Vivi13

Hi jc552, Thanks for the detailed review. We are doing the same cruise in May. Hoping that Torshavn is back up & running  by then! 

Were there any tender ports on your cruise? There are none marked with an anchor on the itinerary/calender to indicate tendering, but a couple of websites mention ships tendering @ Crotone & Corfu.

Thank you

Our Asian cruise was cancelled nearly 2 weeks ago by Princess. They will refund our cruise fare and are in the process of refunding any non refundable portion of our independently booked flights and hotel in Singapore. In addition, we have 50% toward a future cruise (we've already booked it). They refunded shore excursion money into our account earlier this week. 

To the original poster - you chose to cancel your cruise because of fear, and not trusting Princess to do the right thing. Perhaps a little patience and less knee-jerk reaction may have given you a different outcome. Read your passenger contract, or book through an experienced travel agent next time. 

The whole cruise/travel industry is suffering at the moment. Covid 19 is an evolving situation - everyone is learning and adapting their response to it. 

I would hate to be working for Princess in a financial/customer service capacity. They must be under enormous pressure trying to respond to all the complaints and enquiries from customers.  Perhaps we need to temper our first world expectations ......?

Just had confirmation the March 1st Cruise on Sapphire Princess is cancelled. I'm glad we have been given reasonable notice. Such a sad time for everyone - this affects so many people globally, whether passengers, cruise company staff, or those countries and businesses with economic ties to the cruise industry. 

10 minutes ago, TrixieBel said:

We are booked on the 1 March sailing and there’s birthing showing for me... In hoping it goes ahead. Clean ship. And fresh passengers... 

TrixieBel, we're booked for 1st March too, and like you, really hope the cruise goes ahead.  Sadly, I think the sailing will be cancelled because of the prevalence of cases of COVID-19 in Singapore, leading to ports not accepting ships/passengers who have travelled via Singapore. 

We are currently looking at options to cruise elsewhere, or visit Tasmania, if cancellation occurs. Just hope we get reasonable notice, unlike the unfortunate 13th Feb passengers. 

23 day cruise on Viking Orion had trivia most days. Because we had 9 sea days, there was a a great arrangement where teams scored points on sea day trivia only.  The winners had a small prize each. A fierce but good natured competition ensued. Our group of 6 strangers left as good friends and dining companions!

Tauranga is a lovely port. If you are fit, the steep walk up Mt Maunganui is worth the effort - views are spectacular.  

We used Zealandier Tours for our excursions in Otago, Akaroa and Tauranga when we cruised with Celebrity. Zealandier do day trips from Tauranga to Rotorua, at less cost than you are being quoted.  They also visit Hobbiton - the movie set from Lord of the Rings. Their minibuses seat 12 - 16 people, reducing the time spent getting on and off big coaches.  Their guides were excellent and informative, making sure we saw all the essentials such as the geysers erupting, elusive penguins etc. They guarantee getting you back to the ship on time. They were an absolute pleasure to deal with.  We found them on Tripadvisor.

It was an eventful cruise - one passenger was killed on a cycling excursion, and another group were involved in a coach accident. Hopefully your cruise is more sedate.

On 25 June 2019 at 8:42 AM, flashfearless said:

 

I have attached an example Cruise daily document that I scan into a pdf document.  It has some of our scribble on it.  

Scan20190624182830-merged.pdf 17.98 MB · 47 downloads

Thank you for posting.  Do you happen to know if the Red wine and Martini tastings were free, instead of $30, if you had the drinks package? The Chefs Table quotes $25 for their paired wines without the drinks package. but free with drinks package, so wondered if the these events followed the same principle.  

Use fingernails and a bit of muscle on tougher fabrics. Maybe talk to your local dry cleaner for suggestions regarding removal from more delicate fabrics.  We still find the odd one lurking from a Windstar cruise 3 years ago - raises a smile and fond memories every time! 

Thank you!

How long do meals at the Chef's table take? I would like to attend a show after dinner, so would like recommendations on the best time to book the Chef's table. Thank you.

Hi LunaSea - loving your posts! Do you have any feedback from people who did the Helicopter tour to Avachinsky Volcano?  

On 19 May 2019 at 6:14 AM, zitsky said:

Fyi

Viking-Ocean-Cruises-Wine-List.pdf 3.26 MB · 36 downloads

Thanks so much! 

11 hours ago, LABARNETT said:

My sister & I have done one Viking River cruise & liked it, so we're going Viking Ocean next - all the way to Australia/New Zealand (12/27/19 on the Orion). A few questions: Is tipping the norm on Australia-based cruises? If so, given the favorable US$ to AUD exchange rate, would it be better to tip on-board in local currency, or to pre-pay tips? Also, any thoughts on Travel Insurance? My sister & I are early 70's, in good health & with no pre-existing conditions. On the other hand, this is a big, expensive trip for us? Thanks to all who respond.

Please, please don't omit travel insurance. Its not just about medical cover.

If you are happy to lose $10,000 + each, plus airfares etc in cancellation costs, then OK! Overseas hospitalisation is not cheap, and neither is on board care. 

There was one horror story recently from a lady who's husband couldn't make the cruise due to illness.  They were uninsured. She chose to travel without him. When she let Viking know she was planning on travelling alone, they cancelled the original booking, & rebooked her as a single traveller ( and proposed to charge her $4000 extra for the single supplement). So not only did the couple lose his fare money, they also got charged extra - apparently all within the Viking rules!). Thats a very expansive cabin!! 

If they had been insured, there would not have been an issue. Not sure of the resolution of that case - the person posting said the issue was in process of being settled.

Get decent insurance appropriate to your age and circumstances - policies vary.

Looking forward to your remaining posts LunaSea! We are sailing Vancouver to Tokyo on Orion in August.