the sickening smell. I don't think the guy even realized the problem.  I now carry the inhaler with me on board. I do have a fear that some day a cologne or perfume will kill me. 

On 3/28/2024 at 8:06 AM, mjthecruiser said:

I have also been trying to dind this out with little success.

As suggested, I also posted on the Viking Forum ....  There is also another post on this Forum that I just saw -- same question.   There doesn't seem to be a lot of info on the excursion but most agree it is demanding.

and then there is this thread

3 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

 

I am a bit surprised that Viking rated these 2 excursions differently.  I would have rated them either both Demanding or both Moderate.  

I would choose whichever one you wish!  Hoping that helps relieve any indecision.  Feel free to email me and I can say more and send you some pics from both excursions -  

kjstong at gmail dot com

 

Kent

Thank You! Great info.  We have until April 4th to decide. Yes, I've left this  investigation a little late as we've been focusing on the 10 day self-drive tour of the Westfjords we're dong ahead of the cruise. Email coming -- love to see your pix.

17 minutes ago, Nitemare said:

Can you link to a description?  There *are* some harder hikes in the area, depending on what is included, but it can also be a very sedate tour

Here's the description provided for the tour -- "  scenic drive to the Dimmuborgir lava fields, known for their dramatic rock formations, with some reaching up to 65 feet high. Continue to Dettifoss, Europe’s most powerful waterfall, and admire its cascade of water as it tumbles into the Jökulsárgljúfur. At the Hljóðaklettar—or Whispering Cliffs—marvel at the craters and basalt columns, formed by the flood waves of the Vatnajökull ice cap. After a delicious two-course lunch, head to Húsavík on the shores of Skjálfandi."

The Diamond Circle excursion (Viking -  Iceland’s Natural Beauty cruise) is listed as a full day and a demanding excursion. From the description, it seems more moderate? If you have done this excursion, did you find it demanding? And, if demanding, what made it demanding — length of walking or difficult terrain or ..? Trying to decide between Diamond Circle (preferred) and Northern Iceland’s Natural Treasures, another full day excursion but listed as moderate.

Iceland’s Natural Beauty Cruise - In Akureyri, The Diamond Circle excursion is listed as a full day and a demanding excursion. From the description, it seems more moderate? If you have done this excursion, did you find it demanding? And, if demanding, what made it demanding — length of walking or difficult terrain or ..? Trying to decide between Diamond Circle (preferred) and Northern Iceland’s Natural Treasures, another full day excursion but listed as moderate.

On 3/4/2024 at 5:17 AM, CDNPolar said:

We booked onboard and then moved the booking and kept the onboard booking discount.

 

I would say that you should call Viking reservations, "suggest" what. you want to do, and ask if all will remain the same.  If they tell you no, thank them, ask them to leave the booking alone and end your call.

 

Call back and talk to another Viking agent and see if you get a different story.

 

We have found that Viking WANT to keep your booking but if you don't ask the right questions, you won't always get the right answers.

 

ONE THING:  Suggest that you want to MODIFY the booking you have, not cancel and move to another booking.  If you modify the booking you have you keep the same booking number.  

The word MODIFY is very important!  We recently modified our Far Eastern Horizons booking into an Expedition booking. Same booking number & did not lose any of the onboard discounts/advantages. Logged into my MVJ a few days later and the change already made to our account.

My DH and I can't agree on a favourite cruise with Viking.  His choice is Homelands, our first Viking cruise.  When we did this cruise, it still included St Petersburg which was a great memory for me, being able to compare it to a student trip in the 70s.

My favourite would be In The Wake of The Vikings.  Yes, crossing the North Atlantic in the fall can mean missed ports and rough seas. We missed Shetlands and one Greenland stop but the captain made up for that day with a great fjord cruise to a fab glacier. The Faroes was a wonderful.  L'Anse aux Meadows was a rough tender ride but we made it! (Friends who did this on Princess warned us that NFLD was often skipped.)

One we can both agree on -- Into the Midnight Sun.  Fabulous cruise but missed the Shetlands on this one too. And if you are looking for a river cruise, check out the Grand European. (But take some time in Prague and Budapest too).

If you want a particular side or area, ask and they will do their best to accommodate you. Side note! Last cruise, we asked to be set in Adri’s section.  Little did we know there were a few by that name.  We should have specified side ( port or starboard) and even the 100 or 200 section!

On 12/24/2023 at 7:36 PM, notjaded said:

OP here. Thanks to all who responded to my initial query.

 

I have an OT followup, courtesy of Ms Cruise: Does anyone find the provided shower gel/shampoo/conditioner to have an objectionable fragrance?

 

Thanks again.

Me again ... I am scent sensitive. I love the Viking Freya shampoo/conditioner/body lotion and do not feel the need to pack my own products.  Made the mistake on this last cruise of using the products in the Spa.  The LIV products do have a strong scent and I ended up back in the cabin washing my hair (twice) to get the smell out.  (One of the reasons I like the ship's laundry service -- no detergent smell. I found the self laundry detergent to have a faint scent.) 

4 hours ago, -Lew- said:

 

We disembarked the Sky on November 30th.  Below is the laundry form we used onboard which shows dry cleaning as available.

 

Chemicals are still used but are not as harsh to people and environment as those previously employed.

 

 

We got off the Orion on Dec 19th.  Wish I had a copy of the laundry request to show, but do remember seeing -- minimal moisture and minimal ???.  Our room genie explained the new process and then told me  that the brand new ship wouldn't have chemical cleaning (he was most excited about the new ship, not the cleaning process LOL) .  I'll see if I can dig up the cleaning info. I wonder if this is a change that is slowly being introduced to the fleet or if it depends on the local environmental standards.  (We were in NZ & Australia with their tough bio-security rules) 

I'm on vacation so we have used the laundry services many times. Turnaround time is 24 hours though you can, for a fee, get faster service.  There is a spot on the laundry form for special instructions and  I have made a specific request for some items -- cold/cool wash, hang/cool dry -- and believe the request was followed as nothing came back smaller or mangled. (A few of my tops shrink at the hint of heat).

We just got back from a cruise and I noticed that dry cleaning is no longer available. It has been replaced by another method, no chemicals (sorry, can't remember the details).  I did send out a pair of DH's pants for this cleaning & all was fine.

Enjoy your cruise!

On 10/19/2023 at 5:19 PM, possum52 said:

If you want to see penguins, a visit to the Melbourne Sealife Aquarium situated on Flinders Street is a suggestion. They do have a special penguin experience which is expensive but you may like to consider it.   Penguin Experience

 

As both Marion and Geoff have given you information on the lanes and arcades. All I will add to that is don't miss the Block and Royal Arcades, they are beautiful example of Victorian architecture. 

 

Melbourne also has beautiful gardens and parks right on the doorstep of the central business district (CBD) which are worth a walk to. In the CBD, trams are free so you don't need a Myki card to use them. A walk along the Yarra River to the sporting precinct is interesting - Melbourne Cricket Ground AFL football and cricket), Melbourne Park where the Australian Open Tennis tournament is played and AAMI Park where rugby and soccer are played. All three complexes also hold concerts. 

Enjoy your day in Melbourne, whatever you choose to do.

 

 

Thank you so much for all your ideas for a Melbourne day.  We followed the arcades & lanes maps the wandered some more.  Nice lunch. Great coffee and gelato on this hot day. DH is a happy photographer!

On 10/19/2023 at 2:53 PM, arxcards said:

We found a map or two handy, or we would have missed some bits

walk-arcades-lanes.pdf (melbourne.vic.gov.au)

Melbourne city street art and graffiti tour - Walking Maps

Thanks so much for the map links.   We had a wonderful day following the arcades- lanes maps.

If anyone has done this tour, is it really "demanding" or "difficult"?  And if so, is it because of walking rough terrain or the wild ride to get there?  Really want a chance to see the penguins but my old, cranky knee may have other thoughts!

Before our NZ & Australia cruise,  we are taking a 3 week self-drive tour of the South Island.  We will need data and phone access during this time and are looking for options other than our regular cell carrier.  Phone access is for contact with our hotels,  Air B&B, etc. Has anybody used an eSim in NZ?  Did you have phone access or just data? Which one did you use?

On 10/17/2023 at 4:58 PM, possum52 said:

What are your interests? Give me an idea of what you you like to see and do and I can provide some suggestions.

We really like to wander and see interesting areas.  Take pix of the architecture while wandering cities or pix of nice scenes on country drives. And, as Melbourne is "a safe city" according to travel sites, wandering it is. If it is pouring - an interesting museum works. I know the my DH was disappointed that the Laneways tour was sold out but we figure a bus to the city would get us to some interesting areas.  (Viking often provides a shuttle service) Looking at Sydney & Melbourne maps is on our to-do list before we fly to NZ.  (My DH would bet $ for me to say I want penguins but I know, sadly, not an option due to port times.).  

On 10/15/2023 at 11:22 PM, possum52 said:

I contacted Viking via their contact messenger on their website - this is the reply I had today - 

‘Good afternoon Leigh,

 

Thank you for contacting Viking with your below query. 

 

We are in the midst of updating our Covid testing policy and once done, will be in line with the Government requirements. 

 

These testing requirements were in place for our previous season and have yet to be updated due to our first departure in AU not being until next month. 

 

If you require any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

 

Kind Regards,‘

Thank You so much for making that Viking contact!  

We are so looking forward to our Australia & New Zealand trip -- 3rd attempt! Sadly we only have one day in Melbourne.  We did not book a shore excursion as want to wander & explore but if you have any recommendations for that day they'd be appreciated.