Live From: Under the Midnight Sun!

[editor@cruisecritic]

Glad you made it smoothly, Shipwren. Love your advice about relaxing. Personally, embarking a ship, particularly on a long-haul trip, is usually the antithesis of relaxing, and I would do well to remember your advice!

 

We got here sometime after 1 p.m. and we saw a queue from the first floor of the boarding terminal and I thought, oh, no, here we go....

 

Ironically, the queue was just to get through (the most thorough ever) security. After that it was something like four minutes to check in...and then time for fabulous lunching at the World Cafe. Great job --

 

 

Carolyn

 

Our transfer from Reykjavik to Bergen yesterday went very smoothly -though it started very early with a 4:30 am departure from the hotel. There were quite a few of us from the Iceland extension on the same flight and we were met right at baggage claim in Bergen by cheerful Viking reps. From then on there was always someone in sight to show you where to go next - one of the easiest international airport arrivals I've ever had. We walked to the bus, handed off our luggage (now sporting our stateroom tags) and were on the way to the ship in no time.

 

Arriving just before 2:00 pm, we were told all staterooms were ready. Our bags took a bit longer to arrive, so we were off to explore the ship. I will just echo what so many others have said - it's beautiful!!!! I'm actually looking forward to those at sea days so I can enjoy each of beautiful spaces!

 

If I have one piece of advice for folks as they begin their journey, it would be to relax. Yes, there will be minor glitches or worries - an excursion or dining reservation may have been difficult to book online or looked different than expected; a bag may be a bit later than the others in showing up; you forgot your stateroom number, which you need when making additional reservations okay, that last one was definitely me). But as I watched or heard some of these situations unfold, in every case a calm, collected Viking staff person was able to help.

 

Unless you're coming from a relatively close time zone, you're probably going to arrive tired, jet-lagged and/or not at your sharpest mentally. Know that once you're on the ship you'll encounter kind people who want you to have a great experience. You'll be able to make that special dining reservation. There will be lots of options for things to do. In the words of the Bobby McFerrin song, "Don't worry - be happy!"

 

I'm writing this after a good night's sleep (the curtains make the room nice and dark so your body doesn't get as confused by that midnight sun) and am looking forward to the next adventures!

[philw1776]

Yes Ocean security is more thorough than river security. Upon initial arrival they take your photo which shows up every time your room card gets scanned. Every time thereafter coming back into the ship they have you scan your card, Beep! Then your electronics (but not your quiet vox!) go thru an x-ray machine as you ingress the ship.

[Peregrina651]

Yes Ocean security is more thorough than river security. Upon initial arrival they take your photo which shows up every time your room card gets scanned. Every time thereafter coming back into the ship they have you scan your card, Beep! Then your electronics (but not your quiet vox!) go thru an x-ray machine as you ingress the ship.

 

One time, DH and I accidentally swapped cards before heading to shore. They wouldn't let me off because the picture didn't match. We had to swap cards and do it again. (Not complaining just pointing how security conscious they are.)

[editor@cruisecritic]

For anyone from our "roll call" who's wondering when our Cruise Critic get-together will be, here 'tis (posted this in the actual roll call thread):

 

Hi, just called downstairs to the Explorers' Desk and am told it's tomorrow night (Geiranger), 6 p.m. in the Explorers' Lounge. Look forward to finally meeting you all!

 

Carolyn

[editor@cruisecritic]

Hi! Um, and er, just caught a typo -- the boulevard that leads to the gorgeous theater in Bergen is Ole Bull, not, um, Ove Bull. FYI, showing off from our included city tour is the fact that Ole Bull was a famous violinist and composer who gave Edward Grieg encouragement when the latter was young!

 

 

And a huge thanks to Peregrina 651, who kindly emailed me another correction to a previous post:

 

"I just read your latest post and I did not want to point this out on the boards. Viking Sky has not come from London; she has come from the Baltic having done Viking Homelands. You may encounter on the ship when you board some passengers who are doing Viking's 29 day itinerary which combines Midnight Sun and Homelands; they are just completing the first leg of their journey. The Star, the first ship to do Midnight Sun this year, has just arrived in London."

 

The Baltic on Viking is going on our bucket list -- am excited to talk to passengers from that leg about the experience! Thanks again Peregrina 651!

 

Carolyn

 

Hi again. Another bit of we-learned-the-hard-way advice if you’re planning to spend some extra time in Bergen (and hope that you are, it’s a darling city): If you’re planning to check out the restaurant scene, especially but not limited to weekends, you may want to book ahead. In fact, please aim to book ahead! We didn’t give it much thought and at 7 p.m. or so (it might have been 9 p.m. come to think of it, who can tell in the midnight sun season, laughing), on a Friday night with everyone in the city out to play, there weren’t any tables to be had. We were hunting for good restaurants with local specialties in the city center (as opposed to the harbor area).

 

By the way, while it’s tempting to spend all your time in the harbor area (with its waterfront, old town and funicular), don’t miss checking out the city center. Gorgeous gardens (any city with 220-plus days of rain will probably have lush gardens), fun boutiques, theaters, opera. Cafes.

 

Two restaurants that are on our “must try” list for the next visit – I always optimistically think about next visits when I'm in a city that I like – are Naboen and Boha, both located there and both offering sophisticated local cuisine. Just make a reservation! We did get lucky and snagged a table at a new Spanish-style tapas place around the corner, right on the Ove Bull promenade (beautiful); it’s called Acido and the food was delicious (the most incredible fried calamari that was delicate and laced with chorizo sausage, so just a bit spicy, along with ceviche and other treats).

 

Speaking of hotels, Acido is part of a boutique-styled hotel, with lots of style, called Oleana. Looked great, definitely a cut above some of the other places we’ve stayed at here, being a bit trendy (and it was nice to see passengers right off their Viking Sky cruise this morning checking in – the Viking luggage tags were a dead giveaway).

 

Have you visited Bergen? What’s your best advice for practically-minded stuff?

 

 

 

Carolyn[/quot

[Fpacifico]

The Star has already made it's call there, Viking's first call in Rosyth, and there are comments about it on the June 3 roll call. We did Midnight Sun last summer and I think I would have preferred the hassles with the ground transportation over the experience we had tendering back to the ship from Newhaven (getting back on the ship in rough waters was not fun)--not that either is any fun.

Just returned from the star June 3 cruise. And I can't complain about the transportation at the ports nor could I complain about the tenders. I had an all terrain walker and it was perfect. Just upon entering London did the port pilot went into the flood control causing scratches and torn hull. Don't know how they were going to handle the damage. Told that they had to remain in London for 5 days.

[sitraveler]

WHOOO

 

Star has to delay departure from London???

[Peregrina651]

I just checked the June 17 London to Bergen roll call and that is not what folks on board are reporting as of an hour ago. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=53333137&postcount=169

 

I will tell you we are scheduled to sail from Greenwich at 7:30 PM tonight. Muster is at 5:45 PM. Weather has been absolutely glorious. Some may feel it is too warm but personally I like the sun and the warmer temps. Hope our luck with the weather continues.

[helenandfrank]

I checked vesselfinder.com and it shows Viking Star sailing down the Thames in London. I have been watching for a while, it is moving - which supports what Peregrina651 has posted

[photopro2]

Currently watching on vessel finder.com and can confirm The Star left it's mooring about 8pm and is now outbound heading for sea along the Thames.

 

Sent from my mobile using the CC forums app

[Fpacifico]

Wow, hope they have smooth sailing.

[roothy123]

We got away from London a little late, but tides are most certainly involved, and so are tugs, so those of us who have cruised before know these things can happen and don't sweat the small stuff. It was a great sailaway. Greenwich is wonderful. I described a bit of Greenwich embarkation in my Roll Call post (June 17 Star cruise). The tides also explain the 2:30 or 3:30 itinerary of one of the remaining itineraries. There are gorgeous pictures posted on our roll call that a couple Londoners took when Star passed them at sailaway.

 

All is wonderful on board in my opinion. I was hoping to post my experiences on CC but there seem to be plenty of people already doing that, so I think I'll just relax. However, some things people may not know, especially if they're river cruisers, not ocean cruisers:

 

Really helps to take a lanyard for your key card. You will use it a lot.

 

Maps are at the Explorers Desk. Use the one for Greenwich and enjoy Greenwich. I explored both Greenwich - and London, but there's no map for that.

 

The Explorers Desk is not the Explorers Lounge - know the difference. Some people don't when they get on board. I hope people make it to our Meet and Greet. Two years ago that was a little confusing to some. Deck 8 part of Explorers Lounge can be accessed at the back of the staterooms on 8 if you don't want to climb up the stairs. It can also be reached by the glass steps from 7, Explorers Lounge.

 

For the person who asked about asking Viking to put one night stand between 2 twin beds: I don't have a measuring tape but it looks to be at least 2 1/2 feet from the end of bed to desk. You should have room to get around, no problem.

 

Bridge tours were announced in the Daily paper soon after we got on board. I hear they're popular, so don't wait to sign up for them. They're offered when the ship is in port.

 

It's certainly possible to get additional Chef's Table reservations when you get on board. As for the excursions, I can't say. We reserved online all seems to be OK (times were same once on board, no cancels that I've heard about, etc. - but of course, it's early in the cruise, and I haven't talked to anyone, so can't say.

 

When you get on board, orient yourself as to where your stateroom is by 1) whether you're in front of or behind the big atrium photo screen and 2) what's on the wall on the correct side of the ship.

 

Elevators are right near the stairs.

 

Enrichment lectures, your excursion info, etc. is all on the TV.

 

Don't expect things to be the exact same on an ocean cruise. They aren't. It's not possible, and often it's not desirable. Wehad one woman who didn't realize she had booked an ocean cruise. I don't know how that happens, but apparently it happened.

 

I don't think there was a bridge cam when we cruised on Star in fall 2015. Now there is. I love bridge cams.

 

Our cruise director is Suzanne, although I may have spelled that incorrectly. Captain is Rune. We have already recognized and been recognized by the waiter at Chef's Table and the "usually there" waitress at Mamsen's. They were there in fall 2015 and are still there. A nice thing.

 

Don't forget, meal times aren't the same each day. Read the Daily each evening.

 

Tors was on board yesterday. I didn't see him, but my husband did. We had guests....

 

I am loving this cruise, although all I've done is explored London and Greenwich. We also loved Iceland, though we did it on our own by doing a stopover from Dulles to Reykjavik on Icelandair.

 

We have our roll call get together today at 6.

 

Now I need to go get a pastry and coffee from the Living Room.

(Don't forget about the other places to eat like that and Mamsen's.)

 

Thanks for all you and other CC folks do, Carolyn, and enjoy your cruise.

Edited June 19, 2017 by roothy123

[helenandfrank]

Excellent advice roothy123 ... re - Really helps to take a lanyard for your key card. You will use it a lot.What type of fastener (eg a hook or something similar?) do we need on the lanyard to secure the key card ? Thanks again, Frank

[Fpacifico]

On Friday, we met Tors and his daughter and her pup, very nice family. They mingled with the passengers before their dinner. Lol, I surprised Tors because coming from New York City, I had no complaints. Karine and I discussed which aquavit I choose. It turns out that we both liked linnii

[Peregrina651]

On Friday, we met Tors and his daughter and her pup, very nice family. They mingled with the passengers before their dinner. Lol, I surprised Tors because coming from New York City, I had no complaints. Karine and I discussed which aquavit I choose. It turns out that we both liked linnii

 

Tors et al. are headed to Tromso for Thursday's naming ceremony for the Sky.

[Fpacifico]

Tors et al. are headed to Tromso for Thursday's naming ceremony for the Sky.

Nice folks

[editor@cruisecritic]

Phew, glad to hear that Viking Star is on the way! Thanks for the good reporting --

 

 

I will advise folks on that cruise to embrace the sun as much as possible. So far all we've had is rain, aka "liquid sunshine". The good news: This part of the world is so beautiful and looks different under skies. And it changes variably quite unpredictably so you will get glimpses of all....

 

Carolyn

I just checked the June 17 London to Bergen roll call and that is not what folks on board are reporting as of an hour ago. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=53333137&postcount=169

 

I will tell you we are scheduled to sail from Greenwich at 7:30 PM tonight. Muster is at 5:45 PM. Weather has been absolutely glorious. Some may feel it is too warm but personally I like the sun and the warmer temps. Hope our luck with the weather continues.

[editor@cruisecritic]

Last night, Viking held our meet and mingle, and as always it was a superb gathering with free-flowing cocktails, delicious hors d’oeuvres and the chance to get to know both each other – and key staff and officers. While every cruise line that participates in Cruise Critic’s program chooses its style of meet and greets, Viking’s truly is one of the more elegant affairs.

 

Loved that it was held in the Wintergarden this time (we were sailing through Geiranger fjord and the Explorers Lounge was packed). Meeting up with other Cruise Critic members always makes a ship feel cozier – loved running into various and sundry throughout the ship afterward. And p.s. there was some pretty good dancing over in Torshavn last night J

 

Carolyn

[photopro2]

p.s. there was some pretty good dancing over in Torshavn last night J

Enjoying your posts Carolyn and glad to hear that you are making full use of the ships facilities, day and night :D

 

We are wondering about the chances of us walking on and off the ship in London in the summer of 2019? You might be rubbing shoulders with some of the Viking VIP's at some point and maybe you can see if they have any news on the expected opening date for the Greenwich (Enderby Wharf) dock?

 

Hope you get more sunshine as the days go on!

[stretchcruz]

Our meet and greet was in Wintergarden as well. It was huge!

[editor@cruisecritic]

Yes indeed! Karine and Finse are already onboard -- lovely. Torstein arrives tomorrow for the christening. It's already getting exciting....

 

 

Carolyn

 

Tors et al. are headed to Tromso for Thursday's naming ceremony for the Sky.

[editor@cruisecritic]

Will check that out, photopro2!

 

Carolyn

Enjoying your posts Carolyn and glad to hear that you are making full use of the ships facilities, day and night :D

 

We are wondering about the chances of us walking on and off the ship in London in the summer of 2019? You might be rubbing shoulders with some of the Viking VIP's at some point and maybe you can see if they have any news on the expected opening date for the Greenwich (Enderby Wharf) dock?

 

Hope you get more sunshine as the days go on!

[editor@cruisecritic]

As you probably know I’ve spent a fair bit of time on Viking’s ocean ships and the ships themselves have been a knockout success (and a knockout hit for me) since day one, literally. Beyond the ship itself (and service and food which have always been terrific and continue to be so) where the new ocean line struggled was in creating meaningful destination-related programming. And by that I mean that enrichment was pretty skimpy onboard, and immersive-oriented tours weren’t all that common.

 

So it’s really great to see that Viking continues to upgrade and improve in this area. Even before we left, when we were checking out shore excursions (highly recommend you pre-book if you can, especially the extra-fee tours, which have smaller capacities). They’re really interesting! For instance in Geiranger we rode e-bikes 1,500 feet up into the sky, literally, and got to see the region beyond-the-bus. There’s sea kayaking, hiking and even ocean-fishing (bring the Dramamine ;)) – just a great selection of active tours. And these sold out pretty fast. When you consider the average age onboard is 65 or so and so many of these folks are picking the recreational options, it’s just great.

 

I didn’t pre-book any tours and was concerned that I was missing out – and I do not recommend the strategy I employed! – but we’ve done pretty well. The cycling tour looked booked before the cruise but there were two spots for us. I just signed my husband up for a hiking tour in Leknes. The WWII-related tour in Kirkwall, which showed up on the interactive television as sold-out, had availability when I went down to the shore ex department, so it’s all working out.

 

The other new twist that I don’t remember from my earlier cruises is the superb destination enrichment program. This is fairly new and it’s inspired by Viking River’s own Bordeaux river itinerary (which I think is the best in the business for experiential off-the-ship tours and onboard enrichment). Really substantial talks, presented energetically and not at all dry. We had dinner last night with Dr. Charles Doherty, the resident historian who’s overseeing the program (and who lectured this morning to a full house) and the ambition is to provide university-level learning opportunities that are also entertaining. Also onboard (and at dinner) to lend inspiration to the program is Paul Dawson, a British professor in Bordeaux, who helped create the Bordeaux program. He made sure we had a delicious St. Emilion merlot ….

 

Another plus: If you miss the actual lecture (and because of our relatively port-heavy itinerary they’re often taking place at 6:30 p.m. when you might be at dinner) the in-cabin television’s got ‘em for you. The production values of the replays are the best I’ve seen.

 

Just came across this review of Viking Ocean by the formidable cruise industry/travel agent trade publication Cruise Week, which was onboard in the Baltic last week, and it pretty much sums up the lecture program:

 

“These were not only the best port talks I had ever seen, but I have never seen port talks attract as big and audience as they did regularly on this sailing.”

 

Carolyn

[editor@cruisecritic]

Just a heads up that in addition to posting daily photos on my own Instagram account (CarolynSpencerBrown) and Twitter (cruiseeditor), Cruise Critic is also re-posting occasionally on its Twitter (Cruisecritic) and Instagram (Cruisecritic).

 

Another don't-miss resource for great photos is hashtag #MyVikingJourney on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. This allows you to follow along with passengers who may be active (from all Viking trips, not just ours) and also my fellow journalist colleagues who are onboard, and sharing madly!

 

Carolyn

[sitraveler]

Carolyn

 

I generally don't remember lecturers' but even the first Star sailing had former ambassador Edward Peck.