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MimiDo

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  1. Thank you both. I do understand Viking Air has limitations. On the other hand, they said they could provide upgraded air for a fee when i booked and later paid for the cruise —- and then they couldn’t. And we fly out of Denver — not exactly a minor hub. We incurred no costs for our 2 different rounds of changes.last April. And we were able to relax because we made the changes quickly. However Viking Air waited until hey had made changes for ALL their customers — approximately 1/2 to 2/3 of the passengers on the ship — before they notified any passenger about their new itinerary. This produced considerable waits and anxiety because passengers wanted to tell their family, etc. their new flight schedule, and didn’t know when they would have that information. So for a day and a half every conversation on the ship seemed to start with “Did you hear yet”? Not relaxing at all. You obviously are Viking Air fans. I have had some good experiences with them, and sometimes their price is definitely competitive. I was making a cautionary comment, not an attack. We flew round trip to China with Viking Air in 2019 and saved about 20% on an airline I would not have booked myself (and it was fine). I would say I perceive their limitations, and am now more reluctant to part with the control I give up when I book with them partly because I’m a frequent airline shopper. Something that almost sounds to good to be true is — well, let’s just say might have some downsides.
  2. Good thinking — travel safe, and enjoy your cruise!
  3. We landed at 7 — the terminal rhat is closest to the taxi/Uber area. i think only taxi’s, not ride share, are available at the taxi stands inside the parking garages and reportedly closer to the terminals.
  4. We spent last weekend in LA. Since it was a short trip, we had just a small roller bag and 1.carry bag for the two of us. Even so, getting to the taxi/Uber area was challenging. I would describe it as a 4 block walk crossing several streets, multiple 90 degree turns, several traffic lights, changing from one side to another when sidewalk is closed for construction, and many places where sidewalk was narrow and/or uneven. We never saw the shuttle buses. On the LAX website ut says shuttle drivers will not help you load luggage. We’re booked on a cruise out of San Pedro in November — and we can’t imagine making that trek with a full-size suitcase with 4 wheels plus a carry-on bag each. When we got home we booked the luggage forwarding service available thru Viking for our full size bags. It’s pricy, but still just a small percentage of overall cruise cost.
  5. For our expedition cruise last April we paid $1000 each to upgrade our Viking Air flights to Business. When the tickets were issued all the seats were in economy, both Denver to Ft. Lauderdale and Toronto to Denver return. When I called to complain Viking Air claimed Business seats were not available — even though I could see on my computer that they were available on .United, Delta and American. So we cancelled Viking Air and booked directly — saved a few dollars, too. Our ship was significantly delayed due to fog several times when docking for debarkation in Toronto. I think the first person left the ship at 3 pm instead of 6 am. The passengers booked on Viking Air had to wait very long times to get their new bookings in multiple rounds of delays, and many ended up on flights either very late that night or before dawn the next morning. I on the other hand used my iPad to rebook my self-purchased seats on United — not once but twice — quickly and easily. Finally I think when you book internationally on Viking Air upgraded seats when you pay the surcharge are only guaranteed for your trans ocean flights, nit for your domestic connecting flights. i almost always book my own air. Viking allows us to purchase seats on the airport shuttle for a very reasonable fee. But they won’t allow us to do the same when we’re boarding unless we arrive on embarkation day. I would never arrive on the day the cruise boards — we always gonthe day before, even if we spend that night at an airport hotel. I wish Viking would allow us to book seats on the shuttles as long as we present ourselves at baggage claim checkin on the day of the cruise. I’ve thought about lying about my flight — but if that flight is delayed how would we explain how we arrived before the plane did? For our November cruise we’re arriving the day before but staying at the port that night,
  6. My husband and I are booked on a LA - Hawaii - Bora Bora - Tahiti - Marquesas - LA cruise this November and December. There are lots of sea days, and we’d like to take our walking poles to walk on the deck. Based on your experience — good idea or bad idea?
  7. Both dates in 2024 are sold out. Maybe as more ports in Europe close to cruise ships Viking will consider offering more Japan itineraries.
  8. I’ll bet it is, although since cherry blossom time is such a busy travel time fior the Japanese that excursions might be difficult. And the blossoms bloom at different times — Kyoto is 1-2 weeks after Kagoshima and Kyushu, Tokyo is a week after that, and northern Honshu (Aomori) and Hokkaido 1-2 weeks after Tokyo. I think the best times would be after Golden Week to mid June, or late October into November. i think Princess is offering some Japanese itineraries too — but I want to do this on Viking!
  9. I’d like to see: Bermuda Sea of Cortez circumnavigate JAPAN!
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