JeriGail

55 minutes ago, LinnieRed said:

Hello Viking veteran cruises, in my attempt not to feel like one of the Beverly hillbillies on our upcoming Viking cruise, I have the following question:

Is it acceptable to wear yoga pants and shirt to breakfast in the morning? I like to go to the gym at about 10:30 in the morning and I don’t want to have wardrobe changes to contend with.

Many thanks,

Linnie

Viking says that exercise attire should be reserved for the gym and sports decks.  Yoga pants are similar to leggings, so they might be allowed.

 @Clay Clayton posted all of the bar menus in a thread once, and I downloaded most of them.  The Torshavn menu was the most unique because of the Armagnac choices.  They're all fairly similar, but have a couple of differences

TorshavnMenu.pdf PapsTheExplorersBarMenu.pdf ThePoolBarMenu.pdf

1 hour ago, Karyllynne said:

I’ll be eagerly watching this - we’ll be in San Juan waiting for Sea to arrive!   

The Sea gets in at 3:00 AM, so you'll need to be up terribly early!  🙂 

The Viking Sea transatlantic cruise from Barcelona to San Juan begins 11/29/21.  However, some on our roll call are already traveling, so we've started the Live thread early.

9 minutes ago, donaldsc said:

I know that you can bring wine on board w/o paying a bottle charge.  Several questions -

 

1) Within reason, is there a limit of how much you can bring

2) Can you buy wine at a port stop and then bring it on board

3) On other lines you have to drink it in your cabin if you have not paid the bottle charge.  Is it the same on Viking or can you bring the bottle to the dining room and have them pour it for you and then have them keep it in the dining room for future drinking.

4) How bad is the bottle markup on Viking

5) Does anyone have any idea of a place where we can buy wine pre-cruise in San Juan Puerto Rico.

 

I did a Google search and could not find this information.  Many thanks.

 

DON

Although I've never cruised Viking, I know that you can buy wine in ports and bring it onboard.  Plus, I know you can bring the bottle to the dining room and they will happily uncork it and serve it with no charge.  I don't know if they will keep the bottle in the dining room though.

1 hour ago, jmfdr said:

We depart on our first Viking ocean cruise on November 26.  When and how will we be notified of our boarding time?  There is nothing to indicate that on MVJ or that we have received in emails from Viking.  

We depart on our first Viking cruise on November 29th, so I called Viking to ask about embarkation times and was told the same thing - everyone can board at 11:00 AM. 

2 hours ago, Queenvee said:

I studied the deck plans and a happy to see a real promenade deck - are there lounge chairs on the prom deck?  Typically, the mid-ships pool areas are crowded with rows of lounge chairs, music blaring and generally not "peace and quiet".  Are there areas on the Orion that are less crowded but provide sunning opps and water views?  

Go to You Tube and search for Viking Ocean ship tours and you'll find many videos that will show you the different outdoor areas with their seating.

41 minutes ago, zelker said:

Not a Silver Spirits package question but does anyone know what brand of VODKA they provide in the minifridges? 

 

Also, assume we can request that they restock it only with vodka since that's all we'll drink?

 

Thx.

I found some photos from a Viking Sky ship tour that shows the mini-bar.  Vodka was Smirnoff, Rum was Bacardi, and gin was Beefeater.

45 minutes ago, donaldsc said:

I have looked at the free excursions on a Viking Caribbean cruise and most of them are bus trips which look totally worthless.  I have been trying to find out the cost of the optional excursions and I can't find it anywhere on the Viking site.  Am I missing anything.

 

Also, the cruise info does not show the port times.  Every other cruise line WEB site shows the port times.  Again - am I missing something.

 

DON

The cost of the optional excursions won't be available until you can book the excursions.  Excursions on our TA cruise from Barcelona to San Juan ranged from $50 - $140/person.  Port arrival and departure times will be shown on your guest statement after you book a cruise.  Our port times were almost all 8 - 6.  

1 minute ago, Twitchly said:

Actually, the Powecom KN95s are the ones that leave red grooves in my face. That may be due to my chipmunk cheeks as much as anything. In spite of that, they’re still preferable to our vicious N95s. Those left bruises. 

I have a smaller face, so they're probably more comfortable for me because of that.  My husband has a much larger face, so he will not be as happy on our long travel day.

31 minutes ago, bbtondo said:

Just got off the viking sea today and in Rome at our post cruise hotel. We have scheduled private tours in Rome. You're free to do and go where you want.

 

 Did 2 days in Florence on viking sea excursions.  We enjoyed them. Both tours had lunch included at really cute restaurants.  Also some free time for shopping. No private tours allowed per italy for cruise passengers. 

 

yup, doesn't make sense for fully vaccinated,  negative covid test,, tested everyday and contact tracing. Their country their rules.. This was our first viking cruise and first trip to Europe.  

I'm on the Sea on 11/29/2021 for a TA to San Juan.  Was the World Café still crew served or was it self-serve?  This will also be my first Viking cruise and my first trip to Europe.

7 minutes ago, Twitchly said:

We have these as well. 

 

I wore an N95 mask when we flew last year. Wow, was it painful. It came from the hospital where DH works. I’ve since learned there are other versions out there that look much less torturous. But for our flight next week, I’m going for the plain old surgical paper variety. I may try the Powecom K95 for our pre-cruise flights in January, though I can’t imagine wearing one for 12 hours. They leave red indentations on my face after just a short time.

There's a big difference between N95 and KN95 masks.  I ordered the Powecom KN95 masks that @LindaS272recommended and really like them.  They fit well but do not leave the red mark on your face that N95 masks do.  I'm not looking forward to wearing one for 20 hours on our travel day, but being safe is more important.

3 hours ago, JM0115 said:

I did that on my last cruise but TMobile sent me a text saying that I am using the ship's cellular service and to watch out to avoid high costs. How do it know if and when I can turn on the cellular service? Do I have to be off the ship to make sure that I am using the cellular service for the country I am in and not the ship's service?

I did some more research on the ship's cellular service in port and found numerous references to regulations that require the ship's service to be available only in international waters.  As Clay mentioned, check the network settings to see which cellular network you're connected to.  I found FAQs from several cruise lines that offer this type of service - 

Service for voice calls, texting (SMS) and data is available onboard while the ship is at sea. 

Once the WMS network is switched on, while roaming on our cruise ships, you will see a distinct display on your handset that differs from your home carrier. Depending on the make and model of your phone, the handset will read Nor 18, cellular@sea or 901 18.

Before you leave the United States, you should also turn off automatic updating for your apps.  Either turn off background syncing or set it to Wi-Fi only.

1 hour ago, Eggtuary said:

I’ve heard that using cellular data on the ship gets expensive, though. Do you have to travel a certain distance from the ship before turning on cellular to avoid the phone connecting through the ship?

Many cruise lines provide a "cellular at sea" signal.  Your carrier would need to have a roaming agreement with the cellular service provider on the ship.  Your home network determines the international roaming rates that you pay.  Cruise ships have to turn off their wireless networks when they're in port and as they're approaching a port, so you don't have to worry about connecting through the ship when in port.  However, I don't know if Viking uses one of these services.

37 minutes ago, PKNC said:

Can you use Wi-Fi data on your cell phone on the ship to make local and international calls, without being charged roaming rates?

You can if you have an app that lets you made calls over Wi Fi.  Search for "android wifi calling app" or "iphone wifi calling app" to find your options.  These apps will often also let you text over Wi Fi too.

9 hours ago, safeman said:

I'm crossing my fingers that the State Department changes the travel advisory for Norway and the UK by then. Right now they are at Level 4 "Do Not Travel" because of COVID. I see that Italy and Spain are Level 3 - Reconsider Travel.

As far as I know the CDC's COVID levels are recommendations only - NOT travel bans.  For level 4 countries, the CDC says:

Avoid travel to these destinations. If you must travel to these destinations, make sure you are fully vaccinated before travel.

All air passengers coming to the US must have a negative COVID test before boarding the flight, no matter where they've traveled.

11 hours ago, WestW said:

We wore masks as we moved through the ship but once we sat down and were socially distanced we were able to remove them. This held true in the main dining room, World Cafe, Explorer’s Lounge, Living Room and dining outdoors. There seemed to be an unwritten rule that one could remove their masks as long as they were appropriately distanced from others. Whenever we got up to move about or get drink/food, we’d put our masks back on.  

Thanks so much for the observation about the unwritten rule about being able to remove masks when seated as long as you were distanced.  We cruise on the Sea at the end of this month (happy dance!).   Although my husband knows he'll have to wear masks except when eating or drinking, he was not happy about it.  I know the "unwritten rule" may be different when we cruise, but he'll be glad to know that he may be able to sit by himself without a mask.

1 hour ago, SoBaycruiser said:

Okay, I now understand that the PCR test onboard is a spit test.  Do all PCR tests and the rapid PCR tests require spitting?  Someone mentioned there is an alternate for those who can’t spit for the test during the cruise.  But now I’m worried about the private tests required to fly international and the one within 48 hrs of boarding the ship?  How are those performed?

There are multiple types of PCR tests.   Viking uses the saliva test, but nasal and nasal-pharyngeal swab tests are also performed.  Places like Walgreens and CVS usually use a nasal swab test.

3 hours ago, KBs mum said:

I'm wondering how much of the confusion is Viking covering all bases for all nationalities and destinations on their main websites, versus more specific info after booking? 

Nope - there's confusion on the specific itineraries.  At one time MVJ had the language about independent travelers needing a 2nd PCR test in Barcelona (our embarkation port) while the Viking web site for our cruise had no mention of independent travel, and only required the 72-hour PCR test before the first flight.

1 hour ago, LinnieRed said:

Thanks to you both. I will attempt to get a kettle from our room steward And as a last resort will do a thorough flush of the pod system. In my opinion, nothing worse than tea/coffee 😂. 

On the Viking "seacation" cruises around the UK, the cabin stewards brought a kettle in for those who wanted one.

1 hour ago, deec said:

I have written myself the name of the Chardonnay to try and find on the Panama Cruise..  Hoping CCWine Lover will offer suggestions during our TA cruise...maybe we can have our own wine tasting !!!  Order room service cheese and bread and meet in Explorer's Lounge....sounds like a perfect SEA DAY...knowing the great Viking bartenders they will find all the wines we want to sample!

What a fantastic idea!  A create-your-own wine tasting!

2 hours ago, deec said:

nice and empty!!!  However, someone else will be using that very serving spoon...need to wash your hands again before eating!!!  Viking just serve in the WC!!

I was thinking that very thing - Viking will need hand sanitizer at each table.  I'm not happy that Viking has gone back to self-serve.

6 hours ago, Eggtuary said:

Do they offer “fancy” coffees in the living room?  For instance, when my wife goes to Starbucks, she gets a nonfat caramel macchiato. Trying to get a sense whether anything remotely comparable might be available. 
 

At home, she does the cinnamon dolce Keurig pods. Doesn’t look like Nespresso offers that one. 🙁

I understood exactly what you were asking, so ignore the negative posters.  You asked if they offer fancy coffees in the Living Room and gave an example of the type of coffee that your wife might order at Starbucks.  I found this thread on CC about the coffee on Viking.  It talks about the great espresso and lattes served in The Living Room and has a photo of the "do it yourself" Espresso machine in the World Café.

7 minutes ago, zelker said:

How far is one lap around the outside deck and is it marked?

One lap is a quarter mile.