SJD117

The Viking experience could be worse -- a lot worse. (Paywall alert, but it's worth signing up for a trial to read the author's account.) https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2024/05/royal-caribbean-cruise-ship-icon-of-seas/677838/

Here in Italy, there’s nothing better than finding a family-run trattoria, ordering some fine pasta, and enjoying the local vino by the carafe or half-carafe. “La dolce vita” indeed! And the view doesn’t hurt…

We’re in Sorrento right now, enjoying the view from our hotel terrace overlooking the Gulf of Naples and the big city in the distance. Pompeii was crowded on Wednesday — our second visit to the site — but evocative as always.

Judging from Tim’s post, it appears he’s already decided which cruise line he likes best (as you’ve decided, too). And that’s great! “To each his or her own” as the old saying goes.

No worries — you didn’t step on my toes! And even if you had done so, those toes are pretty tough. I’ve developed a pretty thick skin after 42 years in the legal field. 😀

Attorney here. It’s very possible that lawyers won’t be working on this for “years to come.” They need plaintiffs, after all, and many real or potential cases may already have settled out. And other passengers may just wish to put the Sky debacle behind them, five years after it occurred. (There’s also the issue of potential statutes of limitation, but that’s beyond the scope of this comment.) As to the ascertainment of legal responsibility, courts do this all the time in multi-party litigation. It’s not a problem.

Articles about the NSIA report. https://maritime-executive.com/article/report-contends-viking-sky-was-non-compliant-and-should-not-have-sailed https://www.cruisehive.com/cruise-ship-which-lost-power-during-storm-should-have-never-sailed/126440

@Heidi13 Let us know when you've read Section 2.

Section 2.2 of the NSIA report discusses the decision to sail in detail. The following excerpt appears at page 101: "Even though the SRtP regulations don't specifically address a scenario like the one the Viking Sky experienced, the NSIA is of the opinion that departing Tromso with one out of four DGs unavailable represented an unacceptable risk to the crew and passengers on board given the forecast weather conditions the vessel was to experience. As the vessel did not comply with the internationally agreed minimum safety standard as required by SOLAS, it should not have departed Tromso under the prevailing circumstances."

Back in 2019, we sailed on a Viking cruise that was the second segment of a world cruise. This didn’t bother us at all. But apparently the presence of “segmenters” did bother some who were going all the way through. One person even suggested on CC that folks like us might have an “agenda” that would disrupt the rhythm and atmosphere on the ship. Who knew? 😀😀

We’ve been sailing with Viking for five years, too. But our experience has been different than yours. We book our cruises directly with the company, rather than through a TA, so we’ve encountered quite a few Viking agents along the way. They’ve all been helpful. In fact, two days ago we booked a new cruise with a Viking agent in Phoenix. He was top-notch in every respect.

Can you post the letter? Thanks.

We began our Nov.-Dec. 1996 trip to Bali at the island’s Sanur Beach, where we stayed for several days. I remember walking along the beach boardwalk and thinking about how hot it was — and more importantly, how I could get relief from the heat. Then I realized there were dozens of pools on the hotel and apartment grounds adjoining the boardwalk. So I jumped in one of those pools for a few minutes to cool off. Then I’d get hot again, so it was time to find another pool! I repeated this cycle many times that day. It helped me beat the Balinese heat.

We took the Thames Clipper from Westminster to Greenwich two weeks ago. I recall going right under the Tower Bridge, near the Tower of London. As noted above, there’s a stop near the Tower entrance. BTW, if you go to the Tower, allow some extra time for the Borough Market on the south side of the river. It’s the best street market in London IMO.

But Kent, some people just like to complain! 😁

@Bob Bruce If the change was inevitable (and I agree with you that it was), then what was the point of or reason for the hand wringing and angst on your end? You knew Viking was going to take care of the situation, and that’s what the company did. I see you received a full refund — congratulations! Hopefully it will go a long way toward allaying your angst.

It’s interesting that Viking includes Dakar in your revised itinerary. Some months ago, the company dropped Dakar from our Barcelona to Buenos Aires TA in Oct-Nov 2024 and substituted Cape Verde instead. There’s been no move back to Dakar to my knowledge.

For those who are geographically challenged, Phuket is a Thai island and resort area on the Indian Ocean side of the Malay Peninsula.

Sedate.

As I wrote above, we paid the discretionary service charge at every restaurant — so we don’t know the process for reversing the charge.

We just returned from a 12-day trip to London. Every restaurant in that wonderful city added a discretionary 12.5% service charge to our bill. This didn’t bother us at all; the service and food were both excellent, and we appreciated that we didn’t have to pay the charge (though we did every time). That’s why it’s hard for us to understand the angst on this thread about the Viking gratuity. Like the restaurant charges we paid, the gratuity is discretionary. So if you don’t like the service Viking provides, then don’t pay the gratuity! There — problem solved.

@Clay Clayton We visited the Queen Victoria shopping arcade in 2017 on our three-week trip around Australia. Nice place!