Viking's Welcome Back Program

[Clay Clayton]

24 minutes ago, SantaFe1 said:

I see our June 26 Iceland cruise is sold out.  Did someone say here somewhere yesterday that these new cruises were operating at 50%, or will there really be 930 pax?

I’ve was told “reduced capacity”. The word from our Brit friends is that the around Britain cruises this summer are limited to 450 passengers so just under 50%. Our half transatlantic in March 2020 had just under 500 aboard and once you got used to the lack of people it was very nice!  Of course we didn’t have to make reservations in the Restaurant and such so this will obviously feel different. But to give you an idea, below is a picture of Mike on embarkation night in The Restaurant. We were sitting port. Starboard was slightly (but only barely) fuller. 

[Clay Clayton]

If anyone has their flight information to/from Reykjavik yet, please share, particularly if flying through or from JFK or Boston.   We are trying to determine whether to take Viking’s air or DIY.   If we DIY I would like to be on the 9:30 am return flight but wonder if that is too early. The only other non-Icelandic air flights are around 11:15 am. So it would be helpful to see what Viking is booking. 

[SantaFe1]

13 minutes ago, Clay Clayton said:

If anyone has their flight information to/from Reykjavik yet, please share, particularly if flying through or from JFK or Boston.   We are trying to determine whether to take Viking’s air or DIY.   If we DIY I would like to be on the 9:30 am return flight but wonder if that is too early. The only other non-Icelandic air flights are around 11:15 am. So it would be helpful to see what Viking is booking. 

We are flying Delta out of Minneapolis to Reykjavik and back.  Our invoice says nothing earlier than 9:00am for return flight, so we booked the 9:30 flight back home.  The ships docks at 5 am that morning.  We booked it ourselves for the simple reason that Viking couldn’t find us anything to our liking.

Edited April 7, 2021 by SantaFe1

[Peregrina651]

2 hours ago, OnTheJourney said:

Don't blame you, but this is exactly what I'm referring to relative to the lack of control that Viking has over how people arrive and what they do prior to embarkation. See how it all plays out. 

 

 

Knowing that everyone on board will have been vaccinated, I am less worried about spread.

[Larry2021]

19 hours ago, Clay Clayton said:

Has anyone asked if after the PCR test done before disembarking will Viking provide some sort of document good enough to get back into the USA?   Or will we have to take (and presumably pay for this time) another test?

According to Viking yesterday they provide the PCr test and documentation to get back into the US.

[OnTheJourney]

2 hours ago, Peregrina651 said:

Knowing that everyone on board will have been vaccinated, I am less worried about spread.

Yeah but from data acquired thus far, vaccinated can still get and spread. It's less of a concern with the ship pax and crew 'bubble' than it is the interaction with locals - who may or may not have covid and may or may not be vaccinated. No way to control that. I'm not trying to be devil's advocate but just trying to see all sides of this. Lots of variables. 

[GonzoWCS]

7 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Our TA told us this morning that Iceland booked up yesterday completely.  Bermuda still available.

Yes - boom!

[SantaFe1]

3 minutes ago, OnTheJourney said:

interaction with locals

Yes, but Iceland has very little infection.  It’s probably safer to go there once vaccinated than for us to go downtown!

[OnTheJourney]

6 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Yes - withdrawal!  I hear you completely! 

I admire all of you taking this plunge with the new reopening itineraries and pray all goes well for everyone. My first foray back into traveling will likely be the October fly/drive to see some National Parks, and then we'll evaluate from there.  I want to see a greater rate of global vaccination and numbers of new cases start to slack off. By our April '22 cruise, I'm hopeful that'll be the case. 

[OnTheJourney]

3 minutes ago, SantaFe1 said:

Yes, but Iceland has very little infection.

Been looking at that....certainly adds to the comfort level. Bermuda, on the other hand, is a rather different situation from what I'm seeing. 

[Heartgrove]

Made the switch to Viking for the 7/17 cruise! I just happen to be on the computer yesterday morning when I watched the chairman's video announcing the Iceland/Bermuda cruises. Little did I realize that it would sell out so quickly!!! I had put a 24-hour hold on a DV2 thinking that maybe Viking's Inventory Control might release additional cabins for consideration. "Sold Out No Longer Available." Paid for it today.

 

Now to cancel the B2B 7-day and Transatlantic booked on HAL for October. Actually we have pushed back dates on two HAL Amsterdam to Iceland RT cruises for this year, then settled on this one figuring that it might actually sail. Our vacation planning had already been cut to just the cruise due to the current EU virus situation as we normally tag on a two week land trip. 

 

When Iceland opened back up this month I had started to consider a fly/drive trip to Iceland  in place of the cruise so had already done some homework. The cruise cemented it. 

 

We are flying Icelandair from Dulles and arriving on Friday. The post by "amys" regarding visiting the Blue Lagoon has given us an idea for that day. Then when we disembark, we are staying over three days to do some independent sightseeing. Looking forward to connecting with some of you. "Welcome back to the World."  

 

 

Edited April 8, 2021 by Heartgrove

[Jim Avery]

Folks, even before the vax your chances of going there, catching covid, becoming very ill, and dying, were slim.  You will now have the vax.  Relax.  You are going on yet another grand holiday.  Talk about the fun stuff..

[vslparis]

1 minute ago, Jim Avery said:

Folks, even before the vax your chances of going there, catching covid, becoming very ill, and dying, were slim.  You will now have the vax.  Relax.  You are going on yet another grand holiday.  Talk about the fun stuff..

I agree .  We have been to Mexico 3 times, Disney World ( how crazy was that ! ) and just returned from the Dominican Republic about 10 days ago.  If you wear a mask, wash your hands and try to maintain social distancing you lower your risk a good deal.  All the resorts that we went to had mask and distancing protocols in place and were enforced most of the time.  The DR was stricter than Mexico but even there we felt we were no more at risk than going to Target 😁. Everyone has to do what they feel is best for them though.  Right now , for us, going to Iceland on 26 June is what is best !

[chromatographer]

3 hours ago, Clay Clayton said:

If anyone has their flight information to/from Reykjavik yet, please share, particularly if flying through or from JFK or Boston.   We are trying to determine whether to take Viking’s air or DIY.   If we DIY I would like to be on the 9:30 am return flight but wonder if that is too early. The only other non-Icelandic air flights are around 11:15 am. So it would be helpful to see what Viking is booking. 

We booked our DIY flights with a return a day after disembarking (25-Jul instead of 24-Jul) so that we wouldn’t have to rush to get off the boat at 5 AM and would have some time to visit Blue Lagoon between the cruise terminal and the airport. We found a cheap Airbnb near the airport that would allow us to have a stress free trip to the airport for our 11:40 AM departure. There’s a shuttle called Destination Blue Lagoon that will pick you up from near the cruise terminal or downtown Reykjavik. You can also book the shuttle to take you to the airport afterwards, which is probably what we’ll do. 

[Clay Clayton]

16 minutes ago, chromatographer said:

We booked our DIY flights with a return a day after disembarking (25-Jul instead of 24-Jul) so that we wouldn’t have to rush to get off the boat at 5 AM and would have some time to visit Blue Lagoon between the cruise terminal and the airport. We found a cheap Airbnb near the airport that would allow us to have a stress free trip to the airport for our 11:40 AM departure. There’s a shuttle called Destination Blue Lagoon that will pick you up from near the cruise terminal or downtown Reykjavik. You can also book the shuttle to take you to the airport afterwards, which is probably what we’ll do. 

Thanks!

That’s who I have emailed trying to set up an airport pickup and a cruise port dropoff after some time at Blue Lagoon. 🤞

[chromatographer]

1 hour ago, Clay Clayton said:

Thanks!

That’s who I have emailed trying to set up an airport pickup and a cruise port dropoff after some time at Blue Lagoon. 🤞

Let us know what you find out. We saved the info but are waiting a bit to decide on what we’re doing that day. 

[Clay Clayton]

48 minutes ago, chromatographer said:

Let us know what you find out. We saved the info but are waiting a bit to decide on what we’re doing that day. 

Willdo

[Clay Clayton]

9 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

I will ask Viking Air again.  Was told (at least to Bermuda) that we could not upgrade from coach, even for a fee.  Seemed strange - had not heard that one before.  Will have to do a HUCA , maybe a couple times.

If you get them ask if the rule applies to extra legroom seats also please

[molymoo]

10 hours ago, SantaFe1 said:

I see our June 26 Iceland cruise is sold out.  Did someone say here somewhere yesterday that these new cruises were operating at 50%, or will there really be 930 pax?

I was wondering the same thing!  They sold out so quickly!  We booked Bermuda and the agent we worked with said they were receiving calls to book the welcome back trips before complete info about the trips had trickled down to the agents!  Have to wonder if the ships will be at less than capacity.

[molymoo]

22 hours ago, amyr said:

My sister and I have booked this departure too 🙂  We just want to go somewhere, and a fully vaccinated Viking bubble seems like just the place, especially one at only 50 percent capacity.  My husband and I were on Star's maiden voyage, and loved Viking ever since.  I've been to Bermuda before, so won't mind being restricted there.  I'm usually very do it yourself with tours and flights, but this time we're happy to give it all up to Viking, and we'll follow the red lollipop if we have to.  We live in Florida, so the beach isn't a draw for us either.

The Iceland cruise looks nice too, but my husband and I will be driving around the country in August.  It was supposed to be a pre-cruise trip before hopping on a (now cancelled) Ponant cruise from Reykjavik to Montreal via Greenland, and we've decided to fly to Iceland anyway and drive around since they're only allowing vaccinated people to enter the country.

Our only concern is the spa, which we love, and we can't really get a straight answer, either from the website or Viking.  They just say "On ocean cruises, The Spa will remain open to all guests by appointment only to ensure proper distancing and all spa staff will wear face masks during treatments. The Fitness Center will also remain open with its own dedicated sanitization staff to ensure all equipment and surfaces are cleaned in between each guest use."  Does that mean we'll have to sign up for a time to visit the spa?  Sounds that way, doesn't it?  At least it will be open I guess.  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯







 

We love the spa as well and are anxiously waiting for MVJ to update (or whatever it is they’re doing) so we can get more information.  I’m guessing (and that’s all it is ... a guess) that the spa facilities will likely  be available much of the time.  We’ve been on several cruises and rarely have run into more than a handful of people using the facilities at any one time.  I’m hoping that once on the ship we can call early in the day and potentially set up a time then rather than trying to set a time 60 - 70 days before embarking.  

[Azulann]

Opened my emails this morning and Viking has already given me my flights to and from  Bermuda. 

That was fast. Flying Delta to Bermuda and American back to US and home. 

[GonzoWCS]

15 hours ago, SantaFe1 said:

I see our June 26 Iceland cruise is sold out.  Did someone say here somewhere yesterday that these new cruises were operating at 50%, or will there really be 930 pax?

Good question.  Has anyone confirmed the numbers of passengers Viking is planning on?

[TERRIER1]

A new lagoon, called Sky Lagoon,  located in Kársnes Harbour, Kópavogur, just a few minutes from Reykjavik is slated to open this Spring. I have never been there. It's another option for spending your free time if it opens by the time your cruise takes place. It's a different experience than the Blue Lagoon.

[photopro2]

2 hours ago, Azulann said:

Opened my emails this morning and Viking has already given me my flights to and from  Bermuda. 

Hi Azulann, 

Trust you are well and really pleased to see that you now have another Viking cruise not too far away! Hopefully you will find time for some "live on-board" posts so we can follow along. 

What ship will you be on? I don't recall anyone mentioning that and we can't check the details on the UK site. 

[Peregrina651]

6 hours ago, molymoo said:

I was wondering the same thing!  They sold out so quickly!  We booked Bermuda and the agent we worked with said they were receiving calls to book the welcome back trips before complete info about the trips had trickled down to the agents!  Have to wonder if the ships will be at less than capacity.

 

someone quoted 50% (450 vs 930 full capacity)