Sleep7

🙋‍♀️Thanks for the info MikeyB. I did call my agent at Viking about it and he said it wasn't good on the voyage we have a deposit on.. just a new voyage if we wanted to book one.😊

Good luck!🙌🏻

We always take the ships transfer to the airport when available. It’s just easy and always has worked out well for us. If you book it once on board you can use your OBC to pay for it which is nice.

👋🏻Hi Deec! I didn't notice that people saved the tables for lunch or dinner but I do agree that in the main restaurant it would be nice if there was a mix of tables for 2, 4 in addition to the usual 8 or 10. If space was a problem then maybe they could set up some tables for 2 or 4 in the far end of the lounge just inside from the Aquavit terrace. Sometimes you just want to sit and stare or have a quick bite and not feel like you are rushing everyone else at the table. I also think that a buffet at lunch would lend more to this since everyone would be going and coming at different times.😊

🙋‍♀️Hello tobique33040! Thank you so much for your sweet words about my "beautiful report." That's such a wonderful compliment. It really was a fantastic cruise.. as you said you have seen those ports before and must have loved them too. I hope your travel buddy says yes and you can visit again! Thanks again and happy sails to you.😊

🙋‍♀️Hi again TL! No.. seating doesn't seem to be a problem on river cruises from my experience. Most everyone is in the lounge at 6:45 to listen to the port talk for the next day and then when it's over at around 7pm everyone in the lounge walks downstairs at the same time and files into the dining room. Every one just seems to find their usual seats or new seats and it all just works out nicely.😊

🙋‍♀️Hi BuckGood! Oh I'm so glad you enjoyed the review and thanks for your compliments. How exciting that you are leaving so soon for your cruise and such a delightfully lengthy one too AND in a suite!👏 On river cruises I have found that there really isn't a "dress for dinner" as such. Most nights we just wore what we wore during the day. I think I changed into a dress one or two of the nights for dinner but just because I had brought some dresses along so I figured why not. It's all very casual and relaxing.. you are in for a treat!!😊

😁We need to attend "Overpackers Anonymous" together!👜👜👜

🙋‍♀️Ahh... clever idea gnome12. Separate the items that will be worn on the hotel days before.. will try that next time.✔️ Thanks!

🙋‍♀️Good morning mozfoz and FetaCheese! Of course you are both right about how did that happen when it was 💯 stated on the Viking website.🫣 Totally on me that I didn't read further into the daily itinerary before I booked the cruise. I did click on the day by day overview and saw the outline of the trip but didn't click on each day to see where of course it clearly says.. "check into hotel.. check out of hotel.. etc." I guess I had an 11 day cruise in mind and didn't follow up on the specifics of it. It's funny.. I actually discussed this with more than a few people on the ship who thought exactly the same thing! Maybe they were just being nice.😊 I also thought that Bucharest was on the Danube but that's a whole other can of geography worms. Anywhoodle.. it was all wonderful. Maybe taught me a lesson that if I packed lighter.. moving from hotel to ship to hotel would be less of a bother.. and next time to read the day by day detailed descriptions in the future. And to limit run on sentences!😁

👋🏻Oh thanks MikeyB! Your compliments always are the best and certainly the most local. 😊 I always chuckle with your Nassau/Suffolk shopping references. Glad I brought back your trip for you.. what did you think of the itinerary? Did you do any of the extension? What did you think of the hotel/ship combo? As as overpacker it was kind of a drag for me.. note to self.. maybe I bring too much stuff. A few upcoming cruises.. an Azamara one this spring around Spain and a Viking Italian Sojourn over the summer. Very excited about both. What about you? Where are you going next? And thanks so much for the congrats about the new baby.. first grandchild.. truly magical. Thanks again for your all your comments.. so very sweet.😊

Yes! I saw it and loved it! Your pictures were magic. AWESOME job! I know what you mean about putting captions between the pictures. I actually just post one at a time and hit the return bar twice after each picture and then there is a space to label or comment on top of the pictures.😊

👋🏻 Hello Mitina! Thank you so much for your kind words about my very lengthy review!😍 Soooo exciting that you are booked on the same one in less than a year. I think September will be a great time to go.. I had checked the weather for weeks before we left and it was sunny and warm every day. We actually really lucked out on our end of October into November sailing as the ships staff kept saying that this time of year is usually gray and cold. Awesome too that you booked the Transylvania pre cruise tour. We had spoken with people on board who had done it on another trip and really loved it. Glad I was able to give you a sweet taste of what is in store for you! Enjoy!!!

😍Hi again TayanaLorna!! Your compliments make me blush.. I was so happy to write it as it really brought back so many wonderful memories of the past 2 weeks. This cruise would be a great choice if you are looking for a slightly off the beaten path itinerary. The only negative would be that both of your flights would be connecting at least twice (maybe 3 times are you are coming from San Juan if I remember correctly) where if you take a Rhine cruise or a Seine cruise it would be easier flights for you. I remember you took an Amazon cruise last February too.. we had discussed warm weather dresses on the Viking Ocean board.👗 As far as crowds.. I don't remember it being any issue on either the Seine, the Rhine or the Tulip Time cruises we have taken however we did take them at the end of the season in November and the beginning of the season in March. You will find the one that's just right for you.🙌🏻

Oh wow.. a Hawaii cruise sounds wonderful. What a perfect way to see all the islands. Aaaaah... 17 days of sea and aloha combined.. lucky you! Coming up so soon.🍍🚢🌋

👋Good morning BluebonnetTexan! Oh I'm so glad that you enjoyed my "War and Peace" sized report. That's awesome that you are booked.. it will be here before you know it. You will absolutely love the itinerary. I found it very different than our western Europe river cruises. The three "B" cities were incredibly interesting. I also thought the personal interactions with people and the commentary of the guides and ship staff about what life was like under Communism was very moving and sad but also very hopeful for a better future. I definitely want to go back to Bucharest as we didn't really have much time there to explore after the tour ended. Thank you again for your kind words.. happy sailing always!😊

👋 Hi again FetaCheese!! I'm so glad you came along too! And yes.. that Parliament building was crazy.. the sheer size and attention to every detail. All built on the backs of his subjects. It was awful and fascinating all at the same time. He razed an entire neighborhood to build it too.. no regard for what was there. It's also the heaviest building in the world and sinking.. I'm looking forward to cruising again too.. it's an Azamara cruise next spring. Any upcoming cruises for you planned yet? Thanks for following along.. happy travels to you!!😍

👋 Hi Deb! Sooo glad you enjoyed my report.. it was a lot of fun to write too. That's awesome that you are leaving in less than 2 weeks for your cruise! You are going to have the best time. Enjoy every moment and thanks again for your sweet compliments!😊

🙋‍♀️Hi again Daisi! Aww.. thank you so much for your very sweet compliments.. I truly appreciate it. We really did have a wonderful time.. glad it shined thru in my report. I'm honored that you took the time to look.. it certainly was a L O N G one. Thanks again and happy sailing!😍

And so we are back for a few days already.. I'm still going to sleep at 7pm and waking up before 3am. The change in Daylight Savings Time certainly didn't help. It was a FANTASTIC trip.. I loved everything about it. There is such a familiar and organized routine about a river cruise that truly makes it a relaxing vacation. I thought the ports on this itinerary were fascinating.. especially Belgrade and Bucharest as we had never been to those cities before. I wish we had time at the end for the Transylvania extension as that looked so interesting too. I loved being away for eleven days vs our usual seven. However.. I'm not sure the two nights in a hotel, the seven days on the ship and the one night in another hotel worked that well for me though. I found it was a lot of packing and unpacking. So now I bid you viszontlátásra in Hungarian, Doviđenja in Croatian, збогом in Serbian, Довиждане in Bulgarian, la revedere in Romanian and so long in English. 5 countries in 10 days. What an adventure it's been! Thank you for coming along and sharing it with us.🙋‍♀️

Flying time 8.5 hours from CDG to JFK. A very mediocre lunch was served.🫢 Almost there..

Due to the delay and then the circling for more than an hour what had been a 2 hour and 50 minute connection in Paris was now whittled down to 45 minutes and the next part of our journey was a blur. A slow bus to the terminal.. a long walk to passport control.. then a security line.. and finally a dash to our gate. By the time we arrived only a handful of people were left to board the bus to the plane. Bless the gate agent who said we had time to run to the restroom and that the our flight to JFK wouldn't leave without us. There was no time for any pictures.. we barely made the connection.🫣

Back on "Terra Firma." Whew!!!

So our flight was pretty smooth until we got close to Paris and then it was like a carnival ride for more than an hour. In and out of the clouds... up and down.. tried to land but was too windy.. I was jumping out of my pants. Thankfully the pilot wasn't and bless him that he did keep making very calming announcements. Finally we landed safely.. I truly wanted to hug him on my way off the plane.

Finally on our way! The plane was brand new and had USB and USBC ports in the seat backs.