Viking Air - flying into Ft Lauderdale

[LissaKay]

We are booked on a cruise that will depart from Ft Lauderdale. We added Viking Air on our booking, and it said that we will depart from our home airport the day before the cruise embarks. I chatted with Viking to ask if there were any arrangements for a hotel for the night, or are we on our own. They said no, the flight should depart the day before, and then arrive the day of embarkation. Does this sound reasonable at all? The flight from our home airport is no more than 4 or 5 hours at the most, with a reasonable layover in either Atlanta or Charlotte. Even if we departed the last flight the day before and the second leg was the earliest one the next day, we'd have a layover of at least 13 hours. 

 

What has been the experience of others flying in to Ft Lauderdale booked with Viking Air? 

[sundaycreek]

1 hour ago, LissaKay said:

We are booked on a cruise that will depart from Ft Lauderdale. We added Viking Air on our booking, and it said that we will depart from our home airport the day before the cruise embarks. I chatted with Viking to ask if there were any arrangements for a hotel for the night, or are we on our own. They said no, the flight should depart the day before, and then arrive the day of embarkation. Does this sound reasonable at all? The flight from our home airport is no more than 4 or 5 hours at the most, with a reasonable layover in either Atlanta or Charlotte. Even if we departed the last flight the day before and the second leg was the earliest one the next day, we'd have a layover of at least 13 hours. 

 

What has been the experience of others flying in to Ft Lauderdale booked with Viking Air? 

The same thing happened to us and I tried to persuade them that we will be flying the day off, not the day before, as it would not take us over 24 hours to reach FLL!    They said that is just how their system books it so I decided to wait and see what would happen.  Lo and behold, when our flights were assigned, we were indeed booked the morning of embarkation so no worries.

[FlyerTalker]

2 hours ago, LissaKay said:

What has been the experience of others flying in to Ft Lauderdale booked with Viking Air? 

 

Since you don't say where you are flying from, it is impossible to make an informed answer.

 

 

 

[formernuke]

Yes for example leaving from California a 5:30-6:00 hour flight with a 3 hour time change often means leaving 10-12 the night before. Where are you  flying from?

[LissaKay]

Our home airport is in the southeast, in the Eastern time zone. It's an hour to Atlanta or Charlotte, then about two hours to Ft. Lauderdale. The only flight schedule that would have us leaving the day before, and arriving the next day would entail a 12 or 13 hour layover. 

[-Lew-]

Why not forego Viking Air and book your flights on your own?  We prefer to be in control of our pre-cruise flights and always arrive a day or two prior to embarkation.  Scheduling arrival the day of embarkation can lead to some unpleasant results in this era of air travel.

[CDR2001]

I agree with Lew. Not knowing the price you’re paying for Viking Air, I’d certainly book for myself, and look for a better price with flights on my schedule.

Edited August 30, 2023 by CDR2001

[TayanaLorna]

Does the ship leave port on the same day as you board?  Is your trip during winter or spring storm season?   If so, definitely fly in the day before or take the Viking pre cruise with hotel and transfer.  Don't take the chance of missing the ship.  

[Mike07]

I've flown in a number of times same day for FLL to PEV, though I'm usually on the first flight out and landing before noon.

[2BERMUDA]

That sounds crazy. Look at the flights from your airport to FLL. Then call back with the flights best for you and ask for a supervisor.  If no luck, then book on your own.

[Breckski]

How can anyone help without knowing which airport is the OP's home airport?  It may be some borderline private airstrip with extremely limited commercial flights.  

[LissaKay]

21 hours ago, sundaycreek said:

The same thing happened to us and I tried to persuade them that we will be flying the day off, not the day before, as it would not take us over 24 hours to reach FLL!    They said that is just how their system books it so I decided to wait and see what would happen.  Lo and behold, when our flights were assigned, we were indeed booked the morning of embarkation so no worries.

 

Thank you for the information. That's very helpful. 

[gma1]

Our Viking air flight out of IAD at 9am was also booked on the morning of the day our cruise leaves out of Ft. Lauderdale in early evening. We are use to heading overseas & arriving the next morning to board our cruise. So we too are uneasy about "what if happens" especially the morning traffic going into Washington DC !  We are about 45 minutes away from IAD on a good commute. So we are going in the night before & staying in a hotel with shuttle service. Its just a little more peace of mind & less stress on these 2 senior travelers' !  The Precruise was sold out  (we lived in Ft. Lauderdale for years also) ...so this is our solution & less expensive. 

[LissaKay]

24 minutes ago, mwike said:

How can anyone help without knowing which airport is the OP's home airport?  It may be some borderline private airstrip with extremely limited commercial flights.  

As I said, our airport is in the southeast. It is a regional airport, not a hub, but it is served by all three major airlines as well as a couple of budget fliers. 

Even if I put in the departing airport as Atlanta or Charlotte - which would be nonstop flights for Delta and American, respectively - I still get the departure date of March 17 for a cruise that embarks on March 18. Even with Orlando selected, it gives the same dates.

With Google Flights, the only way to depart on the 17th and arrive on the 18th is to either get there shortly after midnight, or with an overnight layover in the connecting airport. 

 

 

[CDR2001]

LissaKay,

I notice that you are using the price and build internet function, which is probably programmed for the usual overseas flights most people take. I wouldn’t book online since you have questions. I’d call a Viking rep ( or a Travel Advisor) and talk about your concerns. You can also call Viking Air plus, the line for booking specific flights instead of waiting for Viking Air to select a flight without your input. They charge a fee for the service, around $100pp but they may answer your question for no charge, or refer you to regular Viking Air department.     877 523 0580

Good luck. 

[OneSixtyToOne]

1 minute ago, CDR2001 said:

LissaKay,

I notice that you are using the price and build internet function, which is probably programmed for the usual overseas flights most people take. I wouldn’t book online since you have questions. I’d call a Viking rep ( or a Travel Advisor) and talk about your concerns. You can also call Viking Air plus, the line for booking specific flights instead of waiting for Viking Air to select a flight without your input. They charge a fee for the service, around $100pp but they may answer your question for no charge, or refer you to regular Viking Air department.     877 523 0580

Good luck. 

I also think this is a programming issue. Could also be that it doesn’t like flights that arrive after the first boarding time so it rejects them.

[PasadenaDave]

I think that you would get more assistance from this board if you listed your home airport.  Given that you are somewhere in the southeast, flights to Ft Lauderdale I suspect would be inexpensive and include bargain airlines that Viking doesn’t contract with.  A short domestic flight in my realm is a book on your own the day before and get a hotel.

[Gizmoiv]

On 8/29/2023 at 3:37 PM, LissaKay said:

We are booked on a cruise that will depart from Ft Lauderdale. We added Viking Air on our booking, and it said that we will depart from our home airport the day before the cruise embarks. I chatted with Viking to ask if there were any arrangements for a hotel for the night, or are we on our own. They said no, the flight should depart the day before, and then arrive the day of embarkation. Does this sound reasonable at all? The flight from our home airport is no more than 4 or 5 hours at the most, with a reasonable layover in either Atlanta or Charlotte. Even if we departed the last flight the day before and the second leg was the earliest one the next day, we'd have a layover of at least 13 hours. 

 

What has been the experience of others flying in to Ft Lauderdale booked with Viking Air? 

HI, we are flying out of San Diego on Viking Air, Delta Airlines with connection thru Atlanta.  Depart 955pm arrive Atlanta 5am and Depart Atlanta at 7:30pm (times approx)  2.5 hr layover seems good.  On the original flight with Viking Air thay flew us American thru Charlotte with a 1 hour layover.  Not appropriate... Need to watch.   Flights are available thru  the website.

R

[-Lew-]

1 hour ago, Gizmoiv said:

Depart 955pm arrive Atlanta 5am and Depart Atlanta at 7:30pm (times approx)  2.5 hr layover seems good.

 

That's a 14½ hour layover if your times are correct.

[Gizmoiv]

20 minutes ago, -Lew- said:

 

That's a 14½ hour layover if your times are correct.

Oops , typo, depart Atlanta at 7:30 am.

[LissaKay]

On 8/30/2023 at 6:39 PM, CDR2001 said:

LissaKay,

I notice that you are using the price and build internet function, which is probably programmed for the usual overseas flights most people take. I wouldn’t book online since you have questions. I’d call a Viking rep ( or a Travel Advisor) and talk about your concerns. You can also call Viking Air plus, the line for booking specific flights instead of waiting for Viking Air to select a flight without your input. They charge a fee for the service, around $100pp but they may answer your question for no charge, or refer you to regular Viking Air department.     877 523 0580

Good luck. 

 

We are already booked, with Viking Air. I went back in to get the screen shots for this post. And I did chat with Viking, and they said we would depart sometime on March 17 and arrive at sometime on March 18. We are an hour flight from several hub airports, then two to three hours from the hubs to FLL. 

[LissaKay]

On 8/31/2023 at 12:37 AM, PasadenaDave said:

I think that you would get more assistance from this board if you listed your home airport.  Given that you are somewhere in the southeast, flights to Ft Lauderdale I suspect would be inexpensive and include bargain airlines that Viking doesn’t contract with.  A short domestic flight in my realm is a book on your own the day before and get a hotel.

 

I get the same result when I check using ATL, CTL, and even MIA, JAX and MCO (Orlando) as the departing airport. The answer I am arriving at is that it's a glitch in the system. 

If it were only the flight to Ft Lauderdale, I would definitely book it myself. However, we will be returning from the cruise from Venice, and Viking prices are about two-thirds the prices I see on Google flights, plus they handle all the ground transfers, luggage handling, and etc. 

[pavementends]

Sounds like they want to put you on a redeye.

 

Don't know about you but that would persuade me to make my own reservations.

[Critically Cruising]

And we still can't make any kind of informed suggestions, as the departure city remains a bigger secret than the Manhattan Project.

 

 

[CCWineLover]

The OP does not wish to give out their departing airport - that is pretty clear (as in blanking out the airport on the booking).

With that in mind, I think we've all given plenty of advice.  Let her decide now.

I concur that investigating booking your own is the best solution, as Lew said.  More control, less aggravation, possibly and likely less cost.  Will be interested to hear what you do.