talltexan

The alternative dining restaurants on Expedition ships are small compared to a “Main Dining Room” table service venue on larger cruise ships. This smaller capacity forces/encourages more diners to use the buffet-style World Cafe, as they are not designed to serve most of the passengers each evening. Since we enjoy table service we dined there a couple of times, and I chose a nicer top than my daywear, but I didn’t really dress up. If this appeals to you, take a few things to feel a bit more upscale, but don’t plan to eat in the alternatives *every* evening because it is unlikely they will be available every night.

You may have to ask crew for directions to The Hide — it is (intentionally, I think) a challenge to get to - think speakeasy. We finally managed it using a forward, starboard side elevator, I think, down to the level, then through a closed door. We went after dinner and were the only ones there. The lone bartender came and rolled the bar cart out of the bow shaped (because it’s literally in the pointy end of the boat!) closet, and made us drinks. Since it turned out to be such a private affair, we asked him about his life on board and his family in the Philippines, and about a baffling “issue” that had happened with an AWOL crew member the day before. It was a very interesting experience that wouldn’t have taken place in a regular bar, I think.

There are shuttles traveling from the docks in Milwaukee and Detroit to somewhere in the cities (and back) but since these are large cities, it's questionable whether your excursion will pass where the shuttle drop/pickup point is. Guest services on board will be able to tell you the address for the shuttle point. I'm pretty sure an Uber or Lyft can get you to the shuttle, it just depends on whether you're willing to pay for what could be a long ride.

I did not get in a Zodiac, or watch one launch, so I can't speak to that. The Special Ops vessel is not hard to get into. There is a step down from a platform into the boat of less than a foot, and I imagine help could be given to get your wife up and down that one step. Since the boat is still inside the hangar of the ship, it is not rocking in the water during boarding. There are several videos on YouTube that show it in use. This one shows the door in the side that opens, and the platform you'd be stepping from, at about 55 seconds on the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yfmJ-c0j7E Viking has umbrellas available, as well as binoculars in each cabin. It's my understanding that trip insurance would reimburse you for hotel and meals if the local laws demand that a Covid positive passenger be put off the ship, rather than quarantined in a cabin on board. It is not Viking's decision, but they must abide by rules of the location.

We were on the Octantis last week. I didn't use the gym, but we walked in at looked at what we were taking a vacation from 😉 There are no TV screens on the equipment, but most of it does face the windows with a fabulous view of the water outside. No exercise classes were offered, and there were no sea days planned for our Milwaukee --> Toronto voyage. We got a sea day when we missed Alpena due to high winds, so they added a couple of lectures in the Aula, and scenic sailing of Lake Huron. If you search Octantis on YouTube, several people have posted video of a walk-through of the ship, including the gym, so you can look for yourself at what is there.