Planetariums on Viking Ships

[millybess]

15 minutes ago, SantaFe1 said:

We had a resident astronomer on board our 2019 WC on the Sun and everybody loved him.  Even the captain went to his evening under the stars presentation.  When on the Orion in Alaska, we had an astronomer do the show in the planetarium.  But it was just so-so.

I guess it's like a tour guide.  It all depends on who you get.

 

We really like the presentations by the historians on Viking.  But, we've run into a few that have put us to sleep.  

[Capt_BJ]

location of 'Asian Station' window on Saturn this past July ... it's small, easy to walk right past it.

 

Edited March 18 by Capt_BJ

[millybess]

4 minutes ago, Capt_BJ said:

location of 'Asian Station' window on Saturn this past July ... it's small, easy to walk right past it.

 

Thanks very much.  Do they have a menu posted by the window?  How would one know what to order -- unlike the other rather open stations in the WC?

[CCWineLover]

No "Menu" posted.  Just off the Saturn.  They had "placards" on the high lgass protective counter above the food (like those in the World Cafe) that showed different things being served.  Never listed on the app or wall screens.

At dinner, they always had Dan Dan noodles, and then other dishes varied.  Usually another noodle dish, like pork noodles, plus some kind of vegetable dish and/or possibly some meat dishes (like Kung Pao Shrimp for example).  Just a variety of things.  Not known in advance.  We made a habit of always going to the Station right away just to check out what was available that night.

For breakfast, usually had shumai, potstickers, or dumplings plus spring rolls, and other things.  Generally a decent amount of choices.  

I will look for some pictures I took this past trip.

[millybess]

2 minutes ago, CCWineLover said:

No "Menu" posted.  Just off the Saturn.  They had "placards" on the high lgass protective counter above the food (like those in the World Cafe) that showed different things being served.  Never listed on the app or wall screens.

At dinner, they always had Dan Dan noodles, and then other dishes varied.  Usually another noodle dish, like pork noodles, plus some kind of vegetable dish and/or possibly some meat dishes (like Kung Pao Shrimp for example).  Just a variety of things.  Not known in advance.  We made a habit of always going to the Station right away just to check out what was available that night.

For breakfast, usually had shumai, potstickers, or dumplings plus spring rolls, and other things.  Generally a decent amount of choices.  

I will look for some pictures I took this past trip.

Sounds delicious. Thanks much!!

[LindaS272]

1 hour ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

The planetariums programs were not implemented correctly and I consider it a major failure for Viking, not to mention an expensive underused asset. We were on the 2nd sailing of the Jupiter and the planetarium was showing something similar to an IMAX dome presentation, but no planetarium shows. There was an astronomer guest lecturer aboard so I approached him and asked if he could give a presentation in the planetarium. He researched it and two days later he announced a presentation and printed out a limited number of tickets. He did an hour on various stars, planets, and cosmology. It was very enjoyable and informative. I have a feeling that Viking's vision was an automated movie theater without the need or cost of a presenter. IMO a big fail.

Agree with you about the major fail. We were on the Jupiter soon after inauguration as well but did not learn about any actual astronomy shows there. I was expecting shows about the part of the world we were traveling in, but the shows were largely about the Arctic when we were in the Southern Hemisphere! And no real astronomy—major disappointment. I don’t know how/why they came up with such a poor idea.

[LindaS272]

1 hour ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

The planetariums programs were not implemented correctly and I consider it a major failure for Viking, not to mention an expensive underused asset. We were on the 2nd sailing of the Jupiter and the planetarium was showing something similar to an IMAX dome presentation, but no planetarium shows. There was an astronomer guest lecturer aboard so I approached him and asked if he could give a presentation in the planetarium. He researched it and two days later he announced a presentation and printed out a limited number of tickets. He did an hour on various stars, planets, and cosmology. It was very enjoyable and informative. I have a feeling that Viking's vision was an automated movie theater without the need or cost of a presenter. IMO a big fail.

Agree with you about the major fail. We were on the Jupiter soon after inauguration as well but did not learn about any actual astronomy shows there. I was expecting shows about the part of the world we were traveling in, but the shows were largely about the Arctic when we were in the Southern Hemisphere! And no real astronomy—major disappointment. I don’t know how/why they came up with such a poor idea.

[Kellybc]

Four of us went to Alaska on the Orion June 2019 and enjoyed the shows in the planetarium. There also was an astronomer who did presentations in the theatre, very informational. This January we were back on the Orion cruising to New Zealand and Australia. The planetarium was still there, but closed. After being on the Sea and Star, we decided we prefer the area as a lounge. We didn’t remember the Asian station from the Alaska cruise, but it was popular on our last one. 

[millybess]

1 minute ago, Kellybc said:

Four of us went to Alaska on the Orion June 2019 and enjoyed the shows in the planetarium. There also was an astronomer who did presentations in the theatre, very informational. This January we were back on the Orion cruising to New Zealand and Australia. The planetarium was still there, but closed. After being on the Sea and Star, we decided we prefer the area as a lounge. We didn’t remember the Asian station from the Alaska cruise, but it was popular on our last one. 

On Jupiter we didn't use the planetarium.  We were too busy doing other things. But, yes, we also missed having the extra space in the upper lounge.  

 

I hope your experience on Orion is repeated next month when we will be on Orion from Hong Kong to Vancouver.  We have several sea days between Japan and Alaska and I think we would enjoy a presentation by an astronomer.  

 

Usually when we board our habit is to grab lunch at the Pool Grill while we wait for our luggage to arrive.  But I think this time I'll be checking out the Asian Station.  

[photopro2]

4 hours ago, millybess said:

I'm re-reading your post and it would be great if they had a resident astronomer on board, even without the planetarium.  Especially for TAs and other voyages where there are a lot of sea days.  

We are currently on the Viking Jupiter for a TA and there is a resident astronomer on board who will give presentations about the night sky from the top deck (weather permitting) as well as using the planetarium for talks on "The sky above us". We also have the IMAX style shows mentioned previously.

[Squawkman]

3 hours ago, millybess said:

Sounds delicious. Thanks much!!

Only on Viking have I had bacon, eggs and shumai for breakfast 😊

Edited March 19 by Squawkman
Spelling

[millybess]

31 minutes ago, photopro2 said:

We are currently on the Viking Jupiter for a TA and there is a resident astronomer on board who will give presentations about the night sky from the top deck (weather permitting) as well as using the planetarium for talks on "The sky above us". We also have the IMAX style shows mentioned previously.

Thanks for this.  I hope we have the same experience on Orion.  

[GonzoWCS]

Great information here thanks!

 

Cheers

[TayanaLorna]

18 hours ago, millybess said:

Same when we were on Jupiter.  I was doing some research and came across an article that said Saturn, Mars and Neptune also have planetariums, but I didn't think that was the case.  

Saturn does not thank goodness.  The upper explorers lounge has less displays (ship models) and more seating which is nice.

[frickwg]

My wife and I tried it once on our first Viking cruise.  Low resolution, fuzzy, not worth the effort.  Too bad as it was a good idea!

[FetaCheese]

Now on Star TA.  No astronomer lecturer.

[WAVTAM]

On Orion presently and planetarium is down with broken camera.

[Hockeyump]

We're also on the Orion. For us this is not an issue.

[millybess]

We are joining Orion in HK in 12 days and we are looking forward to it! 
 

Since we have been on many Viking cruises and ships, we are curious as to whether we have encountered some of the officers and staff before.  There is usually a screen showing the Ship's officers on Deck 1 on the port side to the front of the aft elevators.   If anyone on board could post a photo of same that would be great. We heard that they have changed some officers a couple of days ago?

[Insanityx4]

We were on the Orion and the planetarium was meh at best for entertainment! Also the main problem was that the Explorer's Lounge was freezing and we had to wear a jacket whenever there. Crew said it only a problem on the two ships with a Planetarium.

[dfraser66]

On 3/28/2024 at 3:59 PM, millybess said:

We are joining Orion in HK in 12 days and we are looking forward to it! 
 

Since we have been on many Viking cruises and ships, we are curious as to whether we have encountered some of the officers and staff before.  There is usually a screen showing the Ship's officers on Deck 1 on the port side to the front of the aft elevators.   If anyone on board could post a photo of same that would be great. We heard that they have changed some officers a couple of days ago?

How was your cruise? We are sailing Vancouver back to Tokyo in September and I was wondering if there were any astronomers or which historians did they host for that leg with so many sea days

[millybess]

11 hours ago, dfraser66 said:

How was your cruise? We are sailing Vancouver back to Tokyo in September and I was wondering if there were any astronomers or which historians did they host for that leg with so many sea days

We loved the cruise.  Japan is certainly a place we will be visiting again.

 

There was a Destination Performance in Tokyo called the Awa Dance -- not to be missed.

Another not to be missed was the Kagura Performance when the ship was docked in Sapporo

 

The Viking Resident Historian:  Dr. Robert Cribb - an Australian historian

The Viking Resident Astronomer Terence Murtagh - former director of the Armagh Planetarium

Guest Lecturer: Phil Smart -- a geologist

Guest Lecturer: Peter Mawby -- ornitholigist and research ecologist

Viking also had a bridge instructor and a workshop host.

 

I will see if I can track down the Guest Performers a bit later.

 

Enjoy!!

[millybess]

If I left anybody out, maybe someone else on the cruise will add to the list.

 

 

[millybess]

We spent a lot of time with Peter Mawby.  He would be in the Explorer's Lounge every morning at 8:00 helping us to identify the birds and the sealife.  He was very interesting and I hope he will be on your cruise.

 

Guest Entertainers:

Don Bryan: ventriloquist

Doug Cameron: a rousing violinist

Hayden Smith: singer

Alexa Smith: dancer, singer

 

Graham Seymour was the CD -- a really great guy and the best CD we've had on Viking

 

 

[allyg]

We are on Orion in Alaska 2025. Does Orion have the planetarium rather than the upper area of the Explorers’ Lounge? If so, that is disappointing as the upper level of the lounge is one of our favorite spots. Does Orion have the Asian section in the rear of the WC? We are also doing the Denali extension. Any thoughts? Thanks.