2 hours ago, forgap said:

What tour are you doing?  We thought we would go it alone via train.  I found an interesting website for a walking tour which ends at the great Buddha.  As a teen, I visited Kamakura many times as we were posted nearby at the Yokosuka naval base.  
 

https://blog.japanwondertravel.com/hidden-places-kamakura-10168

We booked a private tour to the Tokyo countryside and then on the second day a private tour to Kamakura/ Enoshima.

We are on the North Pacific Passage, April 13-May 1, Tokyo to Vancouver. Have been to Tokyo before, very busy and crowded city. We figure the three hotel nights in Tokyo are "free/ included" so we are using the hotel as our base and have booked our own tours that go oustside of Tokyo, one of them going to Kamakura. This will be our second Regent cruise (did Ireland in 2022 on the Navigator). We have heard the Explorer is a beautiful ship.

Also, when the Russia port was cancelled, Regent added another Japan stop - other cruise lines may have just added another sea day - Regent did the right thing!

Tokyo restaurant suggestion - the shrimp tempura is not to miss!

27 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

Who ever said anything about a flight on UA from HNL to MIA?

 

 

Are you talking about the airline confirmation code/number? 

22 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

Who ever said anything about a flight on UA from HNL to MIA?

 

 

Please show me a major airline that has one flight number for two connecting flights. The United flight was an example. 

On 10/6/2023 at 8:32 PM, FlyerTalker said:

 

Just so you don't get blindsided in the future.

 

"Direct" does NOT mean "non-stop".  A "direct" flight is one that has no change of flight number between A and B, but it may have both stops and aircraft changes along the way.  A "non-stop" flight is one that makes no stops between A and B.

 

At one time, Southwest had a "direct" flight from Baltimore to Oakland.  It only made EIGHT stops along the way, but it was "direct" because the flight number never changed.

 

BWI-BNA-MSY-DAL-HOU-ABQ-PHX-LAS-LAX-OAK

 

So don't just assume that if you are told a flight is "direct" that you will be on a non-stop.

 

 

Incorrect. For each leg there is a different flight number. Example: A United flight from Honolulu to Miami is UA 252 to Houston and UA 2442 to Miami.

On 9/19/2023 at 9:45 AM, Opiwan said:

Are you allowed to use SeatGuru to change seats if Viking Air is making your flight arrangements? I selected aisle seats across from each other for my DH and myself (especially on the domestic flights) because he has rather long legs (38" inseam) and I have some mobility issues. We are flying Business Class on the international flights so I'm not so worried about those.

We're also traveling with friends, but they are only doing Premium Economy. Who knows, we might not even end up on the same flights.

SeatGuru is not connected to any airlines, it just provides seat maps and seat recommendations.

On 9/18/2023 at 7:57 AM, CCWineLover said:

Little talked about, but you can bring your own bottles of wine (or liquor) onboard.  We do that often.  And no charge or corkage fee by Viking.  

Exactly!

On 9/18/2023 at 6:59 AM, jmfdr said:

We have been on one Viking Ocean cruise and did not get the Silver spirits beverage package.  We are debating about whether to get it for our up coming cruise. 

We don't generally drink liquor or cocktails but do enjoy wines.  I have been looking for updated Viking Ocean wine lists to determine what our options might be for premium wines by the glass.  So far we have found nothing that helps.  The menus we have seen list many, many $8.00 per glass wines with all other premium choices by the bottle only.   Can anyone provide further information about what premium wines might be available by the glass on our Orion sailing?  Perhaps it would be best for us to wait until on board to see the current wine list and then decide if we want to upgrade to a SS package?  And if one decides to purchase the SS package on board where does one do this----at a bar, guest services etc?

 

A second wine-related question while on board.  On our first Viking Ocean sailing, our experience was that the complimentary wine served at dinner was either a choice of white or red---one variety of each offered.  Once evening I declined the sauvignon blanc and asked for a chardonnay.  The waiter seemed stunned but reluctantly found a bottle of chardonnay.  Is it traditional that only a couple of wine options are offered for the complimentary dinner service?  Is it possible to pay for a premium glass of wine with meals, if one does not have the SS package?  

We are on the Viking Star in October, Ft. Lauderdale to Los Angeles. We are not real cocktail drinkers but enjoy good wines, Proseccos, and Champagnes. With that said, the Silver Spirits pkg is not a good value for us. Viking allows you to bring your own wine on board and drink anywhere on the ship with no corkage fee. Planning on buying at least a dozen great reds in Miami to enjoy during the cruise. Regarding the "inclusive" wines on Viking and for that matter Regent, Silversea, etc,. they are everyday grocery store wines, not bad, but not great!🙂 

I agree with you that, even on Silversea, it was sometimes challenging to request an included Chardonnay instead of the wine they were featuring for that night. The sommeliers obviously focus their attendtion on those guests purchasing bottles off of their premium list.

www.ecminibus.co.uk 

16 hours ago, janetcbl said:

Good grief! Your mention was a direct quote from a Viking email….

After they removed my post, I posted "....does anyone know why Viking canceled the Leon port stop?", and the Administrator deleted that post also! I opted out of the Viking FB page - in addition to this issue, most of the posts on that page are passenger photos of the places they visit and little content or photos about the ship or river boats.

4 hours ago, janetcbl said:

Same here….we are on the same cruise.

You can't say "covid" on the FB Viking Ocean Travelers page - they removed my post saying it was a violation - the pandemic has made people cuckoo cuckoo😅

We live on Oahu. Lahaina is completely gone. I do not see any cruise ships being able to stop in Lahaina for probably a year or more. They are flying visitors off the island over to Oahu and housing them and displaced Maui residents in the Convention Cemter. Very sad!

We did western Greenland last month on Silversea. An ice field was blocking one of our stops but luckily cleared and we were able to enter the fjord. The Captain cancelled the Nuuk stop due to a storm system with high winds. Other than those two issues the ship was able to complete the itinerary.

We were on the small Silver Explorer this past March. Like most cruise lines that include wines, the included selection on the Explorer were of "grocery store" wines that retail in the $10-$15 range, many of which were Australian and South African wines that I had never heard of. You will NOT find a nice Napa Cab or Oregon Pinot Noir on the included list but will find them to purchase at restaurant pricing. I must say that the wine steward was very accomodating in finding the included wines that we liked! Had a decent included California chardonnay.

Our July Greenland cruise on the Cloud has charter flights from JFK to Greenland and also London to Greenland.

I guess we can all hope that they don't pull us for the random test when we arrive!🙂

Chilean travel restrictions have been lifted. On October 1st, the requirements to enter Chile were updated. Now, at the time of embarking to Chile, the person must comply with the following:

• U.S. Citizens can enter Chile with government-issued identification and a vaccination certificate issued by the country in which they were vaccinated.
• Unvaccinated travelers must present a negative PCR test taken within a maximum of 48 hours at their last point of departure prior to their arrival in Chile.
• Only Chilean nationals (including dual nationals) returning from abroad will be randomly tested at the airport upon arrival.
• Proof of Health Insurance is no longer required.  However, it is recommended to travel with health insurance that has coverage for SARS CoV 2 (COVID19).  Please keep in mind that Medicare will not provide medical coverage in Chile.
• Masks are no longer required, except inside medical facilities (clinics, hospitals, laboratories, etc.).
• Meanwhile, those who are under 18 years of age do not have any requirements to enter Chile.

On 12/2/2022 at 6:29 AM, Stumblefoot said:

I wouldn’t do any of those three tours, but rather set up a 4WD tour with Jimmy Curtis to see the King Penguins at Volunteer Point.  The area is also home to numerous Gentoo and Magellanic penguins too.  A veteran of the Falklands War, he’ll fill you in on all of the key sites as well.

Yes we did this tour years ago - it is a long drive out in four wheel vehicles but was well worth it seeing the King Penguin colony. On a side note they were still clearing land mines from the war when we were there in 2011.

We booked the Greenland cruise on Silver Cloud departing July 14, 2023 and Port to Port was offered which we chose as we always do our own air on United.

On 9/24/2022 at 12:10 PM, holech said:

My questions are…

1. In the Penthouse Veranda cabin refrigerator, is there space for wines I bring onboard. If so, how many bottles can I fit in at a time?

2. How many choices of included wines are available at lunch and dinner? ( 1 red and 1 white?)

3. Are the included wines the same at lunch and dinner.
4. How often during a 14 day cruise do they change the lunch and dinner wines? (every 3 days, once a week…)
5. How many varieties of wine are available on the Silver Spirits wine list (rose, Pinot Grigio, rioja, Cabernet etc.). I assume it’s a much larger selection.
 

Thank you for the info.

 

 

We bring a foldable cooler bag, fill with ice, and chill our white wines for the day - the fridges never are cold enough and they are small.

We always bring some nice bottles of wine on board and sometimes depending on ports buy some wine when we go ashore- Viking has a very liberal alcohol policy which is nice! Viking included selection of wines like most cruise lines that include wine are what one would call mid-priced "grocery store shelf" wines.

Here is from Viking FAQs:

Guests may bring alcohol and beverages with them, purchase alcohol ashore at destinations that sell alcohol, or purchase them from the onboard shop. Alcohol can be consumed in the guest’s stateroom or in public spaces, including the restaurants. There is no corkage fee.

Great news, one more travel irritant eliminated from the list!

https://www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/sinxr-the-st-regis-singapore/overview/

Really enjoyed our stay at the St. Regis a few years ago - not in such touristy area (Tanglin Road).

We were very lucky to arrive and then transit through London Heathrow Airport last week with no issues. But we did notice unclaimed luggage strewn about the baggae claim area. Now this:

London’s Heathrow Airport Limits Passengers Amid Staff Shortages, Surging Demand

https://www.wsj.com/articles/londons-heathrow-airport-limits-passengers-amid-staff-shortages-surging-demand-11657622503?mod=hp_lead_pos5

11 hours ago, RetiredandTravel said:

 

 

I don't think Regent is "unloading" their older bottles of wine its just that the complimentary wine list isn't so great.   IMO none of the "luxury" lines included wines are impressive but I'm of the opinion that Regent's included wines maybe be at the bottom.  You are correct in that we can buy them at our local supermarket.  Regent usually has a decent French Burgundy Chardonnay which you have to ask for & we think the best.  Most of the people pouring the wines, although very nice, definitely aren't sommeliers they just pour the wine.  There is a qualified (maybe one per venue?) sommelier that is very knowledgeable and can help you.  Here is a recent Regent complimentary list.

 

, Thanks!