LIVE from "Iceland's Natural Beauty" -- All Sailings, 2021

[saratogian127]

12 minutes ago, bardstowntraveller said:

Think I have a good handle for what to pack for excursions but am less sure on what to pack for dinner and ship time. Do most dress differently for time onboard?  I am trying to minimize what to bring but don’t want to be underdressed for dinner. Also, if people are changing for dinner, is summer clothing worn or is clothing more appropriate for the weather?

On board, at least the first few days, I try to wear nice shorts and a polo/button down shirt. But, after a few days I'm usually in a t-shirt (it IS vacation, after all). Dinner, I wear slacks and button down/polo. My girlfriend is usually in a sundress, or similar. I see people much more dressed up, but most seem to be what I'd call "business casual" at the restaurants and the evening shows. 

 

We're on vacation. Be comfortable 🙂

[librarylady19]

33 minutes ago, bardstowntraveller said:

Think I have a good handle for what to pack for excursions but am less sure on what to pack for dinner and ship time. Do most dress differently for time onboard?  I am trying to minimize what to bring but don’t want to be underdressed for dinner. Also, if people are changing for dinner, is summer clothing worn or is clothing more appropriate for the weather?

I wore a dress(short sleeved or sleeveless)  similar to what I might have worn an a Caribbean cruise and was definitely on the minority.  I was happy to get that wardrobe out of. Othballs thoigh😀😀 most ladies wore pants and  more dressy tops.  Not a lot of bling. Didn’t see jeans at night for most part. 

[shipster60]

1 hour ago, IWantToLiveOverTheSea said:

If you'd settle for just seeing a captive or a rescued puffin, there may be a couple options for seeing a rescued/not in the wild puffin on Heimaey.  But one option is a non-Viking excursion (Eyja Tours), so it may not be possible to do that excursion.  And the other may be the Beluga excursion arranged by Viking.  But I haven't really seen any recent comments/details on either excursion, so I don't know for sure if you would see a puffin or not.   

Fortunately the trips later in the day are going! They spread out group out among the other two. We have just boarded the boat for the trip back. It was amazing. Cold and windy here however!  

[Clay Clayton]

8 minutes ago, shipster60 said:

Fortunately the trips later in the day are going! They spread out group out among the other two. We have just boarded the boat for the trip back. It was amazing. Cold and windy here however!  

Methinks you aren’t aware you’re one of the very lucky ones. The rest of us weren’t allowed to go ashore and are confined to the ship.  

[NeilP57]

2 minutes ago, Clay Clayton said:

Methinks you aren’t aware you’re one of the very lucky ones. The rest of us weren’t allowed to go ashore and are confined to the ship.  

Me thinks that Shipster60 is on Jupiter and their post relates to Vigur Island. 
 

If only they had followed your suggestion of identifying the ship and the departure date in their posts! 

[librarylady19]

1 minute ago, NeilP57 said:

Me thinks that Shipster60 is on Jupiter and their post relates to Vigur Island. 
 

If only they had followed your suggestion of identifying the ship and the departure date in their posts! 

Definitely Vigur Island. I have a very similar pic from 7/3 cruise!

[Clay Clayton]

3 minutes ago, NeilP57 said:

Me thinks that Shipster60 is on Jupiter and their post relates to Vigur Island. 
 

If only they had followed your suggestion of identifying the ship and the departure date in their posts! 

 

1 minute ago, librarylady19 said:

Definitely Vigur Island. I have a very similar pic from 7/3 cruise!

Ah!   My bad. I was hoping some folks actually got to enjoy their excursion.  Oh well. 

[LindaS272]

6 hours ago, FoggyEthan said:

I've attached a photo of the main meal.

 

The soup was vegetables and lamb and croutons in a broth. I think they said the fish was cod. It was also very well cooked. So the lunch was quite good, if you enjoy those foods. The venue was Hótel Húsafell.

Thank you! Mystery solved. We had originally planned to book here our last three nights in Iceland but decided it was a bit too far away from Reykjavik for testing for our return flight and Borgarnes only had a half hour window in the middle of the day for testing. We booked at Hotel Glymur instead—about 45 minutes from Reykjavik. Went up to Husafell, Reykholt and the waterfalls our last day. Beautiful, remote, great food at Husafell Bistro.

[Louhut1]

For those looking for Icelandic yarn and not finding it on your excursions or wandering   I saw it at one of the stores at the KEF airport as we were departing.  Didn’t look at price but probably expensive as everything was there.  We were at the airport early as we had stayed 2 days after debarkation and wanted to beat rush.  We had no problems at the airport.  Great vacation. 

[EJLobster]

14 minutes ago, Louhut1 said:

For those looking for Icelandic yarn and not finding it on your excursions or wandering   I saw it at one of the stores at the KEF airport as we were departing.  Didn’t look at price but probably expensive as everything was there.  We were at the airport early as we had stayed 2 days after debarkation and wanted to beat rush.  We had no problems at the airport.  Great vacation. 

I bought LettLopi yarn at airport a few years ago- the price seems to be the same wherever you buy it- not expensive in my view.

[Crockett&Darla]

In light of the current events, and on a lighter note, how's everyone currently cruising adjusting to all the daylight?

[Clay Clayton]

2 minutes ago, Crockett&Darla said:

In light of the current events, and on a lighter note, how's everyone currently cruising adjusting to all the daylight?

Other than having to remember to see what time it is and being sure to go to bed, I'm having no trouble sleeping. The curtains do a good job of darkening the staterooms. Just be careful if you get up in the middle of the night and peak out-it's BRIGHT!

[librarylady19]

54 minutes ago, EJLobster said:

I bought LettLopi yarn at airport a few years ago- the price seems to be the same wherever you buy it- not expensive in my view.

My GF gifted me some last week that she purchased in Islafordjur and I was able to find more at the small duty free area in terminal C. It was roughly $4 a ball. I’m just about to start knitting my first sweater!

Edited July 15, 2021 by librarylady19

[travelinjones]

18 hours ago, trhattan said:

Can anyone comment on the "Hike the Eldfell Mountain: Extension to Included Tour" on Heimaey?  How strenuous  was the hike up the mountain?

We took this excursion in Heimaey on while on the July 3 sailing. (By the way, once onboard, we received a notice that this optional excursion originally marketed as an "extension" has been converted to a 3.5 hour tour that covered both the included tour and this Eldfell Mountain Hike.)  Friday, July 9th --the day we visited Heimaey Island -- was the only bad weather day of our cruise. It was raining, cold and very foggy, so we could see nothing on the hike, even the part before going up the mountain. We had a great guide, who kept a small group of us going by saying "only 10 more minutes," while others dropped out at various parts of the tour and headed to the museum portion of the tour or back to the ship. 

To answer your question, I would consider the "climbing up the mountain" part of the tour very strenuous, but that was in part due to the weather and fog that made it difficult to see more than a few feet in front of you, and we were rain-soaked. At the very top, we took turns reaching into the "hole" in the picture, where you can feel the volcanic heat, and where the locals often bake bread to show the heat. 

[dln929]

33 minutes ago, Crockett&Darla said:

In light of the current events, and on a lighter note, how's everyone currently cruising adjusting to all the daylight?

We were on the July 3rd cruise and I wondered how well I'd sleep with sunset at nearly midnight and sunrise at 3 am but the blackout curtains work beautifully.  Also, it's light but it's not bright.  The sky is sort of an opaque dusky whitey color.  Like you're in a fog going through the Bay of Biscay.  Or a dense San Francisco fog.

 

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

29 minutes ago, travelinjones said:

We took this excursion in Heimaey on while on the July 3 sailing. (By the way, once onboard, we received a notice that this optional excursion originally marketed as an "extension" has been converted to a 3.5 hour tour that covered both the included tour and this Eldfell Mountain Hike.)  Friday, July 9th --the day we visited Heimaey Island -- was the only bad weather day of our cruise. It was raining, cold and very foggy, so we could see nothing on the hike, even the part before going up the mountain. We had a great guide, who kept a small group of us going by saying "only 10 more minutes," while others dropped out at various parts of the tour and headed to the museum portion of the tour or back to the ship. 

To answer your question, I would consider the "climbing up the mountain" part of the tour very strenuous, but that was in part due to the weather and fog that made it difficult to see more than a few feet in front of you, and we were rain-soaked. At the very top, we took turns reaching into the "hole" in the picture, where you can feel the volcanic heat, and where the locals often bake bread to show the heat. 

Thanks. I was wondering how the included and extension worked. MVJ for Aug 3 cruise mentioned we didn't need to sign up for both if taking extension, but wasn't quite sure how that worked. Was included tour first for you on your tour, your July 3 sail date? Or was it after mountain hike?  I realize there may be differences in how it's done for various groups/sailings, but still curious.  Thanks.

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

Curious if Viking or the port or anyone greeting cruisers at each stop or any tour guides on the excursions have made a local map or tourist/city brochure with map available to cruisers. Has anyone seen that kind of thing anywhere?  Or if you're allowed off to wander on your own and want a map, do you need to try a local tourist office?

[Doc who loves to travel]

22 hours ago, gramfrog said:

This is so helpful! What did you wear under your waterproof jacket?  and what do you mean waterproof case?

 

 

BTW all is still good on Jupiter! Colder today isafjord- feels like temp of 46. I thought felt colder than that. This rain cover would work for my backpack  https://amzn.to/3rf1GIo

 

[SantaFe1]

24 minutes ago, IWantToLiveOverTheSea said:

Curious if Viking or the port or anyone greeting cruisers at each stop or any tour guides on the excursions have made a local map or tourist/city brochure with map available to cruisers. Has anyone seen that kind of thing anywhere?  Or if you're allowed off to wander on your own and want a map, do you need to try a local tourist office?

Other than Reykjavik, the towns are so tiny you wouldn’t really need a map. You can pretty much always see the ship.  But no, we on the first cruise never had any maps, that I know about, anyway.

[VI_Lounger]

3 minutes ago, SantaFe1 said:

Other than Reykjavik, the towns are so tiny you wouldn’t really need a map. You can pretty much always see the ship.  But no, we on the first cruise never had any maps, that I know about, anyway.

On the 2nd cruise, we noticed some people walking around with maps at 1 or 2 ports - sorry, can't remember which ports. Discovered they picked them up in the Viking tent that you walk through on the way out to your excursions. 

[Doc who loves to travel]

21 hours ago, Triptkr said:

for the waterproof pants...how did you figure out which size to get?  Do you wear them over your pants/jeans and put them on as you see you'll need them throughout the day--in this case order a bigger size-- or do you just wear the waterproof pants alone and order a smaller size?

I got a bigger size and wear fleece leggings under. I wore them all day.  Too much of a hassle to take on and off over my hiking shoes. They helped with wind too! 

[Doc who loves to travel]

9 minutes ago, Doc who loves to travel said:

BTW all is still good on Jupiter! Colder today isafjord- feels like temp of 46. I thought felt colder than that. This rain cover would work for my backpack  https://amzn.to/3rf1GIo

 

Oh and I wore tee shirt, fleece and light puffy coat under rain jacket.  Took puffy coat off as I could.

[travelinjones]

1 hour ago, IWantToLiveOverTheSea said:

Thanks. I was wondering how the included and extension worked. MVJ for Aug 3 cruise mentioned we didn't need to sign up for both if taking extension, but wasn't quite sure how that worked. Was included tour first for you on your tour, your July 3 sail date? Or was it after mountain hike?  I realize there may be differences in how it's done for various groups/sailings, but still curious.  Thanks.

It was all wrapped into 1 walking tour -- starting right from the pier. For those who did not want to hike the mountain portion

, the guide pointed to the museum so they could walk there. After the museum visit, Viking had shuttle buses back to the area where the tenders docked. 

[Doc who loves to travel]

23 hours ago, BamaT said:

Appreciate your shopping tips/links! Does anyone have recommendations for warm pants for the guys? Hubbie thinks what he has is fine! 

We like under armour https://amzn.to/3epBHbX

[vslparis]

On 7/13/2021 at 9:55 AM, SantaFe1 said:

Lucky you!  We got nothing, and no notice from the captain that we would or did cross.  In fact we never heard a word from the man until the goodby party, where he appeared on stage for about 60 seconds!

Weren't we on the same cruise ?  26 June ?