Live from Mediterranean Odyssey - March 28 thru April 9, 2022

[mkerner]

Puppymama1:  Yes, we are on the October 8th voyage.  We are doing a pre-stay in Madrid.  Nice to meet another traveler on the same trip.

[Sprigs616]

On 3/19/2022 at 9:07 PM, Eggtuary said:

One of my favorite things on the Viking Ocean boards has been following the various live blogs posted here ... so I'm going to try to pay it forward!

 

 Thank you for doing this.  My brother, SIL, and their friends are on your sailing. They did the pre-trip extension through Viking and are at the JW Marriott, which looks lovely but (according to Google Maps) appears to be on a separate island and removed from the main canals.  Unfortunately, my brother and SIL aren't members of CruiseCritic but I'm sure I'll get updates from them from time to time.  In the meantime, I'll be following your thread. 

 

Happy Anniversary!

[Eggtuary]

At the Stazione Marittima in Venice, Viking had staff at the dock to receive water taxis. They took our bags right away, which was handy because we have too many (travel rookies). 
 

At check-in, they looked at our vaccination cards, and didn’t ask for our VeriFLY codes, which seemed unusual because it took them a while to enter the numbers correctly (especially because our “7” in the US looks like the European “1”). They did check our COVID tests, and I’m glad we paid for the rapid PCR as our send-out version from Friday morning still hasn’t sent results (though the lab promised we would have them by Sunday). 
 

We are on the bus now headed to the ship in Fusina. Shouldn’t be long now!

Edited March 28, 2022 by Eggtuary

[Eggtuary]

Funny story:  at the dock, the Viking rep apparently told us to go to terminal 107. We thought she said “1 or 7.”  We saw a line of folks with Viking tags by a dock marked 7, and we thought that was it. We met an incredibly friendly couple from NJ who met at the same small college in IN where our 24-year-old graduated. Small world!

 

But then we saw people we recognized from the plane walking further down than where we stopped. Turns out, we were in the line for the post-extension for folks getting off the ship. Whoops!  But my wife and I were happy for our mistake because we never would have met those super nice people otherwise. I’ve heard it said that some of the best travel experiences occur when things don’t go as planned!

Edited March 28, 2022 by Eggtuary

[austinetc]

9 hours ago, Sprigs616 said:

 Thank you for doing this.  My brother, SIL, and their friends are on your sailing. They did the pre-trip extension through Viking and are at the JW Marriott, which looks lovely but (according to Google Maps) appears to be on a separate island and removed from the main canals.  Unfortunately, my brother and SIL aren't members of CruiseCritic but I'm sure I'll get updates from them from time to time.  In the meantime, I'll be following your thread. 

 

Happy Anniversary!

We’re sailing from Venice later this month. We also booked the pre cruise extension. I would appreciate anything you can pass on about your brother’s experiences. I’ve read that the hotel only offers free water taxi service hourly starting at 9AM. That’s disappointing. 

[Eggtuary]

As soon as we boarded the ship, they directed us to the theater to watch an incredibly short safety video (less than 30 seconds).  From there, we went to our cabin. They asked us to submit our saliva samples right away and watch another safety video on our room television, which was maybe a minute or two longer than the one in the theater.  After we submitted our saliva samples, they allowed us immediately to explore the ship, including lunch at the World Café.

 

After lunch, we explored Decks 1 and 2. We got a quick tour of the spa area, where we were able to book times for the thermal area.  The guy who led the tour said we should come down in our robe and slippers for our thermal day to save time. I said I didn’t think we were supposed to wear those in the hallways. He waved his hand and said, “Don’t worry, everyone does it.” 
 

On the Viking Voyager app, we could see the Chef’s Table menus, which led to us switching the dates of our reservations there. Our excursions for Split and Monte Carlo were missing from the app. We looked at the tickets they gave us, and we found that we have them for Monte Carlo but not for Split. Luckily, the line at Guest Services was remarkably short so we were seen right away. The fellow working there said the computer system is having technical issues, but he could see our Monte Carlo excursion on his computer even though we can’t see it on the app. Unfortunately, he couldn’t see our Split excursion. He didn’t see that excursion offered in the system at all anymore, so it might be canceled. He said he will check with his colleagues and call us later. 

Edited March 28, 2022 by Eggtuary

[Eggtuary]

Here is the updated laundry and pressing price list. Our room is a Penthouse Veranda, so pressing is free, but not other laundry. 
 

[Eggtuary]

Sorry, I can’t figure out how to rotate the image.

[austinetc]

How many passengers are on board? Please ask.

[Eggtuary]

27 minutes ago, austinetc said:

How many passengers are on board? Please ask.

Happy to. Who should I ask?  I’m guessing not all crew would know?

[austinetc]

You'll have a welcome aboard meet and greet tonight? All the officers should know, or be able to point you to someone who knows. The front desk would know. But it's not important. Enjoy!

[Eggtuary]

Nobody ever asked to see our EU Digital Passenger Locator Form or our boarding pass. Between those and our VeriFLY QR codes, that’s three things we printed out that were not verified. I’m glad we printed them just in case, but it was just kind of funny to me. 

[20Cruise20]

Another hello from the Viking Sky! Here is our update.

 

Enjoyment in Italy: 

 

We traveled to Italy one week ago. Thoroughly enjoyed walking to the Pathenon, Spanish Steps, and Trevi Fountain. Wonderful tours - Borghese Museum (audio guide); Ancient Rome (small group tour); and Vatican/Sistine Chapel/St. Peters (with a fabulous private guide). We stayed at an absolutely wonderful hotel (Hotel Splendide Royal Rome). Beautiful weather made for a terrific time in Rome. 

 

Uneventful and easy four hour train trip from Rome to Venice followed by a wonderful private water taxi experience arranged through the JW Marriott. We enjoyed wandering in Venice and a tour of St. Mark's & Doge's Palace (small group). 

 

Documentation & Processes: 

 

Local Airport - CDC cards & Italian Entry Forms

International Airport (PHL) - American Airlines VeriFly entry

Hotel Splendide Royal Rome - CDC cards

All Rome museums & restaurants - CDC cards, some temp checks

Italo Train - CDC cards

JW Marriott Venice - CDC cards

St. Mark's & Doge's Palace - CDC cards, photo ID, temp check x2

 

Viking Pre-Extension & JWM: 

 

Because of all of the port challenges, we made the decision to take the pre-extension. Our experience with Viking commenced poorly. After the Viking Rep provided several pieces of documentation, she advised that we would be taking a COVID antigen test the next day. (Where did this come from?) The newly incorporated test is in addition to the boarding test requirement. However, the real issue for us...The Viking Rep did not ask to see our "required" negative test to join the first Viking activity. (Documented multiple places by Viking, including in an e-mail a few days ago.) I raised the topic and the rep who simply told me that test is an Italian requirement to enter the country and not a Viking requirement. (Not so!)  While our Rome hotel facilitated the testing for us, the time and the expense related to testing 24 hours before joining the pre-extension was simply wasted.

 

The JWM is a beautiful property on a peaceful island. (We walked the island one morning and enjoyed the fresh air and extra movement.) The water taxi was easy to use to access historic Venice at St. Mark's Square. Viking also ran shuttles on the hour. Regardless of the testing situation, we would not join a pre-extension again. Staying in the right area and maximizing every minute of vacation is more important than the minor transport convenience.  

 

Happy to answer questions about the first part of our journey documented above. Will augment Eggtuary's experience of embarkment. 

 

Edited March 28, 2022 by 20Cruise20

[Eggtuary]

More stuff folks might be curious about:

 

[Eggtuary]

I met one of the singers at our Assembly Station (the theater). I believe her name was Miss Ramonne. She was a very funny person. Looking forward to hearing her later. 

[20Cruise20]

5 hours ago, Eggtuary said:

At the Stazione Marittima in Venice, Viking had staff at the dock to receive water taxis. They took our bags right away, which was handy because we have too many (travel rookies). 
 

At check-in, they looked at our vaccination cards, and didn’t ask for our VeriFLY codes, which seemed unusual because it took them a while to enter the numbers correctly (especially because our “7” in the US looks like the European “1”). They did check our COVID tests, and I’m glad we paid for the rapid PCR as our send-out version from Friday morning still hasn’t sent results (though the lab promised we would have them by Sunday). 
 

We are on the bus now headed to the ship in Fusina. Shouldn’t be long now!

Ditto on the check-in. We were very surprised that we were asked for our CDC cards and not VeriFly. (At least American Airlines asked to see the entry that we created for them.) Our bus to Fusina had about 20 passengers and took about 35 minutes. Certainly is an industrial port. Through the haze, you can distantly see the Venice skyline. 

 

Edited March 28, 2022 by 20Cruise20

[Eggtuary]

I mentioned before that my wife and I are celebrating our 25th anniversary. This lovely cake was waiting for us, plus a bottle of sparkling wine. (Our welcoming bottle of champagne was in our mini-fridge).

[Eggtuary]

We arrived at Stazione Marittima at about 11 this morning and have been on the ship since 1 pm.  It is now 5 pm and the AirTags on our luggage say they were 3 miles away as of 25 minutes ago. Starting to get a bit nervous. We have 6:00 reservations at The Restaurant tonight. Might have to be a bit late. 

Edited March 28, 2022 by Eggtuary

[millybess]

3 minutes ago, Eggtuary said:

We arrived at Stazione Marittima at about 11 this morning and have been on the ship since 1 pm.  The AirTags on our luggage say they were 3 miles away as of 25 minutes ago. Starting to get a bit nervous…

Did you put the AirTags in your luggage or in your luggage tags?  Just curious. We will also be using AirTags for our trip in May. 

[austinetc]

22 minutes ago, 20Cruise20 said:

The JWM is a beautiful property on a peaceful island. (We walked the island one morning and enjoyed the fresh air and extra movement.) The water taxi was easy to use to access historic Venice at St. Mark's Square. Viking also ran shuttles on the hour. Regardless of the testing situation, we would not join a pre-extension again. Staying in the right area and maximizing every minute of vacation is more important than the minor transport convenience.  

 

Thanks for this information! It's obvious that corporate Viking is being as conservative as possible regarding testing guidelines (worldwide), but it makes for a bad first impression when one gets to the locality and ship and has the test results waved away. You'd think that corporate would ask the local people for updates, but my experience is that they never do.

 

I'm a little unhappy that the precruise extension places us at a hotel 20 minutes away from Venice, dependent on a scheduled water taxi. I don't travel for hotels. What I want is a bed, a bath, and a map.

 

 

[Selion]

3 hours ago, Eggtuary said:

After we submitted our saliva samples, they allowed us immediately to explore the ship, including lunch at the World Café.

What a difference 2 weeks makes!  Met a fellow passenger on our 3/12 cruise.  He didn't receive the all-clear until 7:30PM!

[FetaCheese]

3 hours ago, Eggtuary said:

Here is the updated laundry and pressing price list. Our room is a Penthouse Veranda, so pressing is free, but not other laundry. 
 

excellent prices -- less than home !

[Eggtuary]

3 hours ago, millybess said:

Did you put the AirTags in your luggage or in your luggage tags?  Just curious. We will also be using AirTags for our trip in May. 

Yes, we did.  Fortunately, our luggage finally showed up, a little before 6 pm.  

[Eggtuary]

5 hours ago, Eggtuary said:

Our excursions for Split and Monte Carlo were missing from the app. We looked at the tickets they gave us, and we found that we have them for Monte Carlo but not for Split. Luckily, the line at Guest Services was remarkably short so we were seen right away. The fellow working there said the computer system is having technical issues, but he could see our Monte Carlo excursion on his computer even though we can’t see it on the app. Unfortunately, he couldn’t see our Split excursion. He didn’t see that excursion offered in the system at all anymore, so it might be canceled. He said he will check with his colleagues and call us later. 

Well, 4 hours later, we never heard back from the guy at Guest Services.  I noticed in the Viking Daily that we had until 6 pm to book or cancel excursions for Split, so I went back to Guest Services.  This time, I got someone who seemed much more experienced.  She confirmed that our excursion in Split was canceled.  She offered us other options, but our second choice was booked by then, which was frustrating because I specifically asked the first guy if I should book something else and he told me no.  The nice lady booked us on our (distant) third choice, but put us on the waitlist for our second choice.  We were frustrated for a couple of hours, since we felt like we missed out due to the bad advice of an employee, but we just saw in the app that we are now confirmed for our second choice.  This excursion appears identical to our first choice that was canceled, except that we won't get to see the falconry center.  Kind of a bummer, but certainly not the end of the world. 

 

When I got back to the room at 6, my wife told me our luggage had just arrived in 3 separate visits.  By the time we got settled into our room, we were over an hour later for dinner.  But I wasn't worried as someone in the hall told me to just show up tonight at whichever restaurant we wanted.  We went to The Restaurant and had a really nice meal.  The Caesar salad was the best either of us has ever had, as was the bourbon vanilla crème brûlée.  

 

Hats off to the head waiter.  That was one seriously hard-working man, who was doing a very impressive job of coordinating the staff, a number of whom were clearly pretty new.  

[curmudgeon98]

4 hours ago, austinetc said:

 

I'm a little unhappy that the precruise extension places us at a hotel 20 minutes away from Venice, dependent on a scheduled water taxi. I don't travel for hotels. What I want is a bed, a bath, and a map.

 

The cruise lines are always a bit challenged on Venice hotels.  Too many passengers have a set of expectation for the hotel that are hard to meet in the old city.  There just aren't that many rooms in the Danielli or Gritti Palace, and they are very expensive.  Away from Venice proper they've had more flexibility to build modern buildings, so you get places like the JWM, Hilton Molino, and Kempinski;  they aren't really part of the city, but at least they have that water access feel.  Mestre is just generic suburb. 

 

We have a favorite hotel, but it's small, quirky (no elevator), and still not cheap.  But it works for us.