Key West Cancelled

[Hubby1]

On 9/28/2022 at 5:46 PM, Mimiya11 said:

That is terrible   When was Colon eliminated?    Hope that is not the case for our March cruise as that would be very disappointing.    

Having said that, this is our first Viking cruise so we are happy to go regardless.      

Received email from Viking on 8/11/22 substituting an extra day in Panama City for the day in Colon. I wouldn't have minded the trade but have fixed plans to be in Panama City for several days before boarding the ship.

[Hubby1]

On 10/1/2022 at 9:38 AM, Squawkman said:

You really are assuming a lot, aren’t you? What’s your experience operating cruise ships? Sorry about your missed port (happened to us a few times during different cruises), but Viking isn’t that petty to do r suggesting. And unlike the big 3, Viking IMHO is more customer focused as there are no shareholders.

Only been on 30 plus cruises. Missed a few ports along the way, but usually given a reason and OBC.

They were on the spot cancellations, mostly for weather or vaccine restrictions. Never had ports cancelled months in advance or two on on 10 night cruise. We have not been given a plausible reason for the cancellation of Colon or Key West. I do know from aviation that airlines often state "operational reasons" when the cancel flights and that often, not always (like lack of crew), means they don't have enough passengers to make the flight profitable--remember the "shuttle" days. Otherwise they say weather or mechanical reasons. 

[Squawkman]

Hubby -

 

I just read through all of your posts in this thread. I’ve concluded Viking is not for you as, for one, you’ll miss a casino on sea days. I wouldn’t want to lose $1,200+ either, so I can agree that you should go on this one - even though you have concluded that it will be your last. You have also concluded Viking is just out to take your money, bait and switch, etc., so I can see why you have also concluded it will be your last. I only have one question:

 

You state here that you have taken 30+ cruises - yet less than 2 weeks ago, you stated you have taken 20+ cruises. How did you go on 10 cruises in less than 2 weeks?

[MikeyB]

Multi-tasking?

[CCWineLover]

3 hours ago, Squawkman said:

Hubby -

 

I just read through all of your posts in this thread. I’ve concluded Viking is not for you as, for one, you’ll miss a casino on sea days. I wouldn’t want to lose $1,200+ either, so I can agree that you should go on this one - even though you have concluded that it will be your last. You have also concluded Viking is just out to take your money, bait and switch, etc., so I can see why you have also concluded it will be your last. I only have one question:

 

You state here that you have taken 30+ cruises - yet less than 2 weeks ago, you stated you have taken 20+ cruises. How did you go on 10 cruises in less than 2 weeks?

I agree.  Maybe Hubby will go to the boards of his favorite cruise lines now and leave us at Viking alone

[OneSixtyToOne]

1 hour ago, CCWineLover said:

I agree.  Maybe Hubby will go to the boards of his favorite cruise lines now and leave us at Viking alone

There is an old saying that some people know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.

[MikeyB]

4 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

I agree.  Maybe Hubby will go to the boards of his favorite cruise lines now and leave us at Viking alone

First we lose Mr Luxury and now possibly Hubby1.   

I will have to do some serious drinking when onboard to get through my cruises. 

[Hubby1]

Squawkman,

20 vs 30. I went back through my records. When I assumed 20 plus in my mind I did not count combined cruises. For instance, I was on two back to back Celebrity Caribbean cruises (which I think about as one) ("continuing cruiser" as it is called) in January of this year. And we were upgraded to a small suite for the second cruise.

Funnier yet--the the last port for both cruises, before disembarking in Fort Lauderdale, was Nassau. Nassau. On cruise one Nassau turned into a seaday because Nassau decided not to allow cruise ship to enter THE NIGHT BEFORE due to Omicron. We woke up in the morning and could see Nassau and did for most of the morning.--- Celebrity only had 8 hours notice--Not four months to respond to "operational reasons." However on the second cruise (7 days later) we pulled into Nassau with ships from Disney, Virgin, Carnaval and one other. 

[Hubby1]

Just now, Hubby1 said:

Squawkman,

20 vs 30. I went back through my records. When I assumed 20 plus in my mind I did not count combined cruises. For instance, I was on two back to back Celebrity Caribbean cruises (which I think about as one) ("continuing cruiser" as it is called) in January of this year. And we were upgraded to a small suite for the second cruise.

Funnier yet--the the last port for both cruises, before disembarking in Fort Lauderdale, was Nassau. Nassau. On cruise one Nassau turned into a seaday because Nassau decided not to allow cruise ship to enter THE NIGHT BEFORE due to Omicron. We woke up in the morning and could see Nassau and did for most of the morning.--- Celebrity only had 8 hours notice--Not four months to respond to "operational reasons." However on the second cruise (7 days later) we pulled into Nassau with ships from Disney, Virgin, Carnaval and one other. 

And by the way, Viking sometimes that they don't have as many amenities as their cruises are port intensive--not this one now. Also, not Vikings fault, but they notified us yesterday that we will need a yellow fever vaccination to get off the ship in Roatan. 

[Hubby1]

And further Squakman, I said 20 plus on Celebrity and Oceana--I have also cruised on Princess, Holland America, and Carnaval (carnaval once and probably never again--just not the right demographic).

[Iloveketo]

10 minutes ago, Hubby1 said:

And by the way, Viking sometimes that they don't have as many amenities as their cruises are port intensive--not this one now. Also, not Vikings fault, but they notified us yesterday that we will need a yellow fever vaccination to get off the ship in Roatan. 

Yellow fever vaccination needed for anyone to get off the ship in Roatan, Honduras? I thought it was only if you were traveling from a country where it is prevalent. So everyone traveling from the US is now required to have a yellow fever vaccination?

[Hubby1]

5 minutes ago, Iloveketo said:

Yellow fever vaccination needed for anyone to get off the ship in Roatan, Honduras? I thought it was only if you were traveling from a country where it is prevalent. So everyone traveling from the US is now required to have a yellow fever vaccination?

According to Viking the yf vaccination is required for anyone traveling from Panama--which is all of us according to Viking email on 10/7 even if you are only in Panama for day. I only know what is stated in the Viking email, don't have any independent knowledge of such.

[Hubby1]

Classic Panama Canal Passage Panama City (Fuerte Amador) to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

07OCT2022 Dear Viking Guest, Thank you for choosing Viking for your upcoming Classic Panama Canal Passage voyage. We would like to take a moment to advise you of an important requirement for your journey. As you may be aware, Honduras has a Yellow Fever vaccination requirement for travelers who visit Panama or South America prior to arrival in Honduras. Your itinerary begins in Panama City, Panama, with a call to Roatan, Honduras occurring later in your journey. For this reason, all guests must show proof of a Yellow Fever vaccination at embarkation. Please obtain the vaccination at least 10 days prior to your departure date and bring the original and a copy of the vaccination record with you to the ship. Guests who are unable to have the Yellow Fever vaccination for medical reasons must obtain a letter from their physician on the physician's letterhead and bring it with you to the ship. If you are unable to have the vaccination or simply do not wish to have the vaccination, you will not be able to go ashore in Roatan, Honduras. You will remain on the ship during the call to this port. Should you have any questions regarding this matter, please contact your Travel Advisor or call us at 1-855-300-3970, Sunday - Saturday, 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM, PT. We look forward to welcoming you aboard and wish you a wonderful journey. Sincerely, Viking

[Hubby1]

Squakman--I also initially didn't count Amawaterways cruises---where they give you multiple choice of included excursions--not just the city tour.

[Iloveketo]

10 minutes ago, Hubby1 said:

Classic Panama Canal Passage Panama City (Fuerte Amador) to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

07OCT2022 Dear Viking Guest, Thank you for choosing Viking for your upcoming Classic Panama Canal Passage voyage. We would like to take a moment to advise you of an important requirement for your journey. As you may be aware, Honduras has a Yellow Fever vaccination requirement for travelers who visit Panama or South America prior to arrival in Honduras. Your itinerary begins in Panama City, Panama, with a call to Roatan, Honduras occurring later in your journey. For this reason, all guests must show proof of a Yellow Fever vaccination at embarkation. Please obtain the vaccination at least 10 days prior to your departure date and bring the original and a copy of the vaccination record with you to the ship. Guests who are unable to have the Yellow Fever vaccination for medical reasons must obtain a letter from their physician on the physician's letterhead and bring it with you to the ship. If you are unable to have the vaccination or simply do not wish to have the vaccination, you will not be able to go ashore in Roatan, Honduras. You will remain on the ship during the call to this port. Should you have any questions regarding this matter, please contact your Travel Advisor or call us at 1-855-300-3970, Sunday - Saturday, 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM, PT. We look forward to welcoming you aboard and wish you a wonderful journey. Sincerely, Viking

We are on the Panama Canal and Central America cruise, so we should be ok. We are only in Mexico and Belize before Roatan. 
This is what I had found regarding Honduras requirements. Not from Viking:

Vaccines

If you’re traveling from Argentina, Bolivia, Brasil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, French Guiana, Panamá, Paraguay, Perú, Surinam, Trinidad and Tobago or Venezuela, you must first get vaccinated against yellow fever. 
Also if you’re coming from Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabón, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, Sudán, Tanzania, Uganda, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe or Togo.

[Hubby1]

3 minutes ago, Iloveketo said:

We are on the Panama Canal and Central America cruise, so we should be ok. We are only in Mexico and Belize before Roatan. 
This is what I had found regarding Honduras requirements. Not from Viking:

Vaccines

If you’re traveling from Argentina, Bolivia, Brasil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, French Guiana, Panamá, Paraguay, Perú, Surinam, Trinidad and Tobago or Venezuela, you must first get vaccinated against yellow fever. 
Also if you’re coming from Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabón, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, Sudán, Tanzania, Uganda, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe or Togo.

So no stop in Panama city or Colon? Ours Classic Panama Cruise starts in Panama City (thus the email from Viking) --Colon was cancelled by Viking. great for you. Looks like yellow fever vaccinations run between $300-400 per person---at least in LA. Means $700 to get off in Roatan for us.

[MikeyB]

My Panama Canal and Central America cruise does Honduras before Panama.  And I still have my Colon "attached" to the cruise.

Some pretty boys have all the luck!

 

In case you have never been in Roatan, you are missing nothing by not going ashore.

 

However, I feel Viking should have made you aware of this yellow fever vaccine requirement the moment you spoke to a Viking agent about booking this cruise!

[Hubby1]

26 minutes ago, MikeyB said:

My Panama Canal and Central America cruise does Honduras before Panama.  And I still have my Colon "attached" to the cruise.

Some pretty boys have all the luck!

 

In case you have never been in Roatan, you are missing nothing by not going ashore.

 

However, I feel Viking should have made you aware of this yellow fever vaccine requirement the moment you spoke to a Viking agent about booking this cruise!

We may just stay on the ship at Roatan. Not much there than jungle. But that eliminates 3 ports on a 10 night cruise. Not what we bought in to. Colon was removed a month or two ago, but Key West was cancelled two days before final payment was due and two days after I paid. Until then only had two $50 deposits at stake. Not happy with Viking.

[Hubby1]

7 hours ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

There is an old saying that some people know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.

Boy you take things personal--and then again, who asked you? If you don't like factual info--don't read the Boards and enjoy the surprises. I'll buy you a drink on the ship. 

[Iloveketo]

1 hour ago, Hubby1 said:

So no stop in Panama city or Colon? Ours Classic Panama Cruise starts in Panama City (thus the email from Viking) --Colon was cancelled by Viking. great for you. Looks like yellow fever vaccinations run between $300-400 per person---at least in LA. Means $700 to get off in Roatan for us.

Not sure if we can even get an appointment for the typhoid vaccination our doctor suggested. I called and Passport Health didn’t have anything available for October and nothing scheduled for late November early December. 
We are planning to book South America and the continue on to Africa and eventually Barcelona. So, we will probably get whatever vaccinations we can since it will be good for all 3 cruises. 

[knoxclone]

Call your local health department - YF vaccination was $205 pp. Much cheaper than our local "Travel Clinic". 

[biggerbearmom]

Key West was cancelled, and now Cozumel has been cancelled.

[powderhorn]

8 hours ago, biggerbearmom said:

Key West was cancelled, and now Cozumel has been cancelled.

Did they give you a reason why these stops were cancelled?

[Mimiya11]

10 hours ago, biggerbearmom said:

Key West was cancelled, and now Cozumel has been cancelled.

Which sailing? 

 

[biggerbearmom]

February 1, 2023. I emailed Viking to complain about two ports being removed which means three consecutive sea days at the beginning of the cruise. A customer rep called me in response to my emails but didn’t really give me a reason. She said something about occasionally having to make changes for “operational reasons”. She offered us $150 OBC.