Viking Expeditions Thread

[OnTheJourney]

3 hours ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

The two expedition ships need to head to the Antarctic so I doubt you’ll see any later GL dates.

Yeah I hadn't thought of in terms of them using both ships down there. In looking at all the GL itineraries, there's really nothing past 9/26 or thereabouts. Thanks!

[OnTheJourney]

3 hours ago, deec said:

Much after Late September and the Great Lakes can also be notoriously rough!  I think September will be the best weather window.

Well, except that if the trip starts on 9/23 it won't end till 10/9. You bring up a great point, and I wonder if - since this is the longest GL itinerary they've yet come up with - have they even been on the lakes into October? I don't really want to be part of an experiment. I see that this year they're doing the 15-day "Great Lakes Collection" starting on 9/26, so that's roughly the same timeframe. I really don't know what to do here - somehow hate to fight the midges in early May. I wouldn't be all that concerned about any of this yet if it weren't for having to at least book something by mid-Oct. to use the vouchers we got from the MS cruise.  I'm not a great fan of rough seas. Luckily we got "Drake Lake" for the two times we crossed.

Edited September 9 by OnTheJourney

[OneSixtyToOne]

49 minutes ago, OnTheJourney said:

Well, except that if the trip starts on 9/23 it won't end till 10/9. You bring up a great point, and I wonder if - since this is the longest GL itinerary they've yet come up with - have they even been on the lakes into October? I don't really want to be part of an experiment. I see that this year they're doing the 15-day "Great Lakes Collection" starting on 9/26, so that's roughly the same timeframe. I really don't know what to do here - somehow hate to fight the midges in early May. I wouldn't be all that concerned about any of this yet if it weren't for having to at least book something by mid-Oct. to use the vouchers we got from the MS cruise.  I'm not a great fan of rough seas. Luckily we got "Drake Lake" for the two times we crossed.

Promo going on now on South American Expedition cruises. FLL to Santiago and Santiago to Ushuaia are really great deals.
 

https://www.vikingcruises.com/expeditions/promotions.html?promoCode=CSA24&cid=EML|AJO|999|Email+-+240823_vxp_csa24&utm_source=email&utm_medium=AJO&utm_content=Email+-+240823_vxp_csa24&correlationId=437ddddb-3eae-46b7-9d14-66717c18fda6-0

 

Edited September 9 by OneSixtyToOne

[OnTheJourney]

1 hour ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

Promo going on now on South American Expedition cruises. FLL to Santiago and Santiago to Ushuaia are really great deals.
 

Thanks but not really interested in that. We've been to Ushuaia on an Antarctica cruise back in '17.

[deec]

I think you will be fine in September early October.

[OnTheJourney]

34 minutes ago, deec said:

I think you will be fine in September early October.

Thanks for the encouraging words. If we do have rough water, as long as the musicians don't start doing "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" LOL   On the Sky, during the bomb cyclone back in '19, during lunch the guitarist was playing "My Heart will Go On".  😆

Edited September 9 by OnTheJourney

[LindaS272]

10 minutes ago, OnTheJourney said:

If we do have rough water, as long as the musicians don't start doing "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" LOL 

But that was in November. 😎

[OnTheJourney]

2 hours ago, LindaS272 said:

But that was in November.

Indeed, the 10th. Many years ago we visited the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point, MI   They played the song over and over the entire time!!!

[CurlerRob]

4 hours ago, LindaS272 said:

But that was in November. 😎

 

1 hour ago, OnTheJourney said:

Indeed, the 10th. Many years ago we visited the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point, MI   They played the song over and over the entire time!!!

 

and ... you're not on Lake Superior during the trip 😈. You can, however, visit the Mariner's Church referenced in the song during your Detroit stop!

 

I don't think you are at any more risk for heavy weather during that trip than you would be on any body of deep water anywhere else. Even if it does kick up, you are a lot closer to lee shore protection than at sea.

 

FWIW, many year ago during a July Mackinac race, we ran into a 50-knot westerly blow for the length of Lake Huron. It was a very long 18 hours in a 35 foot sailboat and 25 foot seas. 🍺🥌

[deec]

Curler Rob my husband was no doubt on that race too....me no not ever....love sailing hate racing.  Are you on Lake St. Clair or Huron?

[CurlerRob]

46 minutes ago, deec said:

Curler Rob my husband was no doubt on that race too....me no not ever....love sailing hate racing.  Are you on Lake St. Clair or Huron?

 

Neither now - Toronto area, so Lake Ontario, although no boat. I started my work career in Windsor in 1978 where I learned to sail. Kept my boat in Kingsville on Lake Erie and raced all over Erie and St. Clair.

 

My two Mac races were on a C&C 35 out of Bayview. My memory is fuzzy, but I think 1979 - 81 range. I look forward to clarifying that with you both on the Bergen - NYC next summer! 🍺🥌

[deec]

It will be fun to meet!!!  We are members of BYC but my husband was not racing Mac yet '79-81!  My dad sailed on Walloon about that time.  We know many of the C&C 35 fleet.  Stories can be shared up in the Explorer's Lounge.

[chirk]

On 1/11/2024 at 10:56 AM, wpklee said:

Hi everyone, we're booked on the Feb 21 Antarctica Explorer on the Polaris. 

 

We are late to the game and the kayaking activities are all sold out.  I understand that guests are allowed only one kayaking and one special operation boat cruise per cruise, but multiple Zodiac cruises and landings, and all subject to weather and sea conditions. 

 

For those who have done the Antarctica cruise on either ship, can you please shed some light on your actual experiences related to the availability of these excursions and how many of these did you end up getting.  Thank you in advance for your info.

 

Wallace

Hey Wallace: did you ever get an answer on this? Thanks.

[Ktwofish]

2 hours ago, chirk said:

Hey Wallace: did you ever get an answer on this? Thanks.

@chirk I’ll chime in.  When we went last February, you were able to sign up for additional zodiac and special op boats when you were on board.  You could do it on the Viking app or at the customer service desk.  Others would go and wait in the hangar area to see if they could fill in if someone didn’t show up.  We did not kayak, but on our cruise they had a meeting for everyone who wanted to kayak.  There is a test to see if you are able to get in and out of the kayak safely.  I wouldn’t worry if kayaking is sold out now.  Just check with customer service as soon as you get on board for all the details.  P.S. Sign up for a FB group just for Viking Antarctic Expedition Cruises.  Lots of info there.

Edited September 19 by Ktwofish

[chirk]

@Ktwofish Thank you! Was your impression people got to kayak as much as they wanted or was it always packed? 

I read somewhere you could only sign up for one excursion per day? We would want to kayak and go on shore if possible (weather permitting). What was your experience?

(Awaiting acceptance by the FB group. 😁)

[Frenchberet]

54 minutes ago, chirk said:

@Ktwofish Thank you! Was your impression people got to kayak as much as they wanted or was it always packed? 

I read somewhere you could only sign up for one excursion per day? We would want to kayak and go on shore if possible (weather permitting). What was your experience?

(Awaiting acceptance by the FB group. 😁)

We did this cruise on Octantis in Feb 2023.  When we signed up for the excursions, we were only able to “express interest” but not actually schedule anything.  Once onboard everything fell into place and we were able to do everything we wanted to do.  On some days we did multiple activities, such as landing and special ops boat.  We spoke to one couple who got dressed, went downstairs, and waited to fill the spots for people who didn’t show up for their assigned time. Great idea.  
 

We didn’t kayak but it appeared that things ran smoothly.  The entire excursion process worked very well and we were busy every day.  Loved the expedition ship and everything about the trip. It was a wonderful experience!

[Mike07]

5 hours ago, chirk said:

@Ktwofish Thank you! Was your impression people got to kayak as much as they wanted or was it always packed? 

I read somewhere you could only sign up for one excursion per day? We would want to kayak and go on shore if possible (weather permitting). What was your experience?

(Awaiting acceptance by the FB group. 😁)

 

 

It's generally always packed (kayaking). If you want to kayak every day, it might be possible, but it'll be a PITA.

 

I very much valued my first time to Antarctica with Viking, and I will always look upon it with fond memories. However, I probably would not go with Viking ever again. I say that as I absolutely would do itineraries on the expedition ships again.

 

BTW --- that "other group"... outright frauds... you can't have honest discussions about concerns with Viking and Antarctica in that space.

[Ktwofish]

6 hours ago, chirk said:

@Ktwofish Thank you! Was your impression people got to kayak as much as they wanted or was it always packed? 

I read somewhere you could only sign up for one excursion per day? We would want to kayak and go on shore if possible (weather permitting). What was your experience?

(Awaiting acceptance by the FB group. 😁)

@chirk  Kayaks are limited and they always seemed full.  I don’t know if you can go as many times you want, but I’m guessing you might be able to go more than once.

[Ktwofish]

1 hour ago, Mike07 said:

 

 

It's generally always packed (kayaking). If you want to kayak every day, it might be possible, but it'll be a PITA.

 

I very much valued my first time to Antarctica with Viking, and I will always look upon it with fond memories. However, I probably would not go with Viking ever again. I say that as I absolutely would do itineraries on the expedition ships again.

 

BTW --- that "other group"... outright frauds... you can't have honest discussions about concerns with Viking and Antarctica in that space.

I would love to go back to Antarctica, and I would go with Viking…I think.  We lost 3 out of 4 days in Antarctica due to a medical emergency onboard.

 

The FB group has very stringent rules, and the administrators take them very seriously.  That being said, I did get good information from the group even though I had to endure “look at our lists” and “use the search feature” a few times, ha, ha.

[chirk]

@Mike07 can you say more about why you wouldn’t repeat on Viking?

[Mike07]

1 hour ago, chirk said:

@Mike07 can you say more about why you wouldn’t repeat on Viking?

 

 

1. The ship has too many people even though it's like 368 or 398 or something like that. Antarctica agreements restrict ship operators from putting more than 100 people on shore at any given time.

2. The way the tours are handled. Too many people for the zodiaks, SOBs, and kayaks. I think Viking is the only one that has SOBs though.

3. Viking would never "push into the ice" as I've seen from other operators. Cue, Gary Bembridge on Youtube and his experience with Ponant (Granted, they're a French line and I wouldn't go with Ponant on anything)

4. The whole jack******* nature of the shore excursions because the ship is too big.

5. No Polar bear plunge (not even entirely sure they did that fake pool plunge on my trip)

6. As I mentioned above..... stuff like kayaking, if you don't have a reservation, it's standby and GFL if you get on the tour, because there are so many people. The actual ship never feels crowded. It feels crowded doing the whole point of the trip (shore excursions with the toys).

 

Great experience, the Polaris and Octantis are fantastic vessels. But, I know roughly what competitors charge and Viking would have to undercut said competitors a lot for me to go with them again. I have about 30 days on the Polaris between an Antarctica and Chilean Fjords trip. I absolutely would sail Viking again on an expedition ship, but Antarctica... the price is going to have to be exceptional, because I'm not going to quibble over up to $15k with how much time it took for me to get to Ushuaia. (I'm from NA... nothing went wrong on the flights)

 

Again, zero regrets for taking Viking. They delivered the experience the brochure promised. But, it's a more competitive market than "Viking goes there, I'm going with them b/c I know them!". To be fair, I'm more active and younger than 95% of the viking clientele. I also have more days on Viking than probably 75% of their clients. So, what I'm looking for is maybe not what everybody else is looking for.

Edited Thursday at 09:48 PM by Mike07

[Mike07]

2 hours ago, Ktwofish said:

I would love to go back to Antarctica, and I would go with Viking…I think.  We lost 3 out of 4 days in Antarctica due to a medical emergency onboard.

 

The FB group has very stringent rules, and the administrators take them very seriously.  That being said, I did get good information from the group even though I had to endure “look at our lists” and “use the search feature” a few times, ha, ha.

 

 

Oof.. that's rough. TBH, we had generally fantastic weather for our Antarctica trip. I know there is absolutely nothing Viking, or any other operator, can do about the weather other than monitor and find somewhere safe to sail. I think I heard of your trip, and I think Viking was decent with future cruise credits. While I thought it was lame to have to fill out that Viking medical questionnaire, I did understand why it was necessary after my first Viking river cruise.

[chirk]

@Mike07 Unfortunately you are highlighting my biggest concern with Viking: size. We did the Arctic with Quark in May—half the passenger count. And even then you sometimes felt like you were waiting too much. 

 

However, the Viking Dec. 15 Antarctica sailing fits our schedule so we’ve signed up! We’ll report back. 

[Ktwofish]

4 minutes ago, Mike07 said:

 

 

Oof.. that's rough. TBH, we had generally fantastic weather for our Antarctica trip. I know there is absolutely nothing Viking, or any other operator, can do about the weather other than monitor and find somewhere safe to sail. I think I heard of your trip, and I think Viking was decent with future cruise credits. While I thought it was lame to have to fill out that Viking medical questionnaire, I did understand why it was necessary after my first Viking river cruise.

Apparently there were 3 trips total last season that had medical emergencies (based on FB posts.) Unfortunately, we could not reach a nearby island with an airstrip, so we had to make the trip back across the Drake at high speed.  Two sea days and a day in Port Stanley, Falklands, was not a good substitute for 3 days in Antarctica.  Viking gave us 25 percent of our paid cruise fare, which is OK, I guess.  I called Viking because there was a discrepancy with my 25 percent calculation.  They deducted $500 from our paid cruise fare for the one night in Buenos Aires, which I thought was lame.  

[Mike07]

7 minutes ago, chirk said:

@Mike07 Unfortunately you are highlighting my biggest concern with Viking: size. We did the Arctic with Quark in May—half the passenger count. And even then you sometimes felt like you were waiting too much. 

 

However, the Viking Dec. 15 Antarctica sailing fits our schedule so we’ve signed up! We’ll report back. 

 

 

It's a nice ship. I feel like the food budget is higher than the ocean ships. But, I would want a more adventuresome experience in future sailings. Others might feel differently, but I want more "I feel like doing _______  today" versus the way Viking has it organized.

 

Again, I'm always actively looking at expedition ship itineraries and prices, but for Antarctica, the price would have to be exceptional.