Tango_01

Interesting to see that while most cruise ships have diverted and going around Africa, the Crystal Symphony and Le Champlain went through the Bab Al-Mandab strait and are now sailing in the Red Sea (according to Marine Traffic). I wonder why they made such a decision...

Hi fellow travelers on the Sky. Could anyone scan and post the description of the tours available after Cape Town? Thanks from the Neptune 🙏

Happy Thursday everyone! We on the Neptune still don't have the official arrival and departures times in Colombo and the ports after it. It is interesting that you on the Sky got the information on February 24 but we still don't have it, more than 2 weeks after. There are a few "unofficial" drafts circulating among passengers provided by some guest services agents, but it would be nice to have some kind of tentative times, even if they are not final. On the positive side, it is a beautiful day at sea and the crew is working extra hard to keep everyone happy.

We on the Neptune got the Tour Descriptions for Mauritius to Cape Town last night and, as expected, many were surprised with the included tours, especially the safaris. Included "safaris" are actually visits to parks and reserves, which are fine, but I wish Viking had been more upfront about how they were calling them. This morning we found the tour order forms in our doors and were told that tours will be assigned on a first come first serve system, so Guest Services was for for some time a camping area. We put our names for the KwaZulu Natal Overland and then will fly directly to Cape Town so we can spend time there as well, skipping Port Elizabeth. The list of tours available at each port is impressive and Viking has done a great job putting this together in such a short period of time, but the way it is being rolled out and communicated is messy. One can even see the frustration in the Guest Services agents because they can't answer some basic questions. We are also still waiting for arrival and departures times in the ports of the new itinerary. Let's hope for smoother sailing days ahead!

I think the two videos are different, as the itinerary is not the same. The Neptune doesn't mention Reunion and it covers the 2 stops in Namibia. The video didn't provide details about South Africa, the lady just said that "we have made the point to offer one included safari for everyone on board, we are in the final stages of preparation and whether we will be able to offer it in only one port or spread across the ports, we are finalizing that part, but it is guaranteed that every guest will have access to an included safari, among many other included options that we will have in every port of South Africa." No further details and still no arrival and departure times.

Do you remember if in 2019 this safari in Kruger was an included tour or optional? We at the Neptune were promised an included safari in South Africa but considering that we have no overnights in the country and will have 800+ passengers, I don't see how this is logistically possible, unless it's a shuttle to a reserve nearby a port. This will be interesting to see.

We have the same change on the Neptune.