Viking Star, Viking Homelands cruise

[Peregrina651]

We are booked for the Viking Homelands cruise June 3,2017.

Can someone tell us if the ship docks in Gdynia or in Gdansk?

 

Does Viking provide any shuttle buses for those not participating in Viking excursions?

Thank you for your help!

 

Sometimes the answer can be found on MyVikingJourney. Look under "My Journey Details." Scroll down and you will see the Itinerary day-by-day with arrival, departure and in some cases the location of the port. If it says Gdansk (Gydnia), they are expecting to dock in Gydnia. However, do keep in mind that sometimes these things change at the last minute and it is out of Viking's control.

[Dauntless]

We are booked for the Viking Homelands cruise June 3,2017.

Can someone tell us if the ship docks in Gdynia or in Gdansk?

 

Does Viking provide any shuttle buses for those not participating in Viking excursions?

Thank you for your help!

 

There are shuttle buses provided.

[CharTrav]

We are booked for the Viking Homelands cruise June 3,2017.

Can someone tell us if the ship docks in Gdynia or in Gdansk?

 

Does Viking provide any shuttle buses for those not participating in Viking excursions?

Thank you for your help!

 

 

Ship docks in Gdynia. Too big for Gdansk.

 

 

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[Dauntless]

Ship docks in Gdynia. Too big for Gdansk.

 

 

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This was true on my cruise but I hear they are going to be moving to Sopot(in between the 2) but I am not sure when that is going to be happening.

[Rodymax]

Thanks for your response.

However I wrote an e-mail to TellUs@Viking ************ and asked this question.

The ship ( Viking Sky) will dock in Gdansk. This was a written,personal e-mail.

In addition a new itinerary was attached that shows Gdansk as the port.

Our ORIGiNAL info with our initial booking showed Gdynia ( Gdansk).

I hope this stays like this! Makes for an easier visit to Gdansk!

[CharTrav]

Cool. Great news!

 

 

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[Dauntless]

Ship docks in Gdynia. Too big for Gdansk.

 

 

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That's what it did last year and when I spoke to my agent yesterday, at Viking, he said Gdynia. I then approached my contact at TellUs@vikingcruises.com and she said some ships were docking in Gdansk and some in Gdynia so not everyone;s port will be the same. I don't know of they have improved Gdansk port to handle ships this size now or not but I would say contact TellUs about your particular cruise date.

[debrouillarde]

That's what it did last year and when I spoke to my agent yesterday, at Viking, he said Gdynia. I then approached my contact at TellUs@vikingcruises.com and she said some ships were docking in Gdansk and some in Gdynia so not everyone;s port will be the same. I don't know of they have improved Gdansk port to handle ships this size now or not but I would say contact TellUs about your particular cruise date.

 

 

My contact at Viking Cruises told me our Sky Homelands cruise port for May 27 will be Gdansk rather than Gdynia. Deborah

[mbrust]

Previous poster about the Flybussen is correct. Loads right outside the terminal, cost about $11.00/person ( if a senior ) and goes almost to the docking area. We just walked with our luggage to the cruise terminal. Very easy and you cna goggle the timetable for Flybussen.

[Rodymax]

I did look at the cruise port schedule for Gdansk and the Sky is scheduled to dock there...not Gdynia.

But I guess things can change!

It's not always easy to find but apparently the port schedule is in place far in advance of the cruises. I found the port location and berth for most of the ports we will visit.

I searched things like port schedule. A list of all the ships docked in that port including berth are listed by date and ship name.

This let me know in advance how far to town etc.

[Darsey]

One of the BEST trips we have ever taken. Absolutely beautiful and when you are sailing through the fiords, you have beautiful views on both sides of the ship. Wouldn't get hung up on that issue on this trip! When you are in Flam, do the railroad trip. You don't need to use Viking for that, you just walk off the ship and onto the train. Took a couple of hours to go up and back. You can buy your tickets ahead of time, go in the am, and then do Viking freebie in the afternoon.

 

CharTrav, What was cost of Flam tkt and when were you there?

[CharTrav]

CharTrav, What was cost of Flam tkt and when were you there?

 

 

No idea. We didn't do any train excursions. We were there last July (2016). You might ask the person who posted about doing it. Hopefully they'll see your note. [emoji4]

 

 

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[itchyfeetx2]

Four of us just signed on for the Viking Homelands cruise on July 1, 2017. Looking forward to reading how others have dealt with this.

We are on this cruise too (however, we start with the Midnight Sun cruise). Definitely worried about all the currencies.

[philw1776]

This is something I considered. I wanted to be prepared and this is how we handled it. I brought $100 in ones for incidentals. That will probably cover most things with Viking for 2. They suggest small tips for their tours that are included. I guess the figure when it is all added up it is worthwhile for the guide and driver. Of course, that all depends on how you feel about it.

 

For the rest of the trip, we went early and stayed late and had a total of 20 days. How much you will need depends on what you do. We had 5 days in Sweden, 5 days in Norway, 2 days in Denmark, 2 days in Russia, 1 day in Poland and 3 days in countries using the Euro. I like to tip in country's currency so the guides do have to lose part of the tip in having it converted. For private tours, you may not be able to add the tip to your card so investigate. Take bathroom money. It's not much but when you don't have it and can't get in, that's a problem. Some of the included ports may not have ATMs until you get to town or your excursion destination. You might be able to use Euros or dollars but you never know if you are getting a fair rate of exchange so I wanted to avoid this. If you are using your card, always pay in their currency(your bank will convert it) or you might find a conversion fee added on to the total.

 

We took $300 in foreign currency for the 2 of us. In countries where it was just start up money and plenty of chances to get more, not much. In Poland. we took the castle tour and there was no ATM at port so I went prepared. In SPB we could not tip on the card so we planned accordingly. Vendors may or may not take cards and sometimes the price is better with cash. Our bank did not charge for the currency and took back all the paper money we brought back with no charge. So that was our plan.

 

It was a trip of a lifetime for us and I know you will have a wonderful time.

 

Couple questions:

1) So in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Poland & Finland you tipped the "included" tour guides in dollars or Euros, not intheir currencies?

 

2) What about tips on optional excursions? Do they take Euros or dollars?

 

FYI: TJ travel says their tour guides in St Pete Russia take US $ for tips.

 

I assume that like on the Viking River trips the ocean ship is not an exchange or bank.

[Dauntless]

Couple questions:

1) So in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Poland & Finland you tipped the "included" tour guides in dollars or Euros, not intheir currencies?

 

2) What about tips on optional excursions? Do they take Euros or dollars?

 

FYI: TJ travel says their tour guides in St Pete Russia take US $ for tips.

 

I assume that like on the Viking River trips the ocean ship is not an exchange or bank.

With us, the deal with the bank was they would take back(exchange) any foreign currency not used if you requested $300 or more. We got a little of everything so we would have it Rod handled all of this. He did pretty well but in Russia we were a little short in Rubles so I did have to fill in with dollars for the guide. On the ship, we used dollars for room service or bag assistance, etc. that was not put on our ship account. I work in a service business and though I don't live in a town at an entryway to the country(although we do have a lot of Mexican Nationals that spend time here), I would consider it rude if someone tried to tip me in foreign currency. Now that's my take but it did have influence on our decision. You are right, there is no exchange on the ship. Not all port have ATMs at the port and sometimes, even if they do, you go right from the ship to the tour transportation with no time to seek them out.

 

So it's your call but that was how we did it.

[CharTrav]

I can't offer any advice at all on this score. As I've posted elsewhere, the way these trips work for us is that yours truly takes cares of all payments until the taxi arrives to take us to the airport. At that point, I close my wallet, bat my eyelashes in sweet innocence and say to DH - "ok from now on, its on you.". [emoji2]. Hubby did try to tip folks in local currency. Watching him dealing with the ATM in the cruise terminal in St Petersburg was a hoot. Can you imagine trying to use an ATM that only knows Russian? The only time I got engaged in releasing any moolah out of my stash was when we decided to give some extra tips to our cabin steward and his female partner in crime. And to think I have to wait until next January before i can experience being spoiled so badly again. However, this time hopefully we won't return to a house where the power had been out for over a week! (Another story, but think tree limb knocking out a transformer that serves only us).

 

 

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[philw1776]

Found out that AAA Travel orders paper currency for you.

Here are currencies for this cruise with smallest paper denominations listed...

Norway Kroners kr50 kr100 8.5kr/$ 9.3kr/Euro 50kr ~ $6 100kr ~$11.67 ~ 11 Euro

Denmark Krone kr50 kr100 6.95kr/$ 7.44kr/Euro 50kr ~ $7.15 100kr ~$14.30 ~ 13.44 Euro

Poland Zloty zt10, 20, 50, 100 3.95zt/$ 4.23zt/Euro 10zt ~ $2.50 20zt ~$5 ~ 4.7 Euro

Roubles 1 R = 100 kopecs 50, 100 R 56R/$ 60R/Euro 50R ~ 90 cents 100R ~ $1.78 ~1.67 Euro

 

Sweden Krona kr20 kr50 kr100 9kr/$ 9.6kr/Euro 50kr ~ $5.50 100kr ~$11.09 ~ 10.43 Euro

Germany, Estonia & Finland use Euros

[313gb]

Thank you. This is helpful. I'm assuming that you need to be a AAA member to make such a request, corrected?

 

 

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[philw1776]

I'd assume so

[eaglewatchers]

Wells Fargo bank also does currency and will fed ex it to your door (signature required). They accept the bills back for exchange when you return, but NOT coins. This service is for account holders. The only currency they do not do is Russian. You can get that at the airport before you leave the U.S. and turn it back in also at the airport. The exchange rates aren't so great at the airport, but it gets you some cash.

[Texastraveler555]

We are taking this Viking ocean trip to the Homelands from Bergen to Stockholm Aug. 20th 2017. This is our first ocean cruise.

I am trying to review the different optional excursions and start planning. Any information on must do or skips would be greatly appreciated. They are too expensive to do everything. Also we have the "choice offer" and wanted to know if which place to apply....beverage package, on-board gratuities or 400 ship credit.

[eaglewatchers]

Unless you drink a lot, the bev package is not the best deal. All you want of wine and beer and meals is INCLUDED in fare. The drinks are CHEAP anyway, so we go a la carte. If you are in a PV room and up, you get some freebie booze in your minibar, and you can request specific mixers and specific kinds of booze. Then carry it around (gin and tonic, for example).

 

As for excursions, I posted some about that on this thread, as did several others: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2452320

 

It is a FANTASTIC trip. It was our first, and we think it spoiled us. Here is our review of it: http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=509623

 

The on board gratuities will save you whatever you would have paid. They recommend an amount, and I know we put ours on our credit card, but not paying it would be nice!

[jiminyC_fan]

eaglewatchers, coincidentally we just ordered our currency at Wells Fargo today. Our bank encouraged us to go over there rather than use them. You don't have to be an account holder to order.

[philw1776]

We are taking this Viking ocean trip to the Homelands from Bergen to Stockholm Aug. 20th 2017. This is our first ocean cruise.

I am trying to review the different optional excursions and start planning. Any information on must do or skips would be greatly appreciated. They are too expensive to do everything. Also we have the "choice offer" and wanted to know if which place to apply....beverage package, on-board gratuities or 400 ship credit.

 

Agreed that each person in your room would need to have 2 cocktails/day to make beverage package a win. I intend to have a couple martinis and single malt beverages during the cruise and my bar tab will be closer to $50 than $100.

 

At the $15/person/day tip recommendation, it seems like on board gratuities would be a winner. Although if as I believe ship credit could be used for tips and excursions bought DURING the cruise and spa, you'd get your $400.

 

Haven't been yet (28 May) so I don't know which excursions I'll like or I'll hate. :) Problem being is it's a matter of individual taste & interests. Just take out a homeowners loan and sign up for a bunch.

[Peregrina651]

Agreed that each person in your room would need to have 2 cocktails/day to make beverage package a win. I intend to have a couple martinis and single malt beverages during the cruise and my bar tab will be closer to $50 than $100.

 

At the $15/person/day tip recommendation, it seems like on board gratuities would be a winner. Although if as I believe ship credit could be used for tips and excursions bought DURING the cruise and spa, you'd get your $400.

 

Haven't been yet (28 May) so I don't know which excursions I'll like or I'll hate. :) Problem being is it's a matter of individual taste & interests. Just take out a homeowners loan and sign up for a bunch.

 

Phil, you should check this out. I've heard/read that on board credits cannot be used for tips. If you are planning to use an OBC for tips, you should contact Viking's tellus@vikingcruises.com and ask them to clarify exactly what the OBC can be used for. (I tried to find it on the Viking website and gave up looking). No sense in arriving on board and find out that the credit you have been given can't be used for tips.

 

 

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