ekkc10753

I’ve finally been able to sign back in.
Thank you for all your support and helpful suggestions. I’ve followed up on them all, so far crickets chirping from Viking.

I’m currently on the Viking World Journey from LA to London. Live TV is kaput and has been since we boarded in LA  (so no Iowa caucuses or play-off games)  Viking is “working on it” but we’re a week into the cruise and leaving American waters with no resolution.

Several washing machines and dryers on each deck are out of order and were reported by the passengers boarding in Florida. Leaving the land of Home Depot and Lowe’s today so getting them fixed seems unlikely before our next port in 5 days in French Polynesia 

 So, bottom line, I don’t know what’s going on here. The voucher issue is not going to change it would seem.

But things here on this journey seem to be slipping a bit ☹️ and that’s worrisome given the political situation in several of our future ports

Long story short, I have slightly over $52,000 in vouchers from Viking. I have them due to cruise cancellations by Viking due to Covid or cruises cancelled by me upon the death of my husband.

Sort of the lemonade from all those lemons, right?

so I want to use those vouchers to book two cabins, one for my sister & her husband and one for me.

I'll be leaving a good bit on the table because of Viking's "use it or lose it" rules and the cruise I chose for us is around $10,000 pp (plus my single supplement) So it comes out to around $40,000, leaving $12,000 on the table. I was willing to do that. 

But Viking say NO, split the vouchers between 2 people, all others must pay cash! 

Which means I get $26,000 voucher and may use my voucher (or cash) to pay for my no longer existant husband ( 'The Single Supplement')

My sister also gets a $26,000 voucher, but MAY NOT use it to pay for her flesh and blood husband

AND all voucher value not redeemed BEFORE EMBARKATION is lost! ...... That'll be a lot!!!

These vouchers represent real cash that Viking has held since Covid times;

I think I should be able to use them within the company the way any sane person would imagine.

I don't think I was being unreasonable, but Viking said NO DICE, THESE ARE OUR RULES (today?)

Am I the assh*ole here?

Having cruised with AOV in the Mediterranean, I can tell you that “making a big show” will not be a problem at all; they’re very good at that.!

The problem your parents might encounter though is that despite the small size of the ship, there are a surprising number of tendering ports in the Mediterranean. The staff are very helpful getting everyone on and off the tenders, but the stairs down to the tendering platform are steep and the part of the step that you actually step on is fairly narrow.

Also the gangway that was used for the majority of our non-tendering ports has slightly curved steps with unstable handrails. Staff helped my friend down and up, she uses a cane and is a bit wobbly; but it might be a serious challenge for a person who needs a walker to get from here to there

If you count 3 B2B cruises as 3, I’ve been on 5 AOV trips beginning in 2021 (barely post Covid) and continuing until this month.

A number of issues that existed in 2021 continue, namely:

the bare functionality of the website,

the abysmal communication between corporate and passengers, and between front desk and passengers

the ridiculous on-board Wi-Fi situation,

the unnecessarily complex shore excursion brochures and booking procedure,

the clear impression that certain guests who complain vociferously are rewarded with some really nice perks (like getting to stay onboard for the next cruise for a reduced fare when the ship isn’t full…I heard about that, thought it was idle gossip, but watched in dismay as I saw it was fact

And the over-all feeling that the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing and doesn’t much care what you think either.

Don’t misunderstand, I really like AOV but AOV seems unsure of what it wants to be and how to become that vision. The atmosphere on each of the cruises I’ve been on has been wildly different, from an excellent on-board Independent Film festival complete with directors and writers, screenings and lectures to a grotesque half-naked exotic dance troop bellying up to guests as they were dining, women collecting tips in their bras and the men in their little pants. Very athletic, but not really fine dining appropriate 

So, what’s the vision here? Where are you headed? Which tier of cruising are you hoping to join?

I think, if they keep this up, they're going to price themselves out of the market. Without a "deal" like the one I'm taking advantage of, I wouldn't consider sailing with them as much as I truly enjoyed my first cruise with them ~ but truth be told, that was a "deal" too so what can I say/

just because that seems like a (or possibly THE)   major subject of discussion, it'd make it easier for those seeking information about Atlas's Antarctica expeditions. 

It'd also make it easier for those of us who've been there (or who don't care) to share info about ATLAS in general

My sister and I sailed with Atlas in October of 2021 on a deal "too good to be true" and all in all we had a fine time. Covid was still an issue and that created extra hoops to jump through. Atlas's airfare, which was included at that time, didn't work out as well as we'd hoped either. But both of us are well travelled and could adapt.

The Ship is very intimate so you get to know pretty much everyone fairly quickly. On our  cruise there was an Independent Film Festival, which brought film makers on board for screenings and talks. and there was a sports personality that many people knew,: he spoke as well. Other than that and a very fine piano player, there's nothing to do on board but chat with your fellow passengers, or create your own amusement, which was fine as far as we were concerned.

The food was very good, I thought, with portions small enough that you didn't feel bloated after dinner. Extensive accommodations were made for folks with dietary issues.

The cabins seemed smaller than average but my experience is limited to HAL and Viking; the bathroom (especially the shower) is lovely and there's ample storage for all your stuff. When we sailed with them, they stocked your free mini bar with your personal preferences and spirits flow freely outside your cabin if you desire them.

I suppose the fact that I have two more Atlas cruises booked for 2023 , one solo and one with friends speaks to my general satisfaction,

.

this is such an old post that you may not be following anymore but I'll tag it and follow in case you come back with questions that I can answer

Oh Thank you all! I'll get to work on these suggestions tomorrow, a three day weekend is a lot of time to tackle all my questions!

I've booked the Grand Pacific Voyage for 2023, It will be the longest (by far)  cruise that I've ever taken and also my very first solo cruise. (I had a LOT of vouchers after my husband died)

What is there to do on all the sea days; I'll bring my books and my cross stitch (but that only goes so far.) What's there to do on board?

Are there any activities specifically for solo travellers? Are the passengers who are doing the entire 90+ days introduced to one another somehow?

If you've done this cruise before, do you remember any particular highlights? or anything you wished you'd packed? or brilliant things you're so glad you had?

I feel reasonably confident in the general cruise department, but this one is very long and covers a lot of weather types to say nothing of cultures.

I'm excited about it but a little freaked out about what I've done in booking this and any helpful tips, thoughts or soothing would be much appreciated!
 

well, I must've either screwed this up or my travel agent isnt as great as the ones you guys seem to have,

I transferred a Grand Pacific Viking cruise reservation that I'd made directly with Viking to a travel agent who was recommended by a family member, (Grand Pacific is 90 + days and I'm paying the crippling single supplement as well)

Any time I ask her about OBC or a small financial bone that could be tossed to me, she says "It's sold out and Viking isn't offering any OBC on this"

Admittedly, I don't sail until September of 2023 so things could change, but I was feeling grouchy about this before and now, after reading these posts, I think I really screwed up by transferring my booking to her.

This is my first big trip since i lost my husband (he's not misplaced, dead is what he sadly is) 

Any one have any useful advice for me? I'd really appreciate the help!

We’re on board and have been told arrival will be 11AM. Had to rebook our flight home, luggage direct is cancelled (which is a serious sadness) so are all the possible “fill in the time before your flight” Fort Lauderdale excursions.

Apologies have been offered but nothing else. I realize these things happen but a little nod to the inconvenienced passengers would be nice. I’ll get home close to midnight with a 40 min drive to my house instead of my original 6PM arrival. I really don’t like driving in the dark and the snow!!

just off their Caribbean cruise, we booked at the 40% off offer and then added the Sail now, Sail Later offer which made all the little hiccups in the Caribben a lot more palatable.

Atlas definitly has some wrinkles to iron out but with a good offer and some patience/flexibility it's a very fine experience.

I could go into more detail if you like (I'll "follow the topic")

That's very encouraging! Thank you both! I'm so looking forward to a this vacation - no dishes, no cooking, just the big blue sea and sky!

9 minutes ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

Actually what is going to happen with at least Royal Caribbean and I also believe Carnival to begin with is they will NOT ask for proof of the Vaccine card but when you check in they will say all passengers 12 and older must come this way to get a Covid test, but we need to charge you (most likely $150 to $250) per person. But have signs up all over stating Vaccinated Passengers do not need to be tested. It is Up to the passengers at that point to speak up and say" I am vaccinated here's my proof. This way they are volunteering the information and the cruise line is not asking for it. I also believe this information will be all over their website for check in worded in a way that just reflects information not stating they need the proof. This way it will be their choice get tested 2 to 4 times and pay a whole lot of money to the cruise line each time or just get vaccinated for free prior to the cruise.  Really everyone has a choice including the cruise line that just wants to protect their crew, their passengers and most of all the Future of their business and cruising.

So if I'm understanding this correctly, unvaccinated passengers can check in, pay to be tested, and if negative, board the ship.  And then a few shore excursions later, be tested again and conceivably test positive and thats the end of the cruise for all of us?

please tell me I've misunderstood!!

Frankly I hope the ships are 100% vaccinated. I wish there were a way to ensure that. Someone suggested getting around DeSantis by having the regular cruise price and a special cruise price for unvaccinated, that one being another couple thousand or so.  Could encourage the unvaccinated to either get vaccinated or stay home!

We have 3 weeks or so booked B2B for the Caribbean next winter, but only to escape the Northeastern PA winter not for any love of the place. Final payment is due in Nov., if the ship's not fully vaccinated we'll be building snowmen at home instead. 

We were on one of the last ships to make it into Port Everglades last time, almost jumped ship in the Virgin Islands so we could fly home from there

 I'm not doing that again, too stressful!

Someone told me "buy what you know and buy what you love" so I do. Hope to be able to make a tidy sum on CCL to fund some good long cruises as I get older (...and older...waiting...for a cruise)

Especially since I don't seem to be one to the "average people" that StoryLines is pitching their residential ship to (but boyoboy do I wish I were!)

Neither of us got one either, we're 4 Star. I would think they'd like to know what we thought, but maybe not. Viking has sent us a couple and I feel that they've listened to the opinions voiced in the surveys especially with regard to Health and Safety

I owned 100 shares of CCL purchased at around 30 and definitly got my nickle's worth of OBC and then I bought 100 more when CCL was around 58 or so. It was pretty painful to see the stock at 9 😒 so to lessen the pain, I bought more and sold the higher cost shares. I'm glad to see the pros think it was not a dumb move!

We probaby won't see $50 in the near future, but $8 shares bought now would make for a very nice gift or inheritance for the children or grandchildren!

(And I'd bet that we see $20 within 2-3 years!) 

I have a deposit on a 21 day winter cruise in 2021, maybe then instead of buying 100 shares at $8, I'll make a deposit on another cruise! It'll give us something to look forward to while we wait for the governor of PA to allow liquor sales to resume in our state and might help demonstrate demand too!

oh well, seemed like a possible good idea.

I do have stock from the heady days when it sold in the $60 range and I'll buy 100 today and consider it a charitable contribution or longterm investment, depending on my mood

And I'll look forward to better days at sea on our 21 day cruise booked for Feb 2021!!

Would it help our lovely HAL survive if we all bought some more shares of CCL?

Would that help their bottom line? Are stocks an important way that companies make money and survive bad times? I'd buy some more if it would save our ships!

Full disclosure: I've owned shares for years because I really like HAL, but I know nothing about structuring, restructuring, bonds etc - I looked at previous thread about "financials" and couldn't make heads or tails out of it!

On 12/23/2019 at 2:05 PM, TraelorMex said:

just off this very cruise. don't forget to stop at diamond's international for your 'free' bracelet. (you'll be stopping at dozens of em)  🤑

 

on the plus side, I didn't notice any 'art' auctions on board....

I’m not entirely certain that I’ll even get off the ship; I’m already thinking of the Konigsdam as my favorite Caribbean Island!!

On 12/22/2019 at 4:37 PM, avian777 said:

Can't answer your questions about the Retreat, but have some comments on Sel de Mer and Rudi's Sel de Mer.  We have eaten at both SdMs and were very pleased with both ... and I really didn't think either one was "expensive" although, like you, I realize that is a very relative concept.

Since I wasn't certain which of the Sel de Mers you were referring to, I'm attaching a "sample" menu for each.

rudi's-sel-de-mer SAMPLE MENU 11-17.pdf 191.35 kB · 13 downloads sel-de-mer(1) 3-14-17.pdf 99.65 kB · 10 downloads

Thanks! Really looking forward to it!

That’s an excellent idea!

and I’ve heard “no” before, so I’m pretty sure I can deal with it 😊