Considering our First Viking Cruise

[Peregrina651]

7 hours ago, kctwinmommy said:

She was contemplating reaching out to the CEO because customer service wasn't helping her with what she wanted.

 

I'm assuming that one of those disappointments was Abu Simbel.

 

Customer service can't make two seats on the plane to Abu Simbel magically appear, no matter how hard they try. Viking only charters one plane and when it is full, it is full.

 

At this point, the best she can do is 1) book her own flights or a private tour to Abu Simbel  or 2) keep checking the website in hopes of a cancellation. And she can do the same for the other tour that she was too late to book.

 

You are so right. Do your homework!

 

And don't be like the man who didn't read any of the information sent to him for his Russian river cruise -- because his eyes were too weak. He expected some to tell him everything he needed to know.  When he got to the airport, he did not have the required visa for the trip. He didn't even make to TSA before his trip was over. No visa. No boarding pass. No refund. Not covered by insurance. Adios thousands of dollars. No sympathy from CC members as he attempted to shift blame to everybody else.

[kctwinmommy]

10 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

I'm assuming that one of those disappointments was Abu Simbel.

 

Customer service can't make two seats on the plane to Abu Simbel magically appear, no matter how hard they try. Viking only charters one plane and when it is full, it is full.

 

At this point, the best she can do is 1) book her own flights or a private tour to Abu Simbel  or 2) keep checking the website in hopes of a cancellation. And she can do the same for the other tour that she was too late to book.

 

You are so right. Do your homework!

 

And don't be like the man who didn't read any of the information sent to him for his Russian river cruise -- because his eyes were too weak. He expected some to tell him everything he needed to know.  When he got to the airport, he did not have the required visa for the trip. He didn't even make to TSA before his trip was over. No visa. No boarding pass. No refund. Not covered by insurance. Adios thousands of dollars. No sympathy from CC members as he attempted to shift blame to everybody else.

I'm not totally sure, one was the hot air balloon ride. Although a few people said they couldn't book that until they were onboard the ship, yet others said they booked before. She said the other was a tomb, but my knowledge of that trip is limited, so not sure what she wanted to see. And yep, I look at websites all the time for my trips, read all sorts of things, research a bunch!

 

And YIKES! That's awful for that guy. But nobody else to blame!

[Peregrina651]

26 minutes ago, kctwinmommy said:

I'm not totally sure, one was the hot air balloon ride

 

Book it on the ship, maybe even when you arrive at the hotel for the couple of days in Cairo. Talk with your group leader. There are plenty of balloons and plenty of water taxis to get you there.

[CDNPolar]

13 hours ago, kctwinmommy said:

For ocean cruises, yes. Someone made a post on a SM website complaining how they spent all this money, booked 3 years in advance, got the best cabin on the Egyptian river cruise, only to not realize that excursions are all booked at the same time. Her cruise is in October I think, and she decided to look now at excursions only to find out 2 she really wanted were sold out. She was contemplating reaching out to the CEO because customer service wasn't helping her with what she wanted.

 

Again, this is why you need to research what you want to do. The cruise, the route, the deadlines, the options, etc...

 

This is a clear cut example of the need to understand fully what you are booking.  

 

This may also be a great reason why this person should have used a Travel Agent that knows cruises and the ins and outs of these bookings.

 

 

[kctwinmommy]

11 hours ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

Book it on the ship, maybe even when you arrive at the hotel for the couple of days in Cairo. Talk with your group leader. There are plenty of balloons and plenty of water taxis to get you there.

Yep! Maybe she'll figure it out. It's not my problem. 😉 But this lady was certainly not happy, and her post had that whole tone of "I booked the best so expect to get everything I want." But she obviously didn't research her trip enough.

[FoggyEthan]

2 hours ago, kctwinmommy said:

Yep! Maybe she'll figure it out. It's not my problem. 😉 But this lady was certainly not happy, and her post had that whole tone of "I booked the best so expect to get everything I want." But she obviously didn't research her trip enough.

What makes it most pitiful is that, with her money, she could arrange private tours every day through a local company and get everything she wants 

[FoggyEthan]

On 7/9/2024 at 7:33 AM, OneSixtyToOne said:

City life vs country life

I think this is one of those areas where it isn't about an American cultural divide. If you look at Las Vegas, it's popular among Americans from everywhere in the country. And also, people from a city may want to vacation somewhere quiet, and people from the country may want to vacation somewhere exciting. It depends why a person enjoys vacationing.

[OneSixtyToOne]

1 hour ago, FoggyEthan said:

If you look at Las Vegas, it's popular among Americans from everywhere in the country.

“Gambling may be an addiction but it’s the only addiction where you can win money” - Norm Macdonald 

[FoggyEthan]

1 hour ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

“Gambling may be an addiction but it’s the only addiction where you can win money” - Norm Macdonald 

That is absolutely a valid (and humorous) point -- but I was referring to the glitz and high energy of Vegas, pointing out that people across all lifestyles enjoy it. Royal Caribbean is basically a floating Vegas strip resort.

[kctwinmommy]

4 hours ago, FoggyEthan said:

What makes it most pitiful is that, with her money, she could arrange private tours every day through a local company and get everything she wants 

Possibly... or she spent these 2-3 years saving to pay for it. Never know. I just don't get booking something without doing a little research. And I would imagine that cruise isn't cheap, so you should know what you want out of it.