booking question

[LHT28]

Just looking at OV & wondering if paying in full 1-2 yrs out is mandatory or is to get a discount as an incentive to book early??

 

I just glanced over the website but thought it was quicker to ask my fellow CCer's

 

Thanks

Lyn

[loum140]

Just looking at OV & wondering if paying in full 1-2 yrs out is mandatory or is to get a discount as an incentive to book early??

 

I just glanced over the website but thought it was quicker to ask my fellow CCer's

 

Thanks

Lyn

 

Hi Lyn: The easy answer is it's mandatory. They won't accept your reservation without telling you the "payment in full" requirement date. We reserved for the inaugural in the summer of 2013 and were told the balance was due Dec. 31, 2013. The cruise will be in April 2015. Even booking that far out we were unable to get the stateroom category we originally wanted because they were all sold out.

 

Of course, you can still cancel and get a refund minus a service charge.

 

Best to Mike, Marsha

Edited April 26, 2014 by loum140
info.

[LHT28]

Thanks Marsha

Will wait until I see how the cruise reports are ;)

 

I would not want to put that much down that far in advance :eek:

 

Looking forward to hearing your review next year

 

all the best to you & Lou

 

 

Lyn

[Vineyard View]

We too paid in full by 12/31/13 - but we loved their river cruising so much, and the 29 day itinerary is so appealing, that we decided we wanted to go ahead and go for it - shortly after it sold out! Somehow Viking manages to sell out their cruises often times way in advance - and the value for the money is there. B

[Fairfield Nana]

We booked the Scandinavian itinerary for July 2016 and have to pay in full by end of this May 2014--no options! Thought this was a bit presumptive on the part of Viking but our TA says this is normal for them and they are getting it their way. We wanted the same cruise in 2015, but as of 2 months ago it was booked solid. Just had to suck it up. Needless to say we immediately secured a policy from our favorite travel insurance company Travel Insured--via our USAA membership. Thank good ness they are still a good deal!

[LHT28]

Thanks everyone

I did notice some cruises for 2015 did still have space in the lower cabin Cat so booking & paying 1 yr in advance ..still not good but better than 2 yrs out :D

 

Unfortunately we have a cruise booked next spring that we want to do

 

Things happen in 2 yrs so maybe there will be some openings when we decide to book

 

Lyn

[Vineyard View]

Just an FYI - you have until something like 120 days prior to the cruise date to receive a refund with a small (I think $100 ea) cancellation fee. With that in mind, we are waiting until closer to the cruise date to purchase insurance as we have found it to be less expensive that way.

 

I am curious as to what others have or are doing with travel insurance- do you find that this has held true for you?

[loum140]

Just an FYI - you have until something like 120 days prior to the cruise date to receive a refund with a small (I think $100 ea) cancellation fee. With that in mind, we are waiting until closer to the cruise date to purchase insurance as we have found it to be less expensive that way.

 

I am curious as to what others have or are doing with travel insurance- do you find that this has held true for you?

 

We agree and are waiting until closer to our cruse date to purchase insurance. No reason to do it while we are still eligible for a refund. Marsha

[TERRIER1]

We booked the July 2015 Scandanavian cruise when they first announced the new ship and were not able to get the cabin category we wanted. Our cruise has been pretty much sold out from the beginning. Having only sailed Oceania I was concerned about paying in full so far in advance but there was no other option so we did it to secure the cabin.

 

We paid a percentage of the insurance for the deposit and then paid in full when the total payment was due so we would have all pre-existing conditions covered. I'll have to look into USAA since we are members but never used their insurance. We get the insurance from the TA and they use AIG.

[Di Princess]

Do you think that the Viking insurance is a better deal than USAA or CSA?

[TERRIER1]

Do you think that the Viking insurance is a better deal than USAA or CSA?

 

We have been advised never to take insurance out with the cruise line.

[Vineyard View]

Much better pricing and more comprehensive coverage if you book insurance with a different company than cruise line.

[baz48]

We have just put down a deposit on the 49 day Baltic cruise in March 2016. Our full payment is due in December 2014. Our TA quoted travel insurance from his agency (using CSA) as $3,115 and insurance from Viking (with Travel Guard) as $2,438. That's quite a difference, but the Viking has to be paid with full payment, which is stupid since, as others have pointed out, the penalties don't even begin until December 2015. I'll do more research, but I'd much rather wait and purchase the insurance when we make final payment.

[ninthisland]

We have just put down a deposit on the 49 day Baltic cruise in March 2016. Our full payment is due in December 2014. Our TA quoted travel insurance from his agency (using CSA) as $3,115 and insurance from Viking (with Travel Guard) as $2,438. That's quite a difference, but the Viking has to be paid with full payment, which is stupid since, as others have pointed out, the penalties don't even begin until December 2015. I'll do more research, but I'd much rather wait and purchase the insurance when we make final payment.

 

Glad to hear from other passengers on this cruise. We are Christine and David from Brisbane in Australia who are also booked on the same cruise. We booked this in January this year and are very excited about this cruise. We were unable to book on the 2015 voyage as it was not available to the Australian market before it was booked out. Glad to wait until 2016 for the experience.

We found it difficult to get insurance so far out but as you pointed out the penalties are very far off.

Looking forward to the reports from the passengers on the 2015 voyage to hear about the ports and tours. It really does sound like an amazing trip.