Cancelling Air (or some of it)

[molymoo]

We booked a cruise for 2024 and paid to upgrade our air to premium economy.  Everything is paid for but now we are rethinking, and as the two flights are: Chicago to NYC (where cruise starts) and Reykjavic to Chicago (coming home).  These are (relatively) short flights and the upgrade was very $$$ so we want to cancel the upgrade.  When we do, how will the "refund" be paid?  I'm assuming that this far out they will simply refund in the manner in which we paid (e-check).  Is this correct?  I would hate to see it become an "onboard credit" ... but that seems to be happening more and more these days.

[TayanaLorna]

11 minutes ago, molymoo said:

We booked a cruise for 2024 and paid to upgrade our air to premium economy.  Everything is paid for but now we are rethinking, and as the two flights are: Chicago to NYC (where cruise starts) and Reykjavic to Chicago (coming home).  These are (relatively) short flights and the upgrade was very $$$ so we want to cancel the upgrade.  When we do, how will the "refund" be paid?  I'm assuming that this far out they will simply refund in the manner in which we paid (e-check).  Is this correct?  I would hate to see it become an "onboard credit" ... but that seems to be happening more and more these days.

We completely cancelled our Viking Air including Air Plus and Deviation fees and booked our own flights for cheaper.  We received a refund to the account from which the e-check was paid.  Don't know what would happen if an upgrade is changed to basic economy.

[FlyerTalker]

If your cruise isn't until 2024, and unless it is in January of 24, there is no way that any schedules have been released for that time frame.

 

Personally, I'd be waiting to just buy air on your own from the airlines directly.  Icelandair usually has the best pricing from KEF and they have non-stop service into ORD.  And you have multiple options on your own into NYC.  On these routes, there is no open-jaw ticketing available (the open jaw is not the shortest), so just get two one-ways on the airlines that work the best for you.

 

 

[CCWineLover]

3 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

If your cruise isn't until 2024, and unless it is in January of 24, there is no way that any schedules have been released for that time frame.

 

Personally, I'd be waiting to just buy air on your own from the airlines directly.  Icelandair usually has the best pricing from KEF and they have non-stop service into ORD.  And you have multiple options on your own into NYC.  On these routes, there is no open-jaw ticketing available (the open jaw is not the shortest), so just get two one-ways on the airlines that work the best for you.

 

 

Excellent point.  I would cancel out all Viking Air and do it myself.  I certainly wouldn't do Viking Air just to get the transfers.  That can easily be done yourself as well.

We are doing this same cruise (New York-Reykjavik) this coming June 2023 and have 2 one ways from SFO to New York and KEF to SFO.  Very reasonable pricing.   I would start "checking" prices about 9-11 months out.  We got our flights from KEF in November and to New York in January.

[shmabbies]

If booking your own air, be very careful about any special instructions issued by Viking as to flight timing.  Our cruise this March concludes in Athens with a 7am port arrival but we were told not to book any flights before 1pm.  Because we are using FF miles, this caused us to be unable to book all the "good" flights and gives us a ridiculously late arrival time at our home airport, but we reluctantly did as instructed.   Booked our own transfer.  

[FlyerTalker]

1 hour ago, CCWineLover said:

I certainly wouldn't do Viking Air just to get the transfers.  That can easily be done yourself as well.

 

Taxis are a flat rate from JFK into Manhattan, plus there are several good car services that you can use for a private ride (I tend to prefer Dial 7 over Carmel).  And coming back from KEF, the FlyBus service from Reykjavik is so easy and convenient -- I think almost none of the locals drive their own car to the airport.

[Heidi13]

5 hours ago, shmabbies said:

If booking your own air, be very careful about any special instructions issued by Viking as to flight timing.  Our cruise this March concludes in Athens with a 7am port arrival but we were told not to book any flights before 1pm.  Because we are using FF miles, this caused us to be unable to book all the "good" flights and gives us a ridiculously late arrival time at our home airport, but we reluctantly did as instructed.   Booked our own transfer.  

 

Since the arrival time is an ETA (Estimated) and having experienced Piraeus/Athens traffic many times, I'll suggest Viking have provided excellent advice.

 

Personally, if booking our own flights on points/miles, we would get a hotel and fly out the next day.

[Peregrina651]

11 hours ago, molymoo said:

We booked a cruise for 2024 and paid to upgrade our air to premium economy.  Everything is paid for but now we are rethinking, and as the two flights are: Chicago to NYC (where cruise starts) and Reykjavic to Chicago (coming home).  These are (relatively) short flights and the upgrade was very $$$ so we want to cancel the upgrade.  When we do, how will the "refund" be paid?  I'm assuming that this far out they will simply refund in the manner in which we paid (e-check).  Is this correct?  I would hate to see it become an "onboard credit" ... but that seems to be happening more and more these days.

 

E, at this point you should be able to call Viking and get the upgrade removed and refunded without a hassle.

 

Personally, I would book the air yourself. If you are flying Icelandair to get home, I highly recommend paying the extra for their business class. It is not flat beds but it is certain a whole heap more comfortable than their economy class and their premium economy.

[LindaS272]

1 hour ago, Peregrina651 said:

It is not flat beds but it is certain a whole heap more comfortable than their economy class and their premium economy.

If you’re referring to Icelandair, they no longer have a premium economy class.

[LibertyBella]

I booked a Viking cruise eight months in advance with free air, and my flights have already been changed five times, including to a completely different carrier on my return.  Each time I had to go into the MVJ  and reselect my seats. None of my flights are on my frequent flyer carrier of choice.

 

You do not say WHEN you are traveling in 2024, but most flight schedules are not yet available or confirmed.  Unless you are receiving free or extremely bargain air, I would also not be in a hurry to use the Viking flights, especially not  just for transfers. 

 

From previous (bad) experience, I rarely arrive by plane the same day as my cruise departs. Yes, it is a short hop Chicago to NYC, but you would NOT want to miss your cruise if that short flight is delayed or cancelled, so I also recommend going at least one night early, and perhaps taking in a Broadway play or a tour of a NYC landmark.

 

In Iceland it is extremely easy to get back and forth to the city and the airport on Flybus, which we used when we traveled there in late November.  Or you can splurge and just get a taxi.

 

 I have also decided to limit my use of FF miles on international flights, because I have had issues if a flight is cancelled, as happened to me once in Italy. 

 

Good for you for planning ahead and checking out all the options.  Have a great time!

[CCWineLover]

9 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

Taxis are a flat rate from JFK into Manhattan, plus there are several good car services that you can use for a private ride (I tend to prefer Dial 7 over Carmel).  And coming back from KEF, the FlyBus service from Reykjavik is so easy and convenient -- I think almost none of the locals drive their own car to the airport.

We think alike.  I went to Manhattan on business often before I retired.  Always used Dial 7.  They are gret.  And we also always use Flybussen in Bergen.  Also inexpensive and efficient.

Many of the comments refer to tight schedules and iffyness in making flights.  We have made it a habit, and are fortunate to be able to do so, as we don't have to hurry home immediately after a cruise, to get to places several days ahead and not leave for several days on the return.  For example, we wouldn't go to New York and straight to a cruise ship - why not enjoy the city a bit and take the stress off?  And I can't see how people would take a cruise ship to Athens and yet not spend anytime there (perhaps they've already been there?).  Or even Reykjavik ...    There is so much to see and enjoy in the world, for us, the goal is to also reduce the stress that often comes with traveling in these pent-up demand post-COVID times.  We are indeed lucky to be able to do so.

[shmabbies]

6 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Since the arrival time is an ETA (Estimated) and having experienced Piraeus/Athens traffic many times, I'll suggest Viking have provided excellent advice.

 

Personally, if booking our own flights on points/miles, we would get a hotel and fly out the next day.

We've ended cruises in Athens at least eight times and never had an issue with traffic or port arrival - but obviously there is always a first time and you're right, we may end up thanking Viking.  What HAS been a problem for us (twice on Athens return flights and once on a scheduled Athens to Santorini flight) are labor strikes.   In our experience, we have more re-booking opportunities if our flights are scheduled earlier, since some of the Greek strikes are "only" a few hours in duration.  IIRC, all three flight issues were air traffic control strikes.  Another such labor strike affected us the one time we had opted to take public transportation from the airport to hotel and THEY were on strike (my rule - never rely on public transportation for anything time sensitive).  And there was the time staffers at the Acropolis went on strike while we were on site and we all had to leave!  We love Athens and have spent over a month there in totality over a period of many years but have a healthy respect for their tendency to strike, and the number of professions that strike appears to be unlimited (even doctors, for example).   There are websites devoted entirely to publishing strike information; some are announced in advance and some are more spontaneous.  My apologies for digressing, I had only wanted to say that traffic and port arrival times have not previously been an issue for us in Athens but strikes have and I thought someone might find that information useful.

[Peregrina651]

9 hours ago, LibertyBella said:

and my flights have already been changed five times, including to a completely different carrier on my return.

 

Blame it on the airlines! They are the ones who keep changing their schedules, not Viking. I've sailed three times since Viking resumed operations, two booked on my own, one by Viking. The only one that didn't change its schedule was Icelandair. The other two flight plans both suffered changes -- one I booked on my own and the other through Viking.

 

In other words, right now it doesn't matter whether you book your own flights or you use Viking, you can expect that there will be changes to your choices --some major, some minor -- between the time you book your flights and the time you actually leave.

 

 

 

 

[FlyerTalker]

10 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

Blame it on the airlines! They are the ones who keep changing their schedules, not Viking. I've sailed three times since Viking resumed operations, two booked on my own, one by Viking. The only one that didn't change its schedule was Icelandair. The other two flight plans both suffered changes -- one I booked on my own and the other through Viking.

 

In other words, right now it doesn't matter whether you book your own flights or you use Viking, you can expect that there will be changes to your choices --some major, some minor -- between the time you book your flights and the time you actually leave.

 

A very revealing interview with Brian Znotins of American Airlines was linked at this CC post:

 

 

I highly recommend that folks watch to get a better idea of airline scheduling and why you keep getting those flight changes.

 

 

[brosen1]

On 2/13/2023 at 10:53 PM, LibertyBella said:

I booked a Viking cruise eight months in advance with free air, and my flights have already been changed five times, including to a completely different carrier on my return.  Each time I had to go into the MVJ  and reselect my seats. None of my flights are on my frequent flyer carrier of choice.

 

We are on the May 24 Viking Ullur Buch to Budapest with pre- and post- extensions.  I thought that I would try to get seat assignments.  It took me nearly two hours to get seat assignments on our Austrian Air flight from Palm Beach International to Newark to Vienna through Viking Air!  We were booked to Bucharest on United, and the flight to Newark was easy to get seats on the United site, but it turns out that the Newark to Vienna to Bucharest are Austrian Air flights.  First I tried to get seat assignments on both the Viking Air and United web sites without success.  I called Viking Air, who told me that they couldn't make the seat assignment because the flight wasn't booked yet but suggested that I call Austrian Air (800-843-0002). Austrian told me that I would have to pay 100 euros for advanced seat assignments, which I found outrageous considering how much we spent for premium economy. But they said that the 2-4-2 cabin was almost full, and the only way to get the 2 seats was to buy it now.  I reluctantly agreed, but when they tried to charge my credit card, it wouldn't go through, again because the flight wasn't booked yet.  Next I called Viking again and was connected to Viking Air Plus.  The agent said that I hadn't paid for Air Plus so she couldn't help me even to connect me to regular Viking Air unless I paid for Air Plus first!  Then I called Viking back and asked for regular Viking Air. That agent was able to get me seat assignments on the Austrian Air flight with no trouble and no cost.

 

Then I tried to get seats for the return on American through Amsterdam and Philadelphia to PBI.  I had no trouble doing that on the American web site. But then that flight disappeared, and we were coming home on Delta through Paris to Altanta to PBI.  Luckily I'm a 2M miler on Delta, so they were happy to give me seats.  Of course none of these reservations are actually booked yet, and everything could still change. 

 

We have another cruise from Iceland to New York later in the year. After this experience, we decided to book the tickets ourselves with Iceland Air rather than go through all of this again with Viking. We were actually able to book business class on Iceland Air for less than Viking was going to charge us for what was supposed to be Premium Economy on Delta but turned out to be just economy plus (which are not much better than economy).  The only reason I can see to use Viking Air is that they take good care of you if there are cancellations or delays and provide airport transportation.  So we booked Iceland Air a day early.  The hotel and airport transportation is a little costly, but we get an extra day in Reykjavik.

[FlyerTalker]

On 2/16/2023 at 1:51 PM, brosen1 said:

The hotel and airport transportation is a little costly, but we get an extra day in Reykjavik.

 

Are you using the FlyBus service from KEF into Reykjavik?  You should.  Only if you have money to set on fire should you be doing something else.

[brosen1]

12 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

Are you using the FlyBus service from KEF into Reykjavik?

We booked a shared van from the airport to our hotel for $117 for both of us https://www.viator.com/tours/Reykjavik/Airport-Express-Premium-Door-to-Door-Transfer-from-KEF-Airport-to-Reykjavik-City/d905-2970P108 . It is slightly more than the bus, but we don't have to get from the bus terminal to our hotel.  One less thing to worry about after flying al night.

[LindaS272]

The Flybus stops almost everywhere not just the bus terminal

https://www.re.is/pick-up-locations/

Edited February 19, 2023 by LindaS272

[brosen1]

Thanks very much for pointing that out.  We thought that the bus went only to the central station, but stop 14 is only 0.1 mi from our hotel.